By the time Huo Sining returned to the Huo family, it was already evening, and as soon as she entered, she heard Xu Lian scolding Huo Yong.
"Other men bring money into their own homes, but you, the unfortunate one, only know how to give it away! All you do is play cards every day. Your mother must have been blind to pick someone as useless as you!"
As Huo Sining carried a wooden basin into the courtyard, Huo Yong, who was sitting under the grape trellis, looked up at her awkwardly, pursing his lips as if to explain something.
But Huo Sining was used to it, knowing from Huo Yong's dejected appearance that he must have lost money, or else Xu Lian wouldn't be scolding him so viciously.
Anxious not to draw the ire upon herself, Huo Sining didn't dare to provoke Xu Lian, who was still fuming.
With deft movements, she untied the clothesline and began to hang the clothes out to dry on the sunny side.
While she was busy with the clothes, Huo Longjiang crept carefully into the house from outside, glancing around guiltily as soon as he entered.
Although Huo Longjiang was overbearing and arrogant, he was only ten years old after all. He had seen Huo Sining struggle in the pond for a bit before sinking to the bottom, which immediately sent him into a panic, staggering as he ran back to the village.
But for the entire afternoon, he was so restless with worry that Huo Sining might have died, he couldn't even bring himself to play, regretting the prank he played that pushed Huo Sining into the water.
Huo Longjiang's heart was pounding with tension, consoling himself by thinking that Huo Sining was just a wild child, and that even if she died, his mother certainly wouldn't blame him.
Yet upon returning home, he was surprised to see Huo Sining standing perfectly fine in the courtyard, which immediately eased his worries.
He was just about to ask Huo Sining how she got out of the pond when he approached her and noticed something unusual.
His eyes widened in astonishment as he asked indignantly,
"Huo Sining, why aren't your clothes wet?"
Huo Longjiang's voice was both angry and annoyed, considering he had been worried for so long, only to find that Huo Sining was completely fine, not even her clothes were wet!
Huo Sining's heart skipped a beat, but without showing any reaction, she glanced at Huo Yong and saw he hadn't noticed the commotion. Only then did she relax.
Standing up straight, Huo Sining turned around and glared fiercely at Huo Longjiang, "What did you say?"
Huo Sining's voice was menacing, her eyes flashing with a cold glint that seemed to exert an oppressive atmosphere.
Huo Longjiang's stance stiffened, and he took a step back in fright.
Accustomed to bullying Huo Sining, he now felt apprehensive and dared not look directly into her eyes, averted his gaze, and murmured,
"Next time... If you dare to be lazy again, I will definitely tell my mom!"
Huo Longjiang pretended to be threatening as he waved his fists at Huo Sining, then turned and ran into the house.
Huo Sining exhaled with relief, secretly feeling fortunate.
It was lucky that it was this little chubby boy who noticed something was off. If it had been Xu Lian or another adult, it might not have been so easy to fool them.
After she got out of the water, the Water-Repelling Pearl had disappeared without a trace, but Huo Sining could feel that the pearl was inside her body.
Her clothes had been soaked through when she fell into the pond, but after getting out, Huo Sining was surprised to find that she was completely dry, without a single water stain or speck of mud on her clothes and shoes.
After thinking it over, she was certain it was the Water-Repelling Pearl's doing.
She had been worried about getting soaked in the water and drawing people's attention; now, seeing that her clothes were dry, she was reassured.
Nevertheless, she hadn't expected Huo Longjiang to notice something odd about her clothes.
Fortunately, the child's focus wasn't on her clothes, and even if he found it strange, he wouldn't delve too deeply into it.
True enough, before long, Huo Longjiang's attention was caught by something else, and he soon forgot the matter.
Although it was just a minor incident, Huo Sining felt an alarm bell ringing in her heart.
This time it was a child, but next time she might not be so lucky. It seemed that she needed to be more vigilant and could absolutely not afford to drop her guard.
Deciding to sell fresh river seafood was not something she took lightly.
After dinner, Huo Sining started to make her move, discreetly asking Huo Yong about which nearby ponds were rich in river clams and which waters were public territory.
Huo Sining wouldn't dare to go to privately contracted ponds.
Firstly, those places were privately stocked with fish fry that were carefully bred, and each species had an approximate count. If it was noticed that the numbers were off, there would definitely be suspicions.
Moreover, those places usually had designated people and dogs to guard them, so her rashly entering the water could very likely result in her being caught.
Secondly, after all, people worked hard for their earnings. If she took without notice, it was no different from theft.
After scouting out the area, Huo Sining finally chose the most suitable place for her to make her move—the Baiyun Reservoir located less than two kilometers from the town.
The Baiyun Reservoir was the largest artificial lake in Baiyun Village, situated at the foot of Baiyun Mountain.
This reservoir, owned by the public, served as the large dam spanning four thousand mu, providing water for domestic use and agricultural irrigation for the entire Baiyun Village.
The lake was abundant with aquatic products, especially river clams, river snails, and crabs.
But because the reservoir's water level was constantly above fifty meters, no one dared to dive in to collect the river delicacies; at most, people would forage along the dried-up lakebed.
This was to Huo Sining's advantage. Possessing the Water-Repelling Pearl, even now in the peak of summer when the reservoir's storage level reached nearly a hundred meters, she could directly dive into the deep water area.
That night, after everyone in the Huo family was sound asleep, she quietly got out of bed and moved stealthily toward the Baiyun Reservoir in the dim night light.
She silently recited that strange incantation and, as expected, the Azure Pearl appeared in her mind.
Under the moonlight, the lake waters were deep and mysterious. Huo Sining felt a bit apprehensive, but the temptation of the delicacies at the bottom eventually overcame her fear.
She took a deep breath and slowly stepped into the water.
With the Water-Repelling Pearl's ability to see underwater at night, Huo Sining, like someone carrying a searchlight, hadn't dived long before she spotted a group of river clams opening their shells and struggling to move.
Huo Sining reached out and caught one.
It was as big as a dinner plate, much larger than those she had previously found in the ponds near her home.
After catching only a dozen of the large river clams, the snakeskin bag Huo Sining brought was almost too small to fit any more, and she felt a bit helpless, having to return to shore first.
A river clam, before being shucked, consists of 70 percent shell by weight alone.
The dozen or so large clams weighed about thirty jin. While in the water, buoyed by the lake, Huo Sining hadn't felt their weight, but on the shore, she felt the heft of the snakeskin bag.
That's when she realized she might have miscalculated. Even if she managed to sell these clams at the market, beside the question of whether she could sell them, transportation alone was a big problem.
Huo Sining felt dejected, sitting on the embankment looking at the dozen and a half large clams beside her, not sure whether to laugh or cry.
River clams were best eaten fresh; typically, buyers on the market preferred those with shells, finding them more reliable to see killed in front of them.
But if sold with the shell, a big problem arose—how was she going to transport these heavy creatures out?
It seemed her considerations were still not comprehensive enough, and Huo Sining furrowed her brows.
Huo Sining hid the snakeskin bag full of clams among the water plants and without diving for more, she headed straight back.
She decided to have a look at the market first thing tomorrow.