pjbooks Chapter 75 Old Debts, New Accounts
Chapter 75 Old Debts, New Accounts
Hong Xiaobing woke up before dawn.
A salty sea breeze blew into the asbestos-roofed shed. Hong Ashun was still asleep on the next bed, his head covered by the blanket, with only his ankles showing.
Hong Xiaobing didn't turn on the light. He sat up in the dark and searched under the bed for a while before finding the pair of liberation shoes. The uppers of the shoes were crushed at the heels, but he was too lazy to pick them up. He shuffled to the door of the shed and glanced outside.
The seawater in the stone trough rose to half-tide, gently lapping against the hull of the ship, while the loquat leaves rustled in the morning breeze.
He has something on his mind today.
Yesterday evening, after her third uncle pushed his bicycle off the seawall, the half-bag of sweet potatoes was still left in the corner of the kitchen. Lin Xiu'e covered it with old cotton yarn, saying that she would wait until her third uncle signed the credit agreement before discussing it further.
Hong Xiaobing knew that his third uncle was a man of his word; his father had lent his third uncle 200 yuan in Baishakou that he still owed.
But boat repair is different. The boat is the fisherman's life. If the boat is broken and he can't fish, his family will have nothing to eat.
He squatted at the entrance of the shed for a long time, then stood up, dusted off his trousers, and walked towards the workshop.
Jiang Haiping is already in the workshop.
He spread the refurbished water pump register on the table and was checking the refurbished parts sales records of the past few days one by one.
The new nameplate sample was picked up from the hardware store in town the day before yesterday. It's made of aluminum sheet and is a layer thicker than the old one. In addition to the old part number, refurbishment date, and warranty expiration date, it also has an extra line engraved with "Made by Moon Island Service Station" and a signature column for the verifier.
Ah Guang squatted on the ground next to him, using a small steel type to tap the number on a new nameplate. He would tap it once, stop to check the position, then tap it again, muttering that the type was too small and if he tapped it crookedly, the whole nameplate would be ruined.
Jiang Haiping told him not to rush, and to make twenty new nameplates as a backup. When the inspection team arrives, every refurbished water pump will be fitted with one. In the future, fishermen will only need to look at this line of text when buying refurbished parts.
Hong Xiaobing walked in, and Jiang Haiping closed the registration book, looked up at him, and asked if it was about his uncle coming over yesterday afternoon.
Hong Xiaobing squatted down next to A Guang and explained in detail the situation of his third uncle's old fishing boat.
That boat was a second-hand boat that his third uncle bought from someone last year. It had a wooden hull, was a little over 20 tons, and was only a few years older than Qiu Changhai.
It has never been properly repaired since it was bought. Several pieces of the bottom plate are rotten, the diesel engine is an old Weichai model that has been emitting black smoke for several years, the gearbox makes a noise when shifting gears, and the rudder system is heavy.
His third uncle wanted to start a transport business, so he had to have the entire ship inspected, with any missing planks replaced and any major repairs done before it could go out to sea.
But when you factor in the labor and materials, the cost is considerable.
"My uncle is a man of his word. He's a gambler and used to have a huge gambling debt in Baishakou. He borrowed money everywhere. My dad lent him 600 yuan, and he paid back 400 yuan, but he still owes 200 yuan."
He pushed his bicycle to the service station yesterday, and the half-sack of sweet potatoes he brought was something my aunt asked him to bring. He couldn't bring himself to ask for it.
Jiang Haiping was silent for a while, then said that repairing the boat was fine, but the credit agreement had to be signed by his third uncle himself. The fishing boat registration certificate, ID card, and fingerprint were all required, the repayment date had to be clearly written, and the interest would be calculated according to the service station's rules.
Hong Xiaobing said he would go back this morning to get his third uncle's fishing boat registration certificate and take a look at how badly the boat was damaged and whether it was worth repairing.
Jiang Haiping agreed and suggested that Hong Ashun go with him so that the two of them could look after each other.
As the sun climbed to the top of the loquat tree, Hong Xiaobing and Hong Ashun walked along the seawall.
It takes less than half an hour to get from Moon Island to Hongjia Island by ferry, but Hong Xiaobing's third uncle lives in an old village on the east side of the island, which is quite a walk from the pier.
The two disembarked from the ferry and walked eastward along the gravel path on the mudflats.
On both sides of the road were densely packed reefs and fishing nets drying on them. Several old fishermen squatted by the nets mending the mesh, the shuttle weaving back and forth between the meshes. When they saw Hong Xiaobing walking by, someone straightened up and called out, "Xiaobing is back." Hong Xiaobing responded but did not stop.
His third uncle's house was a stone house at the far east end of the old village. The courtyard wall was made of rubble and was low. Several old fishing nets were drying in the yard, and several baskets of oyster shells were piled up at the base of the wall.
The old fishing boat was sitting upside down on the mudflats behind the house, its bottom facing the sky. The deck was covered with a thick layer of barnacles, so dense that the shells would crumble off at the slightest touch.
Hong Ashun squatted down and tapped the bottom of the boat with a hammer. Some of the pieces made a dull sound, indicating that they were rotten.
He used a slate pencil to draw a circle on the rotten planks, saying that at least four planks needed to be replaced, and if the rotten wood had penetrated and injured the ribs, even more would have to be replaced.
Hong Xiaobing flipped off the boat and said that the diesel engine was still in the engine room. He had just opened the engine room cover and looked inside. There was a layer of white salt frost on the cylinder head, and the oil on the dipstick was black and sticky. He didn't know how long it had been since the oil was changed.
There was a crack on the gearbox casing, which was patched with welding rods. The patch was crooked and uneven, clearly a makeshift job.
His third uncle came out of the stone house. He was in his early fifties, his face roughened by the sea breeze. He wore a faded blue cloth jacket and slippers, and walked with a slight limp.
Hong Xiaobing called him Third Uncle and explained the rules for credit at the service station.
His third uncle squatted on the mudflats looking at the boat, saying that he hadn't properly repaired the boat since he bought it last year. He knew that he had to sign the credit agreement himself, and the fishing boat registration certificate was in the house, which he could get anytime.
Hong Ashun circled the rotten planks on the bottom of the boat, then shone his flashlight into the engine room and asked his third uncle when the diesel engine had been last serviced.
His third uncle said that after buying it, he changed the engine oil once, but didn't touch anything else.
Hong Ashun turned off the flashlight and said that the diesel engine needed at least a major overhaul. The fuel injectors were definitely clogged, and the cylinder liners and piston rings needed to be checked. The crankshaft might also need to be ground.
Hong Xiaobing squatted on the mudflats and checked the rotten planks that had been circled again. He stood up and said that when people were old enough to help, they could come and help shovel barnacles.
When the two returned to the service station, Lao Fang was squatting at the workshop entrance, smoking his first cigarette of the day.
Hong Xiaobing placed the fishing boat registration certificate on the worktable.
I explained the situation of the ship from beginning to end: four planks needed to be replaced, the diesel engine needed to be overhauled, the gearbox needed to be disassembled and inspected, the rudder system needed to be adjusted, and with the labor costs, it would cost at least two thousand.
Old Fang took the cigarette out of his mouth and asked the boat owner if he had signed the agreement.
Hong Xiaobing said his third uncle agreed to sign, and the fishing boat registration certificate has already been obtained.
Old Fang was silent for a while, then said that he would have his third uncle come over tomorrow morning to sign the credit agreement. The signing and fingerprinting should be done according to the rules. Ship repairs can be done on credit, and the interest will be calculated according to the service station's rules. The repayment date should be clearly written. If the debt is not repaid by the due date, the service station has the right to impound the ship.
Hong Xiaobing agreed, saying he would pick up his third uncle first thing tomorrow morning.
In the afternoon, everyone at the service station was doing a final cleanup before the inspection team arrived.
Ah Guang wiped the old parts shelves in the old parts warehouse again, and moved the old water pumps with metal nameplates on them in the scrap area to the most conspicuous position. After checking them, he flipped through the register from beginning to end.
Ding Haifeng squatted down beside her and helped her flip through the credit records and refurbished parts sales records one by one.
After calibrating the torque wrench for the last time, Ahai recorded the calibration data on the maintenance sheet, then reinstalled the diesel engine that had been used for the recent skills competition. He tightened the cylinder head bolts diagonally, and the torque wrench clicked four times.
Ding Haisheng finished welding the last thick plate in the welding area, measured the data of the last overhead weld with a weld seam measuring ruler, and filled it into the welder training record sheet.
In the evening, Hong Xiaobing closed the windows of the old parts warehouse and tucked them in tightly with plastic sheeting.
Hong Ashun put all the old water pump impellers back in their places, and Ding Haifeng closed the register and traced the hand-drawn registration form again.
In the kitchen, Lin Xiu'e ladled out the last bowl of fish ball soup and placed it on the stove, while Qiu Changhai sat at the entrance of the shed, sharpening his old chisel.
The special inspection team will arrive tomorrow. Hong Xiaobing's third uncle's old fishing boat is still sitting on the mudflats of Hongjia Island, waiting to be towed over and put on the raft.
In the courtyard, the waves lapped gently against the stone trough.