Juhua said expectantly, "If you're not busy with anything important, Dad, I want to go with you to catch fish and shrimp. The water just receded, so it must be really easy to catch them—a lot of fish from the river must have come up."
Zheng Changhe said happily, "Nothing important. I just finished draining the fields. Catching fish is proper work, too. It adds another dish to our table, doesn't it? We can just go to the ditches in our own fields, that way we can keep an eye on the rice paddies too."
Her mother also smiled. "Go on with your father. I'll stay home and cook."
Juhua was overjoyed. She quickly ate her breakfast and went out with Zheng Changhe, carrying a shrimp net on her shoulder and a fish basket in her hand. Thinking that some of the ditches might be narrow, she also made sure to bring a small sieve basket.
As they left, she saw Qingmu's envious look. Juhua smiled and told him that when he came home from his studies, she would take him to catch fish nearby.
