Chapter 295 - 176: Selling Dragon Pearls, Touring West Island

Chapter 295: Chapter 176: Selling Dragon Pearls, Touring West Island

But because of the earlier diving incident, Su Chen and Su Zhuyun decided to skip all sea-based activities. Their main focus was sightseeing and taking pictures, with a side mission of sampling West Island’s local cuisine.

The main island was split into a tourist area and a fishing village. After leaving their guesthouse, Su Chen and his family headed straight for the fishing village. After all, the tourist area was just hotels, guesthouses, and restaurants, with nothing truly fun to do.

The buildings in the fishing village mostly had dark tiles and gray walls, with conspicuous coral stones embedded in the masonry. This typical Qiong Province-style architecture had its own unique flair.

Coupled with the murals painted on the walls, there were already long lines of tourists waiting to take pictures for their social media check-ins when Su Chen and his family arrived.

Chen Shufen’s interest was instantly piqued. She pulled Su Zhuyun into the long line, leaving Su Chen with no choice but to act as their photography assistant.

At first, Su Chen was still immersed in the joy of their outing, but he soon began to experience the same suffering as Su Zhuyun. Whenever Chen Shufen saw a place with a nice view, she had to stop and take a few pictures.

Su Chen, who was completely clueless about photography, knew nothing about finding the right angle or Light. He just lifted his phone and started snapping away, CLICK, CLICK, CLICK. As a result, after seeing the photos, Chen Shufen gave him quite an earful.

If that was all, Su Chen could have accepted it. His photography skills were admittedly lacking, so it wasn’t a big deal to get told off—especially by his own mom.

Although the fishing village didn’t have as many shops as the main tourist area, it wasn’t far off. Chen Shufen immediately entered shopping mode, hitting every single one of the twenty or thirty stores down the street without exception.

In each one, she’d ask about this and that, buying any trinket she found pretty or unusual. The prices weren’t high, but the sheer quantity made up for it. Within an hour, Su Chen and Su Zhuyun were already carrying two large bags full of the fishing village’s local specialties.

"Dad, was it like this when you two were in Sanya?" Su Chen whispered, sidling up to Su Zhuyun.

Hearing this, Su Zhuyun glanced at Chen Shufen, who was browsing in a nearby shop, before turning back to say, "Not in Sanya. The stores there aren’t filled with all these cheap little trinkets like they are here."

Su Chen was confused. ’Then what was he complaining about when he called me earlier?’

Just as he was about to ask, Su Zhuyun answered his unasked question.

"Your mom doesn’t buy things in Sanya, but she does ’city walks’! She dragged me through countless scenic spots. If your old man wasn’t still in pretty good shape, I probably would have collapsed from exhaustion back in the hotel!"

A bad feeling began to creep into Su Chen’s heart. ’Mom is probably planning to walk through the entire fishing village.’

And sure enough... the rest of their tour through the fishing village was all on foot. A single lap took them over two hours, and by the end, Su Chen could barely move.

He was starting to regret his decision. ’It would have been so much better to just let Mom and Dad enjoy their vacation quietly. Why did I have to come along and be the third wheel?’

Fortunately, he got a chance to rest and catch his breath when Sicong, Chen Feiyu, and others called to ask him about some Melo Pearls.

Even so, his mom gave him a stern lecture. "You young people these days just don’t get enough exercise. You’re out of breath after just a little walking. You should get out and exercise more."

For lunch, they found a fishing village restaurant recommended by Du Furong. It didn’t look very big, with only seven or eight tables, and it wasn’t located on the main street. If Du Furong hadn’t recommended it, they might never have found the place.

The restaurant’s cuisine had a rich Qiong Province style. Their coconut chicken, for example, sold incredibly well; Su Chen glanced around and saw that nearly every table had ordered a portion.

As the saying goes, "Live off the mountain if you’re near a mountain, and live off the sea if you’re by the sea." Aside from a few Qiong Province specialties, the rest of the menu was seafood. What surprised Su Chen was that for such a small restaurant, its seafood selection was incredibly comprehensive.

It had everything from lobster, abalone, and sea cucumber to sea urchin—truly a hidden gem.

"The coconut chicken, spicy chicken feet, traditional salt-baked chicken, and a bayberry and tamarind sea fish soup. For snacks, let’s get the shrimp cakes and some dried fish!" Su Chen ordered several dishes straight from the menu’s recommended list, with no idea how they would taste.

’They must be good, though,’ he thought. ’Otherwise, Du Furong wouldn’t have recommended it so strongly.’

The restaurant had a semi-open kitchen, allowing a view of the action inside. Surprisingly, the chef was a man who looked to be in his fifties or sixties. But don’t let his age fool you—the way he handled the wok was as smooth and fluid as a master.

In less than twenty minutes, all the dishes they had ordered were on the table. Lured in by the fragrant aroma, the starving trio grabbed their chopsticks and dug in.

"Mmm, this coconut chicken is amazing! The meat is so soft and tender, and combined with the creamy fragrance of the coconut... it’s perfect!" Chen Shufen, a great cook in her own right, exclaimed with heartfelt admiration.

Su Chen and Su Zhuyun had no such leisure for slow tasting. They just kept their heads down and wolfed down their food.

When you’re truly starving, everything tastes delicious.

In less than ten minutes, only bones remained on the table. All three of them leaned back in their chairs, looking utterly satisfied.

The meal cost nearly five hundred yuan. It seemed a bit pricey, but they were completely satisfied. Besides, it was normal for things to be more expensive on an island than on the mainland.

Su Chen saw Chen Shufen was once again full of energy. He glanced at the pile of souvenirs they had set aside, and an idea struck him. "Mom, we bought a lot of things this morning. How about I take all this back to the guesthouse? You and Dad can keep exploring this afternoon, and I’ll come find you later!"

Chen Shufen glanced at the pile of bags beside them. It really was quite a bit; carrying all that around would be a pain. So, she readily agreed.

"Alright. Your dad and I will go check out the cultural center, and then we’re heading to Niuwang Island. Just come and find us there later!"

"Okay!" Su Chen said, getting up to gather their things. He left under their watchful eyes, carrying seven or eight bags in his hands.

After walking a few steps, he glanced back. His mom had already turned away; only his dad, Su Zhuyun, was still watching him.

Su Chen shot him a look that clearly said, ’Good luck, you’re on your own,’ before striding off into the distance, leaving Su Zhuyun with a vacant stare.