Zhang Xiaoman stared dumbfounded at everything around her, unable to utter a single word. Her fear had reached an all-time high.

While she was in a daze, several blinding flashes of light suddenly illuminated her.

"Ah! What are you doing!" It was only then that Zhang Xiaoman realized Xia Liu was actually taking photos with his phone.

If those photos got out, she wouldn't be able to stay in the village, let alone the town.

"Relax, taking photos is just to prevent you from playing any tricks. Go back and tell Zhang Tie that I'll pretend nothing happened. If he dares to cross me again, I'll destroy his reputation and then kill him!"

Xia Liu looked at Zhang Xiaoman with disdain, but to be honest, he was just posturing. Zhang Xiaoman was already nineteen years old, and if she hadn't targeted Zhang Xiaoxue, in this situation, he really might have gone after this girl.

After Xia Liu untied her hands and feet, Zhang Xiaoman was like a lost soul. Once she came to her senses, she squatted on the ground and began to cry.

Seeing this, Xia Liu tossed a flashlight on the ground and then left.

With those photos, he believed Zhang Xiaoman wouldn't dare to make any wrong moves. With that, the Zhang Tie family problem was taken care of.

In fact, Xia Liu didn't go far; he was watching Zhang Xiaoman from the shadows, ready to intervene if any wild beast approached. It could have been over for the girl.

Fortunately, after crying for a while, Zhang Xiaoman put on her near-shredded clothes and picked up the flashlight from the ground, running towards the direction of the village.

After 'escorting' Zhang Xiaoman home, Xia Liu felt no urge to sleep. Harvesting Atractylodes wouldn't last long, and the income from raising chickens wouldn't increase quickly. To make Osmanthus Village prosper, he still had to explore other ways to become wealthy.

Walking along deep in thought, Xia Liu arrived at the beach, when suddenly a stroke of inspiration flashed through his mind.

Having grown up in the village, he knew the nearby sea area like the back of his hand, and naturally, he was also well aware of what was in the sea.

In no time, he dove into the water, swimming to a particular spot.

Beyond a sandy beach spanning about three hundred meters, there were mountains on both sides, and Xia Liu wandered to the foot of one. The sea water here didn't have any sand, just rocks.

Xia Liu took a deep breath and then dived into the water, soon emerging with some black objects in his hands.

Though it wasn't daylight, Xia Liu's vision wasn't impeded. After getting the objects, he swam back towards the beach he had come from.

"I've struck it rich! Struck it rich!!!" Looking at the few oysters lying quietly on the ground, Xia Liu appeared somewhat excited.

Oysters were expensive delicacies in big cities, and the reef area in these waters could be described as terrifying. What shocked him was that, due to lack of exploitation, each rock in the nearby sea had oysters in staggering numbers!

If he could sell these oysters effectively, this haul would definitely make a fortune!

After getting dressed, Xia Liu ran home. He used a brush to clean the stones off the surface of the oysters, leaving just the shells.

He cut open an oyster with a knife, and the sight that greeted him astonished him once again.

Not only were the oysters wild, but the meat inside was also very large, and the quality was top-notch!

Thinking it was just an anomaly, Xia Liu cut open the other oysters he'd brought back. Two minutes later, he smiled. This time, he didn't have to worry about the development coming to a standstill after the Atractylodes harvest was finished.

"The oysters in the sea are enough to keep us busy for a year or even longer!"

It was nearly dawn, and Xia Liu took the oysters to the kitchen and began making a fire to prepare them.

Half an hour later, the sky was fully bright, and Zhang Xiaoxue walked out of her room, rubbing her bleary eyes, smelling a strong, enticing aroma.

"Xiaoxue, go wash up and get ready for a feast," Xia Liu said with a smile as he saw Zhang Xiaoxue get up, still busy with the oysters in his hands.

Time flashed by, and ten minutes later, Zhang Xiaoxue, dressed neatly, sat at the dining table, so astonished by the several oysters on the plate that she was speechless.

She had seen oysters before but had never eaten them because everyone in the village said they were poisonous and not to be eaten.

"Brother Xia Liu, can we really eat these?" she asked incredulously, swallowing hard as she looked at Xia Liu.

"Of course, we can. In the big cities, a plate of just four can cost hundreds!" Xia Liu recalled eating them once in a city, excited by the memory of their price.

Zhang Xiaoxue didn't say anything more and stealthily picked one up with her chopsticks; her face changed with the first stir.

Then, without concern for manners, she quickly finished off the remaining oysters.

"Err, err, err, Brother Xia Liu, don't stare at me like that. It's just that they're so delicious…" she said shyly, looking down as Xia Liu watched her intently.

"Oh, our little Xiaoxue is getting shy," laughed Xia Liu before pushing his own plate toward her.

Zhang Xiaoxue didn't hesitate and polished off all the oysters within minutes.

"Brother Xia Liu, these shells are so delicious. Do you have more?" she asked eagerly.

"Yes, but they are all in the water. These are the treasures that will make us money in the future." Xia Liu didn't hide anything and shared his plans for the oysters.

"Ah! They are all in the sea? Then how long do we have to fish for them?" Zhang Xiaoxue was amazed upon hearing that the sea was full of oysters.

"Hehe, if these could sell for twenty or thirty yuan a kilo, I'd be willing to fish for them my whole life," he said with a smirk.

"Twenty or thirty yuan a kilo!" Zhang Xiaoxue's mouth nearly dropped open. Given the large size of the oysters and their weight, at thirty yuan a kilo, she realized she had just eaten over a hundred yuan's worth!

Oh my, Zhang Xiaoxue's breathing quickened at the thought that she had never indulged like this before.

After giving Zhang Xiaoxue a few instructions, Xia Liu headed out with his basket on his back. The oysters were there, but he still needed to find a market for them. He had to establish a sales channel for the oysters soon.

At the seaside, he easily harvested several kilograms of oysters from the rocks. Since no one had farmed them before, the creatures were all of a good size—three oysters could weigh over a kilo. If he could get a good price, the villagers' income could increase significantly.

Xia Liu tried to find buyers in town, but unfortunately, after visiting several hotels, they all refused outright.

Xia Liu understood that the clientele in Pinglan Town were mainly from neighboring villages or passing tourists, and oysters were certainly not an easy sell.

After giving it some thought, he took a trike taxi to the county town. Hejing County was surrounded by mountains with little industrial development. However, the county had many ancient buildings, which became a tourist attraction and drew visitors to the town. Thus, he realized he needed to find a market for the oysters at the county level.

Unfortunately, Xia Liu didn't foresee that this very pursuit of a market would gradually wear down his willpower…

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com