Marvel Salted Fish Kryptonian

Old John, who was standing behind the bar, suddenly said, "If you need travel expenses, I have some money here."

Henry turned his head and looked seriously at the old man who was speaking.

Perhaps the saying "If someone shows kindness without any reason, he is either a traitor or a thief" left too deep an impression on him, so Henry's attitude at first was to retreat and want to refuse.

But a person's eyes can convey a lot. This man, who had experienced war himself and whose two children had died on the battlefield, truly wanted to help others. At least those clear eyes dared to look people in the eye.

Old John added, "Don't think too much about it. This is just your reward for working here. We just didn't give it to you before."

"Come on. This isn't some five-star hotel. How much can you expect from me? I bet I wouldn't be able to afford what I eat if you offered me a salary. My food is bad enough already, and if you cut back on it, I won't be able to survive."

Old John said angrily: "I am the owner of this bar, you don't have to worry about it. I have more savings than you think, I can always find a female college student to suck my big dick."

"Save that money to buy yourself a better coffin. Otherwise, you'll let the wild dogs dig you out of the ground, but they won't even have any meat or bones to chew. You'll be harming the dogs."

Henry's clever counterattack made everyone join in the fun, which made Old John very angry.

At this time, someone suddenly said: "If you want money, why don't you go catch crabs?"

“Ah, it’s that season now.”

"Yes, the ban will be lifted soon. I heard that many captains have already started looking for crew members."

"I heard someone was trying to sell their crab boat? They've been trying to sell it for a year, but it hasn't been sold yet?"

"Do you think it's possible? That guy just wants to find a captain, and he'll be the owner, letting others take the risk. Who would be willing to actually sell a ship that's worth literally nothing?"

That's how it is in a bar in a small town. You don't really need to actively seek out gossip. As long as someone starts it, people will automatically tell you all the bad news.

But this time, Henry was confused. He asked Old John, "What kind of crab catching is it? Is there really money to be made?"

Old John looked rather nonchalant, but another old man next to him said hurriedly, "They caught king crabs. Do you know king crabs? If you spread out their legs, they're huge, almost as tall as a man."

"King crab!" Henry was a poor guy in his previous life and he is still a poor guy in this life. Although he has never eaten it, at least he has seen the picture and knows what it is.

If it is king crab, it is true that people who go to catch it can make money considering its sky-high price.

Old John said disdainfully, "But crabbing boat work is very tiring and dangerous."

"But at least it's a legitimate job, not murder, arson, or bank robbery. And the money comes quickly. A capable captain can make at least 300,000 taels in a week or two, returning with a full load. An inexperienced green-handed sailor can make 50,000 taels per trip."

Although I left the underground research institute only a little over a month ago, I am not responsible for accounting at the bar.

But Henry could still roughly understand the purchasing power of the United States from everything around him, and it was indeed similar to his impression in his previous life.

A bottle of beer is 1-1.5 quid, a large steak is 5-10 quid. If you bring out mashed potatoes and broccoli for five quid, Old John will bring out a whole basin.

A typical house in town costs less than 10,000. Even a bar like Old John's, including interior decoration and furniture, can be completed for around 30,000 to 50,000.

This is of course also because the town is located in a remote area and is not a good place, so the housing prices and the prices of self-produced goods are quite cheap.

If the item has to be shipped from out of town, especially outside of Alaska, the price goes up.

In other words, a trip on the crabbing boat was enough to settle down in the town. This temptation was already great enough for Henry.

But he wasn't too eager to jump on the crab boat. Henry looked at Old John, who had a sour face. He got along well with this old man because they both had steady personalities, preferring to be conservative rather than reckless.

So Henry wanted to hear Old John's opinion.

The old man behind the bar seemed to have received the inquiring look and said unhappily, "If you want to go on the crab boat, I won't stop you. It's at least a job.

"But you have to think clearly. Crab fishing is not only tiring and dangerous, but it's not surprising that people die at sea. Every year, there are unlucky people whose entire boat never makes it back. I hope you at least know what you're doing."

King crab, which is caught during the two-month fishing season each year, is an important industry in Alaska.

Alaskans don't necessarily believe in the saying "If you haven't been on a crab boat, you're not a real man," nor are they the kind of people who know the risks and therefore avoid doing it. But I'm not really that enthusiastic about this job.

Even if you make money quickly, you still have to be alive to spend it. Unless they're desperate or need a lot of money, most Alaskans won't choose to work on a crab boat.

This has indirectly led to an increase in the labor shortage on crab boats and an increase in wages, hoping to attract more outsiders to work there.

So Old John didn't dampen Henry's enthusiasm, nor did he encourage him. Instead, he told the truth in what he thought was fair.

Old John's cold attitude certainly didn't dampen Henry's interest. As someone who had been both a social animal and a homebody in his previous life, how could he not understand the significance of money in modern society?

As the saying goes, money isn't everything, but without it, you can do nothing. Even if you robbed an entire town, you wouldn't necessarily be able to find 10,000 yuan in cash. So, what better way out is there than joining a crab boat?

New book, please read, collect, and recommend, thank you~~

Chapter 12 Interview

Although the nameless town has a dock, it mostly serves small freight ships. The dock where the crab boats depart is to the south of the town, a busier and larger dock town.

The two towns were certainly not the kind of place where they would never see each other again. So when Henry wanted to join a crabbing boat, the old people in the town helped him contact a more experienced captain.

Old John even drove Henry there himself.

The passenger seat was occupied by an elderly man from the town who had been in contact with the captain, and everyone called him the Polack. Henry sat in the back of the truck, wrapped in his coat, basking in the October sun.

Although October is considered autumn in lower latitudes, it's already freezing cold in Alaska. Henry, unable to squeeze into the cab and forced to sit in the back of the truck, actually wanted this sunny spot.

Although he suspected that he might be a Kryptonian, Henry did not seize the opportunity to run out to bask in the sun because doing so would be too pretentious.

Besides, my current strength is more than enough to handle daily life. Even if I sunbathe until I can move mountains and fill the sea, where are the mountains to move and the sea to fill?

The Purple Potato Spirit snapped his fingers. That was about thirty years from now. It was only 1990, so there was no need to worry about such a distant problem.

But when he has the chance, Henry still enjoys basking in the sun, like now.

And according to Old John, when he collapsed on the beach, he used this car to carry him back. He threw it in the back of the truck at that time, so this time he was reliving the old memories.

As for the small town in the south that they said was very close, Old John drove at a speed of 70 to 80 kilometers per hour and it took him more than three hours to reach his destination.

This also made Henry understand how close the Alaskans meant by "very close." It was probably a closeness that only a dinosaur's neural reflexes could experience.

The crabbing season in Alaska is in October and November each year, and this period is also when king crabs are at their fattest.

Every year, hundreds of crabbing boats set out from various regions of Alaska to catch king crabs in the Bering Sea in early winter.

As a delicacy on the table, the output value of king crab is nearly 500 million US dollars in just two months of fishing season.

This is not only a pillar industry in Alaska, but also many businesses and communities are related to it, especially crab fishermen.

Many people can live a carefree life for the remaining ten months by just earning these two months' income.

However, due to the extremely harsh operating environment and the extremely dangerous process, every year some fishermen or fishing boats never return home. Captains and ship owners are constantly recruiting, and there is never a year without a shortage of workers.

Despite this, some ships, led by experienced captains, are not open to anyone who wants to board.

Everyone who makes a living here knows who has better abilities and who can only be hired by locals by offering higher salaries, apart from bluffing outsiders.

No captain would dare to take advantage of the situation and take a boat full of novices who know nothing about crabbing.

Unless you intend to not return the entire ship and defraud the insurance company, usually if the insurance company discovers this situation, they will not pay the claim.

Moreover, boats with too many novices are indeed not as efficient in fishing operations as those with many veterans.

In order to avoid making money but not spending it, most people will still look for crabbing boats led by safe captains and with many experienced people.

It was this kind of ship that Old John and others helped Henry contact.

Anne 21, owned by her captain, George Jefferson III. To those unfamiliar, you might mistake the two presidents of the United States for one.

Old George is a traditional crab fisherman who took over his father and grandfather's fishing boat and business and has been working on the front lines of this industry since he was a child. So he is not only familiar with it, but also very good at leading people.

If any child wanted to take this path, they could come and join Old George on a boat trip. As long as the old captain gave his approval, the rookie would immediately become a veteran and be welcomed on any boat.

If a kid wanted to make a quick buck and only travel once or twice, he'd go on Old George's boat. At least he'd be able to come back safe and sound.

But don't assume that just anyone can join Old George's ship. Unlike other ships facing recruitment difficulties where anyone with a hand can join, Old George's ship is popular, so as the captain, he has the right to be selective.

So Old John and the others brought Henry here before the crabbing season even started, in order to have an interview with Old George. If that didn't work out, they would look for other captains' boats.

As the crabbing season was approaching, many people on the crabbing boats at the dock were busy repairing and maintaining their boats, or restocking supplies for the trip out to sea.

Old George stayed on his own boat and brought his men to personally check every piece of equipment on the boat.

The Polish guy who brought old John and Henry with him used to be a member of the Anne 21 and worked as a crab fisherman for a while. So when he saw the ship, he skillfully stepped onto the deck and found old George who was in the cabin for maintenance.

"Hey, old man, I told you to bring a young man over, didn't you forget?"

"Let me see, you Pole." Old George walked out of the cabin, wiped the oil off his hands, and hugged the newcomer, appearing very close.

The old captain, shirtless, was very sturdy. Although he didn't have the well-defined muscles of those bodybuilders, he didn't have the kind of flabby fat or beer belly either.

The Mediterranean bald man's hair and the stubble on his face were both white, which showed that the old captain was also old and not a young man.

He saw Old John coming over and shook his hand, saying, "Hey, old man, there's no bar on my boat. You'd better go back and wait for me to come over for a drink, then you'll have a chance to earn my money. Otherwise, no chance."

"The Pole never told me that you, poor thing, were blind and couldn't see the living creature next to me. Or that you couldn't see anything except crabs. Then I'll have to visit your wife tonight."

"Haha, old man, your mouth still stinks. There's a reason your bar is fast."

"It was in the same dead state thirty years ago, and it will be in the same dead state thirty years from now," Old John replied.

Old George raised his hands and stepped back in surrender, only then noticing the only young man present. "Little Green, what's your name?"

"Henry, sir."

"Henry what?"

"It's just Henry. I haven't figured out what my last name is yet."

"Ha." Old George laughed and didn't pursue the details.

He circled around Henry and then patted him on the shoulder. As expected, Henry didn't move at all. It felt like he was patting a rock.

"Not bad, Little Green," Old George praised.

Then he said to the two elders: "I agree to let him get on board."

Then he said to Henry, "But crabbing is hard work. You'd better be prepared. Once the boat leaves the harbor, there will be no regrets."

Old John said, "I have to warn you, this kid is a real eater. Don't let him end up cooking crabs for himself on the boat."

"Ha, as long as you don't get seasick and vomit after eating, I guarantee you can hold on for 24 hours."

New book, please read, collect, and recommend, thank you~~

Chapter 13 Xiaolu's Life

On the crab boat, no one called Henry "Henry." Everyone followed Old George and called him "Little Green."

The original meaning is Green_Crew, which means novice crew member. According to Henry's memory, it is called "rookie" in Chinese.

As the saying goes in the military: veterans have their work cut out for them, mid-level soldiers have to wait, and rookies have to be patient. No matter where you are, rookies have no human rights; it's like a rule of thumb.

On the Anne 21, Henry was indeed the only one without crabbing experience. The others, though the least experienced, had also been on Old George's boat a few times, this being their second year.

Henry had some understanding of the fact that one should accept the dish as it comes; besides, he was completely clueless and couldn't rely on his super powers to beat everyone into submission.

If you want to live comfortably, go home!

However, under the leadership of Old George, there was no deliberate bullying of the newcomers, because from the first day out to the crabbing spot in the Bering Sea, it was the only peaceful day.

The life that follows is a horrible cycle!

The crab boats work nearly 21 hours a day, which does not mean that there are three hours of complete sleep time. Instead, these three hours are spread out throughout the day, and the final complete sleep time may be only a little over an hour.

The work shifts last two to three hours, with a five- to ten-minute break between each shift. This time is used for eating, drinking, and defecating. Therefore, crab fishermen may eat five to six meals a day.

The lunch and evening breaks were longer, lasting twenty to thirty minutes. These were also the only times during the day when we had the opportunity to eat hot food. The rest of the breaks consisted of simple dry food.

The work is complex and dangerous. The crew hangs a bag of minced meat bait in the center of a 350-kilogram iron crab trap, then lowers the trap about 150 meters below sea level to attract crabs to feed.

But it doesn't mean that everyone can rest after throwing the iron cage into the water. Because there is no way a boat can only have one crab cage!

The operation is continuous. As soon as one cage is dropped, the previous one will be pulled up. Regardless of whether there are king crabs in it, it must be rearranged and a new bait bag must be hung.

A key issue in the sorting process is the problem of ice. Unlike seawater splashed onto a boat, solid ice will not flow back into the sea through the side of the boat. Some of it will even freeze on the crab pots.

If there are too many ice blocks and they are not dealt with in a timely manner, that is, by breaking them up with a sledgehammer and throwing them back into the sea, it may affect the center of gravity of the ship and cause it to capsize.

So even though all the crab pots were temporarily in the sea and not hoisted back on the boat, everyone still had to go break the ice and had no time to rest.

Of course, the crab pots were placed and raised with the help of the boat's crane. Henry, a young greenie, couldn't reach the crane, so he basically followed the experienced crabbers around the crab pots.

And don't think that king crabs are docile seafood. Even if they are caught on the surface, they are not as active as those on the bottom of the sea.

However, the hard shell, sharp spines and claws are still very solid. Even if you don't get stabbed or pinched, just picking up a king crab can hurt your hands. So gloves are a must.

Of course, Henry wouldn't be injured by a mere king crab, but he didn't make an exception and work with his bare hands to show his invulnerability.

In addition to the non-stop working hours and the unfriendly target crabs, the biggest difficulty on the crabbing boat is the sea conditions.