Chapter 54 We Are All Orphans
Another person said, "I heard that shells can be used as animal feed. These four bags of shells can make a lot of feed."
Yet another person added, "Animal feed doesn't fetch much money. Jewelry is where the real value lies. This shell is so thick and has such a beautiful color. It could easily be made into a necklace or buttons..."
"Jewelry is definitely more valuable. Don't forget, this shell is as big as a double bed! Besides us here, who else has seen such a large clamshell? Just based on its size alone it will become popular!"
"It's too bad we didn't take some photos before smashing it..."
Ivy never expected these grown men to know about these things and have better ideas than her, not to mention their knowledge of marketing!
Come to think of it though, they were all fishermen who not only caught fish but also sold them; they were legitimate business people.
Since everyone was so shrewd Ivy did not dare keep this wealth for herself especially since they had hunted and killed the river clams together with most of the credit going to them.
Thinking about her plan to start her own business using clamshells without including these people in her plans made Ivy feel embarrassed because this riverside was their territory and strictly speaking even the clamshells belonged to them.
"Forget it," Blake spoke up ending their discussion. "Since Luna wants it let's give everything to her instead. We have fishing skills; we don't need this little bit of money."
But when he said that Ivy felt even more ashamed so she confided in them saying,
"To tell you the truth I don’t have many friends at the orphanage which is why I smashed those shells thinking they looked nice enough for jewelry which could sell for some money.
I'm not someone who loves money too much but I really need it. My parents abandoned me when I was young and I grew up in an orphanage. I don't have a house, my income is not high, and even having a full meal is difficult for me let alone eating meat which is a luxury.
I don't want to be poor forever; I want to use these shells to start my own business so that I can improve my life. If possible, the best thing would be to buy myself a house...
But rest assured, I'm not someone who lacks conscience. Although this river clam was discovered by me you guys hunted and killed it together with saving my life so how could I forget your kindness? When these clamshells are sold we will divide the profits equally...no wait...you guys should get more than me."
After hearing her words everyone fell silent.
Blake stared at Ivy for quite some time before speaking sincerely,
"Luna, never thought your past was also so pitiful. Actually all nine of us are orphans too; our parents abandoned us on the beach when we were young and we wandered around making a living by fishing."
Pointing towards their boat he continued,
"But things are better now because through hard work we bought our own fishing boat which gives us stability.
Luna since you're also an orphan why don’t you live with us on our boat? Don't worry about doing any hard labor as we'll take care of you like brothers."
"I…I can't," Ivy wanted to say she couldn’t stay because she had six daughters waiting for her but stopped herself from saying anything further.
"Luna please stay..."
"Stay..."
The other eight men joined in urging her to stay.
"I…can't…I still have work..." Despite their warm invitation Ivy still wanted to leave immediately but as soon as she stood up her feet were wracked with pain; given her current condition there was no way she could leave the riverside.
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