Li Haochen's departure also drew the attention of the Yu Duoduo, but they paid it no mind. They remained anchored here, having caught dozens of pounds yesterday, which made them feel this was a treasure trove.
With a honk of the horn, Li Haochen made a slight turn to the left, bypassing the Yu Duoduo. This time, he planned to sail further out, as he couldn't fully showcase his skills with others around.
As he sailed, not only did the number of boats not decrease, but it actually increased. Li Haochen became puzzled, "What's going on? Why are there so many boats?"
Through the glass cabin, the entire sea was covered with at least seventy to eighty fishing boats, a veritable sea of vessels. They were mostly between 8 to 11 meters, making his 15-meter boat truly unique.
Fortunately, Li Haochen was a skilled helmsman. He weaved left and right, narrowly avoiding disaster, and found a relatively open spot to anchor.
It was clear that the arrival of the Starlight had briefly paused the bustling scene. As he passed, several people cast unfriendly glances his way.
Li Haochen was bewildered. He walked onto the deck to observe. "It's just fishing, why so cautious? Acting like we're sworn enemies."
With his path blocked ahead and his retreat cut off behind, Li Haochen couldn't leave. He decided to simply sit on the deck, bask in the sun, and watch the show.
"Holy crap, is that guy sunbathing?"
A surprised shout erupted from a nearby fishing boat. It was so close that Li Haochen could hear it.
His companion on the same boat playfully smacked the back of his head, completely unconcerned about Li Haochen hearing and with a hint of envy in his voice, shouted, "Why bother with him? Don't you see what kind of boat he's driving? Hurry up and cast your line. Maybe the next one we catch will be it. Ah Ming just messaged that someone caught a Yellow Croaker weighing over a pound."
"Yellow Croaker?" Hearing those two words, Li Haochen's interest was piqued. "Yellow Croaker" was a dialect term, actually referring to wild large yellow croakers.
"Got a bite, got a bite..."
An excited shout came from nearby, and Li Haochen looked over curiously.
As the fish was pulled out of the water, excitement turned to disappointment. "Ah, it's another Chuanzi, damn it."
"No wonder so many fishing boats are clustered here. So they're all after the large yellow croakers."
Understanding the key point, Li Haochen's spirits also lifted. Large yellow croakers were among the top-tier fish. Three of them last time sold for over a hundred thousand, a memory that was still vivid for him.
With many eyes watching, Li Haochen went into the cabin, locked it, and then descended to the kitchen before daring to enter his space. He took out several pounds of mussels.
As he stepped out of the cabin, he heard another complaint, "Ah, all morning it's been Chuanzi, it's annoying just looking at them."
Li Haochen walked to the deck and looked over, just in time to make eye contact with them. He smiled and nodded as a greeting. He installed the electric reel, cracked open a few mussel meats, baited his hook, and cast it down.
"Ding ding ding~"
Less than ten seconds after casting, the rod tip bell rang. It was a small bend, and Li Haochen judged it to be less than a pound. The electric reel whirred, and in about ten seconds, the fish was reeled in.
As expected, it was a Chuanzi weighing seven to eight ounces. But in Li Haochen's eyes, it was a good thing because it could be sold. Even though it was only about 30 yuan per pound.
Having caught a fish immediately, a good start, Li Haochen was quite happy. However, the people on the surrounding fishing boats saw his expression and inwardly disdained him. Especially the two on his left, who had been here for two days without catching a single Yellow Croaker, only Chuanzi. Therefore, they were extremely displeased to see Li Haochen happy about catching a Chuanzi.
"Tsk, happy about a seven to eight ounce Chuanzi like that, as if he's never seen a fish before."
"Exactly, never seen the world."
The two men's voices weren't loud, but Li Haochen still heard them. He curled his lips, gave them a slight squint, and flashed a knowing smile. Sometimes silence is more powerful than words; proving someone wrong doesn't always require speaking.
Li Haochen calmly changed his bait, full of confidence in his god-level bait. Unless there were no fish within a diameter of sixty to seventy meters.
Less than half a minute after casting, the rod tip bells rang incessantly again. The bend was slightly larger than before, and in about ten seconds, the fish was successfully reeled in. It was still a Chuanzi, weighing a little over a pound.
Li Haochen remained calm, neither happy nor sad, going through the motions like a practiced routine: unhooking the fish, baiting the hook, and casting again.
"Ding ding ding~"
"Ding...!"
Li Haochen's bells rang one after another. The people on the nearby boats found the sound particularly grating. Just as they were about to say something, Li Haochen reeled in another Chuanzi weighing over a pound, causing their eyes to bulge. "Holy crap, is he planning to fish all the fish away?"
"Holy crap, again... Heavens, please just take this bastard away."
After reeling in another Chuanzi, Li Haochen stopped. It wasn't that there were no more fish to catch, but he was hungry.
He laid all the Chuanzi out on the deck, deliberately counting them aloud. "One, two, three... fifty-three. Oh dear, only fifty-something. Far below par."
Li Haochen feigned dissatisfaction, shook his head, and walked into the cabin.
"Damn, this guy is definitely doing it on purpose."
"Son of a bitch, it's just Chuanzi, what's there to show off about..." the man muttered, his words betraying his true feelings.
He kept two Chuanzi for lunch. The rest were put into the icebox. These Chuanzi had died shortly after being brought out of the water. If not for the crowd around, Li Haochen would have liked to throw some back into the sea within his space.
Lunch was quite abundant: pan-fried Chuanzi, scrambled eggs with chives, and a soup of bok choy.
Li Haochen carried it all out onto the deck to eat. Suddenly, the aroma of food wafted over. The people nearby deeply resented Li Haochen. Their small boats had no such favorable conditions; they ate their meals exposed to the elements, with only instant noodles with eggs or sausages.
It was all for a living. Li Haochen didn't show off excessively, just enough.
After eating, he didn't continue fishing. Constantly catching Chuanzi had become somewhat tiresome. He didn't expect to catch any large yellow croakers, so Li Haochen decided to take a beauty sleep.
He woke up around four in the afternoon. A good nap always made him feel refreshed and energized. Li Haochen stretched his muscles, feeling quite pleased.
He came out of the cabin, and the outside was much emptier. It was likely that those who couldn't catch yellow croakers had given up, but there were still many boats holding on, waiting for that slightly higher-than-lottery chance.
The fishing boat next to him was also among the remaining fleet. Judging by its weary appearance, they had likely been here for quite some time. Seeing Li Haochen now, they no longer had any snarky remarks and nodded in a normal greeting.
Li Haochen also smiled and nodded. They weren't mortal enemies, and such trivial matters wouldn't be held onto forever. His magnanimity wasn't that small.
Drinking soda and reclining on the lounge chair, gazing at the horizon, he couldn't help but sigh with the sentiment of "The afterglow of the setting sun reflects the evening clouds, a ray of sunset as beautiful as a painting."