"How is this like the last time we encountered the Sequoia forest?"
Li Haochen was stunned. He rushed in to check the fish finder, only to find the screen filled with red. He was so shocked he thought the fish finder had malfunctioned.
What Li Haochen didn't know was that while he wasn't looking at the fish finder, more than a dozen large red dots had begun circling his small dot.
Swallowing, he bolted out the door at lightning speed. Looking at the sea below, he muttered, "Damn it, today we're going for broke."
Li Haochen rushed back in and grabbed all the fishing rods, installing them all on the fishing holes. As soon as he baited one hook, the bell on another rang. Li Haochen was so busy he couldn't stand still.
Having too many fish wasn't good either. He couldn't bait hooks fast enough, and Li Haochen wished he had more hands. Despite the hard work, a smile kept appearing on his face. Every fish caught meant a lot of money!
At three in the morning, the livewell was already overflowing, and the ice chests couldn't hold any more. The deck was piled high with fish that were still gasping for air.
Just as he was about to pause and move some fish into the spatial ocean, a fishing rod in front of him suddenly bent into a severe curve, making Li Haochen's heart leap into his throat.
"Big catch."
Li Haochen's heart leaped with joy, and he reached out to grab the fishing rod.
"Snap~"
The fishing line couldn't withstand the fish's pull and snapped. Under the rod's powerful rebound, it whipped back and hit Li Haochen squarely in the face.
The sudden accident left Li Haochen stunned. He raised his hand to touch his cheek and only felt the pain when he saw the bright red color on his hand.
"Ouch... It hurts... It hurts so much." Li Haochen pressed hard on the wound, gritted his teeth, and ran into the cabin to find the first-aid kit. He grabbed some tissues and pressed them firmly against the wound.
Two minutes later, the bleeding had stopped, leaving only a thin trickle of blood from the wound. He picked up a cotton swab, dipped it in disinfectant, gritted his teeth, and with great determination, applied it to the wound.
"Hiss~"
As soon as it made contact, Li Haochen gasped sharply. The sensation was truly exhilarating, with white blisters forming on half his face. He applied some iodine and a bandage before putting away the first-aid kit.
"I shudder to think what would have happened if it hit my eye..." In that moment, he couldn't react at all. If it had truly hit his eye, the consequences would have been unimaginable.
He came out to find that most of the fish on the deck had died. Only a few resilient ones were still weakly fanning their fins, clinging to life.
He picked up a bucket and quickly collected the fish that were still breathing. He took them into the cabin and transferred them into the spatial ocean. Only about half of them survived after being poured into the water. It was understandable, as they were already half-dead, and many were likely crushed when he threw them into the bucket.
Emerging from the space, he looked at the hundreds of fish still piled on the deck and began to worry. "They're all over a catty. Even with a significant discount, they're still worth tens of thousands of yuan. What should I do?"
After much thought, he still couldn't come up with a good solution. He decided to return to Zhoushan Pier under the cover of night. Arriving just before dawn, he had no problem finding a buyer for the fish. Dai Changrun, being a local big shot in Zhoushan City, would surely have a way.
Li Haochen walked to the side of the boat and pulled up the traps and longlines. The catch was quite substantial, but compared to the fish on the deck and in the two holds, it felt like a drop in the ocean.
Fortunately, the early November morning air was cool, and the fish would be fine for three to four hours. Even so, Li Haochen set the speed to maximum. With so much catch, the Starfall's waterline had dropped considerably.
As dawn broke, the Starfall finally arrived at Zhoushan Pier. As soon as the boat was docked, a middle-aged man in a security uniform walked over, shining a flashlight. He spoke in a relatively friendly tone, "Boss, this berth belongs to... uh, Mr. Li?"
"Hello, Uncle. Did I disturb you?"
"I'm an early riser, but I haven't seen Mr. Li for a long time."
"I've been busy with some things lately. Uncle, take these fish home to cook. I'm in a hurry to leave and haven't brought anything. I'll definitely bring some local specialties to visit you next time, hehe!" Li Haochen took out a plastic bag and put in a few red sea breams, handing them over.
"Mr. Li, why are you being so polite? You're busy, hehe!"
The middle-aged security guard took the fish, his smile unwavering. He had seen what kind of fish Mr. Li had brought in. This bag alone was worth several hundred yuan, so why wouldn't he be happy?
After the security guard left, Li Haochen called Dai Changrun. Perhaps Dai Changrun had set a unique ringtone for his calls, as he answered immediately, "Benefactor, I'm so happy to receive your call. Is there anything you need me to do?"
"Uncle Dai, how many times have I told you to just call me Haochen."
"Benefactor..."
Li Haochen couldn't do anything about Dai Changrun's insistence and smiled wryly, deciding to let it be.
"Uncle Dai, it's like this, I was wondering if you have any connections..."
As soon as Li Haochen explained, Dai Changrun patted his chest and assured him, "Don't worry, Benefactor. Old Dai still has some face. Just wait a moment..."
Less than twenty minutes later, a Wuling mini-truck screeched to a halt a few meters away from the Starfall. A half-smoked cigarette dangled from the driver's lips, and coupled with his worker-peasant style cotton vest, his incredible driving skills... well, he was definitely a dashing fish collector.
Even the way he flicked ashes was so natural and suave that Li Haochen couldn't help but recall Stephen Chow's "From Beijing with Love."
"Hoo... You're Li Haochen, right? I heard from Brother Dai. You're a man, and I admire you."
After a brief conversation, the straightforward man introduced himself as Luo Binwang, sharing the same name as one of the Four Talents of the Early Tang Dynasty. He was very easy to get along with.
He took all the fish on the deck without a word. It was three hundred catties of good quality fish. At 40 yuan per catty, this was the price for frozen fish in Binhai, but in Zhoushan, it wasn't a loss, but it wasn't a profit either.
Li Haochen took out two thousand yuan from the stack of money handed to him by Luo Binwang and returned it. "Brother Luo, in Zhoushan, we trade according to local prices. If you do it like this, I'd rather throw the fish away."
Luo Binwang took a drag of his cigarette, his deep eyes looking at Li Haochen. "Fine, we'll do it your way. I acknowledge you as my brother."
He came as quickly as he left, just like his straightforward nature, unpretentious.
After collecting the money, Li Haochen went to a breakfast shop by the pier and ate until he was stuffed for fifteen yuan. Of course, the taste was unremarkable.
He returned to the boat, raised the anchor, and set sail. As soon as he left the pier, he headed for Binhai at maximum speed.
Except for a half-hour break at noon to cook noodles, all his time was spent on the journey.
As dusk fell, he finally saw the Binhai Pier. He immediately called Liu Tao, and within two minutes, Murong Yanran's call came through. "Why are you back? What happened?"
"Sigh... It's a long story, but to put it simply, the fish forced me to flee back here."