Her Cultivation Diary
Chapter 1044 - 1024. Fishing like this

Chapter 1044: 1024. Fishing like this

Lao Zhu was the first to burst into laughter without holding back: "Lao Wang, you brag about your amazing fishing skills every single day... Is this what you call ’amazing’?"

Another one chimed in curiously: "What’s going on, Lao Wang? Did you have some vendetta against loaches in your past life? This life you’re trying to raid their nest whenever you fish."

——Otherwise, in the dead of winter, at night no less, how is it that only loaches are biting your hook? Time for some self-reflection?

Meanwhile, Xiaoli, standing beside Lao Wang, was already on cloud nine, breaking into a goofy grin, with two faintly rosy patches emerging on his cheeks...

Turns out he’s quite talented!

He had clearly chosen the wrong profession.

Lao Wang let out a dismissive snort, wanting to retort, but when he turned and glanced at the two big fish in the other party’s bucket, then at the single loach in his own bucket, he decided to keep his mouth shut.

In the next moment, Lao Zhu suddenly raised his fishing pole:

"Whoa! It’s a crucian carp!"

But then—

"This doesn’t make sense though..."

The group was perplexed.

How could one cast after another hook fish continuously, without pause? And for some unknown reason, maybe it was the wrong eating angle or something, the water at the bottom kept churning, attracting quite a few more fish to join the commotion...

None of that mattered. Who fishes under such conditions? Not even having to wait, it’s thrilling to the point of making one’s heart burst with happiness; at this rate, no one wanted to stop.

"Lao Wang," Lao Li shamelessly reached out his hand:

"Do you have any bait left?"

"None! None at all!" Lao Wang snapped, still fuming.

Meanwhile, Zhang Yanping couldn’t help but think: If this continues, they’ll be fishing away a small fortune. The losses are piling up!

So he quickly suggested, "Let’s head back since we’ve caught plenty. If we don’t go back now to prepare dinner, we’ll miss it entirely."

Speaking of dinner quelled the group’s fishing fever for the time being.

When they returned to the yard, Aunt Lianhua had already diligently set up several large basins and prepared the kitchen knives.

Seeing everyone cheerfully lugging buckets of fish, Aunt Lianhua hurriedly instructed, "Come, come, put them here. Let me see what you’ve got—oh wow! Quite impressive! You all caught over a dozen fish in this short time."

But...

Aunt Lianhua sighed in slight exasperation: "Qiaoqiao, come help me clean the fish."

The haul included five or six crucian carp, three or four grass carp, and four or five silver carp. The remainder consisted of three small white fish and two loaches.

Good thing they’d brought plenty of bait earlier, or else tonight wouldn’t have yielded enough for even one dish.

Qiaoqiao crouched down skillfully, gutting and descaling the fish while simultaneously worrying aloud: "Only two loaches? What should we even do with them?"

Song Tan took a glance—how pitiful, those loaches were tiny. Who knew why they came out in the middle of winter to engage in a struggle amidst so many competitors...

Every time a fishing hook went down, it caused a ruckus with schools of fish scrambling below.

"Forget it," Song Tan waved her hand dismissively, "Find a basin and put them aside. Later, I’ll toss them into the pond."

With only two small loaches, there was no point trying to make a dish out of them.

As the group chatted passionately about their growing fishing careers, poor Lao Wang didn’t even get a chance to speak.

His fishing "success" remained unworthy of showcasing.

Even though, deep down, he didn’t want to showcase it anyway, having his catch casually discarded still left him feeling rather bitter.

"Don’t worry," Xiaoli, sitting nearby, tried to console him with exaggerated seriousness, "Not catching fish isn’t about skill. It’s destiny, not something you can learn."

That line sounded awfully familiar to Lao Wang. Then it hit him—wasn’t that the advice he’d just taught Xiaoli?

How outrageous! This little punk!

He glared at Xiaoli.

Instantly, Xiaoli snapped out of his euphoric state, carefully studying Lao Wang’s face:

"Why’s your face so red? Don’t tell me your blood pressure is acting up again?"

Lao Wang: ... I’m about to cough up blood here!

Meanwhile, Lao Zhu, ever the schemer, seized the lively discussion as an opportunity to sidle up to Song Tan:

"You still sell fishing bait?"

Song Tan looked up: "Used to, but not anymore."

Lao Zhu: ... He hadn’t even broached the topic yet.

Oh well, he wasn’t obsessed with fishing anyway. Let it go... But he couldn’t help exclaiming again, "Your family really is full of hidden talents!"

Huh?

The sudden compliment took Song Tan by surprise.

Glancing around the courtyard instinctively, she felt uneasy—what if Brother Wu Lei showed up along with Zhang Yanping and got praised as a "Sleeping Dragon and Young Phoenix" duo?

——That would be mortifying!

While tidying up his fishing rod, Zhang Yanping sneezed, then glanced at the group of elderlies standing outside, completely unaffected by the cold. He couldn’t help pulling his coat tighter.

...

Back in the courtyard, the group brimmed with the joy of harvest, devoid of any sense of the toil. After all, cleaning one fish per person wasn’t arduous at all. It was more like relishing the nostalgia.

With so many hands, nothing took long. In no time, the pile of fish had been cleaned to perfection.

Meanwhile, Seventh Uncle heated up oil in a wok and started hollering, "Qiaoqiao, are you done cleaning the fish? It’s time to fry them."

Qiaoqiao responded, grabbing the cleaned fish and heading into the kitchen.

Song Tan glanced briefly at the group before turning to call Secretary Xiaozu: "Come on, grab a flashlight and accompany me to the cellar behind the mountain; I need to fetch some wine."

Before Secretary Xiaozu could reply, Lao Zhu had already leapt up: "Me! I’ll do it! I’ll grab the flashlight for you... You’re a young lady; aren’t you afraid of going into cellars? How about I go instead? Don’t underestimate me just because I’m old; my body’s still fit as a fiddle!"

His shout drew everyone’s attention, their faces lighting up with excitement. Clearly, they weren’t so concerned about the food, but the thought of wine had everyone thrilled.

Song Tan: ...

All right, all right, I know you’re all eager for the wine.

But going into the cellar? That’s not happening.

Secretary Xiaozu was already pulling out his phone: "Let’s go! We’ll ration it. Two ounces per person—don’t take too much."

Now, even Lao Wang, still mourning over the discarded loach, felt indignant:

"Xiaojun, how could you? We’re your real family elders!"

"Exactly, Junjun, in this freezing weather, drinking extra wine is essential for circulation."

"That’s right," Lao Zhu dreamed of savoring the wine, constantly eyeing Song Tan: "Xiaosong, how’s the Maotai I brought over last time? Does it suit your taste? If you like it, let Grandpa know—I’ve got plenty more at home."

Song Tan smiled: "No need! I don’t drink—though Secretary Xiaozu is right. You elders should take care of your health. Two ounces each seems just right."

She laughed: "Let me grab an empty bottle first. The wine in the cellar has been aging for six months now. After I draw out some, the rest needs to keep maturing."

"Imagine if we store it for several years until it becomes vintage—one sip would make you lose yourself in its aroma!"

The elderly men in the courtyard could hardly contain their anticipation, their minds already hazy with delight even before tasting the wine.