The Top Fishing
Chapter 105: Easily Land Ashore

Chapter 105: Chapter 105: Easily Land Ashore

The primary reason wild Yellow Water Carp is so expensive is due to its scarcity. Every year, when the Yellow River Reservoir carries out flood discharge and sediment expulsion, there will be a multitude of fishermen in the discharge area either using nets or boats to fish, and there are even those who fish with electricity at night. During these days, the catch of the Yellow Water Carp can be quite high—and given its expensive price, some people can become overnight millionaires...."

Wang Feng spoke candidly to the camera, but at this time, some people in the live broadcast room raised different opinions.

"Master Wang, what you’re saying isn’t right. I’m from Nanyun, and we have a type of Carp there that’s especially delicious!"

"Master Wang, I’m from Wudou. I remember that back in my hometown, we also had a type of pointy-headed Carp that was extremely tasty. I haven’t eaten Yellow Water Carp, but it is indeed much tastier than the super Carp you mentioned."

"Hehe, as I said earlier, protecting the fish species is not included. The one from Nanyun, your home’s near Xingyun Lake and Yilu Lake, right? The Carp from your area, aren’t they a brownish-grey color, with a big head and a hollow on top of the fish’s mouth?" Wang Feng asked with a smile while looking at the barrage of messages on the screen.

"Yes, yes, this type of fish is particularly delicious, with a tender and delicate flesh!"

Seeing the person who sent the barrage confirm this, Wang Feng continued, "The fish you’re talking about is called Big Head Carp, and it indeed tastes good, but this fish has weak disease resistance, slow growth, and is now a national second-class protected animal."

"And the one from Wudou, the fish you mentioned is called Rock Carp. This type of fish grows specifically in rapids, and its growth is extremely slow, typically taking about 4 years to reach a weight of one pound. Because it lives in rapid currents, its body is always in motion, resulting in tight flesh with almost no fishy smell, making it very delicious. So without saying, you understand, right? This fish is also a protected animal, a national second-class one!"

Hearing Wang Feng’s words, Lin Yang couldn’t help feeling a bit embarrassed. It seemed he had to study the indigenous fish species of various locales so as not to accidentally catch and eat a protected animal, which could land him in serious trouble.

After checking out the Yellow Water Carp, Lin Yang and Wang Feng returned to their spots.

Because there wasn’t much pressure today, with tickets at twelve hundred and fish selling for ten yuan a catty, breaking even at 120 catties wasn’t a big deal. Based on the size of the Carp, roughly fifty pieces weighing over two catties each would tackle the task easily. For Lin Yang and Wang Feng with their skills, landing fish was a breeze.

As for Boss Pan, Wang Jian Country had become an old friend over several past visits, each time netting first place at his venue. He felt it wouldn’t be right to pressure him any further, especially since his reputation was already well-established, and there was no need to play so fiercely anymore.

Just playing for free here or earning back some fuel and bait costs would be sufficient.

Perhaps this is the confidence that comes with having money—and most importantly, these cultivated Yellow Water Carp weren’t too valuable.

"Ready, start!"

Mindset determines the state of being. When Lin Yang and Wang Feng weren’t too worried about money, they appeared much more composed. When the time came, the fish were released on the other side and then, half an hour later, at seven-thirty, at the command of Wang Jian Country, the sixty people at Black Pond Fishing started fishing. But it was noticeable that Lin Yang and Wang Feng’s rhythm was slightly slower.

They first scattered bait to establish a feeding area—after casting five or six such handfuls, Lin Yang and Wang Feng began their fishing.

Although Wang Feng was a professional angler, often called a Master, there’s a difference between a professional angler and a Master. Not every professional in the country has particularly good skills.

Wang Feng’s skills were relatively low among the Masters. Lin Yang now also possessed Master-level techniques, and combining those with his buff skills, Wang Feng was definitely no match for him.

Soon, the first Yellow Water Carp was landed by Lin Yang.

The fish’s scales were really beautiful, shimmering with a golden glow, and it felt delightful to the touch—worthy of its legendary Carp status. Lin Yang resolved that today he would have to take one home to taste.

After catching the first Yellow Water Carp, Lin Yang stealthily glanced at the aquatic life guidebook, which indeed unlocked his reward.

The new reward was 500 yuan, 5 points of experience and points, followed by a "Fixed Spot Casting" skill.

"Fixed Spot Casting": A basic pole-fishing skill. Once mastered, fixed spot casting improves, making casts more precise and control over bait and float landing spot better.

Casting is a vital skill in pole fishing. While Lin Yang’s casting couldn’t be considered very impressive, his proficiency was definitely above that of an ordinary fisherman.

With this skill mastered, his casting technique was enhanced once again.

Afterward, he began to apply what he learned and made his second cast.

Indeed, even with an unconscious cast, Lin Yang could clearly see that the bait from his second rod was more precisely placed than the first, landing directly in the middle of the established feeding area.

The next moment, he got another bite!

The accuracy of the cast directly affected the efficiency of catching fish.

After landing the fish, his catch rate gradually increased. On the other hand, Wang Feng wasn’t far behind. After all, as a professional, his expertise lay in Black Pond Carp and Crucian Carp fishing.

For a while, one could see Lin Yang and Wang Feng rapidly landing fish within the Dongyang Fishing Ground.

However, Wang Feng was like a tireless little donkey around a mill, lacking staying power!

An hour after they’d started, when he’d pulled up more than 20 fish, the rate of catching fish began to slow noticeably, while Lin Yang kept on pulling them in rapidly.

By ten in the morning, the pile of fish in his spot was only temporarily depleted, and then he started to catch the odd fish here and there, with the pace slightly slowing down.

"Shore up yet?" Wang Feng looked at Lin Yang and asked with a smile.

"Pretty much. Brother Feng, you’re about done too, right?" Lin Yang estimated inwardly; he had caught roughly 50 fish by then. Even if he hadn’t shore up, he was close, but he was fairly sure he had, so he turned to Wang Feng.

"I’m short by a dozen or so, but I’ve got more than thirty."

Good lord, the prowess of a professional showed; in the hour when he didn’t talk much, he’d still managed to pull up a dozen or so fish. Although it was a dozen less than Lin Yang, this could already be considered peerless in this Black Pond Fishing spot.

The faces of the anglers beside Lin Yang and Wang Feng were somewhat uncomfortable.

Together, the two of them had managed to catch only about a dozen fish, and yet here were Lin Yang and Wang Feng already discussing whether they’d shore up. Could this be any more exaggerated?

"Hahaha, Master Wang and young brother Lin Yang didn’t come to smash up the place, did they?"

"The Black Pond boss might have to carry the pond and run away in the middle of the night."

"The Black Pond boss might end up having to sell the fishpond overnight."

"I’ve got to say, young brother Lin Yang is really something to steadily outperform Master Wang. If it was a completely fair competition, I can’t think of who could be his rival."

"Deng? Li? Liu? Hard to say, after all, Lin Yang’s only competition was at Binjiang Reservoir, and he stopped competing after that. Actually, I’d really like to see him enter the competitions."

"That’s probably unlikely since he really isn’t in need of money now. To enter competitions, there must be some reason, right? If it’s about loving fishing, he’s not barred from it now, so there’s no need to compete."

"Yeah, and it’s noticeable that young brother Lin Yang prefers fishing in natural waters. Except for the Battle of the Champions, I don’t think there are other competitions in natural water bodies, right?"

Seeing Lin Yang and Wang Feng laughing and chatting happily, people in Wang Feng’s livestream also started chatting.

Under their gaze, the two were still casually pulling up fish from time to time while talking and laughing, nowhere near as tense as the others.

Half an hour later, around ten-thirty, Lin Yang and Wang Feng had already stopped. Although there was still an hour left until the end, they had long since shore up.

Lin Yang had caught about seventy fish, which was enough for him to shore up and also earn a bit of money for fish purchases to square away the cost of fuel and bait. You see, fuel prices are very high these days, and Lin Yang, coming out to fish, may not make a lot, but at least he shouldn’t lose money, right?

Wang Feng had also caught over fifty fish and had shore up as well, so the two began to lay down their rods and chat nonchalantly.

An hour passed quickly, and with a command from Wang Jian Country, everyone stopped fishing and began to weigh their catches.

By the time they got around to Lin Yang and Wang Feng, Lin Yang had already prepared the money.

"Brother Lin Yang, and this brother here, thanks for showing mercy. After returning the fish, I’ve prepared two each for you to take home and taste," Wang Jian Country whispered as he helped weigh their catches.

He was well aware of the relaxed state of the two, knowing that if they hadn’t stopped, today he’d have been cleaned out. Although he had mentally prepared himself to lose when he called Lin Yang to come fishing in the morning, he knew he had to be grateful since they had shown magnanimity.

On hearing Wang Jian Country’s words, Lin Yang thought to himself that he had even saved the money for buying the fish.

In the end, Lin Yang had caught a total of 147 pounds. Not counting the small change, fish returned at the total price of 1470, earning him 270, while Wang Feng had hauled in 126 pounds, making 1260 in total and netting a modest profit of 60.

Although sixty bucks might not cover his round-trip fuel cost, considering that three of them had come this time, they each got two fish at least.

Lin Yang and Wang Feng collected their money, while Wang Jian Country had already arranged for the fish to be loaded into the car.

Together, they packed their gear and then sat and drank tea in the shack for a while before Wang Jian Country returned from his work. He came back with his hands each holding three Yellow Water Carps.

These three Yellow Water Carps had all been injured by barbed hooks, and wouldn’t have survived if released back into the pond. While selling them was detrimental to their temporary care, giving them to Lin Yang and the others to enjoy was not an issue, especially since they were still alive.

So, each of them took three fish and left with a skip in their step.

Wang Jian Country wanted to invite Lin Yang to stay for a meal, but seeing that it was still early, Lin Yang declined. He planned to hurry back and cook up the fish for lunch to offer his parents a taste.