Zhang Yang poured the fish into the basket, then Lin Nianwei, showing great foresight, grabbed the handle on the other side of the plastic basket, and together they lifted the fish onto the electronic scale.
94.6 jin!
Not over a hundred, but compared to the average catch of other anglers in the afternoon session, it still stood out, towering above the competition.
"If I remember correctly, you scored one point in the last round! There are still three people left to weigh, so it's probably another one point! Looks like you have a chance to win the championship!"
In an odd twist of fate, Lin Nianwei said this to Zhang Yang.
"Thanks for the good wishes!"
Zhang Yang nodded with a smile, thanked her, signed the score sheet, and returned to his fishing spot to pack his gear and prepare to leave.
Zhang Yang was feeling open-hearted, but Lin Nianwei's mood subtly changed after seeing his second-round catch.
This guy seems quite polite when he speaks. Did I misunderstand him from the beginning? The little beauty quietly thought to herself.
...
A few minutes later, Zhang Yang left the competition area with his fishing box and quickly arrived at the designated meeting point.
But after waiting for a long time, Han Qiang and Wang Yan hadn't shown up, even though Zhou Chu, who had drawn the farthest fishing spot at number 40, had arrived.
"Brother Zhou, how was your fishing this round? Have you seen Han Qiang and Wang Yan around?" Zhang Yang asked curiously.
Zhou Chu, with a cigarette dangling from his mouth, was feeling quite content: "138.6 jin! As you guessed, the dominant spot was incredibly aggressive, even more thrilling than the pure fresh hook from the first round in the morning!
One round of fishing used four and a half jin of scattering bait, and near the end, I switched directly to a 2.5-line, and the bites were still popping!
If it weren't for the long rod being too soft and the water too deep, affecting the fish retrieval efficiency, switch places with me here, and you could easily land two hundred jin! Last one to weigh in, I asked the referee, and it's a guaranteed one point!"
While the two were chatting away about the fish situation, Zhang Yang's phone rang.
Zhang Yang glanced at his phone and saw it was a call from Wang Yan, so he picked it up casually.
"Hello? What are you doing? Brother Zhou is already out, why haven't I seen you and Han Qiang!" Zhang Yang asked casually, not thinking much of it.
"I'm at the number two restroom! My legs are a bit weak, can you help my master and me pack up the gear? I'm having diarrhea, need to squat a while longer before I can come out!"
Listening to Wang Yan's feeble voice, Zhang Yang's heart sank; what he feared had indeed happened. Wang Yan had been taken down by the cold dishes and raw food at lunch.
"Got it, I'll be right over!"
As soon as Zhang Yang ended the call, Han Qiang called next, and he was in worse shape, having run out of toilet paper, asking Zhang Yang to bring some to the number four restroom. His legs were numb from squatting!
The two troublemakers hadn't packed their gear, and one needed toilet paper; Xiao Yi took on the task of delivering it.
As Zhang Yang ended the call, his gaze started wandering, instinctively looking for a volunteer to help watch the gear.
The car keys were on Wang Yan, so the equipment couldn't be preloaded into the vehicle. Now, as many anglers were starting to leave, the gear couldn't be left unattended; rods and bobbers and such are worth a pretty penny.
At this critical moment, Zhang Yang saw a long-legged beauty, Lin Nianwei, walking north alongside a handsome young volunteer.
"Hey beautiful lady, could I ask a favor?" Zhang Yang wasn't shy and actively approached to greet her.
Lin Nianwei stopped with curiosity: "What's up?"
"Our team's two members are having stomach issues and didn't have time to pack their gear; they just called me for help!
Could you please help me temporarily watch the gear? I guarantee I'll be back in no more than ten minutes!" Zhang Yang said succinctly.
Lin Hao was just about to refuse on his sister's behalf, as he had seen plenty of such lousy pick-up attempts.
But unexpectedly, his cousin nodded and agreed without hesitation the next moment.
"Sure, my brother and I happen to have nothing going on! Leave your gear here, I'll watch it for you, it definitely won't get lost!" Lin Nianwei agreed readily.
"Thanks a million, I'll go pack the gear now!" Zhang Yang greeted them and quickly set off with Zhou Chu to pack their teammates' gear.
As Zhang Yang walked off into the distance, Lin Hao stared at his cousin, surprised: "Sis, do you know him? Why help with this kind of request?"
Lin Nianwei felt a bit flustered inside but maintained her composure: "Isn't this a volunteer's duty? Not helping just because we're not acquainted? What's going on in your head?"
"Uh… I guess I'm too sensitive, thinking this guy was trying to hit on you! Helping people, lending books or umbrellas, isn't that the classic way to pick up girls…" Lin Hao said, scratching his head and acting as if he knew better.
"You're such a fool! Lin Hao, you've picked up bad habits in college!" Lin Nianwei playfully whacked her cousin's forehead.
In seven or eight minutes, Zhang Yang returned with another fishing chest and rod bag, and shortly after, two pale-faced teammates returned to the meeting point.
"Thanks a lot! Sorry for taking up your time!" Zhang Yang kindly smiled and thanked them.
"Now that you're back, if there's nothing else, we'll head out first!" Lin Nianwei nodded and pulled her cousin along to leave.
"Alright!"
...
As the long-legged beauty walked away, the pale-faced Wang Yan stared at her back and asked: "What's going on, captain? You've gotten acquainted with this girl in less than a day? Isn't this the beauty from the morning?"
Zhang Yang rolled his eyes, looking at their weak expressions, speechless: "You still have time to ogle at beauty, doesn't seem like there's anything wrong!
I told you not to eat raw cold stuff, but you didn't listen. How do you feel now?
If you don't hurry up and load the gear into the car, find a place to get some medicine or an IV, otherwise both matches tomorrow will be up in the air!
I haven't even asked your scores yet! How much did you catch in the afternoon session?"
Han Qiang: "Eleven fish, 34 jin!"
Wang Yan: "I caught 41 jin!
Damn spicy crab leg with jellyfish salad is something I often eat; who could have known it would cause belly trouble today, what rotten luck!
Master, you ate too, why aren't you affected?"
Zhou Chu shrugged: "I've traveled for work a lot in the past, picking up a habit of carrying some common meds wherever I go. I took a PPA after lunch, it must have worked, didn't fall victim!"
Upon hearing this explanation, Han Qiang and Wang Yan felt even worse.
...
The group packed the equipment into the car, then followed other departing anglers out of the canal competition area, heading back to the hotel.
The two with diarrhea were fairly lucky, having returned and taken PPA anti-diarrhea medication, and drank some warm water, gradually easing their symptoms.
By around seven in the evening at dinner time, Zhang Yang deliberately teased them: "Shall we go for dinner? I saw the BBQ at the corner seemed popular, might as well try it?"
Han Qiang scratched his head, a bit afraid: "Uh, let's eat something else? Finally, my stomach's calm, maybe we should skip the BBQ?
Jet Fighter is terribly uncomfortable enough, only time I've encountered this situation in my life!"
Wang Yan agreed: "Qiang is right, let's order some takeout or something. I'll remember this lesson for life, never blindly eat again when out for competitions!"
Seeing they were quite earnest, Zhang Yang smiled and nodded: "Alright, let's cater to you two and eat something else! Chicken pot downstairs, let's go!"
As the sun set, the five men leisurely strolled downstairs, walking in the last hue of sunset along the street, soon arriving at the chicken pot restaurant Zhang Yang mentioned, going in one by one.
Once ordered and seated in a private room, Zhang Yang opened a bottle of beer and poured himself a glass: "We've completed two matches, now as we're free, shall we have a summary?
Especially after this afternoon session, what's everyone's view on tomorrow's fish situation? Let's talk!"
Mentioning business, everyone became interested.
Han Qiang spoke first: "Though I spent most of the time troubled with my stomach and somewhat distracted, I noticed, the fish were biting noticeably less in the afternoon than morning!
I suspect tomorrow's fish situation will be more complex, short-term double stocking, the carp put in may not be opening their mouths!"
Hearing Han Qiang say this was somewhat beyond Zhang Yang's expectations; considering he became a Jet Fighter, he didn't think Han could ponder this aspect, he improved his overall view!