Unknowingly, more than two hours had passed since the start of the competition. After the initial fast-paced fish-grabbing phase, the overall fish activity at the fishing ground gradually slowed down.
The competition only lasts for four hours, and now it's more than halfway through.
While the overall catch at the fishing ground remained as stable as ever, the spots yielding good catches today differed somewhat from the past.
The fish activity in the middle of the south bank was quite good, but on the north bank, those fishing directly in front of the aerators were having only average results. Less than an hour into the fishing, they already started struggling, seeing no action for a long time.
Most notably, Zhang Yang at position 25 on the north bank spent most of his first hour catching fish. After changing to a longer rod, he had a ten-minute pause but soon resumed catching fish rapidly, on average catching a fish every three to five casts.
Now it's half past nine, and Zhang Yang was still cautiously maintaining his spot. Although his bites had slowed, he was still much faster compared to others who had completely stopped.
In contrast, Ma Yuhua was having a rougher time.
Realizing something was wrong early on, Old Ma made several adjustments — resetting his bait, changing to finer line and bobber setups, and even adding small doses of additives to adjust the flavor.
In short, regardless of whether it worked or not, he adjusted everything he could think of.
Currently, behind Ma Yuhua, there were four balls of bait of different colors and states in the bait tray, yet he had only a pitiful tally of eleven fish in his net, with no bites for over half an hour.
The rush fish period had passed, and the overall activity at the fishing ground was starting to decline. Those anglers who didn't perform well in the rush fish phase saw no hope for ranking and had already given up, leaving their spots or gathering with familiar anglers for a smoke and chat, discussing today's fishing conditions.
Old Ma signed up this time for fun, bringing along two apprentices. Among the trio, only the youngest apprentice, Haoming, did well, with a current catch weighing around forty pounds.
The eldest apprentice, Zou Jie, drew a bad spot and only had three bites, catching three fish. With no hope for a good result, he packed up early.
Thinking about his master's performance, Zou Jie wandered into the transportable building, coming out with ice creams and iced red tea, intending to attentively deliver them to his master.
"Master, any bites left? How many did you catch?" Zou Jie handed a bottle of iced red tea over, gently patting Ma Yuhua's shoulder and whispering.
Ma Yuhua didn't take the drink from his apprentice, turned with a stern face to glare at him, and said, "The competition isn't over yet, who told you to run around?"
Hearing the unfriendly tone of his master, Zou Jie scratched his head and explained, "I only had three bites over there; the spot wasn't good, so I packed up early!"
"You give up just because the spot isn't good? Is this how I usually teach you? Get back there and continue the competition!"
"Okay!"
Knowing his master's temper well, Zou Jie shrunk his neck, turned, and left dejectedly. Even a fool could see his master was in a foul mood, so he wisely chose not to provoke him.
Seated next to them, Zhang Yang witnessed the entire scenario without a word, his mouth curling slightly in a cold sneer of disdain.
"What are you laughing at? Is it that funny? You think you're all that just because you lucked into a good spot?"
Noticing Zhang Yang's expression change, Ma Yuhua, as if provoked, barked again.
Zhang Yang was not like Zou Jie and didn't feel obligated to put up with the guy next door.
"It's not embarrassing to lose in fishing; nobody's a constant winner! But losing in life or work can truly be embarrassing! In the minor sense, it shows no upbringing; in the broader sense, no perspective!"
"You…"
Zhang Yang glared, "What do you mean, 'you'? I'm not your cheap apprentice you can boss around without a word! In terms of fishing, you're lacking. In terms of insults, you're not on par either. Sit tight and don't embarrass yourself!"
While talking, Zhang Yang didn't stop his actions. Right before Ma Yuhua's eyes, he pushed the bobber up thirty centimeters, moved the lead weight under the bobber seat, and adjusted his gear to a heavy lead setup.
Fishing till now, Zhang Yang felt that there were basically no normal fish around the spot anymore, only the timid ones remaining, cautiously picking up scraps in the distance ahead of the spot.
To catch a few more, Zhang Yang had to adjust his rig and keep reaching forward.
Hearing Zhang Yang's words, Ma Yuhua, already fuming with rage, couldn't hold it in any longer.
Although Old Ma's character was questionable, he was very dedicated and serious about fishing. Zhang Yang denying his skills truly touched a nerve.
"I can't fish? I was winning championships when you were still a liquid!" Ma Yuhua's beard quivered in anger.
"Then why don't you fish? It's said that a hero doesn't boast of past bravery, show me your skills now! No solutions? I have solutions; see how it's been over ten minutes without a bite for me? I bet I'll catch a fish on the next cast; do you believe me?"
Zhang Yang, restraining his intention to provoke the other, talked about the few fish in front of his spot.
"If you catch a fish on this cast, I'll… I'll…" Ma Yuhua was so furious he didn't know what to say.
"No need to stutter, I won't bet with you; just watch properly! Usually, you act like a master teaching your apprentices; today, let me, Zhang Yang, teach you some fishing! As the saying goes, 'There's always someone better,' and your little skills are nothing in my eyes!"
While speaking, Zhang Yang adjusted the details of his heavy lead rig, kneaded two soft sticky baits onto the double hooks, extended his arm, leaned his body forward, and precisely cast the double-hook bait to the farthest position in a straight line.
With the lead moved under the bobber holder, as soon as the rig hit the water, the bobber immediately flipped upright, followed by a slow floating descent.
During this process, Zhang Yang neither tightened the line nor made any movements, simply holding the bottom of the rod handle, allowing the double-hook bait to slowly reach the bottom.
Having participated in competitive fishing matches for several years, Ma Yuhua was skilled in basic casting, judging fish activity, and assessing conditions at commonly visited venues.
However, the heavy lead fishing method—unless someone explained the secret behind it—was hard to figure out as an effective way to reach further just by reasoning.
Noticing Zhang Yang's peculiar method, Ma Yuhua assumed it was similar to a light lead approach aimed at prolonging the travel time to catch the bite, and didn't think much of it.
However, once Zhang Yang's double-hook rig reached the bottom, he quickly got a strong downward pull of a unit's length.
Holding the rod steadily and watching the bobber diligently, Zhang Yang immediately set the hook upon sensing the downward pull.
The line instantly tightened, he had a catch!
With a full-cast heavy lead setup reaching far, hooking a fish almost equated to a tug-of-war situation. Nonetheless, Zhang Yang's hook-setting force was exceptionally deft, not provoking the fish into a wild escape underwater. It simply struggled symbolically for a moment, allowing Zhang Yang to smoothly lift the rod and gain control.
This demonstration of "Words Accompanied by Law" completely stunned Ma Yuhua!