Zhang Yang shook his head: "I used to hang out in the provincial capital for a while and didn't participate in many competitions, so it's normal not to know anyone!
Let's have a meal next time. I'm going to pack up and head back soon. There's no one watching the store, and I have to mind it in the afternoon! Locking up the store to go fishing during the National Day holiday is a bit extravagant!"
"Uh, fair enough! Once a stranger, twice a friend. Let's find a chance another day!"
"Definitely!"
Seeing Zhang Yang refuse without hesitation, Chen Xueqiang didn't insist further, nodded, and stood up.
Although he didn't catch many fish today, he gained experience and started chatting with Zhang Yang—something Chen Xueqiang found worthwhile for the trip.
After finishing a cigarette, Zhang Yang called out loudly: "Boss, selling fish!"
Liu Mazi, hearing the call, quickly pushed over a four-wheeled cart.
"You did well this morning! Packing up so early, not staying longer?"
Zhang Yang shook his head with a smile: "I have things to do in the afternoon, and this morning's prime spot was really rewarding! Thanks to you, I've thoroughly enjoyed it! Are you releasing more fish the day after tomorrow? If nothing unexpected happens, I'll bring more people!"
"Definitely! No turning back once we've started! Let's first establish the brand of 'Joyful Forest,' even if it means some loss!" Liu Mazi waved his hand, his tone full of determination.
"Alright, I'll organize again and get in touch later!" Zhang Yang nodded and bent down to grab the edge of the fishing net.
The fishing net used today was a competitive size with a 40 cm diameter. Zhang Yang tried to lift it experimentally but found he couldn't.
"No way, it's too heavy, I'll have to take them out!" Zhang Yang shook his head and reattached the net scoop handle.
"Too heavy? Come on! How many fish can be in there that you can't lift it? Let me try!"
Liu Mazi was dismissive, having seen many anglers sell their catches already. The most was about fifty pounds; even if Zhang Yang had caught a lot, at most it would be seventy or eighty pounds—easily manageable with one pull.
"Really can't lift it, try if you don't believe it!"
Liu Mazi, disbelieving, grabbed the aluminum rim of the net and lifted.
But it was as if something was stuck at the bottom; the net tightened but wouldn't budge.
"Damn, could it be stuck at the bottom?"
After saying this, Liu Mazi shook his head skeptically. The fishing ground had been personally cleared and covered with nonwoven fabric; there was nothing below to snag the net.
"Better scoop them out!" Zhang Yang grinned, plunged the net scoop into the fishing net, and quickly lifted a netful of crucian carp.
Each scoop netted over a dozen fish, and in no time, the plastic basket was full.
Zhang Yang tried to lift the net again; this time, it budged slightly, but fully lifting it was still a challenge.
To avoid deforming the aluminum frame of the net, Zhang Yang refrained from pulling hard. By the time the second plastic basket was nearly full, he finally lifted the net.
Dumping the remaining fish into the basket, Liu Mazi's earlier ambition vanished completely.
The medium-sized plastic basket could hold 140-150 pounds of crucian carp. Judging by the current situation, Zhang Yang managed to catch about one and a half baskets, totaling over 200 pounds.
"That's all there is, no more!"
Zhang Yang glanced at his catch, satisfied with the result.
Liu Mazi took a deep breath, exclaiming: "Since we opened, including the carp fishing site, you've caught the most and broken our record!
Let's take a picture together! I'll post it in the fishing site group. Amazing!"
"Just luck, that prime spot was unfairly good, lots of fish—thanks to you!"
Zhang Yang grinned, following the other's request, posed with a bait packaging bag in front of the catch.
A click of the camera shutter, and an image of one person with two large baskets of crucian carp was saved and shared in the group by Liu Mazi.
Neither Liu Mazi nor Zhang Yang knew that this picture would cause such a stir.
Following Liu Mazi to the electronic scale, the final net weight of two baskets of fish was 258 pounds, with a buyback price of four dollars per pound, totaling 1032 dollars. Excluding the 260-dollar fishing fee, Zhang Yang netted 772 bucks!
After Zhang Yang packed up and sold his fish, Zhao Bing and Wang Jun also brought in their catches.
Wang Jun had a middle spot; despite various issues in the morning, his fishing wasn't smooth but compared to neighbors, his catch was still good, weighing in at 83 pounds.
Zhao Bingguang's spot was slightly worse, but he performed well, with a final catch of 75 pounds.
A few other angler friends who came with Zhang Yang had catches of fifty to sixty pounds, while only three had poorer results, catching about thirty to forty pounds and unwilling to stop, planning to fish until evening when the best fishing time ended.
Registration was unified upon arrival, and payment was also handled collectively by Zhang Yang when selling fish.
Over three thousand dollars in fishing fees were handed in, and after selling fish, disregarding the three anglers still fishing, the total weight exceeded 800 pounds, with almost the entire fishing fee returned to Zhang Yang.
They packed up their equipment and greeted each other, gathering at the dog meat restaurant for a meal!
A convoy of seven or eight cars left together, leaving Liu Mazi slightly pained at the fish weight recorded in his book.
A small group had caught nearly 800 pounds of fish; with the total fish release being just 1,600, they had taken half! It hurt!
...
As Liu Mazi lamented and Zhang Yang's group found a place to celebrate, a new post was uploaded on the W City people's fishing forum.