Chapter 368: Chapter 225: Just So
After a brief conversation with Liu Xiaoyun, Zhang Yang quickly finalized the matter, and then the two greeted Ding Wen.
Everyone was accustomed to these one-on-one matchups, just need to pay a little attention during the draw later.
After patiently waiting for a while, the aeration machine stopped.
Chen Xueqiang tested the fish bite with his rod and found that the normal fishing had started to show, so everyone quickly mobilized to redraw and enter the field, continuing the battle.
Due to prior arrangements, Zhang Yang casually drew a number 6, and Ding Wen, in front of everyone, also took out the adjacent number 7, leaving the rest to draw normally.
Once the drawing was complete, everyone carried their fishing boxes and moved to new spots, with Liu Xiaoyun sitting next to Zhang Yang on the right.
"In a solo match, you can’t just mess around, I’m adding some medicine!"
Liu Xiaoyun turned to glance at Zhang Yang, skillfully took out some additive from his fishing box, and added it right in front of Zhang Yang.
Zhang Yang still hadn’t used the bait with additives he adjusted in the previous match, nodding subtly as he continued with his fishing preparations unperturbed.
After aeration, the fish would definitely bite better than before. Zhang Yang anticipated that the hourly rate should easily exceed a hundred, so the preparations before the match were quite targeted.
The bobber was switched back to the one used for fast fishing in the morning’s solo match, and the bait’s state was sufficient, allowing Zhang Yang to pull out larger bait balls, effective for both gathering fish and catching fish.
Once everyone was ready, Ding Wen set the alarm clock and made an announcement, and a new round of solo fishing began!
Zhang Yang decisively made the first cast into the water with an aggressive mindset of casting to make a nest.
Under normal conditions of adjusting to five fishing three at the bottom, as soon as the bobber settled, he raised the rod, repeating the action seven or eight times in succession.
It was clear that the strategy was straightforward, focusing on middle to lower fixed layers, following the old method of luring fish at the start.
Compared to Zhang Yang’s boldness, Liu Xiaoyun was much more cautious, worried that this session’s fish condition wouldn’t be advantageous. He guarded a few tentative casts at the start, but successfully caught an entry on the fourth and began fishing ahead!
Identifying the general fish condition, Master Liu quickly adjusted his casting frequency, aligning his approach with Zhang Yang’s, focusing on the same fixed off-bottom layer to rapidly create a nest and then start catching fish when the fish density increased.
Sitting close together, there wasn’t much difference in fish conditions. In the first three minutes, Zhang Yang had a nest advantage of five or six casts, whereas Liu Xiaoyun had one more fish in his net.
Overall, the two were currently evenly matched, almost evenly balanced.
The previous fish condition, where they didn’t bite, had frustrated the other anglers. With the fish biting faster after aeration, they became somewhat reckless, and after a few tentative casts, quickly got into the rhythm of catching fish, unintentionally losing the efficient pace for many anglers’ solo fishing tactics.
However, Zhang Yang and Liu Xiaoyun were different; their strategies were very clear.
They maintained a nearly identical casting frequency, with the bait balls being pulled out quite large, reflecting a nearly mirrored casting rhythm, with neither falling behind.
For the first ten minutes, it was basically this state. Some other anglers had already put ten or more fish in the net, yet Zhang Yang maintained his controlled pace without opening up entirely.
The situation began to change in the eleventh minute.
On a normal cast into the water by Zhang Yang, as he waited for the bobber to settle, this time the bobber turned over significantly slower, taking a small pause.
This was a sign of higher-level hookups. Zhang Yang decisively raised the rod, and sure enough, he hooked a fish on the end.
After casually glancing at where the fish was hooked on the line, Zhang Yang suddenly started to adjust his casting rhythm on the next attempt, to take advantage of the fish bites.
The fish were starting to connect at the higher layer below, indicating that there was already sufficient fish density at the targeted fishing layer. The initial setup was essentially complete, transitioning to normal fishing thereafter.
Eventually, the adjustment in fishing rhythm paid off, with a bite on the second throw soon after.
The bite occurred just as the bobber was settling and about to descend, where normally, the bobber should stabilize before the lead line swayed twice and started descending. Instead, Zhang Yang’s bobber paused for a second and then slightly lifted up.
This bobber action is also common in competitive fishing, often referred to by seasoned anglers as "floating belly."
It means that just as the bobber turned, the fish bit and lifted its head, creating the upward bobber action known as floating belly.
This floating belly action generally indicates that the fish layer underwater is about one leader line higher, saving the time for the second swagging to position, and is much faster than regular bottom fishing.
After steadily catching two fish in a row and putting them in the net, Zhang Yang quickly entered a combat mode, maintaining an extremely steady casting frequency, consistently catching fish and putting them in the net.
Seeing Zhang Yang hauling in several fish in succession, Liu Xiaoyun became a bit anxious. Same normal casts, same frequency, similar bait amounts, why was his side’s fish bite clearly a beat slower?
With this doubt, Liu Xiaoyun tentatively slowed his rhythm a bit. The floating belly action upon turning the bobber didn’t appear as expected, but instead, the bite happened while the lead line was stabilizing through the second sway, and he caught the fish.
Compared to floating belly bites, bites during the second sway meant the underwater fish layer was at least five to ten centimeters deeper than Zhang Yang’s next door. This difference might seem small, but it could result in a critical impact on the competition results.
After testing and catching another fish, Liu Xiaoyun realized this wouldn’t do, and decisively adjusted his strategy.