Yesterday's giant grouper and today's hammerhead shark left Li Hao Chen depressed. He had exerted great effort but gained no advantage, sighing with frustration, "Alas… even the most magical bait can't guarantee the fish you want, hehe!"
After cutting the line and releasing the hammerhead shark, Li Hao Chen changed his tackle and switched to targeting smaller fish.
Li Zhi Gang, who had just returned from the restroom, teased him, "Why the change of tackle? Don't tell me you're letting this hammerhead shark spoil your mood and giving up, hahaha! ".org
Li Hao Chen put on a frustrated face and feigned helplessness, saying, "I'm giving up, I'm giving up. I just don't have the luck for bluefin, hehe!"
Li Zhi Gang didn't believe Li Hao Chen's rambling, waved his hand with a smile, and returned to his spot to battle the giants.
He baited the hook with mussel meat and let it drop, then leaned back in his chair to rest.
"Ring ring ring~"
Looking at the slightly bent rod tip, Li Hao Chen didn't need to reel it in manually; the electric reel would handle it. He could deal with it later.
A minute later, when the fish was brought up, Li Hao Chen leisurely grabbed his landing net and walked over.
"Not bad, about four or five pounds, hehe!"
Looking at the sea bream in the net, Li Hao Chen smiled, "This is so much more comfortable. No need for much effort, and it's still valuable, hehe!"
After unhooking the fish, baiting the hook again, and letting it drop, he walked into the restaurant and took a bottle of Asia Soda from the refrigerator. He twisted the cap, and with a hiss, the gas escaped. Just hearing the sound was refreshing, let alone the spicy, stimulating, cool minty taste after it entered his mouth.
After a few sips, he let out a long burp, and his body shivered with satisfaction. Li Hao Chen wore a look of comfortable enjoyment, "Ah… this is the feeling. My teeth don't even feel sour, and it tastes so much better than Coke or Sprite."
He screwed the cap back on, grabbed a pack of Guan Hua Nam Ruo Peanuts, and went outside. Looking at the still fish rod, Li Hao Chen became puzzled, "I've been in the restaurant for over ten minutes, why is there no movement? That shouldn't be right."
Setting down the soda and peanuts, he walked over to take a look, and his face turned grim, "Damn it, which fish is so unethical? Eat it if you want, but at least leave the head for me to make tofu soup."
He reeled it in, unhooked the coral trout's head, and threw it back. Watching the slowly sinking head, he felt a pang of heartache, "A sip of soda costs over three thousand yuan. That's quite expensive."
After re-baiting the hook with mussel meat and letting it drop, he didn't dare to be lazy this time. He placed the soda and peanuts next to his fishing spot and focused intently on the rod.
"Buzz~"
Suddenly, the fishing rod bent dramatically, Li Hao Chen's eyes bulged, and he reflexively lunged to the side.
"Snap~ Boom… Boom"
As soon as he hit the ground, the fishing rod seemed to lose control, swinging violently up and down with a piercing sound.
A few seconds later, Li Hao Chen, certain he was unharmed, pushed himself up and looked at the still swaying fishing rod with lingering fear, "Phew~ That scared me to death."
Having experienced the near-miss of the line snapping and hitting his face last time, Li Hao Chen was still unnerved. However, he had to continue fishing. Danger existed in everything; even drinking water could be fatal, so did that mean one shouldn't drink water?
Li Hao Chen reeled in the fishing line and, seeing that the tackle was still intact, felt a bit dejected, "It seems the hook is too small to hold onto a big fish. Even catching a small fish can't give me any peace."
However, Li Hao Chen didn't change the tackle because it was quite troublesome and time-consuming to change. Time was also getting late, so he decided to fish until mealtime.
Fortunately, there were no more unexpected situations after that, which put Li Hao Chen more at ease. However, he remained very focused on observing the changes in the fishing rod, knowing that caution prevents disaster.
"Swish~"
Hearing the pleasant sound again, Li Hao Chen's mood lifted greatly. In just this short time, he had caught four fish, all of good species.
He walked over with his landing net to wait. A minute later, a particularly large pufferfish floated up. Li Hao Chen was overjoyed. His landing net was too small, so he immediately ran to the front of the boat to get an extra-large one.
"Hao Chen, why the rush?" Zhang Yuan asked curiously.
"Good stuff, no time to chat. I need to get it up quickly, or it'll be messed with again."
"Good stuff?"
Zhang Yuan and the others followed him and saw Li Hao Chen carefully lifting a large pufferfish onto the deck. As they looked closer, they exclaimed, "Wow, it really is good stuff! This porcupinefish must be at least fifteen or sixteen pounds. A weight like this is extremely rare."
"Yes, the flesh is super fresh and sweet. My mouth is watering just looking at it, hehe!"
Porcupinefish, also known as sea hedgehogs or sea porcupines, are close relatives of pufferfish. Their bodies are covered in hard spines, and their color is usually brown. They are divided into white-bellied and brown-bellied porcupinefish and inhabit deep-sea coral reefs.
Although they look intimidating when they inflate themselves with sharp spines, they are quite docile and cute when calm. They are also a very expensive ingredient. They cannot be farmed and can only be caught occasionally by net. Catches are extremely rare, and the price is upwards of 200 yuan.
Slightly different from pufferfish, only the liver of the porcupinefish is poisonous. The processing difficulty is not as complex as pufferfish, and the risk is not as high. Furthermore, porcupinefish skin is a good thing, with medicinal effects for tonifying, resolving phlegm, and relieving cough.
These creatures have strong vitality. Even after being out of the water for so long, they are still lively. Chen Yaohong, wearing thick gloves, grabbed one by the tail, affixed a tag, and tossed it into the live well.
"Brother Hao Chen, how about tonight… hehe!"
"Don't… absolutely don't even think about it. This thing is not to be trifled with. You need a relevant certificate and a professional chef with years of processing experience. Are you trying to shorten your lifespan, you birthday boy!"
"Uh… doesn't it say online that removing the liver is enough?"
"Slap~"
"Dad~ you did it again. You weren't very smart to begin with, and now you're even more…." Liu Xiying pretended to be aggrieved, her pitiful appearance causing everyone to laugh.
"Hao Chen is right. We must be cautious with this. Who can say for sure? Are there not many examples of people dying from eating pufferfish every year? Even experienced master chefs dare not guarantee it."
Of course, Liu Qinghe was only teasing. A chef with three to five years of processing experience might not guarantee a hundred percent success rate, but at least a thousand-ounce gold safety rate. Porcupinefish are very safe. Otherwise, why would all the accidents every year involve eating pufferfish?
The excitement had passed, and others returned to their fishing spots to continue their efforts.
"Holy cow!"
Before his butt had even warmed up, Li Hao Chen's exclaimation drew them over again. They saw a super-sized porcupinefish with a diameter of over a meter floating on the sea surface, making them gasp.
"This… this is too big! It must be a thousand-year-old demon."
"Brother Gang, let's not discuss whether it's an ancient demon or not for now. Everyone, let's see how we can get it up?"
In the end, there was no other way but to use the crane. Using a crane for this twenty to thirty-pound fish was certainly giving it its due.
Looking at the giant spiky sphere, Li Hao Chen couldn't help but recall Tang San's "Rain of Pear Blossoms" technique, "Such a large 'Rain of Pear Blossoms,' perhaps even Bone Rong, with the strongest defense, would be buried within it."