Page 46

"Who are you looking for? Where are you going fishing?"

"I don't know yet. I'll probably have to ask around first." Lu Ao said, "Mr. Yan, it might be more convenient for you to go with your friends. I'm not even sure whether I'm really going yet."

"All right, then we'll go fishing together next time. If we go often enough, I could even buy a fishing boat..."

He went on for quite a while. Lu Ao finally managed to hang up, then thought it over and called Tian Mingzhi.

It had been quite some time since Lu Ao had spoken with Tian Mingzhi on the phone.

The moment Tian Mingzhi saw his call, he answered impatiently and called out, "God Lu?"

"It's me."

"Hey! I know. We haven't chatted in ages. How have things been in your hometown? Everything going smoothly?"

"Not bad." Lu Ao had no intention of exchanging pleasantries. He got straight to the point. "I heard yellow croaker fishing has become popular in Xiding City lately?"

"Yeah, what about it? It's been going on for a while. A lot of people were getting ready to call it quits, but someone caught a big one a few days ago, and the sluggish atmosphere got fired up again. God Lu, do you want to fish for yellow croaker?"

"A little. Are you guys interested?"

"Us?" Tian Mingzhi turned the words over on his tongue, then made up his mind almost immediately. "Yes, yes! When are you coming back, God Lu? We can go together?"

"Do you have fishing licenses?"

"Yep. We just renewed them this year. We're cleared for offshore fishing, and regular fishing won't be a problem either."

Fishing licenses were mainly for offshore commercial fishing. Recreational fishing was something of a gray area; hobbyists could take a speedboat out and catch some fish without needing a license.

Lu Ao had specifically brought it up because the large yellow croakers they were after were too valuable. If they really caught one, someone might get jealous. If their paperwork was incomplete and they got reported, it would be troublesome.

"We can go together." Once Lu Ao received a positive answer, he relaxed. "I want to rent your boat to go offshore for yellow croaker. There may be a few more people on my side, so I'll ask whether they want to come first."

"No problem. Our boat is big enough for ten people." Tian Mingzhi said, "Renting it sounds too formal. If you don't mind, how about we partner up for the trip? We'll provide the boat, and you can cover bait, fuel, and so on. We've been wanting to film an episode about yellow croaker fishing too."

"Sure. I'll ask around first and get back to you tonight."

After settling it, Lu Ao sent a message in their fishing group and asked whether Lin Manzhang and the others wanted to go.

Lin Gongshang had the most free time and replied first: When are we going?

Lu Ao: In the next few days. It'll get hotter later, and the yellow croakers might stop coming out.

Yellow croakers disliked high temperatures. When the seawater temperature rose above twenty degrees Celsius, their activity decreased and they entered a semi-dormant state.

By then, yellow croakers would not come into shallow waters at all. Even if they wanted to fish for them, they would not be able to catch any.

In fact, this was not a good time to fish for yellow croaker either.

News that someone had made a fortune recently had encouraged offshore anglers. Dragon Boat Festival was also approaching, bringing a small surge in yellow croaker prices. Everyone wanted to make some money during the holiday, so more people had started fishing again.

Hearing that they were leaving within the next few days, Lin Gongshang replied regretfully: Then I probably can't go. I haven't finished what I'm working on here.

Lu Ao: We're just testing the waters this year. It's not certain we'll catch anything.

Lin Gongshang: Impossible. Anyone else might fail to catch fish, but you'll definitely be fine!

Lin Guixiao popped up: Lu Ao, do we have to go all the way to Xiding City?

Lu Ao: Yes. I haven't heard of any yellow croaker schools near us.

Lin Manzhang: There aren't any. We rarely catch yellow croaker around here.

Yellow croakers liked to live among rocky reefs and seagrass farther from shore in coastal waters. There were not many environments suitable for them to grow around here.

Once he heard they had to travel as far as Xiding City,

Lin Guixiao thought it over for a while before replying: Then I won't go. My fishing skills are average, so I'd better not put myself through the trouble.

Lu Ao: All right.

Tan Junhao came online as well: Lu Ao, I'm not going either. My kid is still young, so I need to stay home and look after her.

His younger daughter was not yet six months old and was at the age when she needed constant attention. He could not get away.

Lu Ao responded understandingly.

Lu Ao asked: What about Zhang Ge and Qiyan?

He tagged them both.

Lin Qiyan: Me, me, me! I'm going!

Lin Qiyan: I know Tian Mingzhi and the others. This is perfect for a collaboration. Lu Ao, take me with you!

Lin Qiyan: It doesn't matter whether we catch fish or not. I want to film this material.

Lu Ao: All right, you're in.

Lin Manzhang: I'll go too. I talked it over with your sister-in-law. There shouldn't be anything important going on at home.

Lin Gongshang: You guys go ahead. I'll be back in a couple of days, and I can help feed your geese then @Lu Ao

Lu Ao: All right, thanks.

The only ones going out with Lu Ao this time were Lin Qiyan and Lin Manzhang.

After discussing it, they decided to leave tomorrow, June 21, fish for around three days, and return on the night of June 25.

The twenty-fifth was Dragon Boat Festival, so they needed to return home and celebrate with their families.

The three discussed a few more details.

Lu Ao put Lin Manzhang, Lin Qiyan, Tian Mingzhi, Hu Xingjin, and Chen Shengrong into a new offshore fishing group.

Lin Qiyan knew Tian Mingzhi and the other two.

Lin Manzhang was steady and responsible by nature, and he got along well with them too.

They discussed it all afternoon. Even after Lu Ao returned from fishing, they were still talking.

Lu Ao took a look, saw that they were chatting enthusiastically, and left them to it. He simply picked up a vegetable basket and went into the fields to tend the crops.

His vegetables were growing extremely well. The eggplants and peppers had already flowered, and some had even begun bearing small fruit. They would be ready to eat in about a week.

The pumpkins and winter melons had also grown into huge plants, their vines crawling and spreading in every direction.

The sweet potatoes were growing best of all.

Lu Ao planned to mix sweet potato leaves with rice or grain to feed the geese, so he had planted half a mu of them.

Now the sweet potato vines were lush and thriving. Not a single insect hole could be seen on row after row of leaves, and the sight could not help but fill one with joy.

Today, Lu Ao planned to pick a basket of sweet potato vines. He would eat some himself and use the rest to feed the geese.