Early the morning after they returned from Wu City, several vehicles pulled up outside Li Jianguo's house.
After spending a few minutes at the Li family home, they set off for Big Haizi in an impressive convoy, with Li Jianguo's vehicle joining them.
The snow was deep. Li Long's Land Cruiser led the way, its powerful engine driving it along the old village tractor track and leaving deep ruts. The other vehicles followed in its tracks.
They reached the southern edge of Big Haizi and parked in a row. Li Long got out with his homemade Ice Chisel and the fishing nets he had sorted out.
Li Jianguo got out carrying a Snow Pusher and followed Li Long, pushing snow aside as he walked.
Tao Daqiang came next, carrying a Steel Bar, nets, and an Axe-all the tools were packed in a Urea Sack.
Seeing Li Jianguo clearing snow, Tao Daqiang hurried over, took the Snow Pusher from him, and began pushing hard.
"There's a deep channel northwest of here," Li Long said, pointing as he stood on the ice. "We'll start breaking holes over the channel. If there are fish in the lake, that's where they're most likely hiding, down in the deep water."
The deeper water was a little warmer farther down, and with more water, there was more oxygen, so fish liked to gather there.
Everyone agreed and followed Li Long.
After walking a while, Li Long judged that they were more or less in the right place. He stopped and called Tao Daqiang over with the Snow Pusher to clear the snow off the ice.
"They let quite a bit of water out after autumn, before the snow came." Li Jianguo looked at the ice, then at the shoreline. "There's probably only much water left in