Most of the catch in the gill nets today was toadfish again. They had hauled in a basketful, around fifteen or sixteen, along with three or four flounder and devil rays each. The most valuable catch was still the small green lobster weighing about a pound.
Barefoot, Ye Yaodong steered the boat toward the waters where they had set the longlines.
After hauling in the buoy and sinker stone rope, he had only retrieved a few hooks before a voice started calling incessantly beside him.
"Third Brother, let me do it?"
"Whoa, what fish is that? It's huge... Third Brother... let me try?"
"Ah, that's a yellowfin seabream! I saw its golden Fish Fins."
"Tiger grouper... tiger grouper... aaah, Third Brother, you're amazing! Let me haul some in too? Third Brother..."
The endless chatter beside his ear gave Ye Yaodong a headache. "Can you quiet down? How did I never know you could make this much noise?"
As he spoke, he unhooked the four-pound tiger grouper in his hands. It kept thrashing its tail, slapping his arm several times, and he tossed it straight into a bucket of water.
That was the treatment reserved for valuable live fish. Ordinary fish only deserved a place in the basket.
"I'm just excited! Almost every hook you pull up has something on it. That's amazing, and you even caught such a big grouper! Third Brother, you're incredible. How did I never know you were this good?"
Having a little admirer felt pretty good, but she was also pretty noisy...
She babbled on and on. He had never known his younger sister could talk so much. Her excitement rivaled his eldest son's.
"Hurry, hurry, keep going! Let me try too?" As she spoke, she reached straight for it.
Ye Yaodong slapped the back of