Father and son looked at each other.
"What's going on? Why won't the net come up? Is the Net Hauler broken?"
Ye Yaodong frowned too. "That can't be right. Isn't it running? Is the net snagged on the bottom? How about switching it off and trying to pull it by hand?"
If it kept running like this, tugging at the net without bringing it up, the net would tear no matter how thick its lines were.
Father Ye nodded. "Turn it off, then. Let's try pulling it by hand."
Ye Yaodong switched off the Net Hauler. "Slow the boat down too."
He started hauling in the net, giving it an experimental tug, but it was a struggle. It felt as though a thousand-jin weight had caught the net, leaving him unable to move it.
"It's not the Net Hauler, Dad. The boat suddenly slowing down just now wasn't an engine problem either. It's this net. I can't pull it."
After reducing the speed to the minimum, Father Ye hurried over and tried tugging it too. It would not budge. "It really is the net. How did this happen all of a sudden? Has it really snagged on the bottom?"
"Maybe. I'll go down and look."
Luckily, there was Diving Equipment aboard, so he could go down to the seabed and take a look, though not if it was too deep. In any case, he had to go down and check first. Fortunately, it was not completely dark yet.
"Be careful, then. Don't go too deep, and come straight back up if anything feels wrong."
"I know. It's not my first dive. Don't worry."
Ye Yaodong stripped off his clothes and trousers, took off his watch, put on his equipment, and jumped into the water amid Father Ye's repeated cautions.
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