Ye Yaodong lingered underwater nearby with interest, ready to get a good look at the big sea bass battling the school of yellowtail scad.
But the school was far too enormous. The moment it swept over his head, it surrounded the sea bass, and he could no longer see anything but layer upon layer of yellowtail scad, packed into a dense, dark mass.
That made sense. Against such an enormous school, even a seven- or eight-jin sea bass amounted to very little. It was not enough to give each fish so much as a bite.
He reckoned it had been devoured the moment it was surrounded. Those on the outside had not even gotten to lick a scrap of bone; all they could do was swell the crowd.
The whole scene had actually unfolded in an instant, right as he spotted them and instinctively dove deeper to get out of the way.
Realizing he could see nothing, Ye Yaodong came to his senses too. He kicked off with both legs and hurried toward the surface. A school this large was a rare find; he had to tell his father to cast a couple of nets.
Although these fish were dirt cheap and worth little, they were excellent for drying. His shop was nearly sold out and about to close its doors. He urgently needed a batch of dried fish.
Boss Zhou had already called twice lately, wanting five or six thousand jin of dried fish. He had no stock to spare and could only reluctantly turn him down.
Between the stock previously stored at the shop and the replenishments A-Zheng delivered every few days, only four or five thousand jin remained.
A-Zheng did not travel back and forth to the city every day, nor was good weather guaranteed. A batch