Father and son hauled on the net together, pulling it in a little farther until they could just get it onto the rolling wheel and let the machine bring it in.
With their target gone, the yellowtail scad on the surface seemed unable to react for a moment. They milled around blankly in the surrounding water, some slowly sinking below the surface.
Ye Yaodong felt it was a pity. If he had another net on hand, he could cast it right away and catch another load of the stragglers. There were still plenty left.
There had been a dense mass of them just now. The tiger shark looked only a little over a meter long, and although it had kept opening its mouth and swallowing, it probably hadn't eaten even a hundred jin altogether. Besides, it had only swallowed a few mouthfuls before they fought back, leaving it occupied with the fight.
Quite a few were slowly sinking now. By the time they hauled this net aboard, there probably wouldn't be any left on the surface.
What a waste.
Seeing the school gradually disperse, father and son stopped watching it and turned their attention back to the boat drawing closer in the distance.
Even from far away, they could make out the heads moving aboard the fishing boat and the markings on its hull.
"Huh? It's the Border Defense Production Team's boat. There are so many people aboard. Why have they come back?"
Father Ye looked carefully too. "Three boats left together, but only one's come back. Did they forget something?"
"Maybe. Let's get on with our work. They're off duty by now, so they definitely won't chase us away."
Once Ye Yaodong saw that it was the Border Defense Production Team's boat, he felt a little more at ease.