Chapter 274 Part 1: Agong's Friend Needs Some Nourishment (Patreon)

From the boat, Chu Mingcheng could see the dense school of pomfret, but he wasn't having much fun fishing. He couldn't get them on a streak—in half an hour, he'd only caught three.​

The dolphins and sea lions hunting nearby had spooked the pomfret. All they wanted to do was flee; they had no interest in eating bait.​

With the fishing slow, Chu Mingcheng looked out at the sea surface and suddenly remembered the small casting net he'd bought to catch plecos.​

He'd only used that net once before tossing it in a corner. Because he'd bought the new boat, he'd moved all his old gear onto it.​

He immediately reeled in his rod, went to the small utility room next to the saloon, and dug the casting net out from the bottom of a box.​

The net had been squashed under other things for so long it had stiffened into a flat disc. No problem, though—a quick soak in the water would soften it right up.​

Back on deck, after soaking the net until it was pliable, Chu Mingcheng gathered it properly, let out a grunt, and flung it outward.​

The casting net unfurled in the wind with a swoosh, drawing a circle four or five meters in diameter on the sea surface.​

The dolphins and sea lions were off to the sides, forming a rough triangle with the Poseidon.​

So he didn't have to worry about hitting them with the net, nor did he fear they'd come over and interfere.​

Once the net sank, Chu Mingcheng hauled on the rope, pulling it up.​

Before the net was fully out of the water, the surface began to boil. The frantic flapping of the pomfret trapped inside was intense.​

These pomfret were all about palm-sized, a good dozen or so.​

As the net was lifted clear, a satisfied smile spread across Chu Mingcheng's face.​

The pomfret were packed incredibly densely—one cast yielded over twenty fish.​

If he encountered a school like this every time he went out, he wouldn't even need to buy bait. A single trip's costs would drop by ten thousand yuan.​

He then opened the net and dumped the fish into the live well.​

Some were tangled in the mesh and had to be picked off by hand to avoid damaging the net.​

Each live well compartment was huge. The twenty-plus pomfret looked sparse when dumped inside.​

After gathering the net again, Chu Mingcheng cast it once more.​

After three casts, the density of fish in the live well had noticeably increased, but it had also taken over half an hour.​

Casting the net was quick—untangling the fish and resetting the net took time.​

By now, the sea lions seemed to have eaten their fill. Each returned holding a fish in its mouth, dropping it at his feet.​

Looking down at the three still-flopping pomfret, Chu Mingcheng picked them up and tossed them into the live well.​

"Go surround these fish. Try not to let them escape," he issued a new command.​

He'd initially thought about having the sea lions catch some fish, but with the casting net bringing them in so fast, he wasn't interested in the few they could catch.​

So he just needed the sea lions to keep the school contained. As for the dolphins, he couldn't expect anything from them.​

They were competitors for the food. It was already friendly enough that the dolphins hadn't attacked them—there was no way they'd cooperate.​

Hearing the new command, the sea lions immediately dove back into the water to intercept the fish school.​

Chu Mingcheng continued casting the net. Two hours later, the third foam box beside him was also full.​

Combined with the hundred-plus pomfret in the live well, he had caught nearly four hundred fish in total.​

The middle live well compartment held about a hundred fish and was nearing capacity.​

If he added more, even with the oxygen pump running, a large number would likely die by morning.​

As live bait, a hundred-plus pomfret were definitely enough, so he put the rest into empty foam boxes and moved them to the refrigerated hold for storage.​

The remaining live well compartments weren't needed for these pomfret—there was no point.​

The true purpose of the live well was to keep high-value, prized fish alive to bring back to shore, not for holding live bait.​

He had originally planned to keep casting, but the sea lions returned.​

They looked exhausted, so Chu Mingcheng put away the net, feeling bad about exploiting them further.​

He checked the time—already past four in the afternoon.​

Chu Mingcheng started the Poseidon, preparing to find a new area to see if he could use the fish-attracting lights at night to lure in a few tuna.​

About half an hour later, he arrived in an area where the water was over 220 meters deep.​

The fish finder showed no large fish, but there were plenty of schools near the bottom.​

This looked like a good spot for catching deep-sea fish. If he didn't encounter any tuna at night, fishing for deep-sea species would be a decent alternative.​

He stopped the boat but didn't turn off the engine immediately. Chu Mingcheng went onto the deck, loaded the tuna guts and about ten chopped pomfret into the crab cages and shrimp pots.​

Then he went to the dance studio where Jiang Luoluo was practicing. "Luoluo, give me a hand driving the boat. I need to drop the cages."​

"What time is it?" Jiang Luoluo stopped dancing, catching her breath before asking.​

"Almost five. After dropping the cages, we'll make dinner. You should take a break too."​

"Okay!"​

Jiang Luoluo went to pilot the boat, coordinating with Chu Mingcheng as he dropped the crab cages and shrimp pots one by one.​

Once finished, they went to the kitchen to prepare dinner.​

But first, Jiang Luoluo took a plastic container from the fridge. Opening the lid revealed raw-marinated Giant Tiger Prawns and Regal Mantis Shrimp inside.​

She put on disposable gloves, peeled a Giant Tiger Prawn, and held the meat up to Chu Mingcheng's mouth. "Try it. How's the flavor?"​

"It has to be delicious." When it came to raw-marinated dishes, he had complete faith in Jiang Luoluo.​

With that, he bit down on the prawn meat, sucking it into his mouth.​

Instantly, the rich flavor of the marinade exploded in his mouth, followed by the cool, jelly-like texture of the prawn meat as he bit down.​

Another wave of fresh sweetness washed over him, complementing the rich, slightly spicy marinade. It was utterly delicious and definitely whetted his appetite.​

Chu Mingcheng quickly started cooking dinner to avoid his stomach rumbling.​

Jiang Luoluo didn't help this time. She sat nearby, peeling the two types of shrimp, quickly filling a large plate.​

She also prepared some dipping sauce in a small bowl. They could skip one dish tonight.​

Chu Mingcheng stir-fried some spinach and pan-seared a steak, cutting it into cubes.​

Of course, there was also fragrant steamed rice.​

Half an hour later, Jiang Luoluo leaned back in her chair, contentedly letting out a sigh.​

The next moment, she rubbed her flat stomach with a troubled expression. "Sigh, eating like this, I feel like I'm going to get fat."​

"If I gain even a little weight, I won't look good on camera."​

Women who look slim on camera are actually very thin in real life.​

Jiang Luoluo, being a professional dancer, had even stricter requirements for her figure.​

But Chu Mingcheng looked at her slender figure and felt a little speechless. "Other women would kill for your figure. Gaining a little weight won't affect your beauty."​

"Besides, seafood is low in fat, and you only ate half a bowl of rice tonight. What are you worried about?"​

If Jiang Luoluo weren't so focused on her career, he'd definitely encourage her to eat more.​

She had curves where she needed them and was slim where she should be, but if she were just a bit fuller, reaching the pinnacle of the "slightly plump" category, that would be even better.​

"I still have to be careful. No, I need to keep practicing dance tonight, burn some more calories."​

"Not going to keep me company while I fish tonight?"​

"It's your fault for being so naughty this afternoon. I ended up napping for two hours and wasted time. I have to make it up tonight."​

Faced with Jiang Luoluo's glare, Chu Mingcheng grinned triumphantly.​

After resting for a while, they cleaned up the dishes together, then went their separate ways to do their own things.​

Chu Mingcheng returned to the deck and lowered all the boat's fish-attracting lights into the water.​

He then brought out the electric jigging rod Jiang Luoluo had used that morning and set it up in the fishing hole at the stern.​

Finally, he brought out some squid bait and placed it on the deck to thaw.​

Chu Mingcheng sat in a chair, played on his phone for a bit, and shared some photos of the morning's tuna catch with Zhang Wei, making him green with envy.​

After about half an hour, the outer layer of the squid bait had thawed enough. He took one, baited the hook, and tossed it into the water.​

Pulled down by the sinker, the squid, which might have otherwise floated, quickly descended toward the bottom.​

The fish finder already showed the depth here. The electric reel also displayed the line length, allowing him to precisely stop the bait about a meter off the bottom.​

It was quite close to the bottom. If the current was strong, it could easily get snagged.​

But judging by the line's angle, the bottom current wasn't very fast.​

He wondered what kind of fish were here. Chu Mingcheng was looking forward to finding out.​

A short while later, the rod tip began to bob up and down, then bent sharply downward, trembling slightly.​

Fish on! Chu Mingcheng grabbed the rod, set the hook first, then pressed the button on the electric reel to retrieve the line.​

The electric reel immediately started working. The moment it began reeling, the force bent the rod tip down even further.​

And for a moment, the line didn't seem to be coming in—it felt like a stalemate.​

Chu Mingcheng's heart jumped. Did I snag the bottom?​

Fortunately, the next moment, the rod tip sprang back sharply. The numbers on the electric reel started ticking up, but the line remained taut. It seemed the line hadn't broken; instead, the fish was being pulled up.​

He breathed a sigh of relief. Lucky—didn't hook Blue Star on the first cast. Fishing so close to the bottom seemed okay.​

Watching the rapidly changing numbers on the electric reel and recalling the earlier stalemate, Chu Mingcheng couldn't figure out if the fish was big or not.​

It wasn't until a creature coiled around the line like a snake broke the surface that he understood—it was a moray eel.​

Chu Mingcheng grabbed the line to lift the moray eel onto the deck, raising an eyebrow at the weight. It had some heft!​

When the moray eel landed on the deck, its coiled body immediately straightened out—definitely over 1.5 meters long.​

Moray eels are fierce, and its open mouth revealed rows of sharp teeth.​

The squid was lodged in its throat, already mangled. The hook was caught perfectly in the corner of its mouth.​

No wonder he could pull it up. If it had been hooked squarely in the mouth, this moray eel's sharp teeth would have definitely bitten through the leader line.​

Seeing this, Chu Mingcheng pulled out his phone, shot a short video of the moray eel, and sent it to Wei Jiaguo.​

"Agong, want this moray eel?"​

This was a pike conger. Under the light, its back had a purplish hue, while its belly was white.​

Normal pike congers don't get this big, usually just reaching meter-class.​

This one was definitely over 1.5 meters. Lifting it earlier, he estimated it had to be at least thirty jin or more.​

A pike conger this large was extremely rare. He hadn't fished since returning from Australia and hadn't been able to send Wei Jiaguo any rare catches.​

Now, he believed the old man had another excuse for "not being able to find his way home."​

The moment the video was sent, before Chu Mingcheng could even remove the hook from the moray eel, a reply came back.​

"Out at sea? That's a nice moray eel. A friend of mine happens to need some nourishment. Give me a call when you're heading back."​

Clearly, he wanted it. A smile touched Chu Mingcheng's lips. He replied, "Okay, but I bought a new boat and I'm out in the open sea now. Probably won't be back for a few days."​

Wei Jiaguo was a bit surprised by the message. The fishing ban had just ended, and he'd actually been thinking of going out himself.​

He'd even planned to invite Chu Mingcheng along, knowing his luck was good.​

But he'd gotten tied up with some things. He hadn't expected this junior to quietly buy a boat capable of reaching the open sea.​

This piqued his interest even more. He told him to definitely let him know when he returned.​

He wanted to be the first to see Chu Mingcheng's catch, hoping for something unexpectedly good.​

The moray eel was claimed right after being caught—should fetch three thousand yuan easily.​

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