The sky gradually brightened, and the first rays of dawn spread out, warming the body and dispelling the chill of late autumn, invigorating the spirit and filling it with energy.
Yesterday, the course had veered off, and unfamiliar with the area, I had to consult the nautical chart. "Huh, I didn't expect to be so close to home."
It turned out to be a few nautical miles outside Butterfly Bay. According to the nautical chart, the depth here was only seven to eight meters, forming a circular basin with abundant coral reefs and seaweed – a good spot for hiding and foraging.
With no better immediate destination, I decided to start fishing. I rigged up all four electric reel fishing rods; the shallow water meant no fear of tangles.
I took out two boxes of Antarctic krill to test the bite. Just as Li Haochen cast his lines, a small planing boat over eight meters long pulled up and stopped nearby, about a hundred meters away.
Li Haochen couldn't help but frown. They were too close. It wasn't dangerous, but being this close felt unsportsmanlike, hinting at an attempt to steal his fishing spot.
However, the sea didn't belong to Li Haochen. Though displeased, there was nothing he could do.
"Brother Xuan, aren't we being a bit unsportsmanlike by getting so close?"
"Hmph, you worry too much. The sea isn't his. I go where I please. Quickly prepare the bait, and let's start fishing."
"This?" the young man asked, puzzled. "We fish here often, and there aren't many fish."
"Damn it, are you out of your mind? That guy over there is the Starfall! Do you know that?"
"So what about Starfall?" The youth was completely bewildered, his face blank.
"Slap~"
Wang Haixuan's face darkened. He casually smacked the back of the young man's head, not with much force.
"Aren't you paying attention to the fishing competitions? Starfall! The third-ranked powerhouse. One person on one boat, taking down crews of dozens! He could still rank in the top three without even fishing for tuna, see how amazing that is? We have to stick close to him."
"That awesome?" The youth looked towards the Starfall next to them, his eyes filled with admiration.
"Hurry up. If we follow him, even drinking his leftovers will make us rich."
"Got it…" The thought of making money made the youth forget everything else. Nothing was more important than earning money.
After casting four lines, it took five or six minutes to reel in a yellow sea bream weighing about seven to eight liang. Wang Haixuan and his companions, however, were delighted. They had already landed three fish, all black sea bream weighing over a jin. It was unusual to catch so many fish so quickly. This instantly confirmed Li Haochen's reputation as a fish-finding expert.
Another ten minutes passed. Finally, a sea bass weighing over a jin and a spotty fish weighing about half a jin were landed, which finally improved Li Haochen's mood.
Wang Haixuan and his crew, meanwhile, were exclaiming with excitement. Even Li Haochen, a hundred meters away, could hear them.
"Heh, I wasn't wrong, was I, Adi?"
"I believe you, Brother Xuan. This Li Haochen is really amazing. We've caught over ten fish in this short time; he must have dozens by now."
"Maybe more. You didn't see yesterday. They were hauling fish out by the basketful, over a thousand of them," Wang Haixuan said, his face full of envy as he recalled it.
"Hey, speaking of which, another bite." Wang Haixuan reeled in and saw a grouper weighing over two jin, breaking into a wide grin. "Hahaha, this is great! I'll treat you to a couple of drinks tonight."
Hearing the continuous laughter, Li Haochen felt a pang of unease. After over an hour, he had only caught a few fish, and the psychological gap was significant. He promptly packed up his gear, cleaned it, and prepared to move.
"Let's head to the deserted island spot. Haven't been there for a few days. Hopefully, the lucky spot will bring him a satisfactory haul," Li Haochen declared. He raised the anchor and sounded the horn. With a long blast, the Starfall slowly began to move.
Wang Haixuan, happily reeling in another sea bass, heard the horn. He nervously said to Adi, "Quickly pack up, stop fishing, and follow him."
Not long after Li Haochen set sail, he received a call from Murong Yanran, completely unaware that a boat was trailing him.
"Hello... Yanran, I'm fine, don't worry. I'll get plenty of rest when I get back in a couple of days. Yes, yes, I'll listen to you. Ah~ There's no signal, I have to go for now..."
After Li Haochen made solemn promises, Murong Yanran let him go. But then, a sly smile appeared on his face. "I decide whether we go out to sea or not. If I sneak out, I can fly freely across the vast ocean, and you can't do anything about it, hehe!"
Half an hour later, Li Haochen arrived at the previous lucky spot again, anchored, and was about to cast his lines when he heard the sound of an engine growing louder.
A few minutes later, the approaching boat stopped about 50 meters from the Starfall. Li Haochen frowned. The first time was a coincidence; the second time clearly indicated intent. He now knew this guy was tailing him.
"Hmph, you despicable fellow, since that's the case..."
A plan immediately formed in Li Haochen's mind, and the corner of his mouth turned up in a cold, secret smile.
Li Haochen did not leave immediately. He acted as if nothing was out of the ordinary, calmly and smoothly rigging bait and casting his lines.
Indeed, this was Li Haochen's lucky spot. Shortly after he cast his lines, three of the four rods hooked a catch. Upon reeling them in, they were all good catches – fire groupers weighing one to two jin.
"Hey, Brother Xuan, that guy caught three fish right away."
"I see them. Quickly, throw some more bait down to attract the fish. Cast them further out."
"Wouldn't casting further out be within their range? Then..."
"You idiot! I told you to throw it, so just throw it. Stop talking so much. Are money or face more important?"
"Hahaha, I got a bite!" Wang Haixuan also reeled in a fire grouper weighing over a jin, overjoyed. Even Li Haochen could clearly hear him.
Seeing another fish caught, Adi no longer cared about his pride. He grabbed the bait and cast it with all his might, his technique quite good as he slowly lured the bait chain towards their side.
As it turned out, this lure did attract quite a few fish. They consecutively landed several sea bass weighing three to four jin.
This shameless tactic angered Li Haochen so much that he almost exploded. He went to the refrigerator, grabbed a bottle of frozen Asia Soda, and chugged several large gulps to suppress his rising temper.
He endured for another half hour, and feeling it was enough, Li Haochen began to raise the anchor and set sail.
"Brother Xuan, he's leaving. Should we follow?"
Wang Haixuan was also reluctant to leave. The fishing here was too good; they had caught over twenty fish in such a short time, which would fetch at least 1200 yuan when sold. But thinking that following Li Haochen might yield even more, he could only reluctantly give up and continue to follow.
"Let's go, follow him. That guy caught several large yellow croakers last time, bringing in tens of thousands at once. If we follow him and can catch one or two large yellow croakers, we'll be rich."
Knowing they were tailing him again, Li Haochen deliberately maintained an economical speed, sailing slowly along the boundary between the inner and outer seas.
He dared not venture into the outer sea; their boat was too small, and he feared they wouldn't follow if he went into the outer waters.