Riding out on Little Emma, Li Haochen was startled again by that big wolfdog. Angrily, he dismounted and pointed at the wolfdog, shouting, "Keep barking, and I'll buy yellow bean curd sticks just for you."
Hmph... reprimanded by Li Haochen, Brother Erlang actually scurried back into his three-foot villa to hide.
"Did it understand me?"
Upon returning home, Li Haochen bought a few more bottles of ice-cold soda and brought them to the boardwalk construction site. He checked the progress, which was excellent and nearing completion. It should be done by tomorrow.
Murong Yanran and the others were busy and wouldn't be back for dinner. Feeling lonely, Li Haochen wasn't bothered to cook. He called Chen He, saying he was coming over for dinner, and then leisurely rode his bike to the coconut milk shop.
When he arrived, they were just about to eat. Li Haochen didn't stand on ceremony, plopped himself down, picked up his chopsticks, and waited to eat.
Before long, Xiao Nian and the others also arrived. They inquired and found that business had improved in the past few days, with sales of over 500 items daily.
"Third brother, how's your boardwalk coming along?" Chen He asked.
Others also turned their gaze to Li Haochen, sharing the same thought.
"It's not bad. The foundation work will be completed tomorrow. We just need the bridge deck and railings, which should take another four or five days. Then, everyone can feast on conch, hehe!"
"We can eat conch anytime. What about the final payment for your project..."
"Yeah, third brother. The three of us combined still have about a hundred thousand. Why don't you take it first?"
Li Haochen was deeply touched by the camaraderie of his roommates. "Thanks, brothers. I don't have any problems for now."
After dinner, they chatted for a while before Li Haochen took his leave. During their conversation, he called Murong Yanran, who said they were supervising the shop and wouldn't be back until later. After some thought, having nothing else to do, he decided to go night fishing.
Back home, he grabbed his new fishing rod, bait bucket, and fish keeper, and headed straight to their usual spot.
Fortunately, the bait shop wasn't closed at this hour. He went inside and bought another box of bait. Inside the pier, he could see a few lights, indicating other anglers who were clearly just as addicted.
Night fishing was great. He didn't need to be fully equipped, and the sauna-like heat was unpleasant. The sea breeze at night was quite comfortable.
Just as he found a good spot, he encountered a familiar face. "Brother Liang?"
"Oh? Brother Haochen, I thought I was mistaken. You're out night fishing this late too?"
"Hehe, every little bit counts, right? Are you out collecting fish this late?"
"No, I'm fishing too, just like you. Every little bit counts, hehe!"
The two of them smiled, exchanged a few words, and then began fishing separately.
He baited his hook and cast it with a "swoosh."
He couldn't see it, but he felt the cast was quite far, and the reel line came out smoothly without any creaking sounds, likely due to the new fishing rod.
Slowly turning the handle to retrieve, the fishing line suddenly tightened with a "swoosh." He'd hooked a fish, and his heart leaped with joy. He employed his usual reeling technique: lift and reel.
With a few experiences of lure fishing, Li Haochen could estimate the fish's weight by its pull. It wasn't more than a kilogram.
As expected, he reeled in a grunt fish weighing about three taels. Seeing the fish, Li Haochen was cautious. The day before, its dorsal fin had pricked him, which was quite painful. If it weren't broad daylight and a public place, he would have definitely used twenty-year-old virgin boy's urine to detoxify it.
Fortunately, he was prepared today. He grabbed a towel, wrapped it around the fish, removed the hook, and placed it in the fish keeper.
Sitting on his stool, listening to the waves lapping against the shore, his thoughts drifted to his late parents. "Are you well in the other world?"
Suddenly, a familiar figure flashed through his mind: Xie Baolian.
After a moment's thought, he placed his fishing rod on a concrete block, took out his phone, and initiated a video call with Xie Baolian.
"Haochen? Why is it so dark? Where are you?"
"Aunty... I miss you!"
Xie Baolian trembled, thinking Li Haochen might have finally remembered his mother.
"Child, where are you? I'll come find you."
After saying this, Li Haochen felt it was a bit presumptuous and changed the subject.
"Uh... Aunty Lian, I'm fishing. Why would you come over so late at night?"
"You child, what are you fishing for so late at night? Don't fall into the sea."
"..."
"Come to my house for dinner tomorrow with Yanran. I'll introduce you to your uncle. Remember not to be late and don't bring anything, okay?"
"Okay!"
"I'm hanging up. Don't fall into the sea."
"I..."
After the video call, Li Haochen felt much better. He picked up his fishing rod. "Huh? It's already hooked a fish?"
He quickly grabbed the rod and reeled vigorously. After forty to fifty seconds, he successfully landed a yellow croaker weighing about seven to eight taels.
Not far away, Liang Pinliang had run out of bait after fishing all night and hadn't caught many fish. He packed up his gear and left. As he passed Li Haochen, he stopped. "Hey, I didn't catch many fish with a few dollars worth of bait. Brother Haochen, how's your catch?"
"Swoosh～～"
Just as Liang Pinliang finished speaking, Li Haochen's fishing line was pulled taut and vibrating, and the rod tip bent into a large curve. It was likely a big fish.
Li Haochen didn't have time to reply and focused on playing the fish. He'd lift the rod and reel in a couple of circles. After several minutes of playing, the big fish was exhausted and could only be pulled towards the shore by Li Haochen.
He shone his headlamp on it. Not bad, a sea bass weighing four to five kilograms. Li Haochen grabbed the net and quickly scooped the fish. As he lifted it out of the water, perhaps feeling insecure without the sea, it thrashed violently, making it difficult for Li Haochen to handle for a moment.
Fortunately, Liang Pinliang, standing nearby, came to help hold it down, and the fish was successfully unhooked.
"Thanks, Brother Liang. What were you saying just now?"
"Uh... I said you're really lucky!"
Li Haochen chuckled and threw the sea bass into the fish keeper. With the sea bass added, the entire fish keeper began to churn. The fish were packed densely together, making Liang Pinliang's eyes widen.
"Brother Haochen... this, you just caught this?"
"Uh... yes. It's quite easy to catch fish at night. Brother Liang, your catch must be good, right?"
Liang Pinliang quickly moved his bait bucket behind him. "It's... it's okay. You continue, continue. I'm leaving now."
"Brother Liang, aren't you collecting them?"
"Collecting them, yes. Wait for me a moment, I'll go drive my car over." Liang Pinliang jogged away and slapped his own mouth. "Damn it, I forgot my own profession. I'm never fishing again."
When Liang Pinliang returned with his car, his mouth twitched again because Li Haochen had just reeled in another black seabream weighing over a kilogram.
The catch was too large. Liang Pinliang helped carry the fish keeper. With many different varieties, it took half an hour to sort and count. Nearly fifty kilograms of fish, more than what a regular fishing boat brought in. The total earnings were 3,760 yuan. Li Haochen happily looked at the WeChat payment notification, his mouth splitting into a wide grin.