Chapter 27: Harvest From Fishing With A Small, Broken Fishing Rod
“Does Jiaojiao like the sea?”
Yun Jiao carefully baited the fishing hook with dried small shrimp while answering Lin Hai’s question.
“Yes, I do.”
“Then, when we have time in the future, Dad will take you tide pooling on a secluded island nearshore.”
He didn’t dare to take Yun Jiao out to sea for fishing; it sometimes took a whole day, and he was afraid the child wouldn’t be able to stay put and might get into trouble.
Yun Jiao dropped the hook into the sea and looked up, asking, “Can’t Dad take Jiaojiao tomorrow?”
She wanted to go.
Yun Linhai rowed the boat nervously and with focus, not noticing what his daughter was doing for a moment. He only looked back at her voice and saw she was on the boat, so he was reassured.
“Jiaojiao, don’t go too close to the edge of the boat, be careful you don’t fall in.”
Yun Jiao responded with an “Oh,” “I know.”
While speaking, her fishing rod moved again.
This time it was a scorpionfish, weighing over a jin.
It was a small fish.
Again.
Her speed in catching fish was very fast; after dropping the line into the sea, it didn’t take long to get a catch.
However, they were all common black sea bream and scorpionfish.
There were also two times when she got nothing; the bait was eaten but the fish didn’t bite.
Yun Linhai’s glances at her, when he turned his head, were either when she was fishing or when the fish didn’t bite.
He even comforted her, “Jiaojiao, don’t be sad. The boat is moving, maybe the fish were scared away.”
Yun Jiao tilted her head, “No, I’m not.”
Yun Linhai thought she meant she wasn’t sad.
She threw the fish to the other side, just as she was blocked by a pile of rope, so Yun Linhai didn’t see.
When Yun Jiao was fishing for the ninth time, this pull was stronger than any before.
Yun Jiao’s little face immediately scrunched up. She looked like she was using all her strength, but her little hands still couldn’t hold on.
“Dad, a big fish!”
Little Yun Jiao decisively called for help.
She was still small now and didn’t have much strength, but when she grew up, her strength would also grow, and she could catch even bigger fish!
Yun Linhai turned his head, quickly dropped the rowing oar, and took the fishing rod from his daughter’s hand, afraid she would be pulled overboard.
When he took it, he was surprised; this fish might actually be quite big.
The bamboo rod was bent, and Yun Jiao leaned over the edge of the boat to look down.
“Jiaojiao, come here, don’t get too close.”
Yun Jiao pointed at the fish that had already been lured to the surface: “Dad, a sea bass.”
Yun Linhai’s eyes were full of pleasant surprise: “This sea bass must be at least six jin!”
Six jin isn’t heavy, but the struggle of a sea fish in the seawater exerts a lot of force, making it difficult to catch.
Finally, Yun Linhai pulled the fish up.
“My daughter is amazing, she can even catch a fish like this!”
And it was such a big one too.
However, he soon discovered that it wasn’t just this one!
Yun Linhai looked at the small pile of fish lying to the side, half-dead, and was stunned.
“You, when did you catch these?!”
Yun Linhai was so shocked that his voice even cracked a little.
It had only been such a short time, and he hadn’t noticed at all just now!
With such a small, broken fishing rod, and the boat was still moving, he never believed Yun Jiao could catch fish.
He never expected that he would be the clown.
“No, how did you catch them?”
Looking at those fish made Yun Linhai’s eyes water. He stopped rowing and squatted beside his daughter, rubbing his hands.
“Jiaojiao, catch one for Dad too.”
This harvest was good.
Yun Jiao handed him a piece of dried small shrimp.
“Dad, here.”
“Okay, okay…”
The fun of fishing is like opening a blind box; you never know what kind of fish will bite.
Yun Linhai first used the bucket on the boat to scoop a bucket of seawater into the cabin and put all the fish Yun Jiao had caught into it.
At least to keep them alive.
“Let’s see what I, your dad, can catch.”
He sat on the deck side-by-side with Yun Jiao, waiting expectantly for a while, but there was no movement on the fishing rod.
Yun Jiao held a piece of dried small shrimp in her hand, chewing.
Just as Yun Linhai was starting to doubt life, it finally happened.
He said excitedly, “Here it comes, let me see what it is…”
“It’s a scad.”
He was happy for nothing. This scad wasn’t big either. The meat of scad is relatively tough and fishy compared to other fish, and it doesn’t sell for much. They could take it home to eat themselves.
“Dad, cut it.”
Yun Jiao extended her little hand. There was only one last piece of dried small shrimp left; she had eaten the rest.
“Jiaojiao has good luck at sea, I’ll catch one for you.”
This time he didn’t walk away, but squatted by the side watching how his daughter fished.
Fishing, sometimes, really depends on luck.
She skillfully put a dried small shrimp on the hook and cast it out.
Her fishing rod quickly showed movement, but this time she caught a squid.
“A four-liang squid, not bad.”
He couldn’t discourage the child too much.
Squid isn’t expensive, and if there are many, they can fetch a good price, but for one this size, forget it.
“Dad, cut it.”
Yun Jiao pointed at the squid.
Yun Linhai understood her meaning and patted her head, asking, “Do you want to fish more?”
Yun Jiao hugged the fishing rod and nodded.
“Okay, Dad will cut it for you.”
There was no knife here, but squid, as soft-bodied marine creatures, weren’t hard to deal with. There were some reef fragments on the boat; he used one of those to cut up the squid.
Yun Jiao’s little hands held the still-wriggling tentacles of the squid and baited the hook to continue fishing.
It’s unknown if it was because live things were more attractive to fish in the sea, but soon something took the bait. The pull was quite strong, and Yun Jiao, with a serious face, could barely hold on.
Seeing this, Yun Linhai quickly took the fishing rod from his daughter.
“Holy crap, it’s a silver pomfret, such a big silver pomfret! This must be at least three jin!”
It’s no wonder he was so shocked. The silver pomfret he usually saw was generally no more than a jin.
How long had this fish lived, yet his Jiaojiao managed to catch it.
Yun Linhai couldn’t hide the smile on his honest face.
“Jiaojiao, let Dad have the next cast.”
He was really envious.
Yun Jiao nodded, “Okay.”
However, he didn’t catch anything this time; the cunning fish ate the bait and got away, not biting.
“One more try, I don’t believe it.”
This time, he caught a sea wolf.
“It’s a sea wolf, Jiaojiao, stand back.”
Sea wolves are ferocious, with sharp teeth and a flat, long body. Even when caught on the deck, it opened its mouth, wanting to bite.
Yun Linhai kicked it into the cabin.
“This one must be five or six jin.”
Yun Jiao’s little eyes fixed on Yun Linhai: “Dad, I want to fish.”
Yun Linhai scratched his head awkwardly; fishing was quite addictive.
“Alright, here’s the fishing rod for you.”
In less than a minute, Yun Jiao called for help.
“Dad, a big fish!”
Good, they had pulled up another sea wolf, this one at least ten jin!
The fishing rod was bent to an arc that seemed like it would break at any moment. Yun Linhai was terrified, thinking the fish might escape.
Fortunately, the fishing rod held up in the end, and the ferociously struggling sea wolf was flung onto the boat.
That sea wolf had tremendous strength. After landing on the deck, it broke free from the hook, and its large mouth, filled with sharp teeth, lunged directly towards Yun Jiao.
Yun Linhai’s expression changed: “Jiaojiao, dodge quickly.”
“Slap…”
Yun Jiao didn’t dodge; instead, she delivered a powerful slap to the sea wolf.
The ferocious sea wolf: ???
