After Reincarnating as the Dragon King, I Made a Fortune with Seafood – CH7

Chapter 7: The Fish Shop

Lin Dawu hurriedly drove his own vehicle straight toward Chongxin Village. Five minutes later, he arrived at Luwu Village and called Lu Ao. “Lu Ao, where are you?”

“I’m still by the reefs outside the village.” Lu Ao asked, “Have you arrived?”

“I’m here, at the big grain-drying ground in your Luwu Village. Wait a moment. I’ll come find you right now.”

Lu Ao waited where he was, watching the group of large red snappers beneath his feet.

The tide had already passed its highest point, and this place was also relatively elevated. It should not be flooded, so he could rest assured.

Lin Dawu walked quite quickly. In just over five minutes, he reached the reef area.

From afar, he saw Lu Ao sitting on the reef. Clamping a cigarette between his fingers, he hurried over in quick strides.

“Where are the fish?”

Lu Ao raised his head and gestured toward the tide pool beside him.

The tide pool was not deep. Standing at the edge, one could see the fish inside.

Lin Dawu had already been surprised when he saw the photos earlier, but the feeling was far less shocking than seeing them in person.

In the small tide pool, seven large red snappers over half a meter long were crowded together, swimming back and forth, somehow giving off the joy of a bumper harvest.

Lin Dawu had lived half his life, but this was the first time he had seen a young man who could spear around a hundred jin of big fish in one morning. The cigarette in his mouth nearly fell out as he opened his mouth wide. “T-this was all caught by you this morning?”

“Mm.”

Lin Dawu leaned closer to look. The fish were still alive, swaying their tails and struggling. Water splashed everywhere, soaking half of Lin Dawu’s pants.

Lu Ao asked, “Can these fish be sold in town?”

“Probably not. These fish are too big and there are too many of them. The fishmongers in town won’t be able to take them.” Lin Dawu crouched down and observed the fish for a while, then turned to him and said, “If you want to get a good price for these fish, you’ll probably have to go to Longxiang Pier.”

Longxiang Pier was quite far from here, closer to the county town. Driving there would take more than two hours.

Lin Dawu felt somewhat regretful. “If they were sent to town, they’d probably still be alive when sold.”

Live fish and dead fish were not the same price. Live fish were more than ten yuan more expensive.

Lu Ao looked at the fish and said, “It’s fine. With a water tank, they should still stay alive for a while.”

Lin Dawu said, “That depends on how lively these fish are. Wild fish should have better vitality. How are you going to Longxiang Pier? I’ll take you?”

Lu Ao looked at the fish and said, “No need. Otherwise, your car will end up smelling fishy. I’ll hire a village tricycle to go.”

Not many people in their village fished, but hiring an agricultural tricycle for a trip was not difficult.

Lin Dawu watched him make the call, then suddenly had an idea. “Hey, how about I call Lin Manzhang and the others over? They might also be going to sell fish, and they have oxygen equipment. Maybe by the time you reach Longxiang Pier, the fish will still be alive.”

Lin Manzhang was from Lin Dawu’s clan. Lin Dawu had a little selfish motive here. Lu Ao was so capable. If Lin Manzhang and the others built a good relationship with him, maybe they could benefit a little and learn some fishing tricks.

Lu Ao thought about it briefly, then nodded without much concern. “All right.”

Lin Dawu happily went to call Lin Manzhang.

Before long, Lin Manzhang and the others arrived in two tricycles, chugging along noisily.

The tricycles could not come all the way to the reef area, so they parked by the roadside and walked over.

Before they even reached the place, they called from afar, “We brought the water tanks. The oxygen equipment is here too. How many fish are there?”

“Eight. Seven of them are large red snappers.” Lin Dawu stood up and brought them over to look. “Lu Ao doesn’t have a tricycle, so you may need to help him transport them to Longxiang Pier.”

“No problem! Let’s look at the fish first.”

Lin Manzhang and the others walked to the edge of the tide pool, and Lu Ao greeted them.

Lin Manzhang replied, “Morning.”

Before his words had even finished, Lin Gongshang behind him could not help crying out in shock, “Fuck, these are all fish you caught this morning?!”

Lin Manzhang’s attention was drawn by that shout, and he instinctively looked over.

At that look, he could not help being shocked too. “This many?!”

Lin Guixiao and Tan Junhao quickly squeezed forward to look.

The tide pool truly was packed full with seven large red snappers. Each one was so big that whoever caught it would not be able to resist taking a commemorative photo.

Lin Manzhang crouched down and reached out to grab one of them.

The red snapper was extremely strong, and its body was slippery. Lin Manzhang failed to get a firm grip, and the fish broke free. He nearly fell backward onto his butt and almost plunged headfirst into the tide pool. Lin Gongshang, standing beside him, was quick-eyed and quick-handed, and pulled him back.

Lin Manzhang reached out to grab it again. The muscles in his arm bulged, and his face flushed red before he finally managed to lift it up. “This fish is at least twenty jin.”

Lin Dawu took the fish and weighed it in his hands, then nodded in agreement. “Looks like it.”

Lin Guixiao stood to the side, looking at the fish in the tide pool and then at the sea not far away. He could not help wondering aloud, “Are there really that many fish in this stretch of sea?”

The sea beside Luwu Village was not very suitable for fishing. There were many reefs here, the current was fast, and the water became muddy quite easily.

Lin Manzhang and the others usually rotated between several familiar sea areas to fish. Sometimes they fished in this stretch of sea, sometimes in another stretch, and sometimes they even went offshore to fish. But they very rarely came here.

Looking at the fierce, fat, wild red snappers in the tide pool at their feet, the group all fell into thought, considering whether they should add this sea area back into their fishing spots.

Lin Manzhang looked for a while, then said, “Let’s go sell the fish early. If we’re late, I’m afraid the fishmongers will all have left.”

Lu Ao had no objection. “Sorry to trouble you.”

“It’s nothing. We’re all from the same area. Neighbors should help each other.” Lin Manzhang said, “It just so happens we finished catching our fish this morning too and were about to go sell them.”

As he spoke, several grown men worked together and went directly to the tricycles to bring over several large plastic water tanks. They filled them with water and started oxygenating them.

After turning on the oxygen equipment, they worked together to catch the fish.

The large red snappers did not only look huge visually; they were also very heavy when held, each weighing over ten or twenty jin.

This weight should not have been too heavy for fishermen who worked year-round, but with the fish struggling desperately and being wet and slippery, they became rather hard to hold.

Lin Gongshang could not help saying, “A beginner’s luck is way too good, right? Lu Ao, did you directly stab into a fish nest this morning?”

Lu Ao nodded. “There was indeed some luck involved.”

Lin Manzhang disagreed from the side. “Luck and skill are both indispensable.”

Lin Dawu also laughed. “You also need handy tools. The speargun from my shop is useful, right?”

Lu Ao gave him face. “Very useful.”

Lu Ao’s wetsuit, snails, and other things were still on the reef, so Lin Manzhang and the others first took him home to put his things away.

He left behind all the snails and that white croaker, then changed clothes and went with Lin Manzhang and the others to Longxiang Pier.

The group got into the vehicles. Lin Dawu returned to town and did not go with them.

Lin Guixiao and Tan Junhao also had things to do, so the ones going to Longxiang Pier to sell fish were only Lu Ao, Lin Manzhang, and Lin Gongshang.

Their agricultural tricycle drove quite fast. They set out from Chongxin Village at nearly ten in the morning and reached Longxiang Pier before one.

Longxiang Pier was obviously much livelier than their town.

Countless fishing boats went out to sea from here every day, and countless fishmongers waited here like hunters waiting for rabbits.

There were also quite a number of fish shops around the pier that specialized in buying fish.

Before they even got close, they smelled a strong fishy odor from far away.

Lin Manzhang asked, “Where do you want to sell them? Should I take you to the fish shop we usually go to?”

Lu Ao nodded. This was his first time selling fish, so having someone familiar lead the way was naturally best.

Seeing that he agreed, Lin Manzhang made several turns and drove straight to the front of a fish shop. Sitting on the tricycle, he shouted into the shop, “Brother Niu, are you buying red snapper today? Live ones.”

The shop was full of transparent glass fish tanks. Hearing the shout, a tall, sturdy middle-aged man came out from inside. “Buying, of course I’m buying. Did you guys catch large red snappers today?”

Lu Ao sized him up.

Lin Gongshang quietly told Lu Ao from the side, “His name is Niu Deyu. He’s not bad. Just call him Brother Niu later.”

Lin Manzhang pointed to Lu Ao, who was sitting beside the tricycle. “Not us. This little brother here. He just came back. Please look after him in the future.”

Lu Ao nodded to Niu Deyu.

Niu Deyu also nodded, then leaned over to look at the fish Lu Ao had caught. At that look, his brows jumped in shock. He turned his head and asked in surprise, “This big?!”

Lin Manzhang sounded somewhat proud. “Right? This brother of mine is very capable.”

Niu Deyu was thoroughly convinced. He took out his cigarettes, shook one out, and offered it to Lu Ao. “Little brother, what should I call you?”

“Lu Ao. The Ao from mountain hollow.” Lu Ao waved his hand to show that he did not smoke, then followed by calling him, “Brother Niu.”

Niu Deyu then handed cigarettes to Lin Manzhang and Lin Gongshang. At the same time, he gave Lu Ao a thumbs-up. “You’re impressive. My Deyu Fish Shop has been open for so many years, and this is the first time I’ve seen someone catch this many large red snappers at once.”

Lin Manzhang laughed from the side. “This is only the beginning. In the future, he’ll catch even more and even bigger fish. You can slowly be amazed.”

“Hahahaha, then I’ll slowly look forward to it. Brother Lu, please support my business more in the future.”

Lu Ao nodded.

Lin Manzhang asked, “What’s today’s purchase price for large red snapper per jin?”

“Forty-five for live ones, thirty-five for dead ones.”

The fish Lu Ao had caught were large. Although the speargun had pierced them, it had not caused fatal wounds, so all these fish were still alive and would be calculated at forty-five per jin.

Niu Deyu used a large fishing net to scoop the fish into baskets and weigh them. The seven fish added up to 137.6 jin in total.

“137.6 jin. I’ll count it as 138 jin. Forty-five per jin makes 6,210 yuan altogether. I deduct tax on this side. The fishing tax is forty-five percent. After tax, that comes to 3,415.5 yuan. Check the calculation?”

Lu Ao had already worked it out mentally long ago, so he nodded.

Niu Deyu smiled. “Cash or transfer?”

“Transfer.”

The two took out their phones, scanned the code, and completed the transfer. After the payment was handed over, Niu Deyu also gave Lu Ao the tax payment code and the paper tax receipt.

In the age of smart technology, larger transactions like this could basically prevent tax evasion.

Seeing that Lu Ao’s side was done, Lin Manzhang and Lin Gongshang carried over the fish they had caught to sell.

The four of them had worked together that morning and caught more than eighty jin of fish.

It looked like quite a lot, but divided among each person, it was not that much money.

After selling the fish, they split the money according to what each person had caught.

After tax, Lin Manzhang earned 325 yuan today, and Lin Gongshang earned 308 yuan.

Both of them had smiles on their faces.

Once the transaction was complete, Niu Deyu invited them to the back hall. “I was just about to look for you. Come in and have some tea.”

Lu Ao touched his stomach. He was a little hungry, but he could barely endure it, so he followed them inside.

When Niu Deyu saw his movement, he realized something and slapped his forehead. “Look at me. You guys haven’t eaten lunch yet, have you? Let’s go eat first.”

Lu Ao said, “My treat.”

Before Lin Manzhang could speak, Lin Gongshang agreed readily. “Sure. We’ll bask in your good fortune.”

Lin Manzhang could only add from behind, “Next time, it’s our treat.”

Lu Ao smiled and followed them into the restaurant next door.

Since Lu Ao was paying, he did not stand on ceremony after entering the restaurant. In one breath, he ordered more than twenty dishes, including fish, meat, porridge, noodles, rice noodles, buns, and dim sum.

Seeing the way he ordered, Lin Manzhang could not help saying, “There’s no need to order that much. It’ll be a waste if we can’t finish it.”

“It’s fine. I can eat quite a bit.” Lu Ao studied the menu for a moment, then handed it to the waiter. “Let’s start with these. Please serve them as soon as possible.”

The waiter smiled. “Please wait a moment.”

It was already past one, and there were not many people in the restaurant.

Lin Manzhang poured tea for everyone and asked, “Brother Niu, what did you want to talk to us about?”

“It’s like this. You know Jiacheng Grand Hotel, right? Their hotel said they want to buy some wild giant groupers. Next Wednesday, they’re holding a giant grouper banquet.”

“Next Wednesday is…” Lin Manzhang silently calculated in his heart.

“May twentieth.” Niu Deyu added, “From what they mean, they’d prefer large giant groupers. See if you can catch any in the next few days. Their offer is pretty good—188 yuan per jin.”

“That price is quite good.” Lin Manzhang was tempted, but he did not dare agree outright. “But giant groupers are something you can only encounter by chance. We can’t be sure.”

“Just look around more. If you can catch one, the earnings will be pretty good.”

Lin Manzhang smiled. “All right. We’ll try. If we catch one, we’ll contact you.”

“Mm. Also, if you do catch a giant grouper, it’s best to keep it alive. They prefer live fish.”

The hotel probably wanted to kill and prepare it fresh, so of course they preferred live fish.

Lin Manzhang understood this clearly, but they all used spearguns. Whether the fish they caught could survive depended on heaven and the fish itself.

Lin Manzhang gave a sound of agreement but did not take it too seriously.

Lu Ao sat at the side, focusing on lunch.

His eating manners were very elegant. Food never fell everywhere, nor did it smear his chin or the corners of his mouth. He chewed with his mouth closed and made no sound at all, yet he ate extremely quickly.

The way he ate could be called sweeping through the food. In a short while, nearly half of the dishes the waiter had just brought up were gone—and most of the remaining half was probably something he had deliberately left for the others.

Lin Manzhang felt that when Lu Ao said he could eat, he might really not have been exaggerating.

Lin Gongshang noticed it too and secretly clicked his tongue. “No wonder you’re so strong.”

Lu Ao smiled and continued eating.

After lunch, once they finished discussing the giant grouper purchase, Lin Manzhang and the others went back.

By the time they returned to the village, it was already past five. Lu Ao gave both Lin Manzhang and Lin Gongshang a one-hundred-yuan red envelope as transportation money.

The two refused. Lin Manzhang said, “We’re all from nearby villages. Why be so polite?”

“It’s necessary. You delayed half a day because of me.” Lu Ao paused. “Just treat it as sharing in the good fortune, for an auspicious start.”

Since he put it that way, both of them happily accepted.

Lin Gongshang asked, “Lu Ao, when are you going fishing next time? Let’s go with you.”

“Tomorrow, probably,” Lu Ao said. “I like getting up early to fish. I’m not sure whether we’ll run into each other.”

Lin Gongshang felt a little gloomy.

After only two brief interactions, he could already tell that this guy was rather independent. He also truly had real ability and great strength. He could manage just fine without partners.

Lin Manzhang nodded. “Be careful on your own. Also, since there are large red snappers in this stretch of sea where you fished, we may come over to fish here too.”

Lu Ao did not mind. “Mm, no problem. Do as you like.”

This stretch of sea was so large, and their fishing times were different. They might not necessarily run into each other.

Even if they really did, it would be fine for him to avoid them a little.