After Reincarnating as the Dragon King, I Made a Fortune with Seafood – CH78

Chapter 78

After they finished touring the fish rafts, Old Tian brought them back to the courtyard to cook pufferfish for them.

The pufferfish were freshly scooped up from the rafts. Startled, each one puffed itself up like a big balloon, looking rather cute.

Old Tian carried the pufferfish to the faucet in a basket, cut them open directly with scissors, and with a casual pull, peeled off the entire skin in one piece. Beneath it was meat with a faint grayish tint.

Of the pufferfish’s organs, only the liver was kept. Everything else was discarded.

Once ten pufferfish had been cleaned, they filled a large basket.

Old Tian looked up at Lin Qiyan. “How about four for clear soup and six braised?”

Pufferfish were expensive. Every pufferfish used for the dishes had been bought by Lin Qiyan at thirty yuan each, so Old Tian asked for his opinion.

Lin Qiyan nodded. “Sorry to trouble you.”

“No trouble, no trouble. I’ll make two dishes for you using the most authentic local method. I guarantee you’ll want more after eating them.”

As Old Tian spoke, he sliced the pufferfish liver into thin pieces.

Seeing this, Lin Qiyan could not help asking, “Isn’t pufferfish liver supposed to be extremely poisonous? Can this liver also be cooked?”

“It can. The pufferfish we farm have basically been detoxified. Even if there’s still a tiny bit of residue, it won’t have much effect on the human body.”

Old Tian enthusiastically explained to them, “When we cook pufferfish, there’s a saying that the chef has to make good use of the pufferfish oil for the dish to be delicious. Pufferfish oil is rendered from pufferfish liver. In the future, if you eat pufferfish elsewhere, it’ll be the same. Only when the chef has successfully fried the liver does it count as passing the first test of skill.”

As Old Tian spoke, he cooked the pufferfish for them.

The clear soup pufferfish was finished first. The soup was milky white, looking so appetizing that it made one’s fingers twitch.

After finishing the clear soup pufferfish, Old Tian made braised pufferfish for them.

Once the braised pufferfish was done, the whole plate gleamed with an enticing soy-brown sheen. Its aroma smelled even richer than the clear soup pufferfish.

“Come, come, time to eat. Hurry and try my cooking.”

As Old Tian spoke, he brought them bowls and chopsticks.

Everyone sat down at the table without being polite.

Song Zhou did not particularly need to eat human food to begin with, and Lu Ao had been secretly fed a large pile of chocolate by Song Zhou in the car, so he still felt all right.

Lin Qiyan and Lin Manzhang, however, were truly starving.

Once the dishes were served, Lin Qiyan aimed the camera at himself and, without bothering to say much, began eating directly.

His movements were a little eager, which perfectly proved just how delicious the pufferfish was.

Lu Ao and Song Zhou sat at the side.

He first ladled a small bowl of pufferfish soup for Song Zhou, then ladled one for himself.

The pufferfish soup was thick, white, and rich. When it entered the mouth, it was extraordinarily smooth.

There was almost no fishy taste to this fish, making its freshness stand out even more.

Then he tasted a bite of pufferfish meat. Lu Ao only felt that the meat was tender and slippery, filling his mouth with fresh fragrance.

His eyes brightened slightly.

After the clear soup pufferfish came the braised pufferfish.

The braised pufferfish tasted even better than the clear soup version. The fish meat was glossy red, melted as soon as it entered the mouth, and was incomparably fresh and fragrant.

Especially the pufferfish liver inside. It was thin, fragrant, and moist, more delicate than foie gras, yet not as greasy. Once eaten, it carried a special aroma.

He used the serving chopsticks to pick up a small piece for Song Zhou and said softly, “Try this. It’s good.”

Song Zhou received it with his bowl and tasted it. His eyes curved slightly. “It is quite good.”

Hearing this, Old Tian greeted them warmly, “It’s good eaten plain, but try soaking rice in the fish soup. That’s the real masterpiece.”

Hearing this, everyone began serving rice to soak in the soup.

Rice soaked in fish soup had a bit more substance than the soup alone, and the effect was especially obvious when paired with the braised pufferfish.

The best part of the pufferfish was its liver, while the part with the most unique texture was its skin.

The tiny spines on the skin did not disappear after stewing. When eaten, they crunched softly, giving a slight prickling sensation in the mouth.

Lu Ao rather liked this texture. His eyes shone as he ate.

This pufferfish feast left both host and guests thoroughly satisfied.

When Lu Ao left, he even specially bought twenty pufferfish to take home, planning to eat them slowly.

The happiest person from this pufferfish visit was Lin Qiyan.

He had filmed some excellent material this time, so he no longer had to worry about next week’s update.

After the meal, they chatted for a while before returning to town.

Lin Dawu knew they were coming back from the county town and insisted on driving them back to the village.

Everyone first went to Lin Dawu’s house for tea.

While drinking tea, Lin Dawu asked, “Lu Ao, are you still leasing the mountain in Tanwu Village? They’ve already gone to the county to ask. If you want to lease it, you can sign the contract anytime.”

“I’ll lease it. Thirty-eight yuan per mu?”

“Yes, thirty-eight per mu. The lease term has to be more than twenty years, and the maximum is fifty years. After fifty years, once the term expires, you’ll have priority to renew at the town’s average contracting price.”

“Then there’s no problem. When there’s time, I’ll talk to them about it.”

Lin Dawu smiled. “They’ve sent word through me several times. Whenever you want to talk to them is fine.”

“Then tomorrow. Better sooner than later.”

“All right. I’ll call them later. I’ll ask where we should meet tomorrow, and we’ll discuss it together.”

Lu Ao chatted with Lin Dawu for a bit before going home.

That night, the village committee director personally called him and asked if it would be all right to come to the village committee tomorrow to discuss it.

Lu Ao agreed.

Song Zhou rarely stayed instead of going back. Together, the two looked up the relevant laws and regulations on mountain land contracting, as well as possible loopholes.

Around eight o’clock in the evening, the two finally settled on a contract template.

Lu Ao had been running around all day and was so sleepy he could hardly keep his eyes open. He went out to see Song Zhou off.

Song Zhou gently pushed his shoulder. “Go back. I’m going back too.”

“All right.” Lu Ao yawned. “Around what time will you come over tomorrow?”

“Five or six. I’ll come after work.”

“I should be able to finish leasing the mountain tomorrow morning. In the afternoon, I’ll probably be in the fields.”

“I know. If you’re not home tomorrow, I’ll go find you. Hurry back and sleep.”

The next day, after fishing in the morning, Lu Ao went to the village committee early.

Tanwu Village was only a small village within the larger village.

Luwu Village, Tanwu Village, and Linwu Village together formed the larger Chongxin Village.

Among the three villages that made up Chongxin Village, Linwu Village was the largest and had the most people. The village committee director was also from Linwu Village. His name was Lin Yu, a university-graduate village official.

He had been village chief here for several years. His reputation was decent, and he was fairly dependable.

When Lu Ao arrived at the village committee, he found that he was the last one to arrive. The representatives from Tanwu Village and the village witnesses were already there. Lin Dawu, acting as the mediator, sat to the side, while the village chief Lin Yu sat in the middle.

They were drinking tea, smoking, and chatting together. Seeing Lu Ao, several people quickly stood up to welcome him. The people from Tanwu Village were especially enthusiastic.

Lu Ao sat down and went straight to the matter of leasing the mountain.

Lin Yu hurriedly said, “We’ve helped you ask around at the county about Haining Mountain’s situation. Haining Mountain is not a protected forestry mountain, so it can be contracted privately. If you want to lease it, we need to clarify the contracted area and the relevant laws and regulations.”

“All right.”

“It’s like this. Haining Mountain covers a relatively large area. Let’s look at the map—” Lin Yu unfolded the newly made map for Lu Ao to see. “If you lease it, from here to here, including this small piece of land at the foot of the mountain, is actually all within Haining Mountain’s range.”

Lu Ao asked, “What’s the total area?”

“Two thousand three hundred and sixty-seven mu.” Lin Yu quickly explained, “At thirty-eight yuan per mu, the annual rent is eighty-nine thousand nine hundred and forty-six yuan. The rent has to be paid five years at a time, so it comes to around four hundred and fifty thousand.”

Lu Ao now had nearly five million yuan to his name, so he did not care about four hundred and fifty thousand. Hearing this, he said, “I don’t have financial pressure.”

“Hahaha, that’s good.” Lin Yu said, “Actually, the piece at the foot of the mountain counts as bonus land. The soil there is fairly fertile, and it’s by the river. It’ll be convenient for you to reclaim and plant things.”

Lu Ao looked it over carefully and, thinking of the flock of big geese at home, asked, “What if I don’t plant anything and instead clear it to put up sheds for breeding?”

“That involves the relevant laws and regulations. It depends on what you raise. If you lease all two thousand-plus mu, theoretically speaking, you can put up temporary structures on it, but laying foundations to build houses or factories definitely won’t work.”

“Just some small animals.”

“That’s definitely no problem.”

Lu Ao nodded and asked again, “What about the relevant contract?”

“That has to be handled at the county. You still need to sign with the government. We can’t make that decision.”

“No problem. We’ll go to the county sometime.”

“Is everything else fine?”

“Basically. We’ll see the contract they provide then.”

“I’ll ask and see if today works!”

Lin Yu was afraid Lu Ao might change his mind, so he immediately took his phone and went outside to ask.

Less than two minutes later, he pushed the door open with a face full of smiles. “The county says it’s no problem. We can go right now. I’ll drive you there?”

“All right.”

They had talked for less than an hour before deciding to go to the county town.

Yan County was not wealthy, and a mountain forest contract worth nearly 4.5 million yuan in total was no small sum.

The higher-ups were very interested in this contracting case.

When Lu Ao and the others arrived at the county, they basically encountered no difficulties.

In just over two hours, Lu Ao had settled the matter, and the contract was signed as well.

Once this contract was sent up for filing, it would officially take effect.

That day, Lu Ao paid five years’ rent in one go—four hundred forty-nine thousand seven hundred and thirty yuan. Barring accidents, he would be able to receive the contract certificate in a week, and Haining Mountain would be his to develop.

Once this matter was finished, Lu Ao could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

The mountain still needed some time before it could be developed. In the meantime, outside of spearfishing, Lu Ao followed Lin Manzhang out to sea to fish with nets.

Fishing at sea was tiring and depended heavily on luck.

When luck was good, fishing at sea earned more than spearfishing.

When luck was bad, returning empty-handed and losing labor and fuel costs was nothing unusual.

That day, the two went out to sea to fish as usual.

Lin Manzhang said, “I checked the weather forecast. A typhoon is coming soon. We won’t be able to fish for the next few days.”

Lu Ao had not paid attention to the weather these past few days. Hearing this, he instinctively looked at the sky.

At that moment, the sky was clear for thousands of miles, showing no sign of a typhoon at all.

Lin Manzhang saw his movement and smiled. “The typhoon is still far away. You can’t tell yet.”

This was Lu Ao’s first time formally encountering a typhoon in the village since returning here. “About how many days before it arrives?”

“The weather forecast says two days, but it’s still uncertain. We don’t know whether it’ll make landfall directly from our area. But for safety’s sake, we’d better not go out to sea.”

Lu Ao had no objections.

The typhoon about to make landfall in their province was called “Xianlu.” It was expected to land the day after tomorrow.

After Lu Ao checked the information, he specially called Yu Hongshen from Qinyin Shipyard.

His boat was still with Yu Hongshen.

Yu Hongshen answered the call cheerfully. “Don’t worry. We’ve already made preparations against the typhoon. ‘Xianlu’ doesn’t count as a strong typhoon, so there shouldn’t be any problem.”

“Mm. I just wanted to remind you.”

“Hahaha, I know. Your boat is almost repaired. Once the typhoon passes, we can change the engine. It should be fully refurbished in the second half of the month.”

“All right. Thank you for taking care of it.”

“No need to be polite.” Yu Hongshen said, “If you’re free, you can come over and have a look. During the refurbishment process, it’s best to come two or three times. If there are any issues, we can communicate and make adjustments in time. Otherwise, once the boat is completely refurbished, changing things later will be troublesome.”

“All right. I’ll come by when I have time.”

After Lu Ao finished speaking with Yu Hongshen, he went into the boat captains’ group and gave them a reminder too.

All the boat captains had received the news. One after another, they popped up and said they would not go out to sea over the next few days.

Their boats had been running at sea for so long anyway. A typhoon day was just the right time to send them for inspection—paint what needed painting, maintain what needed maintenance.

The typhoon came quickly.

The day before had still been bright and sunny. When he got up the next day, the sky was already gloomy, without a trace of sunlight.

The wind was strong by the sea. Once the sun disappeared, the temperature dropped by several degrees.

Lu Ao directly dug a jacket out of the wardrobe and put it on.

The weather was bad, and the seawater was very murky. Spearfishing was too dangerous.

Lin Manzhang and the others had all agreed not to go spearfishing.

Lu Ao himself was not afraid of this bit of wind and waves, but he did not want to stand out too much, so he did not go either.

He went to the fields to tend the vegetables.

The aging long beans, pumpkins, winter melons, bitter gourds, cucumbers, tomatoes, and so on all had to be pulled out, then replaced with new melons, fruits, or vegetables.

After planting one round of crops, he had to turn the soil again once everything was pulled out, so the soil would not become compacted.

Aside from turning the soil, since he had not fertilized for so long, he also had to apply another round of base fertilizer.

There was not an overwhelming amount of work in the field, but it was all meticulous. Going through it step by step still took quite a lot of time.

Lin Gongshang came to find him that day. Seeing how carefully he tended the melons and vegetables, he could not help saying, “You can’t finish eating all this yourself anyway. Why don’t you just plant less?”

“I can finish it.”

“What you call finishing it just means giving it away everywhere, doesn’t it? Not much actually ends up in your own mouth.” Lin Gongshang tossed the tomato in his hand. “Your geese basically don’t need feeding now, right? It doesn’t matter if you plant fewer vegetables. With the extra time, wouldn’t it be better to go out and have some fun?”

The moment Lu Ao heard this, he knew there was something behind his words. “Where do you want to go?”

A smile appeared on Lin Gongshang’s face. He slapped Lu Ao hard. “You really understand me. How about going to Xiaohui’s place to dig blood eels?”

Lu Ao knew about blood eels. He asked, “Aren’t blood eels still thin right now?”

“Thin my ass. Chushu just passed yesterday, and we’re almost heading toward the Autumn Equinox. Blood eels are nice and fat now, all right?”

The Beginning of Autumn had already passed earlier this month. Chushu meant “the end of heat,” and the weather was indeed gradually cooling down.

Lu Ao thought for a moment, then nodded. “All right. When are we going?”

“Tomorrow. The weather is perfect now. It’s windy but not raining, and working outside won’t be scorching hot.”

“What time tomorrow morning?”

“Around seven should be about right. While the weather’s cool, we can get more work done.”

This fellow Lin Gongshang clearly wanted to go on a date with his fiancée, but he was timid and insisted on finding an excuse before daring to go see her.

Lu Ao understood his thoughts but did not expose him.

When Lin Qiyan found out, he hurriedly said in the group that he wanted to go too.

This would also be his first time digging blood eels. Since he had the time, accumulating more material was never a bad thing.

Lin Gongshang was already used to his desperate habit of squeezing in content whenever possible. When they met early that morning, he looked at him with some pity. “Are you under that much pressure? Aren’t you afraid you’ll go bald?”

“Get lost. What nonsense are you saying? You’ll go bald before I do.” Lin Qiyan spat at him. “I only need to finish filming this episode. For the next one, I’m going to film deep-sea fishing.”

“Deep-sea fishing? Where?”

“Not here, anyway.” Lin Qiyan said, “I received an invitation from a sea-fishing team. They said they’re going to the high seas over by the Eastern Ocean.”

After saying that, Lin Qiyan turned his gaze toward Lu Ao and slapped his forehead. “Speaking of which, this invitation lets me bring an assistant. Lu Ao, do you want to go? It’s free.”

Among the people Lin Qiyan knew well, only Lu Ao was single and looked relatively free.

Sure enough, Lu Ao was interested. “When? How long?”

“August twenty-fourth. They said we’ll return on September first. That happens to be the fourteenth day of the seventh lunar month, so it won’t delay the Ghost Festival. The organizer has already handled the procedures. I’ve checked, and their reputation is pretty good. We can give it a try.”

Lin Qiyan’s career was actually doing quite well. In any case, he was one of the top hundred UP creators, with over six hundred thousand followers, so he had influence.

The other party had noticed that he had always been making videos about beachcombing, fish, and food. This time, inviting him over was actually a soft advertisement.

For making this video, Lin Qiyan could earn fifty thousand yuan.

Among all his advertising invitations, this amount counted as one of the highest.

He did not want to reject this money, but he also did not want to make a recommendation against his conscience.

He had already made things clear with the organizer. He wanted to experience it once first. If it felt acceptable and there was no danger, then he would make a video recommending it. If it did not feel right, then forget it. He could not scam his fans.

The other party had agreed.

Lin Qiyan was currently preparing for departure, and inviting Lu Ao now was just a sudden impulse.

Lu Ao calculated the time. “I can. I’m free.”

“Then it’s settled. I’ll send you the materials tonight for you to fill out. If there’s no problem, they’ll review it and pull you in.”

Lu Ao nodded.

The three set off. Lin Gongshang did not ride his motorcycle. Lu Ao drove the tricycle and took them there.

To dig blood eels, they had to dig on the tidal flats. Lu Ao brought a bamboo basket and a hoe.

When they arrived at Luowu Village, Luo Xiaohui was already waiting for them at the village entrance.

Seeing Lu Ao and Lin Qiyan, Luo Xiaohui looked a little embarrassed.

Lin Gongshang hurriedly got out of the vehicle to talk to her.

After they communicated for a while, Lin Gongshang came over and said to Lu Ao and Lin Qiyan, “Today we have to go to a farther tidal flat. There’s no road over there. Shall we walk?”

“All right.” Lin Qiyan got out. “You two lead the way. We’ll follow behind.”

Lin Gongshang chuckled. “No problem.”

Lu Ao took down the hoe and bamboo basket, while Lin Qiyan shouldered his camera and other equipment before following along.

Lin Qiyan had never expected to dig up any blood eels. He had not brought any digging tools at all. He planned to borrow Lu Ao’s tools later, film a few shots, and call it enough.

Lin Gongshang and Luo Xiaohui walked in front, chatting and dating as they went.

Lu Ao and Lin Qiyan followed more than ten meters behind them and did not go up to disturb them.

The few of them walked along the seawall toward the tidal flat.

The wind was quite strong today, and the waves crashed loudly.

However, it was still far from high tide, so the waves would not come over, and the tidal flat was not submerged.

After the four walked for more than half an hour, they finally reached the tidal flat.

This tidal flat was public. Usually, quite a few people came here to forage by the sea, but because of the typhoon wind today, the tidal flat was empty, without a single person.

Lin Gongshang counted as an experienced hand at digging blood eels. Once they reached the spot, he taught the two of them. “When digging blood eels, you have to look for the right openings. This kind of hole is probably a blood eel hole. When you dig, your movements have to be fast. If you’re even a little slow, the blood eel will burrow underground, and you won’t be able to find it.”

As he spoke, he demonstrated. With only a few strokes of the hoe, black mud on the tidal flat was turned over, and a blood eel the length of a chopstick twisted desperately in the mud, trying to burrow downward.

Luo Xiaohui cried out, “Careful, it’s getting away!”

Lin Gongshang had dug quickly and urgently with those few strokes. In truth, he was already a little out of breath. He kept his expression calm, quietly caught his breath, and stepped aside to let Luo Xiaohui catch it.

Luo Xiaohui had grown up by the sea and was not afraid of these things at all. She reached out directly and picked it up. The slippery blood eel was caught in her hand.

Seeing Lu Ao’s curiosity, she handed the blood eel to him.

This blood eel was not very big. It was as long as a chopstick and about as thick as one too.

It felt ordinary in his hand.

Lu Ao looked at it. The blood eel’s skin was reddish brown, somewhat like a ricefield eel.

It was said that blood eels had very thin skin. Once the surface was cut, they would bleed continuously, which was how they got the name “blood eel.”

Lin Gongshang caught his breath, forced down the smug expression on his face, and said calmly, “I’ll dig up two more for you. After that, you’ll have to dig them yourselves.”

His luck was quite good. He dug three in a row, and there were blood eels underneath each time. They were not small either.

A faint look of admiration had already appeared in Luo Xiaohui’s eyes. Seeing this, Lin Gongshang became even more pleased.

The four split into two groups: Lin Gongshang with Luo Xiaohui, and Lu Ao with Lin Qiyan.

Lin Gongshang’s main purpose in coming here to dig blood eels was only incidental. His real goal was to create an opportunity to date his fiancée. So after the groups were divided, he brought Luo Xiaohui to a place more than a hundred meters away and slowly dug there.

Lin Qiyan watched their backs and specially helped them film a segment out of friendship. This footage could be used at their wedding.

Lu Ao chose a spot and put down the bamboo basket. He reminded Lin Qiyan, “Enough. Shall we start digging?”

Lin Qiyan perked up. “Come on, you dig first. I’ll observe for a while, then it’ll be my turn.”

Lu Ao did not stand on ceremony with him. He raised the hoe and began digging directly.

Ever since he had been reborn as a dragon, it was as if he had unlocked a cheat. Digging out a tiny blood eel was not difficult at all.

He aimed at the blood eel hole. With a few strokes of the hoe, he dug out a blood eel in no time.

He dug, and Lin Qiyan picked them up.

He was so fast that several times, Lin Qiyan had not even managed to pick up one blood eel before seeing him move on to dig the next.

“Hey, wait for me! Let me adjust the equipment. You’re digging so fast and you’re not even flushed or panting. Don’t you need to rest?!”

“Mm?” Lu Ao looked up at him. Sure enough, his breathing was steady, and he did not seem strained at all.

Looking at his handsome, otherworldly face, Lin Qiyan, for a moment, even suspected that digging these things was not tiring at all. It was just that Lin Gongshang was too weak, so he started panting after only a few digs.

Lu Ao did not explain. He simply raised the hoe and dug along the tidal flat.

His movements were fast, his eyes accurate. In less than ten minutes, there were already more than a dozen blood eels in the bamboo basket, weighing at least over half a jin altogether.

Digging up blood eels was extremely difficult for others, but for him, it was as easy as chopping melons and vegetables.

Lin Qiyan followed beside him, picking up the blood eels, his heart full of a sense of achievement.

After watching for quite a while, Lin Qiyan could not help saying, “Why don’t you rest over there for a bit and let me try?”

Lu Ao said nothing. He handed him the hoe, which had already grown a little warm from friction.

Lin Qiyan took off the equipment on his body and stuffed it to Lu Ao. “Help me record a video of me digging blood eels. As long as the picture quality is passable, it’s fine.”

Lu Ao’s filming skills were actually not bad. His hands were steady, and as long as the shot did not shake, the footage would turn out well.

After Lin Qiyan got the hoe, his heart was full of excitement too.

He searched the tidal flat for a while, found a blood eel hole, then raised the hoe and began digging.

This hoe was meant for farming, so it was quite heavy. After swinging it two or three times, he already felt somewhat strained.

This strain did not mean he found it hard to lift the hoe. Rather, everything felt awkward.

Swinging the hoe like this, he kept having the illusion that he was about to throw out his back.

His movements were not fast, so the results of his blood eel digging were just average.

After digging for quite a while, he had dug out a large patch of mud but still had not seen any trace of a blood eel. He propped one hand on his waist and wiped the sweat from his forehead with the other, carefully looking at the pile of mud he had dug out of the tidal flat.

After looking for a long time, mud was still mud. There was nothing inside.

Lin Qiyan could not help panting as he muttered, “Don’t tell me I dug an empty hole?”

Lu Ao said, “It wasn’t empty. It ran away.”

“It ran away?! Impossible! When did it run? I was digging the whole time. How could it have run away?”

Lu Ao was very certain. “It ran on your fifteenth swing.”

“Wait, no. Not only do you know the blood eel ran away, you even know which swing of the hoe it ran on?” Lin Qiyan began doubting life. “How do you know that?”

“I saw it.” Lu Ao lifted his eyes and glanced at him. “Dig somewhere else.”

There was already no blood eel underneath. No matter how unwilling Lin Qiyan was, he could only change spots.

He searched for quite a while again and found another standard blood eel hole. He looked up at Lu Ao and asked, “This hole should be right, shouldn’t it?”

“There should be something in there.”

“All right, then I’m starting.”

Lin Qiyan repeated the process of huffing and puffing as he dug for a blood eel. His speed was average. After digging for a long time, he again dug up a large patch of mud.

Fortunately, this time his effort was not wasted. When he dug down to the water, he saw the shadow of a blood eel.

Holding the hoe, he hurriedly shouted, “Here! Quick, catch it!”

Lu Ao bent down and swiftly pinched the blood eel up.

Seeing that Lu Ao was about to put the blood eel into the bamboo basket, Lin Qiyan quickly said, “Wait, wait. This is my first achievement. Hurry and point the camera at it. Record this glorious moment.”

Lu Ao calmly turned the camera and aimed it at the small blood eel.

Lin Qiyan hurriedly cupped the blood eel lightly in his hands, made an expression as though tears of joy were about to fall, and said to the camera, “Friends watching, you absolutely have to like this! It wasn’t easy. After digging for so long, I finally dug up my first result.”

Lu Ao patiently recorded for him.

After recording for quite a while, Lin Qiyan was finally satisfied. Then he picked up the hoe and continued digging.

His skill was average. Out of five blood eel holes, he could probably catch one.

Digging blood eels was too physically exhausting. After fifteen minutes, he really could not take it anymore. He returned the hoe to Lu Ao and showed the red patches on his palms to the camera. “Blood eels are delicious, but the holes are hard to dig. I finally understand why blood eels are so expensive, selling for four or five hundred yuan per jin. Digging these things really isn’t easy!”

Lu Ao said nothing. He took the hoe and continued digging. More than ten minutes later, the basket had gained another dozen or so blood eels.

Before Lin Qiyan tried digging himself, he had not known exactly how tiring this was, so he had not felt much. After personally trying once, he looked at Lu Ao’s movements again and could not help admiring him to death. “Your stamina is way too abnormal!”

“It’s all right. I’m strong.”

“You guys always emphasized that before, but I never really understood it. Today, I’m completely convinced.” Lin Qiyan gave him a thumbs-up. “Utterly convinced! No, I have to delete this part of the video. Comparing myself to you makes the effect far too tragic.”

Lin Qiyan dragged out his voice and sighed, “Comparisons really do make people furious!”

Lu Ao said nothing. He continued swinging the hoe and digging.

After roughly two hours, his basket was already full.

Lu Ao had no intention of selling these for money. After digging enough for them to eat, he stopped.

Lin Gongshang and the others had run off somewhere unknown. They could no longer be seen on the beach.

Lu Ao went to the seawater to wash the hoe and his hands and feet clean. Then he fastened the lid on the bamboo basket and said, “Let’s go wait by the vehicle first. We’ll find somewhere to eat.”

“All right. I’ll call him and let him know.”

Lin Gongshang and Luo Xiaohui were still at the stage where parting felt difficult. Hearing their words, he did not mind. “Go into the village. The small shop in their village sells clam rice noodles. The taste is pretty good.”

Lu Ao wanted something hot to eat. Hearing this, he said, “Tell him we’ll wait for him in the village for about an hour and a half.”

Just as Lin Qiyan was about to pass it on, Lin Gongshang said, “I heard. An hour and a half it is. No problem. You go first. I’ll dig a little more and come over.”

The two of them walked toward Luowu Village.

They had been standing in the sea breeze for more than two hours. Lu Ao had been moving the whole time, so he did not feel cold. Lin Qiyan had stood in the wind filming, and his hands and feet were nearly frozen stiff. Even the color of his lips had changed.

After they finally reached the shop, he held a cup of scalding tea and slowly took a sip. Only then did he finally feel somewhat alive again.

“This weather is way too abnormal. It’s August, yet it’s this cold.”

The shop owner heard him. When he brought over the clam rice noodles, he smiled and replied, “Isn’t this typhoon weather? You still went to dig blood eels in a typhoon?”

“Mm. We wanted to eat some, so we came to dig a bit.”

“How much did you dig? Are you selling any?”

Lin Qiyan looked at Lu Ao.

Lu Ao said, “Not much. Not selling.”

The shop owner had run this small shop and clam rice noodle stall here for over twenty years. One look at their expressions and movements, and he knew they had gained quite a harvest today. He quickly said with a grin, “If you have some, sell me a little. Blood eels are very nourishing. I want to buy some for my mother to strengthen her body.”

When Lin Qiyan heard this, he knew there was material, so he quickly turned on the camera and started filming. “What’s wrong with the elderly lady’s health?”

The owner saw him filming and quickly waved his hand, signaling not to show his face.

Lin Qiyan aimed the camera at the floor by their feet, recording only the audio.

The shop owner said, “It’s nothing serious. She’s just old and her body is weak. I want to get some blood eels for her to eat and nourish herself a little.”

Lu Ao still did not agree.

The shop owner thought for a moment. “To eat blood eels, you need good wine to go with them. I have a bottle of excellent yellow wine here. How about I trade it with you? The value of my yellow wine is about the same as the blood eels.”

Lu Ao asked, “What kind of yellow wine?”

He did not drink much himself, but Song Zhou usually drank a little. If he was going to cook blood eels today, pairing them with some yellow wine would indeed be nice.

“My old comrade brewed it himself at home. It’s been stored here for five or six years too. That taste—anyone who’s had it says it’s good! I’ll bring it over and you’ll know once you see it.”

Seeing there was hope, the shop owner could not even be bothered with the stall. He hurried upstairs to get his precious yellow wine.

A short while later, he came down carrying a bottle of yellow wine.

The bottle was just an ordinary liquor bottle. The original liquor inside had been drunk, and new yellow wine had been poured in and sealed.

The color of the yellow wine looked pretty good. Lu Ao opened the cap and lightly smelled it.

His sense of smell was very sharp. The aroma of this bottle of yellow wine smelled decent.

After smelling it, he nodded. “One bottle of wine for one jin.”

“Sure. I’ll bring a basin.”

The shop owner joyfully went into the back kitchen and brought out a plastic basin.

Lu Ao opened the lid of the bamboo basket and grabbed a large handful of blood eels for him.

A dozen or so blood eels swam around the bottom of the basin. At a glance, the amount was clearly more than one jin.

The shop owner grinned so widely his teeth showed, then quickly carried the basin into the back kitchen to put it away.

When he came back out, he looked at Lu Ao’s bamboo basket and could not help asking, “Your harvest is pretty good. How long did you dig?”

“Not long. One morning.”

“Then your skill is this!” The shop owner gave him a thumbs-up. “I’ve been running this shop here for so many years, and I’ve seen plenty of people come dig blood eels. I’ve never seen anyone with your efficiency.”

“I just dug casually.” Lu Ao finished a bowl of clam rice noodles and said, “Three more bowls, please.”

“All right, I’ll go into the kitchen and make them for you. Eat as much as you like. I won’t charge you for the rest.”

The clam rice noodles had to be made in foil. After Lu Ao finished the three bowls he had just ordered, the new three bowls were brought over.

Lu Ao opened the foil. The clam rice noodles released rolling steam, and the fresh fragrance of clams rushed toward his face.

He narrowed his eyes, his whole face full of pleasure.

The shop owner watched him eat clam rice noodles and was amazed.

The bowls in his shop were all large bowls. Usually, a man would be full after two bowls. Someone with a larger appetite might eat three bowls. This was the first time he had seen someone eat six bowls in one go.

With this appetite and this strength, he really was worthy of being someone who could dig more than ten jin of blood eels in one morning.

Lin Gongshang was fairly punctual. At about the one-and-a-half-hour mark, he came back. It was already past one, and Luo Xiaohui had gone home for lunch.

He was too embarrassed to follow her, so he came to the shop to find Lu Ao and the others.

He and Luo Xiaohui had been busy dating. Digging blood eels had only been an excuse, so after an entire morning, he had not dug many at all—just a little over one jin in total.

When he found out Lu Ao had dug more than ten jin in one morning, his mouth nearly hung open.

After he came back to himself, he shook his head, feeling that this was only natural, and sighed. “I’ve known you for so long. It feels like it would be stranger if you didn’t dig this many blood eels in one morning.”

After they ate their fill, they drove back toward the village.

Before leaving the shop, Lu Ao specifically asked the owner for two plastic bags.

After returning to the village, Lu Ao grabbed two large handfuls of blood eels from the bamboo basket, placed them into a plastic bag, and handed it to Lin Qiyan.

“Hey, you should take them home and eat them yourself. I didn’t dig much.”

Lu Ao said, “Take them home for your grandmother to nourish her body.”

Lin Qiyan withdrew the hand he had been using to refuse. Blood eels were indeed good things. Taking them home to nourish his grandmother’s body would be nice.

Holding the bag, which weighed over three jin, he did not quite know what to say for a moment. He could only say, “Thanks.”

Lu Ao waved his hand, signaling that there was no need to be polite.

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