The fish in this lake aren’t easy to catch, and it’s even harder to catch a specific kind. Manbao cast her hook four tis, either pulling it too slowly and getting nothing or catching fish she didn’t want.
Still, catching any fish is a delight.
Manbao excitedly unhooked the fish and threw it into the wooden bucket, then carried it to the water’s edge to scoop up a little water so it could feel more at ho.
Bai Shan cast his hook, only to find the worm was gone, replaced by a tuft of water grass.
He paused, puzzled, since there didn’t seem to be much water grass where he was fishing.
Not letting it bother him, Bai Shan added so bait, moved to another spot to drop his hook, washed his hands, and then sat waiting.
Manbao, guided by Keke, carefully moved her hook near the specific fish. Keke inford her, "It swam past... It’s gone, eaten by other fish..."
Before Keke finished, Manbao imdiately yanked her hook. It was quite heavy—a fish was struggling, thrashing its tail in mid-air, and landed with a slap on the grass only to futilely leap a few more tis trying to get back to the water.
Manbao exclaid in awe, Bai Shan quickly abandoned his fishing rod to assist, while Daji, resting under a tree, opened an eye lazily before closing it and resuming his nap.
Manbao tugged on her fishing rod while Bai Shan helped by holding the big fish down, expertly removing the hook from its mouth before placing it in the bucket.
Bai Shan was full of envy, "You’ve already caught two fish."
Manbao also considered herself lucky this ti, though the catch wasn’t what she was aiming for, the fish was quite large.
From afar, hearing the commotion, Bai Erlang couldn’t resist, moving over to peek at the two fish in the bucket before running back. "Just wait, I’ll catch one soon too."
Zhou Liru’s voice echoed from that direction, "Your bait’s been eaten—"
Bai Erlang picked up his pace.
Bai Shan also went to check his hook, feeling so weight. Excitedly pulling it up, his face fell.
Manbao let out a puzzled sound, "Who threw waterlon rinds into the lake?"
Bai Shan retrieved the rind with a blank expression, tossing it under a tree for compost, before re-baiting and asking Manbao, "Where do you think I should drop my hook?"
Manbao thought for a mont and then whispered, "Follow , let’s attack from front and back."
Keke guided them on how to strategically surround their target fish, in vain, as the fish seed uninterested in the bait, swimming by without a glance, instead catching quite a few ordinary grass fish.
Manbao grew despondent, clutching her rod in frustration, "We can’t go on like this."
Bai Shan mused, "No wonder the vendor said those fish are hard to catch. Turns out they’re really hard to catch. Manbao, does Uncle Zhou only like that kind of fish?"
Manbao glanced over, "He’s had all of these before."
Bai Shan pondered deeply, recalling so mories, "I rember when we were younger, each winter we’d fish and you’d choose small fish from the catch to release them into the canal in our village, saying they’d beco big fish soday."
Manbao glanced at Daji in the distance and whispered, "I did release them."
Though not before recording one first.
Bai Shan chuckled, heading to the lakeside to peer into the water, catching glimpses of fish gliding by, "Brother Zhou Er taught us to make fish baskets with grass; they aren’t very sturdy, but maybe we could catch fish. Should we try that thod?"
Both Manbao squatted by the lakeside, observing, before shaking her head, "No, the places these fish appear seem deep, they’re not fond of swimming upwards, each fish prefers a certain water level, the basket won’t reach, and we’re too short."
Moreover, the Small Town prohibits outsiders from fishing, though only they were there and might not be discovered, it’s still improper.
The best thod is still angling, but unfortunately, the fish seem uninterested in the bait. So what do they like to eat?
Keke didn’t know their preferences.
The specific fish weren’t recorded, but the encyclopedia could be consulted, though it didn’t include preferred foods, only their omnivorous diet.
Worms were naturally part of their nu.
Manbao mused silently, "Maybe we should try different bait, though we only have worms here. Keke, search the shop for fish bait."
Keke complied, quickly displaying a variety of bait options, varying in price and targeting different fish.
Manbao, mind deep in the system, getting dizzy with choices, decided to leave it to Keke, "Keke, you choose."
Keke selected bait based on the type of fish intended for capturing, unsure of its efficacy, yet hopeful.
Manbao placed an order, and soon afterwards, deftly pulling two pieces of bait from her sleeve, handing one to Bai Shan and hooking one herself.
Deep in thought, Bai Shan suddenly received the bait, raising his eyebrows, glancing at Manbao but not questioning, simply hooking it and casting it into the lake.
Both peeked at Daji in the distance again, the fishing spot they were searching for had taken them quite far, though not too far, Daji seed uneasy, frequently glancing over.
When spotted, Daji was already looking their way.
Seeing the young masters looking, he assud they needed sothing and began to approach but they quickly averted their gaze and huddled together, seemingly guilty of sothing.
Daji hesitated then turned back, opting to sit back under the tree—after all, they were adults, should leave so space,
His eldest son wasn’t young either, slightly older than the young master. When returning from the Western Regions this ti, it might be a good ti to find him a wife.
The money he’d saved over the years, combined with what his son earned from escorting, should be enough to buy a small courtyard outside the capital.
He could support them for a few years, eventually they should manage on their own, his younger son, still young but a scholar, marrying could wait, save so money for him...
While Daji plotted ntally, both Manbao and Bai Shan felt the tug of fish on their lines, pulling them up, revealing brilliant silver fish shimring in the sunlight. Before confirming if they caught their intended fish, Keke excitedly announced, "It’s the one!"
The fish landed on the grass, Manbao imdiately grabbed it, gently removing the hook, the silver fish wasn’t large, barely two palms, but not very strong, once placed in the bucket, it energetically leapt around, splashing their faces. Bai Shan laughed heartily, joining his fish in the bucket, murmuring, "Is it the one?"
He believed it looked very similar to the ones seen earlier, though fish often resemble each other.
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