My 1995 Small Farm.

Chapter 419 Catching a Big Deal Barehand

"So this is the eel cave! Let me try it, let me try it..." Upon hearing this, Zhao Dahai immediately rolled up his sleeves and squeezed to the front, shouting.

Seeing this, Zhao Yubao glared at him and scolded, "What are you yelling about? What are you yelling about? Fugui hasn't even said anything yet, how can you be so rude? You're just making a nuisance as a guest... Is this how I taught you?"

Then he turned to Chen Ling, pushed up his glasses, and smiled, "Fugui, it's inconvenient for you to bring Rui Rui along. Just tell me how to dig out the eel hole, and I'll do it for you."

Before Chen Ling could speak, Old Zhong sneered, "Go away, you shameless old man! So you were the one who wanted to catch the eels to play with. At your age, you're competing with a child for something. How could you do such a thing?"

"Then come on, come on, I'll let you have it..." Zhao Yubao chuckled, feeling confident and fearless.

"Get lost! You're only doing this because my arm is injured. Otherwise, it wouldn't be your turn!" Old Zhong said angrily.

The two old men, like little children, started bickering while guarding the eel hole, their eyes bulging and their beards puffed out, just like two competitive roosters.

This made everyone burst into laughter.

Only Zhao Dahai retreated to the side with a wronged expression. He was such a grown man, yet he was being scolded by his father like a grandson, not given any face in front of so many people. He should have known better than to bring the old man out to play.

"Uncle Zhao, Uncle Zhong, there are plenty of eels here, nothing to fight over. If you want to catch eels for fun, we can keep looking later. We came here to catch fish and shrimp in the reeds, otherwise why would we bring these big wooden basins and fish baskets..."

Chen Ling said helplessly, trying to persuade him.

Just now, with so many crabs and crayfish crawling around, no one thought of catching them. But now, they've only found one eel hole, and they're already scrambling for it.

This is truly beyond words...

That's just how people are sometimes. They're not interested in things that are right in front of them or offered to them, but they only find things interesting and satisfying when they have to go through a lot of effort to get their hands on them.

Upon hearing Chen Ling's words, everyone immediately perked up.

Yeah, there are so many eel holes in the reeds, why keep focusing on this one?

"Then I'll go first. Fugui, can you teach me how to catch this eel?"

Zhao Yubao refused to give up on the eel hole in front of him. He was the first to discover this hole, and the eel that had just disappeared was big enough.

It made him incredibly eager to show off his skills, but he couldn't bear to give it up.

She wouldn't even give up her son.

"Catching eels, or rather, fishing for them..."

"Eels are too slippery to hold firmly by hand, and they usually hide in their burrows during the day, so you can't catch them from there. You can only use a fishing rod."

As Chen Ling spoke, he gestured for everyone to look at the fish baskets. Some of the baskets contained fishing hooks. Of course, it didn't matter if there were no yellow eel hooks, as there were other ways to catch yellow eels.

"Uncle Zhao, let me briefly explain how to fish for eels. Do whatever you think is fun. It's okay if you don't catch any. We can't find other things around here, but eels are everywhere. They can be found wherever there is water."

"Okay, okay, tell me how to fish for eels."

Zhao Yubao rubbed his hands together impatiently, while the others listened intently.

"There are generally three methods for fishing for eels."

"The first method is to use a long wire, about a meter long, sharpen one end, bend it into a hook shape, put an earthworm or something on it, and then slowly insert the wire with the earthworm on it into the eel's hole. When the eel sees its food being offered to it, it will come over to eat without hesitation. When you feel the hook, quickly pull it out, and you've caught the eel."

"However, we don't have hooks that long."

"The fish hooks in the fish baskets are the same ones that kids usually use to fish or catch frogs. They can also catch eels, but you have to wait. Usually, the kids here come over when the sun is about to set. They break off two sturdy reeds from the reeds, tie a nylon rope about a meter long to the reeds, hang a small fish hook on the nylon rope, and usually bait the hook with an earthworm. After that, the kids just stick the reeds into the bank, and eels will naturally come out to find food at night."

When we came to collect the hooks the next morning, almost every hook had an eel on it.

This method is convenient, but it's a bit slow.

"Yes, yes, this one has to be kept overnight. Even if it's not kept overnight, we still have to wait, which is really inconvenient. What's the third option? Fugui, tell us quickly."

Several elderly people listened intently and urged him on.

"The third method is simple and direct: specifically look for burrows where eels lay their eggs. Eels are quite strange; they exhibit egg-protecting behavior, just like cats and dogs protect their young. They will protect their unhatched eggs..."

These eel burrows are easy to find. Eels that are spawning have a habit of blowing bubbles, and there are often clumps of foam at the entrance of the burrow. Eels also like to stick their heads out of the water. Once you've spotted one, you can dangle and harass it with a baited hook around it.

The eels guarding their eggs think there's an intruder. To protect their young, they'll pounce and bite. Listen, a 'plop'—that's an eel on the hook.

"Okay, okay, catching eels is so much fun! I'll choose the third option: to find eels guarding their eggs."

“Hehe, let’s try the third method. We have ready-made fishing hooks. We just need to find an eel hole with foam. Yaya, come on, ignore your grandpa, let’s find the eel hole ourselves.”

After Chen Ling finished speaking, not only the old men, but even Zhao Dahai and Shanmao listened intently, feeling that they had learned something. They quickly rolled up their sleeves, eager to show off their skills.

Only Zhao Yubao frowned, hesitating back and forth, "I actually wanted to choose the first option, which is that the hook isn't long enough. The second method requires waiting, and as for the third method, my eel burrow is clearly not for protecting eggs, so it definitely won't be easy to lure them out."

Chen Ling laughed when he saw this. This old man was quite interesting. He was just like a little kid. Once he saw something fun, he wouldn't let go and got completely absorbed in playing with it.

He said, "Uncle Zhao, you don't need an eel hook. I'll find you something, put some bait on it, and it'll work just the same..."

After saying that, he waded through the water to the grass on the bank and pulled up a few blades of grass.

Zhao Yubao was taken aback. "What is this? Foxtail grass?"

"No, this is goosegrass, like an old cow's tendon, hard to pull out, very sturdy, even sturdier than foxtail grass, it's sure to be fine for catching eels."

As Chen Ling spoke, he casually grabbed a small frog that hopped over. There were plenty of frogs in the reed marshes; there was no need to look for earthworms on the shore...

A short while later, Chen Ling crushed the poor frog, skewered the frog meat onto the stem of the goosegrass, and handed it to Zhao Yubao.

"Let's start fishing, Uncle Zhao."

Zhao Yubao was stunned by Chen Ling's series of actions. Catching frogs was as easy as taking candy from a baby, and killing frogs was as ruthless as killing them. How did this guy train?

Startled, he only snapped back to reality when he heard someone speak.

"Will this... will this work? Using grass stems to catch eels?"

"Give it a try. I can't say for sure it will work, but it's no worse than an eel hook. This goosegrass stuff is really sturdy."

Zhao Yubao heard that everyone else was enthusiastically searching for eel burrows in the reed marshes, and he could hear Rui Rui and Ya Ya's excited screams from time to time, so they must have made a discovery.

This made him anxious; he didn't want to be outdone and wanted to catch the guy in the eel hole as soon as possible so he could try the third method.

So, with some skepticism, he followed Chen Ling's instructions and slowly inserted the grass stem sloughed with frog meat into the eel's hole.

As soon as he reached into the hole, Old Zhong came to bother him, "What are you doing, Lao Zhao? Hey, how come you're fishing for eels with grass stalks? Are you sure you can do it? If you really can't, go to another hole. We've already caught one using Fugui's method. Why are you still sticking to this hole? We're not going to take it from you."

His words were dripping with sarcasm. Zhao Yubao snorted, glared at him, and ignored him with a cold face. He focused intently on what Chen Ling had said, slowly and carefully extending the grass stem into the eel's hole.

Chen Ling watched from the sidelines, secretly amused. These two old men were quite interesting; you wouldn't see that in the city, but here they were even arguing.

Just then, Zhao Yubao let out a low cry, "It's biting!"

Chen Ling hurriedly went to check and, sure enough, something was pulling grass stems into the cave.

Old Zhong stopped being sarcastic and stared wide-eyed in surprise. "Wow, that really works! You don't even need a fishhook. Fugui, why didn't you teach me that trick earlier?"

Chen Ling didn't have time to answer at this moment, he just told Zhao Yubao to hold the grass stem tightly and slowly pull it out.

Zhao Yubao was extremely nervous, and the more Chen Ling spoke and gave instructions, the more his hands trembled.

It was quite a feat to lure the eel out of its burrow.

This large yellow eel, with its yellowish-brown head and thick, long body covered in black spots, saw people waiting outside and immediately abandoned the food that was almost in its mouth, trying to retreat back into its burrow.

"You're out, but you still want to run away."

Seeing this, Chen Ling swiftly reached out and, with a whoosh, grabbed the upper half of the eel's body, pulling and yanking it out of the hole.

Zhao Yubao was overjoyed, while Old Zhong was astonished: "Goodness, Fugui, how did you train like this? You just grab it with your hands. The one we caught earlier was like trying to grab it with your hands. This eel is so slippery, it escaped several times when we tried to catch it. In the end, your father-in-law had to catch it for us."

His shout drew everyone over, and they learned that Chen Ling and Zhao Yubao had caught the eels with grass stems and had even caught them with their bare hands.

Surprised, they all clamored for Chen Ling to show off his skills again.

City dwellers generally don't know how difficult it is to catch eels; they try to catch them with their bare hands, a feat rarely accomplished even by local villagers.

Unlike other fish, the yellow eel has a smooth layer of mucus on its body, making it difficult for a person to catch with their bare hands.

However, there are tricks to catching eels.

That means being quick, accurate, and ruthless. Once you grab it, don't hesitate or stop. Just pull it out in one go and throw it onto the boat or the shore.

Chen Lingli was ruthless and quick-witted; with one grab, the eel had virtually no chance of escape.

"You little rascal, you always like to keep things to yourself. Show us what you've got," Lynx said with a helpless smile, pointing at Chen Ling.

Chen Ling didn't say anything, but just smiled and slapped the eel unconscious with his hand, then handed it to the old man Zhao Yubao.

Zhao Yubao took the eel and quickly put it into the fish basket, treating it like a precious treasure.

After that, everyone asked Chen Ling for advice while searching for the burrows where the eels had already laid their eggs.

Chen Ling, with one hand pulling the small boat carrying Wang Cunye and two children, and the other hand holding a large wooden basin, floated on the water, leading them back and forth in the reeds, catching fish, shrimp, and turtles.

We played until the sun was almost setting before heading back.

However, when it comes to catching turtles, we have to mention the old man Zhao Yubao.

At first, he asked Chen Ling for some tips and learned them quite quickly. He was the one who caught the most eels.

The sense of accomplishment was absolutely overwhelming.

The old man was so happy that he grinned from ear to ear and kept showing off to Old Zhong and the others.

Later, feeling uncomfortable, he took off his rubber boots, rolled up his trousers, and started playing barefoot.

However, just like Old Zhong, his joy soon turned to sorrow when he stepped on a turtle hiding in the mud and almost got bitten.

It didn't get bitten, but it still took a tumble and fell into the water sprawled out.

Not only did I get completely soaked, but I also swallowed several mouthfuls of dirty water.

Old Zhong mocked him for quite a while.

Feeling humiliated, Zhao Yubao became ruthless and abandoned the eel, instead retaliating by catching a soft-shelled turtle.

There are also many turtles hiding in the reeds, and some even crawl out to the reeds on the water's surface to forage for food.

However, if there is any disturbance, they will quickly slide into the water with a "plop" and even burrow into the silt, going deeper and deeper.

If someone unfortunately steps on a turtle hiding in the mud, they are very likely to be bitten.

……

"You're going to keep making fun of me, aren't you? You even got pecked by a bird, why don't you mention that?"

"That's different. You were bitten by a turtle, and you're in a much worse state than me."

"Ya Ya, do you think your grandpa got bitten by a turtle?"

"Yes, Grandpa is bad. He caught fish without Yaya and even scolded Dad. He deserved to be bitten by the turtle."

As the sun set, the group returned home laden with fish, their baskets nearly overflowing. Along the way, two old men bickered incessantly.

At first, everyone chimed in with their opinions, but now they just treat it as background noise, like the sounds of Rui Rui and Ya Ya playing around.

However, as they walked further out of the village, the voices of the two old men gradually faded away, leaving only the sounds of Rui Rui and Ya Ya running around and playing.

It was the beautiful scenery of this small mountain village at dusk that captivated me.

It was dusk, and smoke was rising from every house. The children who had been playing under the trees at the edge of the village dispersed, laughing and frolicking, at their parents' calls.

The setting sun in the distance was about to disappear behind the mountains, and the afterglow spread out in layers of clouds, as if someone had smeared a stroke of bright paint on it.

The entire sky was painted with the glow of the sunset, and the mountains, fields, and even farms were all enveloped in a soft halo of light.

It really felt like stepping into an oil painting.

With such a beautiful view before them, how could they possibly be in the mood to bicker?

Bathed in the glow of the setting sun, several elderly people who had long lived in the city were filled with joy.

Despite his disheveled appearance, the renowned writer Zhao Yubao couldn't help but exclaim with his hands behind his back, "It was definitely the right decision to come here sooner. To be honest, I haven't felt this way in most of my life. Coming here feels like I've returned to my childhood, with all the new and exciting things around me, and my heart filled with anticipation and joy. It's such a rare feeling."

Old Zhong, the little old man, didn't disagree anymore. He nodded and smiled with a lot of emotion, saying, "Yes, life seems to have become fulfilling again. I'm getting old, but I've found that feeling again, like when I was wearing open-crotch pants. Isn't that a kind of luck?"

(End of this chapter)