Reborn in '77, I have a job panel!

"Yes, Li Jianguo and Liu Tiedan should already be by the river."

"Let's go then," Zhang Changtian said, walking outside. "I'll go take a look too."

The two left the carpentry hut.

Zhang Mingxi came out of the kitchen and saw them with fishing rods. He asked, "Dad, are you really going fishing?"

"Go check it out and see if this kid is just bragging."

Zhang Mingxi smiled: "Then I'll go too."

"What are you going to do?" Zhang Changtian glared at her. "It's cold outside, what if you catch a cold?"

"I'm not afraid of the cold," Zhang Mingxi said, already running to put on her cotton-padded coat.

Zhang Changtian shook his head and didn't stop him anymore.

The three of them went out the door and walked towards the river.

On the way, Zhang Mingxi leaned close to Qian Cheng and whispered, "You really know how to fish?"

"I caught seven yesterday," Qian Cheng said.

"That's amazing." Zhang Mingxi's eyes sparkled.

When they arrived at the riverbank, they indeed saw Li Jianguo and Liu Tiedan already on the ice, squatting next to an ice hole, waiting expectantly.

Upon seeing Qian Cheng arrive, Liu Tiedan jumped up first: "Brother Cheng! You've finally come!"

Li Jianguo also stood up and saw Zhang Changtian and Zhang Mingxi behind Qian Cheng. He paused for a moment and said, "Uncle Zhang, Sister Mingxi."

Zhang Changtian grunted in agreement and stepped onto the ice. The ice was thick, so stepping on it didn't cause any problems. He squatted down next to an ice hole and looked inside. The water was clear, and he could see fish swimming around at the bottom.

"Right here?" he asked.

"Here it is." Qian Cheng said, handing one fishing rod to Li Jianguo and one to Liu Tiedan. "These are for you."

The two men took the fishing rod, their eyes lighting up.

"Thank you, Brother Cheng!" Liu Tiedan was so excited that his face turned red.

Qian Cheng handed another one to Zhang Changtian: "Master, this is yours."

Zhang Changtian took it, weighed it in his hand, and said nothing.

Qian Cheng kept one for himself and began preparing bait, which was cornmeal dough, which he shaped into small pieces and hung on the hook.

"Use this." Zhang Mingxi pulled a small paper packet from his pocket. "I dug it up this morning."

Qian Cheng opened the paper package, inside were several earthworms. Digging for earthworms in winter is not easy, and she didn't know how much effort she had put in.

"Thank you," Qian Cheng said.

"Don't be so polite with me." Zhang Mingxi blushed.

Qian Cheng threaded the earthworm onto the fishhook, adjusted the float, and lowered the fishhook into the ice hole.

Li Jianguo and Liu Tiedan followed Qian Cheng's example, baiting their hooks and casting their lines.

Zhang Changtian watched for a while and then did the same.

Four people, four fishing rods, and four floats floating on the surface of the ice hole.

Zhang Mingxi squatted down next to Qian Cheng, his eyes fixed on the float.

Time passed second by second.

The ice surface was quiet, with crows cawing in the distance and only the sound of the wind nearby.

Liu Tiedan was the first to lose his composure, muttering under his breath, "Why is there still no movement..."

"Don't speak," Li Jianguo said.

Qian Cheng held the fishing rod, motionless, his eyes fixed on the float, his ears listening to the sounds under the ice.

Suddenly, his float moved slightly.

Then, it sank down.

Qian Cheng flicked his wrist and lifted the fishing rod!

The bamboo pole was bent into an arc, and the line was taut.

"There's fish!" Zhang Mingxi exclaimed in surprise.

Qian Cheng slowly reeled in the line, and a crucian carp was pulled out of the water, thrashing about on the ice.

"The first one!" Liu Tiedan said excitedly.

Qian Cheng removed the fish, put it into the wooden bucket he had brought, and rebaited and cast the hook again.

Almost as soon as the hook was cast, the float moved again.

He lifted the rod, and caught another one.

Li Jianguo watched with envy, staring at his own float. Just then, his float also moved.

He quickly lifted the fishing rod.

The bamboo pole bent, but not too badly.

When the line was pulled up, it was a small crucian carp, weighing only about an ounce.

"I caught one too!" Li Jianguo said excitedly.

"Let me see, let me see!" Liu Tiedan leaned over.

His float moved too. He lifted the rod, and there was a small crucian carp.

All three of them caught fish, but Zhang Changtian's float remained motionless.

The old man's expression was rather unpleasant.

Qian Cheng noticed this and whispered, "Master, could you adjust the float down a bit? The water depth might be different."

Zhang Changtian didn't say anything, but he did as instructed.

Adjust the float and recast the hook.

This time, it only took two minutes for the float to move.

Zhang Changtian raised his fishing rod.

The bamboo pole was bent very badly, and the string was taut.

"Dad, a big fish!" Zhang Mingxi said.

Zhang Changtian slowly reeled in the line. When he did, he found a carp, weighing at least a pound, thrashing about on the ice.

"Wow!" Li Jianguo exclaimed, "Uncle Zhang caught a big one!"

Zhang Changtian smiled, picked the fish off the shell, and put it into the bucket.

"It's alright, just average size." Zhang Changtian looked at the largest carp he had caught, weighing about a pound, in the bucket. He was overjoyed, but he pretended to be calm on the surface.

Next, several people caught fish one after another.

Qian Cheng caught the most, almost one every few minutes.

Li Jianguo and Liu Tiedan also caught quite a few, although they were small, there were still a lot of them.

Zhang Changtian fishes slowly, but he catches big ones, carp and grass carp, each weighing over a pound.

The wooden barrel was quickly filled.

Fishing Proficiency +1

Fishing Proficiency +1

Prompts kept flashing before Qian Cheng's eyes.

Fishing (Beginner) lv.0: 5/100

Before I knew it, it was already past three in the afternoon.

The cold air on the ice was getting heavier and heavier, and Zhang Mingxi was so cold that he kept stamping his feet.

"That's enough, they'll freeze if we keep fishing like that."

Li Jianguo and Liu Tiedan were still enjoying themselves, but their buckets were already full, so they had to pack up their lines.

Qian Cheng counted the fish in the bucket; there were at least twenty or thirty, including crucian carp, common carp, and grass carp—enough for several meals.

"Let's divide these fish among ourselves," Qian Cheng suggested.

"That won't do. You provided the fishing rod and the bait. We're just benefiting from your generosity."

Li Jianguo had no intention of taking it.

"Take it, take it home and add some dishes to your family's meal."

Qian Cheng gave Li Jianguo and Liu Tiedan five or six strips each, and put the rest into his own bucket.

Zhang Changtian didn't order the fish, but he kept smiling.

On the way back, Zhang Mingxi walked next to Qian Cheng and whispered, "You're really amazing."

"I was lucky," Qian Cheng said.

"This isn't just luck," Zhang Mingxi said earnestly. "You're just amazing."

Qian Cheng smiled but didn't say anything.

Upon arriving at the Zhang family's house, Qian Cheng emptied half of the fish from the bucket and left it for the Zhang family.

"What are you going to do with so many? Just keep two."

"We can't finish it all at home, so it would be a waste if you don't want it, Master's wife."

Deng Jingshu couldn't refuse, so she had no choice but to accept it.

Zhang Changtian stood to the side, looking at the fish in the bucket, then at Qian Cheng, and suddenly asked, "Are we going again tomorrow?"

"Go, go every day as long as the ice hasn't melted."

Zhang Changtian nodded: "Okay, I'll go again tomorrow."

Qian Cheng smiled and said, "Okay."

He carried the remaining fish home.

As the sun set, it cast a long shadow on him.

That afternoon on the ice was cold, but very happy.

Fishing has become a profession, carpentry is improving, and students are advancing in their academic level.