Back to my 1980s

As soon as the two arrived home, they saw Zhao's father sitting on a stool at the door, puffing on his pipe.

Seeing the two enter the house, Zhao's father put down his pipe and asked, "Xiaoru said you bought fishhooks? What kind?"

Zhao Hua put the hoe behind the door, handed the wooden box in his hand to Zhao Ru, took out the string set from his pocket, took out a set and handed it to Zhao's father, saying, "This is it, someone else has already strung it together, using the Seven Star Float."

Mr. Zhao took the fishing line and examined it for a while in the light from outside. He looked up hesitantly and said, "It looks pretty good. Where are you going fishing this afternoon? Why don't you take me with you? It looks like it's going to rain, so I won't go fishing."

"Then you can take it. Zhao Ru just said she doesn't know how to fish. I was originally planning to go and get a fish trap, and then come back to the dock to fish. Even if it rains, I can still make it back in time." He handed all the remaining fishing lines to Zhao's father.

After Zhao's father took it, he turned to Zhao Ru and said, "You can come with me in a bit. I'll go collect the fish traps myself. I can let him teach you how to fish."

Zhao Ru nodded, looking at the sweat stains on his clothes, and asked, "Are you sure you can manage by yourself? Don't you need me to row the boat to a stop for you?"

He glanced down following Zhao Ru's gaze, wiped his face casually, and laughed, "I went alone at first, didn't I? It's okay! Just bring the casting net with you when you go with Dad later."

He glanced at the sky, where dark clouds were layered upon each other. However, it seemed unlikely that it would rain heavily anytime soon, so he dared not delay any longer. He said goodbye to Zhao's father and Zhao Ru, picked up a bucket from the yard, and ran outside, ignoring the greetings he received from others on the way.

He went to the riverbank, untied the rope, climbed onto the boat, kept an eye on the sky, and swung his arms rapidly. The small boat sped forward. It usually took half an hour to get there, but today it felt like he arrived at the desolate island where the traps were set in less than half the time.

After scooping up the fish traps and throwing them into the cabin, they rowed to the next location. They quickly collected all the fish traps and headed back, only relaxing a bit when they were almost at Shuanghuai Village.

He glanced along the riverbank and saw Zhao Ru and her father, as well as their neighbors Zhao Ting and Zhao Xiaoran.

The group wasn't at the dock, but rather a little to the east of the dock, near the small, slippery spot where Zhao Hua had previously tested the net. After seeing them, Zhao Hua looked away, waited for the boat to dock, grabbed the rope, jumped off the boat, and tied the rope securely to a tree trunk.

Then, back on the boat, they filled a bucket halfway with river water, poured all the fish from the trap into the bucket, tidied up the trap, and carried it on their backs, taking the fish from the bucket home first.

After dumping all the fish caught from the trap into the water tank, Zhao Hua, still thinking about catching fish by the river, couldn't wait to rush to the riverbank to meet his father.

Zhao Ru saw him from a distance and waved at him with a grin.

Seeing Zhao Ru's expression, he roughly understood that he had probably gained a good result. Feeling a surge of excitement, he quickened his pace and ran to Zhao's father's side.

"How's it going, Zhao Ru? You're smiling so happily, you've learned how to fish?" He stepped forward and glanced at the fish in the bucket next to Zhao's father, a bunch of whitebait, and smiled as he took out a cigarette and handed it to the neighbor and Zhao's father.

"Yeah, I've caught several already. Keep your voice down, or you'll scare them away," Zhao Ru said in a low voice from a little further away.

"It's alright. The weather's stuffy today, and the fish in the deep water are all running towards the shore. They'll be scared away for a while, but a bunch of them will come back." He smiled and casually replied to his neighbor before walking towards Zhao Ru.

Seeing him approach, Zhao Ru asked, "I saw you a while ago, why are you back so soon today?"

"Of course we need to hurry. I'm worried that it might rain heavily on the way. What if my boat gets flooded and sinks? Will I have to swim back?" He stood next to Zhao Ru.

"Then you can row the boat for a while, then stop and scoop water out. A bucket can scoop water out very quickly. After you're done scooping, you can row the boat again. That way you won't sink, right?" Zhao Ru teased with a cheerful laugh.

"Okay, next time I'll bring you along so you can properly fetch water." Zhao Hua glanced at her with a smile, then looked at the bucket next to her, where a dozen or so fish were swimming around.

Zhao Ting and Zhao Xiaoran, who were standing nearby, watched them chatting with a bit of envy. Zhao Ting's brother was either farming or playing cards all day long, and they could only see him a few times when he was eating. He didn't talk to her at all otherwise.

Zhao Xiaoran doesn't have an older brother at all. She also wants an older brother who can play with her and help her earn money. Unfortunately, she only has one younger brother and several younger sisters. Luckily, she is the eldest sister and can keep the younger sisters in check to coax her brother, so she can be free to go out and have some fresh air.

They exchanged a glance, both seeing the bitterness in each other's eyes, and subtly gave each other a look before standing between Zhao Hua and Zhao Ru.

Two girls suddenly appeared in front of Zhao Hua, both looking at him, leaving him completely bewildered. He chuckled and asked, "What's up? Do you want to go fishing too?"

The two girls acted on impulse, and with their friend's encouragement, they regretted their impulsiveness. Upon hearing his question, they quickly shook their heads and retreated.

Zhao Hua found it a bit strange. Seeing them retreat, she shook her head and didn't think about it anymore. Zhao Ru, however, seemed to understand their thoughts. Women understand women best, and she glanced at her two best friends with amusement.

He turned to Zhao Hua and smiled, "Aren't you going to cast your net? Watching me fish here is making me a little nervous."

"Hmm, go ahead, what's there to be nervous about?" He said, picking up the fishing net from the ground and glancing around.

Previously, the water level in Tianhe had dropped significantly, leaving the riverbanks as shallow beaches and exposing a section of the riverbed, which was bare and devoid of vegetation. The only protruding small slippery point was occupied by fishermen.

He slung the fishing net over his shoulder and asked Zhao Ru, "Did you only bring two buckets?"

"Yes, you took one before, so Dad and I each took one. If you take another one, we'll have to take the water bucket we usually use, and Mom will scold us."

"Okay, I forgot to bring the bucket. I came right after I finished emptying the fish. I should have just brought it with me."

"It's okay, just leave the fish you caught online here, or you can take the bucket and I'll put any fish I catch in Dad's bucket."

"Never mind, I'll go back and get it," Zhao Hua thought for a moment.

Zhao Ru casually agreed, lifted the fishing rod and glanced at the hook. The bait was still there. She stood up, swung the hook behind her, looked left and right, and seeing that there was nothing to block it, she gave it a strong tug.

The fishing hook went back into the water and slowly sank. One by one, the seven-star floats sank into the water until they were all submerged, and only the floats could be vaguely seen.

When Zhao Hua saw her pick up the fishing rod, he thought she had caught a fish, but it turned out she was just picking it up to check if the bait was still there...

Seeing her cast the bait into the water, his lips twitched, and he couldn't help but remind her, "Remember to look around when you cast the bait, so you don't snag someone."

After reminding her, he looked at the two girls who were watching the commotion and instructed them, "When you see her casting the hook, remember to stay away and don't get too close."

Seeing that they were all nodding and didn't seem to care, he breathed a sigh of relief, turned around and ran back to get the bucket.