The Little Life of a Big Landlord

Chapter 75 Harvest

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"Qingqing, let me tell you, Aunt Pang has done this big net casting several times before, so I have experience..." When it was Aunt Pang's turn, she talked to Wei Qingqing while skillfully casting the fishing net. The net spread out, although it wasn't as wide as when the old fisherman cast it, it was still pretty good, proving that Aunt Pang wasn't lying.

Aunt Pang cast her net and caught a full ten pounds of those snow-white sea fish.

"Auntie Pang, why are all the fish that everyone is catching the same kind?" Wei Qingqing noticed the problem.

"Young lady, you've asked the right question. The nets we use are medium-sized, and they only go a maximum depth of ten meters. At ten meters, this kind of fish is the most abundant. We locals call this kind of fish 'big white fish,' and it tastes the most delicious. We fishermen usually eat it. If you want to catch other kinds of fish, you'll have to either change to a bigger net or try your luck." Before Aunt Pang could speak, the old fisherman interjected.

"Qingqing, you take a turn in the net too..." Aunt Pang handed the net to Wei Qingqing, then said to the old fisherman, "Grandpa, my niece has never cast a net before, so you'd better give her a good catch..."

"Come on, come on, this family of three looks like it's their first time at sea, each of them is using two nets..." The old fisherman was quite generous.

"Thank you, sir..." Wei Qingqing thanked him repeatedly.

"Hehe, thank you, sir..." Yang Ming said with a smile.

"Daddy, I'm hungry, I want to eat an apple..." Little Bao'er said, tugging at Yang Ming's sleeve and looking up at him.

It's just dawn, and everyone hasn't had breakfast yet, but everyone has come with bags containing bread, jam, drinks, bottled water, and the like.

"Here you go..." Yang Ming took out a large apple from the cloth bag he carried with him and handed it to her.

"Hehe, I'm going to watch Mom catch fish..." Little Bao'er hugged the big apple, giggling as she ran towards Wei Qingqing.

"Honey, when I catch a big one, I'm going to strike a few poses. Remember to take pictures of it so I can show it to Fangfang and make her so jealous!" Wei Qingqing shouted excitedly, her words sounding like a child throwing a tantrum, which made everyone laugh.

Wei Qingqing wasn't a clever person. Although the old fisherman was there to give her pointers, the first time she cast her net, it didn't even spread out properly and just went straight down. Fortunately, some fish were even dumber than Wei Qingqing, and she managed to catch two fish with this one net, which saved her face.

"Oh! Mom is so amazing..." There's never a shortage of people who fawn over her. The little one cheered and jumped for joy. It's not surprising that the little guy cheered. In fact, from the moment the net was pulled up, the two fish in the net were already theirs. It's a kind of joy in the face of a harvest (I also used to catch fish by the ditch when I was a child. Hehe, I always say that fish you catch yourself taste better than fish you buy).

"It's alright, it's alright, there are still two nets left. It's quite good that the first net caught fish..." The old fisherman took a couple of puffs of his pipe and encouraged them.

"When I cast my first net, I caught about ten, but they weren't caught in the net; they were killed by the falling fish..." Aunt Pang encouraged from the side.

So, Wei Qingqing cast another net, and this time she cast it quite skillfully. The large net was spread out and thrown directly into the sea, then pulled upwards...

This was a good catch; five big white pieces were caught in the net, and Wei Qingqing was quite pleased with herself.

"Not bad, not bad, you've improved..." The old fisherman nodded repeatedly, "There's still one more net to go..."

"Oh! Mom is so great..." Little Bao'er jumped for joy as she watched five more big fish being put into the plastic bag. However, whether it was a case of too much joy leading to sorrow or something else, the big apple that the little girl had just taken a few bites of fell directly into the sea. The little girl was heartbroken at that moment. Her godfather's fruit was especially delicious, and it was such a pity that it fell into the sea like that.

"Dad, the apple fell into the sea, can you help me get it out..." Little Bao'er pitifully tugged at Yang Ming's sleeve.

"The seawater is salty and bitter, so we can't eat it even if we catch it..." the old fisherman said.

Little Bao immediately pouted unhappily.

"We still have some in our pockets, take another one and eat it!" Yang Ming took out another big apple from his pocket and handed it to the little guy. Although the little guy took it, he was still not very happy.

"Okay, okay, Mom will get it out for you, alright?" Wei Qingqing bent down and coaxed.

"Mommy is so good..." The little guy immediately cheered and gave Wei Qingqing a kiss on the cheek.

Wei Qingqing picked up the large net and cast it towards the big apple. In her mind, catching a big apple with a net was a piece of cake. The net was cast and spread out, covering the big apple floating on the sea.

"Hmm! This net is quite heavy..."

Wei Qingqing realized that she couldn't pull the big net with her own strength. "Husband, come and help me, I can't pull it anymore..." she hurriedly called Yang Ming for help.

Before Yang Ming could even make a move, Aunt Pang stepped forward, grabbed the rope, and helped Wei Qingqing pull the fishing net up.

wow...

The fishing net was pulled onto the boat, eliciting gasps of surprise from the crowd. This net contained no less than a hundred pounds of sea fish, and among them were several kinds of sea fish with various patterns. Even more surprisingly, there was a large octopus with outstretched tentacles.

"A big tiger, a big leopard, a black girl, a long-bearded fish, and a big jar... Good heavens, this net is amazing, it has several kinds of deep-sea fish..." The old fisherman's eyes widened in surprise.

The fish weighed a hundred pounds, and the plastic bag couldn't hold it all. The shirtless young man immediately dragged a large wooden basin out of the cabin. The basin was two meters in diameter and about half a person's height, and it was half-filled with seawater. The young man had a premonition that this woman would definitely do something amazing.

"Well, Qingqing is actually a hidden master..." Aunt Pang excitedly gave Wei Qingqing a thumbs up repeatedly.

"You flatter me, you flatter me, Auntie Pang..." Wei Qingqing beamed with joy, looking at Yang Ming, and asked happily, "Honey, did you take a picture of my heroic pose just now?"

"Ah! She got it, she got it..." Yang Ming was also stunned. When did his wife become so amazing? Hearing his wife's voice, he came back to his senses and nodded repeatedly.

"Mommy, Mommy, the apple is still down there!" Little Bao called out, clinging to the side of the boat.

"Alright, alright, Mom will net those three nets for you, and I'll definitely get your apples..." Wei Qingqing's confidence soared. After everyone took the fish out of the net, she shook the jade bowl and cast the large net down.

"Ouch, come help me, it's so heavy..." This net was still incredibly heavy, and Wei Qingqing asked for help again.

"Let me help you, let me help you..." Aunt Pang immediately rushed forward to help Wei Qingqing pull the net.

wow...

The fishing net was pulled onto the boat, and everyone gasped in surprise again. This net caught even more fish than the previous one, weighing about 150 pounds, with a variety of species, big and small, round and flat.

"Good heavens, isn't this... isn't this a shark?" The old fisherman's eyes bulged as he grabbed a two-foot-long fish and exclaimed in surprise.

A group of tourists gathered around to see what was going on. After they saw it clearly, their gazes toward Wei Qingqing changed. This person was truly amazing; she had even caught a shark.

Wei Qingqing smugly accepted everyone's surprised or admiring gazes, when suddenly she heard Xiao Bao'er shout in his little voice, "Mommy, the apple is still down there..."

"Don't worry, don't worry, Mom will scoop it up for you..." Wei Qingqing held the net, flicked her wrist, and cast it down again.

This net was even heavier than the last one. Even with Aunt Pang's help, they couldn't get it up. When the old fisherman saw this, he quickly went to help, and that's how they managed to pull the net up.

Everyone was stunned again...

The net contained a variety of fish, shrimp, and crabs. Several squid were constantly spitting out ink, and large scallops were opening and closing their shells, revealing a faint glow of seven colors.

"Even the Goddess Mazu can't compare to you..." The old fisherman was speechless. "How come even scallops are up here? How did they even get up here?"

The old fisherman couldn't understand it...

"Mommy, Mommy, you're so silly, the apple is still down there..." Little Bao shouted again in his little voice.

"Don't worry, don't worry, we still have another one to catch..." Wei Qingqing said with a beaming smile and a smug look on her face.

In this way, Wei Qingqing scooped up six nets and caught nearly a thousand catties of seafood, including a wide variety of fish, shrimp, crabs, and shellfish. She even caught five two-foot-long baby sharks. The large wooden basin was full, and every now and then one or two fish would jump out of it, making everyone's eyes widen in amazement.

"Mom, you're so clumsy! You haven't been able to get my apple out of the water for so long!" Little Bao pouted and tugged at Wei Qingqing's clothes, acting all cute.

"Oh dear, let Daddy have his turn? Daddy still has three nets left..." Wei Qingqing was also a little embarrassed. She had cast four nets and caught a lot of seafood, but she hadn't caught any apples.

Wei Qingqing took the DV camera from Yang Ming and said, "Honey, it's your turn to shine. I'll definitely film your heroic moments..."

"Alright, watch me show off my skills..." Yang Ming took the fishing net, flicked his wrist, and cast the net out.

"Haha, look at the young man's technique, he's a pro..." The old fisherman gave Yang Ming a thumbs up.

"Hehe, it was about ten years ago. My uncle leased a fishpond in our village, and I learned how to cast nets from him." Yang Ming smiled, then slowly pulled the net up. This net was bulging, like a big rugby ball, weighing more than 300 pounds. Yang Ming was also very strong, and he managed to drag this net of big fish onto the deck all by himself.

The shirtless young man was impressed by the couple and ran to the cabin to get another large wooden basin.

"Young man, you've got some strength..." the old fisherman praised again.

"Daddy's silly too, Bao'er's apple is still down there..." Little Bao'er's voice rang out again.

"It's okay, it's okay, let's keep fishing..." Yang Ming said.

So, two more nets were cast, each yielding a great harvest. In total, the three nets collected over a thousand catties, filling the large wooden basin to the brim. However, Bao'er's half apple was nowhere to be found.

Seeing Xiao Bao'er pouting unhappily, Yang Ming quickly said, "Don't worry, let other uncles and aunties help you scoop it up, okay?"

"Okay, okay, we'll help you catch them..." Auntie Pang's colleagues, who hadn't cast a net before, all patted their chests and assured her.

So, net after net of big fish were hauled up, some weighing as little as eighty pounds and others as much as two hundred pounds. Everyone was all smiles. Now that they were catching fish, the old fisherman generously allowed the tourists who had already caught some but hadn't had much of a catch to do it again. However, Xiao Bao'er's lips were pouting higher and higher, her apple still floating on the surface of the sea.

The shirtless young man was almost exhausted, constantly dragging wooden barrels out of the cabin. In the end, there was almost no room left for anyone to stand on the deck.

After all the tourists had finished fishing, the old fisherman, who had been itching to try it himself, took the net and said, "Little girl, watch Grandpa's doing. I'll definitely get your apple..."

The old fisherman was skilled; every cast of his net yielded a good catch, making him beam with joy. He tossed net after net of large fish onto the deck, where a shirtless young man carried them into the hold. The young man was happy too; it was truly a bumper day. However, Little Bao was unhappy. All this time, his big apple was still floating at the bottom.

Finally, the old fisherman scooped the apple up. On the big apple, there were rows of neat teeth marks from the little girl. The little girl finally smiled.

It was nearly noon, and the old fisherman cast his net a few more times. Feeling that he shouldn't overfish the area, everyone returned to Nandaihe Fishing Port satisfied.

When everyone dragged buckets of big fish onto the dock, the fishermen on the dock were all stunned. How could an ordinary fishing boat catch so many fish on a single trip?

"Go quickly, hire a truck and take all our fish away." Wei Qingqing smiled broadly and nudged Yang Ming on the shoulder.

"Okay, okay..." Yang Ming was also delighted. He had already discussed this with Ya Ya back on the ship. The water in the fish farm wasn't actually purified water, but a nutrient solution, which was perfectly fine for raising seafood. With so many fish, it would be so convenient to raise them in his own farm space and let them reproduce.

"Grandpa, the bill is ready. There are nineteen of us in total, plus one child. This will cost 720 yuan," said Auntie Pang.

"Alright, alright, it's a great catch today, consider it my treat..." The old fisherman grinned from ear to ear. This trip to sea had filled his hold with no less than 10,000 catties of fish. If he sold them all, he could earn 300,000 to 400,000 yuan. He would consider the 720 yuan as a token of friendship. After all, he felt that something was amiss today, as if everyone was still focused on that big apple.

Actually, everyone had already sensed something was amiss. That apple must be something special, otherwise, how could it attract fish like that? However, no one asked, nor were they too embarrassed to ask for one to try. After all, the young girl was very eager for that big apple, which meant that the apple must be very expensive.

"Haha...then we won't be coy, okay?!" Auntie Pang laughed heartily. "Grandpa, when we have our next holiday, let's go out to sea together again..."

"Hahaha... I've been waiting for you to say that! From now on, you'll get a 50% discount when you use my boat for sea trips..." The old fisherman laughed heartily, then looked at Xiaobao'er, "Little girl, come often too, Grandpa will take you out to sea to play..."

"Thank you, Grandpa..." Xiao Bao'er said politely with a smile.

"Thank you, sir..." Wei Qingqing smiled.

Soon, Yang Ming got a big truck. However, when Wei Qingqing saw the truck, she rolled her eyes. This guy was really something, buying another Transformer. But to be honest, buying a Transformer was much cheaper than hiring a car. You could buy two cars with a pound of soybeans and have some left over. Besides, you could register and get license plates for the car yourself, which was very convenient.

Yang Ming had bought plastic sheeting from the store beforehand, laid it flat inside the carriage, poured seawater into it, and then dumped all two large buckets of seafood into it. Fortunately, although the seafood was on the verge of death, it was still alive and would soon be jumping around again.

The seafood filled almost half the truck.

After Yang Ming and his team finished loading the truck, a light truck with a Shougang license plate drove up. It turned out that Aunt Pang and her team had already started calling for reinforcements. Indeed, many large enterprises and departments in China have sanatoriums and rest homes in Qinhuangdao and Beidaihe, and Shougang is no exception.

After saying goodbye, Yang Ming drove Wei Qingqing and Xiao Bao'er towards Wanghai Garden.

Along the way, Yang Ming instructed Ya Ya to collect as many kinds of seafood as possible from the fish farm as seedlings. By the time the car returned to the gate of Wanghai Garden, about one-tenth of the seafood in the back of the car had been removed. Basically, every kind of seafood in the back of the car could be found in the fish farm of the farm.

"Sir, please stop the car. Selling fish is not allowed in the residential area..." A security guard saw a large truck loaded with seafood driving into the residential area and quickly stopped it.

"Security guard, do you recognize me?" Yang Ming leaned out of the car window.

"You are... the owner who bought Mr. Zhang's house, right?" The security guard remembered Yang Ming.

"That's right, it's me. We're from out of town, here as tourists. We went fishing this morning, and look, the back of our car is full of them! I'm so worried, I don't know what to do with them! We're going out to play this afternoon..."

"You mean, all of this was caught by you...?" The group of security guards were all stunned and their mouths were agape. It was common for tourists to go out to sea to fish with fishing boats, but no tourist had ever caught so many fish before. Everyone was an amateur, and catching 10 or 20 pounds was already quite good.

"Of course..." Yang Ming nodded with a smile.

"Well... you can go in. Maybe there are people in our neighborhood who like seafood. You can sell it nearby..." The security guard was quite accommodating, scratching his head as he let him through.

The car drove into the residential area and stopped downstairs at Building 3. Many people who were strolling around the area saw this truck carrying fresh seafood.

"What's going on? Seafood is being sold in our neighborhood?"

"You've gone to the wrong place, haven't you? You should be going to the farmers' market!"

"This seafood looks quite fresh!"

"Go ask..."

Curiosity then drew everyone together.

"Sorry, sorry..." Yang Ming said with a smile as he got out of the car and addressed the people who had gathered around him, "We're not selling seafood. We're tourists from out of town. We went out to sea with a fishing boat this morning, and that's how we caught so many fish. Now we don't know what to do with them..."

"Hmm! It's freshly caught..." An elderly woman with gray hair pulled a fish out of the trunk, examined it carefully, and then nodded. "Young man, are you selling this seafood?"

"Sell, of course we'll sell. We'll all be living in the same neighborhood from now on. Whoever wants to buy it can pay 80% of the market price. We're in a hurry to sell too. We're going out to play this afternoon. If we just leave it here, it'll die and we'll waste it. It'll be a shame to see it like this. It's better to sell it..." Yang Ming said.

"Alright, alright, give me ten pounds of this big white one, and ten pounds of that black girl too..." the old lady said readily.

If we calculate based on 80% of the market price, how much money would we save?

"Give me ten catties of crabs, I know. There are big ones and small ones, young man, you can't charge the same price for them all..." an old man said.

"Weigh out eight catties of tiger meat for me..." another middle-aged woman said.

"Young man, these scallops of yours... What? Not for sale? What pearls do you have? You're just dreaming..." A woman who had taken a liking to the large scallops awkwardly put them back into the carriage, though she herself was hoping to find pearls inside.

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(End of this chapter)