The dating reality show host just wanted to give up, but the rich girl fell for him.

The sun was blazing overhead.

The sea surface was like a giant mirror, reflecting a dazzling white light.

At this time, the temperature in the high seas reef area had soared to thirty-five degrees Celsius.

Most of the guests were scorched by the sun and looked like wilted eggplants, drooping listlessly under the parasols, their fishing rods barely moving for a long time.

Zhao Kuo, however, remained in an admirable (or perhaps perplexing) state of high excitement.

"drink!"

A powerful shout, emanating from the depths of the dantian.

Zhao Kuo stood on the highest reef, wielding his six-figure lure rod with great skill.

Cast, retrieve, twitch, pause.

The entire set of movements was so fluid and precise that it could be directly recorded into a textbook.

Sweat dripped from his chin onto his expensive tactical vest, quickly spreading into a large, dark stain.

But he didn't care at all.

They even felt that this was a man's badge of honor.

"That's the magic of lure fishing!"

Facing the camera, Zhao Kuo rapidly turned the spinning wheel while panting and explaining:

"Take the initiative and seek out schools of fish! Only the weak wait passively; the strong are always on the offensive!"

Sudden.

The extremely sensitive carbon fiber rod tip suddenly trembled.

Zhao Kuo's eyes lit up, and his adrenaline surged.

"We've caught a fish!!"

He roared and yanked the rod to set the hook!

So much force that his spiked shoes even sparked a trail of fire off the rocks.

"Wow, it's heavy! It's definitely a huge machine!"

Zhao Kuo's facial muscles twitched as he gripped the fishing rod tightly with both hands, beginning a life-or-death struggle called "Man vs. Nature".

"Squeak squeak squeak—"

The pressure relief valve made a pleasant sound.

All eyes were drawn to it.

The chat room exploded with excitement.

[Holy crap! Is Young Master Zhao finally opening for business?]

Judging by the degree of bending of this pole, it must weigh at least five pounds, right?

Is it really true that only the strong deserve to reap the rewards? Lin Mo, that sleeping guy, is probably going to lose miserably!

Zhao Kuo gritted his teeth and pushed back little by little.

The heavy feel of the fish convinced him that he had caught some kind of deep-sea behemoth.

Could it be a rock spot?

Or is it skipjack tuna?

"Get up here!!"

With a final roar, Zhao Kuo yanked the rod up.

Whoosh!

Water splashed everywhere.

A dark, heavy object burst out of the water, tracing a graceful parabola in the air.

Then, with a "thud," it crashed heavily onto the rocks.

The entire room fell silent.

The ecstasy on Zhao Kuo's face froze instantly.

There were no large, lively fish on the wet rocks.

Only one was swollen from being soaked in seawater and covered in barnacles—

Worn-out leather shoes.

And it was the left foot.

【…】

[Hahahaha! What a huge thing!]

Is this what a strong attack looks like? After attacking for so long, did they just end up cleaning up the ocean?

[Zhao Kuo: Who am I? Where am I? Why am I fighting with a leather shoe for five minutes?]

These leather shoes look like a brand name product; Young Master Zhao definitely got a good deal!

Zhao Kuo stared at the leather shoe that was still dripping water, and his whole body cracked.

The immense psychological gap nearly made him vomit blood.

"An accident! This was an accident!"

Zhao Kuo, his face dark, kicked his leather shoe back into the sea (and was then warned by the referee that littering would result in a point deduction), and gritted his teeth as he rebaited the bait.

"This means there's stock down below! It was just hanging at the bottom earlier!"

He just wouldn't believe it!

With his top-notch gear, how could he possibly lose to someone who sleeps with a bamboo pole?

The scene shifts.

It was given to that shady corner not far away.

Sudden change in painting style.

If Zhao Kuo's side was a stirring "Battle Song," then Lin Mo's side was a hypnotic "Lullaby."

Huge rocks blocked the scorching sun, and the sea breeze blew through the cracks in the rocks, bringing a refreshing coolness.

The tattered straw hat that Lin Mo had dug out from Building C was now firmly covering his face.

With his even breathing, the edge of his straw hat undulated slightly.

Occasionally, you can even hear two extremely soft, peaceful snores.

The green bamboo pole stuck in the crack of the rock remained motionless, just like its owner.

Only that simple white foam float, gently swaying with the waves, seemed to be mocking Zhao Kuo, who was exhausted next door.

"This guy..."

Jiang Ruoyun was originally fishing on the other side.

But she couldn't stand the scorching sun, and since there were no bites, she simply threw the fishing rod to a staff member on the side.

She tiptoed to Lin Mo's side.

Looking at the man sleeping soundly, Jiang Ruoyun felt both amused and helpless.

Everyone else is working hard, but he's here on vacation.

"Hey, Lin Mo."

Jiang Ruoyun squatted down, extended a slender finger, and gently poked the straw hat that Lin Mo was wearing over his face.

"Wake up, it's almost noon."

no response.

There was only a muffled, indistinct murmur: "Stop messing around... another five dollars' worth of sleep..."

Jiang Ruoyun puffed out her cheeks in anger.

She glanced at the empty fish basket beside her, then at Lin Mo's simple fishing rod.

"Seriously, do you really believe in metaphysics that much?"

Although she complained, Jiang Ruoyun didn't actually wake him up.

in contrast.

She glanced at the sun, which was slightly off-center overhead, and a beam of light shone directly on Lin Mo's neck.

Jiang Ruoyun silently opened the parasol in her hand.

It wasn't for my own sake.

Instead, he tilted the umbrella slightly to block the sunlight that might reach Lin Mo.

Then, she squatted down beside him, resting her chin on her hands, and quietly watched Lin Mo sleep.

Occasionally, one or two ignorant sea flies would try to fly over.

Jiang Ruoyun would also quickly wave her hand to shoo them away.

The movements were so careful, as if afraid of disturbing this sweet dream.

Help... I came to watch a fishing competition, why did I get forced to watch this PDA?

[Jiang Ruoyun's gaze... it's practically dripping with desire!]

While others are competing, you're acting out a scene from "The Return of the Condor Heroes"?

Lin Mo: I'm sleeping. Jiang Ruoyun: I'm watching over my pig.

This scene is so quiet and beautiful, a stark contrast to Zhao Kuo's mad dog-like behavior next door.

What does it mean to live a peaceful and tranquil life? This is what it means to live a peaceful and tranquil life!

Just when the atmosphere here reached its most ambiguous point.

Sudden.

"I got it!!!"

A louder, more frantic scream shattered the silence.

Finally, there was some movement from Zhao Kuo's side.

After two hours of frantic twitching (a lure fishing term), his rod tip finally bent down again.

This time, there really were living creatures!

"I told you I had the ability!"

Zhao Kuo was so excited that his face turned red, and his hands moved rapidly as he spun the wheel.

A silvery-white shadow was swiftly pulled out of the water.

Although it wasn't as heavy as the "leather shoe" from before, the feeling of struggling in its hand was definitely not wrong!

"Flying Fish! Rise!"

Zhao Kuo shouted and spun the fish onto the shore.

pat pat pat.

A small fish, about the size of a palm, with a few black stripes on its body, was hopping around frantically on the rocks.

There was a two-second silence.

Then a sparse round of applause broke out (mainly to keep the atmosphere lively).

"This is... Master Shi Jiu?"

A knowledgeable staff member nearby muttered quietly, "This kind of fish... is only good for making soup to add flavor; it doesn't even have much meat."

But in Zhao Kuo's eyes, this was hardly Shi Jiugong.

This is clearly the dawn of victory! The clarion call to turn the tide!

"See that?! See that?"

Zhao Kuo was as excited as a primary school student who had scored 60 on a test. He grabbed the slippery little fish and shoved it in front of the camera to show it off wildly.

"That's what professionalism is! That's what perseverance is!"

"We're open for business! First place is secured!"

"Some people who try to show off with bamboo poles haven't even caught a single seaweed yet, have they? Hahahaha!"

His laughter was so loud.

It is demonic and has extremely strong penetrating power.

It traveled directly to that shady corner over there.

Lin Mo, who had been lying motionless, finally stirred.

He first frowned.

Then, with great reluctance, he rolled over and pulled his straw hat down over his face, trying to block out the noise.

But Zhao Kuo was still rambling on and on about his acceptance speech.

"So annoying..."

Lin Mo finally couldn't hold back any longer.

He yanked the straw hat off his face, revealing his grumpy eyes, and yelled at Zhao Kuo in an annoyed tone:

"Hey you! Can you shut up?"

"You scared my fish away, are you going to pay for it?"

Zhao Kuo was taken aback by the shout.

Then it was as if they had heard the biggest joke in the world.

"Did it scare away your fish?"

Zhao Kuo pointed at Lin Mo's bamboo pole stuck in the crack in the rock, not moving an inch, and laughed until tears streamed down his face:

"Brother Lin, isn't that like Jiang Taigong fishing—wait and see if the fish will bite?"

"Look at that float, it's practically covered in moss!"

"Forget fish, even a fool wouldn't bite a hook that doesn't move!"

"Just keep sleeping, you can dream about anything!"

Lin Mo rolled his eyes.

"childish."

He muttered something, pulled the straw hat back over his face, and adjusted himself into a comfortable position.

"How can a sparrow know the ambition of a swan?"

"Only small fish and shrimp like to jump around wildly; the real big fish... are all calm and collected."

After saying that, he went back to sleep.

This time, even Jiang Ruoyun was a little shaken.

"Lin Mo...it'll be over in an hour."

Jiang Ruoyun nudged his arm. "Zhao Kuo may have small fish, but at least he has fish. Should we go somewhere else?"

"No change."

Lin Mo's voice was muffled, "The feng shui here is good; it brings wealth."

"..."

Jiang Ruoyun was speechless.

Fine.

As long as you're there, it doesn't matter if we lose or not. At worst, I'll just do the laundry for the whole group.

Time passed by, second by second.

The sun began to set in the west.

The shimmering light on the sea surface changed from a dazzling white to a soft gold.

Most of the guests have already gained something.

Although they were just small fish and shrimp, they were still better than Lin Mo's empty bucket.

Zhao Kuo caught two more damselfish and was now sitting with his legs crossed, drinking an iced cola and waiting for the competition to end so he could be declared the winner.

"Thirty minutes left!"

The referee, holding a megaphone, shouted, "Please hurry up!"

Viewers in the live stream also began to express their pessimism.

[Let's call it a day, let's call it a day. Lin Mo has really lost today.]

Indeed, when it comes to sea fishing, you can't just wait around without baiting or attracting fish.

It seems that the "market warrior" ultimately doesn't know how to fish.

Although Zhao Kuo's victory this time was not honorable, at least he won.

Just when everyone thought the outcome was already decided.

Sudden.

A strange friction sound rang out.

creak-

The sound came from behind that big rock.

Jiang Ruoyun was idly counting ants when she heard the sound and instinctively turned around to look.

Upon closer inspection...

Her eyes widened instantly, her mouth opened wide, and she couldn't even make a sound.

All that could be seen was the fishing rod that Lin Mo had stuck in the crack of the rock, which everyone mocked as "rotten bamboo."

now.

There were no signs whatsoever.

There was no warning.

It suddenly sank downwards!

It wasn't the slight nibbling sound of a small fish pecking at food.

Rather, it's a terrifying pull, as if some giant beast in the ocean has swallowed the bait whole and is trying to turn around and swim into the abyss!

That incredibly resilient green bamboo.

It was instantly stretched into an exaggerated "U" shape!

Even the roots stuck in the cracks of the rocks made a teeth-grinding cracking sound under this tremendous force!

"Lin...Lin Mo!!!"

Jiang Ruoyun finally screamed, her voice distorted:

"The rod! The rod is going to break!!!"