Chapter 171: Can it even come unhooked?

Hmm, it shouldn't be small; get ready first, in case I don't have enough strength, you help me.

Ye Cheng still felt uneasy about the last competition; this isn't a competition, so we must have Xiao Hu help too.

"All right." Xiao Hu put down his fishing rod and started cracking his knuckles.

"Yo, A Cheng, gonna land a big one?" Zhao Zhiming glanced back at Ye Cheng and noticed something.

The three of them in the middle-aged group had been fishing half a day and still caught nothing; they were just there for tea.

"Hmm, I estimate it's about a meter long." Ye Cheng felt a bit excited.

Since catching that big fish last time, although he was a bit afraid the fish would be too big to pull up, the thrill of landing a big catch is incomparable to small fish.

Hearing Ye Cheng had hooked a big one, Cui Shuran and Xiao Rou over there also looked over; Cui Shuran couldn't walk over, but Xiao Rou could.

Hearing there was a big catch, she eagerly tossed aside her empty fishing rod and hurried over with quick steps.

"Ye Cheng, you've hooked a big fish?"

"Probably, I just don't know if I can pull it up."

Ye Cheng had let out almost enough line; he planned to pull it up to see, then jerked the rod.

The fishing line went straight, the rod bent, he held the line firmly, and the stalemate tug-of-war began.

The fish was definitely big enough, dragging Ye Cheng left then right; he could only follow its movements.

This made Xiao Rou beside them sway left and right, getting really into it.

After a while, Ye Cheng felt his arms start to ache; again in this process, he gave Xiao Hu a look.

Xiao Hu immediately understood, came over and grabbed the upper end of the rod; then Ye Cheng let go, and Xiao Hu smoothly took over.

"You can't even handle that?" Xiao Rou jeered from the side.

"Young man, you're a bit weak." Lao Wang added his own jab.

Ye Cheng's face darkened; these two father and daughter are like speed demons, each faster than the last.

"I'm in it for the long haul, I'll rest a bit then fight again." Others drive, Ye Cheng drives too—who's afraid of whom?

But comparing people, comparing catches, the difference in strength shows up right away.

Xiao Hu's stance was steadier than Ye Cheng's; although he'd also be swayed left and right by the big fish, he didn't stagger, while Ye Cheng stumbled.

Xiao Rou beside them covered her mouth and snickered, occasionally glancing at Ye Cheng.

Ye Cheng could do nothing about this absolute strength gap; he could only pretend not to notice.

Xiao Hu's pulling style quickly drained the fish's strength; the line reeled in a large section, and a dark shadow could be faintly seen being dragged by the line beneath the sea surface.

"It really is about a meter long." Xiao Rou, with her long legs, could see down there just by standing.

Seeing the catch, Ye Cheng was overjoyed: "Xiao Hu, tag in!"

Xiao Hu glanced at Ye Cheng: "Brother, the fish still has strength—are you sure you want to take over now?"

Ye Cheng's face darkened: "You little brat, now's my time to shine—you're just sabotaging me."

"I'll take it, come on."

Ye Cheng rubbed his hands, grabbed the butt of the rod, then took the rod from Xiao Hu.

As soon as he took it, he felt that absolute force; the dark shadow on the seabed seemed to sense the change in strength above.

All of a sudden, the fish that had been swimming fine turned hard and jerked the line down toward the seabed.

It was trying to dive back to the deep; Ye Cheng wouldn't have it, he thrust his waist forward to brace the rod, which bent completely, emitting an unpleasant screech.

Then everyone heard a 'snap'—the line shot up from the seabed.

Dead silence!

Ye Cheng gaped, staring at the empty hook, incredulous: "It came unhooked?"

"It can even come unhooked?" Xiao Rou looked at Ye Cheng with a face full of doubt and disbelief, implying, "At a time like this, did you mess up?"

Xiao Hu shrugged, indicating he was innocent: "Well, brother, when I handed it to you it was fine."

The middle-aged group also turned to look at Ye Cheng's joke: "Young man, being too fierce isn't a good thing either," they laughed.

Ye Cheng couldn't quite accept it—"Impossible, how could it come unhooked now?"

He held the hook, head down in thought, utterly baffled.

Just then, an annoying, grating yet somewhat smug voice came from behind,

"Your rod and hook are all wrong; you can't land a big fish like that—your big catch in the last competition was pure luck."

Damn!

Indeed it is; Ye Cheng then remembered his rod's issue—it's a beginner's rod from the system, not suited for sea fishing.

Have to say, though Cui Shuran is annoyingly handsome, his professional knowledge is still solid.

"Thanks!" Ye Cheng thanked him back; even if he didn't like him, courtesy still matters.

He pondered Cui Shuran's words carefully; there was still a bit of fish meat on the hook, or maybe the hook was too small, combined with line and rod factors, leading to the unhooking.

Well, that's it for today; when we get back and save up enough points, we'll swap for a better rod.

After re-baiting and dropping the hook, this whole ordeal had taken nearly an hour; Ye Cheng had only landed two fish, while over there Cui Shuran had caught a few more small ones.

But Xiao Rou's side had nothing—after finally landing one, it came unhooked, making her shout in frustration.

Calming down, Ye Cheng began fishing slowly; in the next half hour or so he landed three fish, all white pomfret.

White pomfret aren't very big, flat-bodied, each about three catties; Ye Cheng found them easy to reel in.

Not only did Ye Cheng catch fish, Xiao Hu also kept landing them—white pomfret and small squid.

All this activity over here drew Xiao Rou's attention back.

She quietly picked up her rod and moved over to Ye Cheng's side, saying stubbornly, "You guys have more fish over here; I'll come fish a bit."

Ye Cheng smiled without words: "It's all the same sea; there's no more or less fish, just my luck bonus."

Xiao Rou's fishing is also novice-level; even if Cui Shuran, a god-tier expert, taught her on the side, it wouldn't help.

Looking at Ye Cheng's strange expression, Xiao Rou clenched her fists a little to show off, as if saying even old lady is pretty fierce.

However, she had sat here for ten-odd minutes, besides watching Ye Cheng catch two fish, she herself still got nothing, and suddenly felt a bit anxious.

"This side isn't good either, I want to switch sides."

Ye Cheng looked at her speechlessly, "Why don't you try using our fishing rod?"

"How is your fishing rod? Just now Shu Ran said your fishing rod wasn't right, right?" Xiao Rou asked curiously.

"Catching big fish is wrong, but small fish are fine, look, how many have we caught now?" Ye Cheng pointed at the water tank behind him, it was half a tank, although they weren't big, the quantity was large.