Chapter 307: Wang Defa Got Into Trouble

The village is now well-off, so my own road to riches can only get longer.

Having Duan Chunsheng help rally votes, plus the Chen Brothers stirring things up from inside, I still have a bit of hope.

After lunch, Duan Chunsheng jumped back onto his own boat, planning to follow Ye Cheng and haul in a few more nets.

Wang Defa had already finished eating; he just ordered a couple of dishes and was done after two bites.

After finally waiting for Ye Cheng to set out, he also followed along.

The net was lowered, and the long trawling began again.

Just half an hour later, Xiao Hu shouted from behind,

"Brother, look at my second uncle."

Ye Cheng glanced back and saw that Wang Defa's boat was off—its speed suddenly dropped and the hull began to sway side to side.

"It seems the net is snagged," Ye Cheng inferred; bottom trawling often has this trouble—sometimes bad luck catches the net on seabed rocks.

If it's a small rock, a bit of extra force can push through; but hit a big one and you can't move it at all—Wang Defa's situation is probably like that.

Duan Chunsheng had noticed too; he picked up the walkie-talkie and asked,

"Lao Wang, what's wrong?"

"Chunsheng, my net's stuck and the boat won't move," Wang Defa said anxiously.

"Then lower your speed, try pulling in the net, or adjust your course."

Generally, when a trawl net gets snagged, you first stop the fishing boat, then take measures—mainly two methods: one is to slowly haul in the net to see if loosening the gear helps.

The other is to change the boat's heading, using shifts in current and angle to free the obstacle.

Wang Defa himself was a seasoned hand; after Duan Chunsheng's reminder, he sprang into action.

He went to the stern and began slowly hauling the net, but the cable remained tight with no give; after a few tries he gave up, returned to the wheelhouse, and planned to adjust the course.

Ye Cheng watched as Wang Defa steered left and right several times, but it had no effect—the net below was snagged fast.

In this situation, the only remaining option is to cut the net.

You can cut away part of the net, sacrificing a section to save the whole; Wang Defa stood at the stern with a knife, hesitating to act.

Duan Chunsheng grew anxious, urging, "Lao Wang, just cut it—what are you waiting for?"

Wang Defa wore a bitter expression,

"This net isn't cheap; cutting it would cost money to replace."

Well, that fits Lao Wang's character perfectly.

Suddenly Wang Defa had an idea and said into the walkie-talkie,

"Chunsheng, if you don't mind keeping watch up there, I'll go underwater to see if I can free the net."

"You're crazy—this isn't shallow water, you have no gear to go down there!" Duan Chunsheng shouted.

Going into the sea isn't like a swimming pool; just one meter deep is already much more dangerous.

Wang Defa, an old man with no oxygen tank or shallow-water gear, just dove straight in—he's asking to die.

No normal person would do something like that.

But Wang Defa is clearly not normal; before Duan Chunsheng could finish dissuading him, a plop sounded and he dove right in.

"Wang Defa, you crazy fuck!" Duan Chunsheng yelled angrily from the boat—this is way too dangerous.

After cursing, Duan Chunsheng waved at Ye Cheng and shouted, "I'll go pull the net over to his side to check; you keep going."

"What the hell, we're still continuing?" Ye Cheng thought to himself, while Xiao Hu in the back grew frantic.

"Xiao Hu, first haul in the net, then we'll go over and have a look."

"All right, thanks, brother." Xiao Hu said eagerly.

They hauled the net up without even checking the catch, Ye Cheng turned the boat and headed straight for Wang Defa's position.

The trawl net was already behind the boat; Wang Defa swam over with great effort, not knowing if he'd reached the spot, occasionally diving down to take a look.

Although they were fishermen with decent swimming skills, the sea saps stamina fast; by the time Ye Cheng and the others arrived, Wang Defa was already panting.

"Second uncle, grab this." Xiao Hu tossed a life ring from the boat.

The life ring landed on the sea surface five meters from Wang Defa; he swam over and climbed in.

"I'll pull you up." Xiao Hu shouted loudly.

"No, wait for me to go down and have a look." As soon as Xiao Hu tried to pull him up, Wang Defa scrambled out of the ring and dove back in.

"Fuck!" Ye Cheng cursed; this guy is truly courting death.

Duan Chunsheng on the other boat was also frantic, jumping up and down, but there was nothing to do but wait.

"How long can your second uncle hold his breath?" Ye Cheng asked Xiao Hu.

Xiao Hu shook his head. "Probably not long—at most two minutes."

Sure enough, less than two minutes later, Wang Defa surfaced, greedily sucking in air.

"Hurry up and come down, don't go crazy!" Duan Chunsheng shouted.

Just as Wang Defa was about to speak, a wave hit him, rolled him into the sea, and he vanished instantly.

"Second uncle! Second uncle!"

"Lao Wang!!!"

Xiao Hu and Duan Chunsheng shouted at the top of their lungs, but there was no response on the sea surface.

Ye Cheng frowned, cursing, "Fucking hell, how can you be so suicidal?"

After cursing, he looked at Xiao Hu and said solemnly,

"I'll go down; you stay up top and keep watch, first pull in the net."

"Brother, be careful."

"Don't worry, I won't die if I go down."

Ye Cheng took off his clothes, then dove in.

"No, Lao Er, how did you also go down? Xiao Hu, why didn't you stop him?" Seeing Ye Cheng also go under, Duan Chunsheng was frantic, ready to stamp his feet—now both were in the water, the danger even greater.

If both of them don't make it back, how will we explain it?

"Duan Shu, don't worry, my brother is a strong swimmer." Xiao Hu quickly reassured Duan Chunsheng.

"Nonsense! Who here isn't a good swimmer? This is the sea—who would dare to flounder in it?" Duan Chunsheng yelled angrily.

Xiao Hu stayed silent, unable to explain to Duan Chunsheng that Ye Cheng could stay submerged for a long time; he simply obeyed Ye Cheng, first lowering the trawl net before saying anything.

The net yielded little, but it did bring up a few groupers and hairtails, albeit in poor condition, having been squeezed in the trawl for so long.

"No, Xiao Hu, how do you still have time to mess with the trawl net? Lao Er is already down there." Seeing Xiao Hu still had time to fiddle with the fish, Duan Chunsheng was furious, about to lash out.

"Duan Shu, don't worry, my brother will be up shortly."

After Ye Cheng dove in, he saw Wang Defa desperately swimming upward in the seawater; that wave just must have pushed him down.

Only after breaking free from the waves could he start swimming upward.

However, Wang Defa's condition was poor; bubbles were already coming from his mouth, he was short of oxygen.