Chapter 393: with translation of chapter title

Wang Defa gave a contemptuous chuckle,

「That's what you, Ye Cheng and them raised; we just sold it last time, a hundred thousand catties— in the village each person gets a hundred a day plus two banquets, you tell me if there's money. 」

「A hundred a day, plus banquets— that's great! 」

「This is better than working in the city— your village is filthy rich. 」

「Lao Wang, are there any suitable young men in the village? My maternal aunt's family has a daughter, she's as pretty as can be— please introduce her. 」

「Exactly, exactly, does that Ye Cheng have a sweetheart? My daughter is a college student, cultured. 」

As soon as Wang Defa said that, everyone got excited— who wouldn't want their daughter to marry into a good family?

If Baiyun Village really is that rich, everyone would be scrambling to marry in.

Leaving Wang Defa aside, Ye Cheng brought three people aboard; several of them, like Liu Laolao entering the Grand View Garden, felt novel, and as soon as the net was cast they began to wander.

「My goodness, it's huge. 」

「There are beds too— no wonder we bought bedding. 」

「Tsk tsk, six beds— the bedding we bought is insufficient. 」

Zhang Guafu looked at the kitchen; although small, it really was a kitchen, and there was a small refrigerator.

「Lao Er, this is great— we can stir-fry now. 」 Zhang Guafu beamed, feeling that even the meat-filled buns were somewhat superfluous.

「Auntie, we're just making a day trip, there's no need to cook; just heating food is enough. 」

After Xiao Hu finished his circuit, he returned with eyes full of delight,

「Brother, this is really what you bought. 」

「Nonsense, if I hadn't bought it, who would give me the boat? 300,000. 」 Ye Cheng sighed, it being the first time since his rebirth that he'd spent so much money.

「Hehe. 」 Xiao Hu gave a simple smile, 「I know, but you only said last night you wanted to buy it, and today you're already out on it— feels a bit unreal. 」

「It won't feel real until we're actually out on it. 」

Seeing that everyone had finished looking, Ye Cheng began to get organized; first he needed to set up the trawl net.

On a medium-sized fishing boat there is a dedicated net hauler; just connect the net and the floats.

However, since several people were operating it for the first time, they studied it for over half an hour before getting it ready; by the time they actually went out to sea it was already past 8 p. m.

The boat was steered by Duan Chunsheng, who said he wanted to try the feeling of handling a large vessel.

Ye Cheng also enjoyed the leisure, taking the boat's blankets with Zhang Guafu and each going to rest.

He had run all day and hadn't slept enough.

Zhang Guafu hadn't slept at all during the day; Ye Cheng planned to let her sleep a bit longer, then wake her to help tie the crabs after hauling the net.

Ye Cheng had only dozed off briefly when Duan Chunsheng softly called him awake,

「Lao Er, we've arrived— it's time to drop the net. 」

「Oh, oh. 」 Ye Cheng groggily rose, while Zhang Guafu in the next bunk turned over and kept sleeping.

Ye Cheng stepped onto the deck, gazed at the pitch‑black sea surface— we were already at the spot for the swimming crabs, about to cast the net.

A 24‑meter fishing boat already counts as medium‑sized; the net must be prepared in advance.

Usually the full net, nearly 100 meters long, is laid along one side of the hull, then stacked layer by layer like a mille‑feuille.

Simply put, 100 meters divided by the boat's 24‑meter length gives about four layers, with the remainder tucked at the stern to be tossed overboard directly.

The front end is attached to a long string of floats, suspended from the high‑mounted net hauler.

Xiao Hu had already tidied the net on one side of the hull.

After a signal, Xiao Hu threw the trawl net's tail into the sea.

The water's drag pulled the net downward, and the stabilizing ropes on both sides followed it down.

「Careful, Xiao Hu. 」

Ye Cheng suddenly shouted, the rope fixing the net, because the trawl was being pulled too fast, whipped violently toward Xiao Hu's face.

Xiao Hu startled, ducked and jumped back, 「Damn, that almost hit my face. 」

「Uncle Duan, go easy— you almost knocked me into the sea. 」 Xiao Hu complained loudly.

Duan Chunsheng turned his head with an apologetic expression,

「I jerked the throttle— I'm not used to handling a big boat yet. 」

「Damn! Uncle Duan, you're old— how can you still be so unsteady? 」 Ye Cheng teased.

Actually it's not entirely Duan Chunsheng's fault; it's like someone used to driving a compact car suddenly getting behind the wheel of a heavy truck— the feel is different.

Moreover, Xiao Hu himself might not have realized it, never expecting the rope to swing that high.

Fortunately it was just a small hiccup; after Duan Chunsheng reduced speed a bit, the whole trawl with its floats sank into the sea, the net stretching over a hundred meters aft— quite a sight.

Of course, the longer the trawl, the longer the haul; generally a medium‑sized boat's trawl takes about two hours.

With that time, Ye Cheng naturally returned to the cabin to sleep.

But he got up once in the middle, then found it hard to sleep soundly; when the time was near, he rose on his own.

By then Zhang Guafu had slept three hours; hearing Ye Cheng stir, she woke as well.

The two went outside together; Xiao Hu and Duan Chunsheng were chatting in the wheelhouse, seeing them come out, Xiao Hu quickly waved,

「Lao Er, it's about time— we can haul the net. 」

「Alright, Uncle Duan, reduce speed and we'll haul. 」

Thinking about hauling the net, all four were thrilled— this would be the boat's first catch.

A small boat's net yields at most one ton, but a large boat's net can bring in up to eight tons.

Of course, eight tons is an extreme case; it requires the fishing season and a net stuffed to bursting.

Still, although it's not the fishing season now, it is the swimming‑crab season, and the waters below teem with endless swimming crabs— what might come up is hard to say.

As Duan Chunsheng lowered the speed and then pressed the net‑hauler button,

The net hauling machine let out an unpleasant mechanical noise, then began slowly pulling the trawl net up from the sea.

The trawl net, nearly a hundred meters long, took several minutes just to haul in.

Several people watched wide-eyed as the trawl net was pulled out of the water bit by bit.

At first this section was completely empty, which was normal, but when the last twenty or so meters arrived, the sea surface became noticeably different, and the net hauling machine began to strain a little.

A huge, bulging net bag was pulled out of the water; through the mesh countless crab legs could be seen sticking out, an expanse of white crab bellies.

"Brother, we've hit a jackpot, we've hit a jackpot!" Xiao Hu shouted happily.

"Damn, there's so much of it," Duan Chunsheng also remarked, compared to the small trawl net, what's before us is a veritable colossus.

Zhang Guafu lifted her head to look at the huge bundle in the air, her eyes sparkling, "Goodness, how long will this take?"

Only Ye Cheng was a little dissatisfied; it looked like only half a net, lower than his expectation.