Chapter 140: Humpback Whale

Da Wang waved goodbye to the humpback whale and continued his big business of picking up fish; this rich seabed could yield so much, and turning around he immediately encountered a school of small yellow fish.

This, coated in batter and fried, is delicious!

Over the past year, Da Wang has really broadened his horizons when it comes to food; the once easy-to-feed Da Wang has become quite picky.

Sea rabbit? Stew it with tofu and cabbage!

Squid? Let's make fried squid rings~

Oh yeah, and there's bombarded giant squid; Bai Ge brought it over for him.

He wants to keep some of this squid to take back to Youzhou, and later set up a stall selling squid on the street—sure to have better prospects than roasted sweet potatoes. Da Wang, laboring hard in the sea, drooled as he couldn't help imagining how they'd look on a plate.

And his new friend didn't leave either, except when it went up to breathe and came back, it kept swimming around him in front, behind, left, and right.

Seeing Da Wang casually toss a large scallop he'd picked up into the net bag tied to his body, it finally realized this little glowing thing was coming to feed.

The humpback whale, whose intelligence was still sufficient, decided to help; it went nearby, turned a circle, and drove a small school of rice fish toward Da Wang, who happily accepted, thinking it was a coincidence.

After the humpback whale went up for air, turned around, and drove a few big yellow fish his way, Da Wang suddenly realized his new friend might be helping him.

He again mustered the courage to approach and lightly touch the creature's huge head from a distance—he couldn't get too close, fearing that if it opened its mouth to yawn it might suck him in. The whale's size made moving nearby water like overturning rivers and seas; he probably only avoided being swept away because he had the heart of a city lord.

He touched the humpback whale, and the whale showed no strong reaction, even wagging its tail; Da Wang felt there was hope. Anyway, he decided to take it as acceptance of their friendship.

As a result, a tall stalk of giant algae not far away was knocked straight over……

Da Wang honestly retracted his plump paw…… Keep your distance, it's safe for you, me, and it.

Finally, Da Wang dug up a few sea cucumbers in the sand; this trip was truly a fruitful return.

The confluence of currents had been swept clean by Da Wang, but as long as the current direction doesn't change, it won't be long before this place bustles again.

Feeling the time was about right, Da Wang filled the net bag with sea cucumbers and began to surface, intending to take them out to give to his grandfather. The filial Da Wang waved once more to his friend, then without looking back climbed aboard the small boat that had come to meet him.

When he returned to the big ship, Wei Shen greeted him enthusiastically, 'Why did you take so long this time? Is it really lively down there…?' He saw Da Wang holding a familiar net bag of plump, blackish worms, and his cousin turned and walked away without looking back……

"Hmph! Not for you to eat; I'm saving it for my grandfather!"

"That's best!" His cousin didn't stop, running off without looking back. Da Wang handed the sea cucumbers to Zhao Ba, 'Process them, dry them, then later send them to my grandfather.'

Zhao Ba's scalp went numb too, but lacking the daring of the Second Young Master to run, he could only grit his teeth and accept it. A net bag full of black worms longer than a human hand gave a striking visual effect.

Da Wang went back to his room, washed up, changed clothes, and then ran to the deck to find Chen Cang, 'Chen Cang! I've met a new friend at sea—a very large humpback whale; it's really huge and quite smart~'

Chen Cang pointed at the sea beneath the ship, 'Got it; your new friend hasn't left yet.'

Da Wang leaned over the rail to look down, and sure enough the humpback whale was swimming alongside the ship, 'Wow, you're still here! Bye~'

When the humpback whale saw its little glowing fish appear again, it happily let out a long whale call, 'Hurry back!'

The crew members resting on the deck, waiting for the next net haul, all ran to the stern to watch; the humpback whale then performed a flip, sending up huge splashes that elicited repeated gasps. Each time it breathed, the mist plume from its blowhole reached four or five meters.

Da Wang also loved it immensely; others seeing such a huge creature up close might feel afraid, sensing threat, and the scene could induce a fear of giant beings, but the big-hearted Da Wang only felt majestic.

If an ordinary small boat provoked such a huge creature, even accidentally drawing near and kicking up a wave could capsize a fishing boat, but the enormous treasure ship had no such trouble.

Chen Cang also gave Da Wang some popular science, 'In these waters you normally don't see humpback whales; Your Lordship is very lucky. This is the first time we've encountered a humpback whale in a year of traveling these waters. Actually they prefer to roam the vast open ocean; this one is clearly a mischievous little fellow who doesn't follow the rules.'

Da Wang echoed, 'A little fellow? It's… about six meters? Seeing it, I now think even Weini is tiny.'

Female humpback whales can grow up to eighteen meters, males up to thirteen or fourteen meters, weighing twenty to thirty tons. At just over six meters, it's hardly a little fellow, and it's not yet adult; when grown, its little flippers can reach five meters in length.

Da Wang was stunned, 'So it's still a baby!'

An even smaller baby appeared!

Da Wang told Chen Cang how they met, saying he had almost been swallowed by the creature. Chen Cang smiled and said, 'No, it won't eat people; if carried by the current into its mouth it would be spat out, and its teeth are those fine bristles—if swallowed, calm processing poses no danger to life.'

Da Wang looked at the silly humpback whale happily singing down below and found it ever more pleasing, 'It doesn't eat people—great~'

Chen Cang: '… mainly because it can't swallow them down. Their esophagus is very small; despite that huge size, they normally eat only small fish and shrimp. They take in water together, then spit the water out again.'

Da Wang: ……

Bai was moved.

But it's still impressive.

This fellow's water‑play skills are superb; it swims honestly for a stretch, then suddenly breaches, after which its body slowly arches backward like a street performer effortlessly doing a backflip, throwing up huge waves, then dives back in as smoothly as a whale and continues swimming.

Chen Cang laughed, 'It seems your friend is quite concerned about you and has no intention of leaving.' Da Wang was delighted, constantly peeking out to greet it.

Even a modern ship doing over forty knots couldn't be caught by this humpback whale's swimming speed; the treasure ship's pace is easy for it to match, and it can still show off some tricks when idle.

Da Wang and Wei Shen practically lived on the deck, together with Weini, Bai Ze, and Zhe Tian, craning their necks to watch for half a day without getting bored.

Such a colossal creature gives the soul a tremendous shock; its whale calls seem to come from ancient times, and Wei Shen watched so intently he didn't even want to go eat. Seeing one in a lifetime is extremely rare, so we must cherish it well.

Da Wang lingered on the deck until night fell, reluctant to leave; the three little followers had already run off, and he and his cousin were the most devoted.

That evening, Da Wang went to the manor to find his Bai Ge and asked, 'You say, if I wanted to raise a humpback whale, where would be good to keep it?'

His Bai Ge spat out a mouthful of tea, '……What are you talking about raising?'

Da Wang's eyes sparkled: 'Humpback whale!'

Bai Yang: '……I've only heard of people dreaming of keeping orcas, or wanting to keep humpback whales? Our oceanarium doesn't have one—guess why? Do you know how big it can get? It's one of the largest living things on Earth, much bigger than an orca! You have that much space……well, you do.' Forget that this creature is a damned feudal‑society ruler, a regional prince.

"Even if you could fence off a sea to raise it, it would eat you into bankruptcy. The humpback whale you met now is on its winter migration and isn't feeding; once it starts eating, what will you feed it? You'd need a dedicated boat just to catch shrimp for it."

Da Wang gave up, 'I was just thinking. I fed the humpback whale a beast‑feeding pill, and it followed us all the way. Chen Cang said humpback whales are rare in these waters, and I'm afraid I might never see it again. When we were underwater, it even helped me drive fish.'

"Humpback whales are naturally fairly intelligent and friendly toward humans. Haha, I recall a saying that a humpback whale's life consists of only three things: eating, sleeping, and fighting orcas."

Da Wang was astonished, 'Why fight orcas?' He dragged out from the warehouse the marine‑life handbook he hadn't opened in ages, wanting to see what an orca looks like.

"Because orcas are ocean hooligans, they're despicable! Humpback whales have no natural enemies; their only foe is the orca, whose enmity is imprinted in their blood from infancy. Orcas specifically block female humpback whales with calves, drowning the young. Those humpback whales that survive by luck consider the orca their lifelong enemy; when they grow up and see one, they must give it a beating to vent. It's said that whenever they hear an orca's sound, no matter how far away, they'll detour to fight it to settle the score."

Da Wang listened, speechless, 'You say, why bother?'

He found a picture of the orca, '……It's also pretty cute, I want one.'

Bai Yang: ……

"As for orcas, it's not like there's no chance to see them. After all, you've already seen a humpback whale; the unpolluted open sea is truly abundant—I'm jealous! Humpback whale intelligence is decent; if you meet it again, give it two more beast‑feeding pills, and maybe on its next migration it'll come back to visit you. My family's Wangzai used to be so dumb it smoked, but after eating that stuff it can now TMD operate the elevator to go play on its own!" This left him wondering whether he should keep feeding it……

Da Wang burst out laughing, decided to turn back and block Qiao Yi to buy some more.

However, speaking of the abundant sea, they thought of the newly discovered black ball ball today; they didn't bother to check, took one out and directly showed it to Baiyang.

"The whole sea floor is full of them; is this tasty?"

Baiyang walked around in a circle, "... let me also be airdropped to Great Jin to go fishing, this sea is too abundant, it's the first time I've seen such a huge purple sea urchin!"

Great King looked eager: "Is it tasty?"

"Of course it's delicious! From now on, whenever you meet me, you must pick up these fuzzy balls! Your luck is unmatched—this isn't the common horse-dung sea urchin but the more valuable purple sea urchin. Peel it open and inside is meat; it can be steamed with eggs, made into dumplings, eaten raw! Fresh ones can be eaten as soon as they're opened; wait here, I'll go home get some tools to pry it open."

Baiyang disappeared home, grabbed an alcohol stove, a few eggs and seasonings, also took a sea urchin opening knife, on the spot made for Great King a sea urchin steamed egg and grilled sea urchin, also brought a coarse grain cake to eat with it.

"In the past, coastal fishermen, upon catching fresh sea urchins, would pry them open and eat them directly with this kind of cake, also very fresh and sweet."

Baiyang broke off a small piece for Great King, then used a knife to pry off a chunk of sea urchin and placed it on top, handing it to Great King, who accepted it well and directly shoved it into their mouth.

"How is it?"

"... Not bad. Mainly I just ate, it's fresh, surprisingly not fishy?"

"It is quite fresh. However, you should only taste such things; eat less raw seafood, as parasites can be troublesome, and medical care where you are is also lacking. Eat cooked seafood, Great King, develop a good habit."

Great King innocently: "I am invulnerable to all poisons~"

Baiyang: …forgot, this person is the chosen one.

"Is this cake made of corn? Why isn't it fragrant when it's not fresh?"

"After it's dried and ground into powder, it loses that fragrance; you find it fragrant because at that time it hadn't matured yet. No, don't you have some? Why haven't you eaten it yourself?"

Great King felt wronged: "I only tasted the tender corn, after it matured I saved it for seeding—there's no problem planting another batch, right? I haven't eaten any. Fortunately, I've now tried it, reporting back."

"This is coarse grain; eating a bit is good for your health. You'll only eat as much as you yourself consume."

Great King remained unmoved, their body is fine.

Baiyang, while fussing over the steamed egg, glanced at Great King: "... your tooth-changing hasn't made you thin either?"

Great King was startled, they jumped up: "Look closely, I've shot up!"

Baiyang laughed loudly: "You haven't reached puberty yet to have a growth spurt, okay, okay, I admit you've grown a bit, looks like you could become tall. But you really haven't lost weight, losing baby teeth hasn't affected your appetite at all, hahaha～"

Great King's defenses broke: "Bai Ge, you'll lose me like this! I train martial arts every day so I won't get fat, this is… this is…"

Baiyang, in order not to lose the wealthy patron Great King, tried to find a supplement for them: "Baby fat! You've got baby fat."

Great King: ……

"That saying isn't the least bit majestic; after the New Year I am eight years old!"

"Not bad, it's time to start first grade."

Great King: ……

Baiyang, making this comparison, truly admired Great King. Here, children that big have just begun learning to recognize characters and start first grade, while Great King has already been reading military strategy and war histories, beginning to worry about the life and death safety of the people of an entire prefecture.

Great King's evaluation of eating raw was average, but the steamed sea urchin egg, once cooked, was said to be so satisfying that even Great King, who was full, quickly finished an entire one and still wanted more.

"Who knew steamed egg could be this fresh~"

"It can also be stir-fried with eggs, with rice, and sprinkled with a little scallion~"

Great King, after trying the grilled sea urchin, declared: "This is delicious, I want to keep some for myself to eat!"

Baiyang instantly regretted recommending it too earnestly, practically harder than those applying film under a bridge. "Don't, this quality is so good it's top‑tier, it could fetch a good price!" They also wanted to stockpile some to eat slowly.

"Let me calculate… for something this big, here I'd charge sixty pieces per unit—how does that sound?"

Baiyang converted it for them: ten sea urchins equal six yuanbao.

Upon hearing the price, Great King decided to keep a thousand or so for themselves to eat, and said: "Then I'll sell you twenty‑five thousand!"

Baiyang almost cried sourly: "You picked up over twenty thousand sea urchins in one place?"

Great King: "Mm‑hmm!"

……this damned ancient sea!

Indeed, those ancient people probably didn't even know what sea urchins were, let alone fish them for food; before Great King, for hundreds or even thousands of years, no one ventured to cast nets into the depths of that sea.

Great King's good finds go far beyond these; in just a day's work they hauled up plenty of valuable stuff.

Rice fish, striped shrimp, large yellow fish, sea cucumber—these four can all fetch high prices.

Just the sea urchins sold for fifteen thousand yuanbao, plus the more valuable large yellow fish and sea cucumber; Great King had a huge haul, earning forty‑one thousand two hundred yuanbao in a single afternoon.

As Great King left Bai Ge's shop, they narrowed their eyes with a smile, waited at the Phoenix Market and found Qiao Yi, then, wealthy and bold, waved a hand and said: "Give me another hundred Beast Feed Pills!"

Qiao Yi: "……Did Great King pick up money?"

Great King: "Mm! While I'm still warm, I'll spend a bit without feeling bad."

Qiao Yi: ……