Chapter 632: Indigestion

After mixing the cornmeal, Wang An squeezed the cornmeal into a dough ball and then took this dough ball out.

When Wang An walked back to the horse cart, Liu Guilan had already found the sack containing the fishing net, and it had been tied to the rear beam of the cart by Wang Dazhu.

Seeing the large dough ball in Wang An's hand, Wang Dazhu asked in surprise:

"What are you doing with this thing? What? Are you hungry?"

To tell the truth, Wang Dazhu's words were truly a bit annoying. Knowing that Wang An was going to catch fish, he still had to ask such a question.

Besides, even if Wang An was truly hungry, he couldn't directly gnaw on a raw dough ball! Unfortunately, the one who said this was his own father, so Wang An chose to endure it. The main thing was that he couldn't do anything even if he didn't endure it. A father talking to his son, let him talk, and he couldn't beat his own father.

However, although he couldn't do anything to his old man, words still had to be said, so Wang An, while casually placing the dough ball on the manure, said with a smile following Wang Dazhu's words: "Mm, I was thinking that in a while when we two are hungry and can't work, we'll roast this dough ball and eat it."

As soon as Wang An finished speaking, Liu Guilan couldn't help but scold with a smile: "You bastard, talk to your dad properly. Can that edible thing be put on manure?"

It could be seen that this couple was doing it on purpose.

Wang An was scolded, but Wang Dazhu was genuinely quite happy, then said with a smile:

"There are plenty of fish in that small river ditch. There's no need at all for you to prepare this thing. It's just wasting that cornmeal."

One has to say, Wang Dazhu was truly right. After all, if one wanted to eat fish locally and didn't have any requirements for the type of fish, it was actually a very simple thing.

Just find any small river ditch and directly scoop it with a net. If you want to catch fish, you can just cast a net. It's damn simple.

After all, in this era in Heilongjiang Province, water resources were quite abundant, and although the first and last sentences of the saying "beat roe deer with a stick, scoop fish with a ladle, wild chickens fly into the rice pot" were a bit exaggerated, the sentence "scoop fish with a ladle" was not exaggerated at all, because it was a fact.

So, like Wang An, who wanted to bait before casting a net, there was indeed no great need.

Actually, besides these reasons, the most important reason was that grain was more precious than fish. Using grain to exchange for fish, what kind of joke was that? However, the reason Wang An did this was because Wang An wanted to cast a net in the big river to catch big fish. As for those small crucian carp, small carp, or grass carp fry, white strips, and other miscellaneous fish in the small river ditch, Wang An wouldn't eat them.

The key was that the time for catching fish was very short, and he could only cast two or three nets before having to go home, so baiting to gather fish was very necessary.

Wang An said with a smile:

"I'm not going to the small river ditch to catch fish. I want to go to the big river to catch big fish. I tell you, baiting to gather fish and then casting a net is damn fast. Otherwise, I'd have to throw several nets along the riverbank, which is too much effort."

Wang Dazhu laughed upon hearing this and then "praised" Liu Guilan:

"Don't say, Xiao An's method is still good. We originally fried bran to bait fish. We really haven't done this using cornmeal to bait."

Wang Dazhu's words truly had depth. It sounded like praise, but it was actually saying Wang An was wasting grain, just not so obviously.

Fortunately, Wang An was always immune to such words. Anyway, you are the father and you are right. You say whatever you want, and I'll just do whatever I want.

Liu Guilan had no interest in how to catch fish and just exhorted:

"Then you two be careful, the river water is very deep now."

Wang Dazhu and the other agreed, and one driving the cart and one sitting on the cart, they walked toward the fields. Passing by the big river, Wang An divided the dough ball into two, found two slow-flow areas convenient for standing on the bank to cast the net, and threw the two dough balls in.

And the reason he threw the dough balls to bait now, instead of baiting before casting the net, was because baiting needed time, and it wasn't saying that the dough ball was thrown into the river and the fish would come over immediately.

Normally speaking, the fastest baiting time was more than half an hour.

After all, fish rely on their sense of smell to find food, so only when the taste of cornmeal is completely dispersed in the water will the fish follow the taste and gather.

And as everyone knows, small fish are the food of big fish, so only when a large number of small fish gather will they attract big fish, and only when big fish come will it be the formal time to cast the net.

Wanting to judge whether big fish have gathered is also a very simple thing; just observe the water surface.

When the water bubbles on the water surface are very small but very dense, don't be in a hurry to cast the net, because this is just small fish entering the bait.

And when the water surface feels like water is boiling, and the water bubbles are large and very dense, that is when big fish have entered the bait. Only when casting the net at this time can one truly achieve "catching everything in one net"! After throwing the dough balls, Wang Dazhu asked Wang An:

"I see your dough ball doesn't seem simple. Why is there a smell of liquor?"

Wang An said indifferently: "There must be liquor, and half a spoonful of brown sugar. I tell you, Dad, using liquor and brown sugar to mix cornmeal, the fish are damn willing..."

Before Wang An finished speaking, Wang Dazhu turned his head and said angrily:

"You bastard, I'm already heartbroken that you're wasting cornmeal, and you even mixed liquor and brown sugar into it. How many fish is that? Can it exchange for that much liquor and brown sugar? Are you stupid?"

As he spoke, Wang Dazhu also wanted to swing the whip to hit Wang An, but suddenly stopped, perhaps feeling that Wang An was already this old, and it wouldn't be good to whip him.

However, it could be seen that Wang Dazhu was truly heartbroken for that liquor and brown sugar used to bait fish.

Because whether it was liquor or brown sugar, in this era, they were very precious things.

Many families might only be able to buy half a *jin* or so of brown sugar during the New Year, and usually, they might not even see a shadow.

This was a fact.

Wang An saw this and truly didn't expect his old man to be so excited because of such a little thing, and repeatedly told his old man about the family's current economic situation.

Mainly talking about the value of those gold nuggets, the value of those antique calligraphy and paintings and silver dollars, and even those large coins with unknown quantities, Wang An also briefly revealed a bit.

After Wang An finished speaking, Wang Dazhu also completely calmed down, and then said thoughtfully:

"Then according to what you said, our family's money can't be spent even until your next generation."

Wang An nodded again: "That's for sure, let alone your grandson's generation, even your great-grandson's generation can't spend it!"

Wang Dazhu blinked his eyes and suddenly fell into deep thought.

One has to say, Wang An's explanation truly made Wang Dazhu a bit indigestible.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 633 =====