Chapter 1582

Ye Yaodong widened the turning radius and, under the premise of not affecting the fishing net and other equipment behind, made a wide turn.

Once this turn was made, the squid around the boat were indeed gone; they had all run to the back.

Coupled with the workers on deck coordinating to adjust the lights, the squid jumping at the stern gradually decreased, slowly sinking toward the light in the water, and the sonar also detected this batch of squid.

Ye Yaodong looked at the display screen and was immediately overjoyed.

"Oh my god, it works."

"Is it working?" Lao Xiao stood beside him, also looking at the screen, and pointed forward. "This is it, right?"

"Yes, looking at the movement direction, it's this one."

"Then it's just right to catch them all in one net."

"Drag it for now, it looks like there's quite a lot..."

The two of them watched the screen curiously, maneuvering the fishing boat to operate slowly as usual.

When the light spots on the screen gradually disappeared, Ye Yaodong let Lao Xiao notify the workers on deck who were coordinating, so they could turn off the big lights.

"Received. I didn't expect it to go so smoothly."

Ye Yaodong was a bit smug. "This is called 'the mountain man has his own clever plan.' You just need to use your brain to think, and you can come up with a solution."

"That also takes guts. Like us, we only think about being regular and safe without making mistakes; who would dare to mess around like that?"

That is indeed true. Who told him to be the boss? If he were an employee, he would definitely do nothing and just fish steadily.

That's why he hadn't seen any other boats calling him for issues these past few days; it was all normal communication and reporting. Only on the first day, when the net got snagged on the bottom and couldn't be resolved, did they call him to make a decision.

When it was time to pull up this net, there were indeed quite a lot of large red squid inside. One bag weighed 5,000 jin, and this was about one-fifth of it, even counting the useless miscellaneous goods and trash.

After picking through it, there should be about a thousand jin of squid. This proportion is already very high.

It was just the first bag of goods, and the quantity hoisted up later was also not small.

Ye Yaodong was also very satisfied; the effort wasn't in vain.

"I haven't seen much squid harvest in the last few days; I didn't expect them all to be waiting in this net."

"This net has a big harvest. It's been raining heavily for the past two days, the waves are churning, and the fish from the bottom of the sea have been brought up, so our harvest has increased."

"It's just that this rainy weather is uncomfortable. I have to change my clothes every day. If it rains for a few more days, I'll have to work bare-assed..."

After a couple of people responded, they all fell silent and worked.

If it weren't for the fact that they could encounter some surprising things at sea every day, and still have some desire to talk, everyone's hearts would have long been as still as an ancient well.

Ye Yaodong wiped the rainwater off his face and continued to direct the loading and unloading, lending a hand wherever needed.

At this moment, someone on the sorting table exclaimed.

He looked over in surprise, and a worker was holding a red coral the size of a washbasin in his hand.

Others were also marveling there.

"Oh my... such a big red coral..."

"I didn't expect to be able to rake up such a large red coral..."

"Several branches on this are also broken..."

"It must have been crushed by these fish..."

"This bright red color is strangely beautiful. Such a big one is worth a lot of money..."

"This must have been broken by the waves and then rolled up."

Ye Yaodong had already walked over. He held his breath and looked at the large red coral with surprise and joy.

"Holy crap... we can still catch one this big?"

"Yeah, keep digging and see, maybe there's more."

While speaking, the worker also handed him the red coral he was holding.

"Such a big one, it would look good placed at home..."

Ye Yaodong held the red coral with surprise and excitement. As soon as he got his hands on it, he estimated it to be about 3 jin or more. Moreover, this variety looked like Aka at a glance; it was very expensive. It's a top-tier item, and even in this day and age, it's a top-tier item.

Red coral grows extremely slowly, usually taking 300 years to grow to 1 kilogram.

This red coral also comes in several varieties, including Aka, Momo, and Sardinian. Each variety has a different growth form. Aka coral is usually denser and relatively heavier.

"Such a big one, it would be very valuable to hire someone to carve it. It can be used as an exhibit," the chief engineer said.

Ye Yaodong nodded, confirming.

However, this primitive form doesn't actually need much carving. Just trim the damaged branches and buy a nice basin to display it in, and it will be very beautiful.

But there is no lack of people who carve them into Buddhas or other works of art.

"The previous net also had a few small coral branches, but they were all white or light pink, just a little bit big, so I poured them out with the trash."

"Ah?" Ye Yaodong looked at the person who spoke. "Poured them out?"

"Yeah, poured them out. I saw them during the day and asked others. They said they were like water weeds and useless, so I just poured them out."

He beat his chest and stamped his feet. "Next time you see them, pick them all up. I want them. Regardless of whether they are red, white, black, or pink, if you see them, just pick them up for me."

"What for? The small ones are useless; only this big one is valuable."

"I'll keep them first. It's good to keep them as souvenirs. Maybe they'll be useful in the future. Anyway, they won't spoil if you leave them there. Let me tell you, this coral takes 300 years to grow one kilogram."

"300 years to grow one kilogram?"

Everyone was a little surprised.

"That's what I heard, so pick them all up for me in the future. If any of you want some, you can divide them up."

"Alright, we'll pick them all up from now on."

"It's so hard to grow, so next time I see one, I must keep a few..."

"The waves have been a bit bigger recently, so we can occasionally catch small ones. They are all broken by the waves."

"The waves are even bigger during typhoon days, but we can't be at sea..."

"Everything you're saying is nonsense..."

Everyone continued to chat while working. It had become a light rain by now, and everyone could work more nimbly.

Ye Yaodong still held the red coral in his hand and walked under the lights to admire it.

The main trunk was as thick as an adult's wrist, and the surface was covered with naturally grown gullies and nodules. The texture was hard and warm, emitting a gradient luster from deep red to orange-red under the faint orange light.

The branches were tree-like, with five or six secondary branches extending from the top. The longest one meandered like solidified flames from the bottom of the sea.

Traces of white coral polyp skeletons could be seen attached to the base, and delicate concentric growth rings could be observed on the cross-section, which were the life rings of hundreds of years of slow accumulation.

There were also many traces of breakage on the top branches, which destroyed the original primitive form, but it still looked very beautiful.

Ye Yaodong rotated his hand, looking from left to right, then from right to left, from top to bottom, and from bottom to top, looking at it carefully back and forth.

This was the first time he had caught such a large coral, and he was very fond of it, his mouth splitting into a grin with joy.

He still had a drawer full of small coral fragments at home, in all colors, but basically none of them were larger than two fingers.

Previously, when fishing in the near sea, he had caught a fish with a small piece of coral in its mouth. Although it was Aka, the size was simply the difference between a firefly and the sun compared to this one.

"Boss, we found a piece of white coral here..."

Ye Yaodong turned his head and glanced at what the other person was holding in his hand, and said, "Just find a basket to put it in. If you find any, throw them into the basket. When the time comes, you can take some if you want. Keep them; they will be useful in the future."

"Are they really useful in the future?"

"Then I'll take a few back to keep."

Ye Yaodong saw them take a basket to put them in and didn't care anymore; the one in his hand was more precious.

He took it directly to the wheelhouse and showed it to Lao Xiao, whose eyes went straight.

"Such a big one? How much is this worth? I heard that rich people like to buy this as an ornament?"

"I don't know how much it's worth. Anyway, I'm taking it home to display; I'm not selling it."

In the past few years, the things he has salvaged from the sea could probably open an exhibition. If it weren't for the lack of resources, he could have opened an ocean exhibition.

"Tsk tsk tsk... such a big red coral, it's really beautiful. You've found a treasure." Lao Xiao held it and couldn't put it down, looking at it back and forth, even using a flashlight to shine on it up close.

"It's indeed quite rare."

"How much do you think this is worth? It should be worth a few hundred yuan, right?"

A few hundred yuan?

Ye Yaodong's mouth twitched.

Lao Xiao was just saying it casually and didn't expect him to respond. "It's a pity that several branches on it are broken, and there are still broken gaps, which affects the beauty."

"I'll take the shift. It's very late now, you go to sleep too."

"Alright."

Ye Yaodong put the red coral on the console first, and just looking at it made him feel pleasing to the eye.

This thing can be used as a family heirloom in the future. In a few years, when he can officially register a company, he will get a beautiful office, and this can be placed on the display stand in the office.

Just thinking about it made him feel beautiful, and even the rain outside looked pleasing to his eyes.

He still had a drawer of small corals of various colors at home. After the millennium, there would be specialized polishing craftsmen. At that time, he would hire someone to polish them and make jewelry for his wife, daughter, and daughter-in-law to wear.

Although the value is not very high, and compared to his current net worth, it doesn't count for much, but no matter what, it was salvaged by him. The ones in the drawer, although not salvaged by him personally, were accumulated over decades.

In the future, his own fishing boat will also be able to catch them, and he will be able to accumulate more and more.

If it weren't for the fear of risk, he could drive his boat to the waters of the 'Little Japan' side to catch them wildly right now. There are many corals under the sea there, and he knows a sea area with many.

However, in the past two years, we have listed coral as a first-class key protected aquatic animal and prohibited mining.

In his previous life, after the millennium, hundreds of large ships in their town knowingly committed crimes. They all felt that since it wasn't caught from their own home, they couldn't catch their own, but couldn't they go to 'Little Japan's' home to catch them?

They all rushed to that sea area of 'Little Japan' to steal and fish wantonly. After one night, a ship could have an income of over one million.

Later, they were severely cracked down on, and 'Little Japan' also strengthened patrols, so everyone stopped taking risks.

Now in the 90s, the economy is developing rapidly, and large corals are also very valuable. Just go fishing once, and you won't have to work for a year.

However, he is also making a lot of money now, so there is no need to take this risk. Let's leave it for future people to take risks.

Early the next morning, many people heard that a large red coral was caught last night, and they were all very curious.

When Ye Yaodong was eating breakfast, he also generously took it down for everyone to see.

"It looks quite big, but many branches on it are broken. When we go back and take it to the factory, placing it on the office desk will be quite festive and good-looking."

"It's indeed strangely good-looking."

"Such a big one should be worth a lot of money."

"If it were complete, it would definitely be more valuable. This one has so many corners broken, it must be greatly discounted..."

Ye Yaodong let them discuss it. After breakfast and the shift change, he took a camera and asked someone to take a photo for him, holding a red coral with the sea as the background. The rain had just stopped in the morning.

It's just that the person looked a bit sloppy, with stubble, long hair, and wearing a raincoat, but it also just explained the current situation.

After taking the photo, he held his red coral and went to the rest cabin to rest.

Worried that the shaking of the fishing boat would damage this precious baby, he even specially put it in the safe and locked it.

Anyway, whenever he returns to the rest cabin and wants to see it, he can open it and take it out to admire.

Before resting, he took out his notebook to record today's date. He calculated that according to his original estimate, the No. 5 boat should have arrived today, the 5th.

He held a pencil and made two heavy marks on the paper, hoping that the heavy rain in the past few days would not affect the fishing boat, and that the boat could arrive smoothly, connect, and take away the goods from all three boats.

Before going to sleep, he kept thinking about this matter, and also wanted to know the situation of the processing plant on the shore, as well as whether the other boats were all normal. All of this had to wait until the No. 5 boat arrived to know.

For him, the time these past few days has also passed particularly slowly and painfully.

As soon as he came out, he encountered bad weather, as well as various connection and coordination problems, lacking a break-in period.

If he could survive this period smoothly, he wouldn't have to worry too much.

With things on his mind, he couldn't sleep, and occasionally woke up to check the time or look outside the window.

Seeing no extra fishing boats, he had to lie back down.

Sleeping intermittently and checking his watch three or four times, he finally stopped sleeping and went out with big dark circles under his eyes.

"Can you contact the No. 5 boat?"

Chen Shi replied, "I've been trying to call from morning until noon, but there's no response."

Ye Yaodong sighed and cursed, "Damn it."

"Why are you up so early? It's only 1 o'clock, and it's not raining today. Although it hasn't cleared up, at least there aren't dark clouds everywhere."

"I can't sleep, I can't sleep. The boat hasn't arrived yet, so I can't sleep peacefully."

"At worst, we'll just return directly when it's full."

"That's a last resort. The planned schedule was originally until the end of July. It's only mid-June now, it's still early."

"Then let's wait a little longer. The weather has been bad these past two days, and the waves are big, so it definitely won't be able to sail that fast. It's fine if it arrives at night."

"Hmm."

Ye Yaodong picked up the binoculars and continued to go out to look at the sea.

Until the sky was about to darken, they still hadn't seen the shadow of the fishing boat.

His brows were so furrowed that he could crush a fly.

The other boats didn't ask, just waiting for his instructions at that time.

Whether they could be contacted or not, they knew better than Ye Yaodong. Asking was useless, it would only make people anxious and annoyed. It was better to just wait.

After dinner, just as they were finishing the shift change and casting the nets, Lao Xiao shouted to him on the deck, "Dongzi, Dongzi, the No. 5 boat has been contacted, but it's intermittent. We should be able to talk later tonight."

Ye Yaodong looked up, breathed a sigh of relief, and shouted, "Got it."

He didn't stop his steps and went up first, preparing to ask about the situation in detail.

Lao Xiao replied, "Just now, I heard them calling the No. 1 boat intermittently. The signal was on and off, making a crackling sound."

"Contact them again in half an hour."

"Hey, I'll shout every half hour later."

"I don't know when they set off. It's good if they can arrive today. When the time comes, we can move the goods one after another, and we can return early tomorrow morning. As long as the next two and a half boats can connect, I will have no worries."

"Hey, they definitely will. Aren't they coming over right away? We can already hear the sound. We should be able to talk normally in an hour or so, and they should be here in a few hours."

"I hope so. There are still many things waiting for me to go back and deal with. Once they connect, I'll go back for a trip."

Ye Yaodong kept this matter in mind, so he didn't go down to the deck to direct, but directly let Lao Xiao go. He sat in the cockpit, guarding the screen and staring, so he could accept the call as soon as possible.

In the first hour, he tried to contact them twice but failed.

After 7 o'clock, he tried to contact them again, and this time it went through.

"Holy crap, the No. 5 boat has a signal? Can you hear me?"

"I hear you, I hear you. There was no signal before, and my contact with you was intermittent. Finally, it's possible now."

"How many nautical miles left? Report the current situation."

"It is estimated that there are 20 nautical miles left. Although the rain has stopped, the waves haven't stopped. Conservatively estimated, it should take three hours. The sailing on the road was delayed by heavy rain and waves, and the communication was not very convenient. I'll talk about it in detail when I arrive."

"Alright, be careful on the road, keep in touch. It's good that we can contact you now."

"Received."

Ye Yaodong also said to the other fishing boats, "The No. 5 boat is almost here. The other fishing boats should also prepare, estimate the time, and connect when the boat arrives."

"Received."

He also calculated it himself. Now casting the net, when the boat arrives, he can almost connect, and the time difference is not big.

Anyway, the goods just collected that haven't been sorted can be left to wait for the next boat to send back. The goods in the cabin can be transported to the boat first. The three boats haven't caught little in the past few days, and the No. 5 boat can't even hold it all.

When the No. 5 boat returns, after two days, the fresh-collecting boat will come, and the fresh-collecting boat will be able to hold a little more.

After contacting, he also leaned on the back of the chair and relaxed a little.

I don't know how many people his father arranged to send over on the No. 5 boat. With so many goods sent back, I don't know if he can handle it.

(I learned a new skill in the past few days, folding gold ingots. I sat and folded for a whole day today, and by the way, listened to all kinds of gossip in the village, about this family and that family. It feels very exciting...)

(End of chapter)