Rebirth of Bayi Fishing and Hunting in the Northwest

Chapter 924 Everyone's waiting to see the Li family make a fool of themselves.

Seeing that the net was dragged directly under the ice by the net trawler and pulled all the way to the end, not only was Li Long relieved, but Li Qingxia's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, was also put at ease.

If it's just family, success or failure doesn't matter. At worst, we can come back again, or as Li Long said, we can just break a hole in the ice along the way.

But with outsiders present, Li Qingxia didn't want Li Long to fail; she wanted him to succeed on the first try.

Now that he'd succeeded, he grinned, handed the net to Li Jianguo, and shouted to Li Long, "I'm next!"

Sure enough, the old man was right. At this moment, Li Qingxia was like someone who had seen a new and interesting toy that he liked, and he was determined to study it and play with it.

Li Jianguo smiled wryly; his father was really treating this thing like a toy.

But it's alright. Li Qingxia hasn't been very happy these past few days, and he knows why, but he doesn't dare take her north or west. What if they make a wasted trip? That would be even more disappointing.

Seeing that the little gadget Li Long made has made his father happy, that's good.

The nets were lowered into the water, and it was crucial to hold onto the net ends securely. This wasn't summer; in summer, if a net end was lost, you could simply wade into the water to retrieve it. But in the dead of winter, if it was lost, it was lost—there was no point in crawling through ice holes to look for it. So, Li Jianguo first tied the net ends to the shovel, then went to find some tamarisk branches. His plan was that after all four nets were lowered, all the net ends would be tied to tamarisk branches for easy retrieval the next morning.

Li Qingxia finished winding the rubber band of the trawler. Li Long looked at it, shook his head, and said to him:
"Dad, this twisting won't work. It'll run out of strength after dragging it for only twenty or thirty meters. We need to loosen it and twist it again while keeping the rubber band taut."

Li Long was listening to Tao Daqiang when he was twisting the cord, so he didn't pay attention.

"Then how do we do it?" Li Qingxia was very modest. This thing was made by Li Long, and at this time he was the expert, so naturally he listened to him.

Li Long demonstrated it to him once, then let go and let the old man do it himself.

Gu Boyuan watched from the side the whole time. After Li Long finished demonstrating, he took a trawler from Tao Daqiang, tied the net to the tail, and started to tighten it.

Only then did Li Long have time to answer Tao Daqiang's question:

"Let him learn to walk if he wants. Although I've contracted this little lake, to be honest, I'm not making money from it right now. I just catch some fish here when I want to eat them."

As for the team members making money from this, it's a good thing if they can sell it for a profit. We're not short of money right now, but for some people, selling the fish and getting some cash might be a lifesaver in an emergency.

Tao Daqiang understood Li Long's meaning. Although the villagers were a bit richer than those in other places, they weren't rich by much. Sometimes, when they urgently needed money and couldn't find anywhere to borrow from, the fish in this small lake could be caught that day, and with a little effort, they could haul them to Shicheng the next day and definitely get the money.

As long as you're willing to put in the effort, this little lake is your last line of defense in case of emergency. As long as you're not lazy, you'll definitely be able to earn money.

Of course, if you want money but don't want to put in the effort, then you deserve to starve.

The situation in the fourth squad is much better than in many other places. In other words, Li Long has almost cooked and fed some people. If these people are too lazy to even chew, then Li Long really has no way to help them.

Which village in the nearby Third and Second Squads doesn't envy the good fortune of the Fourth Squad? Only some villagers are unaware of their good fortune, enjoying the convenience brought by the tasks Li Long assigned while also cricketing at Li Long.

Li Long didn't mind. The eagle, already soaring into the sky, wouldn't mind if a sparrow or pheasant looked up at his figure and chirped a couple of times.

After hearing Li Long's words, Tao Daqiang said nothing more.

He couldn't keep up with Brother Long's thinking ever since they met, and he still can't now. He knows they're not on the same level, so he hasn't tried to understand or resonate with him.

All he knew was that by sticking close to Brother Long, life would get better and better. He had gone from not having enough to eat and being called a fool by others to becoming a successful entrepreneur in the fourth team. That was enough for him.

Xie Yundong and the others heard Li Long's words, but they didn't say anything. Actually, they had originally shared the same idea as Tao Daqiang, but not anymore. Thinking about it, it made sense; how much money could they make selling fish? Right now, none of them cared about the money anymore.

Tao Jianshe and Li Qingxia continued to break ice holes in winter to catch fish not to sell them for money, but to keep themselves occupied. With money in their pockets, some members of the team had started gambling, albeit on small stakes, but it was a bad sign.

Li Qingxia used to play cards for a few cents back home, but here he found that the people in the team had started betting a dollar or two. Although he liked playing cards, he wouldn't join the card table in the fourth team; that wasn't playing, that was gambling.

So they had to find something to do. As for the fish they caught, Li Qingxia and Tao Jianshe didn't sell them much anymore. They ate what they could, and gave away what they couldn't. As a result, Yang Pingping's family often got to eat fish from the Fourth Team, which made the neighbors quite envious.

Tao Daqiang and Xie Yundong both wanted to use the remaining trawler, but neither of them made a move.

After Tao Daqiang and Li Jianguo retrieved the red willow branches, Tao Daqiang took them from Li Jianguo. Li Jianguo smiled, took the trawler from Xie Yundong, and said while operating it, "Let me try it too!"

By this time, Li Qingxia and Gu Boyuan had already launched their nets. Li Qingxia had set up the net under Li Long's guidance, while Gu Boyuan had simply followed instructions, applied full force to the trawler, and then launched it.

"Xiaolong, how many fingers of net did you just set off?" Li Jianguo asked.

"Four fingers".

"Dad, what about you?"

“Five fingers,” Li Qingxia said grandly, “Big mesh net for catching big fish.”

"I used a three-finger net," Gu Boyuan said before Li Jianguo could ask, "to catch some crucian carp to make soup."

“Then I’ll go to a four-finger internet cafe,” Li Jianguo said.

Li Long taught Li Jianguo how to straighten his arm and get his strength in. Tao Daqiang took a four-finger net and prepared it. After the rocket head was properly tensioned, he hung the net, and Li Jianguo went down to the ice hole to start setting the net.

"What's next?" Once the task is completed, is there nothing more to do?
Li Juan and Li Qiang pulled the sled along with Mingming and Haohao, who also wanted to pull the sled. They were covered in snow, but they were very happy.

"Dinner's almost ready. Let's retrieve the net tonight and then put it back down," Li Long said. "How about we retrieve it again tomorrow morning?"

“That’s feasible.” Li Qingxia had originally thought that waiting until tomorrow morning to retrieve the net would take too long, but now that Li Long had said this, it suited his wishes perfectly.

"Xiaolong, your shovel is pretty good. Keep two for us to use. We'll chop a hole in the ice over there and come back tonight to see if we can catch any fish when you take out your nets."

With such a good tool, Liang Dacheng was itching to use it. This thing was so much better than the tools they used.

"Sure," Li Long smiled and agreed.

Li Jianguo wedged the red willow, which was tied with four net ropes, into the middle of the ice hole, tested it, and only felt relieved after confirming that it couldn't be pulled away.

Tao Daqiang and the others stayed behind, planning to cut a few more ice holes. Those who came to watch the commotion discovered that Li Long and the others were already dragging their sleds and preparing to go back.

Everyone was quite curious. These people didn't seem unhappy at all, but it was obvious they hadn't caught any fish.

These people knew that Tao Daqiang and the others were still at Xiaohaizi, so they went over to ask them about it.

Tao Daqiang and the others didn't say much; they were all busy chopping holes in the ice. The new shovel was so convenient.

To reiterate, this thing is just a thin layer of paper; unless you break through it, most people have no idea that it can be broken through—it's unbelievable.

Li Long and the others naturally didn't care what others said. As the whole family walked back, Mingming Haohao was still a little unhappy. After all, Xiaohaizi was such a large place where they could run around freely, but even in the yard back home, the space wasn't that big.

However, Li Juan and Li Qiang pulled the sled with the two children running very fast, and the two children became happy again, shouting every now and then, very excited.

Back in the courtyard, Liang Yuemei and Gu Xiaoxia had already prepared the meal, which was served at two tables, one in the west room and the other in the east room.

For lunch, we made rice and stir-fried chives and eggs. The chives were brought from the greenhouse by Li Long. The chili peppers and eggplants in the greenhouse were also edible, and the tomatoes had formed but weren't ripe yet. Li Long had put a lot of effort into pollinating the flowers for these vegetables, since there were no bees for pollination in the greenhouse, and pollination was necessary for them to bear fruit.

Fortunately, Li Long now has enough patience. Anyway, there's not much to do, so he can treat it as a way to calm his mind. Besides stir-fried eggs with chives and eggs with chili, there's also stir-fried pork with chili and steamed eggplant with minced garlic, all of which taste good.

A large pot of braised pork ribs is Mingming and Haohao's favorite food. At this age, both children only like to eat meat and don't like to eat vegetables at all, which is a big headache for Gu Xiaoxia.

After finishing his meal, Gu Boyuan rode Li Jianguo's bicycle to his own yard. He hadn't drunk any alcohol at noon, planning to drink it after catching the fish in the evening.

As for whether they can catch fish—since Li Long's trawler appeared, no one in the Li family has doubted that; they are only concerned with the quantity and size of the fish caught.

After lunch, Li Long went to the front yard, while Mingming and Hao Hao didn't go over. They didn't want to take a nap at noon, so they played in the back yard. Gu Xiaoxia watched the two of them—actually, with Li Juan and Li Qiang playing with them, she didn't need to watch them.

Gu Xiaoxia was chatting with Liang Yuemei. In the courtyard, she often chatted with Sister Yang, but it was different when she chatted with Liang Yuemei. At times, Liang Yuemei acted as a mother and mother-in-law to Gu Xiaoxia.

It's not that I don't respect Du Chunfang as my mother-in-law, it's just that Du Chunfang doesn't concern herself with other people's business and is happy to be idle. Besides, we live in different environments and it's not easy to communicate with each other.

Just then, Sister-in-law Lu came over for a visit.

She had overheard all the gossip, so she came over to see if the Li family had caught any fish.

She originally wanted Lu Yingming to come over, but Lu Yingming was at home cleaning his gun and refused to come no matter what.

Sister-in-law Lu came over by herself.

She took a sniff as she entered, but couldn't smell any fish. Sister-in-law Lu was a little surprised, and then she thought of what some people had said.

It seems the Li family really didn't catch any fish.

When Sister-in-law Lu saw Gu Xiaoxia there, she asked about some things in the county. After chatting for a while, Sister-in-law Lu couldn't help but ask about catching fish.

"Download the internet? Can we download the internet now?" Sister-in-law Lu was completely bewildered. This place was full of ice, how could she download the internet?

"It's Mingming's dad who made the trawl," Gu Xiaoxia said with a smile. "It looks like a toy, but it can drag the net under the ice. Yesterday, he even used it in the Ma River and caught a big silver carp!"

Sister-in-law Lu suddenly realized that they weren't breaking the ice to catch fish, but rather using the ice hole to set a net!

She had a good relationship with Liang Yuemei, but when gossiping, she always sided with Liang Yuemei's family. So when she learned the truth, she couldn't wait to spread the news and let those who were laughing at her know how wrong they were!

So when Sister-in-law Lu rushed out and spread the news, those people didn't really believe it.

To cast a net at this time? What kind of skill is needed to cast a net under the ice? In the common understanding, if you want to cast a net at this time, you would break an ice curtain every four or five meters, and then use a pole to push the net to the next ice hole, and so on, segment by segment.

That would take so much effort! You might not even be able to download two nets in a whole day!

The Li family only stayed at Xiaohaizi for an hour. What could they possibly do there?
Sister-in-law Lu thought to herself, "Just you wait and see. If you want to see the Li family make a fool of themselves, you're in for a world of trouble!"

After lunch, Li Long rested in the front yard for a while—he usually didn't take a nap. But in the warm bedroom in the front yard, Li Long took a rare nap before returning to the back yard to chat with his parents and older brother in the east room.

It's very leisurely.

Around 5 p.m., Gu Boyuan rode over on his bicycle and urged Li Long and the others to check the situation online.

It's already the second nine-day period of winter, and the days are gradually getting longer. But about ten days ago was the winter solstice, the longest night of the year. So even though the days are getting longer now, it's still dark around 7 p.m.

So you have to go there early to get the net and then download it, otherwise you'll be busy until dark.

So the Li family set off again. This time, Mingming and Haohao didn't come along. The two children played with Li Juan all afternoon and finally got tired and were now sleeping soundly.

Gu Xiaoxia followed, while Liang Yuemei stayed home to look after the two children.

When Li Long arrived at Xiaohaizi, he was somewhat surprised to find Tao Daqiang and the others still digging for fish in an ice hole a couple hundred meters away from where they had set their nets that morning. Seeing him approach, they came over with their nets and shovels.

Li Long immediately understood that Da Qiang was probably watching the ice hole for him, afraid that someone would take the net away.

"Brother Long, let's see how many fish we can catch in this net," Tao Daqiang said with a smile as he walked over.

"We should be able to catch a few," Li Long said. "Once it freezes, there's less movement underwater. When this trawler moves, it disturbs the water, and the fish have to come and see what's going on."

(Someone asked, so I'll explain here: this trawler carries a gillnet. Although it goes into the water, the entire gillnet weighs no more than one kilogram. How could it not be dragged? This is a gillnet, not a trawler.)

If you don't know the power of a chicken intestine valve core, look at those rubber band slingshots with scopes sold online now. The ball fired from three chicken intestines can shatter a beer bottle dozens of meters away.

When they reached the ice hole where the nets were set out, a thin layer of ice had already formed on the water's surface. The red willow branches had already been pulled down and stuck a bit. If they hadn't deliberately made the top of the hole wider than the bottom when they broke it, the red willow branches would probably have been pulled into the water by now.

“Looks like there are fish, otherwise the red willow wouldn’t have been pulled down—let me take a look!” Gu Boyuan was unusually proactive at this moment. “I’ll pull back the net I cast out to take a look.”

His words set the tone: whoever casts the net, pulls it.

As Gu Boyuan was about to pull the net off the willow branch, Li Long simply pulled the willow branch up instead.

He could feel movement in the net from three directions when he pulled the stick—clearly, there were fish in all of them!
The red willow branches were pulled up so that Gu Boyuan wouldn't be blocked when he was pulling the net.

The net was gradually pulled up, and there was nothing in the first fifteen meters.

However, no one would think that they had caught nothing. Even Xie Yundong, who was on the outermost edge, could see that the more the net was pulled, the more it shook, which meant that there was something left in the net.

"It's out! It's out!" Gu Boyuan shouted first, and then he saw a palm-sized fish tail emerge from the ice hole with the net. This was half of it!
"Slow down, slow down, don't let it get away!" Li Qingxia shouted hurriedly. "Be careful, this fish is big and strong. If you pull too hard, it might escape from the net!"

Gu Boyuan nodded as he carefully pulled the fish up, and a large fish, about an arm's length long, was pulled up – a big grass carp with a green head, round and plump, its body still wriggling vigorously on the net even after being pulled out of the water.

Gu Boyuan was relieved to see that the fish was completely entangled in the net; the fish was definitely safe.

"It must weigh more than five kilograms!" After putting the fish down, Gu Boyuan continued to pull it, feeling that this one fish alone was worth it!

However, after pulling two or three meters, another fish was pulled up. This was a silver carp weighing over two kilograms, much smaller than the previous one, but still quite large.

They continued pulling in the net and caught two more silver carp and a carp weighing over a kilogram, bringing the net to its end.

When the trawl net was pulled up, Gu Boyuan straightened up, wiped the water off his face, and said with a smile:

"Not bad, not bad at all, this time it's really good!"

"Come on, watch me!" Li Qingxia said impatiently. "I don't even know what I can post on my website!"

That's what he said, but everyone could hear the obvious resentment in his tone, wondering if there should have been more fish in the net he had cast out.
Gu Boyuan breathed a sigh of relief; he hadn't embarrassed himself. He glanced at Li Long, thinking that even if the remaining three nets yielded no fish, it was still acceptable. His son-in-law was capable!
"Hey, big fish!" Just then, Li Qingxia felt a tremor in his hand, and a force pulled him back, almost causing him to lose control of the net. He shouted and pulled harder, tugging the net upwards.

A large, fat carp appeared at the entrance of the ice hole. Li Long, with his sharp eyes, quickly shouted:

"Dad, slow down, the fish isn't hooked properly!"

Li Qingxia had already pulled up the net, and the fish followed the net up to a height of half a meter. Suddenly, it flicked its tail, broke free of the net, and fell downwards!
Li Long reacted extremely quickly and kicked the fish with one foot!

(End of this chapter)