Reborn in the Millennium: Building a Fortune from Fishing

Chapter 545 Red Goods
But now that we have live bait, no one will be stingy at this time.

Qin Dahe immediately bought thirty mantis shrimps and thirty swimming crabs, and more than a hundred yuan was gone just like that.

If you put them all in the fishing box and keep them chilled with ice, they won't die so easily.

Sea fishing is really expensive. If you want to catch something valuable, you can't skimp on bait and fishing gear.

This time, the hook set included three mantis shrimp and three swimming crabs, earning over ten yuan with each cast.

"Damn, that's extravagant." Uncle Li's eyelids twitched; even he couldn't bear to use such good bait.

Others might only have two or three hanging at most, the rest being sandworms or small sword shrimp to make up the numbers.

Just like freshwater fishing for predatory fish, in sea fishing, you need to be able to twist and turn to catch big fish.

Live small white octopus or squid are considered top-tier for rock fishing, but unfortunately, no one around here sells them.

The fishing rod in his hand was already trembling, but he was sure it was a small fish, so he ignored it.

This allows the small fish to dart around with the bait, maintaining a dynamic posture.

Once you feel a slight weight in your hand, quickly lift the rod.

Although he's just starting out with rock fishing, his freshwater fishing skills are quite impressive, as evidenced by the large eel he caught yesterday—a skill that most people would struggle to catch.

With vigorous reeling, the fishing line snapped straight, and even the heavy surf rod began to bend slightly.

Uncle Li from next door also caught some fish at this time, pulling up a "big bream" weighing four or five pounds. It was hard to tell the specific species, but it was probably a kind of deep-sea pomfret.

"I didn't expect to be able to get my hands on a pomfret. This one can sell for a thousand or two to the Chaozhou guys." Uncle Li smiled, knowing it was a valuable commodity.

"You can even catch pomfret?"

Such a big fish naturally caught the attention of other anglers as well.

Even the large string of fish that Qin Dahe pulled up was overlooked.

He silently placed three rockfish and one unfamiliar "ugly fish" into the fish basket.

"It's the pomfret migration season now, so there's a chance." Uncle Li happily put the pomfret into the fishing box.

Normally, if I catch something valuable, I'll definitely have someone take it home first, otherwise it will lose its value as it gets less fresh.

It's the fishing moratorium now, and fresh pomfret can be sold for as little as 1,000 yuan. The Chaozhou people in Shenzhen are the ones who are most willing to spend money on this.

However, since the fishing box is insulated, there's no need to send someone on a special trip; the guy can just take it back later.

Upon hearing that it was the pomfret migration season, everyone got excited and started casting heavy baits, even if they didn't sell them, they could eat them themselves.

Not long after, someone caught another tiger grouper. There aren't many species of grouper in the nearshore waters, and the tiger grouper is one of the most numerous, with many fish farms in the surrounding area.

Qin Dahe's scalp tingled when three more Shi Jiugongs were pulled up.

Since swimming crabs can't swallow things whole, they specifically eat mantis shrimp and grass.

A single stone crab isn't even worth as much as a mantis shrimp, so Qin Dahe simply replaced them all with swimming crabs, which are cheaper.

Once six swimming crabs are hooked, the fish start biting slowly, taking a long time to bite, and then suddenly darting in.

If it weren't for the 1-kilogram drag, the fishing rod would have flown off the line.

"Big shipment!" he exclaimed excitedly, then violently reeled in the cable.

It feels so good! I even managed to pull the heavy surf rod into a semi-circle.

People around looked on with envy; it was obvious that this one weighed more than five pounds.

Fish weighing over five pounds in coastal waters, except for a very few species, are generally valuable.

One kilogram of drag is a bit too fast. Qin Dahe probably increased the drag a bit for the grouper. The grouper will drag the line into the crevices of the reef, and then the main line will have to be cut.

"Damn, the fish in the sea are really strong." It feels so good to touch.

After working for half a day, we could already see the fish; a red figure flashed by.

"Crazy chicken, red goods."

"Damn it."

Everyone started speaking in their local dialect, saying that red snapper are very rare along the coast.

Red sea bream and grouper are the most likely, and neither of these are cheap.

At this time, the tide was almost at its peak, only four meters above the cliff tip, and you could feel the moisture hitting your body.

Amidst the surging waves, a red fish weighing over seven pounds was pulled ashore.

"Brother Li, is this a grouper?" Qin Dahe asked uncertainly, "It's different from the one in the book."

The biggest problem with sea fishing is not recognizing the fish. There are at least five or six fish in the box whose names I don't know.

“It’s a grouper,” Uncle Li said, his teeth aching. “Will you sell it or not? This one won’t be weighed. I’ll take it for 1,500.”

It looks like it weighs at least seven pounds, and it's completely wild. You could easily sell it for double the price at a restaurant.

"I'll take it back for my uncle to try at noon." Judging from the envious looks on the faces of the people around him, it must be a good product; he wouldn't sell it.

"Uncle Qing, invite your aunt to lunch. We'll have a meal at home."

"Okay." Uncle Qing's eyes lit up when he heard this. Such a great catch is impossible to buy outside unless you stay at Fisherman's Wharf during the fishing season and wait for a high price.

One fish is worth the price of admission today.

The fish was carefully placed into the fishing box, and then the fish was cast out with renewed energy for the next cast.

Exclamations of surprise could be heard from other places from time to time, with reports of big fish in the strong winds and waves, and the fishing moratorium having lasted for several months, resulting in an abundance of fish in the surrounding areas.

Seeing Uncle Li's somewhat disappointed look, Qin Dahe chuckled and handed him a black pine branch.

"Uncle Li, how many more days are left in the fishing moratorium?"

"This year is special because it won't be until October. In the past, the fishing season would start on the 15th of September." He was worried about the fishing moratorium.

Fishermen in other places can sneak in some catches even during the fishing moratorium, but the regulations in Shenzhen are too strict; the coastline is full of law enforcement agencies.

Coast Guard, Border Defense, Anti-Drug Bureau, and other units all have boats nearby. They come to check on the fishing area four or five times a day.

Those smugglers are avoiding Dapeng Bay like the plague, and their own fishing businesses are also affected.

After the peak of the tide, it will start to recede, but the fish bites are still strong. Qin Dahe has run out of swimming crabs and is now using mantis shrimp. Although the rock bream is still causing trouble, at least there are some other fish.

Another two-pound tiger grouper. He's got some experience now; this is farmed.

"Could someone's fish cages nearby have a leak? Why are they all farmed tiger grouper?" Uncle Qing also caught one.

"possible."

There have indeed been quite a few tiger grouper recently, and their sizes are all between one and three pounds. It is very likely that there has been a large-scale escape from one of the net cages.

Qin Dahe caught three grouper today and was very satisfied. He wouldn't care even if he didn't catch any more.

After finishing the mantis shrimp, he switched to sandworms. It was still within the 70% tide range, but unfortunately, he only caught miscellaneous fish.

Even a coral fish got snagged up; it was probably pulled over by the current.

Fortunately, the fishing box is spacious enough, otherwise there wouldn't be enough room to put the fish in.

With a capacity of 29 liters, it can easily hold about 20 kilograms of fish with some ice.

Many people were filling buckets with water to collect the fish, and Uncle Li had already called people over to collect them.

The wind picked up today, and even the smallest catch weighed seven or eight pounds. We can't possibly eat it all, so we'll definitely have to sell it.

They protect these fishermen, and they sell their fish to them regularly; the cooperation is very fair.

I fished until the very end, just as the tractor that was collecting the fish drove up.

"Everyone take your food, and I'll buy the rest at cost," Uncle Li said cheerfully.

During the fishing moratorium, you can only catch frozen and farmed fish from the open sea, so the catch is considered quite good.

Even if he buys these wild stone goose a pound for ten yuan, he can sell them to hotels for twenty yuan each. The hotel managers will have to accept his favor. It's very difficult to get wild products during this period.

Everyone started dragging their equipment down to clean their catch. Qin Dahe had a full box, which made many people envious. Yesterday it was a large eel, today it was a grouper, he was really lucky. Uncle Qing had less, only about ten pounds, and the two groupers in his box were farmed. Overall, he didn't make much money.

The cost of bait is quite high; you can only make a profit if you get super high-quality bait.

For example, Uncle Li's pomfret is worth no less than that grouper, and someone else also caught a pomfret weighing more than four pounds.

"Damn it, if only we could go out to sea," Uncle Li said dejectedly.

Two people have already caught pomfret, which means that the nearshore resources are plentiful and it's time to harvest them. It's normal to make hundreds of thousands of dollars in one net.

Now all I can do is go fishing with everyone, and even if I have a good catch today, I only earn a few thousand dollars.

Everyone was busy cleaning the catch, while Qin Dahe stood happily to the side, smoking a cigarette.

There are too many fish he doesn't recognize, so he'll need Uncle Qing to keep an eye on things when he sells the fish later.

"Hey, there's another red snapper! Why aren't you saying anything?" A fisherman took out his fish, which immediately caused a stir.

"It's a pity it's a bit small."

"A larger one is more valuable."

When it comes to seafood, size matters. The price difference between a three-pound pomfret and a five-pound pomfret can be double or even more, and the same goes for amberjack.

"Ah Shui, how about 85 yuan per jin?"

"Brother Li, you're in charge. This price is very fair." It weighs over seven pounds and can sell for five or six hundred, so he's naturally satisfied.

There were quite a few valuable items present: two pomfret, one red snapper, and one starfish.

Someone just found a half-dead stingray on the beach and sold it for 400 yuan. Their luck is incredible.

They are fishermen; if they don't catch anything, they go fishing to make sure they don't come back empty-handed.

However, people come here specifically to scavenge during low periods, so you can't usually find anything good in this area.

Soon it was Qin Dahe's turn to clear the fish. He poured a box of fish directly into the transfer box and then took out the tempting grouper.

"Hey handsome, how about cutting it in half?" People from Guangdong and Guangxi are known for their love of food, and even Brother Li was tempted. He couldn't resist the sight of such a large grouper.

"I'll pass on this one; I haven't even had a chance to show my respect to my uncle since I came to Shenzhen." He happily put away the grouper and started weighing the other fish.

Upon hearing this, Li Ge could only feel disappointed.

"Shichong fish, 130 yuan a catty, this one is two liang." The waiter jotted it down and started weighing the next fish.

"Uncle Qing, is this also a Shichong fish?"

"Yeah, these fish-eating creatures come in all sorts of ugly shapes and sizes, sometimes I can't even recognize them," Uncle Qing said dejectedly.

He didn't need to keep any fish today; he sold them all for over 300 yuan. With such good fish prices, he only made so little; he's at the bottom of the list.

Qin Dahe nodded. It was truly ugly in a different way. He had caught one yesterday, but he hadn't even noticed this one today.

There's another fish similar to the silly fish, called a mantis shrimp, which costs 85 yuan per catty. It made him laugh; they were all uglier than the last.

These fish are small, but they are really valuable; one small fish can be worth as much as a freshwater silver carp or bighead carp.

He also caught a black sea bream; the price of fifteen yuan per kilogram was acceptable.

I made a total of about 500 yuan, and after deducting expenses, I made a pure profit of 300 yuan from one grouper plus a small bonus.

"Dahe, hurry up and get the fishing box ready!" the people around started urging.

If you spend more than half a day fishing, the catch will fetch a much better price if you use a fishing box.

"I know, it's already loaded onto the truck. Let's wait for the courier to arrive." He smiled and started handing out cigarettes. In terms of weight, he probably had the most today, so naturally he had to start handing out cigarettes.

The person who lent him the wire as a guide returned a large mudskipper to him.

Then came the photo session, with the digital camera flashing incessantly, capturing photos of everyone's catch.

He also took a photo with his own Eastern Star Grouper.

I'll create a sea fishing forum tonight, find more people to chat with, and maybe even sell some items along the way.

For example, fishing boxes and tungsten carbide hooks are really suitable for sea fishing.

Sea fish have big mouths and bite fiercely; even a size four or five hook won't stop them from biting.

I arrived early today and finished at 11 a.m., just in time to go back for dinner.

Qin Dahe even made a special call to his uncle, asking him to come home and eat grouper.

A seven-pound red fish, the head and tail can be used to make soup, half the body can be used for hot pot, and the other half can be steamed. It would definitely be delicious, but it takes a lot of work.

Uncle Qing brought his wife over as well. Both families' children eat lunch at school, which is a good opportunity for the adults to have a nice meal.

"This soup is delicious!" My uncle said, taking a sip of the grouper head soup and praising it highly.

The atmosphere at the table, with two middle-aged couples and Qin Dahe, was quite pleasant.

It's so much more comfortable without kids around.

The hot pot uses fish broth directly, and each person has their own dipping sauce. All four people from Wuwei added chili, while only my aunt ate the soy sauce dipping sauce.

Thick slices of grouper are incredibly tender and delicious, bursting with freshness.

"It's windy at the beach today. Dahe is really lucky; he caught a good catch again." Uncle Qing said while eating, talking about fishing during the day.

"Hehe, he made his fortune by fishing, so he must have caught a lot," Auntie said with a smile.

"They're offering 1,500 for this fish, and the conger eel was also very expensive yesterday."

"I'll catch more fish later, and eat seafood every day without stopping," Qin Dahe boasted, raising his glass and taking a sip.

Uncle Qing and my eldest uncle have to go to work this afternoon, so I can only drink by myself.

There was also stir-fried dace with lettuce, I don't know what seasoning it was, but it tasted very good.

He drank two cups of Shaoxing wine and ate an extra bowl of rice.

"Auntie, this mud carp smells delicious, where did it come from?"

"It's Gan Zhu brand fermented black bean dace, taken from a can. We locals only open it when entertaining guests."

The eldest uncle said with a smile, "This canned food is really delicious. It's produced in Foshan. Your aunt usually doesn't even make it herself. It's not like we're short of money."

“This is for entertaining guests, not for eating canned food every day,” his aunt glared at him.

I was thinking to myself, it seems like we don't lack money, so I should buy more of this delicious food for the family in the future, but something just doesn't feel right.

The two women began clearing the table; the bok choy and fish were almost completely eaten, with nothing wasted.

They didn't think about leaving anything for the kids; with two fishermen around, they wouldn't lack for such things in the future.

The three men went to another room to smoke; living across the hall is really convenient.

"Dahe, if you don't have a car, just take mine. I'll just hitch a ride with your brother," Uncle Qing suggested.

Qin Dahe originally had a Crown, but Xiao Liu gave it to him because he needed to do something. Now he won't have a car for fishing tomorrow.

"No need, I'm free right now." He waved his hand. "Xiao Liu will be back in a few days, it won't cause any trouble."

He took a deep drag of his cigarette and slowly exhaled, then started asking about the local fishing tackle shop again.

Fishing boxes are definitely worth promoting; they sell quite well in Shaoxing, probably due to the surge in popularity of sea fishing.

Although the price is high, sea anglers are more willing to invest than freshwater anglers, so expanding the market is not a problem at all.

“I’ve taken you to the biggest one once. You can go and talk to them yourself later. Then there are two companies near Yantian Wharf and Shenzhen Bay. I don’t know about the others.”

"Okay." It's good that you know where it is. We should be able to negotiate a deal. At worst, we'll just have to make a few more trips.

So many anglers are urging him to bring it over today.

If all else fails, try to network more with fishing enthusiasts, sell the fish individually at a lower price, and start a trend.

Shenzhen is not just a city market, but also one of the core cities on the southern coast, serving as a bridgehead.

(End of this chapter)