The golden age began in 1977

Chapter 215 Now a quarter of an hour is equivalent to two hours
The weather is nice today, and the wind at sea is not strong.

The waves were gentle, and under the sunlight, the water droplets flowed on the sea like molten gold.

The single-awning boat bobbed gently on the waves, making a creaking sound.

"Has everything been checked?" Liu Wangcai stood at the bow of the boat, his bronze face etched with the salt frost of the sea wind.

Casting and hauling in the nets are both physically demanding tasks. The old captain took off his green military uniform, revealing a tattered undershirt underneath.

Qian Jin looked up and laughed, "Captain Liu, your undershirt could be used as a fishing net."

Liu Wangcai laughed too, the copper pipe hanging from his waist jingling as the boat swayed.

"Net inventory complete!" Although there were only three people on the boat, everything was carried out according to the standardized procedures.

Zong Hang said in a deep voice: "One trawl net, 60 sinkers, 40 floaters, and the net is undamaged."

"The cable is long enough!"

He was coiling a nylon cable, about the thickness of a thumb, in circles, his dark muscles taut.

Trawl nets take up a lot of space.

So this 12-meter-long single-awning boat, which could have carried forty or fifty members, only brought about twenty people. The reason was that people had to leave space for the fishing nets and for the catch later.

everything's ready.

The diesel engine roared back to life, its thrusters churning up white spray.

The wooden boat shot off like a horse that had been whipped.

"Wow!" Even though he had been riding the speedboat for quite some time, the old captain still couldn't help but exclaim every time, "Nine horsepower is really amazing! Our boat is just like a navy speedboat, much more exciting than the commune's motorboat!"

When the boat reached a point about three nautical miles southeast of Dragon Snake Island, he raised a bamboo pole wrapped with a red cloth strip: "Stop the boat, right here! Cast the net!"

This thruster has both forward and reverse functions, which is quite advanced.

As Zong Hang pressed the idle button on the propeller, the diesel engine turned into a low "bang bang" sound.

Liu Wangcai directed Qian Jin to help him lift the bundled netting, shouting as he did so:

"One, two, three—release!"

With shouts, the heavy netting slid into the sea with a "whoosh".

The floats are arranged like a string of balls on the water's surface, while the sinkers pull the net opening down rapidly.

Liu Wangcai leaned over the gunwale, squinting as he watched the netting unfurl into a giant funnel. Qian Jin asked, "How big is it?"

"It's about half the size of a football field." Zong Hang rolled a cigarette, put it in his mouth, and chuckled.

Qian Jin asked him, "How big is the football field?"

Zong Hang was stunned.

I've only ever heard people on the radio say that some things are the size of a football field. Now I'm jumping on the bandwagon, so why are you asking me how big a football field is?
I think you're deliberately making things difficult for me, Liu Zonghang!

"Stop talking nonsense and get to work! Start speeding up!" The old team leader waved the red cloth strip.

Zong Hang hurriedly lit the cigarette with a windproof lighter, then pushed the throttle lever with one hand, and the diesel engine roared to life.

The ship suddenly sank, and the trawl net cable instantly taut, making a 'squeak' sound as it rubbed against the ship's side.

"The network port is open!" Qian Jin, who was experiencing setting up a network for the first time, excitedly pointed behind him.

Liu Wangcai laughed heartily at his excited expression.

Three meters below the surface, the massive opening of the trawl net is fully open, like a greedy whale, devouring everything in its path.

Sunlight pierces through the seawater, casting ever-changing patches of light on the net, and occasionally a flash of silver can be seen—that's a school of fish that has strayed into the net struggling.

Liu Wangcai raised his wrist to look at his watch; the organic plastic surface reflected the sunlight. "Maintain speed, tow for half an hour!"

Zong Hang asked, "Are we going to take half an hour, just the three of us?"

There's no net-hauling machine on this boat, so hauling in the net will rely entirely on the strength of the three of them. The motorboat is fast, and if they catch too much fish in half an hour, it will be troublesome if the three of them can't haul in the net.

Liu Wangcai pondered for a moment and said, "Then let's halve the time and try dragging it out every 15 minutes."

The ship, towing a giant net, cut through the waves, leaving a white wake behind it.

Zong Hang sat at the stern, controlling the propeller while occasionally reaching out to test the tension of the cable: "Trawling needs to be done with a motorboat. This guy is going to go all out today."

The cable had left deep red marks on his palms, but it couldn't hide the excitement on his face.

Ten minutes later, the sea gradually became lively.

A flock of seagulls screeched as they swooped down and circled behind the ship.

Occasionally, a silvery-white fish leaps out of the water, drawing shimmering arcs in the sunlight.

Liu Wangcai's pipe had long since gone out, but he was completely oblivious, still tightly gripping the mouthpiece: "Get ready to haul in the net!"

Zong Hang slowly reduced the throttle, and the roar of the diesel engine turned into a low murmur.

Liu Wangcai and Qian Jinxian took their positions, their muscular arms draped over the cable, gloves on their hands, and then began to pull with all their might.

It's so heavy!

Qian Jin really put in all his strength, and Zong Hang also came up to help after setting the speed and orientation of the thrusters.

The first thing to be revealed was the buoy, which was covered with green seaweed.

Next, at the top edge of the net, hung several crabs with their claws outstretched, waving their large pincers in vain.

When one-third of the net was above the water, the seawater suddenly seemed to boil—

There must have been hundreds of silvery-white fish tails slapping the water's surface, the splashes forming tiny rainbows in the sunlight.

Qian Jin took a deep breath.

What a nice view!

"The whole internet! The whole internet!" Zong Hang's voice trembled with excitement.

He and Liu Wangcai shouted slogans and pulled the cable with all their might, their arm muscles bulging like small hills.

Finally, the entire net surfaced.

Liu Wangcai laughed heartily.

The net shimmered with silver light, like it was filled with streams of mercury.

Blue-scaled fish, needlefish, small yellow croaker, and most of all, silver pomfret are intertwined together, interspersed with lobsters waving their claws and transparent little squid.

At the very bottom, several large sea bass, each over half a meter long, were slapping the net with their tails.

"Quick! Pour it out quickly!" Liu Wangcai's voice trembled.

The fishing net was hauled onto the boat with great difficulty. As soon as the bottom rope was loosened, the catch poured onto the deck like a waterfall.

Lively fish piled up in the cabin, and several robust mackerel even jumped over the gunwale and fell back into the sea.

Qian Jin lunged forward to grab him, but Zong Hang grabbed him, saying, "Boss, are you out of your mind?!"

Then he knelt beside the pile of fish and slowly picked up a silvery ribbonfish.

The ribbonfish that have just been taken out of the water are very beautiful. Their bodies are pure white, as if they have been plated with silver, and the sunlight shines on them, creating iridescent light.

Zong Hang tossed the writhing ribbonfish into the water: "Captain, this net, this one net, only took ten minutes, but it's equivalent to two hours in the past!"

Liu Wangcai remained silent.

The old captain squatted down, pulled a large shrimp with its belly crawling with roe from the pile of fish, and threw it back into the sea.

He gently patted the top cover of the thruster engine and exclaimed again, "This thing works really well!"

Zong Hang asked expectantly, "Do we want to continue logging off?"

Actually, it's not suitable for three people to use a trawl net.

Every time the trawl net is pulled up, it has to be reorganized, which is a waste of time and manpower.

Therefore, it is best to send a boat with a dozen or so strong laborers out to sea, so that they can keep the nets in place for a long time and catch a full load.

It would be even better if we had a wire reel and a winch.

Of course, they dared not even think about it.

Qian Jin couldn't help either.

He can no longer do the technical work of installing net reeling machines and winches on fishing boats.

Liu Wangcai remained silent.

Even the seasoned captain, who had weathered countless storms, hesitated.

Zong Hang wiped his nose and asked, "How about we go back and install the other thruster? Let's put aside the autumn harvest for now and organize our commune members to go out to sea first."

The catch is of high value.

Liu Wangcai's white beard fluttered in the sea breeze.

After thinking for a while, he shook his head: "Forget it, we need to harvest the crops in the fields quickly. There will always be fish in the sea. We can come back to work at sea after the autumn harvest."

Zong Hang was a little envious at this point and said, "The crops in the fields can't run away, but the fish in the sea can run everywhere."

"Now that autumn is here, the autumn fishing season has arrived, and the fish are migrating. Before, our equipment wasn't working well, so we could only watch helplessly as the fish migrated to the deep sea."

"Now that the leaders have upgraded our team from slingshots to cannons and installed propulsion systems to sail our boats, shouldn't we seize this opportunity to pull off a heist?"

Liu Wangcai had other considerations.

He shook his head and said, "It's too far from our production team. How much diesel fuel would we have to use up for the round trip?"

His gaze lingered on the thruster, and he remarked with some emotion, "This isn't just a big, oily horse, it's an oil guzzler!"

"Alright, let's put in some effort, and have Chief Qian help us work on the nets. We'll slowly lower the nets and see how much we can catch this morning."

Qian Jin said, "Hey, it's no trouble for me. I'm young, and I just have a lot of strength."

He followed the old team leader to start tidying up the trawl net.

Wait until the trawl net is rolled up.

The diesel engine roared to life again.

The fishing boat cut through the golden sea, the spray from its bow splashing like shattered silver.

They need to find another area to set up their nets.

Zong Hang steered the boat at the stern, occasionally glancing back at the receding trawl line.

A few seagulls, who were watching the commotion, were still circling around, occasionally swooping down to peck at the small fish that had escaped the net.

Inside the cabin, there were occasional sounds of struggling among the pile of fish.

Liu Wangcai squatted by the fish basket, his rough hands stroking a large bass that probably weighed ten pounds.

The bass was exhausted from struggling, with only its gills still slightly opening and closing.

The old captain looked up and asked Qian Jin, "Boss, how about you take this fish back as a welfare gift for your men?"

Qian Jin laughed and said, "Forget it, you can keep the big fish. I'll just get some small seafood, fish, and shrimp."

He paid for his subordinates' benefits out of his own pocket.

There's no need to consider value intensity.

It's best to give it to the children who caught it while beachcombing, as it's fresh and reasonably priced.

We've arrived at another suitable spot for netting.

Liu Wangcai grabbed some quartz sand and sprinkled it into the net bag. The sand grains rolled down the gaps in the hemp rope, creating a fine drumbeat on the deck.

"Come on, Chief Qian, lend a hand, we need to cast the net again!" With his shout, the fishing net was cast.

The whale opened its huge mouth again...

The propellers roared, tearing through the seawater and propelling the single-awning boat forward.

The waves that cleaved through the bow of the ship piled up into snow walls on both sides, and the salty, fishy mist hit Qian Jin's face, making his skin feel itchy and tingly.

It's pretty cool.

Beneath the surface of the sea, undercurrents surged, and the trawl net's opening resembled the gaping mouth of a giant whale, creating a whirlpool several meters wide at the stern of the boat.

Zong Hang still habitually controlled the thruster with one hand and pulled the net rope with the other to feel the harvest.

Qian Jin saw the silvery scales rippled underwater; it was a school of small yellow croakers darting through the net.

These fish are yellow when caught at night; during the day, especially under the strong light now, their scales appear grayish-white.

Zong Hang also saw the school of small yellow croakers and a smile appeared on his face.

Qian Jin asked, "When a fishing net swells up in the water, its weight is about the same regardless of whether there are any fish in it, right? Can you feel how many fish you've caught by pulling on the net?"

Zong Hang grinned, revealing teeth stained yellow by cigarette tar: "Definitely not, hehe, I was just testing the vibration of the net rope."

"The more fish that get into the net, the more the net rope vibrates, and it does so in a predictable way. If the net rope doesn't move, it basically means there's not much fish in the net..."

Liu Wangcai squatted at the bow of the boat, carefully observing the water flow, and occasionally called to Zong Hang to turn: "This iron lump is not as good as wood, we have to go with the flow of the sea."

Qian Jin understood what he meant.

Motorboats need to travel with the underwater currents to save fuel and maximize their catch.

After all, schools of fish also migrate underwater with the undercurrents.

The seabed around Longshe Island has a complex topography. In some places, the water is very deep, dark blue, and unfathomable, while in other places, the water is very shallow, and the bright sunlight can penetrate the water and reach the seabed.

At this time, the seawater often has an emerald green hue, which is very beautiful.

Qian Jin looked down and saw that in this kind of place, he could see the trawl nets. As the nets swept across, the sandy seabed looked like silk that had been combed, leaving long trails at the stern of the ship.

The catch this time was less than the previous one.

In trawling, luck plays a major role.

A little over fifteen minutes later, the chants for closing the net once again echoed across the sea.

Qian Jin wiped the foam off his face. The blisters on his palms from the net ropes had burst and were now wet with seawater, making him wince in pain.

Liu Wangcai took out his military water bottle and poured water for him to wash his hands, then tore off a piece of gauze from the boat and wrapped it around his palm. After the two nets were filled, all three of them needed to rest.

A series of thumping sounds echoed from the Red Guard No. 1; it was the big fish slapping the wooden cabin with its tail.

The seawater rippled gently around them, and seabirds flew and cried overhead. Some of the bolder seagulls landed in the cabin to catch small fish.

Liu Wangcai ignored him, smoking and chuckling incessantly.

Qian Jin took a deep breath. The boat was filled with the familiar fishy and salty smell, a complex aroma formed by fish scales rubbing against the netting and the seaweed that had been hauled up.

A motorboat gradually came into view in the distance.

It was a large ship.

Liu Wangcai stood up, shaded his eyes with his hand, and looked at the boat.

A red flag was flying on the large ship.

The sea breeze is blowing, and the flags are fluttering.

Seeing this, Liu Wangcai smiled at Qian Jin and said, "Want to take a nap? Here comes the pillow. Missing your family? Here comes your child's uncle."

"It's a motorboat from our commune's fleet. Let's go over and have a go at them!"

Zong Hang subconsciously said, "Isn't it true that we can't let outsiders know that we have this thruster?"

Liu Wangcai nodded and explained to Qian Jin, "This is what I'm thinking. This machine isn't a young girl that can be hidden away at home."

"When we're sailing at sea in the future, we're bound to run into acquaintances. They'll be able to tell at a glance that our team has a new propulsion system, right?"

Qian Jin said, "Yes."

Liu Wangcai continued, "So I think I'll do it this way: once the fishing boat returns to the team, I'll have someone make a wooden box, and once it's docked at the shore, I'll immediately lock it up."

"This way, neither members nor outsiders can see the true appearance of this machine."

"If anyone asks why this machine still needs to be locked up, I will say that it is an old machine and needs to be protected when not in use to avoid being exposed to sunlight or being damaged by seawater."

Qian Jin said, "That's a valid point."

“But what about at sea?” Liu Wangcai laughed, his dark wrinkles revealing a farmer’s cunning. “Then I’ll stop the boat at sea every now and then and say that the machine has broken down, and ask them to tow us back.”

"You see, after a while, there will be a rumor going around that the Liu family production team in Hongxing is being extravagant, asking the leaders to buy old propellers from the shipyard in the city, but they always break down, haha..."

Zong Hang suddenly realized and gave a thumbs up, praising, "Brilliant, Captain, you're the best."

Liu Wangcai stroked his beard and laughed, "Between truth and falsehood, outsiders naturally won't be interested in our team's thrusters, and our secret will be preserved, won't it?"

As he spoke, he instructed Zong Hang to drape the engine in a green military uniform, then stood up and waved vigorously.

After spotting them, the large ship slowly approached. As they drew closer, Qian Jin noticed a line of large golden characters on the ship's red flag:
Hongxing Shengli Yu 12.

Someone on the bow waved to them, clearly indicating that the fishermen on board had recognized Liu Wangcai.

"Brother Liu, how did you come all this way? How dare you three drive a single-awning boat to Dragon Snake Island?"

Liu Wangcai shouted, "We came here on oil, and now we've installed propulsion systems on our ship..."

He pointed to the stern of the boat and then to Qian Jin: "This is Director Qian, who has been working on supporting agriculture in our team. He is also the Director of the Foreign Investment Office of the Municipal Supply and Marketing Cooperative. Yesterday, he got two old machines for our team from a repair shop in the city."

"After we installed it on the boat, we brought our members to Longshe Island to go beachcombing today."

"But the machine didn't work; it had a minor problem, and we were worried about it when we saw my family arrive!"

The large ships hadn't yet cast their nets, so people could freely approach their small boats.

Liu Wangcai was a prominent figure in the commune, and Qian Jin was even more famous and renowned.

Upon learning that Qian Jin was on the Hongwei No. 1, the large ship immediately threw down a cable.

The cable was tied to the bow of the Hongwei No. 1 ship from the side, propelling the wooden boat forward.

Liu Zonghang stayed on the boat to steer and avoid colliding with the side of the larger vessel, while Liu Wangcai took the money and boarded the Hongxing Shengli Yu 12.

This is also a converted ship, a large double-awning vessel that has been extensively modified.

It has been thoroughly transformed, not only by adding a motorized propulsion unit, but also by installing a wire winding machine and a winch, thus achieving mechanized production.

But it is not the same as the mechanical ship that Qian Jin saw in the 21st century.

A 21st-century mechanical ship is a complete system with advanced electrification and a single engine for the entire vessel.

The ship has two engines: one engine powers the ship's propulsion system, and the other powers the net winding machine and winch.

After Qian Jin boarded the ship, a burly man with a dark complexion and wearing sunglasses came out and shook hands with him.

Liu Wangcai introduced him as Ning Shuanglong, the captain of boat number 12, a very famous figure in our commune.

"Don't flatter me. What kind of person am I in front of the leaders?" Ning Shuanglong shook hands with Qian Jin vigorously.

Qian Jin grimaced and said, "Sorry, Captain Ning, I have a cut on my hand."

Liu Wangcai hurriedly said, "We just set the net. The leader helped us set the net, and the cable chafed our palms raw."

Upon hearing this, Ning Shuanglong quickly ordered someone to bring over alcohol: "Disinfect it and re-bandage it."

Qian Jin really wanted to ask if they had iodine solution, but iodine solution was indeed rare in those days.

He changed his question and asked, "Do you have any red or blue medicine? We don't need alcohol, it's such a waste."

Ning Shuanglong laughed and said, "Don't be so polite, leader. Don't worry about wasting it. We have an alcohol quota on our ship, which was given to us by your supply and marketing cooperative."

I wasn't worried about wasting money when I entered the secret passage; it was just that real alcohol disinfectant really hurt.

Bring over a bottle of alcohol that was originally a glass vial for glucose injection.

Ning Shuanglong was reluctant to pour alcohol onto the wound; he used cotton to wipe Qian Jin's wound instead.

It hurts!

To show his enthusiasm and attentiveness, Ning Shuanglong wiped the wound very carefully, turning the chafed skin on his palms over and over again.

The boat was full of twenty or thirty strong men, all staring at Qian Jin.

Not wanting to lose face, Qian Jin pretended to be calm and gritted his teeth as he looked out to sea.

Ning Shuanglong's behavior reminded him of a lame joke.

Someone asked, "Where does the wound not hurt?" The answer is, "When the wound is on someone else."

Ning Shuanglong wasn't in pain anyway, so he kept wiping Qian Jin's wound with alcohol until it went numb!
Qian Jin was extremely famous in the Red Star Commune.

First, he provided significant assistance to the Liu family production team in Hongxing, and his efforts in helping the Liu family escape poverty and become prosperous have earned him a good reputation in the local area.

Secondly, he invited the commune blacksmiths to take their families to the city for sightseeing in December and January. When the blacksmiths' families returned, they raved about the city, making Qian Jin sound like a god.

So much so that everyone in the commune wanted to get along with him, which is why Ning Shuanglong was so enthusiastic towards him.

Qian Jin re-bandaged his hand, and immediately someone brought him a chair and served him cold tea.

This made him very embarrassed: "Comrades, you're too kind, thank you, thank you. I'll just stand. I'm not thirsty, oh, I don't smoke..."

"I'd rather not smoke; it's quite windy right now, it's not a good time to light a cigarette," someone casually remarked.

Upon hearing this, Qian Jin said, "Captain Liu, please make a note of this for me. Next time I go to the countryside, please remind me to look for windproof lighters on the black market in the city. I'll bring one back for each of us comrades."

Ning Shuanglong and the others didn't hold back and cheered loudly.

Windproof lighters are an essential item for fishermen.

Ning Shuanglong was concerned about the propulsion system.

Liu Wangcai gave a vague reply: "It's a small matter. It's just an old machine that's been repainted. It looks nice, but it's prone to developing minor problems inside."

Qian Jin said, "It must be a short circuit. My friend at the shipyard reminded me of this when I bought it."

Liu Wangcai said, "I guessed so. I smelled the burning rubber earlier. Lao Ning, don't bother, we can fix it ourselves. We can just pry open the cover and replace a section of wire."

Ning Shuanglong said, "Then you'll have to stay at sea with us for a while. Our plan is to return to port tonight at midnight."

"No need," Liu Wangcai said. "You guys go ahead with your work. Take us there when we get close to Dragon Snake Island."

“Our team’s accountant led some women to the island to collect seafood, and he brought repair tools with him.”

“I should have left the tools on the ship. I was thinking of reducing the burden on the ship and that the machine wouldn’t break down so easily, so I let him take the tools to the island.”

The ship's first mate said, "That's easy. We're heading towards Dragon Snake Island to prepare for our next haul."

Liu Wangcai rolled up his sleeves: "Then you guys get busy, I'll lend a hand."

Qian Jin also wanted to get involved.

The fishermen on the boat quickly stopped him: "You can't move your palm, otherwise it will rub the tender flesh and heal very slowly..."

"Hey, Captain Liu, you should take a break too. This ship is all powered by machinery..."

"You two just need to observe the scenery..."

Ning Shuanglong began to direct the burly men on the boat to get to work.

This is a large ship, and the nets used on board are large nets, and the ropes are also thick ropes like dragon whisker ropes.

The process of enlarging the net requires twelve crew members to pull the tassel cable simultaneously.

The cable was made of hemp rope soaked in asphalt, as thick as a child's arm, with copper hoops wrapped around the knots to prevent wear.

Eight strong men carried a large trawl net toward the ship's side.

The net is eighty zhang long in total. The net is woven with palm ropes that are three fingers thick, and the mesh size gradually decreases from five fingers at the bow to three fingers at the stern.

Qian Jin was mesmerized by what he saw, and then, just as the cable was about to be fully submerged, a strange "crack" sound suddenly came from the stern of the boat.

A whetstone was swept down by the net and got stuck between the propeller gears. The newly welded outer shell of the double-canopied ship's propeller cracked with a gap a few inches long, revealing the twisted steel bars inside.

Qian Jin pretended not to see this scene.

The fishermen wanted to show off their skills, but instead they ended up revealing their underwear...

Fortunately, the propulsion system was unaffected, the whetstone was forcibly knocked aside, the engine started running, and the fishing boat continued to move forward.

Feeling ashamed and angry, Ning Shuanglong shouted, "Fifth Brother, what's wrong with you? Where are your eyes?"

He threw the red book of "Fisheries Production Responsibility System" that he was carrying at a man: "Go back and copy it for me!"

Soon, a shout came from the lookout above: "Attention everyone, Black Sand! Black Sand is coming!"

Black sand is not real sand.

It's a school of fish.

When the fish swim close to the surface of the sea, they look like a large layer of black sand, hence the name.

Ning Shuanglong, disregarding his outburst, quickly entered the cockpit and got to work.

He gripped the steering wheel tightly with both hands, the sand in his palms rubbing against the patina on the steering handle, making a soft sound.

Qian Jin found this scene quite romantic, like a fisherman communicating with his fishing boat through the palm of his hand.

"Hard to port!" The first mate's shout came from outside, mixed with the vibrations of the diesel engine.

Qian Jin suddenly felt the double-canopied boat become somewhat limp, its hull tracing a sharp arc.

"Slow down! Turn slower!" the first mate roared again.

He and Ning Shuanglong were old partners, and the two quickly coordinated their efforts.

The trawler dragged the boat for a full hour and a half before Ning Shuanglong handed the rudder to a young man: "Hold it steady."

He went out himself to direct the operation to close the net.

Another engine began to roar.

The winch cable creaked dangerously, and dark shadows were mixed in with the surging silver waves inside the net.

The mesh fabric gradually bulged up, like a pregnant whale emerging from the water.

When the first ribbonfish broke through the net, the jet of water from its tail struck Liu Wangcai, who was watching from behind, squarely in the chest, and his soaked shirt immediately began to drip water.

The old captain didn't care at all, only looking enviously at the fishing nets in the water: "Wow, that's great!"

The trawl net was retrieved onto the ship as a whole.

Liu Wangcai went up and pried an octopus out of the mesh.

The octopus wrapped itself around his fingers and sprayed ink on them, and soon half of the old captain's palm turned black.

He handed it to Qian Jin, who threw it back into the sea.

Seeing this, Ning Shuanglong grinned and said, "Boss, throw a conch shell in there and tell it to turn into a conch maiden who will come back to repay your kindness."

"The Conch Maiden has her own house, how wonderful! You can't just throw an octopus at her, what if it cultivates and comes back to repay your kindness, only to find eight legs under her skirt!"

The fishermen laughed and started telling dirty jokes.

Qian Jin didn't care at all and said, "That's even better, eight legs, two legs in black stockings, two legs in fleshy stockings, two legs in white stockings, two legs in red and white gradient stockings—that's not enough."

Others wondered.

What kind of silk?

Qian Jin explained things to them, using both words and gestures!
He's been there, and his description was incredibly detailed—a description you wouldn't even dare to make on land.

They'll be investigated!
The burly men let their imaginations run wild, and their faces began to flush.

Ning Shuanglong went up and kicked someone: "Straighten up your pants and hurry up and collect your catch."

The deck has become a flowing feast:
Ribbonfish leaped and tumbled on the deck like silver snakes, pomfret twitched belly-up, and small yellow croakers swarmed together like flowing piles of gold coins...

The men hummed the "Harvest Song," their fingers flying across the water as fish scales fell like shattered gold in the sunlight, sorting and placing into individual fish baskets.

Ning Shuanglong grabbed some salt from the bag and scattered it into the sea. The salt shimmered in the wake left by the stern of the boat before finally falling into the water.

This is a local custom, a way for fishermen to express their gratitude for the gifts of the sea.

This place is already very close to Dragon Snake Island, and Qian Jin can see the faint traces of Dragon Snake Island.

The large ship could not approach Dragon Snake Island, so they untied the mooring lines in the edge of the waters and slowly sailed towards the island by paddling with wooden oars...

(End of this chapter)