Let's go back to 2008, starting with a recreational fishing park.

Half an hour after the game ended, it was five o'clock.

Everything for the simple awards ceremony is ready.

Everyone was already waiting in the audience.

The top 20 contestants, despite it being an amateur competition, all changed into formal attire, perhaps because it was their first time participating.

Among them, the younger ones were all dressed in formal suits.

Those who were older, like the older men, were all wearing the black jackets most commonly worn by middle-aged men in Shandong Province.

This jacket is similar to the executive jacket popular in later generations, but the style is slightly different. It is the most common jacket worn by middle-aged men in Shandong Province during the Chinese New Year and other formal occasions.

At this moment, the competition came to an end, and all the contestants who had won awards, whether ranked high or low, had smiles on their faces.

Even contestant number 21, after a simple adjustment, was chatting with several top-ranked contestants with a smile on his face.

Before long, Xia Lan took the microphone and walked to the center of the stage.

"Good afternoon, fellow anglers, experts from the fishing association, and fellow anglers."

"After three days of intense competition, the Fishing Masters Tournament, jointly organized by Qingshan Fishing Park and Shandong Provincial Fishing Association, has finally come to its awards ceremony!"

"First of all, let's invite contestants number 11 to 20 of this competition, Li Jiahao, Wang Chen... to come up on stage to receive their awards."

As the host announced the names of the contestants one by one, the ten contestants ranked 11th to 20th quickly lined up and walked onto the stage, looking slightly nervous.

After they took their places on stage, Xia Lan then announced, "Now, please welcome our judges to the stage to present awards to the contestants."

After the announcement was made, the ten judges who had already discussed their plans to present the awards walked onto the stage one by one.

Then, led by Su Qing, ten temporary etiquette ladies walked onto the stage one by one, each carrying a beautifully packaged fishing rod.

The prize for these contestants is a fishing rod worth 100 yuan.

If we calculate based on the registration fee of 100 yuan, to put it bluntly, these contestants experienced an intense competition without spending any money.

But if we're talking about honors, many anglers would probably put that 100-yuan fishing rod in the most conspicuous place in their living room when they get home!

The judges, each with a serious expression, formally took the fishing rods from the trays held by the hostesses and solemnly handed them to the contestants.

After all this was done, Xia Lan said:

"Now, please welcome Mr. Jiang from Jiangxia, the organizer of this fishing competition, and Mr. Qin Songnian, the president of the Provincial Fishing Association, to the stage for a group photo with all the participants!"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Xia immediately stood up, bent down to help Qin Songnian, who was sitting next to him, to his feet, and then walked towards the stage with the old man.

This time, the occasion was formal, and the old man did not refuse Jiang Xia's help.

After all, he's getting old, and his physical condition isn't what it used to be. He was worried that if he wasn't careful, he might fall in front of so many people.

After going on stage, Qin Songnian walked in front and Jiang Xia walked behind. They shook hands with each of the award winners with a smile before smiling at the photographer's camera.

Then, guided by Jiang Xiaobo, they and the contestants walked off the stage from the other side.

At the same time, Xia Lan's voice rang out again:

"Congratulations! Next, let's invite our fourth through tenth place winners to come up to the stage to receive their awards..."

Jiang Xia and Qin Songnian, who had just walked offstage, heard this and knew they would have to go on stage for a group photo later, so they didn't go back to their seats and stood by the stage to watch.

Soon, contestants ranked fourth through tenth, including Li Hao, came to the stage.

It's worth mentioning that the regret of this competition wasn't just that contestant number 21 failed to win the championship.

In the final moments of the competition, contestant number 86, whom the Antai anglers considered their last hope, ultimately failed to defeat Old John and reclaim third place.

What's even more dramatic is that the final score difference between number 86 and old John was only a tiny fraction of a point.

That is, the score that could be exceeded even if you catch a small fish.

In fact, Jiang Xia felt that if we disregard the story of contestant number 21 catching the big grass carp, contestant number 86 was the most regrettable contestant in this competition.

After all, both the champion and runner-up receive substantial prize money and rewards.

The third and fourth place winners received a cash prize and a valuable fishing rod, while the fourth place winner received a fishing tackle set worth only 200 yuan.

The difference in this is really not much smaller than the disappointment of not winning the championship on the 21st.

At this moment, the hostesses were already standing on the stage with fishing gear sets, waiting.

The awards for fourth and tenth place were presented by five judges, excluding Qin Songnian, as well as the chief and deputy judges who had served during the competition.

After the awards ceremony, Jiang Xia and Qin Songnian went on stage as usual to take a group photo with them.

Next up is the third-place winner of this competition, Old John, who will be going up on stage to receive his award.

Xia Lan, microphone in hand, announced with great emotion, "Next, let's welcome Mr. John from Britain, the third-place winner of this competition, to the stage to celebrate his moment of glory!"

As the host finished speaking, old John, dressed in a British suit, strode onto the stage.

"Welcome, welcome!"

Xia Lan greeted Old John with a smile.

After Old John walked to the center of the stage, Xia Lan asked, "Mr. John, as a friend from Britain, you won the fishing competition in our Rabbit Country. Is there anything you would like to say?"

As Xia Lan spoke, Yang Xiaoyue quickly handed a microphone to Old John.

After taking the microphone, old John looked at the foreigners in the audience and said with a smile:

"Hello everyone, I feel incredibly lucky to have won third place in this fishing competition; God must have been smiling upon me!"

"I was very fond of your country's fishing culture when I was still living in my country, Britain."

"These past few days, I've had a wonderful time competing with so many friends who love fishing."

“…………”

Below the stage, looking at old John's serious expression and listening to his broken Chinese, one could see...

In such a formal setting, many people are trying hard to suppress their laughter.

Many people smiled kindly when they heard that Old John, as a foreigner, liked our culture.

After old John finished his hesitant acceptance speech, Xia Lan smiled and said:

"Now, please welcome Mr. Jiang Xia, the General Manager of this Fishing Masters Tournament, to the stage to present the award to our friend Mr. John, who has traveled from afar!"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Xia, who was sitting in the audience, quickly straightened his collar and walked towards the stage with a smile.