Amidst the curious glances and envious looks from the others, Uncle Yu Er walked into the cabin hand in hand with Zhou Xuan. Old Jiang and Fushan had already taken out cooked food from the warehouse and opened a few bottles of Wuliangye liquor.
On the ship, food is never skimped on; it's all top-notch. After all, going to sea is a dangerous business, and you have to enjoy yourself when there's an opportunity.
After sitting down, Fugui poured himself a drink and then asked Uncle Yu, "Uncle, you said it was Xiao Hu's doing, what's the story behind that?"
Volume 1, Chapter 445: Outstanding
Chapter 445 Outstanding
Upon hearing Fugui's question, Uncle Yu sighed and said, "Fugui, I, Uncle Yu, have misjudged you this time. I had eyes but failed to recognize a gem. It turns out that this young brother Hu is the real fishing master!"
Zhou Xuan quickly waved his hand and said, "No, no, I'm not a fishing expert. I just spent some time at sea before and learned some tips from the older folks on how to identify schools of fish by their movements in the water."
Yu Jinshan sighed and said, "This is no small matter; it's a powerful technique that could turn an ordinary person into a millionaire. Xiao Hu, come on, let's have a drink. I'll toast you to how you've made a fortune for everyone today."
Zhou Xuan picked up his wine glass and clinked it with Uncle Yu's, then with Fu Gui and the others, but he didn't clink glasses with Yu Qiang. Yu Qiang was quite embarrassed, but since Yu Qiang had made a big splash today, he couldn't do the same and had to lower his head.
However, Yu Qiang is no good. He was taken advantage of by Zhou Xuan this time. Although Zhou Xuan did not mean to mess with him, he will think so and will definitely find a chance to take revenge in the future.
Fu Gui never expected that this net was actually Zhou Xuan's doing. Could he be even more capable than Uncle Yu? He chuckled foolishly and asked, "Brother Hu, the ocean is vast, there are no fish on the surface, and you don't have X-ray vision, how did you know there were so many fish underwater, and even tiger sharks? These are rare treasures. I've only ever seen them in aquariums, never in the sea. I've been on ships for years, and I've only seen one baleen whale, and that was from a great distance."
Zhou Xuan chuckled. He naturally couldn't explain the reason; it was something he detected with his special ability, so how could he possibly explain it?
Yu Jinshan quickly changed the subject, saying, "Let's not talk about that, let's eat and drink, let's drink."
These secret skills, such as recognizing fish by looking at the water, are abilities that allow an old fisherman to earn a high salary and make a fortune. Why would he easily reveal them to outsiders?
Just like how each industry keeps its secret skills to itself, every industry has its own rules. To gain a foothold in that industry, you need skills that others don't know.
Fu Gui immediately understood, chuckled, and then raised his glass, saying, "Come on, let's drink!"
Zhou Xuan smiled but didn't say anything, pretending it was unintentional. It wasn't that he was keeping his secret skills to himself, but rather that he couldn't reveal them. He would have to be especially careful about his special abilities in the future, and only use them when others couldn't possibly discover them.
Although it was at sea and the ship was not sailing in any particular direction, someone still had to stay in the cockpit to watch out for other ships passing by and to prevent collisions, as well as to be aware of the possibility of large waves.
However, before each voyage, the weather bureau will issue a weather forecast for the next few days. If there is a major storm, the voyage will not proceed, as encountering a major storm at sea is the most dangerous thing.
The drinking session lasted until after midnight, and the boat was gently rocking on the sea.
Everyone was half-drunk, but Zhou Xuan didn't want to get drunk. He absorbed every cup of wine, and apart from eating, none of the wine went into his body. However, he pretended to be just like Yu Jinshan and the others.
Picking up the wine bottle, Zhou Xuan said to Yu Jinshan, "Second Uncle, I'd like to toast you too."
Yu Jinshan smiled and didn't object, letting Zhou Xuan pour him wine. It's the easiest time to make friends at a banquet. If the relationship is shallow, just take a sip; if the relationship is deep, down it in one gulp. You can tell from Zhou Xuan's drinking manner that he is a straightforward person.
In fact, Yu Jinshan didn't know that Zhou Xuan's ability to drink was due to his special ability, not because he could actually drink a lot. To be honest, his alcohol tolerance was actually quite low.
Zhou Xuan picked up his wine glass and downed it in one gulp. Of course, while doing so, he used his special ability to transform and absorb the wine. However, just as he was using his special ability to transform the wine, he suddenly detected a school of fish passing by in the seawater below the ship, about 60 or 70 meters deep, like a long train passing by with no end in sight. Of course, Zhou Xuan's special ability could only detect up to 200 meters away.
This time, however, the fish were not swimming very fast. Unlike the previous time when a dozen tiger sharks were chasing them and the school of fish were fleeing for their lives, this time they were just passing by.
Zhou Xuan immediately stood up abruptly, startling Uncle Yu and Fu Gui, who asked, "What's wrong?"
Zhou Xuan couldn't speak, but in a moment of quick thinking, he listened intently and said, "This voice is wrong."
After saying that, he quickly ran to the deck. Uncle Yu and the other five people immediately followed him out, only to see Zhou Xuan shining a searchlight on the sea surface, carefully observing it.
Of course, nothing could be seen on the surface of the sea except for the undulating waves. Zhou Xuan used his supernatural ability to probe beneath the surface of the sea. This school of fish was so long that its tail could not be seen, and its number was enormous.
It's impossible to catch them all, and it's impossible to catch them all. Once you cast your net, you can only catch one fish. By the time you can cast your second net, the fish will have already escaped.
A single net cast can only catch a fraction of the fish in a school, perhaps even a thousandth. In the ocean, the number of large schools of fish is indescribable, and these schools tend to congregate together, creating the best opportunity for fishing. However, obtaining information about these schools is extremely difficult.
Zhou Xuan then put the searchlight away and said to Uncle Yu, "Uncle, have Guan Lin steer the boat slowly to the southeast. I'll cast the net; a school of fish is passing by."
Zhou Xuan's words not only stunned Yu Jinshan, but also left everyone else speechless. His experience was truly astonishing; he could observe the movements of sea fish from the flow of the seawater, especially since it was the dead of night. In the dead of night, no fishing boat would ever dare to guarantee catching a fish.
This little Hu is really starting to surprise Yu Jinshan and the others more and more.
However, Yu Jinshan didn't take Zhou Xuan's words to heart at all, and quickly instructed Yu Qiang: "Yu Qiang, you assist Xiao Hu and prepare to cast the net. Follow Xiao Hu's orders. I'm going to the cockpit."
Then he said to Zhou Xuan, "Xiao Hu, I'll go steer the boat. You control the timing. You decide when to cast the net. Don't worry, it's okay if we don't catch any fish. Our last catch was more than a month's worth in the past."
Yu Jinshan was telling Zhou Xuan not to feel guilty. The fish and twelve tiger sharks he had caught earlier had already exceeded everyone's expectations. Now, even if they didn't catch a single fish with this net, they wouldn't be afraid.
Zhou Xuan didn't have time to say anything else. Although the fish he detected hadn't reached the bottom yet, they were alive and swimming. His detection range was only two hundred meters, and there might be no more fish after two hundred meters, so he had to seize the opportunity quickly.
Everyone rushed to their respective posts. Fu Bao and the others kept watch at the stern, Zhou Xuan and Yu Qiang went to the control room, and Uncle Yu went to the wheelhouse to start the boat.
After Uncle Yu started the boat slowly in a southeast direction, Zhou Xuan waited at the control room. Then he probed for schools of fish on the seabed. Once the direction and position were optimal, he suddenly pulled up the sluice gate to cast the net. With the power on, the large net was cast out.
Yu Qiang watched in stunned silence. It was the second time the net-casting crew had done it themselves; he'd never seen it before. On other boats, including theirs, the location and time of net casting were always determined by the most experienced and authoritative fisherman, usually the captain. Hu Yun had truly set a precedent, especially considering he was a complete novice.
From this incident, Yu Qiang could sense that nothing is absolute, and strength is what determines everything. Clearly, Hu Yun possessed an ability that they lacked, and this ability, at least for now, could benefit all of them.
Of course, it depends on what the net catches. If it's empty, it means Hu Yun's experience was just a fluke. If it's another big catch, it means Hu Yun's skills and experience are genuine.
After Uncle Yu started the boat, he called Zhou Xuan. He didn't know that Zhou Xuan had already cast the net. In the cockpit, the monitor was in complete darkness in the middle of the night, and the seawater was pitch black, so naturally nothing could be seen.
While answering Uncle Yu's questions, Zhou Xuan was also testing the speed and range of the fishing net's descent, waiting for the best moment to haul it in when it caught the fish.
"Uncle Yu, keep this speed, the net has already been cast."
Upon hearing that the fishing net had already been cast, Yu Jinshan paused for a moment before replying, "Okay, let me know when you're sure, and I'll slow down and stop the boat."
Zhou Xuan calmed down, and Yu Qiang watched him from the side, wondering what he was up to. There was no movement, and fishing in the middle of the night was something he had never seen or tried before. Was Hu Yun really that good or was he just pretending?
After waiting for about fourteen or fifteen minutes, Zhou Xuan detected that the fishing net had already covered the long, dragon-like school of fish. The small portion of the fish in the middle was cut off in half and then caught in the net.