Chapter Thirteen: Fishing

“This thing can catch fish? Why don’t you just say pigs can climb trees?” Qin Zhen’s words sent everyone around him into laughter.

It wasn’t that no one had ever thought of using nets to fish before. But the fishing nets they made couldn’t withstand the thrashing of sea fish or the surging waves, and would easily break apart. Over time, people simply stopped trying.

Qin Zhen didn’t bother to explain, knowing they probably wouldn’t understand even if he did. Of course, he wasn’t about to handcraft a professional-grade trawling net, but it wasn’t difficult to make a simple, large net capable of catching fish.

He borrowed another rope from Liu Quan, tied some stones to ensure the net would sink, and then stripped off his shirt, about to go into the sea.

“You’re too young, don’t go,” Liu Quan stopped him at once. “Just tell me how to use this thing.”

Though he also doubted the green vines would catch anything, at this point, desperate times called for desperate measures.

“Brother Liu, after you swim out a few dozen meters, just throw it into the sea. Once the stones hit the bottom, we’ll start pulling from the shore,” Qin Zhen explained simply and clearly. Liu Quan understood right away and immediately called a few others to grab some driftwood and swim out with him.

The setting sun cast its glow on them. A crowd had gathered, drawn by curiosity, all wanting to see whether Qin Zhen’s contraption could actually catch fish.

“There’s no way that’ll work. It’s just a few wilted greens—how could it possibly hold any fish?” sneered a man from a neighboring village.

“Exactly! If that thing catches fish, I’ll eat the whole beach!” another chimed in.

“Don’t look down on my boy, Zhen!” Li Han protested, clearly annoyed. “My Zhen could do it! He even managed to kill a bear, let alone catch a few fish! If he brings in fish, I want to see you eat every grain of sand!”

His words set off a commotion on the shore.

“He killed a bear? Is that for real?”

“My brother came back from Jiangzhou a few days ago and told me there was a hero in the fishing village who killed a bear!”

“That’s them—they’re from the fishing village! What are the odds?”

All eyes turned to Qin Zhen, their gazes transformed with new respect.

By now, Liu Quan had reached the agreed-upon spot. Following Qin Zhen’s instructions, he cast the net into the water, then began swimming back with his companions.

“Should we wait for it to sink before pulling?” Zhao San from the east end of the village asked hurriedly.

He was among the first in the village to fish offshore; his question made it clear to Qin Zhen that he’d been a fisherman before.

“No, we pull now,” Qin Zhen replied.

The sea was different from a river—full of hidden reefs and coral. This makeshift net could sweep up fish near the surface, but if it sank and snagged on something hard, it would fall apart.

Qin Zhen grabbed the rope and shouted, “Help me pull!”

The villagers on shore immediately pitched in. A dozen or so people braced themselves and heaved.

“It’s so heavy—there must be fish in it!” Zhao San called out joyfully.

Having been a fisherman for years, he could judge by feel alone. His words spurred the villagers on even more. As the net drew closer, it suddenly snagged and refused to budge.

“It’s stuck! Must be caught on something!” Zhao San shouted.

“We’ll help too!” Villagers from nearby communities surged up, grabbing the rope and joining Qin Zhen’s group in pulling toward the shore.

Liu Quan scrambled out of the water and joined the effort.

In an instant, dozens were pulling the rope, pitting their strength against the sea!

Their coordinated shouts echoed across the beach. The huge, stuck net began to inch forward again.

As the green vines emerged from the blue depths, Qin Zhen rushed forward, pulling the net onto the shore.

The sea churned with foam, and swathes of silver scales glimmered in the sunset among the waves.

“Fish! There are fish!” Li Han’s shout rang out above the crowd.

Within the green vine net, fish were wriggling in abundance—fat sea fish, hundreds of them at a glance!

“My goodness, I’ve lived half my life and never seen so many fish!”

“And where’s that brave soul who said he’d eat the beach? Go on, let’s see!”

“Brother, I can’t believe this thing really caught fish!” Fishhead exclaimed in astonishment.

Scarface grinned from ear to ear. The more fish they hauled up, the more he could profit!

“Damn, we’ve struck it rich! There must be over a hundred fish here! If we ship them all to Jiangzhou, that’s enough to feed us for half a year!” The thought of silver pouring in made Scarface drool. He kicked his men. “What are you standing around for? Go collect the fish!”

Qin Zhen had already begun counting the fish caught in the net.

“Zhen, you’re amazing!” Liu Quan beamed, his face creased with joy, hugging Qin Zhen like he’d found a long-lost son.

Over a hundred sea fish—at least a thousand copper coins’ worth! Even after subtracting a hundred for the fishing expense, that was a clear profit of nine hundred coins!

But the money wasn’t even the most important thing. What mattered was that Qin Zhen had given them a whole new way to fish! With such a net, they’d never have to fumble in the water with their bare hands again.

Now, every trip to sea could bring prosperity and a full belly.

“This net still isn’t good enough,” Qin Zhen said with a frown.

He’d noticed a large tear at the bottom; otherwise, they would have caught several hundred fish at least. Who knew how many had escaped through that hole?

He would have to find a way to improve the net’s material. He was counting on it to catch a shark one day!

“Thank you all for your help,” Qin Zhen said to the villagers who had helped pull the net. “Everyone who helped can pick a fish to take home!”

Without their help, the net would never have made it ashore.

The crowd praised his generosity. Those who had helped beamed as they bent down to choose their prizes, while those who hadn’t helped were filled with regret and envy.

“You’re getting better at this, kid,” Liu Quan said with a laugh.

“It’s all thanks to your good teaching, Brother Liu!” Qin Zhen replied without hesitation, flattering him.

At that moment, Li Han’s startled shout drew everyone’s attention.

“What do you think you’re doing?!”

A gang of Fishhead’s men had charged forward, brazenly grabbing fish from the net and stuffing them into their baskets.

Li Han, furious, shoved one of them aside.

“You dare push me? Are you out of your mind?” the man snarled, shame turning to anger. He raised a stick and brought it down on Li Han’s head, sending him staggering to the ground.

The sudden violence caught everyone off guard.

Seeing Li Han struck down, Qin Zhen exploded with rage. He charged at the man and drove a fist into his gut.

“You dare hit my brother? I’ll kill you!”