Chapter 390: Chapter 236 The Basic Skills Were Not Practiced in Vain_2
"Listening to you, there seemed to be a subtle pause in the float sinker at the bottom, but the line was too thick to feel the bite, so I ignored the signal!
At that time, no one around including across the river was catching anything, and I got a bit anxious, so I took a gamble with big hooks to snag the fish!"
Through the conversation, Liu Zi also realized his own problems. His voice got smaller as he spoke, glancing at Zhang Yang from the corner of his eyes, worried about being scolded.
But Zhang Yang didn’t scold Liu Zi. He grinned with a cigarette in his mouth and said, "Don’t give me that look, when the fishing conditions are poor, snagging is an option!
It’s normal to make mistakes with less competition experience, usually practicing in faster fishing conditions. Just review and summarize it when you get back!"
"Boss, it seems that your last session with target fish didn’t go well either, right? How did you fish?" Meng Fan interjected.
"Just like you, small hooks, thin line, small bait, heavy lead, making all the details perfect, then the bites came! I switched to a 0.08# leader!"
"Holy crap! 0.08#?"
Hearing this number, both Meng Fan and Liu Zi gasped.
During the pre-competition preparations, Zhang Yang had reminded them to prepare some thin lines just in case, but the thinnest they prepared was 0.15#, and they didn’t have the courage to use it during the match.
But Zhang Yang went straight to a 0.08# leader, which is much thinner than a hair.
Normally, unless fishing in a winter shelter, anglers with poor eyesight would have trouble tying such thin hooks.
"After a round of the competition, do you know where your problem lies?
The line setup is just one aspect; seeing the essence through the line setup indicates fundamental training gaps!
You two will each write me a post-competition review of at least a thousand words!" Zhang Yang was still smiling and smoking one second, and assigning tasks the next.
"A thousand-word review? That’s a lot. I might not even know a thousand characters in total!" Liu Zi scratched his head, looking distressed.
"Use pinyin for what you can’t write! If you want to fish well, a post-competition review is a must! No bargaining on this!
Meng Fan, make sure Liu Zi writes his review, or I’ll deal with both of you if he slacks!"
"Alright, I’ll make sure to keep an eye on it!"
Meng Fan nodded reluctantly, feeling that when it came to serious fishing matters, Zhang Yang seemed like a different person, severely intimidating!
The three of them chatted in the car for a bit. Despite the open windows, the cabin was filled with secondhand smoke from the three of them smoking, causing some eye irritation. Zhang Yang, the first to feel uncomfortable, got out of the driver’s seat.
Feeling the urge to relieve himself, Zhang Yang excused himself and strolled over to the bathroom.
Afterward, Zhang Yang headed back. Passing through the parking lot, he spotted Wei Song arranging his fishing gear beside his car.
"Hey! How did the fishing go?" Zhang Yang called out.
Wei Song looked up, saw it was Zhang Yang, and quickly put down his work to take out the White General cigarettes Zhang Yang had given him earlier, offering one to Zhang Yang.
Wei Song shook his head, "It was a mess! If not for the participation points, I would have forfeited and left already!
The last session nearly ended with a blank catch, but I snagged a small fish just before the end!
How about you? How did you do?"
"Fishing conditions were generally poor. Catching just one fish could beat nearly half the anglers! I got a bit lucky, so not too bad! I should make it to the rankings!"
"For fishing, one still needs the right attitude! If you don’t check out the venue and conditions beforehand, no matter how much experience you think you have, it’s still risky during a real match!" Wei Song remarked with a sense of realization.
"Haha, that’s a profound lesson! Where are you planning to go next?"
Zhang Yang laughed, steering the conversation away from the heavy topic and introducing a new one.
"I’ll go back first, take a few days to rest! Also, collect some debts owed by friends! Once I get the money from those debts, I’ll immediately repay you the money you gave me!" Wei Song brought up the few hundred bucks Zhang Yang lent him earlier that morning.
Zhang Yang shook his head with a smile, "No rush, we can talk about it when it’s more convenient!"
"No, that’s not right. I might not have many skills, but I do have some pride, and I am really grateful for you helping a buddy in a pinch. Dragging it out any longer wouldn’t be loyal!" Wei Song stated resolutely.
Hearing Wei Song’s clear stance, Zhang Yang’s impression of him improved.
Strangely enough, despite it being their first meeting, Zhang Yang felt a certain closeness to him, like they were old friends with similar spirits who hadn’t seen each other in a long time.
"Hold on a sec, I’ll get something for you from the car!" Zhang Yang had a sudden idea, turned around, and walked towards the van.
Soon, Zhang Yang came back with a small bottle in hand and casually handed it to Wei Song.
"Here! Take this back and study it! It’ll be useful for your competitions! I’ll send you detailed instructions on WeChat later!"
"What is this?"
Wei Song was puzzled by what Zhang Yang handed him; they barely knew each other. Lending money was one thing, but now giving something as well!
"I call it Jelly Bait! Mix it into the bait to improve its condition and reduce weight! It’s very effective for catching old, wary fish! This little bottle should last you about ten competitions if you use it sparingly," Zhang Yang said casually.
"There’s actually such a thing? Thanks!
I need it, but I have to ask, we’ve only met once, why help me so much?" Wei Song still didn’t understand Zhang Yang’s rationale for being so nice to him.
Zhang Yang grinned, "Hard to say, if I had to find a reason, it’s probably a feeling!
It feels like you’re the same kind of person as me, and having met, I just helped when I could!
Just making a friend, don’t overthink it, I bear no ill will!"
"You can count me as a friend for sure! Coming to W City this time, the results aren’t as important; meeting you is my biggest takeaway!
Great grace needs no words of thanks—for friendship we can pay back later!" Wei Song said steadfastly.
"Haha!" Zhang Yang laughed, accepting the compliment without further comment.
The two chatted a bit more until an announcement came over the loudspeaker, calling the athletes to gather in front of the temporary podium for the awards ceremony, as the competition results had been announced.
"Let’s go check the rankings!" Zhang Yang called out, and Meng Fan and Liu Zi also got out of the car, the four heading towards the podium together.
Upon hearing the results were out, the anglers who hadn’t left yet quickly surrounded the temporary boardroom.
Staff members posted a few A4 sheets with printed results on the announcement board, and everyone crowded around.
Zhang Yang and his group weren’t late. As soon as the results were posted, they went straight up.
Counting from the top, the name in first place was familiar.
Zhang Yang!
Three rounds with a score of one point, one round with three points, total of six points, ranking first overall!
Meng Fan had one round with one point, one round with two points, two rounds with three points, total of nine points, ranking fourth.
Liu Zi with two rounds of two points, one round of three points, one round of four points, total of eleven points, ranking sixth.
After reviewing their team results, Zhang Yang scrolled down further and finally saw Wei Song’s name at the 37th position.
Wei Song underperformed, particularly in one session with target fish where he scored a 15 within a group of twenty, dragging his total score outside of the top twenty.
"Boss, champion! You got it!" Meng Fan expressed his joy after seeing the results.
Next to him, Liu Zi, was smiling so much that it almost reached his ears, "Brother Fan got fourth, I’m sixth! We achieved results in our first national competition! All the fundamental practice finally paid off!"
Zhang Yang was quite satisfied with the team’s performance, both Meng Fan and Liu Zi.
Being their first official competition, making it to the top ten was impressive, even with Zhang Yang’s assistance. Their performance exceeded many seasoned anglers on the field, a remarkable achievement indeed.
"Great job, everyone! Meng Fan, call the company, let’s all go have some shellfish for dinner! My treat!"