In a fishing spot with eight people, from a bit past six in the morning when the oxygen machine stopped until nine, there were hardly any bites.
Catching one big Grass Carp meant you had to play with it for several minutes, add some bait or groundbait again, and then it might get another bite.
Initially, Liu Mazi wasn't paying attention to the fishing conditions, but he found out after a trip outside that the most dexterous Zhang Yang had already caught 13 big Grass Carps!
The beer fermented baits were remarkably effective for today's fish conditions, with three to four bobbing signs at a time. Even Xiao Yi, who was in charge of filming, couldn't help but get a little excited.
As for Han Qiang and Wang Yan, who didn't get enough yesterday, it's even more noticeable. They were sweating and didn't even have time to light a cigarette, fearing that a moment's negligence might let a fish drag their rods away.
While Zhang Yang's group was having a blast, the pit owner Liu Mazi was silently suffering.
With fewer people sneaking around and more fish being caught, working like this today is yet another losing business; it's poisonous to release Grass Carp in the black pit!
Though it was painful, Old Liu still had an adult's way of handling things.
With everyone at the fishing spot having a blast and the situation irreversible, the need was no longer to dwell in regret but to shoot more videos and post them in the group to lure more people to cast their rods.
Soon, in various QQ groups in the local area, Liu Mazi's ten-second videos of hooking and playing fish began to go viral.
From every angle, whether it was playing fish, netting fish, or photographing the catch, there were all sorts of temptations that tickled the anglers' hearts.
Proof was in the pudding; with the thrilling continuous bites, the reputation and character of the pit owner became secondary. Anglers who couldn't hold back rushed to the fishing spot immediately.
The fish were still biting at the fishing spot, albeit slightly slower than when fishing began. Despite this, the spectators couldn't hold back their restless little hearts and decisively cast their rods.
Thus, the anglers who came to sneak around increased from the initial eight to fifteen, twenty, twenty-five,
By around noon, the large fishing spot was crowded. Zhang Yang casually counted the rods and there were more than thirty people!
With more people casting rods, the fish naturally divided among them was less.
Even at a fishing spot with a ton of fish genuinely released, the total fish caught yesterday and this morning wasn't little, and the catch of the latecomers who hoped for some luck was predictable.
Compared to those unlucky ones hoping to save money and ended up trapped, today's catch of Zhang Yang's four-member team was much more impressive.
As lunchtime approached at twelve, Zhang Yang saw that the fishing spot was basically devoid of bites, so he decisively reeled in the fish and, in front of everyone, weighed and sold all the more than twenty big Grass Carps in the fish guard.
After about twenty minutes of work, the weight of the four people's catch was all tallied up,
Zhang Yang weighed 131 pounds, Wang Yan 109 pounds, Han Qiang 97 pounds, Zhou Chu 103 pounds, totaling 440 pounds of fish.
According to the buy-back price of 4 dollars per pound, the return fish fee was 1760 yuan. Deducting today's 400 yuan fishing fee still left 1360, not only making up for yesterday's loss but also turning the tables and taking control over the pit owner!
As Liu Mazi weighed the fish, his expression turned somewhat grim. He spoke with a bit of embarrassment, but inside, his heart was truly bleeding.
"A total of 440 pounds, return fish for 1760! How about pre-paying for the next round?" Liu Mazi asked cautiously, using a negotiating tone.
Zhang Yang smiled and shook his head: "That won't work, I'm short on cash lately. Meng Village has an official fishing contest tomorrow, and I'm waiting to pay the fishing fee!"
"Well... alright! I'll get the money for you!" Liu Mazi was slightly taken aback but still accepted the reality. While taking out the money, he said, "By the way, stay for a meal before leaving? There was a Grass Carp overturned in the morning, but it didn't die, so I butchered it and made a pot of pickled fish soup!"
Seeing Liu Mazi's expression as he grudgingly took out the money, Zhang Yang felt no waves in his heart, but hearing the other party took the initiative to stay for a meal moved Zhang Yang slightly inside.
After pausing for a second, Zhang Yang opened his mouth: "I won't be eating at the fishing spot. There are no outsiders here, so I just want to give you some friendly advice!"
"Ah? What?" Liu Mazi was puzzled about what Zhang Yang wanted to say, and his eyes were filled with question marks.
"As far as I know, of all the fishing spots around W City, only our Joyful Forest releases Grass Carp, so we shouldn't have such low popularity!
Just because you invited us brothers for a meal, let me give you some advice, for your reference only!"
Hearing this, Liu Mazi's eyes lit up: "Go on, tell me?"
"If you want to release Grass Carp in the next batch, it's best to release smaller individual fish, in lower numbers, lower the fishing fee, and adjust the anesthetic dosage right! At most one or two rounds, the popularity will come back!
Release a few big ones as dream fish for those sneaking around, keep the price reasonable, and the business will definitely improve greatly!"
"But... the previous big Crucian Carp rounds had good feedback, why doesn't it work with Grass Carp?"
Liu Mazi understood Zhang Yang's point, but couldn't comprehend the differences.
Zhang Yang grinned: "Have you ever thought that even if it's a ton of Grass Carp without missing a pound, how many fish can there be?
Three hundred? Four hundred?
Actually, just counting the number of fish, it's almost the same as a fishing spot that releases a thousand pounds of carp! With more people, it's hard to have continuous bites, how could there be good business?
Controlling the individual weight can increase the average number of fish caught per person, smaller fish open their mouths faster, and everyone gets to catch fish, that's what matters!
You may understand anglers, but you don't understand fish, Grass Carp aren't as brave as carp or Crucian Carp!