"That's true, we'll go back and study it further!" Zhou Chu stepped on the accelerator, and the van sped away.
...
The concerns of Zhang Yang and Zhou Chu are quite normal, but they overlooked a detail.
If this stuff ends up in the hands of those seasoned anglers with prestige in the local fishing circle, it could fetch an exorbitant price, maybe even exchange for a Hua Zi.
However, for a security guard uncle, it's not easy to find a discerning buyer effortlessly. Moreover, there's a need for discretion; if things get out of hand, it could affect his job, so it's tricky to handle!
These pellets are indeed genuine original pond pellets. One of the drivers who delivered fish is a local and knows the security guard uncle, secretly left dozens of pounds of pellets taken back with the fish for a smoke trade.
As for Zhang Yang, he was quite polite during the first interaction and generously gifted a box of soft Chinese cigarettes, leaving a very good first impression with the security guard, which is how he got these few pounds of pellets today.
In short, sow good seeds to harvest good fruit, caught it by accident.
...
While Zhang Yang's small act of kindness was reaping rich rewards, elsewhere another trade was taking place.
Old Ma, along with his two young apprentices, sneaked out of the hotel without the main group.
The few were introduced by friends to a fishing gear shop called Huoyou Fishing Gear.
This Huoyou Fishing Gear's shop is about the same scale as Old Ma's store, selling mostly top-tier fishing gear brands, it's clear the owner is an expert with profound knowledge of fishing gear products. The store's goods have a certain reputation, quality is good, and the profit margins are relatively certain.
"Teacher Ma, calculating from my senior brother Shen Si'er, we can be considered brothers. I assure you these original pond pellets are genuine, absolutely no deceit! To get hold of these, I've given away several packs of Chinese cigarettes, they are precious!"
The owner of Huoyou Fishing Gear was sitting leisurely at the tea table, brewing tea for Old Ma across the table. On the table between them was a package of ordinary aluminum foil self-sealing bag filled with fish-feeding pellets.
Ma Yuhua came specifically to buy these, seeing the other party getting straight to the point, he didn't hesitate: "Little Wang, I won't haggle with you, just tell me the price, as long as it's genuine, I'll buy them!"
"This pack is three pounds, I'll count it as three hundred for you!
Prior to this, five others took pellets from me, at two hundred per pound! In total, not even twenty pounds of pellets, if you take these, I wouldn't have much left for myself!
This time, only carp and bighead carp fries were released, if used well, these original pond pellets, I don't need to explain, you know the effect!"
Wow, usually the whole bag of the fish-feeding pellets sells for at most a few bucks per pound, now it skyrockets to a hundred bucks per pound, this price is almost like printing money.
However, the astute Old Ma didn't hesitate, chin slightly pointed: "I'll take it! Xiaowei, give money to your Uncle Wang!"
The not-short-of-cash young apprentice decisively took out bright red hundred-yuan bills from his pouch, counted out three hundred straightforwardly.
"Got the goods, I won't disturb you further. I need to go back and prepare with the team! Once in W City, I'll host you!"
"Sounds good, sounds good!"
...
Boss Wang watched Ma Yuhua and his two apprentices get into their car and quickly disappear down the street.
Once the buyers left, Boss Wang's wife came out from the back room, craning through the window with some concern, she said: "Honey, the stuff you just sold was simply the finished fish feed from our local Liuhe Feed Factory, how come you called it original pond feed? Won't they find out?"
Boss Wang glanced at his wife: "What the heck do you know! Fish feed is not complex stuff, as long as it's not general mainland feed easily discernible by smell, if I say it's original pond pellets, then it's original pond pellets!
With your little guts, how could you open shop and make money? Fortunately, I foresaw and had you stay inside. Otherwise, a sly old fox like Ma Yuhua would guess from your expressions and probably wouldn't buy!
An additional three hundred bucks goes into the account, that's the money earned from selling pellets till now today, you keep it! Fishing car competitions like these should be held more frequently each year, a group of superstitious fools, easy to fool!
By the way, He Yang and their group will come by later to take pellets, don't comment blindly!"
"Don't worry, I'll go to the back room when people come, you just entertain them!" Seeing the thick stack of hundred-yuan bills, Boss Wang's wife felt a bit uneasy but greed overcame reason.
...
Back to Ma Yuhua with the high-priced pellets getting in the car, he opened them right in front of his apprentice and took a sniff.
The strong garlic aroma, reminiscent of Tongwei's finished fish feed pellets, but upon closer sniffing, slightly different, the fish bone powder's fishy smell is somewhat more pronounced, the pellet's color is a bit darker than Tongwei.
"Master, are these pellets really original pond ones?" The apprentice who paid curiously asked.
Ma Yuhua seriously nodded: "Wang Huaibao is your Uncle Shen's friend, they used to play competitions together a few years back, they have a good relationship. His fishing gear shop is quite famous locally, having special channels to get original pond pellets is possible!
Pellets divide into three portions, each of you gets half a pound, I will teach you how to use them tonight, back at the hotel, don't talk recklessly, don't tell Qian Kai them!"
"Okay, understood!"
"Let's go, drive back!"
...
Meanwhile, back to Zhang Yang, after returning to the hotel, his team heard noise in the corridor and eagerly opened the door, seeing Zhang Yang personally making a trip and pulling a driver, surely must be something important.
"What did the security give you? Not some Fengcheng specialty or something, is it?" Wang Yan asked curiously with a cigarette in his mouth.
Zhang Yang glanced at Wang Yan, annoyed: "What damn specialty, don't know how your brain works! Got some stuff that might be original pond pellets, find some self-sealing bags to divide among everyone!
I'll say upfront, if we're lucky and actually catch a car, the security guard uncle will expect a share, don't forget!"
Hearing the words "original pond pellets", everyone got serious. If they are indeed real, these can have miraculous effects under special circumstances when the fish is picky!
"Wow, impressive boss, our hardcore fan club brothers have been inquiring for ages but haven't gathered any intel, you silently managed the matter!" Wang Yan clamped his pants crotch and got up from the bed, bending over to dig for self-sealing bags in the fishing tackle box.
"Didn't expect him to say he'd gift me something, to be given this! These aren't something we begged everywhere, they were given voluntarily with no intention to deceive us, let's use as a backup plan! There aren't many, about five to six pounds, everyone gets a bit, take them to tomorrow's competition!"
"How do we use these? Soak them and make bait balls? Should we grind them with a steel mill?" Han Qiang leaned over, grabbed a small handful, studying curiously while asking.
Not just Han Qiang, actually none of the people present have experience using original pond pellets. Han Qiang asked this, and everyone was eagerly waiting for Zhang Yang's answer.
Zhang Yang while packaging pellets said: "Grinding these into powder would be a waste! Would achieve no effect! The correct way to use them is to mix them into yellow surface bomb, or directly attach them to hemp ball!"
Zhao Bingguang listened to the usage and asked curiously: "Really? What's special about this? If the yellow surface works well, adding pellets makes no difference, still aiming for quick fish! Attaching to hemp ball could be useful, just unsure if fish condition will match!"
Zhang Yang continued explaining: "Old Zhao has a point, but also doesn't! If targeting quick fish on yellow surface, these aren't even needed! The stereoscopic vaporization state of light yellow surface, combined with small medicine, is way better than original pond pellets!"
"Then what's the purpose of these?"
Zhang Yang goes on: "Don't rush, haven't finished yet! Fish conditions aren't limited to quick fish; what if the fish aren't adapting well to this environment and are picky with bait?
That's when original pond pellets come in handy!"