Chapter 1 The First Step
The first step was to deal with the earphone cables. All earphones were untangled, and broken or too short ones were discarded. Fifty in total.
The end with the earpiece was tied to a stone, and the stone was buried deep into the sand by the beach, for fixation.
Then, using wire, four or five sharp fishhooks were tied along the entire earphone cable, baited with dried seaweed or fish entrails.
A night fishing line was ready. Cast into the sea, fish would automatically bite. Once hooked, their mouths would be pierced by the hooks, and the more they struggled, the deeper the hooks would penetrate, making escape impossible.
This was an improved version of fishing. Fishing required someone to wait constantly, but these night fishing lines didn't. They could be put into the water before sleeping at night, and pulled out the next morning, laden with half-dead fish!
Of course, they could also be used during the day.
This method of fishing was banned in many countries on Earth. If someone wanted to catch fish indiscriminately, making hundreds of such lines could kill half a small lake in one night, causing immense destruction.
But on this garbage planet, what law was there to speak of? For survival, catching some fish was understandable.
Jiang Ye had just set up ten night fishing lines.
Cen Yemeng suddenly shouted, "Fish! Fish!"
Before Jiang Ye could speak, Cen Yemeng had already rushed to the first night fishing line and pulled it up with all her might.
With a flash of silver, a white fish the size of a thermos was pulled out of the sea, landing in the sand pit and thrashing desperately!
Jiang Ye quickly ran over and stepped on the struggling fish.
He scooped up a stone from the nearby sand, lifted his foot, and smashed it down on the fish's head. With a crunch, the fish stopped moving.
He picked up the fish and examined it in the sunlight. It had an ordinary appearance, entirely silver-white, and quite beautiful. Its mouth was already pierced by the thick wire, and it must have been in great pain.
It weighed about four catties, enough for two meals!
Cen Yemeng happily took the fish and said, "I'll go slice it."
"Don't slice it. Scan it to see if it's poisonous. If not, empty its insides and stew it," Jiang Ye said. "Let's eat something fresh. I think this fish should be tasty."
"Okay!" Cen Yemeng nodded vigorously, clearly eager.
Jiang Ye continued to set up night fishing lines on the distant beach, spacing each line at least ten meters apart. Crowding them would be useless.
The two of them spent the entire day busy catching fish.
Jiang Ye's fishing traps were surprisingly effective. The fish baskets were always full of small fish. The night fishing lines swayed back and forth, and as they were pulled up, large and small fish were caught.
It seemed there were plenty of fish in this area, which was indeed fortunate!
Night fell.
On the sand outside the spaceship, countless fish scales reflected the moonlight like snowflakes, making it look like the spaceship's shed skin from afar.
Fish with their insides removed lay on the beach, with plastic sheets underneath to prevent dew from sticking to the fish meat. Hundreds of fish, large and small, were more spectacular than a guard of honor.
Inside the spaceship, on their small beds, Jiang Ye and Cen Yemeng lay facing each other, holding hands, foreheads touching as they slept.
"The baby kept moving when I was gutting the fish today," Cen Yemeng said softly.
Jiang Ye smiled and gently touched her belly.
"Are the fish caught today enough to last for a long time?" Cen Yemeng asked.
"Enough for two months," Jiang Ye nodded. "I thought it would take a long time to gather enough food, but I didn't expect to catch so many in one day. We have enough fish for now. Tomorrow, I need to find a way to gather some seaweed."
Cen Yemeng suddenly sat up. "I'm going to the restroom."
"Be careful," Jiang Ye said.
Cen Yemeng pushed open the cabin door and went out, but then immediately returned, her voice a little scared. "Jiang Ye, there's a light over by the garbage mountain."
Jiang Ye sat up abruptly, grabbed a hunting rifle from the windowsill, loaded it, and went to the door.
The dark garbage mountain was silent, but on its summit, there was a bright white spot of light, still moving back and forth! Jiang Ye stared intently for a few seconds, feeling that the light was similar to the small desk lamps students used for homework. It was definitely not fire, perhaps some electronic waste was glowing.
"What is that?" Cen Yemeng hugged him from behind, her voice fearful.
"I don't know. I'll put on my spacesuit and go check."
"Don't go. I'm afraid it's dangerous," Cen Yemeng held him tighter.
"No, if there's danger, we must eliminate it immediately. We can't leave it; the longer we leave it, the scarier it becomes," Jiang Ye hefted the gun in his hand. "The gun is fully charged. If anything causes trouble, I'll shoot it twice. You go back to sleep, I'll be back soon."
"I'll go with you!" Cen Yemeng said immediately.
"No, if there's any danger, I can turn and run myself, but you can't run fast," Jiang Ye refused sternly. "This time, you have to listen to me, no discussion!"
Cen Yemeng was already putting on her spacesuit.
Jiang Ye went over, hugged her, and took off her spacesuit. "Be good! Don't go over there!"
"I won't! I want to go with you!" Cen Yemeng was anxious. "If something happens, I can save you! I'm not a burden!"
"No!" Jiang Ye stared at her seriously. "You can at most watch me from outside the spaceship, but you absolutely cannot go over! You are not alone; you have a baby in your belly, and you must be responsible for the baby!"
"Can I go to the foot of the garbage mountain?" Cen Yemeng frowned. "I can't just stand here and watch!"
Jiang Ye hesitated for a moment. "We agree beforehand: you are not allowed to step onto the garbage mountain, only wait at the foot of the mountain."
Cen Yemeng nodded vigorously and continued to put on her spacesuit.
Jiang Ye also put on his spacesuit, tucking a hammer and a short knife at his waist, in case the gun was too slow to deal with anything, he could use close combat.
The two of them left the spaceship and cautiously advanced towards the garbage mountain.
The white light on the summit was still swaying, but not much.
As they approached the garbage mountain, they could faintly hear subtle noises from the summit. The object emitting the light was clearly moving, like a living creature.
Jiang Ye hugged Cen Yemeng. She immediately understood and obediently stood at the foot of the mountain, watching him.
After checking his rifle, Jiang Ye crept upwards.
He could only climb by the moonlight, trying not to make any noise. His rifle barrel was constantly aimed at the light.
"Who!" a voice suddenly shouted.
Jiang Ye was startled. The voice sounded very much like his home's sweeping robot, a cute robotic voice.
The light on the summit shone down on Jiang Ye.
"Ahhhhhhhh!"
The light flickered and went out, followed by a clattering sound as the thing on the summit ran backward.
Jiang Ye bolted after it. "Stop!"
His position was exposed, so he stopped hiding and turned on his spacesuit's headlamp.
The light was quite bright, like a streetlamp, illuminating a large area of garbage.
The thing on the summit was still running, and Jiang Ye chased after the sound, running with all his might.
"Stop or I'll shoot!" Jiang Ye shouted.
"Don't shoot! It's one of us!"
Jiang Ye was stunned. The other party seemed to have stopped.
"Turn on your light," Jiang Ye said.
A white light lit up a few meters ahead. Jiang Ye finally saw what the thing was.