The next morning, the hotel lobby was packed, with teams from various Asian countries and regions in attendance.
Dozens of teams were gathered, creating a scene that was difficult to describe. The most arrogant among them were the "Little Sun Country," standing not far from Li Haochen and his companions. Especially the half-bald, middle-aged, greasy pervert at the forefront, who was shouting loudly in a babble of sounds, as if afraid others wouldn't know how disgusting he was.
The "High-quality Ginseng Country" next to them was not to be outdone. Brother Feibing was also exceptionally excited, almost performing a human pyramid on a motorcycle.
Li Zhigang, standing beside Li Haochen, noticed his frown and came closer to whisper, "Don't mind that greasy guy being disgusting. His titles are impressive. He was the winner of the longest, heaviest, and most valuable single tail in the last competition, an Asian record holder, and ranked fifth individually in the Hawaii International Deep-Sea Fishing Competition. The 'High-quality Ginseng Country' next to us was also the second-place winner last time, and the third place was our province..."
Li Zhigang roughly outlined the entire power distribution. Li Haochen frequently shook his head as he listened, "Alas, I didn't expect us to be mere regular attendees at the bottom. No wonder everyone is so indifferent to the grand promises Director Liu made."
"Yeah, everyone's mentally prepared to slack off. No one will say anything anyway. Let's just treat it as a company-funded Sanya sea trip, hehe." It was evident that Li Zhigang really wanted to contribute, but the entire team had been demoralized by slackers like Zhang Yuan. It was estimated that they would just casually catch a few fish to get by.
With a round of warm applause, the current winter fishing competition officially began. However, none of the participating teams showed any eagerness. Many were leisurely taking photos here and there, sitting around. They didn't look like they were competing at all; they resembled a tour group.
Just as Li Zhigang had informed him, there were no restrictions on bait. Participants could bring their own or use the ones provided by the大会. Therefore, Li Haochen decided to request a leave of absence to return to the Star Chen to prepare his bait.
"Director Liu, when are we roughly departing? I'd like to request a leave to get some things from the ship."
Liu Qinghe glanced at Li Haochen, "Yes, we'll depart once the supplies are ready, about half an hour. If it's not urgent, don't leave."
"It... it is quite urgent. Director Liu, my ship is only about two hundred meters ahead. I'll be back very quickly, is that okay?"
"Is that so?" Liu Qinghe pondered for a moment, then nodded, "Then go ahead. Be back on time. I won't wait for you if you're late."
"Okay, thank you!"
Having received Liu Qinghe's approval, Li Haochen thanked him and ran towards the Star Chen.
Li Haochen dared not enter his space in an unfamiliar environment, even if it seemed safe. He had always kept the saying "caution is the parent of safety" in mind since acquiring his spatial ability.
Upon returning to the ship, he locked the cabin door and brought his box and small knife into the space. Time inside was twice as fast as outside, so Li Haochen had to hurry to get the mussel meat.
About half an hour later, Li Haochen had prepared three boxes of mussel meat, about a hundred pieces in total. It wasn't much, but given the time constraints, there was nothing he could do. The success or failure of his results would depend on luck.
Exiting the space, he found a black plastic bag to store them in, locked the door, and quickly ran to their ship. Upon arrival, everyone had already boarded. Fortunately, the logistics team was still finishing up, so Li Haochen wasn't considered late.
The cabins inside had already been claimed, with only the innermost side room remaining. Li Haochen had no complaints; as long as he could sleep, it was fine.
After putting away his luggage, Li Haochen placed the mussel meat in the freezer for preservation and then went up to the top deck to observe. The ship was very large, nearly forty meters long and about seven or eight meters wide. It was equipped with two large mechanical cranes, which looked quite awe-inspiring.
Outside the ship, many large ships of similar size sailed past, likely also participating in the competition. The fishing spot was quite far, requiring at least a ten-hour journey.
Accustomed to the high speed of the Star Chen, he looked at the turtle-like pace of this steel behemoth. There was no passion for cutting through the waves, not the slightest bit of excitement.
"Gurgle~"
Feeling the protest of his stomach, Li Haochen returned to the ship's dining hall. The team had divided into three small groups, sitting separately. Seeing Li Zhigang, whom he was somewhat familiar with, sitting with others, he didn't feel comfortable going over. He nodded in greeting and found an empty seat.
Before long, Liu Qinghe walked in, not forgetting to give a pre-competition pep talk, still ardently making grand promises. Unfortunately, few people paid attention, leading to an awkward conclusion.
Half an hour later, the chef brought out a large platter of steamed chicken with winter mushrooms, a pot of vegetables, and a barrel of soybean and pork bone soup. The smell was very enticing. After several hours of sailing, everyone was hungry. They each took a bowl and plate to serve themselves rice, dishes, and soup, returning to their seats to eat and chat.
As Li Haochen sat down, Liu Qinghe also walked over to his table, "Haochen, you don't mind if I sit here, do you?"
"Director Liu, please sit," Li Haochen politely pulled out a chair for Liu Qinghe.
Although Li Haochen's late arrival on the reporting day had given Liu Qinghe a bad impression, their interactions over the past two days had been quite good.
Glancing around, Liu Qinghe leaned closer to Li Haochen and lowered his voice, "Haochen, you should know our current situation, right? Originally, our leadership wanted us to contend for the top three. Now, it's hard to even guarantee a top ten finish. I learned about the last competition in Binhai, which is why I strongly recommended you.
I'm not expecting us to get into the top ten. I hope you can compete for the 'most individual fish tails' category. A top three finish would be good, so our home advantage doesn't look too bad."
"So I was recommended to participate by him?" Li Haochen was somewhat surprised to learn from Liu Qinghe's words that he had been recommended.
Li Haochen certainly wouldn't foolishly promise anything, but calmly replied, "Director Liu, I will do my best in the competition. As for the outcome, I cannot guarantee anything. I hope you can understand."
Liu Qinghe knew he was being a bit demanding. He sighed and gave a wry smile, "Doing your best is enough. Eat, it's getting cold."
Perhaps in a bad mood, Liu Qinghe ate only a few bites before picking up his bowl and leaving. Li Haochen, on the other hand, had a hearty appetite but dared not eat too much, as they were heading into the deep sea where the waves would be rougher. Being too full, regardless of whether you got seasick, you would have to throw up.
Returning to his room, he heard the shouts of Zhang Yuan and his group playing Dou Dizhu from next door. Whether intentionally or not, the noise grew louder and louder, making it impossible for Li Haochen to rest. Just as he was about to go out to argue, a quarrel erupted outside his door.
He pushed open the door and saw several other team members scolding Zhang Yuan, his disciples, and Zhao Lei, "Damn it, if you're not going to sleep, then get out on the deck and feel the northern wind."
"Exactly. What time is it? How can we fish tomorrow if we don't get enough sleep?"
"Damn, we're playing our cards, what's it to you? With your mediocre skills, what kind of fish can you even catch?" Zhang Yuan was not one to back down. Seeing that the numbers were evenly matched, he was not intimidated at all. Rolling up his sleeves and puffing out his chest, he shouted back.