Chapter 321: Chapter 214: A Large Force Raids at Midnight

SIZZLE SIZZLE~

The aroma of fried fish filled the kitchen. Gu Nan stood with one hand on his hip, using a slotted spoon to continuously stir fish scales in a wok of hot oil.

The scales were from a parrotfish Guo Xiao had caught, a type of wrasse, that weighed over five pounds.

Kitchen duties were usually left to Yi Chen, but Gu Nan always took over heavy-duty tasks like deep-frying that produced a lot of greasy smoke.

He didn’t want his beautiful wife to look all haggard and worn out after just a few years of being exposed to cooking fumes. As for himself, he didn’t mind looking a little rough.

’For a man, being passably handsome is enough. The important thing is to have silver in your pockets.’

Fried scales were a fantastic snack. Sprinkled with some salt-and-pepper and chili powder, they were crispy, fragrant, and even more addictive than potato chips.

Of course, he wasn’t so extravagant as to use a whole wok of oil just for the scales. When the scales were nearly done, Gu Nan tossed in the aromatics Yi Chen had prepared—garlic, green onions, and dried chilies—to flash-fry them. Once they were fragrant, he scooped them out and placed them into a nearby clay pot.

Finally, he deep-fried the head and bones of the wrasse, which had been lightly coated in egg white. Later, they would be used, along with the fish fillets, to make a yellow-braised dish.

He wasn’t actually very good at controlling the heat, but he had someone right there to guide him!

After all the frying was done, the thrice-used oil was spent. Gu Nan poured it into a nearby stainless steel soup bowl to let it cool before discarding it.

He washed the wok, then handed the rest of the less smoky cooking over to Yi Chen.

No idea what Guo Xiao was thinking, buying a clay pot big enough for a five-pound fish and even adding a green spiny lobster he’d happened to catch.

If it weren’t for this pot, Yi Chen probably wouldn’t have even considered making it yellow-braised style.

"What are you making? I could smell it all the way out on deck," Wang Junhe called out as he walked into the kitchen.

"Yellow-braised wrasse. Tempting, isn’t it?" Gu Nan chuckled, placing the clean wok back on the stove.

Guo Xiao nodded emphatically. "Yes! I’m so sick of having Steamed fish every day. We need to switch things up. Other people only cook fish like this when it’s not fresh, but we’re using one that was just alive. The flavor will be even better."

They weren’t exactly short on money, so who would be willing to mistreat their own taste buds?

But even as they feasted on rich meats and fish, they also ate plain boiled vegetables and broccoli.

A balanced diet of meat and vegetables was essential, and it helped cut through the richness of the food.

After their meal, they would rest for an hour or two and then have some fruit. This kind of fishing lifestyle was a world away from the more rugged experience of the anglers fishing near the oil rig.

The sky was dark by the time they finished dinner, and everyone went out onto the deck to enjoy the evening breeze.

Nights on the open sea were cool and refreshing, unlike on land where even the wind felt hot enough to make you sweat.

Just then, Wang Junhe, who was scanning the area with a pair of binoculars, made a discovery.

"Hey, it looks like those guys have caught a lot of big squid. Should we go over and buy some? If tuna show up, we can use them for bait. They work much better than the sardines we bought."

"Sounds good," Guo Xiao readily agreed. "I’ll drive the boat over. You guys ask if they’re selling, and if the price is right, let’s buy a lot. Whatever we don’t use, we can eat. Squid is delicious." He immediately went to pilot the boat.

Gu Nan naturally had no objections. Having squid for bait was certainly better.

In fact, there were already plenty of small squid attracted to the lights on the surface of the water. However, they didn’t have the specialized rods needed to catch them, and using their regular rods would be too slow and inefficient.

Tuna fishing required a massive amount of bait; what the few of them could catch in an entire night likely wouldn’t be enough.

It was a shame they hadn’t run into any bonito or small tuna, which would have been even better bait for large tuna.

The fishing boat quickly approached the other vessel. They saw a dozen or so anglers on its deck, each holding a compact squid rod rigged with a string of jigs.

Just then, one of the anglers reeled in his line, which had a full six squid hanging from the jigs.

The small ones were about four inches long, while the largest ones were nearly double that size.

After a quick negotiation, Wang Junhe bought two crates of live squid from them, paying in cash.

Their boat had a signal, but the other, more ordinary vessel, did not.

They didn’t want to let others use their signal, so since they had cash, they naturally paid with it.

At the same time, Wang Junhe asked the other fishermen about the likelihood of tuna schools appearing in the area, but the news he received wasn’t very encouraging.

Apparently, no tuna schools had shown up in this area since the fishing season began. A few stragglers might pass through occasionally and get hooked by a lucky angler, but that was it.

Most of the anglers here were either catching squid or fishing for deep-sea species; very few came specifically for tuna.

Although the news was disappointing, Gu Nan and his friends didn’t let it get them down.

If worst came to worst, they could just go deep-sea fishing. Catching a few big groupers would be valuable, and landing some amberjack weighing dozens of pounds wouldn’t be a bad haul either.

Gu Nan scooped out the ten-odd pounds of live shrimp remaining in the livewell and transferred the newly purchased squid into it to keep them alive.

The squid were all around eight inches long; clearly, Wang Junhe was also anticipating a big tuna.

After buying the squid, Guo Xiao piloted the fishing boat back to their original position, dropped anchor, and killed the engine.

The current was strong at night. If they hadn’t anchored, the boat would have drifted out of sight of the oil rig in a short amount of time.

The oil rig was lit up like a beacon, and with nearly every other boat in the vicinity also using lights, the area was aglow. It wasn’t as bright as day, but to any light-attracted sea life, it was a spectacle visible from far away.

This made it a prime spot for catching squid, and indeed, nearly every angler nearby was doing just that.

People on a few of the other boats were fishing for different species. After a short rest, Gu Nan and his friends began to fish as well.

Unexpectedly, the moment he dropped his line, he hooked a small bonito weighing two or three pounds. He was instantly exasperated. "Are you kidding me? I didn’t think there’d be small bonito here. If we’d known these were around, why did we even buy squid?!"

Wang Junhe smiled. "We don’t know if there are many of them, though. Plus, it’s always the way—as soon as we bought them, we were bound to run into these. Even if no tuna show up tonight, we can use the squid to fish for deep-sea species."

"This is a major oil rig, after all. If we can find a good spot, there are plenty of large groupers and amberjacks to be had."

Gu Nan nodded in agreement. ’That’s true,’ he thought. ’Squid is an all-purpose bait, even better than live shrimp when you’re targeting big fish.’

The bite in the mid-to-upper water column was mediocre. Everyone only managed to land a fish every now and then, and most of what they caught were bonito.

They kept busy until a little past eleven o’clock. With still no sign of tuna, everyone was beginning to feel like giving up and was preparing to find a better spot for deep-sea fishing.

Suddenly, cheers erupted from all over the water. At the same time, the lights on many boats that had previously gone dark flickered back to life.

"What’s happening?" Yi Chen asked, puzzled.

As if he’d realized something, Guo Xiao scrambled into the cabin to check the fish finder. He quickly ran back out, face flushed with excitement, and yelled, "They’re here! They’re here! A school of tuna has really arrived! Based on the fish finder, they look to be over fifty pounds! I saw some even bigger marks, probably over a hundred pounds!"

"Holy shit, our luck is incredible! A school of tuna shows up right after we get here," Wang Junhe exclaimed, equally excited. "I just asked around, and they said no schools had come through since the season opened!" He hurriedly grabbed his rod to swap out the line and rig; the setup for smaller fish was no match for tuna.

"Maybe they’re amberjacks?" Guo Xiao joked.

"Amberjack would be great too! They sell for just as much as regular tuna," Wang Junhe retorted, his eyes wide.

He had a point, though. The only exception might be yellowtail amberjack, but would they average fifty to sixty pounds?

Even a school of regular amberjack was unlikely to hit that average weight. Therefore, they all concluded it had to be tuna.

Yi Chen was busy too, getting her live stream started.

They had promised their group chat they would go live if they found tuna. People had already paid deposits, and while they could have just kept that money if no tuna showed up...

...but nobody was an idiot. The deposit money was peanuts; selling the actual tuna was the real prize.

Gu Nan was just as busy. He had to prep two rods—one with an electric reel for Yi Chen. With so many customers who had pre-ordered, she couldn’t afford to be idle.

He himself would use the other rod, the golden one, but he was swapping out its electric reel for a large conventional reel. ’As a man, I have to show my viewers what real, red-blooded fishing is all about,’ he thought.

’A fifty-pound-or-so tuna is the perfect size for me right now,’ Gu Nan thought. ’It’s not enormous, but it will at least have a decent fat content.’

The main thing was that he could hopefully catch a lot of them and sell more to his customers.

Tonight, Gu Nan was prepared to go all out. He would use his full strength, combined with his golden rod, to show his viewers what a true beast on the water looked like.

The rig for Yi Chen’s electric rod was set up quickly, and the rod was secured in a holder three fishing spots away from him.

This allowed Yi Chen to film him fishing for the stream without it interfering with her own station.

Once a fish was on the line, it would be up to the men to haul it aboard anyway.

Wang Junhe and Guo Xiao were fishing on the other side of the boat behind them, keeping a good distance to prevent their lines from tangling and snapping.

Gu Nan started rigging his second rod. Wang Junhe and Guo Xiao were already finished and had begun chumming, tossing the sardines they’d brought onto the deck into the water one by one.

Tuna fishing requires an incredible amount of chum. Even with a full school present, you still needed to toss in dozens, if not hundreds, of pounds of it—maybe even more.

Tuna are constantly on the move; they might pass through the area but won’t necessarily stick around. Therefore, it was crucial to create a chum slick to hold at least part of the school.

Seeing that Gu Nan and Yi Chen were both busy, Wang Junhe kindly helped out with the chumming.

"Thanks, Brother Wang," Gu Nan said, thanking him for the help. He baited both of his rods with the bonito he’d caught earlier and cast them into the water.

"Don’t mention it!" Wang Junhe waved a hand dismissively. Seeing that Gu Nan was now free, he went back to his own spot.

By now, Yi Chen had already set up the camera angle and position and had started the live stream.

Without even glancing at the stream chat, she rushed over to help with the chumming, helping to form a continuous bait trail.

Seeing this, Gu Nan put on his fighting belt, gripped his rod, and waited for a bite.

Perhaps the school had already moved past their location. He waited for a full minute after his bait hit the water before a massive force suddenly jerked his rod.

Gu Nan had the drag set slightly loose to avoid being caught off guard by the initial, sudden pull of the strike.

This caused the line to fly off the reel as if it were free, the drag screaming without end.

Fortunately, Gu Nan reacted in time. With a hard upward jerk of the rod, he not only set the hook successfully but also broke the rhythm of the fish’s deep-diving sprint.

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