The Fish I Catch Can Level Up-Chapter 17: Sea Worm

The cat played around for a bit, then leisurely picked up the half-eaten rat carcass in its mouth and walked off, its guard considerably lower around Chu Mingcheng now.
However, cleaning up the remaining rat bloodstains and scattered organs fell to him. Chu Mingcheng felt a little helpless—the cat wasn't even truly his, yet here he was playing "cat butler."
After tidying up the front yard, he showered and returned to his bedroom, continuing to study fishing techniques and, more importantly, rod maintenance methods. His experiences fishing these past few days had shown him just how much there was to learn. As a beginner hoping to quickly become a seasoned angler, he had no choice but to read and study more.
After two hours of learning, Chu Mingcheng turned off his computer and lay down to sleep, when he suddenly remembered Jiang Luoluo asking him to help boost her views. With a touch of curiosity, he pulled out his phone, opened Bilibili, and searched for "Yue Yao."
The avatar showed a beautiful woman in Hanfu, exquisitely made up. The makeup was heavy and there were beauty filters, but he could still vaguely make out that it was Jiang Luoluo herself. Clicking through, Chu Mingcheng found that she had posted many videos—a long list that was even categorized. Among them was a "Treasured Original Dances" category, which he curiously clicked on.
The first video had only been posted a day ago. It showed a duration of just over fifty seconds, with the title: "Qingsha Liuguang, Xieyue Erlai" (Flowing Gauze, Dancing with the Moon). The background music was "Xian Yao" (Immortal Melody). This video was quite short. He checked the durations of some of the other videos and realized this was just a preview.
Chu Mingcheng didn't know much about ancient Chinese-style songs. More accurately, he was only familiar with songs from China's golden age of music—after the decline of Chinese pop, he rarely listened to new releases. He had watched Jiang Luoluo dance during the day, and unlike the slow, deliberate classical dances he'd imagined, her movements were a blend of strength and softness, her dance flowing naturally with the music—a truly beautiful sight. Some of the movements were quite difficult; only professional dancers could achieve such graceful results. He wondered how the video would look, so he clicked on the first one.
You are like the celestial jade (Yao) that carries the moon, filling the missing heartbeat of the mortal world.
A solo dance in light gauze under the moonlight—that moment of ethereal beauty made Chu Mingcheng involuntarily cover his heart, which had skipped a beat. So much for filling the missing heartbeat of the mortal world.
She had clearly stolen his heart, making him fall for her without realizing it.
Graceful and enchanting in delicate, light gauze, the Moon Yao fairy danced, each step like a blooming flower.
During the day, Jiang Luoluo was just a stunning woman with an exquisite figure, but in the video, her charm was elevated by several levels. The light gauze in her hands fluttered like something alive, weaving effortlessly through the air as her mesmerizing dance unfolded.
In a flash, the fifty-something seconds passed. Chu Mingcheng came back to his senses and quietly clicked the three dots in the upper right corner of the video, then set it to loop.
That's right—he was completely hooked.
"Damn it, it's already ten o'clock!" The next day, Chu Mingcheng predictably overslept. He didn't even know when he'd fallen asleep last night, only that he'd drifted off while scrolling through videos.
He pulled out his phone and sent Jiang Luoluo a message: "I helped you boost your views last night, and as a result, I overslept this morning. Don't you think you owe me some compensation?"
After waiting a minute or two with no reply, Chu Mingcheng got up, washed up, and drove to Dongyue to dig for sea worms. Digging for sea worms didn't require any special equipment—just a short-handled hoe.
Wild sea worms weren't as plentiful as they used to be; large-scale aquaculture was now common in China. However, Zhejiang and Fujian provinces were abundant regions for sea worms, and with a bit of hard work, wild ones could still be found in large quantities.
By the time he crossed the bridge, it was almost eleven, so Chu Mingcheng decided to just grab lunch at a fast-food restaurant, ordering braised pork. Today was going to be physically demanding, and he needed some meat to ensure he had enough energy for the afternoon. He also bought a sandwich and a bottle of date milk in case he got hungry later.
Jiang Luoluo finally replied while he was eating.
"So sorry! I didn't check my phone this morning." "Did you watch my video? What do you think? Give me your honest feedback!" "Also, how do you want me to compensate you?"
She replied with three messages in a row, making Chu Mingcheng feel that her impression of him was quite positive. She was probably at Mount Yan this morning, not intentionally ignoring him.
"My oversleeping is the best compliment to your video, isn't it?" "Oh, come on. If I had to tell you, it takes all the fun out of it, doesn't it? Shouldn't you be the one surprising me with an offer?"
Miles away at Mount Yan, Jiang Luoluo sat in a farmhouse restaurant waiting for her food, unable to help smiling at his reply. Her video making him oversleep meant he was attracted to her, didn't it? As for the compensation, Jiang Luoluo pouted slightly, a little troubled. Then her eyes lit up, and she replied:
"Then, when I get back from Mount Yan, I'll treat you to dinner!"
Seeing this message, Chu Mingcheng smiled. Most women had a knack for turning newly acquainted men into simps who would then serve them. If he immediately agreed, he would fall into a subservient position. Perhaps some women were straightforward and not so complicated, but this was also a passive skill—if a man actively simped, they didn't mind having another one.
So when she wasn't yet his girlfriend, he should interact with her as he would any other friend: decline when necessary, and have his own priorities.
"Dinner depends on my schedule. You know I have a lot going on right now, so I might not have time. We'll see after you get back from Mount Yan."
He didn't agree or refuse, simply postponing the matter to assess the situation later.
After a few more exchanges, Chu Mingcheng proactively ended the chat, finished his meal, and drove to the Dongyue mudflats. His car couldn't go onto the mudflats, so he parked outside, put on his sun hat and sun-protective clothing, then changed into waterproof boots. He took the bag with the date milk and sandwich from the trunk, added a bottle of mineral water, and then carried his short-handled hoe and bucket toward the mudflats.
It was quite a walk, taking over twenty minutes to reach the spot where sea worms could be dug. Chu Mingcheng, visiting for the first time, naturally didn't know where to find sea worms, but people dug there every day, so he just followed where they were working.
Digging for sea worms was hard work; someone not used to manual labor really couldn't handle it. However, those who could do it earned quite well. Over the years, they might accumulate over a million yuan in savings. Zhang Wei's father had been doing this for years, and Chu Mingcheng had only learned from him that his family had over a million yuan in savings, reserved for his son's marriage and house.
Chu Mingcheng chose a spot near the water. After finding some small holes, he placed his bucket nearby, picked up his short-handled hoe with his right hand, and dug down. He flipped over a chunk of mud, saw nothing, and continued digging deeper. At first, he could use force to dig out the mud, then slowly follow the small holes. When digging, he needed to use technique: the hoe should just enter a little, then pull back, flipping the mud over. Otherwise, digging too deep and hitting the sea worm directly would be wasteful.
To find sea worms, one mainly looked for holes the size of a matchstick. Chu Mingcheng was grateful for the modern era—if it weren't for readily available information online, he'd probably end up with nothing but an aching back after a day of aimless digging.
Chu Mingcheng's chosen spot was quite good. Following a hole, he quickly dug out a sea worm the size of his index finger. Sea worms were interesting: half of them were as thick as an index finger, while the shorter half was as thin as a matchstick.
But a moment later, he unexpectedly dug up an exceptionally long "sea worm."
Could a sea worm really grow to almost 20 centimeters long?