The Fish I Catch Can Level Up-Chapter 19: Zhang Wei the Repairman

Seeing the cat curled up all alone in a corner under the eaves, Chu Mingcheng thought for a moment before heading back inside. He found a cardboard box, cut a hole in the side with a pair of scissors, and then grabbed an old, thin blanket he used in the summer to line the inside. Just like that, a simple little den was ready.
He carried it out to the front yard and slowly approached the tabby. The cat noticed him getting closer and tensed, standing up warily, but it didn't run away.
"I made a little den for you," Chu Mingcheng said with a gentle smile, placing the box down beside it. "You can rest here from now on."
He then stood up and backed away.
The tabby stared at him for a moment before turning its attention to the box. It gave the new object a curious nudge, and upon discovering the hole, it cautiously peeked inside. After a quick scan revealed no danger, it poked its head in, sniffing around. A moment later, seemingly satisfied, it slipped inside.
The cat appeared to love its new home, settling down to rest almost immediately.
A warm smile touched Chu Mingcheng’s lips. He left the front yard and drove to the reservoir for some night fishing.
The path to success was laid out before him, a stark contrast to his old nine-to-five job, where the future felt like a dead end. If he didn't put in the effort now, he’d be wasting this opportunity.
Perhaps the ghost in the reservoir appreciated his help, or maybe the den he’d built for the cat brought him some good karma, because that night, the bites were abundant.
He had originally planned to set up his hand rod and then do some lure fishing on the side. But the hand rod was getting action almost every minute, leaving him no time at all for anything else.
His crucian carp experience had been at Level 2 (7/30). By the end of the night, it had shot straight up to Level 4.
[Crucian Carp (Level 4)]
[Current EXP: 21/50]
[Size: +4%]
[Deliciousness: +4%]
[Capture Chance: +4%]
Adding it all up—23 to level up from 2, 40 for level 3, and 21 into level 4—he had caught a total of 84 fish. If he hadn't bought a plastic container for his catch, his bucket would have been overflowing.
Chu Mingcheng took all the fish he estimated to be under half a
jin
and released them on the other side of the bank. Even so, he was still left with 63 crucian carp.
Back home, he placed three of the carp in a bucket of water to keep them alive—tomorrow's meal for the cat. He moved the remaining 60 into another large, oxygenated bucket.
Once he was done, Chu Mingcheng checked his phone. Seeing no messages, he washed up and went to bed.
The first thing he did after waking up the next day was prepare the sandworms he’d acquired, turning them into a dried delicacy.
Most sandworms sold on the market were the dried type. In the future, if he could find a place where they grew, he could dig up a lot more. For now, he would just dry these three to use as a supplemental ingredient.
Dried sandworms were known for their health benefits, believed to nourish
yin
, reduce internal heat, clear the lungs, and strengthen the kidneys. They were great for one's health; the only downside was their high price.
Translator Note:
In traditional Chinese medicine, what is called "nourishing yin" is restoring the cooling and moistening functions of the body to balance the excess heat or dryness (yang). Symptoms such as night sweats, dry mouth, or fatigue may point to "nourishing yin," probably through diet, herbs, or lifestyle changes. This view is pretty pragmatic, yet it is rooted in older ideas about internal balance-not something mystical, but about overall well-being.
He took the three sandworms out of the bag, rinsed them twice, and then carefully used a chopstick to turn them inside out to wash away the internal sand. This step required a delicate touch to avoid tearing them.
Next, he brought a pot of water to a boil and scalded the cleaned sandworms until they turned completely white. He then fished them out and patted them dry with a paper towel.
If you were using an oven, it was best to prick the cooked sandworms with a small needle. But Chu Mingcheng lived by the sea, and today was sunny and warm with a steady sea breeze—perfect weather for air-drying.
He laid the sandworms out on the second-floor balcony. By the time he went downstairs to wash his face and brush his teeth, and then came back up, they were already thirty to forty percent dry.
Seeing this, Chu Mingcheng decided to make a trip to the market. He grabbed breakfast, bought some groceries, and returned to prepare lunch for himself.
By the time his lunch was ready, the sandworms were almost completely dry. The whole process had taken less than two hours.
He stored the three dried sandworms in a cool, ventilated, and dry place, then drove to the market to sell his fish.
He went to the same fishmonger as before. The price was still 25 yuan per
jin
, but with a much larger haul today—36.4
jin (approx 40.04 lbs or 18.2 kg)
—the total came to 910 yuan. As expected, the odd ten yuan was rounded down.
Chu Mingcheng wasn't bothered by the ten yuan. He wouldn't be selling crucian carp for much longer anyway. He figured he’d stop fishing the reservoir in a few days to avoid impacting the fish population with his ridiculously high efficiency.
He was just about to head off to dig for sea sandworms when Zhang Wei called again, telling him to pick him up from the town’s bus station.
If it had been the county seat, Chu Mingcheng would have refused. It was too far—a waste of time and gas. And with current gas prices, who could afford that?
Arriving at the station to pick up Zhang Wei, Chu Mingcheng couldn't help but burst out laughing. "My good sir, pray tell, what could have possibly happened to make you look so... haggard overnight?"
Zhang Wei's face was a mask of misery. "A miscalculation," he lamented. "I ran into a 'high-performance juicer' the night before last. Seemed like she hadn't had a proper 'tune-up' in a long time."
He continued, "The moment she started, the engine went into overdrive. I had to get out my tools and work on her for two straight nights just to get her running at a normal speed. I barely got any sleep."
"Yikes..." Chu Mingcheng winced dramatically. He immediately pulled out his phone and deleted the numbers he had saved from that one time. That repair job was way beyond his skill—he simply wasn’t qualified.
"So," he asked, "do you want to go to my place and sleep, or come with me to the Dongyue mudflats to dig for sea worms?"
Zhang Wei thought for a moment. "I'll go with you. If I get tired, I can just sleep in your car."
"Works for me." Chu Mingcheng had no objections. He drove his friend to buy a short-handled hoe and waterproof boots before heading to the Dongyue mudflats.
Once they arrived, he grabbed a bucket and got straight to work, tossing the car keys to Zhang Wei. His friend could sleep if he got tired and was on his own for lunch.
He spent an extra two hours digging today and managed to find quite a few more sea sandworms, about five
jin
in total. His skill level rose to 14.
[Edible Sipunculus, also known as sea worm, sand worm, etc. (Level 14)]
[Current Experience: 113/150]
[Size +14%]
[Deliciousness +14%]
[Capture Chance +14%]
Although he had only dug up about two hundred more than yesterday, he clearly noticed that after his skill passed Level 10, his probability of finding larger sea sandworms was significantly higher.
From this point on, Chu Mingcheng finally had a truly stable source of income.
The only downside was that of the five uses of Life Conversion he had left, only two remained. He hadn't noticed it much yesterday, but today he could genuinely feel the change in his body. He was definitely stronger than before.
Zhang Wei had tried digging for a bit, but the "repairs" from the past two nights had been too strenuous on his back. He didn't even manage to dig up one
jin
before he gave up, took Chu Mingcheng's car, and drove to a nearby cafe. He only came back to pick him up after Chu Mingcheng called.
Just as Chu Mingcheng loaded the sea sandworms into the car, ready to go sell them, a message from Jiang Luoluo popped up.
"Are you free? I'm back from Yan Mountain. I said I'd compensate you, remember? I'd like to treat you to dinner. So, are you coming or not? 😉"
Feeling it would be wrong to ditch Zhang Wei, Chu Mingcheng tried to politely decline: "My friend came to visit today, and we were just about to go get something to eat."
"Oh! Well then, just bring your friend along! You know I have two friends with me, and I was worried you'd feel awkward coming alone!"
"Let me ask my friend first."
"Okay, ask him!"
Of course, saying he'd "ask" was just an excuse. As long as beautiful women were involved, Zhang Wei would go even if he was running on fumes.
"Hey, you know those two beauties you saw yesterday? One of them invited me to dinner. You in?"
"In? Of course I'm in! We have to go!"
Just as he'd expected, Zhang Wei's eyes lit up as he instantly agreed.