The Fish I Catch Can Level Up-Chapter 22: Chu Mingcheng the scoundrel

Chu Mingcheng handed tongs to Jiang Luoluo and Zhou Jiayi, then he and Zhang Wei led them across the reef flats to start searching for edible seafood.
At first, he deliberately kept them away from the staged rock pools, so their haul was meager.
Despite this, Jiang Luoluo and Zhou Jiayi were bursting with excitement, squealing and rushing to catch even the tiniest stone crab they spotted.
Before long, Zhou Jiayi had paired up with Zhang Wei, while Jiang Luoluo stuck by Chu Mingcheng's side.
"Whoa, there's a huge oyster here!"
Jiang Luoluo had a sharp eye, spotting a massive oyster tucked into a crevice on the side of a reef.
"Here, here, take the shovel. You pry it off," Chu Mingcheng immediately handed her the tool.
She took it without hesitation and, after a few forceful scrapes, managed to dislodge the giant oyster.
Holding it up, Jiang Luoluo was ecstatic. "Haha, finally, a real catch!"
Seeing how happy she was, Chu Mingcheng suggested, "I'd open that up if I were you. You don't usually find oysters this big on the shore. It might be empty."
"Empty?" Jiang Luoluo took the shucking knife he offered and hesitantly tried to pry the oyster open.
As the shell popped open, it revealed a large, plump piece of oyster meat with a slight greenish tint. It was truly huge, fatter than anything you'd find at a barbecue joint.
"Haha, it's oyster! And it's so big!"
"Let me see," Chu Mingcheng leaned in. While Jiang Luoluo was distracted, he suddenly reached out, snatched the oyster meat, and slurped it down in one go. Without missing a beat, he turned and bolted.
"Ahhh! My oyster! Chu Mingcheng, you scoundrel!" Even the most mild-tempered person would have exploded. Jiang Luoluo was no exception. Bristling like an angry kitten, she hurled the empty oyster shell at him.
"Hahaha! This oyster has a bit too much seawater, kinda salty!" Chu Mingcheng dodged the "bomb" and stopped, still laughing uncontrollably. Stolen food really did taste the best.
"If you knew that, why'd you still eat it?  Ugh, how could you?" Jiang Luoluo shot him an indignant glare, her tone laced with a playful pout.
"Hehe, come on, let's go check the rock pools. When the tide goes out, some creatures get trapped. You were lucky enough to find an oyster that big. Who knows what else you'll discover today."
"Really?"
"Depends on your luck!"
A good amount of time had passed, and Chu Mingcheng was worried something might happen to the seafood he’d planted. He began to subtly guide Jiang Luoluo toward the rigged rock pools.
"Wow, what a huge scallop!"
But Zhang Wei had beaten him to it, having already led Zhou Jiayi to the spot with the scallops and sea snails.
"Where? Where?" Jiang Luoluo was immediately drawn over.
As she passed a few small pools, something caught her eye. She looked down and saw a pile of lobsters huddled in a rock pool right at her feet, their antennae twitching conspicuously.
"AHHH!!!"
A female shriek suddenly pierced the air. Chu Mingcheng deadpanned, "Are you girls Pokémon or something? Is your first move always a scream attack?"
"Lobsters! So many lobsters!" Jiang Luoluo was too excited to care about his teasing. She pointed at the pool with one hand while frantically slapping his arm with the other.
"Woah~ They say beginners always hit the jackpot on their first fishing trip. I guess you hit the jackpot on your first beachcombing trip, too!" Chu Mingcheng had to commit to the act. He put on a deliberately exaggerated expression of shock. "Quick, use the tongs to get them in the bucket! We're eating well tonight!"
"Oh! Okay, okay!"
Jiang Luoluo hurriedly tried to grab them with her tongs, but she didn't have the strength. The lobsters kept wriggling free. Frustrated, she tossed the tongs aside and just went for it with her bare hands.
"Haha, so many lobsters!"
"Yep, you just crashed their family reunion and caught them all."
"Heehee~"
After getting all the lobsters into the bucket, the girl's eyes disappeared into crescents as she grinned from ear to ear.
Seeing that she'd found the lobsters, Zhang Wei took the opportunity to lead Zhou Jiayi toward the Sri Lankan mud crab.
But a mud crab is a vicious creature. Forget a three or four
jin
monster; most girls wouldn't dare grab one half that size.
Chu Mingcheng only heard the girls squealing, wanting to catch it, but too scared to try. In the end, he had to step in himself, expertly grabbing the massive crab and then collecting the scallops and sea snails one by one.
It was still early, and buoyed by their massive haul, Jiang Luoluo and Zhou Jiayi were full of energy. But that's when reality set in. For the rest of the morning, their inexperience showed, and they found almost nothing else before the tide started coming in at eleven.
"Let's go. We were already incredibly lucky this morning. We'll grab a simple lunch, and then I'll take you out on the water this afternoon."
"Out on the water? You have a boat?" Jiang Luoluo asked, surprised.
"I haven't bought one yet, but we can charter one!" Chu Mingcheng explained. "There's a group of fishermen on this island who make a living by setting out nets. You can pay to charter their boat."
"When the time is right, they take you out to pull up the nets. Whatever they catch, no matter the value, belongs to the person who chartered the boat."
Jiang Luoluo nodded in understanding. "I see. So, do the people who charter the boats usually make a profit or a loss?"
Chu Mingcheng chuckled. "Of course, they usually lose money.”
“The fishermen aren't stupid. They don't offer charters for the first month after the fishing ban ends. There's too much to catch then, and they'd lose money on the deal."
"They only start offering charters after a month, and the prices vary depending on the time. For example, a morning or midday trip costs two thousand. An evening trip is only one thousand five hundred."
Hearing that it was a losing proposition, Jiang Luoluo frowned. "Then let's skip it. We shouldn't do something we know we'll lose money on!"
"Haha, for us, it's more of a recreational activity. The main point is to experience how fishermen work and feel the joy of the harvest," he said, trying to persuade her. "Besides, your luck is so good today. Who knows? Maybe we'll have a huge catch!"
Just as Jiang Luoluo was about to protest again, Zhou Jiayi tugged on her sleeve and whispered, "Luoluo, since he's already planned it, let's just go. If the loss is too big, we can help cover some of the cost."
"Okay, fine," Jiang Luoluo agreed, seeing the logic in that.
After a quick lunch of seafood noodle soup at a local shop, Chu Mingcheng took them back to his house to drop off their haul. While there, he fed the small baitfish he’d found in the rock pools to his cat. A cute pet was always a good way to win over girls.
Unfortunately, the cat was extremely wary. It wouldn't let anyone but Chu Mingcheng near it, hissing and running away from the girls. Jiang Luoluo and Zhou Jiayi could only watch it eat from a distance, disappointed they couldn't get a chance to pet it.
With the cat fed, the group set off again for the pier.
Neither Chu Mingcheng nor Zhang Wei had any intention of bringing fishing rods. The waters around the island were filled with nets, leaving almost no good spots for angling. This was why most serious anglers, whenever they had time, would head to Dongting Island instead. The fishermen there had banded together for deep-sea fishing, so the fish resources around their island were still quite good.
The people who came to Yanmen Island to sea fish were mostly those short on time who didn't want too much hassle. They usually ended up catching nothing but a few small rockfish, or worse, going home completely empty.