"Hey, boss, what are you thinking about?" Edward Anderson called out, stepping up to Jiang Hai who stood at the bow. He pulled out his pipe, puffed thoughtfully, and asked.
Jiang Hai turned around and smiled. "Oh, nothing much. Just wondering how many fish we'll catch this time."
"Don't worry, boss," Edward said with a confident grin. "This year, we're definitely going to have a bumper harvest." Jiang Hai smiled back, his gaze drifting back to the distant sea.
It had been three days since the Sea God Festival. That day, Jiang Hai and Kelly had nearly ended up together in the tent—well, almost—but just then, Qi Ya had returned, bringing fruit for Jiang Hai. Luckily, they hadn't removed their clothes yet, or else they would've been caught. Still, Qi Shui's suspicious glare left Jiang Hai at a loss for words.
Later that night, Qi Ya deliberately visited Jiang Hai's room and left two hours later, apparently satisfied.
In the days that followed, Jiang Hai and his team remained busy. But no matter how hectic things got, Jiang Hai insisted on going on the first fishing trip of the season.
Jiang Hai's fishing boat had been assembled in Boston, designed not just for sailing but for stability on the sea. It wasn't a speedboat but was built for serious fishing.
"Don't worry, boss. If you're still uneasy, come check the sonar with me!" Edward suddenly said, noticing Jiang Hai's worried look.
Jiang Hai hesitated briefly, then nodded. He followed Edward down into the hold, where Maren Rupert was steering the boat.
Jiang Hai had been brought along to pilot both the plane and the boat—part of his duties.
Next to Maren was the sonar screen, its display flickering constantly. Tiny dots blinked across the screen, representing schools of fish. The data confirmed that Jiang Hai's fishery was thriving.
"We're still near the coral reef. We need to head further out to sea," Edward explained with a smile.
Edward and his crew often ventured out to sea for daily checks—feeding fish, testing water quality, and marking fish schools on the sonar. Each trip burned thousands of dollars in diesel, but these preparations were essential.
The sonar's job was to detect and track fish schools. They didn't just cast nets randomly—the crew carefully mapped where different fish species congregated, how large they were, and when they were ready to catch.
Jiang Hai didn't know all these details. He knew the fishery was rich with fish, but until they were caught, they weren't his.
Fish were clever, after all—it wasn't easy to catch them.
So, Jiang Hai's anxiety lingered as the boat sped away from the coral reef into deeper waters. Despite his worries, the fishing boat moved swiftly.
On the sonar, the blips grew larger—schools of American redfish, the first batch Jiang Hai had ordered the previous year.
When they had bought these fry from Tie Niu, the fish were no bigger than an index finger. A typical fish farm could raise these fish to about two kilograms and twenty centimeters in a year.
But Jiang Hai's fishery wasn't ordinary. These fish had absorbed Jiang Hai's spiritual energy from the start, fed on specially prepared food infused with spiritual power, and had grown impressively. To Jiang Hai's eyes, they averaged two kilograms (around four pounds), about thirty centimeters long—larger than usual.
Tenglong Manor's best fishing time was actually after three years of raising these fish. But like any venture, you had to start small—one bite at a time. Since the fishery wasn't yet profitable, Jiang Hai decided to catch some fish this year to bring in income.
After locating the American redfish, Maren took the helm, Edward operated the fishing machine, and Tommy Charles, Enor Ceci, and Andrew Christian prepared to lower the nets. With everything ready, the boat positioned itself in front of the fish school.
At Edward's command, the nets were cast into the sea.
Jiang Hai felt the boat dip slightly and slow, though it still moved faster than the fish.
On the sonar, the dots entered the nets one by one.
When the net was full, Edward started the engine to haul it back. Tommy and the others opened the ice cabin doors, ready to receive the catch.
As the net emerged, it looked like a huge water droplet—an ellipse about six meters across.
When the net was opened at the ice cabin's entrance, countless American redfish tumbled onto the deck like rain, signaling the start of the fishermen's real work: sorting.
The redfish slid directly into the ice cabin, while unwanted fish and seaweed were tossed back into the ocean. Seeing the haul, Jiang Hai finally felt relief.
"Guys, this is a gift from the Sea God! Our boss is a man blessed by the gods—this sea has given us countless fish!" Edward Anderson shouted triumphantly.
"Good harvest! Good harvest!" the crew echoed, their voices ringing with excitement.
With the Atlantic fisheries depleted, it had been a long time since they'd seen a catch like this. Usually, a single net wouldn't yield so much fish, and if it caught mostly debris, that was considered lucky.
Seeing the haul, the fishermen were touched, even moved to tears. But they quickly refocused—their job was to make money for Jiang Hai, not dwell on the past.
As the fish were iced and sorted, Jiang Hai helped out. According to Edward, the total weight was about five tons. After deducting water and debris, the net weight was around four tons.
It was a solid haul. Jiang Hai's nets had large 10-centimeter mesh, letting smaller fish slip through. The average fish caught weighed about two pounds, but the larger ones—over 30 centimeters—were trapped. Most of these were over 40 centimeters.
Edward estimated about 3,000 American redfish in the school; they caught roughly 2,000. The remaining 1,000 would grow and continue to seed the fishery.
After processing this batch, Jiang Hai's team continued fishing, freely patrolling the fishery's perimeter.
The sonar kept detecting fish targets, and Jiang Hai helped Tommy sort the nets before casting again.
Jiang Hai's boat had four storage compartments:
One chilled with ice for precious fish like blue spear or bluefin tuna.
Another for cold fresh fish, preserved by spraying cold air to save space and extend freshness.
A general ice storage compartment for ordinary seafood.
And a water storage room, where seawater constantly flows through, keeping live fish fresh. This was especially for valuable species Jiang Hai needed to keep alive until sale.
Some said the fish survived not because of the water but because they kept swimming. Even then, constant swimming exhausted them, so this tank was designed to keep fish alive for just about a day—enough for Jiang Hai, since his markets were nearby.
Just as they finished processing, Maren's voice came over the radio: the second wave of fish was nearby. Jiang Hai and his crew threw the nets again.
This time, they were more relaxed—and once again, the haul was impressive: about five tons of fish, with 95% American redfish.
This batch was more diverse. Besides the four species Jiang Hai farmed—American redfish, salmon, grouper, giant grouper, and recently added yellow croaker—there were five or six other kinds.
Jiang Hai's fishery truly was a treasure trove.
Most striking were the dozen giant groupers—large predatory fish growing over half a meter long. Jiang Hai grabbed one and tested it, surprised by how much it had grown—over 100 catties (about 50 kilograms) in a year. These were hard to catch in the wild.
He patted the grouper and tossed it into the ice storage. The bloodline was strong, making them valuable.
There were also regular groupers, American redfish, and over twenty salmon caught. The salmon, also predators, fed on many of the smaller fish.
"Is this herring?" Jiang Hai asked Edward, holding a small silver fish.
"Yeah, Atlantic herring. Looks like these little guys are attracted by your fishery," Edward said with a smile, already calculating profits.
The two hauls totaled about eight tons. At an average price of $8 per kilogram, that's roughly $64,000. With higher prices for groupers and salmon, today's income might top $100,000.
Besides herring, the catch included barracudas and mackerel—not farmed by Jiang Hai, but clearly unwilling to leave this rich fishery.
To be continued...