"Alright!"

Concerned about securing his exclusive spot for the next few days, Zhang Yang worked quickly, setting up Lao Zhao's fishing platform with four legs, and got busy in no time.

After finishing all this, the spot he had baited earlier started showing results again.

Zhang Yang wasn't one to miss out; he carried Lao Zhao's tackle box to the platform, rigged up a sturdy rod for the black pit carp and got to work.

In the morning at the tip of the headland, the fish activity was extraordinary. Even at the new spot with no base bait, Zhang Yang had only cast a dozen or so lures with bait and used lead weights to drop two balls of bait, and he was getting bites already!

By this point, the pace of catching fish was different from wild fishing. Zhang Yang, being a top angler, efficiently applied techniques for catching large carp from black pits.

Using lead weights to set the base bait, adding scattered bait with lures, and maintaining a steady casting frequency to attract fish and establish the spot, within half an hour, the bites became consistent.

Unnoticed, it had already passed six in the morning.

Driving over, Meng Fan and Xiao Yi reached the headland spot and were startled to see that Lao Zhao and his partner caught several hundred pounds of large carp overnight.

Seeing the next shift had arrived, Lao Zhao and Wang Jun waved them over, the two brothers stepped off their fishing spots and waded back to the shore.

After a night's work, their stomachs were growling. Face to face with the buns Xiao Yi brought, they gobbled them up voraciously. Once full, they began to sort out the fish catch from the nets.

The storage box was definitely not enough to hold all the fish, so they could only scoop them out with a fishing net, put them in burlap sacks. It took the four of them more than half an hour to pack the fish from the nets into bags and load them onto the vehicle, heading straight for the fish market.

Just five minutes after Lao Zhao and Wang Jun left, the sound of a car engine came from Yanhe Road. Hearing the noise, Zhang Yang paused and glanced up.

The thing he dreaded most had happened—someone was coming!

Before opening the store, Zhang Yang was known as the Little Prince of the Wen River, often fishing along the riverside. Even if didn't know someone personally, he'd at least recognize the face. The person coming now was a familiar face.

"Hey! You guys got here early, huh? How's the bite?"

The one greeting them was a skinny middle-aged man with a cigarette dangling from his mouth and his small eyes darting about.

"Not bad, caught some big carp!" Zhang Yang responded neither warmly nor coldly.

"Are all three fishing platforms at the headland yours? Seems like someone's missing, eh? Could you spare a spot for us? The fishing spot at Wangjia Village is completely overcrowded, a total bust. I came here a few times with friends last fall!"

The skinny guy's eyes were shifty, and he noticed the unoccupied third fishing platform before he even finished speaking.

At this moment, the platforms at the headland were like three peaks of a mountain, with all the ideal spots already taken. If anyone wanted to set up another platform, they'd have to do it much closer.

"Sorry, my friend is on the way, he'll be here soon! This spot was prepped for him!" Zhang Yang decisively refused.

"Alright, we'll take another look around!" Seeing Zhang Yang wouldn't relent, the skinny guy nodded, turned with his companion, and quickly drove away from the spot.

Once the unfamiliar anglers left, Zhang Yang pulled out his phone and decisively called Wang Yan.

According to the shooting schedule, Wang Yan and his team had just returned the day before yesterday from shooting a black pit fishing show in a neighboring city. Today was their last rest day at home.

The juicy spot was not going to be shared with outsiders for no reason.

Meanwhile, the skinny guy and his companion were back in the car, the smile on his face quickly faded.

"Third Brother, wasn't that Zhang Yang and them fishing at the headland? I saw someone with a camera too!" a chubby young guy asked.

The skinny one, known as Third Brother, nodded: "Yeah! That's Zhang Yang and his crew! I just asked casually. Seeing how protective they were of their fishing spots, it must be a prime spot full of fish!

Last night, at least a few hundred pounds of big carp were caught over at Wangjia Village! We watched for just a short while, and they caught several big carp!

This spot is upstream and exclusive; the fishing here has to be better!"

"What should we do then? Is there another suitable fishing spot further up? Otherwise, we might just pick a random spot with nice depth! If we delay any longer, we'll miss the good fishing!"

"Don't rush, let me think!" Pi San frowns slightly, pulls out his phone book, and flips through slowly.

With these riverside wild fishing spots, the unspoken rule has always been first come, first served. Whoever claims it owns it.

Initially, Third Brother didn't have a good plan, but as his eyes passed over a name in his phone book, he suddenly got an idea.

Soon, Third Brother dialed a number!

"Hey! Is this Su Qiang? It's Pi San! Yes, yes! Got something to bug you about. If I'm not wrong, you're from Su Family Village, right? East Su or South Su?"

"East Su, what can I do for you, Third Brother? Just say the word if you need something!"

"East Su, huh? That's a bit inconvenient!" Pi San sounded slightly disappointed.

"East Su and South Su both belong to Su Family Village, just called differently. We're under the same village committee now!

Third Brother, if you've thought of me, feel free to speak your mind, no need to beat around the bush! If it's doable, I'll definitely help without a second thought!"

"Here's the thing..." After clarifying some details, Pi San quickly mentioned his request over the phone.

"This little thing? No problem, my uncle is in charge of the river segment in the village, we'll just get him to bring a couple of people and drive them away! Don't worry, I'll let you know!"

"Alright, much appreciated, brother!"

...

When it comes to riverside wild fishing, for regular anglers, it's indeed first come, first served, but there are exceptions.

Every village segment along the river has a river chief, though the position is mostly ceremonial. Usually, no one really meddles in affairs unless during flood season when government directives require river chiefs to patrol the riverbanks for a few days.

However, strictly speaking, the river chief does have a certain degree of authority.

Around eight-thirty, a middle-aged man with a red armband arrived at the headland where Zhang Yang and his team were fishing, on a small iron boat.

At this moment, Wang Yan had just received the call and arrived not long ago, chatting animatedly with Zhang Yang and others about their latest successful fishing trip.

"Hey there, guys! I'm the river chief of Su Family Village, responsible for the safety of the Wen River segment south of the village!

Just got word from the village leadership: the upstream reservoir is releasing water, making riverside fishing unsafe. Please relocate for safety; the leaders need us to do this so they can account for it!"

"Unsafe fishing? Who's fishing unsafely?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Yan immediately felt annoyed. His hometown wasn't far from Su Family Village, practically growing up by the river, and he'd never heard of such rules.

Zhang Yang gave Wang Yan a look, signaling him to stay quiet, and stood up with a smile, "Hello there, brother. My friend has a bit of a temper, don't mind him!

It's not flood season, and we're not kids. Why can't we fish? This is a new policy, then?"

"Yes! A new policy! If there's a problem, someone's going to be held accountable! You're just having fun, don't make it hard for those of us working!" The other party, seeing Zhang Yang was reasonable, went along with the story.

"Are you sure it's a new policy? From the Water Bureau or the River Authority?" Upon hearing this, Meng Fan, who hadn't spoken until now, keenly caught this key point.

"Uh... I'm not sure either. But you're not allowed to fish unsafely by the river! Pack up and go!"

"I'll call a friend to check!"

In his own area of expertise, Meng Fan was unfazed, whipping out his phone to call some contacts for confirmation.

After making a few calls, Meng Fan pursed his lips, looking displeased: "What nonsense policy! There's no such thing! Are you trying to con us?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yang also got a clue, squinting at the other, "Did you notice the small plated car parked by the shore? My friend works in the city government, are you sure there's a policy?

Maybe someone has their eye on this headland fishing spot and deliberately sent you to drive us away?"

The middle-aged man with the red armband glanced at the Audi parked by the woods, suddenly feeling uneasy.

Smoothly making up an excuse to get them to leave, he didn't expect to encounter professionals in the field! Meng Fan hadn't avoided being overheard in his calls; they genuinely had connections.

What to do now!