"Time to go fishing~!"

Just as Mimi finished grooming herself after her meal and hopped onto Chu Mingcheng's lap to settle down, a cheerful, energetic female voice rang out from nearby.

Chu Mingcheng and Mimi both turned to look. A woman with a camera mounted on her head and dressed in full fishing attire was jogging toward them, carrying a tackle box.

Only when she ran closer did she realize someone was already on the bank, and her voice abruptly cut off.

Especially Chu Mingcheng's handsome looks made her stare blankly for a moment, but she quickly snapped back to attention.

She then gave an embarrassed smile, her whole demeanor shifting to one of shyness. She quietly found a spot about twenty meters away from him and began to set up.

A female angler, Chu Mingcheng, thought. That's a rare sight.

Seeing the camera on her head, he figured she was also a content creator.

For the next little while, the rod on his stand remained motionless. But he was perfectly content, stroking Mimi and teasing her a little. On the other side, the female angler was preparing her groundbait and organizing her gear.

Chu Mingcheng could feel her gaze on him, though. She kept stealing glances in his direction. He estimated that seventy percent of her attention was on him, and the other thirty percent was on Mimi.

Finally, while waiting for her groundbait to take effect, she seemed to run out of things to do and couldn't resist coming over to strike up a conversation.

"Hey, handsome! Your cat is so cute. Can I pet her?"

Chu Mingcheng looked down at Mimi and chuckled. It seemed bringing a cat along made it easier for people to approach him. At the very least, it provided a good excuse.

"My cat is a little wary of strangers, but you can try and see if she'll let you."

He lifted Mimi and set her on the ground. The female angler took the opportunity to sneak another peek at his profile before crouching down and reaching out to pet the cat.

"Meeeowr!"

Mimi's fur immediately stood on end. She let out a sharp, warning cry, telling the strange woman to back off.

"Uh..." The woman snatched her hand back, startled.

Seeing this, Chu Mingcheng had no choice but to pick Mimi up again and place her back on his lap. "Sorry about that," he said apologetically. "Mimi was a stray before I took her in, so she's still got a bit of a wild streak. It's probably best not to touch her."

"A stray?" the woman asked, surprised. "Then how did she...?"

"It was fate, I guess. One time, she stole a big crucian carp I'd caught. After that, I started feeding her fish every day, and eventually, she just became my cat."

The female angler wasn't wearing much makeup, but she was still well above average in looks. More importantly, she had a fantastic figure—curvy in all the right places. Chu Mingcheng found he didn't mind chatting with her a bit longer.

"Haha, that's a great story." Her laugh was bright and cheerful. She extended a hand toward him. "Let me introduce myself. My name is Yao Xin. I come here to fish pretty often."

Chu Mingcheng gently shook her hand. "I'm Chu Mingcheng. I don't really have a fixed spot. Wherever there's water, you'll find me."

"Ha! The way you say that you're a fishing addict!"

"I suppose so!"

"Hey, let's exchange contact info. I have an anglers' group chat I can add you to."

When Chu Mingcheng hesitated, Yao Xin pressed on. "It's full of like-minded fishing buddies. We share info about good spots and when the fish are running. It's a lot more fun than fishing alone, right?"

At first, Chu Mingcheng hadn't been interested, but the mention of fish runs caught his attention. For sea fishing, information was everything. You couldn't just conquer the world with a single fishing rod.

Different fish require different rods, line setups, and bait. Knowing about a fish run would allow him to prepare the right gear and avoid coming home empty-handed from a trip out to sea.

He added her, and she pulled him into the group chat. He immediately set it to 'Do Not Disturb'; he preferred lurking. But perhaps because he'd been added by a girl, a bunch of people immediately popped up in the chat, clamoring for the newbie to post a photo. If the newbie wouldn't, they demanded, then Yao Xin should post one instead.

"Don't mind them, they're all just a bunch of pervs," Yao Xin said, ignoring the chat and closing the window. "I'll introduce you to some of my actual friends when I get the chance."

"Sounds good." Chu Mingcheng just smiled at the photo requests. It was a normal hobby for guys.

Having finally found a handsome guy who caught her eye and made her want to approach, Yao Xin was reluctant to leave. But just as she was about to learn more about him, Chu Mingcheng's rod next to him finally stirred. Out on the water, the float zipped under and vanished. A bite!

Chu Mingcheng snatched up the rod with lightning speed, but the sheer force of the pull almost ripped it from his hands. He had no time to worry about Mimi on his lap; he grabbed the rod with both hands and shot to his feet. Cats have excellent balance. Mimi had sensed the movement and braced herself, landing solidly on all four paws.

The fish on the line was not small. Chu Mingcheng found he couldn't even pull it in. He started walking to the right, leading the big fish in the water to try and wear it out.

The rod was already bent into a deep crescent, looking like it might snap at any second. But Chu Mingcheng knew the tip section was hard to break. If it was going to snap, it would be just above the handle where he was gripping it—that was the weakest point.

Hah... hah... After just five minutes, he didn't know if the fish was tired, but he certainly was. No wonder the shop owner had suggested he practice on a large freshwater fish first. If he'd gone straight to deep-sea fishing, his inexperience meant he likely might not have been able to reel them in. The chances of the hook pulling out would have been huge.

"Just keep playing it a little longer! It'll run out of energy soon," Yao Xin cheered from the side, landing net already in her hand, ready to help once he got the fish to the bank.

The fish thrashed on the surface, making loud splashing sounds. The line was so taut it looked like it could break at any moment, but it held strong, refusing to snap no matter how much the fish struggled.

Chu Mingcheng felt the fish's strength begin to wane. He immediately put his back into it, pulling the fish toward the bank. The ten-meter distance between them shortened, but the fish wasn't done yet. It started pulling line again.

A new round in the battle began. This time, Chu Mingcheng pulled to the left, continuing to drain its stamina.

Another five or six minutes passed. Chu Mingcheng's breathing grew heavy, a sign that he was exhausting his energy as well.

Seeing this, Yao Xin couldn't help but step forward. "Do you need some help?"

"I've got it. This fish is only about twenty jin. I can handle it." Are you kidding? He thought. This is the first time I've ever hooked a fish this big. There's no way I'm letting someone else land it.

Time trickled by. It wasn't until more than ten minutes later that the fish finally rolled over on its side, clearly exhausted. This time, Chu Mingcheng pulled back on his rod and easily dragged the fish to the bank. Yao Xin quickly scooped it up with the large landing net and brought it ashore. It was a huge black carp.

"Your luck is amazing! I rarely ever see a black carp this big."

"The Ou River is massive. Of course, you're going to find big fish!"

"This isn't a stocked pond. You can't just catch big fish whenever you want. It's all about luck."

Just then, the black carp seemed to regain a bit of strength and started thrashing its tail in the net.

Mimi, who had been cautiously sniffing it, saw it dare to move and immediately let loose a flurry of "papataps"—a classic case of kitty-cat punches, which made both Chu Mingcheng and Yao Xin burst out laughing.