During the fish’s initial, powerful run, Chu Mingcheng didn’t rush to lift the rod or reel it in. Instead, he let the fish tire itself out, letting it pull against the line for a while.

It wasn’t an especially large catch, but he’d handled plenty over ten jin before and had the experience to match. This was now a battle of endurance between man and fish.

When the fish was of decent size and the rod lacked the stiffness for brute force, a quick victory was nearly impossible.

Some might brag about landing ten- or even twenty-jin fish with a cheap rod—or even a bamboo pole. And they wouldn’t necessarily be lying. After all, there were fishermen who went out to sea in small boats and hauled in tuna or massive marlin with nothing but their bare hands.

But Chu Mingcheng’s current jigging rod wasn’t built for brute-force hauling. He had to patiently wear the fish down, which could take ten—maybe even twenty—minutes.

The fish on his line was fierce. If he loosened his grip on the reel for even a moment, it would strip away a good length of line.

He didn’t know how long he had been locked in the struggle, but at last, the pressure on his hands eased.

Seizing the moment, Chu Mingcheng lifted the rod to gain line, then quickly cranked the reel, pulling the fish closer. He had to land it now. A fish wasn’t truly his until it was on the boat.

He Zheng, who had been watching the commotion for some time, finally walked over. The moment he spotted the flash of red beneath the water, he cursed in surprise. “Holy crap! They make red-spotted groupers that big?”

The red-spotted grouper was one of the four famed prized fish. These days, most on the market were farm-raised, but wild ones were rare—and staggeringly expensive.

A fish weighing less than a jin, around seven or eight liang, could fetch nearly one hundred eighty yuan. If it topped a jin, the price would double to over three hundred, and the larger the fish, the higher the price climbed.

He Zheng’s outburst immediately piqued everyone’s curiosity. One by one, they set aside their work and came over to look—only to fall silent, their expressions frozen in astonishment.

“Damn! I’ve been fishing over ten years, and I’ve never seen a red-spotted grouper this big. Biggest I ever saw was six jin, six liang—and some rich guy forked out eight thousand yuan for it!”

“Eight thousand? Hell, then this one’s gotta be worth at least ten grand!”

“At least? Hah, I’d bet more. Five-, six-jin groupers are rare, yeah, but you still spot ’em at the market sometimes. This one’s what—ten jin, easy? With something this rare— who knows how high the price could go!”

Chu Mingcheng listened to the excited chatter, a little dazed. He hadn’t expected to hook a red-spotted grouper at all—he’d thought it was just a sea bream or a sea bass.

A six-jin, six-liang grouper could sell for eight thousand yuan. By that logic, his catch could easily fetch twenty thousand.

Even if it didn’t reach that high, it would still be worth at least fifteen. A fish like this was the kind of prize one might land only once a year—or even once every few years.

With that thought, Chu Mingcheng grew even more cautious.

Landing a red-spotted grouper this size would make him the envy of everyone on board.

And where there was envy, there was jealousy. He was certain more than a few people were secretly hoping the fish would break free.

One of the men stepped forward with a landing net and offered, “Let me help you bring it in.”

"I'll do it." He Zheng glanced at him and took the net from his hands.

Chu Mingcheng was his guest. Even if this grouper wasn’t sold to him, He Zheng would still buy his yellow croakers. After years at sea, He Zheng had dealt with all kinds of people and could read the man’s intentions at a glance.

The angler who’d had the net taken from him kept his expression neutral, but inwardly, he was hoping He Zheng would slip up and the fish would get away.

Unfortunately for him, that hope was in vain. As soon as the fish was drawn alongside the boat, He Zheng moved with practiced precision, scooping it up in one smooth motion and lifting it onto the deck.

Only then did Chu Mingcheng let out a long breath of relief, wiping the sweat from his forehead. It wasn’t from the physical strain of fishing, but from the nerve-wracking tension. A fish worth at least fifteen thousand yuan—when had he ever fought such a high-stakes battle?

He Zheng removed the hook and immediately called out to the boat’s owner. “Ah Jie, hurry up and get your aerator!”

“Right away, right away!” Ah Jie rushed over with an aerator and a fish cooler. He quickly filled it with seawater and switched on the machine.

By then, He Zheng had already finished unhooking the catch. Using a fish gripper to weigh it, he announced the result—ten jin and three liang, a full catch.

Breaking the ten-jin mark pushed the grouper’s value into an entirely different bracket.

Since it had been caught in the upper water column, there was no need to vent it. He Zheng carried the fish to the cockpit, placed it in the cooler to keep it oxygenated, then called out, “Ah Cheng, come to the cockpit for a minute. I need to talk to you about something.”

“Alright.” Chu Mingcheng had just replaced his frayed leader line. He nodded and headed over, already guessing what this was about.

This was clearly about selling the fish. He had every intention of selling it, and as long as He Zheng’s offer was reasonable, he didn’t particularly care who the buyer was.

When Chu Mingcheng stepped into the cockpit, He Zheng got straight to the point.

“Ah Cheng, I won’t name you a purchase price for this fish. Instead, I’ll ask around and see which of the bosses I know is willing to pay the highest.

“If you’re satisfied with the price, I’ll take a thousand-yuan commission. How about it?”

Chu Mingcheng thought for a moment before saying, “He-ge, how about this? I’ll set the price at twenty thousand. If you manage to negotiate anything higher, the extra’s all yours. What do you think?”

Twenty thousand was already a steep price. Even if Chu Mingcheng asked around in his own group chat, he was confident he could sell it for fifteen thousand, but twenty thousand… that was pushing it.

Still, this was also about giving He Zheng face. If He Zheng hadn’t invited him out to fish for large yellow croaker, he wouldn’t have caught this red-spotted grouper in the first place.

He Zheng was momentarily stunned, then gave a wry smile. “You’re really making things difficult for me. Twenty thousand… fine, I’ll see if I can find a sucker.”

For a price over twenty thousand, some hotels might be willing to pay a premium for the prestige. And some bosses, looking to impress clients, wouldn't blink at spending over twenty thousand.

But that all came down to luck. Even wealthy buyers didn’t like feeling cheated, and whether it sold for over twenty thousand depended entirely on whether someone He Zheng knew was willing to pay that much.

Chu Mingcheng wasn’t in a hurry to get back to fishing. He stayed in the cockpit, taking the chance to rest.

A short while later, he caught sight of He Zheng smiling as he tapped away on his phone—and Chu Mingcheng knew the deal was sealed. It seemed twenty thousand was as good as guaranteed.

Sure enough, He Zheng put away his phone with a grin. “I’ll take it for twenty thousand. I’ll transfer the money to you when we settle up for the yellow croakers.”

“Great. In that case, He-ge, you handle your business. I’m heading back to fishing.” Chu Mingcheng was all smiles. Twenty thousand for a single fish—he’d struck gold.

But then his thoughts drifted to the seven-banded grouper from yesterday. That catch was far more tempting. Not only did it fetch a higher price, but it had been massive. The fight to reel it in must have been exhilarating.

Chu Mingcheng went back to battling the large yellow croakers. At some point—just as another croaker thrashed onto the deck, gurgling—he realized his own stomach was growling too.

He hadn’t eaten much of a proper dinner, and now it was already one in the morning. Hunger was only natural.

Tossing the yellow croaker into his cooler, he checked his haul. The cooler was about half full, easily twenty-something jin—all wild-caught. Beside it, a few other large yellow croakers lay in a careless pile.

Their fate was much less enviable; they were escapees from net pens, with stunted fins and bloated bellies, obvious signs they hadn’t been free for long. Their market value was far lower.

Chu Mingcheng pulled a thermos from his tackle box, ready to have a quick snack and take a short rest.

The other anglers, however, were still fishing without pause, spurred on by the sight of his massive red-spotted grouper.