Chapter 25: A Stroke of Incredible Luck

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From the way Lin Qin listened to Chen Wenjun speak at length, she knew he had planned everything long ago and had already taken the consequences into account.

That meant she really had nothing to worry about.

Only after finishing their conversation outside did the two of them enter the cabin and explain the situation on the deserted island to Lin Yi.

Lin Yi had spent his entire life farming and possessed a deep attachment to the land. As soon as he heard that the island contained dozens of acres that could be reclaimed, he asked without hesitation, “How much would it cost to buy this deserted island?”

Chen Wenjun shook his head honestly. “I’ll spend the next couple of days fishing. When I have some free time, I’ll go into the city to sell the catch and ask around at the Land and Resources Bureau.”

In his previous life, he had gone out of his way to avoid government offices. In this life, he had already been in and out of the police station several times. There was hardly anywhere he still lacked the courage to go.

When Chen Wenjun set out the fish traps, Lin Qin lent him a hand. The two worked together with perfect understanding.

Lin Yi watched them and secretly marveled.

Chen Wenjun’s traps could only catch small fish, shrimp, and crabs. If they were lucky, a few marble gobies or eels might crawl inside, but not many.

To catch large fish, they had to use fishing rods. Catching valuable marble gobies was even more particular.

They needed a scoop net.

A scoop net consisted of two bamboo poles three or four meters long and a crescent-shaped net. Each end of the net had a length of rope, one or two meters long, connecting it to the tip of a bamboo pole.

Half of the net’s opening was fitted with floats, while the other half carried lead weights. To use it, one held the two poles in both hands, with their bottoms braced against a wooden board tied around the waist. The board had grooves cut into it. The fisherman then turned slightly to the left, forming a V with the poles, before gently casting them forward. Carried by inertia, the net would land steadily in the water.

The lead weights sank rapidly. As the net was dragged along, the fisherman struck the water with the bamboo poles, driving the fish toward the net. Startled, the fish scattered in every direction. At that moment, the bottoms of the poles were braced against the grooves again, the body leaned backward, and the poles were pulled up swiftly with both hands. Water splashed loudly as the fish trapped inside thrashed about.

This method could catch marble gobies hiding in cracks between rocks.

After setting out the traps, Chen Wenjun really did intend to use the scoop net to catch marble gobies.

Lin Qin had no idea how to handle the thing, so she asked, “Where’s the fishing rod? Get me some earthworms. I’m going fishing.”

In her previous life, that was how she had passed the time aboard the boat. Unfortunately, she had never been lucky. After sitting there all day, she usually caught only a few palm-sized carp or crucian carp.

She often heard people boasting about catching dozens of pounds of large fish from the Nanxi River. As far as she was concerned, they were all talking nonsense. She had never seen such a thing herself—or perhaps the goddess of fortune had simply never favored her in that life.

Hearing this, Lin Yi searched for a fishing rod while advising her, “Just treat it as a game. Don’t get too invested, or you’ll only end up depressed.”

“You’re making fun of me!” Lin Qin glared at him angrily.

Lin Yi immediately fell silent and obediently prepared everything she needed.

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Lin Yi, who remained in the cabin, was very worried. “Girl, are you sure you can do this? Your father has never seen you catch a fish in all these years. If you can’t, don’t force it. What if you ruin Wenjun’s things?”

To a poor family, even a broken piece of scrap metal was a treasure in Lin Yi’s eyes.

“Dad! Why are you just like Wenjun? This time, I’m going to show you both what I can do!” Lin Qin clenched her fists fiercely.

Chen Wenjun shook his head to himself and did not dare say another word.

Taking his scoop net and bucket, he quickly climbed down from the boat.

He would be catching fish nearby, where every movement aboard the boat was visible. He was not worried that anything would happen.

Lin Qin glanced at Chen Wenjun as he walked away and secretly breathed a sigh of relief. For some inexplicable reason, she always felt nervous whenever he was around. The moment he left, she calmed down.

The first step in fishing was to bait the hook.

Seeing the wriggling earthworms, Lin Qin did not even furrow her brow. She snapped one in two, threaded it onto the hook, and cast the bait out in one smooth motion.

At that moment, she felt terrifyingly capable.

The two children were awed by her imposing manner. They climbed out of the cabin one after another, sat down beside her, and began whispering.

“Brother Ping’an, my mother is amazing.” Liu Yaya gazed at Lin Qin with adoration and admiration.

Chen Ping’an nodded solemnly. “Auntie is amazing!”

Lin Qin: “...”

What was she supposed to do? With the two children staring at her like that, the pressure suddenly became immense. If she failed to catch anything, wouldn’t she be humiliated beyond redemption?

Her heart was in turmoil when Chen Ping’an suddenly pointed excitedly at the surface of the water and said in a carefully restrained voice, “Auntie, a fish is on the hook.”

Lin Qin stared closely—and he was right!

The anxious feeling in her chest inexplicably eased. She hurriedly pulled on the rod.

Unexpectedly, whatever was beneath the water suddenly surged with strength, nearly wrenching the rod from her hands.

Lin Qin quickly gripped it tightly and shouted excitedly, “It’s a big fish! With this kind of strength, it must be huge! Ping’an, bring the net! I’m afraid the line won’t hold!”

Although Chen Ping’an was partially paralyzed and one side of his body was difficult to control, the other side functioned normally. He had used that side for so long that his posture looked strange, but he was not slow. He soon brought the landing net over to Lin Qin.

Lin Qin held the fishing rod in one hand and tired out the fish. As soon as it neared the surface, she set the rod down and lowered the net. Once she confirmed that the fish was inside, she immediately handed the rod to the two children, gripped the net with both hands, and hauled the fish aboard.

The commotion attracted Lin Yi as well. He cautiously shuffled over, and the moment he saw the fish, he sucked in a sharp breath.

“Well, would you look at that! It’s a bighead carp! It must weigh at least four or five pounds! Good work, girl! You caught a big fish as soon as you came aboard. That’s an excellent omen!”

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Old people believed strongly in such omens, and Lin Yi laughed from the bottom of his heart.

Chen Ping’an had already shouted himself hoarse calling Chen Wenjun back.

Lin Qin was even more excited than they were inside, but she simply did not show it.

When Chen Wenjun climbed back aboard and saw the bighead carp, he gave Lin Qin a thumbs-up. “You’ve finally used up all the bad luck from your previous life. Good fortune has arrived!”

“Go away!” Lin Qin gave an arrogant little snort and continued fishing with renewed composure.

Chen Wenjun stood beside her, smiling as he watched for a while. When another fish took the bait, he was completely astonished.

Although the fish this time was only a crucian carp weighing perhaps seven or eight ounces, compared with Lin Qin’s previous results, it was dazzling beyond belief.

Chen Wenjun patted her shoulder in satisfaction. “Keep it up!”

With that, he climbed back down to catch fish.

Lin Qin guarded this “auspicious spot” and continued fishing until nightfall before finally putting away her rod.

She had caught seven or eight crucian carp, five or six carp, and one large bighead carp.

Chen Wenjun had also caught more than a dozen marble gobies.

Lin Qin found that quite unexpected.

“Are marble gobies really that easy to catch?”

Chen Wenjun shook his head. “It’s not that marble gobies are easy to catch. I’ve simply been lucky lately. Every time I go fishing, I seem to come back with a decent haul. No—not just me. You’re the same.”

The two exchanged a glance, instantly understanding what had happened, but neither of them said it aloud.

People said that those who lived by the mountains depended on the mountains, while those who lived by the water depended on the water. Aboard a fishing boat, everything they ate came from the water: snails cooked in soy sauce, small fish cooked in soy sauce—anything could be simmered in soy sauce.

Other than that, there were only pickled vegetables.

For this era, such meals were already remarkably abundant.