Lunch was simple aboard the boat. Since they'd bought plenty of prepared food, there was no need for Chu Mingcheng to cook a special meal—the group was saving their energy for dinner anyway.

It wasn't until around two in the afternoon that they finally reached their destination.

The morning trip against the Qiantang River current had slowed them down, but heading out to sea with the flow made the return journey nearly an hour faster.

Zhou Jiayi stood on the outer deck, looking at the twin islands ahead. "Luoluo, are we having our cookout on this island today?"

"Looks like it. See? The photo was taken right here," Jiang Luoluo said, pulling up a picture on her phone to compare before nodding in confirmation.

"I wonder what we'll catch later!" Zhou Jiayi clasped her hands together, anticipation in her eyes giving her a particularly sweet look.

In a man's eyes, she was an innocent young woman; in a woman's eyes, she might seem a bit calculated.

But Jiang Luoluo would never see her best friend that way. She knew this was just Zhou Jiayi's natural charm.

"Probably fish and crabs, that sort of thing. We'll find out once we start pumping."

As the boat slowly approached the reef area, Zhang Wei and Chen Yang got ready on the foredeck.

A moment later, a slight jolt ran through the hull as the bow gently bumped the reef.

They'd arrived at the landing point. Chu Mingcheng kept the boat steady from the helm while Zhang Wei and Chen Yang worked together to lift the water pump and prepare to step onto the reef.

Because of the waves, the boat constantly rose and fell, making it difficult for them to get a firm footing.

After two failed attempts, they realized they couldn't carry the machine onto the reef together. So Zhang Wei climbed onto the reef first, then turned back to have Chen Yang lift the water pump and pass it to him.

However, they'd overestimated their strength. Being able to move the pump didn't mean they could lift it.

Chu Mingcheng had requested a high-powered water pump, and one of those weighed a good sixty to seventy jin—about thirty jin heavier than portable models.

With the boat constantly bobbing, Chen Yang barely managed to lift it, trying to hand it to Zhang Wei on the reef.

But Zhang Wei had to wait for the perfect moment—when a wave lifted the boat high enough for him to get a firm grip. Otherwise, its weight would pull him right into the water.

In the end, Chen Yang couldn't hold on. After letting out a breath, he had no choice but to set the machine back down.

The two girls wanted to help, but the landing spot on the bow was only big enough for one person—no way for anyone else to assist.

Seeing this, Chu Mingcheng had to leave the helm. "Luoluo, you take over. I'd better handle this!"

Jiang Luoluo, knowing his strength, nodded and immediately went into the pilothouse.

Without anyone at the controls, the boat had drifted away with the waves. Once she took the helm, she slowly steered it back.

She steered with surprising stability, which surprised Chu Mingcheng.

He'd half-expected her to bump the reef a few times before getting the hang of it.

With that, he had Chen Yang climb onto the reef too. He lifted the water pump himself, hoisted it above his chest, and passed it directly to them.

Zhou Jiayi had followed Jiang Luoluo into the cabin. Seeing this scene, she nudged her best friend's shoulder and teased, "Luoluo, I wasn't sure before, but now I know you're going to be very happy in the future."

Jiang Luoluo understood instantly and retorted with a blush, "What are you talking about? Are you just jealous?"

"If I'm jealous, will you give him to me?"

"In your dreams!"

While the girls joked in the cabin, the men outside had already moved the water pump onto the reef.

Next, Chu Mingcheng lifted the barrel of diesel he'd specially bought and helped them move the pump to the tide pool's edge.

They attached the intake hose to the pump, poured in the diesel, and started it up.

The seawater in the pool was immediately sucked up and discharged out the other side.

By the time the three finished, they saw Jiang Luoluo had already moved the boat and anchored it before the beach, and the two girls were now busy with an inflatable boat.

Seeing this, Chu Mingcheng and the others left the pump to work and made their way along the reef toward the adjacent beach.

By the time they reached the sand, Jiang Luoluo and Zhou Jiayi had already arrived in the inflatable boat.

They'd also brought all the tools, ingredients, and seasonings for dinner, saving Chu Mingcheng a trip back to the boat.

Two folding tables were set up side-by-side, piled high with barbecue ingredients.

Then Chu Mingcheng took a knife and started chopping vegetables while the others skewered food onto bamboo sticks.

They didn't prepare a huge amount, mainly because they suspected there would be plenty of seafood in the tide pool—that would be the evening's main event.

With prep work mostly done, the group walked toward the tide pool.

Only about forty minutes had passed, and the water level had only dropped partway. It would take at least two or three more hours to completely drain.

So Jiang Luoluo suggested, "Why don't we look for shellfish? I brought a big jar of garlic sauce."

"Alright, let's split into teams. I'll go with Luoluo, and you guys can be the other team," Chu Mingcheng said, pulling Jiang Luoluo away while giving Zhang Wei a subtle, meaningful look.

Zhang Wei gave a slight nod to show he understood. After they left, he immediately clutched his stomach. "Ouch, I think I caught a chill last night. My stomach hurts. I need to take care of some business."

Without waiting for Chen Yang to respond, he immediately ran off.

Chen Yang gave a wry smile. He knew his friends meant well, and at this point, he wasn't going to back down.

He took the initiative and led Zhou Jiayi to search for edible shellfish and sea snails, making conversation as they went.

From a distance, Chu Mingcheng watched the two foraging together and asked quietly, "Luoluo, what's your friend's impression of Ah Yang?"

"Not bad, but I didn't tell her this was a setup, so she's probably not thinking in that direction."

"Well, you'll have to tell her eventually, right?"

"I know. I'll ask her when we go to bed tonight."

"Fair enough."

Chu Mingcheng nodded and glanced at Chen Yang and his companion again. As a friend, he'd really gone the extra mile.

The sun had unknowingly moved west, with half already below the horizon.

The group hadn't found much in the reef area, probably because it was frequently visited. Everyone had found signs of oysters being pried open!

Chu Mingcheng figured it was about time and went to check the tide pool.

He found the pool's bottom almost exposed. Probably another ten minutes before they could go down and start grabbing fish. He told Jiang Luoluo to get Zhou Jiayi and have them both get ready.

The guys had already changed into waterproof boots. They just needed gloves and could go straight down to catch fish.

Using a net would be less work, sure.

But if you drain a tide pool and don't use your hands to catch fish, where's the fun in that?

"Whoa, there's a big fish!" Zhang Wei, with his sharp eyes, spotted a fish lying flat in a rock crevice.

The pool's bottom was uneven. In higher sections, water had already completely drained, leaving everything exposed. No matter where a fish tried to hide, it would be found.

"Put some water in a bucket. You two go down first and search the areas without water," Chu Mingcheng said, having also seen the fish. He had Zhang Wei and Chen Yang go down first.

He'd stay up top—he still had to turn off the pump.

"Got it!" Zhang Wei replied, then carried a bucket and climbed down with Chen Yang.

He first grabbed the fish he'd spotted, then held it up and laughed. "Haha, Ah Cheng, look! A marbled grouper, at least five or six jin!"

"A marbled grouper? That's rare, and you usually find them in deeper waters." Chu Mingcheng also saw it was a grouper. He'd thought it was just a common type, not expecting such a rare find.

This fish wasn't considered commercial due to low numbers, but it was incredibly delicious.

By now, the water was almost completely drained. Chu Mingcheng turned off the pump just as Jiang Luoluo and Zhou Jiayi arrived, both now wearing waterproof pants.

"Perfect timing. The water's pretty much gone. Put on your gloves, and you can go down and start catching."

"We can start now? Then Jiayi and I will head down. Ah Cheng, can you give us a hand?"

"Sure."

After helping them down, with four people in one large tide pool, it was actually quite crowded.

After all, once the water was drained, the fish all fled to the remaining small puddle. After quickly searching the surrounding dry areas, everyone could focus on catching fish in that small puddle.

Chu Mingcheng's crab-chumming had been very effective. With all the movement in the small puddle, fish were constantly splashing—a clear sign there were plenty of them.

He then climbed down into the pool to join the hunt.

He plunged his hands into the water to feel around, and soon touched a fish.

The moment he touched it, the fish tried to escape, but in shallow water, its every move was obvious.

With quick hands, Chu Mingcheng slammed both palms down in the fish's escape path, pinning it.

He picked it up and saw it was a large black sea bream, probably weighing about two jin.

But a fresh, live fish is incredibly strong. As it thrashed its tail, it nearly broke free from his grasp.

Fortunately, his grip was also strong. He held it firmly and tossed it into a nearby bucket.

The two girls, however, had a different experience. They weren't just chasing fish.

When they finally caught one, a flick of its tail, and it was free again, splashing them with muddy water and making them shriek.

"Holy crap! Ah Cheng, get over here, quick..."

Just then, Zhang Wei's sudden shout drew everyone's attention.

Since he'd called for him, Chu Mingcheng was naturally first to respond. "What's wrong?"

"Look, what is this thing?" Zhang Wei said, pointing to a dark, lumpy object.

He walked over for a closer look and immediately called everyone over, especially the two girls. "You two, pay attention. In the future, if you see a particularly ugly sea creature, do not touch it with your bare hands. Just like this fish."

"This is a stonefish, a type of scorpionfish. Its dorsal fin is highly venomous."

Jiang Luoluo and Zhou Jiayi nodded repeatedly. Just looking at how ugly the thing was, they'd never have touched it with bare hands anyway.

Next, Chu Mingcheng used his foraging tongs to pick up the fish and toss it into the bucket.

"Ah Cheng, can you eat this fish?" Jiang Luoluo asked doubtfully.

"Of course. Don't be fooled by its venomous dorsal fin—the meat is incredibly delicious. You can try it tonight."