Fishing is a workout.

If a fisherman wants a wife, he can't just be rich—he needs a strong back too. He has to be able to battle fish all day and still come home with energy to spare. Otherwise, he'll find himself surrounded by helpful male neighbors offering their assistance.

The massive fish's pull forced Chu Mingcheng into a deep bow over the railing. He gripped the rod with both hands, heaving upward with all his strength just to reel in two or three turns of line.

Seeing Zhang Wei and the others still standing behind him, he called out urgently, "Get back! If this line snaps, I don't want it whipping around and hitting anyone."

A snapped line under this much tension was dangerous.

Zhang Wei and his friends quickly moved to the foredeck, then poked their heads around the cabin to watch.

With them safely out of the way, Chu Mingcheng could focus on the fight. The fighting belt made a huge difference, letting him use his core strength and making the struggle much more manageable.

This was the strongest fish he'd ever hooked, but he was confident he could land it.

He focused on lifting the rod whenever possible, trying to bring the fish to the surface as quickly as he could. But the fish fought ferociously. It surged again, bending the rod so far that Chu Mingcheng worried it might snap. He quickly adjusted, dipping the rod tip into the water to relieve some pressure.

After that, every time he lifted the rod, he managed to gain several more turns on the reel.

A good half-hour later, the water's surface finally exploded as Chu Mingcheng at last tired the fish out and brought it up.

Wrestling a fish this size with a #30 boat rod naturally took more time and carried a significant risk of a snapped rod or line. If he'd been using his #80 rod with a high-powered reel, he probably could have landed it in twenty minutes or less, assuming he had the strength.

Zhang Wei flicked on his flashlight, and his jaw dropped. "Holy shit!"

"Holy shit, it's a huge sea bass!"

"Holy shit, that thing's over a meter long!"

"Holy shit, I've never seen a sea bass this big around here!"

"Enough with the cursing—go help!" Chen Yang said, his eye twitching. He grabbed the landing net and hurried back to Chu Mingcheng's side.

Snapping out of his amazement, Zhang Wei grabbed the fish gripper to assist. Landing a big fish with just a net was risky—there were plenty of videos online of fish getting away at the last second. They needed a two-pronged approach. Losing a sea bass this massive would be heartbreaking.

But once the sea bass broke the surface, its fate was sealed.

Chu Mingcheng wiped sweat from his forehead before it could drip into his eyes, then turned the handle, pulling the belly-up fish closer.

Chen Yang was nervous. He missed netting the head several times, getting splashed with seawater as the fish thrashed. Fortunately, the fish had swallowed the bait completely, and the hook was set deep, allowing Chu Mingcheng to hold it steady for a better shot.

This time, Chen Yang finally scooped up the head, but the sea bass was so large that the net only covered half its body. Instead of trying to lift it, he guided the netted fish through the water toward the boat's side.

Seeing his opportunity, Zhang Wei lunged forward with the fish gripper, clamping it firmly onto the fish's lower lip through the net.

Chu Mingcheng set down his rod and grabbed the tail with both hands. "Okay, on three! One, two, three—lift!"

Working together, the three of them finally hoisted the massive, meter-plus sea bass into the boat.

A fish this size was enough to get Zhao Jun out of his bunk. He rummaged around his sleeping area in the cockpit and pulled out a tape measure.

"Here, let me see how big this thing is! I've seen meter-long croakers a few times while fishing, but I've never seen a sea bass this huge."

The other three stepped back, each pulling out their phones to take pictures. If you didn't snap a photo to show off, could you even call yourself a real angler?

Zhang Wei joked, "Ah Cheng, why don't we haul it to town, strap it to the back of my bike, and do a few laps to show it off?"

Chu Mingcheng didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Be serious. We could use that time to catch more fish."

As they talked, Zhao Jun finished measuring. "One point two six meters. I'd guess this sea bass weighs at least thirty jin.

Zhang Wei shook his head. "Probably more. Last year, someone in Taishi City caught a sea bass over 1.3 meters that weighed forty-five jin. It sold for five thousand yuan. Even if this one isn't quite forty jin, it can't be far off. It's got to be worth four thousand yuan."

"Only if someone's willing to buy it." The normal market price for sea bass around here was about forty yuan per jin, without much fluctuation. But for a meter-long specimen, the price could easily jump to a hundred per jin. The meat of a larger fish might be a bit tough, but some people just love big things.

Unfortunately, they didn't have a scale on board, so they'd have to wait until they got back to shore to weigh it.

Chen Yang took a few pictures of the fish, then crouched next to it and had Zhang Wei photograph him with it. "Ah Cheng," he said, "I'll send these pictures to a few of my clients and see if they're interested. It's a shame it's not a grouper. If it were a grouper, I'd pay ten or twenty thousand yuan for it myself."

Chu Mingcheng was about to post it in their group chat, but hearing this, he just smiled and nodded. "Sure, go ahead and ask them."

The fascination with rare and impressive things was universal.

As soon as they saw the enormous sea bass, three of Chen Yang's clients expressed interest, asking about the weight and price.

"I've got buyers," Chen Yang reported. "What do you want to sell it for?"

Chu Mingcheng thought for a moment. "Tell them we haven't weighed it yet, but it's definitely over thirty jin. Flat price: 3,888 yuan. If they want it, they can pick it up themselves, or we can ship it. But shipping isn't included—they'll have to cover that."

"Deal." Chen Yang relayed the message, and a client from Mingzhou, who happened to be coming to the area tomorrow, bought it immediately. He'd pick it up himself.

"Brother Zhao Jun," Chu Mingcheng said, "sorry to trouble you, but could you take me back to shore first? I need to get this fish home and into an oxygenated tank. I want to keep it alive as long as possible."

"No need for all that trouble," Zhao Jun replied. "I'll teach you a trick to keep it alive longer."

Zhao Jun found a long nylon rope. He carefully threaded it through the fish's gills, from one side to the other. Then he looped the rope around its tail. Gripping both ends, he pulled hard, forcing the sea bass into a bow shape before tying the ends securely together.

The other three stared, baffled by the procedure.

Zhang Wei couldn't help but ask, "Brother Zhao Jun, is there a special reason for tying it up like that?"

Zhao Jun smiled and explained, "It's called the 'Fish-Bowing Technique.' I learned it from a friend. Tying a fish like this helps it live longer. Usually, they can survive for a day or two."

"I've never tried it on a sea bass, but if we add an oxygen pump later, keeping it alive for a day should be no problem."

It dawned on Zhang Wei, but then another question occurred to him. "But... why don't fishermen tie up all their catch like this? Wouldn't live fish sell for more?"

Zhao Jun shrugged. "Not all fish can be tied this way. Besides, you can keep them alive for a while, so it's not always necessary. And when deep-sea fishermen haul in a massive net, there's no way they could tie up every single fish."

"The Fish-Bowing Technique was a great way to preserve fish in ancient times," he continued, "but it's been made obsolete by modern technology. If my boat had a proper oxygenator and a bigger life well, we wouldn't need to go to all this trouble."

The three of them nodded in understanding. He was right—with a good aeration system, who needed an ancient rope trick?

Still, they carefully asked for the key points of the technique.

It was always good to learn a new skill. You never knew when it might come in handy, just like right now.

Chu Mingcheng had officially earned back the cost of the boat trip. This one sea bass alone had netted him over two thousand yuan profit, not even counting the other fish he'd caught that afternoon.

But now that he was planning to buy his boat, the pressure was suddenly back on. He felt he couldn't afford to be as laid-back as before.

So even after the excitement of landing the huge sea bass, he didn't rest. He decided to keep fishing.