Fishing for a large yellow croaker in two days?

He was definitely free for that!

Chu Mingcheng hadn't expected He Zheng to invite him out again after he'd turned down the long-term offer.

But it made sense. The more he caught, the more he earned. Inviting him was a logical move.

He Zheng then gave him the price list for a large yellow croaker: under three liang was one hundred yuan per jin; four to five liang was one hundred fifty per jin; six to seven liang was two hundred sixty; and eight to nine liang was four hundred.

One-jin fish were a thousand, two-jin were one thousand eight hundred, and anything over three jin was two thousand five hundred. 【TN: 1 Jin = 10 liang】

If they caught any escapees from aquaculture farms, he would buy them at a flat rate of thirty yuan per jin.

Farmed large yellow croakers are typically sold for twenty or thirty yuan per jin. He was offering thirty because the escapees had been swimming freely for a while, which meant they would fetch a slightly higher price.

Of course, wild large yellow croakers of that size were practically nonexistent these days. The prices for fish over a jin were more for show than anything else.

Chu Mingcheng knew a little about the market price for a large yellow croaker, and He Zheng's offer was a bit low. For fish under a jin, he stood to make an average profit of fifty yuan, significantly more than with the hairtail.

However, fishing for large yellow croaker would never be as efficient as the constant action of a hairtail run. Plus, he didn't have to pay a charter fee. All things considered, it was a decent deal.

Seeing Chu Mingcheng agree, the smile on He Zheng's face widened, and he began to tally the rest of his catch.

There were sixty-seven jin and eight Liang of three-finger-wide fish, totaling 3,051 yuan.

The four-finger-wide fish that didn't reach a full jin weighed twenty-one jin, for a total of 945 yuan.

This time, there were more fish over a jin, totaling twenty-six jin for 2,080 yuan.

There were also five fish over two jin. For these, he added an extra twenty yuan, making it a hundred yuan per jin, for a total of 1,120 yuan.

Excluding the hairtail he was taking home, he'd earned 7,196 yuan in the second half of the night. Combined with the 5,140 yuan from the first half, Chu Mingcheng had made over twelve thousand three hundred yuan from this single trip.

Earning over ten thousand in one night was an opportunity anyone would jump at. The all-nighter was worth it.

As for whether He Zheng could sell the hairtail at such high prices, that wasn't a concern.

Line-caught hairtail, known as diao dai, wasn't sold to ordinary families. It was for those with deep pockets and a taste for fine food.

Perhaps He Zheng had connections and could sell the entire batch directly to a hotel.

When they returned to the pier, Yao Xin was still sleeping and didn't come out.

Chu Mingcheng had to send her a text, and then he turned down He Zheng's invitation for lunch.

He needed to go home and catch up on sleep. In the afternoon, he had to order a boat and get a physical for his boat license application.

Zhao Xia would also be coming by in the evening to pick up the sea worms. He just didn't have the time.

Before leaving, however, Chu Mingcheng asked He Zheng about the configuration and price of his boat, so he wouldn't get ripped off when he went to order his own.

Back home, Chu Mingcheng had breakfast and then went to sleep.

Sleeping at eight and waking at eleven—even the King of Hell would praise his good health!

Chu Mingcheng fed Mimi some cat food, then thought for a moment and ordered an automatic timed feeder online, one that also provided water. This way, his erratic schedule wouldn't interfere with Mimi's meals.

Then he took the hairtail back to town to give to An Xiuwen.

"Oh, son, you went fishing for hairtail last night?"

An Xiuwen loved fish, especially pomfret, hairtail, and small yellow croaker. The hairtail Chu Mingcheng brought was so bright and shiny that she loved them at first sight.

"Yeah, I went out on a friend's boat last night. I know you like them, so I saved some for you. I sold the rest."

"Did you keep any for yourself?"

"I did. I'll fry them up later."

Chu Mingcheng didn't stay long. He had lunch at his parents' house and then headed to the Huang Town shipyard to look at boats.

He went straight to the large shipyard. The salesperson was surprised to see him, but that surprise quickly turned to delight.

A first-time visitor might just be looking, but a second-time visitor was very likely to buy. This time, the reception was even warmer than before.

Since Chu Mingcheng had decided to buy, he didn't hesitate.

"I learned that your main factory is in Xiamen, right? I'm moving there to start my career soon, so I'd like to order a boat to be delivered there."

The salesperson's expression faltered for a moment before the smile returned. "Of course, no problem. In that case, Mr. Chu, let's take a look at the configuration you need."

"Alright..." Chu Mingcheng nodded and followed the salesperson to an office to discuss the configuration and price.

He'd learned from He Zheng that his boat, which was only a year old, was 11.88 meters long, 3.24 meters wide, had a displacement of 6.8 tons, and a draft of 0.48 meters. It was equipped with twin 200-horsepower diesel outboard engines.

The fuel tank capacity was 800 liters, and the freshwater tank was 150 liters.

The cockpit had radar, GPS, a fish finder, and all the necessary certifications from the shipyard. The total cost was eight hundred thousand yuan.

Chu Mingcheng thought He Zheng's model was excellent, but he knew there were two types of propulsion: gasoline and diesel.

Gasoline was faster, with a theoretical top speed of 45 knots, while diesel was slower, maxing out at 30 knots.

But diesel engines were more economical, with lower fuel consumption.

A 200-horsepower diesel outboard engine consumed about 40 liters of fuel per hour at an economical cruising speed. Two engines meant 80 liters per hour, and the consumption would increase at top speed.

Two hours of running would cost at least fifteen hundred yuan in fuel. A single trip out to sea would cost at least two thousand yuan.

But even that was much cheaper than a gasoline outboard, which consumed even more fuel.

After understanding Chu Mingcheng's requirements, the salesperson asked him to wait and went out to contact the main factory for a quote.

About twenty minutes later, the salesperson returned with good news.

"Mr. Chu, here's the situation. If you order a boat from us here, it usually takes two to three months for it to be delivered. And that's with us already having the hull built, just needing to do the interior work and add the equipment."

"However, our main factory currently has a newly finished boat. It was originally ordered by someone else, who even paid a deposit. But the customer ran into some financial problems, so the boat is now available."

"The configuration is similar to what you're looking for, but it has twin gasoline outboards. Would you be open to that?"

Chu Mingcheng was surprised to hear there was a finished boat available. Not having to wait was great, but he didn't want gasoline engines.

"I only want diesel."

"Mr. Chu, gasoline has its advantages, for example..."

"I haven't even gotten my boat license yet. That will take at least a month. Refitting a boat will only take two or three months. I'm not in a hurry."

Hearing this, the salesperson fell silent for a moment, then smiled again. "Alright, Mr. Chu. If you could pay a deposit now, I'll contact the factory about swapping the outboards."

Changing the engines wasn't a big deal, so when Chu Mingcheng insisted on diesel, the salesperson didn't try to persuade him further.

When he paid the deposit, he checked the contract, which also stated that the boat in Xiamen needed its outboards replaced. He would have to go to Xiamen within two months to pay the full amount. The price was also eight hundred thousand yuan.

With the boat ordered, Chu Mingcheng went to the hospital for a physical. Once the report came back, he could go to the maritime bureau to register for his license exam.

It would take about a month. Once he had his license, he would head to Xiamen.

In that month, he could earn some more money, which meant he would have to borrow less from his parents.