Chapter 172 - 163: Stocking the Old Pond, the Carnival Continues

Chapter 172: Chapter 163: Stocking the Old Pond, the Carnival Continues

It wasn’t even six in the morning yet.

A phone call beat the alarm to it.

Chen Yuan grabbed his phone, still half asleep.

"Hello? Brother Hui~"

Brother Hui’s real name was Zhang Hui — the restaurant owner. After their chat that evening, Chen Yuan had saved him under his actual name.

"Boss Chen, wishing you a great grand opening!"

Zhang Hui’s hearty laugh came through the line.

"Haha, thanks, Brother Hui."

Chen Yuan glanced at the time and felt his drowsiness vanish. He talked on the phone while getting dressed and heading to the bathroom.

"Hey, little bro, what’s all this big construction going on over at Old Pond? Our trucks are probably blocking the way — can you sort out a parking spot for us first?"

"You’re already here, Brother Hui?"

Chen Yuan was caught off guard. It was still a few minutes shy of six. This early?

"Haha, mostly because the fish dealer was raring to go~"

Honestly, Zhang Hui couldn’t quite wrap his head around Boss Chen’s thinking. The Anglers’ Carnival alone was already a bombshell of an opening event — so why push it even further?

Two hundred and forty yuan for a shot at a giant grass carp? He half wanted to cast a line himself. Catch one and you’re already in the black.

And on top of that, helping anglers connect with fish dealers instead of just selling the fish himself — wasn’t that leaving money on the table?

What was he even going for?

"Brother Hui, your trucks will probably need to pull back out for now and come in once the guests clear out."

Chen Yuan hadn’t expected Zhang Hui to show up this early. Zhang Hui did know where Old Pond was — he’d been there to collect fish before — but the fish trucks really couldn’t get in right now.

Wang Tao had been going full throttle over there since yesterday afternoon, leaving barely enough room for the main road lane. Parking was out of the question at the moment.

And never mind that the guests hadn’t even arrived yet — getting the fish in the water would be a nightmare with trucks blocking the way.

"How about this — park your vehicles along the road at the village entrance. I’ll ride the three-wheeler over and pick you up. Come back in once the fish are all stocked."

"Sounds good. I’ll go ahead and leave the flower basket over at the pond for you."

The moment Zhang Hui heard about the Old Pond opening, he knew he had to do something. Boss Chen had looked out for him, and he’d made a decent chunk of change on the price difference during the Carnival. A gesture like this was the least he could do.

"Brother Hui, you really didn’t have to~"

Chen Yuan hadn’t expected Zhang Hui to bring a congratulatory flower basket, but he didn’t make a fuss about it. He hung up, washed up quickly, then hopped on the three-wheeler to go pick up Zhang Hui and the fish dealer.

He jumped off the vehicle and cheerfully offered them each a cigarette, then invited the two of them to sit in the courtyard, making sure to ask if they’d eaten breakfast.

"Haha, we’ve already eaten, little bro. Go ahead and do your thing — don’t worry about us. If you need a hand with anything, just holler."

Zhang Hui said with a grin.

With nothing pressing to do, the two of them strolled over to Old Pond. The scenery along the way was pretty nice.

"Boss Chen, I’m landing a giant grass carp today."

Blond Punk had slept in a bit that morning. He’d snagged a spot at Old Pond and was fully rested, ready to go after the big one.

"Here’s a thought — the fish dealer’s still just outside. Want to go ask about the price first?"

Chen Yuan smiled and nodded toward the fish dealer, who hadn’t gone far.

"No rush."

Blond Punk said, brimming with confidence.

Chen Yuan was genuinely rooting for this big spender to pull one up. You get one, I sell two — everybody wins.

And with Zhang Hui and the fish dealer in the mix, it’d be a win all around.

"Boss, we’re here!"

Chen Yuan hadn’t even sat down for breakfast yet when Chen Nan and the crew showed up — a whole convoy of three-wheelers, with Xu Juan and the others riding along too. Quite the procession.

Chen Nan was out front, rocking a black tank top and black shades, looking slick as hell. With that crew rolling behind him, you’d almost want to call out "Brother Haonan."

"Isn’t this a little too early?"

Chen Yuan checked the time — barely six-twenty. These guys were way too eager.

"Why are you all here so early? Have you eaten?"

Chen Yuan stepped forward, handing out cigarettes and waving them into the courtyard.

"It’s our first day on the job — gotta show up ready."

Chen Nan hopped off the vehicle with a swagger, took the cigarette Chen Yuan offered, lit it up, and started spinning the lighter between his fingers.

"Are you lot trying to compete with me for Employee of the Month or something?"

Chen Dequan and Liu Fang came roaring in on their scooter, throttle wide open, kicking up a trail of dust behind them — Feiyang style.

The couple had woken up and cooked at their usual pace, but they’d barely had two bites when they spotted Chen Nan and the others rolling past on their three-wheelers, heading to work.

No way were the old-timers getting shown up by the new hires. They wolfed down the rest of their breakfast and rushed over.

"No need to come this early — six-thirty would’ve been plenty."

Chen Yuan passed Chen Dequan a cigarette and waved everyone into the courtyard, then went off to eat his own breakfast.

He was still eating when his uncle and aunt arrived too.

Old Pond’s opening had everyone fired up — everyone except Chen Yuan and his lot, who were moving at their usual unhurried pace.

He finished up quickly, then headed to the courtyard with Chen Li to go over the available parking spots — including spaces around the neighborhood where they could borrow room from nearby households.

"Beep beep~"

They’d just finished going over the list when a horn sounded from around the bend, followed by a car rolling into view.

"Let me go set the example."

Chen Yuan flicked away his cigarette butt and walked out. When the car pulled up and stopped in front of him, he leaned down with a smile and asked,

"Sir, did you book the small pond or Old Pond?"

"Old Pond, Old Pond — going for a giant grass carp today!"

The angler laughed and held out a cigarette for Chen Yuan.

"Just finished one, just finished one. Go ahead and pull up a little further, sir — wait for the other anglers behind you. I’ll have someone guide you to parking and then take you over to Old Pond."

Chen Yuan waved him forward, gesturing for the driver to pull up and wait by the roadside for a moment.

And it really was just a moment — barely long enough to light a cigarette — before cars started streaming in one after another.

Some were there for the small pond, others for Old Pond.

"Small pond guests, follow me."

Chen Dequan led the first group of small pond guests away. Chen Kingdom and Lin Cuiju fell into step and got busy. Chen Jun and Tang Ying were on the move too.

"Car five, move out — car six, follow car five and park on that side — car seven, get ready~"

Chen Li was handling traffic coordination, directing vehicles with one hand and managing everything through the walkie-talkie with the other.