Chapter 204 - 183: An Empty-Handed Person’s Luck

Chapter 204: Chapter 183: An Empty-Handed Person’s Luck

Not something the average person could afford~

"Congrats, man — one fish and you didn’t just break even, you absolutely cleaned up~"

The anglers around him were green with envy.

The lucky angler was genuinely lucky — not only did he draw the winning number, but he also reeled in a 60-plus-jin catch during the free-catch window, clearing that threshold by just enough. This guy must’ve stepped in dog shit on his way out the door.

"Haha, thanks, thanks — smokes and drinks on me for everyone at the pond~"

The lucky angler wasn’t stingy about it either.

Cigarettes and water were nothing compared to a haul worth several thousand yuan.

The anglers around him erupted in cheers — not because the smokes and drinks were worth much, but because free stuff always hits different.

"Boss Chen, does my catch count toward the rankings for the 60-to-100-jin prize?"

The angler grinned at Chen Yuan.

Holy shit~

The anglers nearby immediately looked at him with contempt.

You already hit the jackpot with a free fish, and now you’re trying to squeeze out bonus prizes too? Have some damn shame.

"Sure, it counts."

To everyone’s surprise, Chen Yuan just smiled and nodded.

But before the lucky angler could get excited for more than two seconds, Chen Yuan tilted his chin toward the pond. "Throw Daqing back in, and I’ll put you down as number one."

Hahaha~

The anglers around them burst out laughing.

The lucky angler shook his head repeatedly — there was no way he was throwing that fish back.

Of course, he’d only been joking around with Boss Chen. He never actually expected to claim the prize. The whole point was to go back — if you didn’t go back, who was going to give you anything?

He whipped out his phone, snapped a photo with a click, showed it off on his social media, then slipped Daqing into the fish keeper.

"Boss Chen, any chance you could get a fish trader to come by~"

If it had been a big silver carp, he’d have just tied a rope around it and hauled it home on his back — telling anyone who asked that it was just a Little Kalami, then wandering a few laps around the neighborhood pretending he’d lost something.

But a 60-plus-jin giant Daqing? He couldn’t bear to let it die.

Dead fish ain’t worth squat~

"Let me check for you."

Chen Yuan pulled out his phone and called Zhang Hui. After checking with the trader, he came back and said the trader was willing to come, but since the quantity was limited, the best offer was five thousand yuan.

The lucky angler said that was fine.

Close enough to market price.

He washed his hands, hopped on Chen Yiheng’s three-wheeler, and headed over to the vending machines to sort out the smokes and drinks he’d promised.

"Yuan, food’s ready~"

Tang Ying’s voice crackled through the walkie-talkie clipped to Chen Yuan’s waist, cutting through a burst of static.

"Copy that, heading back to deliver the food now~"

Chen Yuan replied and quickly hopped on his three-wheeler to head back.

The morning had been busier than usual because of the downpour, and they hadn’t prepped much food the night before, so they’d ordered in advance — it was barely past eleven and it was already ready.

While it wasn’t raining, now was the time to get the boxed meals delivered. The sky was getting darker by the minute, and there was a good chance another thunderstorm was coming. Eating wouldn’t be easy for the customers if that happened.

Chen Yuan’s instincts were right. Not long after the last meal was delivered, the rain came back — and it came back hard. Within minutes, it was a full-on downpour.

The storm kept up all the way through the shift change, showing no sign of letting up.

Fortunately, the canopy had been installed in time, which made things a whole lot easier than it had been that morning.

"Damn, Boss Chen works fast — you’ve already got the canopy up."

The night fishing customers were visibly surprised when they saw it.

"You guys are the fast ones — fishing in a thunderstorm, and not only did you show up on time, you were here earlier than usual."

Chen Yuan was genuinely impressed by the dedication of these fishing fanatics.

"Haha, we headed out early. Knew a thunderstorm would be a pain, so we waited at the village entrance. The moment we saw the daytime crowd leaving, we floored it over here."

"Gentlemen, we don’t say ’came fast’~"

One of the anglers quipped.

With the canopy installed, anglers could sit in the back of the three-wheeler, with two more squeezed in up front. It was a bit slower than usual, but the efficiency was still solid.

And since the night fishing crowd had been waiting ahead of time, the shift change didn’t run much longer than normal.

Everyone was in position before four-thirty, and by then the downpour had already started to ease up, looking like it might stop altogether.

"This damn weather — it’s like it’s got it out for us. Raging storm the whole time we’re busy, then the second we’re done, it decides to quit."

After the shift change wrapped up, Chen Nan dangled a cigarette from his lips and stared at the fading rain with a bitter smile.

"Why don’t you go take on a project for Boss Chen then?"

Chen Hongjun said with a grin.

"What project?"

Chen Nan lit his cigarette, looking puzzled.

"Build a roof over Yu City Village. Thunderstorms, hail — nothing would touch us."

The moment Chen Hongjun said it, Chen Yikai and the others who were still around burst out laughing. A roof over all of Yu City Village — now that would be a project.

Chen Yuan couldn’t help but laugh either.

It reminded him of a few legendary "mega projects" from the future — installing an elevator on Mount Everest, tiling the Great Wall, putting a lid on the Pacific Ocean. Those jokes would land pretty well right about now.

"Alright, if you need to rest, go rest. If you’ve got work, get to it~"

Once his cigarette was done, Chen Yuan waved everyone into motion.

"Back to work, back to work~"

Chen Nan tossed his cigarette butt and hopped on his three-wheeler to start patrolling the pond. Walkie-talkie on his left hip, fish controller on his right, sunglasses back on his face — a completely mismatched look.

"Alright, everyone scatter~"

Chen Yikai, Xu Juan, and the others all dispersed — those who needed rest went to rest, those with things to do got to it. By now, they’d all come to accept the truth: nothing in this world could stop a fishing fanatic.

Even on a day like this, the place was packed. No slacking off~

"Boss Chen, time to do the lucky draw?"

Chen Yuan had barely finished his cigarette when the anglers — bait mixed, rods prepped, ready to go — started pushing him to get on with it.

Nothing was more exciting than the chance to be the lucky angler.

"On it."

Chen Yuan tossed his cigarette butt and rode the three-wheeler over to the lottery machine, a crowd of anglers trailing behind him.

No preamble, no wasting time — he kicked it off straight away.

The balls inside churned and tumbled furiously. A few seconds later, the machine spat one out, and every pair of eyes snapped to it instantly.

"Holy shit~"

Chen Yuan picked up the ball, looked at the number, and the words flew out of his mouth.

"What’s wrong, Boss Chen? Don’t tell me it’s number zero?"

"I’m betting it’s 113."

The anglers threw out jokes.

There were only 112 spots total — there was no zero and no 113.

"Immortal, if I’m remembering right, your spot for tonight is number 30, yeah?"

Chen Yuan looked toward Heavy Chummer in the crowd.

He had a vivid memory of Heavy Chummer — a familiar face at the fishing ground, and during the shift change, Heavy Chummer had told him not to worry about finding a new spot, since he’d already booked consecutive night sessions.

Switching to a different spot and carrying on.

He was pretty sure it was spot number 30.

Could this be the skunker’s lucky break?

As for booking the same spot multiple sessions in a row — that wasn’t surprising at all. The Chen Yuan Fishing Ground only had fifty members at this point, and there were thirty-five member-exclusive spots. With even a little luck, you could keep booking one back-to-back.

"I’m at 30, yeah — wait, does that mean..."

Heavy Chummer looked confused for a moment, then it clicked, and his whole face lit up with excitement.

"Congratulations — you’re tonight’s lucky angler~"

Chen Yuan held the ball up so everyone could see. The number on it was unmistakably 30.

"Haha! Heaven rewards the persistent! It’s finally my turn — two sessions in a row and it paid off!"

Heavy Chummer pumped his fist in the air.

These days, if there was a slot to book, he booked it. He wasn’t about to let any opportunity slip by. And even when he was busy, the Air Force Alliance — which had grown considerably by now — could always absorb the extra spots.

"If I remember right, you only caught one fish during the day session — I can’t help but feel like this lucky number’s going to be completely wasted on you."

Chen Yuan shook his head with a wry smile.

And that one fish only happened because he’d spotted a skunk situation during his patrol and stepped in with the remote to break the dry spell. Otherwise, Heavy Chummer would’ve gone home with nothing.

"Holy shit~"

An angler who didn’t know Heavy Chummer was instantly at a loss for words.

This guy was basically living on the edge of getting skunked every single session.

Don’t you dare waste that lucky prize~

"Man... the Chen Yuan Fishing Ground really is a blessed spot for skunkers~"

Even those who knew him well had to marvel at it.

Heavy Chummer was the first angler to make a name for himself as a notorious skunker at the Chen Yuan Fishing Ground — and yet ever since he started coming here, he hadn’t been skunked once. He’d even gone on hot streaks.

Hit multiple runs at the small pond and nearly landed the Fish King, even if it slipped away in the end.

And now at the Old Pond, he’d drawn the lucky angler number.

If this wasn’t a blessed spot, what was?

"Haha, just the one from the last session, and even with one fish I can beat you~"

Heavy Chummer was brimming with confidence.

That fish was over forty jin. If lightning struck twice, he’d be walking away with several hundred yuan — not only clearing costs, but actually making Boss Chen pay out. It wouldn’t be much, but squeezing even a single yuan out of him counted as a win.

What he didn’t know, of course, was that even that one fish had been Chen Yuan’s doing.

"Best of luck to you."

What else could Chen Yuan say? Best of luck was all there was.

"Let’s fish, let’s fish."

Heavy Chummer hurried back to his spot, and the rest of the anglers spread out as well.