Chapter 76 - 77: Tug of War

Chapter 76: Chapter 77: Tug of War

This was the advantage that came from direct comparison.

I have it, and you don’t.

The Chen Yuan Fishing Ground provided life jackets and sun umbrellas designed to be warm in winter and cool in summer. With them, the anglers could wear their life jackets and sit under the umbrellas without getting flustered by the heat.

And what about Zhou Jianming’s place?

He was a total cheapskate and provided nothing. His customers had to bake under the midday sun during the dog days of summer, to the point they were on the verge of heatstroke.

Under these circumstances, the anglers would naturally remember how good the Chen Yuan Fishing Ground was.

A good product needs a selling point. But what do you do if you don’t have a killer feature?

It’s simple: work hard to minimize your flaws.

As long as you have fewer things for people to complain about than your competitors, you’re already winning. If you can turn those complaints into advantages, or if your strengths completely overshadow your weaknesses...

...then congratulations, you’re guaranteed to be a leader in the industry.

Chen Yuan was currently heading in this direction: minimize the negatives and emphasize the positives.

"Supplies are tight. We don’t even have any extras for our own use."

Chen Yuan pointed to his own yard, implying that if they had any extra umbrellas, they would have used them long ago instead of squatting there, drenched in sweat.

The life jackets and umbrellas were part of the fishing ground’s equipment. More importantly, they were a competitive advantage. And advantages should not be shared.

"Then we’ll just have to tough it out."

"We have to. The fishing is still pretty good, after all."

"We can’t let that son-of-a-bitch owner off easy. Let’s get him~"

With a wave and a shout, the anglers drove off to the Old Pond to continue giving the owner a hard time.

"Are the sun umbrellas that hard to get?"

After the anglers had left, Chen Jun sidled up and asked.

"Once the structure on the little hill is finished, we can rest inside when we’re at the pond. Then we can bring that umbrella back here to use."

Chen Yuan didn’t respond directly.

"That’s good then."

Chen Jun didn’t press the issue. After their meal, he took out a pack of cigarettes and offered one to Chen Yuan. He started talking about Zhou Jianming’s crappy business again, saying that not providing any shade for customers in this heat was no way to stay in business for long.

Chen Yuan didn’t join the conversation. Once he finished his cigarette, he headed over to the fish pond.

Chen Dequan and Liu Fang were currently watching the pond. Their main responsibility was the night fishing session, so they shouldn’t have been working during the day. ’Can’t work proactive employees to death just because they’re willing,’ Chen Yuan thought.

When he got to the pond, he saw Chen Dequan helping an angler net a fish while Liu Fang was cleaning up lunch boxes. Their initiative was truly impressive.

"Uncle Chen, Aunt Liu, leave this to me. You two go back and rest for a while."

Chen Yuan called out to them.

"Then we’ll come back at 2:30."

Chen Dequan helped the customer net the fish before putting away the net and coming over.

"The trash can is almost full. We need to call someone to take it away. The temperature is high in summer, so it’ll start to smell easily."

Liu Fang came over to remind him after finishing with the lunch boxes.

"Could you tell my dad on your way back? He’s the one handling that."

In this summer heat, a pile of lunch boxes would start to reek in no time. Forgetting hygiene for a moment, the smell itself would be unbearable.

After Chen Dequan and his wife left, Chen Yuan took the low stool from the back of his vehicle and sat down under the sun umbrella on the small hill.

He glanced at the time; it was already past one o’clock.

’Well, since they couldn’t land the Fish King, I’ll let them catch a few small fry instead.’

He took out the system’s remote control. After a moment’s thought, he selected "Crucian Carp" from the fish menu. They were the most abundant fish in the pond, so they could handle the depletion. Then, he pressed the "Start Biting" button.

Soon, he saw many anglers leaning forward, their hands slowly gripping their fishing rods.

WHIZZ~

The next moment, a series of whizzing sounds cut through the air as at least a dozen anglers suddenly jerked their rods back. One by one, crucian carp larger than the palm of a hand were effortlessly pulled from the water.

"Whoa, so many people hooking a fish at once! You don’t see that every day. Holy crap, my bobber’s gone under!"

An angler was in the middle of speaking when he saw his own bobber suddenly WHOOSH completely underwater. He quickly grabbed his rod and yanked it up hard, adding another whizzing sound to the chorus.

"Holy crap, literally everyone got a fish at the same time, and they’re all crucian carp! This is surreal."

The anglers looked around at each other, all amazed.

"Boss Chen, what’s going on with the crucian carp in your pond? They’ve gone into a frenzy! Every single one is targeting our hooks."

"Don’t tell me Boss Chen has a remote control, right? He just secretly presses a button and the fish get hooked~"

"In your dreams! If Boss Chen had a remote, he’d definitely make all the fish stop biting. This round of big ol’ carp just cost him at least two or three hundred."

"I’d rather believe Boss Chen knows magic than believe he has some remote control~"

The anglers laughed and joked.

Whatever the reason, catching fish is a good thing.

"This one of mine doesn’t seem to be a crucian carp. It’s putting up a big fight. It’s not like the Fish King either. I don’t know what it is."

"Me too! This one feels like it’s at least ten pounds... no, it’s pulling even harder now!"

Two anglers at the corner on the opposite bank—one on the roadside, the other on the adjacent paddy ridge—were both pulling with all their might. It looked like they’d hooked something big.

"See? I knew it. Everyone in the pond catching crucian carp at the exact same time would have been too weird."

"What kind of fish is it? It looks pretty big!"

The anglers put their crucian carp into their keepnets and watched the two men with curiosity.

One was pulling to the left, the other to the right. The fish they were fighting felt like it was over ten pounds.

The surrounding anglers became even more curious.

’There are fish over ten or twenty pounds in the pond?’

Chen Yuan was a little baffled. He glanced at the remote’s screen again. He was certain he’d only selected "Start Biting" for crucian carp. ’What could those two have possibly hooked?’

’Could the remote be malfunctioning?’

"Whoa, this pull is really strong! Boss Chen, besides the Fish King, are there any other big fish in your pond?"

Both anglers felt the resistance growing, and they grew more and more excited with anticipation.

’Even if we can’t land the Fish King, catching a twenty-pounder would be awesome too.’

’A big fish? My ass.’

He’d asked his uncle when he first took over the pond. There were plenty of five or six-pounders, but absolutely nothing over ten pounds, let alone twenty.

’What does that mean?’

’If there’s nothing that big, then what did they hook?’

’It’s not snagged on the bottom. It’s clearly a fish~’

"Holy crap, you’re both hooked on the same fish! Looks like your hooks are tangled together!"

Just as the two anglers were wondering what they’d hooked, another one nearby suddenly yelled. All eyes snapped in their direction.

A big crucian carp was yanked out of the water. Two hooks were clearly visible in its open mouth. Anyone with sharp eyes could see the hooks were tangled together.

"Haha! I thought it was a giant fish, but it turns out they’re just having a tug-of-war with tangled hooks!"

The anglers roared with laughter.

The two anglers who had hooked the fish were stunned for a second. Then, as if sharing a secret understanding, they both put their backs into it, heaving on the line with the single fish caught between them.

"This fish is mine!"

"I definitely hooked it first! That big carp is mine!"

"Draw your swords!"

Neither man would give an inch. They pulled harder and harder until their rods and lines were stretched taut. They even started calling for the other anglers to help.

"Come on, guys, help us out! If we win this tug-of-war, we don’t just get the fish, we get his rod too!"

"Help us out, guys! A little more power! We can’t lose this competition!"

Watching the two men have at it, the surrounding anglers got excited too. They scrambled over to help, and soon the poor carp was being pulled so hard it was suspended in the air above the water.

The taut fishing line was like a guitar string; you could have plucked a tune on it.

"One, two, three, HEAVE!"

"Heave-ho! Heave-ho!"

The helpers chanted in unison while the spectators cheered them on.

A perfectly normal fishing pond had instantly transformed into the site of a tug-of-war match, leaving Chen Yuan unsure whether to laugh or cry.

He could tell the two anglers weren’t truly fighting over it. They were just swept up in the fun. After fishing for so many years, it was a rare treat to run into something as amusing as a tug-of-war.

The other anglers around them were just as playful, jumping at the chance to have an impromptu competition.

They say men will be boys.

They could even turn fishing into a tug-of-war. If that wasn’t boyish fun, what was?

The only one suffering was the poor carp.

If the two hooks hadn’t been tangled together, its mouth would have been torn to shreds.

Chen Yuan found his own interest piqued as well. Far from stopping them, he started shouting encouragement from his spot on the hill, even joking that he was taking bets. "Place your bets! Who’s going to win?"

The entire place erupted in cheers and laughter.

SNAP~

The revelry continued for several minutes until, with a sharp snapping sound, the line of the angler on the roadside broke. The big crucian carp went flying in a perfect arc, landing in the field behind his opponent.

"YEAH!"

The group of anglers on the opposite bank let out a victorious cheer, though they were disappointed they hadn’t managed to yank their opponent’s rod over as well.

The group of anglers on the roadside sighed in unison.

"Whoa, its mouth is all torn up."

The winner ran to the paddy ridge to retrieve the carp. Then he jogged over to the roadside and smilingly handed the fish to his opponent.

"It’s a little messed up, but take it home and make some soup with it. It’ll still be delicious."

"No, you take it, you take it."

The angler on the roadside politely refused, already busy changing his line.

"What’s a big carp compared to the fun of a tug-of-war? If it wasn’t for you, we wouldn’t have had such a great time today. I’m tossing it in your keepnet for you."

That angler smiled and threw the fish directly into the other’s keepnet.

"Haha, you’re not wrong there. The joy of fishing isn’t just about catching fish!"

The angler from the roadside was happy too. He took out a cigarette and offered one to the other guy. They smoked and chatted with big smiles on their faces, like old friends who hadn’t seen each other in years.

Chen Yuan’s smile was radiant. This was exactly the kind of joyful atmosphere he wanted for the Chen Yuan Fishing Ground.

’Keep the remote going. Let the fun continue~’