When it comes to Zhao Ran, handling fish has become almost instinctual. As soon as he feels the weight is off after a fish is hooked, he reflexively crouches down and quickly stabilizes the rod with his left hand at the top of the handle.
Feeling the fish movement underwater, it's clear that it's a big one. Zhao Ran patiently maneuvers it back and forth a few times, and in less than a minute, the fish surfaces, belly up,
and is netted into safety, a four-pound plus Carp.
The first catch of the day being a four-pound plus Carp excites the onlooking teammates immensely. A Carp of that size is equivalent to five or six smaller ones, taking a significant lead.
Having safely netted the first fish, Zhao Ran calmly continues to knead the soft sticky bait to coat the doughballs and repeats his initial motion.
