The next day.
Just as dawn was breaking, Bai Qi sat up from his bed.
He walked outside, scooped a ladle of water, and washed his face.
Poor people aren't so particular, using willow branches to brush their teeth is already considered clean.
It's said that wealthy families in the city use green salt.
They also use medicinal herbs like coptis and astragalus, which are boiled into juice specifically for cleaning the mouth.
It can be said that their living is meticulous in every way.
"Today, I'll step onto the small boat and dive into the reed marsh.
If my fishing skills break through to a small success, and I catch plentiful goods, I'll have enough money for winter and the New Year."
Bai Qi was contemplating when he looked up and saw a dark-skinned, skinny young man hurrying over, shouting:
"Ah Qi, Ah Qi! Something's wrong!"
The newcomer was quite familiar with him, having grown up together as companions.
Due to his small eyes and long head, he was given the nickname "Xiaotou."
"What's wrong? Has the Black River dried up?"
Bai Qi asked jokingly.
"No! My dad just came back from the county, looking worried, saying the fish market stall prices have increased!"
Xiaotou was sweaty all over, his throat parched, and even his voice sounded hoarse.
His face was full of tension, as if the sky was about to fall.
"Prices increased again? Didn't they just go up two months ago?"
Bai Qi's eyelid twitched; usually when fishermen catch big hauls, they go to the county fish market to sell.
According to the established rules, setting up a stall on the shore incurs a cut, typically fluctuating between twenty and thirty percent.
It's something they're helpless about.
The fishery has channels with wealthy families, restaurants, and martial arts halls, supplying directly to them.
The catches are easy to sell.
Finding buyers privately could easily provoke a fish tyrant and get robbed clean.
When the fishery opens, stalls take a cut.
It's like a disguised protection fee.
Moreover,
fresh fish are difficult to store.
If they're out of water too long, they easily die, and if kept, tend to lose weight.
Salting them yourself to make salted fish isn't worth it.
Because salt is very expensive.
And they lose their fresh taste.
And fetch a less favorable price.
Sometimes fishermen harvest a lot but can't sell, ending up at a loss.
"How would I know! My dad heard it from Wang Laizi!
He said that this time, the price increase means the fishery won't take big money!"
Xiaotou was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan.
His family had five members in total; his parents were lowly fishermen.
The two elder sisters both sold themselves as "slave households."
The eldest sister became a maid for a wealthy family in the county, while the second sister worked as a cook in the Chai Market.
Being the youngest, he was quite cherished, living a more comfortable life than Bai Qi.
Just a couple of days ago, he even mentioned planning to find a cheap martial arts hall to become an apprentice and learn martial arts.
Bai Qi felt something was off:
"They don't take big money? What kind of price increase is this?"
Xiaotou was indignant, cursing:
"That Yang guy is despicable! Originally, the steward at the Fish Market East District, Chen the Lame, got taken by a demon fish while drinking on a pleasure boat!
He wants to fill this vacancy and asks us to offer up a Ghost Pattern Fish next month as tribute to please the young master!
He's got his plans perfectly calculated!"
Bai Qi's expression turned dark after hearing this, almost cursing out loud.
The Ghost Pattern Fish is vicious by nature, only appearing in deep waters.
Due to its few bones, its meat is tender and fatty, tasting great whether steamed or boiled.
It can also invigorate qi and blood, nourishing the body, and is favored by large restaurants.
It's also one of those "big goods" that can fetch a good price.
In normal times, a smaller-sized Ghost Pattern Fish could easily be worth three to four thousand coins.
"That Yang is truly vicious! He's forcing us into the Black Water River to pave his way to success!"
Bai Qi silently cursed.
In any bustling market with various trades, there are always some ruffians and bullies exploiting the situation.
The fishery is no exception.
Who in Black River County doesn't know this?
Yangquan, relying on his father's past role as a head fighter for the fishery, leads a gang of ruffians in the East Market, acting domineeringly.
Whenever someone catches a big haul, it's hard to bypass him, with deductions ranging from a few dozen to a hundred wen.
Especially with stall commission, the upper management only counts and keeps records.
How it is collected depends entirely on Yangquan's methods.
With the fishery backing him, and a group of followers, he became a tyrant of the East Market.
Offending him could lead to overturned stalls at best,
and at worst, being forced into becoming a nine-lives-at-risk "servant household."
"Ah Qi, there's nothing we can do about this; we can't fight Yangquan!
My dad has accepted it and plans to try his luck in Mihun Bay.
If we can't catch a Ghost Pattern Fish, we'll buy one from Wang Laizi!"
Xiaotou sighed and continued:
"If only I knew some martial arts, I wouldn't fear them troubling us.
After offering the Ghost Pattern Fish, my dad probably won't have money to send me to a martial arts hall."
Yangquan, being burly and with inherited martial arts skills, developed great strength.
A few ordinary strong men couldn't get near him.
Moreover, he had a gang of ruffians at his beck and call.
He's not someone a mere fisherman could afford to provoke.
"Mihun Bay isn't easy to venture into; tell your dad to be careful, preserving life is most important."
Bai Qi advised with concern, yet felt a sense of doubt inside.
If they can't catch a Ghost Pattern Fish, they'll buy from Wang Laizi?
How much stock does he have?
Could it be that I have found a good fishing spot?
That's why I discussed it with Yangquan.
Colluding for profit in times of trouble?
You must know, coming and going like this.
It's an easy windfall of several dozen taels of silver!
...
...
After Xiaotou left, Bai Qi rubbed his temples and planned to navigate the sailboat into the water.
He let out a long breath, thinking to himself:
"That Lin the Sixth from Chai Market wants to buy Ah Di as a servant, while over here the fishery prices are rising again, demanding Ghost Pattern Fish as tribute! Truly, there is no peace!
As a member of a slave household, I am oppressed wherever I go.
At least Xiaotou can rely on his parents and sister's savings to learn martial arts at the Martial Arts Hall.
But as for me…"
Bai Qi silently looked at the sky and shook his head.
The two brothers with no one to depend on can only fight for their survival on their own.
He returned to the house to speak briefly with Ah Di, tucked away two cold, hard wheat cakes, and carried a clay pot of clear water.
Untied the sailboat, and headed straight for the reed marshes of Black Water River!
...
...
Two hours later.
Bai Qi, weary and exhausted, hauled up the heavy fishing net.
Seeing seven or eight white carp jumping lively, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Approximately four to five pounds in weight, their tails vigorously slapping the wooden board.
In the eyes of the fisherman, this is a hundred wen coins!
In his mind, the ink talisman suddenly trembled.
[Skill: Fishing (Minor Completion)]
[Progress: (1/800)]
[Effects: Excellent water affinity, able to distinguish undercurrents, eyes like torches, able to discern fish schools. Out of ten, six or seven hits; may comprehend Sea-Driving Skill]
"Is this the minor completion of the fishing skill? If I'm truly this good, I can claim to be the number one Bai Shu Lang within ten miles or so, no problem!"
Bai Qi was overjoyed.
In these two hours, after casting the net three times, he finally achieved a meaningful breakthrough with this skill despite a modest catch, reaching minor completion.
He hurriedly tossed the fishing net aside, bent down, and lay flat on the sailboat.
Burying his head in the river, he tested its effects.
The so-called water affinity.
Mainly it was the ability to breathe underwater.
Bai Qi had once heard old men from the fishery bragging, claiming that masters could lie submerged for seven days and nights, crossing forty to fifty miles of river.
Such incredible tales, he wasn't sure if they were true.
But at this moment, the ink talisman indicated that the fishing skill had risen to minor completion.
In an instant, Bai Qi felt clear changes.
His whole body seemed like a fish growing gills.
With his head buried in river water, breath and air flowed naturally, without any suffocating sensation.
One more notable thing, the autumn Black Water River, meant to be sharp cold, but he felt no chill at all.
Even the most skilled fisherman rarely ventured into the river personally.
Because staying too long meant physical exhaustion, and rapid loss of heat.
If limbs stiffened, there was a possibility of drowning.
"So this is the esteemed water affinity that every fisherman envies!"
Bai Qi lifted his head, water droplets sliding down his hair.
Drip drip, onto the sailboat.
He simply removed the rough cloth short suit and plunged headlong.
Splash!
A great spray of water!
"It's simply like walking on land!"
Bai Qi kicked his feet, and like a fish darting, quickly swam out.
Whether diving down, or surfacing.
The water flow no longer posed resistance, instead enhancing his swiftness.
"This is a good fishing spot, scatter some bait, and big catches will certainly come!"
"The small fish all hide amid the water grass, blessed with such skill, why worry about never guarding the catch again in the future!"
"A ten-pound golden rainbow trout? Hidden so deep! Can't provoke! Remember it for later!"
"It's all mine! All mine!"
Excitement welled in Bai Qi's heart, losing the calm of old.
He had thought that this reed marsh, hunted overly by other fishing families.
Would yield no more returns.
Unexpectedly, underwater was another world!
With superior water affinity and acute perception.
Bai Qi could "see" valuable treasures worth thousands swimming around.
At this moment, he was like a pauper in an unguarded bank, a lustful ghost in an unprotected brothel.
Lingering without leaving, intensely joyful!
"I need to borrow a bigger, better net! Just this reed marsh is enough for me to earn several years' winter funds!"
About half a stick of incense later, Bai Qi resurfaced.
Unconsciously, he had swum out quite a distance.
"Heaven always leaves a way out for man!"
Releasing a long breath, Bai Qi opened his limbs, reveling in the Black Water River.
Rarely did this fisherman's heart find peace.
Saving for winter, fishery stall prices rising, paying tribute to the East Market's tyrant Yangquan... seemingly all troubles resolved.
"If I strive for three to five years, I can buy my own canopy boat,
Then swap for a comfortable house, move to the county, let Ah Di attend school... I can also go to the Martial Arts Hall to acknowledge a master.
If I succeed, this slave household status can be shed."
Bai Qi was genuinely happy, previously bearing the burden of survival to live.
Worrying about tomorrow, enduring harsh difficulties and toil.
Now, with fishing skill minor completion.
Everything had hope!