"You kid, you're not even married yet, and you're already so afraid of your wife. If you actually get married, you'll be in for quite a ride!" Wei Hai laughed as he pointed toward Li Xunshan.
Li Xunshan responded with a smile, "Being afraid of your wife is fine. There's no shame in it!"
At this moment, the old beggar chimed in, "Speaking of which, Wei Hai, you've got a good situation, so why haven't you found yourself a wife?"
"You've even run a tavern before, so just drink a little less. Surely the money to marry a wife is within your reach."
At these words, the corner of Wei Hai's mouth twitched. After a brief silence, he replied, "Old Wen, who told you I don't have a wife?"
"Ha!" The old beggar leaned over the stern of the boat, asking with interest, "I've been in Gucheng County all these years, but I've never seen your wife… or even a woman anywhere near you, within five feet, right?"
"Heh!" Wei Hai turned his head to change the subject. "By the way, does Mr. Gu have a family?"
Hearing the topic shift to him, Gu Ning'an, who had been drinking, waved his hand in response. "No."
"Tsk tsk tsk!" Wei Hai clicked his tongue. "To be honest, before I met Mr. Gu, I thought Li Xunshan was the handsomest guy in Gucheng County… But after meeting Mr. Gu, I realized how limited my perspective was."
"Don't even mention anything else, just your appearance alone! If you went to a matchmaker, all the unmarried girls would be scrambling to get to you!"
"If you're too shy, I can help you find a matchmaker?"
Gu Ning'an waved his hands repeatedly. "No need to trouble yourself. I have no intention of settling down."
"This… what a waste of such a fine physique!" Wei Hai took a sip of liquor, burped, then lay down on the table, waving his hand. "Mr. Gu, drink slowly. I'll take a nap for now…"
Having said that, Wei Hai immediately fell asleep with a loud snore, the sound long and short like a bellows being pulled.
On the other side, Gu Ning'an, seeing that the liquor jar was almost empty, didn't think twice before downing the last bit of "Fugen." [A type of liquor. I searched for this but can't find anything, so this might just be fictional.]
After finishing, he walked to the bow of the boat, casually grabbing a bamboo pole and a piece of hemp rope, about the thickness of a little finger. He tied one end of the rope to the top of the bamboo pole, then took a steamed bun and threaded the rope through it.
Thus, a simple fishing pole was ready.
Gu Ning'an cast the line, and with a "plop" sound, the piece of bun slowly sank into the water.
Seeing this, Li Xunshan couldn't help but grin. "Mr. Gu, the boat is still moving. You won't catch any fish like this…"
At the same time, the old beggar squeezed through the boat's rear and came to Gu Ning'an's side, laughing. "Ah, Li kid, you should say it'll be caught… If we really catch one, won't we all get to taste some? The fish in the Xiangjiang River are so fresh!"
Gu Ning'an responded, "Old Wen is right. There's nothing else to do, so I'll give it a try. Who knows, maybe a fish will bite."
"Well… as long as you're happy, Mr. Gu," Li Xunshan replied, then returned to focusing on guiding the boat.
The old beggar found a comfortable spot to lie down, lazily saying, "Mr. Gu, I'll take a nap for now. If you catch something, wake me up. I'm quite good at preparing fish dishes."
"Alright, we'll wait…" Before Gu Ning'an could finish speaking, the slack hemp rope suddenly tightened.
70 Fishing (2/2)
Feeling the pull from the bamboo rod, Gu Ning'an slightly raised the rod and said with a smile, "Old Wen, you might not be able to sleep now, the fish has bitten."
"What?" "So fast!"
Li Xunshan and the old beggar both turned to look in surprise.
Swish!
Gu Ning'an raised the bamboo rod in his hand, and a grass carp, about the length of an adult man's arm, leaped out of the water, its scales glistening in the sunlight as water droplets scattered.
From the fish leaping to being thrown onto the deck, it only took a few moments, but this left the old beggar and Li Xunshan stunned for quite some time before they snapped back to reality.
Splash, splash, splash!
The unwilling fish flopped wildly on the deck, splashing water everywhere.
The old beggar, who had water droplets in his eyes, came to his senses and exclaimed, "Mr. Gu! Your fishing skill is incredible! The fish has already been caught before the deck beneath me has even warmed up!"
Gu Ning'an put the bamboo rod down and set it aside, "It's all about luck."
"Well then, don't stop now. This place must have plenty of fish. Quickly, cast a few more lines and we might have a full fish feast tonight." The old beggar smacked the flopping grass carp, urging Gu Ning'an to keep fishing.
However, Gu Ning'an simply shook his head, "It's fine, one fish is enough for us. If we catch more, we'll just waste them if we can't finish them."
"That's true…" The old beggar said this, but he had already picked up the bamboo rod, smiling, "My hands are itching too, let me try fishing. If I catch one, I'll release it."
"Go ahead, try," Gu Ning'an said, making room for the old beggar to take a proper position.
However, as soon as the old beggar looked at the end of the hemp rope, his expression changed. Confused, he reached into the fish's mouth and fumbled around, only to pull out some soft, mushy dough.
"Uncle Wen, why aren't you casting your line? I was looking forward to seeing how skilled you are," Li Xunshan, noticing the lack of movement, turned around to ask with a smile.
"Hey, I'm not fishing anymore." The old beggar placed the bamboo rod onto the deck, his expression quite subtle.
Li Xunshan responded, "What's wrong? Are you afraid you might not catch anything and lose face?"
"I'm a beggar, what do I care about losing face?" The old beggar rolled his eyes, continuing, "Mr. Gu didn't even use a hook to fish, he just used some steamed bun pieces. I don't have that kind of skill."
"What! No hook!" Li Xunshan, startled, nearly lost his balance and almost fell off the boat. He steadied himself and incredulously asked, "How did you catch it without a hook?"
The old beggar rolled his eyes again, "Why are you asking me? Ask Mr. Gu."
"Oh, right, right!" Li Xunshan turned to Gu Ning'an and repeated his question.
Gu Ning'an simply smiled and replied, "I was just trying it out, didn't expect to catch anything."
"That's not important, don't mind it…" As he spoke, Gu Ning'an grabbed the large grass carp, which weighed at least eight pounds, and said, "Uncle Wen, the job of preparing the fish is yours."
Fishing with steamed buns is normal, but catching a fish without a hook, especially while on a moving boat, definitely isn't just luck…
The old beggar looked at Gu Ning'an thoughtfully, then took the carp with a slap to his chest, "Leave it to me."