179: Yellowtail Gudgeon

Gao Xiaofan held the Gimbal and panned it around.

"The temperature has been dropping these past two days, and it's particularly cold. The wind is also very strong during the day. This spot is actually quite good; it's a large bend and relatively sheltered from the wind. We'll wait for Brother Gu to set up the fishing platform, then we'll try fishing here for the day."

He had asked while they were in the car, and Little Orange said she wasn't in the mood for the camera lately—so Gao Xiaofan didn't give her much of an introduction.

In a short while, Qiu Gu had finished setting up the fishing platform, and Gao Xiaofan had placed the Gimbal on the tripod. He then ran over to his large bag to rummage through it.

Having finished his preparations, Gao Xiaofan walked toward the phone camera carrying a basin filled with several bags of bait.

"We're going to make some groundbait now. The red one is wine-soaked rice, the pink one is Blue Crucian, and the dark, messy-looking one is the rapeseed cake from Taiping Lake."

After saying this, Gao Xiaofan squatted down, first crushing the rapeseed cake and then mixing the groundbait in the basin.

"We'll spread it out and add a little bit of water until it's like this—clumping together when squeezed. It contains wheat and wine-soaked rice. You can use the lead-skin scatter method or just squeeze it into balls and throw them into the water."

Gao Xiaofan squeezed a ball for the camera, explaining patiently.

"Using the lead-skin method isn't very convenient for me, so we'll just throw it in directly. Alright, let's start baiting the spot. Here goes!"

Four or five balls splashed into the water. After throwing them, Gao Xiaofan couldn't help but grin.

There are many steps to fishing, and every Angler has a different favorite part. Some like the drive to the fishing spot, some like mixing the bait, some like baiting the spot, and some like adjusting the float.

Gao Xiaofan's favorite part was mixing the bait, followed by baiting the spot. These two steps brought him closest to the fish. If the bait was mixed right, half the battle for a full basket was won, so he always looked forward to mixing the bait.

"The groundbait is done. Now let's mix some hook bait. We're still using the 'Old Three' combo, supplemented with some gluten powder."

Gao Xiaofan said as he poured the bait into the mixing basin.

"Local Anglers told us that the water in Taiping Lake is quite deep, starting at three meters. Without gluten powder, the bait's adhesion is very poor. It's likely to fall off before it even reaches the bottom, so we have to use gluten powder to improve its hook retention."

Once the bait was ready, Gao Xiaofan took a ball and placed it on the bait tray, then took the fishing rod handed over by Qiu Gu.

"We're still using 4.5-meter rods. If they're too long, it's hard to control the fish. The reason Taiping Lake is so popular with nearby Anglers is that Yellowtail Fish are very strong, and their float signals are quite erratic. You'll understand once we start fishing."

Gao Xiaofan left them in suspense, then pulled two bait balls onto his hooks and cast them out.

One of the biggest benefits since Qiu Gu learned to fish was that Gao Xiaofan no longer needed to adjust the floats himself; Qiu Gu would handle it for him.

Of course, this was also thanks to Gao Xiaofan's tireless explanations. Over the past two nights, Qiu Gu had asked him about every doubt he had. Sometimes, as they talked, Gao Xiaofan would get so confused by Qiu Gu's line of questioning that he almost forgot how to adjust a float himself.

"Why do we have to pull the sub-line an extra 10 centimeters after finding the bottom? Why can't we adjust the calibration marks and the fishing marks at the same time?"

Qiu Gu's questions had momentarily stumped Gao Xiaofan. In the end, completely bewildered, the two of them lay on the bed watching instructional videos on a phone. With Gao Xiaofan's plain explanations and animated gestures, he finally managed to teach Qiu Gu.

A gust of cold wind blew by, and Gao Xiaofan shook his head, clearing his thoughts.

"The main line is 1.0, the sub-line is 0.6, and I'm using a No. 4 Sleeve Hook. Actually, a Haixi Hook would be better, but since it's already rigged up, this will do."

Gao Xiaofan watched the float sink into the water and spoke to the camera behind him.

Nearby, Li Yuer and Chen Cheng were chatting and laughing, but since they were a bit far away, he couldn't hear what they were saying.

It looked like Li Yuer was planning to wait for big fish, as she was using Gao Xiaofan's 8.1-meter Rebar.

Gao Xiaofan looked back and turned to Qiu Gu with an inquiring gaze. Qiu Gu shook his head.

The two were developing a real rapport.

Gao Xiaofan didn't push it. He figured he'd take the chance to farm some yun jian value. At that thought, he swapped out his "my livestream, my rules" title and re-equipped the "Sheathed Enhanced Edition" title.

Three minutes later, Gao Xiaofan cast another line. While the float was still slowly sinking, it suddenly jerked down by three marks. He excitedly raised the rod.

A White Striped Fish the length of a finger flew out of the water. Gao Xiaofan's face darkened, but his mood improved slightly when he heard the system notification in his mind that his yun jian value had increased by one point.

Gao Xiaofan took the fishing line and flicked it against the de-hooking pin on the fish basket, dropping the White Striped Fish inside. He wanted to throw it back into the water, but it wasn't easy with only one hand.

It was cold now, so there shouldn't be many White Striped Fish around. How did he manage to run into one?

Without even looking, he knew the bullet chat must be having a field day.

"White Striped Fish: I want to fly higher~"

"What happened to showing us Yellowtail Fish?"

"Brother Wo Zi gives a wicked smile: 'Wait until I catch one, then you'll see.' Twenty minutes later, White Striped Fish +1!"

"Hahahahaha *hiccup*~"

Gao Xiaofan shook his head, pulled two bait balls onto his hooks, and with a gentle swing of the rod, cast the line out.

This time, the float sank at a steady pace and stopped firmly at two marks. It seemed the bait had reached the bottom.

He had calibrated for level water and was fishing two marks "dull." This was the experience Li Yuer had shared with him on the way for catching Yellowtail Fish. They usually came in schools, and it was very common for them to brush against the line. If the setup was too sensitive, the float signals would be impossible to read, and he'd be lifting the rod every few seconds.

Even if he did hook one, it would likely be a foul hook. To get a clean mouth hook, the best way to keep the float readable was to fish "dull," with the sub-line curved underwater and both hooks resting on the bottom.

Gao Xiaofan rested his right hand on the rod's handle, his eyes fixed on the float. Just then, the float trembled slightly. This was likely the line bumping Li Yuer had mentioned.

The float slowly submerged. When it reached one mark, it suddenly accelerated. The prepared Gao Xiaofan quickly raised the rod, and a massive force surged back.

He couldn't lift the rod at all; it was almost parallel to the water's surface. As for the rod tip, it had bent into a full arc, piercing through the water.

Behind him, Qiu Gu picked up the Gimbal and started looking for the best angle. Seeing this, the viewers in the livestream room couldn't help but start speculating.

"How big is that? Even the rod tip is underwater."

"That's normal. Given Brother Wo Zi's line setup, a two-catty Yellowtail Fish could do that."

"No way, is it even more powerful than a Mud Carp?"

"Hard to say, but I feel like they're about the same."