134: Xige

“Yang Liqiu, how much are these fish?”

Yang Qi pointed at the three types of fish he liked and asked.

Yang Liqiu thought for a moment and said, “These large wild Yellow catfish, I sell for 65 yuan a catty.”

“Okay, no problem, I’ll take all of them!” Yang Qi replied without even thinking.

Yang Liqiu paused, nodded, and said nothing. He sold Yellow catfish of this size to restaurants in town for 65 to 75 yuan a catty. Occasionally, he also sold them for 60 yuan a catty.

He had originally thought: “If I ask for 65 yuan a catty, you’ll definitely bargain, and since we’re from the same village, I’ll give them to you for 60 yuan a catty.”

He just didn't expect things to not go according to his script.

“These large wild crucian carp are 25 yuan a catty.”

This time, Yang Liqiu directly quoted a price slightly lower than what he sold to restaurants. If people found out he sold fish to Yang Qi for a higher price than to others, it wouldn't sound good.

“Don’t I have face?”

Then he pointed to the creek fish, fearing Yang Qi would misunderstand, and said:

“Yang Qi, these creek fish, don’t let their small size fool you, they’re really not cheap. Farm-raised ones are already selling for 45 yuan a catty in the market.”

“Your Great Uncle would never overcharge you. How about 55 yuan a catty?”

Yang Qi actually knew the current price of local creek fish. Last year, he saw it in his high school classmates' group chat.

A classmate complained: Even creek fish are being farm-raised and sold in the wet market now, and they’re ridiculously expensive at 45 yuan a catty. Wild ones are even more expensive, and so on.

So he knew that Yang Liqiu wasn't trying to overcharge him at all.

In the end, a little over three catties of Yellow catfish, two large crucian carp, plus a little over two catties of creek fish, cost a total of 350 yuan.

Yang Qi borrowed a fish basket from Yang Liqiu, declined his offer to give him a few more Crustacean, loaded up the fish, and quickly went home.

It had been a long time since he tasted river delicacies from his hometown, he was really looking forward to it!

When Yang Qi returned home, he saw several Great Uncles, Uncles, and Aunts chatting in the house.

When they saw Yang Qi come in and pour the fish into a large basin, several people came over to look.

Third Uncle directly asked Yang Qi if he bought them from Yang Liqiu, and if he had been overcharged. He looked as if he would go to Yang Liqiu to demand an explanation if he had paid too much.

Yang Qi quickly smiled and said, “Third Uncle, Yang Liqiu sold them to me cheaply, and even offered to give me a few more Crustacean, but I didn’t take them.”

Third Uncle nodded then, and said nothing.

Yang Qi drew well water and temporarily kept the Yellow catfish and large crucian carp alive.

Yellow catfish are not as easy to keep alive as crucian carp; they will die if the water temperature rises. He planned to deal with them later.

Crucian carp are the easiest to keep alive, especially in winter. Sometimes they are taken home out of water, delayed for an hour or so on the way, but they are still alive when put back into water. (This certainly does not include the Greater Northeast)

Creek fish are even more delicate; they will basically die immediately if the water temperature is slightly high or if they are out of water. After they die, if not processed in time, they will quickly spoil and rot in the belly.

The first thing Yang Qi needed to process was the creek fish. After gutting them, he found a bamboo basket to drain the water.

For creek fish under five or six centimeters, generally, there's no need to use scissors to cut open their bellies. Just squeeze them with both hands, and the internal organs will be squeezed out of the belly, then just remove them.

Yang Qi gently picked up a Yellow catfish. Catching this type of fish requires some skill, especially when you've just caught it. You must grab it from the head downwards. Your fingers should use a delicate grip, not your palm.

Their two pectoral fins and dorsal fin all contain toxins. They are hard and thick, and the inner side of each has serrated barbs.

Only by grabbing from the head downwards can you avoid the toxic barbs on the inner side.

Grabbing them out of the basin is much simpler; just grab both sides of their dorsal fin.

When fishing, especially night fishing, catching Yellow catfish can sometimes be quite annoying. Its three venomous spines can get caught on the fish net, shaking from one side to the other. No matter how much you shake, they won't come off.

Experienced fishermen, when they catch Yellow catfish, either keep them in a basin first or throw them back into the water.

The Yellow catfish twisted its body continuously in Yang Qi's hand, making a sound similar to “ga ga ga” or “gu gu gu”.

Some people also cut off these venomous spines when gutting Yellow catfish. That's fine, of course, as those things can't be eaten anyway.

It's just that some people feel that doing so destroys the integrity of the fish, and it's not that it looks bad, but rather that it loses some of its feel when eaten.

Of course, the premise is that you know how to process these fish.

Yang Qi happened to be one of those people, and he quickly processed all the fish.

Seeing that it was only a little past three in the afternoon, and dinner was still far off, he put all the cleaned fish into the refrigerator to cook later.

He went to the main house and saw everyone listening to his father recount his fishing adventures at sea.

His father held a cigarette in one hand, spitting as he spoke, saying over and over:

“Let me tell you…”

“I’m telling you…”

Yang Qi listened for a while. Fortunately, his father didn't mention once how much money he earned from a single fishing trip. He also attributed all the credit to Yang Qi's father-in-law, Bai Dahai's experience.

He also occasionally mentioned how other fishermen couldn't find fish schools and how they lost money.

The main reason was that he was afraid the villagers would hear that they made money fishing at sea and all go to imitate them. If they made money, it would be fine, but what if they lost money?

You might say, then it's better not to mention that they also partnered to buy a boat and go out to sea. But that's not possible either! We can't just move our whole family there and do nothing!

Besides, I earned money, and in just over ten days, I earned more than I had in the first half of my life. I'm also happy, and it's only right to show off a little.

Yang Qi could tell that his father was really enjoying being the center of attention. After all, the first half of his life had been too ordinary, and he had a tiny bit of a 'loser' mentality.

Yang Qi was very happy with the psychological state his parents were currently displaying. Nothing could compare to making his parents happy.

Yang Qi offered everyone another round of cigarettes, silently watching his father's spirited speech.

His mother came over and whispered that she was going to buy some groceries in town and invite everyone to eat at home.

Yang Qi naturally nodded in agreement and suggested he drive.

Yang Qi went to the car to get a furong wang (cigarette brand) and gave a pack to each of the uncles and aunts present.

His mother strongly invited everyone to stay for dinner that evening. She called two aunts, and together they got into Yang Qi's car and drove towards the county town.

The county's farmers' market wasn't very big, but it was well-equipped, basically having everything one might need.

First, meat: pork, beef, and lamb, get a lot of these. Then, fish: the ones at home definitely wouldn't be enough, so let's get two big grass carp.

When he arrived at the seafood section, Yang Qi immediately lost interest. Besides some snails and shellfish, there were only cheap frozen goods. Many of them were what he used for chumming when he went fishing.