249: Diving to catch fish

I used to be very happy when I caught a Wrasse in the East China Sea.

Many Anglers who go out to sea have never even caught this kind of fish, let alone those Anglers who fish in the inshore waters and by the shore.

However, upon reaching Xisha, Wrasse were as abundant as snapper in the East China Sea used to be; they were practically everywhere.

One cannot deny the rich fishery resources in the South China Sea.

Fish at night, when their eyes are illuminated by light, basically stop moving around, as if their acupoints have been struck.

It's the same for chickens and birds on land; at night, as long as their eyes are illuminated by a light, they won't even make a sound, let alone jump or run.

That's why some criminals steal chickens and hunt birds at night.

Not to mention stealing chickens, just talking about hunting birds,

In fact, many bird species do not have nests; at night, those that do have nests return to them.

The remaining birds without nests generally hide in small woods around villages and houses to spend the night; as long as you shine a flashlight into its eyes, it will stop moving.

You can catch it directly with your bare hands.

Of course, you can't catch those birds now; they've all become protected animals, otherwise, you'd be sent to 'pedal the sewing machine' (a euphemism for prison labor) in a minute.

Just then, Yang Qi spotted a few East Star Groupers, and there was certainly no reason to let them go!

He swam closer, reached out, and grabbed the largest one, which was about five catties, and put it into his net bag.

His finger had slightly touched another one, and he watched wistfully as this East Star Grouper swam away.

After securing the East Star Grouper in his hand, he swam in the direction the escaped East Star Grouper had gone, and unexpectedly, he found that East Star Grouper under a reef less than five meters away.

"Shouldn't a couple fly together? Why are you running?"

Yang Qi illuminated it with his light, slowly swam over, and grabbed it with his hand; it basically didn't even resist.

Actually, this feeling of free-diving and catching fish is much more satisfying than fishing.

Fishing is passively waiting for fish to bite the hook; to be honest, whether they bite or which fish bites is up to the fish underwater.

Free-diving and catching or spearfishing is completely different; the initiative is in your own hands. You can catch whichever one you want. You can also clearly see the process of the fish being caught.

So, with fishing, you might go home empty-handed, but with free-diving and catching or spearfishing, you definitely won't.

Moreover, going into the sea also allows you to pick up conchs, starfish, or pry Abalone, etc. If you can also catch a few Groupers, it's definitely profitable.

If he encountered a large fish that he couldn't catch with his bare hands, Yang Qi would definitely take out the speargun from his back and shoot it.

"Oh! A Spiny Lobster!"

At this moment, Yang Qi discovered a Spiny Lobster hiding in a reef cave, its two long antennae exposing its whereabouts.

"A fellow who looks after his head but not his tail!"

Yang Qi secretly chuckled to himself.

Lobsters escape by flicking backward, and their movements are very swift.

Yang Qi stepped forward, firmly gripped the two long antennae with both hands, and pulled hard, dragging this three-catty lobster out of its cave.

He grabbed the lobster's head with one hand and put it into the net bag.

"Hehehe, isn't that a Sesame Grouper? At least four catties, you're the one."

"Big Wrasse, where are you running to!"

"Hahaha, a Swallowtail Grouper? Come into my net quickly."

As one high-quality catch after another was caught by Yang Qi and put into his net bags, the two net bags he had brought down were full again.

He looked at Bai Xue not far away and saw that she was also looking at him; they exchanged a smile.

They both pointed upwards at the same time, and after turning off their diving lights, they came together, held hands, and floated to the surface.

It seemed that Bai Xue's two net bags were also basically full.

They both returned to the deck of the setting sail.

Pulling up the four net bags, they saw that they were indeed filled with premium seafood.

"Husband, there are so many good fish in the sea!"

Bai Xue said excitedly.

"Yes! As expected of Xisha in the South China Sea. Maybe there are even more in the Spratly Islands."

Yang Qi said as he poured the various fish from the net bags into the live fish tank.

All the lobsters were placed in a separate live fish tank. They certainly deserved the status of a private room.

They hadn't caught any large Crabs on this dive; they were all ones caught in the trap cages over the past few days, all tied up and kept with the lobsters.

"Husband, I specifically picked up some conchs and scallops just now. Later, I'll make you scallops with garlic and vermicelli! What else would you like to eat?"

Bai Xue asked, looking at Yang Qi with her big eyes blinking.

"Hmm, steam that Mouse Grouper, and then prepare a Spiny Lobster to make garlic vermicelli lobster. This stuff goes great with rice."

Yang Qi thought for a moment and said,

"Or how about we make a braised Wrasse head? No, let's try a chopped chili Wrasse head."

Yang Qi had long wanted to try making chopped chili fish head with sea fish, so he suggested.

"Hehehe, alright, I'll save the Wrasse meat and make you sauerkraut fish tomorrow."

Bai Xue covered her mouth and chuckled. Whether it tasted good or not didn't matter; if her husband wanted to eat it, she'd make it.

At most, it was just wasting a fish, what's the big deal?

Besides, it might even taste very good.

Bai Xue first took out some vermicelli and soaked it in water, then the two went to shower and change clothes, which took some more time.

After changing into loose clothes, Yang Qi and Bai Xue prepared dinner together.

The Mouse Grouper was gutted, rubbed with some cooking wine, ginger slices, garlic slices, and green onion segments, and marinated for a few minutes.

The scallops were shucked, gutted, leaving only the adductor muscle, washed clean, and then topped with some vermicelli and seasoned minced garlic.

The Spiny Lobster was split down the back and handed to Bai Xue to lay out the vermicelli and seasonings.

The most troublesome part was preparing the Wrasse; the outer layer of scales was like armor. After Yang Qi chopped off the fish head, he had Bai Xue wash the fish meat clean and put it in the refrigerator.

After preparing the large fish head, he also began to marinate it to remove any fishy smell, finally topping it with a layer of chili and chopped chili.

Before long, the two were enjoying their meal on the deck.

Unexpectedly, this chopped chili Wrasse head tasted really delicious, its flavor completely surpassing that of bighead carp or silver carp head.

This made the two look forward to the sauerkraut fish made with Wrasse.

The two chatted and ate.

"Husband, are we going to dive again later?" Bai Xue asked.

"Let's not today! We'll go fishing later! I saw quite a few small Groupers down there earlier. Let's catch some to keep at home, so we can just scoop them out and eat them whenever we want."

Yang Qi suggested.

"Hmm, yes! There are so many Groupers of various kinds, about one to three catties each, down there. Fish of this size are the most delicious, and it won't be wasteful for our family to eat."

"Husband, when we get home, let's build some more fish tanks on the wall near the guest room to keep ornamental fish, and on the other side, we'll keep small Groupers. We can just scoop them out whenever we want to eat."

Bai Xue also offered a suggestion.

"I think that's a good idea. We'll go fishing after we finish eating, and we'll stay here tonight. We'll really 'shear the sheep' (make a good profit) here."

Yang Qi nodded in agreement, indicating that he wanted to catch more small Groupers tonight... PS: Please like, comment, and urge for more updates. It's free 'power of love'.

Please help with the data, everyone!

Thank you all for your support!