477: Chapter 477 Sixteen

The high-pressure water cannons equipped on Chinese Coast Guard vessels are incredibly powerful, with a maximum pressure of up to 145 megapascals (MPa), far exceeding ordinary firefighting equipment. Their range is typically between 150 to over 200 meters, effectively damaging target vessel equipment and affecting their maneuverability.

The high-pressure water cannons now equipped on the "explorer" are of this Coast Guard-specific grade. They were inherited from the equipment of the scientific research vessel at that time.

Fortunately, when the ship was being renovated, Yang Qi didn't let them remove them. Otherwise, he really wouldn't have had a way to deal with those monkeys today and would have had to suffer in silence.

At this moment, the fishing boat with the hole had already begun to tilt. The crew members on board could be seen jumping off one after another, swimming toward the other fishing boat.

Hardening his heart, Yang Qi walked into the Cockpit and steered the "explorer" toward the tilting fishing boat that was taking on water.

With a loud "Clang!", the explorer smashed an even larger hole directly into that fishing boat.

The two ships were simply not in the same league; the explorer itself only swayed slightly.

It was like an adult bullying a child, giving them a fierce slap across the face and then sauntering away.

"Hahaha, let's see you damn well show off now. Fuck!"

Chen Sheng stood with his hands on his hips, cursing loudly at the Vietnamese guys who were wailing and swimming for their lives in the sea.

"Hahaha! Yang Qi is mighty and domineering!"

At this time, everyone on the "explorer" high-fived in celebration.

"Fuck, don't they know what level they're at? Daring to butt heads with me, they're simply looking for death!"

Yang Qi didn't bother with those two fishing boats anymore, leaving them there to wait for assistance; after all, he had left them one fishing boat.

Although that fishing boat could no longer be driven, the hull wasn't leaking. It was still capable of picking up the people from the other boat.

Yang Qi didn't consider himself a monster; he couldn't bring himself to drive the explorer over people paddling in the water.

However, since Bai Xue had been insulted, he would certainly give them the harshest punishment within his power. But it wouldn't go as far as killing them.

Under Yang Qi's navigation, the explorer traveled south for about an hour. He first checked the GPS to confirm his position was correct, then looked at the sonar.

He found himself at a depth of around 70 meters, reaching a depth suitable for daily operations. It wasn't like the earlier route where the water depth exceeded two thousand meters.

For a fishing vessel of the explorer's size, the depth for daily operations is generally between 50 and 150 meters.

Of course, if a school of fish is discovered, Trawling can be done even in waters thousands of meters deep. However, that can only be mid-water Trawling; bottom Trawling is impossible.

Yang Qi began giving orders over the broadcast to lower the nets for fishing.

The crew members, who were on the top deck balcony discussing how Yang Qi had used the water cannons to teach those Vietnamese monkeys a lesson, immediately ran toward the deck upon hearing the broadcast.

As the Otter Board entered the sea, the Trawling net gradually spread open, sweeping toward the front.

Yang Qi had already discovered a reef nearby; currently, it was equivalent to pulling the net across the mid-slope of the reef.

Lunch was soon ready. Bai Xue brought the food to the Cockpit so Yang Qi could eat while steering the ship.

Of course, this was Yang Qi's own request, because only he could see the situation on the seabed clearly.

"Husband, I saved some raw marinated seafood for you. Give it a taste."

Bai Xue also brought a plate of raw marinated Harpiosquilla raphidea from the refrigerator, placing it in front of Yang Qi.

"Have you all eaten yet?"

Yang Qi picked up a piece with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth, nodding slightly.

"Yes, we've all eaten. It's delicious. What do you think?"

Bai Xue looked at Yang Qi, her eyes full of expectation.

"It's very delicious—fresh, sweet, and tender. I like it very much; it's much better than ordinary Mantis Shrimp."

Yang Qi gave Bai Xue a thumbs up.

Hearing Yang Qi, who didn't usually like raw or cold seafood, praise her cooking, Bai Xue beamed with joy.

Unexpectedly, Yang Qi didn't say another word as he ate; his chopsticks were flying, and in the end, he even poured the remaining sauce into his rice.

Two hours later, Yang Qi ordered the net to be raised. Not long after, the cod-end was hoisted onto the deck.

Seeing the bulging, fat cod-end again, everyone cheered together. This haul was at least over three tons.

"Should I do it?"

Ding Kuan stepped forward, rubbing his hands, and then pulled hard to untie the net rope.

As the rope was pulled open, the catch tumbled down without obstruction. Everyone was stunned because the mountain-like harvest was entirely pitch black.

This didn't look like it was just pulled from the sea; it looked like it was just fished out of an inkwell!

"Holy crap, Baby Squid! They're all Baby Squid!"

Chen Gang shouted excitedly.

The so-called "Baby Squid" are called Sea Rabbits in some parts of the north. They are also a type of squid, but much smaller than the Rocket Squid they caught before.

Each one was only slightly thicker than an adult's thumb, and including the tentacles, they were only about a palm's length.

Most of them weighed about fifty to a hundred grams. Although small, the taste was truly good; they were delicious both as sashimi and blanched.

"It's not all Baby Squid; there are plenty of fish too. But what kind of fish is this?"

Zheng Tie picked up a fish. It wasn't large. He placed it in a nearby bucket to wash off the ink, and only then could he see clearly that the fish was grayish-brown with white stripes.

It looked a bit like a cross between a three-knife fish and a stone bream. Its body was plump, overall wide but not long, and a single fish weighed less than half a catty.

"This is also a high-quality fish. Locally, we call it the Sixteen Medals."

Wang Jinxi said with a smile.

The Belted Grunt is a species of the Haemulidae family. Common nicknames include Sixteen Medals, Copper Basin Fish, Blackfin Grunt, or Sea Monkey.

The body is oval, laterally compressed, and high. Generally, the body length is 10–15 cm, weighing 200–400 grams. The area in front of the dorsal fin is highly convex, the posterior margin of the preopercle has fine serrations, and the body is covered in fine ctenoid scales. It appears yellow-brown, with 7 dark brown transverse bands on the head and sides of the body.

They are carnivorous fish, feeding on small fish and crustaceans, and they like to move in schools.

Wild small-sized ones (less than 200g) are about 30 yuan per catty. Due to scarce resources, large-sized ones (200g or more) can exceed 150 yuan per catty (300 yuan per kilogram).

The flesh of the Sixteen Medals is oily and bouncy, suitable for steaming or cooking in soy sauce. The gills can be used as medicine.

This fish is common in many aquariums because it was originally used as an ornamental fish. Since it tastes quite good, its culinary value has gradually increased.

"Everyone, hurry up and sort them. Use four taels as a grade."

Wang Jinxi crouched down, not forgetting to remind everyone.

The price difference for these Sixteen Medals is huge depending on the size. Therefore, the sorting must be very careful. And because the fish are small, sorting is quite troublesome.

Then there are the Baby Squid; those things are slimy, making them even more of a hassle to sort.