I Can Fish Up Everything!

"Is there a difference between this boat and the small ones at the fishermen’s pier? Is it better at handling rough seas?"

"Well... they’re actually pretty similar. You can’t take them out if the sea gets a little rough. It’s too easy to get into trouble. We had three accidents at Yangjiang Port in the first half of the year. The boats all sank, but thankfully, no one was hurt."

"If you want to buy a boat you can take out anytime, then this one is much better," the middle-aged man said, pointing to a hull nearby. It was about the same length but was clearly a meter wider and had higher sides.

Not only that, but it also came with a small cabin.

At a glance, it almost looked like a fishing yacht, just not as sleek.

"How much for this one?"

"That depends on the equipment you choose."

"I’m just looking to do some recreational fishing, not commercial."

"Ah, in that case, you might as well take a look at the fishing yachts over there," the man said, pointing toward several models on the other side. "Honestly, the price difference for the hull isn’t that big."

’If the difference isn’t that big,’ Gu Nan thought, ’then a fishing yacht really is the better option.’

He learned that the most basic fishing yacht models were just like the fishing boats: you had to keep an eye on the weather, which limited the number of days a month you could go out.

Of course, for coastal trips, it was basically fine as long as there wasn’t a typhoon, but that was pointless for Gu Nan.

The upgraded models had noticeably different widths and materials. According to the salesman, even a small eight-meter boat could be built to a Category II standard, while some twenty-four-meter boats were only Category III.

The difference in craftsmanship and materials resulted in a huge price gap.

For instance, a fishing yacht for Category III waters, 12.8 meters long and 3.2 meters wide, would cost 160,000 for the hull alone.

Add in some basic equipment, an engine, an outboard motor, and so on, and the price skyrocketed. Even the simplest configuration would cost over 400,000.

Gu Nan was stunned. ’They’re that expensive?’

Even with his current income, it would take him a full quarter to afford it.

He figured he should check out some other boatyards. ’For all I know, this place could be ripping me off.’

The salesman heard he was about to leave and knew he was put off by the price. "We have a few used fishing yachts, if you want to take a look," he said. "Two of them are also twelve meters. With depreciation, they’re down to around 100,000 to 200,000."

Gu Nan hadn’t considered a used boat. Besides, 100,000 to 200,000 was still more than he could afford right now. He decided to look elsewhere first.

However, after visiting five boatyards in a row, he found the prices were all about the same.

If he wanted a safe boat that he could take out on the sea frequently, even the cheapest fishing boat would cost over 300,000, and that would be for a very basic configuration.

In reality, there really wasn’t much of a price difference between the hulls of a fishing yacht and a fishing boat. The real gap was in the equipment, which meant a high-end fishing boat wasn’t necessarily cheaper than a fishing yacht.

He had spent the whole morning looking around, and it was nearly noon. Gu Nan had no choice but to head back to his shop for now. He would have to think about the boat later.

It wasn’t that he couldn’t afford a boat for four or five hundred thousand. With how well his business was doing, he was confident he could get a loan.

If he really wanted to, he could borrow a few hundred thousand.

Gu Nan’s biggest dilemma was whether it was worth spending so much money on a boat that was destined to be just a temporary stopgap.

The only boat that would be a long-term solution was a Category II fishing yacht, as those could travel into the open ocean.

But he had learned today that the starting price for a Category II boat was over a million—and not just *one* million.

Given his game-like cheat, he couldn’t just pay to go out on someone else’s boat. That would be like sealing away his cheat, making the whole trip pointless.

Back at the shop, An Jun was in the middle of cleaning a Blue Star Nine-spine Sea Perch. It wasn’t a big one, looking to be just over a catty, and was probably the smallest of the bunch.

"Feeling generous today?"

"Gotta splurge once in a while. This one’s 1.3 catties. We’re good buddies, you have to give me a discount, right?"

"For you, my ’dearest friend and family,’ of course there’s a discount. This fish is 1.3 catties, which comes to 260. With a discount, that makes it... fifty-two... COUGH COUGH. We’re good buddies, so I’ll give you a deal. Just send me 500!"

"Forget it. I insist on giving you these twenty bucks. What do you say, my ’dearest friend and family’?"

An Jun said, winking flirtatiously.

"...Just go clean your fish!"

Gu Nan was no match for him when it came to being outrageous, so he chose to ignore him, walking into the shop to grab a power strip to charge his electric scooter.

Yi Chen was sitting to the side, watching a pot of pork rib and taro soup simmering. A plate of scrambled eggs with chives was already on the table.

"Boss, how did the boat shopping go?"

"I looked around a bit. They’re too expensive. Even a small boat is four or five hundred thousand," Gu Nan sighed, pulling up a small stool to sit beside her.

"Ah! That expensive?!" Yi Chen gasped. Four or five hundred thousand was a number she could barely even comprehend right now.

At her old salary, she would have had to work for ten years without eating or drinking to earn that much.

"Yeah, too expensive," Gu Nan sighed. He had originally thought he could get one for around a hundred thousand. Clearly, he’d been naive.

"Want me to lend you some?" An Jun asked, walking over with a basket. Inside was a very crudely cleaned fish.

Gu Nan shook his head. "Let’s hold off for now. I’m still thinking about whether I should even buy one. It’s mainly that this kind of small boat would just be a temporary solution, and it doesn’t feel worth spending that much money on."

"What about used? Are they that expensive too?" An Jun handed the fish to Yi Chen and asked her to have it Steamed.

But Yi Chen took one look at the fish, walked over to the entrance, and started redoing his work. The fish hadn’t been cleaned properly.

"There are used ones for one or two hundred thousand, but I don’t like buying used," Gu Nan said, shaking his head with a look of aversion.

"Buddy, don’t let what happened back then affect your judgment now," An Jun said, patting his shoulder earnestly.

"It’s just a stopgap! You need to be more like me. When I’m looking for a girlfriend, I never worry about how many boyfriends she’s had, or you know, how ’tight’ she is. As long as she’s pretty and has a good figure, that’s all that matters."

"I don’t even mind divorced women. If I’m lucky and her ex was... under-endowed, I can still enjoy something that’s 90% new."

Gu Nan: "..."

Yi Chen, by the entrance: "..."

’So open-minded!’

’Maybe it was this kind of attitude that kept An Jun from ever worrying about relationships?’

Gu Nan himself didn’t know when he had developed such a distaste for used things. But still, you can’t argue with money.

A new boat’s value depreciates like crazy after it’s been used for a while. You basically lose half its value when you sell it.

But if you buy a used boat, use it for a while, and then sell it, it just becomes a third-hand boat. The price drop between second-hand and third-hand isn’t nearly as dramatic.

If it weren’t for the transaction records, you could easily pass off a third-hand boat as a second-hand one.

"You’re right. I guess I should go look at some suitable used boats. I’ll pick out a few I like, and then find an expert to go with me to check them out. Can’t let myself get ripped off."

Used boats are just like used cars. If you don’t know what you’re looking for, the chances of getting cheated are high. It’s essential to bring along an expert.

Gu Nan planned to ask Wang Junhe if he knew any experts.

After lunch, An Jun took off, saying he had a new girlfriend and was heading out for a date.

This made Gu Nan sigh. ’And he tells *me* to go after Yi Chen. Since we’re such good buddies, what woman would dare to say yes to me!’

’You are the company you keep. Any woman would suspect I’m probably the same kind of guy.’

’Then again,’ he mused, ’is a "90% new" divorced woman really a thing?’

Gu Nan was very curious. After An Jun’s little "pep talk" at lunch, he realized he wasn’t actually that rigid about certain things. His bottom line was surprisingly flexible.

He lay back in his chair, his mind drifting. Just as he was about to close his eyes for a nap, a three-wheeled vehicle pulled up to the entrance.

On the back was an extremely long foam box, probably two and a half meters long. That was the maximum size for a standard foam box; custom ones were a different story.

He shot up from his chair and walked over. "The fish is here?"

The delivery driver was a middle-aged man. He pulled out the paperwork and handed it to Gu Nan. "Indian marlin. Take a look, see if this is it."

Gu Nan had thought it would take another two days to arrive by sea freight. He was surprised it had been taken out of the refrigerated warehouse just yesterday and was already here by noon today.

He took the slip and glanced at it. The data, place of origin, and other details were an exact match for the information his game had provided.

He signed for the delivery, and then he and the driver worked together to move the big fellow into the shop, propping it upright along the corridor wall.

Yi Chen was already waiting nearby with a pair of scissors. The moment they set the foam box down, she started to open it.

When she opened the box and saw the Indian marlin lying inside, a flicker of surprise crossed her face.

’What on earth happened to its head when it was alive?’ she wondered.

Gu Nan, oblivious to her thoughts, took out his phone, snapped a picture of the fish, and posted it to his social media feed.

"Yi Chen, you should take a picture and post it, too. Oh, and film a short video for that video app. A little promotion might attract a big spender to buy it."

"Huh? Didn’t a customer already reserve this fish?"

"Nope. I ordered it specially. Our shop needs a big showpiece to hold down the fort, something to set us apart from the other stores."

Nobody in the seafood market around here dealt with giants like this. They were just too hard to sell, and you could easily get stuck with the inventory.

The only exception was if a customer pre-ordered, and even then, the shop would have to pull strings just to see if they could source one.

If that failed, their only option was to buy one from another source and resell it at a higher price.

Gu Nan had forgotten to take a picture of the last big fish. Now that he had another one, he could take a photo to let customers know he had access to them. Then, he could start taking pre-orders in the future.

If a customer inquired and put down a deposit to confirm a purchase, *then* he would take one out of the refrigerated warehouse and arrange for delivery.

Yi Chen listened to his somewhat flimsy reasoning with a helpless expression. Her boss was great in every way, except that he could be a little quirky and all over the place with his words.

Still, she obediently took out her phone and filmed a selfie-style video, making sure to get both herself and the fish in the frame.

She had filmed her second video that morning and was still in the middle of editing it. But from the comments online, she was already well aware of what her followers were tuning in for.

After filming and uploading it, she got a few likes within moments.

Yi Chen didn’t really think anyone would try to buy the fish from her, so she put her phone away and went back to the counter to continue editing her video.

After posting on his feed, Gu Nan shoveled some more ice onto the fish and then put the lid back on the foam box to keep it cold.

Lying back down in his chair, he started to wonder how he should sell this fish, and who he could sell it to.

The whole point of the post was to let Kang Ye and the other fishing fanatics he knew see it. Maybe they would be interested.

If there were no takers, he would have to personally visit some of the mid-to-high-end seafood towers and Japanese restaurants to make a sales pitch himself.

If he offered it for a decent price, someone would surely take it. What was a difficult sell for him would be an easy menu item for one of those restaurants.