Zi Yang Turtle

However, the beginner's protection period also had a time limit. After one watch-hour (two hours), the fish stopped biting.

Now was the time to chum.

Tran Mac poured out all the bait, using the original wooden bait bucket to hold the fish.

He crumbled the bait and then evenly sprinkled it into the ice cracks.

The harvest so far was quite good; he and Truong Ha had caught a total of two Silver Carp, three Black Carp, one Grass Carp, two herrings, and several small, finger-sized fish.

From time to time, cries of surprise rang out from the surroundings; someone had caught a carp, attracting many fishing enthusiasts to gather around.

"This carp is at least two catties!"

"Old Li has struck it rich! This carp is of excellent quality; it should sell for at least sixty wen."

"Old Li, congratulations, congratulations! You must treat us tonight."

All around were envious gazes.

Fishing was a relatively dull affair, especially in such cold weather, and when fish weren't biting for a long time.

Truong Ha was already getting restless, feeling cold, constantly pacing back and forth and blowing warm air into his hands.

Tran Mac had him go around to observe and, incidentally, gather some useful information.

He had noticed the prolonged period without bites.

Before long, Truong Ha returned with a useful piece of news.

The old man who had just been beaten to death by the Thanh Ha Bang members was called Shu Lao Tou (Old Tree Head) by others and was from the neighboring Wang Family Village. The reason he was discovered by the Thanh Ha Bang was that an acquaintance had reported him.

Shu Lao Tou had two married-off daughters, but they hadn't returned for several years, making him effectively a solitary person.

The informer didn't need to worry about retaliation.

The Thanh Ha Bang had previously issued a notice: anyone who reported someone secretly catching fish would be rewarded with one hundred wen per person reported.

One hundred wen! If luck was bad, one might need to fish for several days to earn that much money...

Reporting one person was equivalent to getting money for free.

"The Thanh Ha Bang has a mastermind, ah..."

Tran Mac sighed inwardly.

As long as you came to Dai Dong Lake to fish, you couldn't escape the Thanh Ha Bang's calculations.

One scheme after another, they had you tightly in their grip.

Soon, three watch-hours (six hours) had passed.

Except for the first hour and some fish caught after chumming, there were almost no bites in the subsequent hour or more.

Tran Mac looked at the fish in the wooden bucket – a dozen or so, big and small. He lifted it; it felt like about forty catties.

But valuable, high-priced fish like carp or Sapo fish, he hadn't caught a single one.

Just as Tran Mac was calling Truong Ha to prepare to wrap up, a sharp "snap" came from nearby – someone's rod had broken from a powerful bite.

The one with the broken rod was a short young man dressed in bulky, patched clothes. The fishing rod in his hand had snapped in two. He hurriedly grabbed the section with the fishing line attached, preventing it from being pulled into the ice crack.

Judging by the short young man's expression, it seemed he had hooked a big one.

Seeing a good show, the surrounding old fishermen all gathered around.

After about a minute, a green-backed black turtle, trailing a circle of water foam, was pulled out of the water by the short young man. It landed on the ice, even spinning around.

This green-backed black turtle was the size of a washbasin. On its carapace were two red vertical lines, and the shell between these vertical lines was purple.

"It's actually a big king turtle!"

"Turtles are highly nourishing! This one is so big, at least twenty catties."

"Nonsense, this isn't a common turtle, it's clearly a tortoise."

"Aren't they the same?"

To them, whether it was a soft-shelled turtle or a black turtle, they all called it "turtle." (Though in some places, they distinguish between soft-shelled turtles and black turtles, they are all commonly called "turtle.")

"This kid has struck it rich! This is a Zi Yang Turtle! Did you see that piece of shell in the middle? Whenever the sky is clear, the Zi Yang Turtle will come out to bask in the sun. This is a great tonic; I heard it can be used as medicinal cuisine for the cultivation of those martial artist masters!"

A middle-aged man, who looked as if he had traveled far from home and seen the world, exclaimed in surprise.

As soon as these words were spoken, the surrounding people burst into an uproar.

Although they didn't know what a Zi Yang Turtle was, hearing that it could be used as medicinal cuisine for martial artist masters, they knew this turtle could definitely fetch a very high price.

Instantly, gazes of admiration, envy, and even greed fell upon the short young man.

The short young man knew this had made him a target. He immediately lunged forward, hugging the Zi Yang Turtle tightly, then shouted, "Brother Ho, I want to sell fish!"

The Thanh Ha Bang lackeys, who were idly chatting, heard the call, spat, and walked over with an air of disdainful arrogance, saying, "Who wants to sell fish?"

"It's me, it's me." The short young man finally stood up, pointing to the "Zi Yang Turtle" at his feet, and said, "This esteemed boss, I want to sell this kind of turtle... no, it's a Zi Yang Turtle. They said it can be used as medicinal cuisine for martial artist masters."

The short young man excitedly rubbed his hands.

The Thanh Ha Bang lackeys glanced at each other. One said, "Let Brother Ho take a look."

Then, a lackey waved to the short young man and said, "Follow me."

"Alright."

The short young man, beaming with joy, followed, carrying the "Zi Yang Turtle."

Because Tran Mac was about to leave, he also went over to observe.

"Brother Mac, that kid hit the jackpot. An item for the cultivation of martial artist masters, it must be worth at least two or three taels of silver," Truong Ha whispered in Tran Mac's ear.

"Valuable it may be, but he might not necessarily get that silver."

Judging from the Thanh Ha Bang's various actions so far, they were a man-eating tiger; how could they be willing to part with so much silver?

As expected.

In the wooden shed, after Brother Ho had examined the Zi Yang Turtle for a while, he suddenly slammed the table in front of him: "You worthless punk, you even dare to deceive Laozi! This is clearly a common Green Turtle! You dare to sell it as a Zi Yang Turtle? That kind of precious item, how could a stupid fellow like you possibly catch it?"

Startled by Brother Ho's shout, the short young man immediately dropped to his knees, trembling as he said, "Brother Ho, this little one wouldn't dare! This little one didn't... I didn't say it was a Zi Yang Turtle. Others said it; I didn't."

"Hmph, I trust you wouldn't dare either." Brother Ho snorted coldly and said to a subordinate beside him, "Take it to be weighed."

The subordinate took it to a scale. After a moment, he said, "Brother Ho, ten catties."

"How can it be ten catties? Could there be a mistake..." Hearing it was only ten catties, the short young man looked up, somewhat astonished. When he had held it just now, it was definitely more than ten catties.

"Hmm?" Brother Ho glared, and the short young man was so frightened he quickly lowered his head.

"Remember, Green Turtle, ten catties, price... two hundred wen," Brother Ho said after a moment's thought.

"Good heavens..."

That mouth was like the Dragon-Slaying Saber, slashing right at the aorta.

According to Tran Mac's understanding, even a common Green Turtle of that size, if sold, should fetch at least one string of cash, and it couldn't possibly be only ten catties.

Even if cut in half, it should still be worth half a string of cash.

Now, he was only given two hundred wen. How much was being embezzled?

The short young man also knew this price was a huge rip-off.

But looking at Brother Ho and his gang, how could the short young man have the guts to bargain? He could only accept, and even had to force a smile and say, "Thank you, Brother Ho."

After receiving the two hundred wen, the short young man hurriedly left Dai Dong Lake, not daring to linger...