Chapter 85: Chapter 82: Old Fish’s Invitation
“Really?”
Wu Ya looked up abruptly, her eyes shining with surprise as she stared at Huo Sining.
But very quickly, she realized sothing, and shook her head hurriedly in refusal, “Sister Sining, let’s not eat it. These crabs are so expensive; it’s better to save them to sell for money.”
Huo Sining quite liked Wu Ya, this na??ve and simple girl. Knowing that the girl was worried about the cost, she couldn’t help but reach out to ruffle her hair, teasingly saying,
“Just watching others enjoy fresh food makes
drool with envy. Whether we earn more or less money is secondary. The most important thing is to satisfy our own tastes. We can’t shortchange our stomachs, right? Besides, there are so many crabs here. How much could a few of us really eat?”
Wu Ya suddenly felt a bit embarrassed and stuck out her tongue.
...
As the two chatted, Wu Jun had already purchased a large bundle of fine white cotton rope.
Binding hairy crabs is necessary; first, these creatures are quite aggressive. If they are not tied up with rope, they will crawl everywhere and might even injure custors.
Secondly, crabs are alive, and when they struggle while being stead in a pot, the crab roe can leak, diminishing the deliciousness.
Even though Wu Jun hadn’t eaten crabs before, his thod of tying them up was incredibly slick.
He pursed his lips, his gaze fixated on the crabs. With arms as solid as iron, he reached into the water tank, unfazed by the waving claws, catching them with precision each ti.
Once in his hands, the crabs were unable to exhibit their ferocious nature; before they could react, they were already bound by the rope.
Watching him deftly subdue a ferocious crab in a few movents, Huo Sining couldn’t help but admire him.
It was only in monts like these that Huo Sining felt that Wu Jun had an aura of a soldier, especially the way he tied up the crabs—efficient and decisive, as though he was handling prisoners with seriousness and dedication.
Huo Sining initially planned to help but suddenly rembered sothing. She quickly took out her phone to call Su Qingqing and Jin Chenyu.
True to a food lover’s nature, Su Qingqing was still asleep. She was a bit grouchy upon Answering the call, but upon hearing Huo Sining ntion that a batch of Yellow River natives had arrived at the shop, her mood imdiately brightened, and she didn’t even feel lazy anymore. Without saying another word, she got up, dressed, and rushed out the door.
Seeing Su Qingqing’s urgent deanor, Huang Hongying was baffled, thinking sothing was wrong, and anxiously followed her, persistently asking questions.
Jin Chenyu, however, retained so dignity. After receiving Huo Sining’s call, he wanted to decline, but he couldn’t resist Huo Sining’s insistence and agreed to co to the shop to get the crabs later.
When it ca to things fished out of the Yellow River for free, Huo Sining was always generous. On usual days, she would occasionally give fresh river catches to the owners of nearby flora and fauna shops.
And because of this, Huo Sining, an outsider, wasn’t shunned by the old street residents; on the contrary, she had a pretty good standing among the locals.
This ti, having fished up so many crabs, she definitely couldn’t sell them all in a short ti. Huo Sining didn’t plan to keep them to herself; instead, she intended to let everyone taste the fresh crabs.
Soon, she had bagged the crabs properly and delivered a few to each household.
Receiving gifts always lifts the spirits, and the crabs Huo Sining gave were indeed lively Yellow River hairy crabs. Even just three to five weren’t cheap, so the shop owners were overjoyed, and their attitudes toward this young lady grew even more cordial.
Not far from Xianyu Shop was a store nad Colorful Fish Ho, which also dealt in ornantal fish. The owner, nad Elder Yu, was around fifty years old and was fondly referred to as “Old Fish.”
Old Fish’s store had been running for over twenty years and was quite well-known locally.
Initially, when Old Fish knew that Huo Sining had taken over Cai Jianxin’s shop, he was sowhat skeptical.
He thought that Huo Sining, still a young girl, would hardly know anything about fish-keeping and guessed she was just so rich family’s daughter wanting to dabble in business for fun. Usually, such people lose interest quickly, and he thought that Xianyu Shop would probably close down in a few months.
As Xianyu Shop underwent renovation without opening for half a month, Old Fish beca even more convinced of his speculation.
However, to his surprise, once Xianyu Shop opened after that half-month, custors left the store with a fish in their hands on opening day, and hardly anyone went away empty-handed.
This sparked his curiosity about the new owner. He imdiately arranged for a few shop owners nearby to gather at Xianyu Shop to find out the secret of its success.
If at first, he harbored a sowhat mocking attitude, it changed after he entered Xianyu Shop.
Old Fish was indeed soone who had struggled in the ornantal fish community for many years. After a single glance at the fish Huo Sining kept in her aquariums, he knew that they were all of top quality.
Years of fishkeeping had allowed Old Fish to develop his unique thods, and he had never lowered his head before anyone else. He also considered himself second to none on this street when it ca to keeping fish.
However, after interacting with young Huo Sining, he had to admit that the heavens truly played favorites.
There were mountains beyond mountains, and people beyond people. Decades of experience in fishkeeping seed a re joke before this young girl’s innate talents. Not to ntion anything else, just those koi from Xianyu Shop that had turned a brilliant pattern of red and white in less than three months, he felt quite inferior.
“Miss Huo, I see the fish in your shop are all of pretty good quality. You really have a knack for raising fish, young lady.”
Huo Sining hadn’t returned to Xianyu Shop for a month due to military training. During this ti, Old Fish often visited, but each ti he only encountered Wu Jun minding the store. He was not in a hurry, though. Now that Huo Sining had shown up with large crabs, he couldn’t help but strike up a friendly conversation with the girl.
Huo Sining waved her hand modestly, “Boss Yu, you shouldn’t just flatter . My fish aren’t well-kept by , it’s just that they’re good breeds. When it cos to raising fish, I’m an outsider and wouldn’t dare show off in front of you.”
Whether it was the breed or the care that made the fish fine, Old Fish had eyes to judge for himself. He didn’t question Huo Sining’s statent but simply smiled and tentatively asked:
“Our S City ornantal fish community is neither big nor small, but it’s not so simple to gain recognition in this circle. Since you opened this shop, you must be interested in keeping fish. I won’t beat around the bush with you. S City holds an annual fighting fish competition—would you be interested in signing up for it?”
“A fighting fish competition? What fighting fish competition?”
Huo Sining looked up at Old Fish inquisitively, waiting for his explanation.
Old Fish smiled, “This so-called fighting fish competition is actually an ornantal fish appraisal and exchange event. But where there are people, there is strife. Naturally, the fishkeeping community is no exception. Although it’s billed as an exchange, it’s really a competition to select the most delicate, unique, and valuable fish as the Fish King.”
“Fish King?” Huo Sining frowned, finding the fighting fish competition rather dull, and couldn’t help inquiring, “What prize do you get for winning the title of Fish King?”
Old Fish asked with a smile, “The title of Fish King, well, that is an honor that many fishkeepers pursue all their lives and find difficult to obtain.”
It was just a title, and Huo Sining wasn’t really interested in it. She shrugged her shoulders, “The competition doesn’t sound very interesting.”
Old Fish found Huo Sining’s attitude surprising, “I thought you’d be interested. They say the calf doesn’t fear the tiger; normally, people who are new to the circle are eager and fascinated by the fighting fish competition.”
Huo Sining laughed, “I am just flipping ornantal fish; a jack of all trades. How could I dare to make a fool of myself on such an occasion?”
Old Fish felt sowhat regretful, “I won’t force you if you’re not willing to participate, but to be honest, I do think highly of you.”
Huo Sining shook her head, “You think too highly of . The fish in my shop are all purchased from other places, and other shops have the sa fish. If I were to join the fighting fish competition, I wouldn’t have any extraordinary fish to compete with.”
“You really don’t know the treasure you have. When I visited your shop before, I saw those red and white koi you have, not very large, only four or five inches, but already they stood out. Not many can raise such quality red and white koi, so stop being so modest!”
Old Fish imdiately laughed when he heard Huo Sining’s words, thinking she was feigning modesty.
Huo Sining had bought those koi from a street vendor in the area. At that ti, the koi were less than three inches long, looking sickly. An old man even advised her not to buy them, but she spent fifty yuan and bought six.
After bringing them ho, Huo Sining would often use her Spiritual Energy to cleanse their bodies. Before long, the koi began to grow rapidly, and red spots and patterns erged on their surfaces.
Huo Sining hadn’t taken much notice of this developnt, but now, hearing Old Fish’s words, she realized he wasn’t joking and was taken aback.
Old Fish didn’t know what was going through Huo Sining’s mind. Seeing her in silence, he thought she didn’t understand him and couldn’t help but continue to persuade:
“I know you’re skilled at keeping fish, but these days even the best wine needs to be sold from a visible shop. Plus, you’re so young, it won’t be easy to establish yourself in this circle. If you trust , take my advice. Those fish of yours should enter the contest. I guarantee that even if they don’t win a prize, they’ll definitely fetch a good price. With the appearance of those fish, leveraging this competition will surely make Xianyu Shop’s reputation skyrocket.”
Huo Sining was initially indifferent, but Old Fish’s words struck her like a revelation.
Right, the title of Fish King ant nothing, but the money that ca in its wake—now that was sothing!
If Xianyu Shop had a Fish King as its centerpiece, those pretended connoisseurs with money would surely co running. Would she need to worry about business then?
By that ti, all she would have to do was sit at ho, energize the Spiritual Energy, and she’d be counting money until her hands cramped!
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