Chapter 26

After the fishing net was made, the next thing to consider was where to fish. Daxi Guozhi chose the lake between the former Xiaomu Village and Daxi Village as the test site. This lake was located at the confluence of several small streams, and the villagers often saw large fish swimming by the lake, but due to limited means, they had never been able to catch many fish.

Since Daxi Guozhi was unfamiliar with this new fishing method, the command was handed back to Luo Shizheng. Based on his knowledge from the future, Luo Shizheng first had several bamboo rafts carry the fishing net into the water. One end of the net was held on the shore, and after moving about 30 meters from the shore, they began to lay the net, extending it along the lake's edge. Then, one bamboo raft gradually pulled the net towards the opposite shore.

When the net reached the shore, the villagers on the shore started to pull the net from both ends towards the shore. Six bamboo rafts guarded both sides of the water, ready to close the gaps when the net approached the shore. The other rafts moved slowly towards the shore with the net.

When the net was pulled to the shore and the gaps were sealed, the water enclosed by the net remained calm. As the net was gradually pulled in and the enclosed area of water shrank, the water began to ripple, and occasionally, large fish would leap out of the water and splash back in.

This scene attracted the attention of everyone around, and even the villagers who were farming and gathering wild vegetables nearby gathered to watch. As more and more large fish leaped out of the water, cheers and applause echoed through the crowd.

As the net was pulled in again, the enclosed area of water shrank further, and the water became shallower and more turbulent. To prevent the large fish from jumping out of the net, Luo Shizheng quickly instructed the villagers, who were still standing on the bamboo rafts and stunned by the scene, to lift the net in sections.

Finally, the net was fully pulled in, revealing a white mass of fish. Due to the large mesh size, most of the fish caught were over three to four kilograms, and some were even dozens of kilograms.

The villagers behind them were elated, and some even burst into tears. This was not surprising, as they had never experienced such a bountiful harvest. At the same time, their respect for the lord grew, and some even believed that this was a blessing brought by the lord, who they saw as a divine envoy. Later, some even began to worship the lord's statue (a simple wooden statue) in their homes.

This trial caught nearly 500 kilograms (25 stones) of large fish. Luo Shizheng immediately announced that a fish feast would be held at noon, and everyone in the domain could attend.

At noon, the villagers took out their cooking utensils and spontaneously gathered around dozens of bonfires. They cleaned the fish and cooked them with the coarse grains distributed by the lord in makeshift pots over the fires. Soon, the smell of fish and fish soup filled the air, and everyone was excited. Even Togo Heiji, who usually complained about the lord's "wasteful" distribution of stored grain, did not complain this time. He was sitting by the fire, tasting the fish and talking with the lord.

Luo Shizheng's group was divided into two bonfires. Togo Heiji's wife, Haruno Sakura, and his daughter, Togo Kiku; Daxi Guozhi's wife, Tsukihime, and his son, Tadatsuro (Daxi Guozhi's eldest son was killed in a bandit attack); and finally, Luo Shizheng's maid, Matsu. They formed one group.

On Luo Shizheng's side were Togo Heiji, Daxi Guozhi, and Tsuda Masahide, along with a small koala named Tamiko, who was clinging to Luo Shizheng. Why was the little girl clinging to Luo Shizheng instead of going back to Matsu? Indeed, it was for the food.

Luo Shizheng, being a homebody in his previous life, often cooked for himself, so his cooking skills were decent, and in this era, they were even considered excellent. Although the fish had been processed by Matsu and the others, the fishy smell was still strong. Luo Shizheng used wild ginger (which was already available in Japan at this time, but few knew its uses) and some wild vegetables to steam several fish. He also grilled a few fish.

The little girl came with Matsu and Kiku. After Matsu prepared everything for Luo Shizheng, she returned to her own bonfire, and even Kiku, blushing, went back (it seemed she was still not used to performing her duties as a wife in public). The little girl, curious about the strange dishes Luo Shizheng was making, stayed behind. In her mind, she had already decided that whenever she saw this big brother, there would definitely be something delicious. After tasting the fish, the little girl refused to leave, eating with large bites and mumbling something to Luo Shizheng, though he couldn't understand her, probably praising the fish. The fish was still hot, and there were many bones, so Luo Shizheng urged her to eat slowly, but she wouldn't listen, eating with her mouth full and blowing to cool the food, even shedding a few tears of joy.

Looking at the little girl in her old, light red kimono, which was said to be her prettiest piece of clothing, worn only on special occasions, and today, with the help of Matsu, for the fish feast. Her thin, slightly scarred hands (new scars from pulling weeds with Matsu) were holding the fish, and her muddy feet, with visible scars from the winter, were also visible.

Luo Shizheng picked up the little girl and held her in his arms, flipping the grilled fish to cool it down while watching her eat greedily. He suddenly felt a sense of happiness, perhaps the responsibility of being a lord could also be a source of happiness.

Togo Heiji and Daxi Guozhi were also savoring the delicious fish. The novel way of eating fish, and the fact that it was made by the lord himself, gave it a special flavor. Tsuda Masahide, on the other hand, made Luo Shizheng laugh. He was holding a large fish with both hands, eating it greedily, completely ignoring the etiquette in front of the lord. Togo Heiji, however, couldn't stand it and repeatedly gave Tsuda Masahide a disapproving look. But Tsuda Masahide, now a complete foodie, ignored Togo Heiji's signals and continued to eat voraciously. Seeing the stark contrast in their expressions, Luo Shizheng was truly amused.

During the meal, Luo Shizheng discussed with the others how to handle the remaining large fish. He originally planned to use dense bamboo poles to create a section in a nearby shallow stream to raise the fish, but he abandoned this idea due to concerns about heavy rain raising the water level and causing the fish to escape. Indeed, the area had experienced several heavy rains in the past half month.

Later, Luo Shizheng thought of using bamboo strips to make fish baskets to raise the fish by the river. Togo Heiji and the others were stunned, as they had never heard of fish baskets. After explaining for a while, Luo Shizheng confirmed that no one in the domain knew how to make them. Luo Shizheng himself didn't know how to make them either, though he had seen it on TV in his previous life. So, this idea was also abandoned.

After much discussion, the remaining large fish were handled as follows: each household received two large fish to handle as they wished; some of the fish were cleaned and salted, but due to the limited salt supply, only a small portion was salted; the rest were dried and stored as winter provisions. The fish guts were also distributed to the villagers as they wished, and some were buried as fertilizer in Luo Shizheng's cornfield.

The fish feast lasted nearly three hours. In the latter part of the feast, the villagers spontaneously organized singing and dancing activities. Togo Heiji remarked that the villagers were extremely happy, a scene that usually only occurred during the Obon Festival (known as the "Ghost Festival" in China). The Obon Festival commemorates the story of Mokuren saving his mother from the Buddhist scriptures, initially to encourage filial piety, but in Japan, it has become a festival of public revelry. On the day of the festival, all samurai and farmers put down their weapons and farming tools to join the singing and dancing. At night, bonfires were lit everywhere, and people continued to drink, sing, and dance until morning.

At the end of the feast, the villagers, holding the two large fish distributed by the lord, brought their families to bow before Luo Shizheng, expressing their gratitude to the lord who was gradually improving their lives.

From then on, under Luo Shizheng's instructions, Daxi Guozhi organized such large-scale fishing activities at regular intervals (not too frequently, as too many fish would be difficult to preserve, and frequent fishing would quickly deplete the large fish population). The domain's meat supply was significantly improved, and the villagers' work enthusiasm greatly increased, accelerating the pace of land reclamation.

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