Chapter 40

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Xu Village Chief and the village committee, who had watched Lei Xihuan grow up, helped him a lot with the fish pond contract. However, for some reason, Lei Xihuan couldn't feel happy at all.

Compared to the bustling and lively Yanhu Village next door, Xiantao Village was too quiet, so quiet that it had lost its vitality. There were more than just one fish pond here, but almost no one was willing to contract them. Xu Village Chief and the village committee would rather leave them empty than try to contract them out. When a contractor appeared, they would rigidly enforce the rules, refusing to make any concessions. If it weren't for Lei Xihuan, whom they had watched grow up, the contract would have fallen through. The ten-acre fish pond would still be unclaimed and empty.

However, Lei Xihuan couldn't manage the village committee's affairs. The fish pond had been contracted, but it had been unused for a long time, and there was a lot of work to be done, such as cleaning the pond and reinforcing the embankment. Nowadays, the minimum daily wage for hiring workers was 100 yuan. Even in relatively wealthy rural areas, during the busy farming season, 200 yuan a day might not be enough to hire anyone. Lei Xihuan originally wanted to save money and do the work himself, but Xu Village Chief, who had accompanied him to inspect the fish pond, immediately rejected his idea.

Do it alone? Are you kidding? How much time would that take? Just cleaning the mud at the bottom of the pond would be impossible without a few strong men. It seemed that his plan to save money was doomed. With no choice, he called Boss Sun for help.

Hearing that Lei Xihuan was planning to become a professional fish farmer, Boss Sun didn't hesitate and brought a foreman to Xiantao Village that afternoon.

"Really planning to raise fish?" Boss Sun was a bit surprised. "Raising fish is hard work. If there's a natural disaster or a market price fluctuation, you could lose everything."

"I know." Lei Xihuan had already signed the contract; he couldn't give up halfway. "I'll give it a try. I can't just sit idle at home. Boss Sun, I need to ask you to supply some fish fry. I plan to raise mandarin fish, loaches, softshell turtles... Oh, and some black fish."

Black fish, also known as snakehead, are aggressive and will even attack their own kind.

Boss Sun frowned. "Raising black fish is necessary, but they are hard to control. Without them, the fish in the pond lack vitality; with them, if they reproduce, the other fish will suffer. You'll have to frequently add fish fry and shrimp as their food..."

Lei Xihuan had considered these issues, but he had a secret weapon to maintain order in the pond:

Little Fatty!

Boss Sun mentioned some key points about fish farming and agreed to supply all the fish fry. "Do you have money on you?"

"I do."

"Give me 2,000 yuan."

Boss Sun didn't explain what it was for, and Lei Xihuan didn't ask. He handed over 2,000 yuan. Boss Sun put the money away. "Go back and prepare a couple of dishes, and buy two bottles of wine from the convenience store. We'll have dinner at your place tonight."

...

The foreman in charge of cleaning the fish pond was surnamed Meng, and Boss Sun called him Old Meng. When they arrived at Lei Xihuan's villa, Old Meng was immediately dazzled. "Old Sun, this guy is rich. Why is he raising fish? Isn't he just bored?"

"How about it, the person I introduced to you is pretty good, right?" Boss Sun said with a hint of pride. "If he wants to, what can you do? See, he has big business in Yundong. If you do a good job this time, he might give you some business, and you won't have to worry for the whole year."

"Right, right, right," Old Meng agreed.

"So, you can't cheat him. Not only can't you cheat him, but you have to give him a big discount. Otherwise, why would he choose you?" Boss Sun lit a cigarette. "Whatever price I say, that's the price, got it?"

Old Meng hesitated but nodded.

Boss Sun lit his cigarette and went to the small fish pond. Seeing that there were no fish left, he shook his head with a smile. Indeed, he couldn't raise fish; they had all died.

Young people are too impulsive...

But then, Boss Sun's eyes were fixed on the fish pond...

"Xihuan, Xihuan." A few minutes later, Boss Sun called out loudly.

"What is it?" Lei Xihuan rushed out.

"This..." Boss Sun pointed to the fish pond. "How did you raise them..."

Lei Xihuan looked in the direction he pointed. There were still some fish in the pond, a total of eight, all ornamental fish fry that Boss Sun had given him to play with.

These ornamental fish fry were rejects from Boss Sun's delivery, already half-dead when they arrived, just for Lei Xihuan to play with. If they died, it wouldn't matter.

But now, not only were they not dead, but they were lively and had grown significantly. One of the koi, known as the "King of Ornamental Fish," usually grows to 1.5 meters at most, but the golden koi in the pond was 2 meters long.

Moreover, its colors were bright, and its patterns were varied, exuding a masculine beauty as it swam.

Boss Sun vaguely remembered that he had indeed given Lei Xihuan a koi fry, but it was just a fry and was already on the verge of death.

"Did you buy new ones?" Boss Sun asked in a daze.

Even if the fry had survived by chance, it would be impossible for them to grow so large in such a short time.

"Ah, yes." Lei Xihuan was also puzzled. When Boss Hou came to collect the fish, the koi was only about one meter long. How did it grow so much in such a short time?

Could it be that the pond's space had expanded, causing the remaining fish to grow rapidly?

He didn't know how to explain it, but Boss Sun's words reminded him. He said evasively, "The fry you gave me all died, and my friend sent me a few identical ones."

"That makes sense, otherwise it would be really strange," Boss Sun sighed in relief. "Your friend must be close to you, to spend tens of thousands on a whim."

Ah? Tens of thousands? Lei Xihuan scratched his head. "Boss Sun, are these fish that valuable?"

"Ordinary koi aren't expensive, maybe 20 to 30 yuan. Larger ones might be 50 yuan at most," Boss Sun took a few puffs of his cigarette. "But yours is different. A koi about 1.5 meters long, with a good appearance and bright colors, can easily sell for 10,000 yuan. Koi are valued for their size, appearance, color, and rarity. Do you know how much effort it takes to raise one to 1.5 meters?"

He lit another cigarette. "Koi have a very long lifespan. Living for 60 to 70 years is not uncommon. A few years ago, a koi in Japan lived to 120 years old, reaching 1.6 meters in length. Do you know how much it sold for? 30,000 US dollars."

Lei Xihuan's heart raced. 30,000 US dollars? Koi can live so long, so what about before?

"That's not the highest. Some fish, like red dragon fish, can sell for hundreds of thousands or even millions," Boss Sun marveled. "Anyway, I've never seen one... Xihuan, yours is 2 meters long. It's a pity it's probably not very old, but selling it for 20,000 yuan should be no problem..."

20,000? This fish is worth 20,000?

Lei Xihuan stared at the koi, as if he were looking at a stack of money.

"The others together, I estimate, could sell for at least 30,000 yuan," Boss Sun sighed. "So, I say your friend is close to you and generous."

Alright, now there's no need to worry about debt, Lei Xihuan thought.

"How about it, Xihuan, are you willing to part with them?" Boss Sun joked. "I'll take them for 28,000 yuan."

"Sell!" Lei Xihuan didn't hesitate.

"Sell?" Boss Sun was taken aback.

Although Lei Xihuan had said he was just watching the house for someone, Boss Sun increasingly suspected that the house belonged to Lei Xihuan.

Rich people these days like to keep a low profile.

Seeing the ornamental fish further confirmed his suspicion.

He had only joked, but Lei Xihuan had agreed without hesitation.

"Really sell." Lei Xihuan said firmly. "Boss Sun, if you like, take them now."

Boss Sun calculated in his mind. Buying them for 28,000 yuan, he could make a few thousand by reselling them. If he found a big buyer, he could make even more.

"Deal, I'll take them all," Boss Sun said decisively. "But I don't have that much money on me, and these fish are delicate, requiring special water temperature and transportation. I'll come early tomorrow morning, and we'll exchange money and fish."

"Alright, I'll wait for you. Let's go inside and eat."

Old Meng was even more convinced that Old Sun's introduction was correct. This guy was definitely rich; who would keep tens of thousands of yuan worth of fish at home just for fun?

Boss Sun, thinking about the profit he could make, was in a great mood and decided to curry favor with Lei Xihuan. He knew Old Meng well; the guy was a heavy drinker, and a few drinks could get him to agree to anything.

Sure enough, halfway through the drinking, Boss Sun took out the 2,000 yuan. "Old Meng, for cleaning the fish pond and reinforcing the embankment, don't talk about the price. 2,000 yuan, can you do it?"

"A bit... too little..." Old Meng's tongue was thick. "This amount... isn't enough..."

"Enough or not." Boss Sun shoved the money into Old Meng's pocket. "We've known each other for so many years. My little brother needs your help, why talk about money?"

"Alright, I'll take care of it for you, Old Sun." Old Meng slapped his chest, spitting out saliva. "But, Brother Xihuan, if you have any profitable business in the future, remember to think of me."

What profitable business?

Lei Xihuan didn't have time to ask, as Boss Sun had already raised his glass. "Rest assured, Brother Xihuan will remember you, Old Sun, if he has any profitable opportunities in the future."

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