Chapter 79

Qingshan Village was primarily an agricultural community, and although there were not many skilled net weavers, there were a couple of experienced ones. When they heard that Jiang Xingchen wanted to weave a large net, they were even more surprised. According to his description, this long, rectangular net would be cast to catch fish, and it would have large mesh.

However, despite their doubts, they still followed Jiang Xingchen's instructions.

There were not many net weavers in the village, and normally, weaving such a large net would take more than a few days. However, after Jiang Xingchen learned how to weave, his speed increased dramatically.

The old man, the members of the Sky-Shaking Mercenary Group, and the villagers were all stunned. Jiang Xingchen's hands moved like a loom, shuttling back and forth so quickly that they couldn't see the details of his actions.

The other net weavers in the village gaped in disbelief. They found it hard to believe that the young lord, who had just learned how to weave, was several times better than they were, or that they had never seen such speed before. When they tried pulling the net, it was even more sturdy than the ones they had woven.

"This kid is too amazing!" The old man blinked, unable to describe the shock he felt...

The net grew larger and larger, and the entire village was busy. Some were weaving, some were pulling, some were boiling water, and some were cooking... They worked from morning until late at night, using up all the thread to weave a net that was over 400 meters long and 5 meters high.

"Phew~" Jiang Xingchen exhaled, thinking to himself, "I remember the large net used for winter fishing at Chagan Lake is over 1,000 meters long, and sometimes it can catch tens of thousands of pounds of fish... My net is smaller, but it should be able to catch two or three thousand pounds, right!"

Thinking about it, Jiang Xingchen turned around and told the members of the Sky-Shaking Mercenary Group to find some floating wood and smaller weights to help spread the net in the water. He also asked the old man to find a long bamboo pole and an iron hook to use as a guide.

Then, Jiang Xingchen let the villagers go home to rest, preparing to set out for fishing the next day. He asked Grandpa Fu to find a large wooden stake to make a winch.

However, the villagers who returned home couldn't sleep. Their curiosity had been piqued by Jiang Xingchen, and they wanted to see how the young lord would catch fish.

Jiang Xingchen stayed busy until late at night, finally finishing the winch, and then returned to his house, feeling the cold.

"Brother! Drink some ginger water to warm up, you've been out in the cold all day!" As soon as he sat down, Meier brought a bowl of steaming ginger water to him.

"Ginger water! It's so hard to drink..." Jiang Xingchen frowned, looking reluctant.

Meier pouted, feeling a bit sad. She had stayed up all night to keep the ginger water warm, but her brother didn't want to drink it.

Then, the little girl's eyes widened, and the long-lost domineering look reappeared. She pushed the bowl to Jiang Xingchen's mouth and said, "No way! You have to drink it!"

"Ah, ah, ah, I'll drink it myself!" Jiang Xingchen quickly blocked her, not daring to joke around anymore. He still remembered the last two times when the little girl had forced him to eat.

"Thank you, Meier, you really care about me!" Jiang Xingchen took the bowl and patted the little girl's head. He was deeply moved by her waiting for him and keeping the ginger water warm, and he had only been teasing her earlier.

"Hmph! Good to know, brother!" The little girl nodded in satisfaction, her lips curling up.

After Jiang Xingchen finished the bowl of ginger soup, Meier asked, "Brother! How are you going to catch fish tomorrow? Are you going to break a big hole in the ice... but will such a net work?"

"You said you believed me earlier, why are you changing your mind now?" Jiang Xingchen teased, tapping her nose.

"Who said I don't believe you? I'm just curious!" Meier wrinkled her nose, and some small wrinkles appeared on her cheeks.

"Now, even if I tell you, you won't understand. You'll see tomorrow! If the net works and the ropes and winch function properly, we can catch tens of thousands of pounds of fish in one go!"

Jiang Xingchen was a bit proud, raising his head slightly, waiting to see Meier's surprised and admiring expression. This was a method he had seen on TV in his previous life, and he had a cheat: he could sense the fish's movements through the Mingzhen Array.

Meier was indeed stunned for a moment, but then she showed not admiration but anxiety! She put her small hand on his forehead and shouted, "Grandpa, come quick! My brother is cold, he's talking nonsense!"

"Ouch!" Jiang Xingchen's body lurched forward, quickly covering the little girl's mouth, "Don't shout, I'm not sick! You feel my forehead... huh?"

Before he could finish, Jiang Xingchen saw the little girl's anxious expression disappear, her eyes curved, and she ran to the bed, laughing loudly, beyond her age.

"This girl, have you read 'The Actor's Self-Cultivation'... I'll get you for tricking me!" Jiang Xingchen gritted his teeth and chased after her.

"Brother! Meier is wrong, please don't hit my bottom!" Finally, the little girl used her coquettish charm, instantly pacifying Jiang Xingchen...

The next morning, before dawn, the villagers all woke up. Except for the elderly who were less mobile and stayed to watch the house, everyone followed Jiang Xingchen and Shiwazi to the lake in the wilderness.

On the way, people were discussing, and their curiosity and doubts only grew stronger.

When they arrived at the place where the old man had chiseled the ice holes the day before, Jiang Xingchen stopped and had everyone clear the snow. Since the wind was strong here, the snow was not deep, and they quickly cleared a large area of ice.

Next, Jiang Xingchen had the old man chisel an ice hole, and he tested it with his hand, then started choosing the position.

The winch was made of wood, and it was not easy to install. Jiang Xingchen and the villagers alone couldn't do it, but there was a world-class expert nearby.

The old man, being directed by Jiang Xingchen to do this and that, felt a bit depressed, "I'm here to be your bodyguard, and treating the little girl is one thing, but now I have to do odd jobs!"

Although he complained in his heart, he worked hard, also eager to see how Jiang Xingchen would catch fish.

Then, Jiang Xingchen started marking the ice, making a mark every seven to eight meters, forming a large circle. Next, he made a rectangular opening for the net, and at the marked positions, he chiseled ice holes, using the poles to lower the net, and the iron hooks to control the direction...

At this point, the villagers finally understood how the net was to be lowered.

"This kid's brain, how is it made!" The old man watched as the 400-meter-long net was slowly lowered into the water, his mouth almost dropping open. Who would have thought of such a method?

Du Roshan, Han Xiaowu, and the others looked at Jiang Xingchen with admiration, a thought emerging in their hearts: "What can he not do..."

The entire process of lowering the net took about five hours, and it was already noon.

Next was the most worrying part for Jiang Xingchen: pulling the net. It wasn't just about whether there were fish, but also whether the wooden winch could withstand the tension.

The speed of pulling the net couldn't be too fast, and he was worried about the winch, so he didn't use horses. Instead, he had Du Roshan and the others do it. These experts in the Inner Qi realm had strength comparable to horses and could control their force.

Du Roshan and the others didn't realize they were doing the work of animals, and they were all very excited, vying to participate.

First, they pulled the bottom part of the net, then the top, forming a net bag.

As the net slowly emerged from the water, everyone's eyes followed the movement, holding their breath.

Finally, the first fish appeared in the net, and Meier cheered, "We caught it, we really caught it!"

"Boom~" All the villagers cheered, having doubted the plan yesterday, but now they couldn't believe they had actually caught fish.

However, the best was yet to come. As they pulled more of the net, more fish appeared, and Du Roshan and the others found it increasingly difficult to turn the winch. Eventually, the fish in the net were almost mashed together.

At minus thirty degrees, the fish froze almost immediately upon leaving the water. Under Jiang Xingchen's direction, the villagers removed the fish from the net and threw them onto the ice.

It took about two hours to completely pull the net out, and the ice was covered with fish, probably tens of thousands of them.

Shiwazi, seeing so many fish, was so excited that his mind went blank. Yesterday, he still thought Jiang Xingchen was fooling the old man. But now, each fish was at least three pounds, and they had caught over 30,000 pounds in one net.

At this moment, the villagers looked at Jiang Xingchen not just with support and affection, but with admiration. In their eyes, Jiang Xingchen was almost omnipotent. He had just cured a terminal illness that even the imperial physicians couldn't, and now he had caught tens of thousands of pounds of fish in one net. With this method, even if the grain yield was poor, they wouldn't go hungry in winter!

Meier was so excited that her face turned red, and she jumped onto Jiang Xingchen's back, hugging his neck and cheering in his ear. Jiang Xingchen didn't know what she was saying, as he was being choked and coughing.

Du Roshan, Han Xiaowu, and the others put down the winch and looked at Jiang Xingchen with a gaze similar to the villagers. Such a feat was almost miraculous, catching tens of thousands of pounds of fish in one net, something they had never even imagined, especially in winter!

Even the old man, looking at Jiang Xingchen, couldn't express his feelings, finally muttering, "This kid is not human, he's a demon!"

He was becoming more and more interested in Jiang Xingchen, especially seeing the ice covered with fish. He was eager to see what other amazing things this kid could come up with next.

After the villagers celebrated for a long time, Jiang Xingchen waved his hand and shouted, "Let's go! We're heading back!"