The Sea Queen of 1985

Chapter 76: Chapter 76: Yellowlip Fish Overload

However, these creatures have high medicinal value. While most blood is red, a horseshoe crab’s blood is blue. It can be used to detect bacteria or in the development of vaccines.

’Boss Zhang probably won’t take these. I’ll just sell them at the wholesale seafood market later.’

The little sea snake sent her a signal, telling her to follow.

Han Xiaorui immediately started the boat. After about twenty minutes, she unexpectedly ran into a school of fish.

Seeing a flash of yellow, both Han Xiaorui and Liang Xiaoyu thought they were Big Yellow Fish. ”Quick, Xiao Rui, cast the net!”

Han Xiaorui and Liang Xiaoyu now worked in perfect harmony, quickly casting and then hauling in the net.

But when they pulled it up and took a look, Liang Xiaoyu exclaimed, ”Xiao Rui, these aren’t Big Yellow Fish! They’re Yellowlip Fish!”

Han Xiaorui turned to look. They were indeed a bit different from Big Yellow Fish.

Never mind describing them with words; just look at a picture.

Yellowlip Fish inhabit nearshore areas at depths of 50 to 60 meters. The young live in estuaries and along nearby coasts, feeding on crustaceans and small fish. They prefer swimming against the current in murky water and dislike strong light. Big Yellow Fish, on the other hand, inhabit the middle and lower water layers of coastal and nearshore waters up to 80 meters deep, where the adults feed on small fish and crustaceans.

With Yellowlip Fish, the bigger they are, the more valuable they tend to be.

It’s a species unique to China and is hailed as a superior health supplement. Its swim bladder (commonly known as ”fish maw”) is particularly precious, giving rise to the saying ”more valuable than gold.”

Typically, a Yellowlip Fish weighing over 88 pounds would fetch an astronomical price.

The ones Han Xiaorui caught in this net averaged around eleven pounds.

”Xiao Rui, these fish are valuable, too! Hurry, cast the net again! There might be bigger ones down there. The bigger they are, the more they’re worth. The meat is delicious, and they sell for a high price,” Liang Xiaoyu urged, desperately hoping Han Xiaorui could pull up one over 110 pounds.

Nearby boats also spotted the school of fish and scrambled to cast their nets.

The little sea snake, though small, was incredibly bold.

It knew there would be rewards for helping Han Xiaorui catch good fish, so it began herding the largest Yellowlip Fish from the depths toward the surface.

Working in perfect sync, Han Xiaorui and the little sea snake hauled up the large Yellowlip Fish.

Once they started, they couldn’t be stopped.

They caught a total of six fish weighing over 110 pounds, as well as one massive one weighing 165 pounds, which turned out to be female.

Han Xiaorui released it on the spot. She even gave it a bit of her Water Ability, urging it to stay down deep and not surface again, so it could propagate the species and create more Yellowlip Fish in the future.

Liang Xiaoyu stared, dumbfounded. ”Xiao Rui, you... Why did you let the biggest one go?”

Han Xiaorui smiled. ”Sister-in-law Xiao Yu, we make our living from the sea. We can’t drain the lake to get all the fish. That female can lay lots of eggs every year and hatch tons of little fish.”

Liang Xiaoyu froze, then gave Han Xiaorui a thumbs-up. ”That one fish alone was worth a fortune! Xiao Rui, and you just let it go. A female can lay so many eggs, leading to thousands and thousands of Yellowlip Fish in the future. If everyone had your foresight, we’d be able to keep fishing from the ocean for a long, long time.”

Han Xiaorui smiled. ”Sister-in-law Xiao Yu, it’s not as noble as you think. I catch a lot, so I also have to be selective. We can’t just recklessly plunder the sea.”

Seeing that the school of fish had dispersed, Sister-in-law Yu asked, ”Should we keep going?”

”No, this is enough. Let’s head back and pull up the shrimp traps,” Han Xiaorui said with a smile. ”This will already sell for a lot of money. No need to get greedy.”

”Okay!” Liang Xiaoyu agreed, looking at Han Xiaorui with a gaze full of admiration. ”Xiao Rui, you drive the boat. I’ll sort out this haul.”

”You got it!” Han Xiaorui started the boat, waved to Wang Gensheng and the others, and sped off.

Although the others didn’t catch any huge ones, their haul of fish weighing anywhere from three or four pounds to several dozen pounds was still quite impressive.

Liang Xiaoyu was startled to see that the shrimp traps were full of horseshoe crabs. ”Xiao Rui,” she yelled, ”it’s not lobsters today, but these things. Xiao Rui, could I have a couple of the small ones?”

Han Xiaorui smiled. ”Of course. Are they tasty?”

Liang Xiaoyu smiled. ”My mother-in-law loves them, but I’m not a fan. I can’t get used to that particular taste.”

”When you’re foraging on the tidal flats, if you catch one of these, there’s usually another one stuck to its underside. Around here, we use them to call someone dense—’dumber than a horseshoe crab.’ It’s pretty much the same as calling someone an idiot.”

”But since the pair stuck together is always a male and a female, we also call them ’couple fish.’”

”Since Granny Cai likes them, take two of the big ones,” Han Xiaorui agreed instantly. She caught them herself, so there was no reason to be stingy.

Granny Cai’s homemade pastries were delicious, and Han Xiaorui and the children had eaten plenty of them.

Just as Han Xiaorui was about to open the throttle, she discovered another surveillance device.

’Han Xiaorui didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. ’How long has it been? There are so many of these surveillance devices in this shallow sea area. It’s clear that foreign powers have not given up on their ambitions toward our Hua Country!’’

Faced with a matter of national importance, Han Xiaorui certainly couldn’t stand idly by.

’Fish it out!’

Using her Water Ability, she nudged the surveillance device loose, and it slowly floated to the surface.

Liang Xiaoyu was still sorting their catch when she spotted something in the water. ”Xiao Rui,” she yelled, ”I think I see something in the water!”

”Okay, I’m stopping the boat,” Han Xiaorui said. After the boat came to a halt, she cast a net and pulled the object aboard.

Liang Xiaoyu froze. ”Xiao Rui, this has foreign writing on it. Is it a surveillance device?”

”Yes!” Han Xiaorui replied. ”Sister-in-law Xiao Yu, take the helm. Don’t change course, just keep us going straight. I’m going to contact Mr. Ye.”

Han Xiaorui picked up the wireless communicator and contacted him using the method Ye Feng had taught her.

As it happened, Ye Feng was available. Upon receiving the call, he immediately took his team to wait at the county pier.

Han Xiaorui gunned the engine, heading straight for the county pier. She even used her Water Ability to increase their speed.

The little sea snake, like the character in the game *Snake*, swam alongside, absorbing the energy.

By the time Han Xiaorui arrived at the county pier over an hour later, Ye Feng was already there waiting.

The moment the boat docked, Ye Feng immediately stuffed the surveillance device into a large woven sack he had brought.

Ye Feng reached out to shake Han Xiaorui’s hand. ”Ms. Han, thank you.”

Han Xiaorui shook his hand gracefully. ”Don’t mention it. It was the right thing to do.”

’Han Xiaorui could feel the thick calluses on Ye Feng’s palm. ’These must be the hands of someone who holds a gun often.’’

’Ye Feng thought Han Xiaorui’s hand felt small and slender, but he noticed calluses on her palm as well. ’These are the hands of a hard worker.’’

”Once the reward money is approved, I’ll call to let you know you can come pick it up,” Ye Feng said with a smile. In truth, handling such things wasn’t his job.

’But he wanted to do it anyway!’

Han Xiaorui beamed, her big, bright eyes sparkling like stars. ”Okay!”

Zhou Yang, driving up front, could see in the rearview mirror that Director Ye’s lips were still curled into a smile. He seemed to be in an excellent mood.

After failing to find the mole, Director Ye had been looking grim lately.

’He’s in a good mood today. Maybe things at work will be a little easier for us.’

Now, it was time for Han Xiaorui to sell her fish.

The moment Boss Zhang saw the horseshoe crabs, he frowned slightly. ’Not everyone is a fan of these!’

”Are they a tough sell, Boss Zhang? They have high medicinal value. If you don’t want them, I’ll take them to the wholesale market,” Han Xiaorui said with a smile, not wanting to pressure him. He ran a restaurant, after all.

Boss Zhang tapped his head. ”Xiao Han, now I remember! I have a friend who specializes in buying horseshoe crabs. He extracts their blood. I hear it has some major uses.”

”I’ll call him right now and have him come over. Don’t sell to the wholesalers—they just turn around and sell them to the processing plants. The ones you’ve caught are big and lively. He’ll definitely want them and will give you a great price.”