The Sea Queen of 1985

Chapter 484: Chapter 484: The Coast Guard Ship Arrives

On the vast, boundless sea, the dozen or so fishing boats looked large, but in the ocean, they were like specks of dust.

They had been sailing for four hours. It was time to pull in the nets.

This haul was golden pomfret, and they weren’t small. The smallest were over a pound, and the largest were three or four pounds.

Liang Xiaoyu exclaimed, ”This net must have three tons!”

”That’s a conservative estimate. I think it’s three and a half tons,” Wu Mengyue replied. ”Everyone, stop dawdling. Let’s sort this quickly. Once we’re done, we eat.”

”Alright!” Everyone was full of energy, working as hard as ever.

An hour and a half later, just as everyone finished up and stood to take a short break, they looked up to see many fishing boats surrounding them again.

”Those shameless bastards, they’ve caught up again.”

They had been starving, but the sight of these fishing boats following them made all the crew members gnash their teeth in anger.

They were too furious to even feel hungry.

Yang Zhigang’s voice came over the walkie-talkie, telling everyone to calm down.

A moment later, Yang Zhigang used the public channel to communicate with the other fishing boats. ”The sea belongs to no one, but the boats do. You’re getting too close. It’s very easy for our nets to get tangled, and that’s dangerous.”

The captains of those boats knew what they were doing was wrong, but for the sake of money, they pretended not to hear.

’The nets didn’t get tangled before. If we’re a little careful now, they probably won’t.’

Seeing no one reply, Yang Zhigang gritted his teeth. ’I’ve already warned you. If the nets get tangled, you’ll have to pay compensation, and not a penny less.’

To be honest, Yang Zhigang was furious.

He had always felt that since they were all from the same area, there was no need for things to get ugly.

He didn’t mind them fishing alongside his fleet, as long as they maintained a safe distance of a few hundred meters.

But these boats? They had to weave right in between his.

They were lucky their nets didn’t get tangled last time, but they couldn’t be lucky every time.

Liu Huamei came over to call everyone to eat. ”Even if you’re going to argue, you need to eat first to have the strength for it. I’ve finished cooking. Hurry up and come eat.”

Liang Xiaoyu said resentfully, ”These assholes. The sea is so big, but they just have to follow us. Aren’t they annoying?”

The others were also indignant. Seeing Chen Yishui staying quiet, Sister Tang asked, ”Yishui, you used to get even angrier than us. How are you so calm today?”

Chen Yishui smiled. ”They’re like grasshoppers in late autumn—they won’t be jumping for much longer.”

Hearing this, everyone was stunned. ”Why? Do you have a clever plan?”

Chen Yishui smiled smugly. ”Just you wait and see. You’ll know in a little while.”

The fishing boat continued trawling as Chen Yishui and the others ate their meal.

In stark contrast to the Jinshan Bay fleet’s massive, net-bursting hauls were the catches of the fleets that had followed them.

The fishing boats that had wedged themselves in between the Jinshan Bay fleet used to be able to get at least half a net each time, mostly filled with very decent fish.

But for some reason today, apart from a few hundred pounds of miscellaneous fish, they only got seaweed.

Conversely, the boats that were farther away from the Jinshan Bay fleet actually caught a bit more.

”Is our luck just bad this time?” Captain Wang fumed as he stared at the assorted trash fish on his deck, nearly having an aneurysm.

’We shamelessly tailed them all the way here just for this? This trash fish won’t even cover the fuel costs.’

”Last time we went out, this strategy worked pretty well. Maybe it’s just bad luck. Captain, let’s try one more time,” a crewman said uneasily. He had no other choice but to bite the bullet and continue following them.

Captain Wang used his walkie-talkie to talk with other captains he knew.

They were in the same boat; their hauls were also tiny.

What infuriated them was that while not every Jinshan Bay boat had a net-bursting haul, each of their nets had at least half a load, a two-ton catch of fish.

Even if it was cheap fish, it would still be worth a lot of money.

If it was mid- to high-grade fish, it would be worth tens of thousands.

Captain Wang and the others were green with envy, wishing they could just snatch the fish for their own boats.

But that was just a thought. They would never dare to actually do it.

Jinshan Bay didn’t just have one boat; they had sixteen.

’If we were caught, getting beaten up would be getting off easy. They’d throw us directly into the sea to feed the fish.’

That was just the first haul. When they saw the Jinshan Bay fleet begin to pull in their second nets, they followed suit.

If the previous haul had at least a few hundred pounds of miscellaneous fish...

...this haul had nothing but some jellyfish and seaweed. The miscellaneous fish didn’t even exceed a hundred pounds.

Captain Wang was so angry he started to tremble, almost gasping for breath.

When he saw the bulging net bags on the Jinshan Bay boats—a haul that was definitely no less than four tons—Captain Wang could no longer contain his rage and fainted on the spot.

”Captain! Captain!” The crew scrambled to carry their captain to a flat area on the deck.

After a good while of rubbing and patting him, Captain Wang finally came to. ”Why? On what grounds?”

’Why did those fish only swim into the Jinshan Bay nets? Why wouldn’t they swim into mine?’

Captain Wang wasn’t the only one thinking this; the other captains felt the same way.

One by one, they hung their heads in dejection, unable to figure it out.

’The haul from these two nets was even worse than what we would have caught on our own!’

Just as they were racking their brains to no avail, two coast guard boats arrived.

”We’ve received a report. You vessels are navigating dangerously. Please leave the area immediately. If you fail to maintain a safe distance and violate safety regulations, you will be penalized,” a voice from the coast guard broadcasted.

Hearing this, the captains couldn’t be bothered to wonder ”Why? On what grounds?” anymore. They quickly slowed down, letting the Jinshan Bay fleet pass.

They had thought Yang Zhigang and Han Xiaorui of Jinshan Bay were pushovers. It turned out they just didn’t want to waste their breath arguing and had called the authorities directly.

’The coast guard are still police, after all.’

The fishing boats that were already on the periphery immediately changed course and stopped following the Jinshan Bay fleet.

The boats that had been weaving between the Jinshan Bay vessels slowed down, increasing their distance from them.

The coast guard didn’t leave right away; instead, they sailed along with them.

They had to carry out their orders from above. Besides, those boats really had gone too far just now, operating dangerously.

At best, nets would get tangled. At worst, boats could collide.

Just as it was getting dark, as the third net was being pulled in.

A bulging net was hoisted onto the deck. When the ropes were untied, countless fish of all sizes tumbled out.

Suddenly, with a loud THUD, a blue cylindrical object slammed onto the deck, crushing many of the fish.

”What was that sound?” This time, it was Liang Xiaoyu untying the net, and she was the closest to it.

Seeing the section of the blue cylinder, Liang Xiaoyu remembered the reconnaissance device they had hauled up when she went out to sea with Han Xiaorui.

There was English written on it. She didn’t recognize the word, but it definitely wasn’t from China.

Liang Xiaoyu exclaimed, ”It’s a foreign reconnaissance device! Quick, tell Sister Shui to contact the coast guard.”

The coast guard had just finished their escort duty and were preparing to leave.

When they heard Chen Yishui’s report about hauling in a reconnaissance device, they quickly brought their boat back over.

After several coast guard officers boarded the boat, they saw the sonar reconnaissance device.

The officers’ eyes lit up when they saw it. ”This is a real find. Thank you! We will definitely report this when we get back and ensure you receive a commendation and a reward.”

Chen Yishui chuckled. ”It’s our duty!”

The coast guard officers joyfully moved the reconnaissance device onto their boat and sped away.