I Have a Countryside Gourmet Restaurant

Chapter 346: Chapter 326: Build a Fish Pond to Show Off the Big Crab

’Otherwise, it would just be a waste of money.’

Aside from mandarin fish and perch, he had also gotten a good amount of the other ingredients he currently needed.

After this game instance, Li You’s stock of ingredients would be much more plentiful.

This was a major reason why Li You was so fond of these game instances.

The battle continued.

The longer the fight went on, the more adept Li You became. The feeling of fighting underwater was actually quite nice.

In the end, Li You narrowly defeated his opponent.

”Congratulations, Host, for defeating the mountain crab and completing this game instance.

Obtained instance completion reward: 2,000 Mountain Crabs (Quality: High-Grade), 2,000 River Crabs (Quality: High-Grade).”

”You will exit the current game instance in one minute. Countdown initiated: 59 seconds, 58 seconds...”

Li You let out a long breath, then relaxed his body, letting it float in the water.

’The battle is over. Time to enjoy the feeling of floating in the water.’

It was extremely difficult to float like this in the real world.

After the one-minute countdown ended, Li You returned to the real world.

He found himself holding the enormous mountain crab in his hand.

The mountain crab’s carapace was very wide, over 10 centimeters across. It was also very strong, struggling ceaselessly in the water.

It took a fair bit of Li You’s strength to finally get a firm grip on it.

He lifted it out of the water.

He held it up for Ling Xiaoru to see.

Ling Xiaoru said excitedly, ”Now that it’s out of the water, it looks even bigger! I’ve really never seen a mountain crab this huge before.”

Li You was just as delighted, because the creature was truly massive. ’If I put this in front of the customers, they’ll be amazed that a mountain crab can get this big.’

He had one more thing to show off.

After watching for a moment, Ling Xiaoru walked over and brought the bucket back.

Li You put the crab into the bucket.

Once it was in, the bottom of the bucket seemed barely larger than the crab itself.

’What a monster!’

After admiring it for another moment, Ling Xiaoru walked over to the fish trap and lifted it out.

The haul was impressive. It contained spotted stream-fish, crucian carp, common carp, and mountain crabs, along with some other small, unidentifiable fish.

She dumped the entire catch into the bucket.

There were about a dozen mountain crabs of various sizes. But compared to the giant one from before, they were tiny.

Even the largest among them was only about a third of the big one’s size.

Still, it was a delightful catch.

Any catch from the fish trap, big or small, was a cause for joy.

Ling Xiaoru said, ”There are so many more mountain crabs in the trap. But Boss, what about these smaller ones? Do you want them?”

If Li You were alone, he definitely would have kept them. All of them, no matter how small.

Because he had the Spatial Fish Pond. He could simply put the small crabs in there and let them grow.

The same went for all the small fish.

But now, with her here, Li You said, ”Let’s not keep the small ones. Release them all. The small fish, too. We’ll only keep the big ones.”

Ling Xiaoru agreed. She then scooped the small crabs and fish out of the bucket and released them into a nearby pool of water.

After she was done, what remained in the bucket were five mountain crabs, a dozen or so spotted stream-fish, three crucian carp, and one common carp.

It was still a decent haul.

Li You added new bait to the fish trap and put it back in the water.

’This trap is getting pretty tattered. I should probably weave a new one.’

’If I have time this afternoon, I’ll make one then.’

And with that, it was time to head back.

Li You carried the bucket, and he and Ling Xiaoru returned together.

「On the way.」

Ling Xiaoru said, ”Oh, right, Boss. What are you going to do with that huge mountain crab? Are you going to eat it?”

Li You shook his head. ”No. It would be a waste to eat a mountain crab this big. I’m thinking of setting up a fish tank outside the restaurant, or maybe even a small pond. I’ll keep it in there for the customers to see when they come to eat. Let them be amazed by it.”

Ling Xiaoru’s eyes lit up. ”That’s a great idea!” she said happily. ”I also think it would be a waste to eat it. And if you’re going to get a tank, you might as well just build a pond. Boss, why don’t you just find a spot outside the restaurant and build one? It doesn’t have to be big, four or five square meters would be enough. Then you could put some rocks in it, maybe build a little rockery. It would look so beautiful!”

Li You smiled. ”That’s a great idea! I was actually thinking the same thing.”

”Really? That’s fantastic!” Ling Xiaoru was even more excited. ”When are you planning to start?”

Li You said, ”We’ll see. We could even start later today.”

Ling Xiaoru nodded, ”The sooner we start, the better. Do you need my help?”

Li You shook his head. ”No, that won’t be necessary. Since we’re building a proper pond, we should have a professional do it. Neither of us is qualified. I’ll hire someone for the job.”

Ling Xiaoru nodded again. ”Okay.”

After a moment, she asked, ”By the way, Boss, can’t you just steam mountain crabs like you do with river crabs?”

Li You said, ”It’s not that you can’t. It’s just that mountain crabs have little meat, so there’s not much to eat when they’re steamed.”

Ling Xiaoru asked, ”So how do you usually eat mountain crabs?”

Li You replied, ”You deep-fry them first, then stir-fry them at high heat with other ingredients. They’re incredibly fragrant and delicious. It’s a rare delicacy.”

Ling Xiaoru’s eyes sparkled. ”Boss, in that case, when can we go catch a bunch more mountain crabs? Then you can cook them for us. How about it?”

Li You chuckled. ”Of course! We can go catch them whenever, and I can cook them whenever.”

Ling Xiaoru was thrilled. ”Then it’s a deal, Boss! Let’s find some time in the next few days to go crabbing.”

Li You nodded. ”Okay.”

Chatting all the while, the two of them soon arrived back at the restaurant.