The entire ocean is my fishing ground.

Chapter 20 Dad, our ship has set sail.

He slept exceptionally soundly that night.

At 4:30 a.m., Lin Chen woke up to a slight noise coming from the courtyard.

He opened the window and saw his father, Lin Jianguo, squatting in the middle of the yard, tidying up the fishing nets.

The old man was wearing a faded blue work shirt and an old straw hat. His back looked a little hunched, but his hands moved very skillfully.

The patched fishing net was folded neatly in his hands in just a few moments, and there was no fishy smell at all.

"dad."

Lin Jianguo grunted in agreement, handed the folded fishing net to Lin Chen, and then silently picked up the bucket that had been prepared in the corner.

The bucket contained sandworms that he had personally dug up near the dock last night during low tide; they were bait that bass loved to eat.

"Let's go."

Today's information has been updated (4/4)

[Intelligence 1 (Resource Category): A group of sea bass, approximately 40 individuals, has been spotted in the waters east of Qingshui Island. The location is close, making it suitable for near-shore fishing.]

[Intelligence 2 (Resource): In the far reaches of Sea Area 3, there is a group of yellow croakers, about 50 in number, of better quality but located at a distance.]

[Intelligence 3 (Opportunity): A sea fishing club wants to rent a boat for a sea trip and is willing to pay 800 yuan per day.]

[Intelligence 4 (Warning): Zhang Meng has recently been in frequent contact with a local thug with multiple prior convictions for intentional property damage. The two have met three times, most recently last night in the grove east of the village. Specific plans are unclear. The host is advised to be vigilant and protect the boat and fishing gear.]

Yellow croaker is more valuable, and normally he would definitely choose yellow croaker.

But today, he set his sights on the sea bass in the nearshore waters.

I'm not going out to sea to make money today; I just want to keep my father safe and sound. Nothing else matters.

As for the warning about Zhang Meng, his prior record of damaging property... it seems this guy is preparing to take action against his ship.

Lin Chen kept quiet.

The father and son did not drive; Lin Chen rode an electric bike with his father and fishing gear on his back, heading towards the town's dock.

The fishing boat sailed out of the harbor and headed towards Qingshui Island.

About half an hour later, the ship arrived at the designated sea area east of Qingshui Island.

He was about to ask his father where to set the net when he realized that Lin Jianguo had already walked to the side of the ship.

The old man was able to determine the direction of the water flow and the wind speed simply by visual observation.

Hold the rope firmly with your right hand and support the bottom of the net with your left hand.

With a sudden burst of strength from his waist, he swung his arm, and the huge fishing net swept across the sea ahead.

"Splash—"

The fishing net splashed up a spray of water.

Lin Chen was stunned.

He had only seen this skill of casting a net in documentaries; it was swift and efficient, far superior to his own rudimentary technique.

After a while, they began to close the net.

Lin Chen quickly stepped forward to help.

It took the two of them working together to slowly pull him out of the sea.

Inside the net, a dozen or so silvery-white bass were thrashing about, along with a few mullet and a small squid.

Lin Jianguo began sorting with his hands and feet.

He can immediately identify any fish that comes into his hands after just one glance.

The sea bass were thrown into the live water tank, the smaller fish were put into another bucket, and the fry that were too small were thrown back into the sea.

By the end of the morning, they had cast eight nets, and each net yielded a bountiful harvest.

In the end, the total number of bass caught was about 70, mullet about 20, and 15 yellow croakers that had accidentally mixed in, plus various other fish, with a total weight of over 120 jin (60 kg).

Around noon, the father and son sat on the deck eating lunch.

Lunch was simple, prepared by my mother, Liu Guilan: steamed buns, dried salted fish, fried peanuts, and two bottles of mineral water.

Lin Jianguo tore the dried salted fish apart, put it inside a steamed bun, and handed it to Lin Chen.

The two of them silently ate their steamed buns.

Halfway through the meal, Lin Jianguo, unusually, started talking about business.

When talking about his youth at sea, he recalled encountering a pod of whales swimming beneath the boat, causing the small fishing boat to rock violently from side to side.

He also recounted how he once disbelieved in superstitions and followed an old fisherman to the open sea to chase tuna for three days and three nights, only to catch nothing and almost not make it back.

Another time, we encountered a storm at sea and the rudder failed. Fortunately, we were rescued by an old captain who happened to be passing by.

Lin Chen noticed that his father's expression changed whenever he talked about the deep sea and the open ocean.

"...That trench, we locals call it Dragon's Backbone, I heard that underneath..."

At this point, Lin Jianguo seemed to suddenly remember something, and abruptly fell silent.

Dragon Ridge Trench.

This wasn't the first time he'd heard that name.

Not long ago, it seems that this mysterious place name was mentioned in a treasure-related intelligence report from the system.

Now, it reappears amidst the father's hesitation.

There must be a secret hidden behind this that the father is deeply reluctant to discuss.

But he didn't press the matter; he knew it wasn't the right time yet.

In the afternoon, Lin Chen drove his fishing boat back to the town's dock.

He let his father rest on the boat while he drove his three-wheeled motorcycle non-stop to deliver the 120 kilograms of fresh fish to five restaurants in town.

Seventy catties of sea bass sold for 1750 yuan, twenty catties of mullet sold for 400 yuan, and the fifteen catties of yellow croaker that was caught by chance was the most valuable, selling for 525 yuan.

The remaining miscellaneous fish were also sold for 225 yuan.

He also helped three fishermen in the village sell about 60 jin of fish and took a commission of 180 yuan.

All told, I made over three thousand today.

After returning home that evening and having dinner, Lin Chen locked himself in his room and turned on his phone.

He repeatedly reviewed the early warning intelligence he had received that afternoon.

Zhang Meng is going to target his boat, and it's very likely he'll use destructive methods like smashing the boat or cutting the fishing nets.

He ordered a high-definition night vision surveillance camera.

Then, an encrypted folder containing evidence he had collected about Zhang Meng included a video of him kicking over Uncle Li's fish basket, photos of him bullying fishermen at the dock, and recordings of several victimized fishermen.

After doing all this, he solemnly saved the local police station's duty phone number into the speed dial bar of his phone's contacts.

Lying in bed, he couldn't fall asleep for a long time.

At the same time, in the grove of trees at the east end of the village.

Zhang Meng was sitting on a rock, and in front of him squatted a hoodlum from out of town.

The thug pulled two hammers and an extended utility knife from a tattered backpack and placed them on the ground.

Zhang Meng nodded.

"The night after tomorrow, at 2 a.m.