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This shout drew Tao Guoqing and the other anglers' attention.
After all, they had been fishing by the river for so long and hadn't caught so much as a single hair.
Yet Little Mochi had only just arrived and had already caught a giant fish. To them, it was baffling and more than a little infuriating.
Wang Xiaohe's face darkened as well, and he was about to scold Little Mochi.
But the granddaughter nestled beside Tao Guoqing, "Tao Xiao Xiao," toddled off on her short little legs, running unsteadily toward where Little Mochi stood.
"Little rascal, slow down!" Seeing this, Tao Guoqing put down his fishing rod and hurried after her.
The two young men beside him exchanged a glance and followed.
"This can't be..." Wang Xiaohe watched the scene, so angry he could spit blood, unable to understand what was so exciting about catching one big fish.
But no matter what he thought, in the end he still followed close behind, uneasy.
By the time they reached Little Mochi's side, they discovered that her so-called giant fish was actually just a wild Diaozi Fish weighing around one jin.
Still, Xiao Xiao—the one Tao Guoqing called his "little rascal"—was excited. She craned her little head toward the Wild Diaozi Fish Liu Qingsong had taken off the hook. "Wow, big sister, you're amazing! You caught such a big fish!"
"This one's not big. I... I'll tell you, the one I caught yesterday was way bigger, and I even caught a softshell turtle!" Little Mochi corrected her in a babyish voice.
"Really?" Little rascal blinked her big eyes, her voice sweet, admiring, and full of charm. "Then big sister is much more amazing than grandpa. Every time my grandpa goes fishing, he comes back empty-handed. Last month, he was so afraid grandma would scold him that he secretly bought fish to bring home!"
Tao Guoqing: "..."
Wang Xiaohe: "..."
How could this little rascal say anything at all!
Hearing this, Little Mochi giggled, her lively eyes curving into crescent moons. Little rascal seemed unsteady on her feet, so she handed her the small stool. "Sit here. Don't let the wind blow you over!"
"Mm, mm!" Little rascal nodded, took the small stool, and sat beside Liu Qingsong.
Wang Xiaohe got a headache, while Tao Guoqing didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He was about to persuade Little rascal to go back when little sister yanked up her Bamboo Fishing Rod.
Seeing that it was a wild Diaozi Fish that had taken the bait, Liu Qingsong didn't bother getting involved, instead watching with a faint smile off to the side.
Tao Guoqing, Wang Xiaohe, Little rascal, Pangdun, and the others were anything but calm. None of them had caught a thing yet!
When little sister quickly hauled in the Wild Diaozi Fish that had taken the bait, several anglers could no longer sit still. They ran to get their fishing rods.
"Grandpa, you should go get your fishing rod too!" Little rascal tilted her head up to look at Tao Guoqing, her big eyes full of urgency. "There are so many fish here where big brother and big sister are, you're bound to catch one soon."
"But..." Tao Guoqing hesitated for a moment before asking Liu Qingsong, "May I fish over here with you?"
If he didn't ask first,
it would be bad if people started talking behind his back later.
"Of course you can." Liu Qingsong smiled and glanced at Tao Guoqing. "This Diaozi River doesn't belong to just me alone—wouldn't you agree, Captain Wang?"
"Yes, yes!" Wang Xiaohe knew Liu Qingsong's words carried a hidden jab, and his expression turned unpleasant even as he answered.
To keep Tao Guoqing from noticing, he put on a smile and said, "Elder Tao, the wind is strong by the river, and it's almost lunchtime. Why don't we head back? We can come fishing again this afternoon."
"No!" Before Tao Guoqing could answer, Little rascal glared at him and shot back, "My grandpa hasn't caught a fish yet! Why go back? So grandma can scold him?"
Wang Xiaohe: "..."
Why did this little rascal always have to go against him?
Liu Qingsong, Little Mochi, Pangdun, and little sister burst out laughing.
Tao Guoqing looked embarrassed, but he didn't scold his granddaughter, Little rascal. Instead, he said fondly, "Grandpa won't go back. I'll stay and fish with you by the river. Don't be angry, all right?"
"Okay, hehe..." Little rascal nodded with a smile, then wobbled over to the crooked-neck tree and carried Tao Guoqing's fishing rod and gear back.
Little rascal was drenched in sweat and panting after that short walk, and her face looked pale. Liu Qingsong couldn't help asking Tao Guoqing, "Is your granddaughter unwell? Why does she...?"
Having asked this much,
Liu Qingsong didn't press further.
Tao Guoqing's expression turned grim, but he didn't take it out on Liu Qingsong. He sighed. "Little rascal really is sick. She has congenital heart disease, and... and..."
Tao Guoqing trailed off with a long sigh, and in that instant, all the vitality seemed to drain right out of him.
Seeing this, Liu Qingsong couldn't help but apologize. "I'm sorry, I didn't know..."
"It's fine, it's fine!" Tao Guoqing cut him off, then forced a smile and changed the subject. "Let's not talk about Little rascal. Let's fish, let's fish..."
As he spoke,
he took the fishing rod Little rascal handed him.
threaded on the bait, and cast the hook out.
Wang Xiaohe and the other two young men exchanged a glance, brought over their Fishing Gear and rods, and sat beside Tao Guoqing and Little rascal.
Since fishing required a quiet environment,
Tao Guoqing told Little rascal not to talk anymore.
But Little rascal agreed and then forgot not long after.
The reason being that a big fish had taken the bait on the bamboo fishing rod in Liu Qingsong's hands.
This time, it truly was a giant fish. Judging by its pale yellow, elongated dorsal fin, it had to weigh at least a dozen jin.
Little rascal's eyes widened as she watched. She clapped her small hands in excitement. "Wow... Grandpa! Grandpa! Look, big brother caught a giant fish!"
"I see it." Tao Guoqing nodded repeatedly, looking somewhat astonished himself.
He was about to help Liu Qingsong, but Wang Xiaohe reached out to stop him. "You'd better watch from the side! If you get pulled into the river, I won't know how to explain it to your son and daughter-in-law."
"Well..." Tao Guoqing hesitated.
Little rascal, Little Mochi, Pangdun, and little sister rushed in to help without hesitation.
Wang Xiaohe frowned deeply.
He wanted to pull Little rascal back, but Tao Guoqing rolled up his sleeves and joined the effort to help as well.
With so many hands lending strength, the big fish was soon dragged to the surface.
It was a large yellow-skinned Grass Carp weighing about seventeen or eighteen jin.
The fish's size cut Liu Qingsong's palms on the Bamboo Fishing Rod, leaving both hands bleeding.
But he didn't give up, leaning his body back and continuing to wrestle with the large grass carp.
After more than ten minutes, the large grass carp was exhausted. Liu Qingsong handed the Bamboo Fishing Rod to Tao Guoqing, picked up the Fishing Net, and struggled to scoop the fish from the water.
The watching villagers got a clear look at the large grass carp and erupted in chatter.
"Good heavens! This is the first time I've ever seen anyone catch such a huge grass carp out of the Diaozi River."
"Same here. I've never seen this before. Liu Qingsong is really something!"
"If you sold that at the Black Market, it would probably fetch five or six yuan."
"Shh! Keep your voice down, Captain Wang is right here!"
"Hahaha... what's there to be afraid of, Captain Wang isn't the petty type."
"That's not so certain! Watch out, he might make life difficult for you once you're back!"
……