On the way, Su Sanlang couldn’t stop thinking about how he had almost missed such enormous fish. He clearly remembered years ago a fisherman had caught something just as massive from the river. That fisherman had dragged it to the county town on a cart and sold it in chunks. Wealthy families’ stewards had spent one or two silver taels on just a piece—enough to make everyone else envious.
Meanwhile, Su Muyao stood on the riverbank, staring blankly at the water. She never imagined that such a small amount of her spirit spring water could attract so many giant fish. It was unbelievable. How could the spring water stay intact in the river without being diluted? She couldn’t figure it out.
After retrieving a larger fishing net from home, Su Sanlang remembered his daughter’s miraculous bait.
“Daughter, do you still have that bait?” he asked.
Su Muyao reached into her pocket and pulled out the remaining small foam cubes.
Embarrassed but amused, Sanlang asked, “Little one… can you give these to father?”
“Of course, father. We’re going to catch big fish—eat big fish,” she said confidently.
Sanlang chuckled, ruffling her hair. “You really are the best.”
“Be careful, father. The river’s cold—don’t fall in!”
“Don’t worry, I’m skilled. Just wait—father will catch the big ones,” he reassured her.
He tossed the bait into the water. Almost immediately, the massive fish that had earlier swum away returned. Su Sanlang hurriedly tried to scoop one up with the big net, intending to lift it out—but the fish was enormous, its strength overwhelming. He felt as though he and the net would be dragged into the river. In the end, he had no choice but to let it go.
This wouldn’t do. The fish were too strong to catch with just a net—he needed iron hooks and spears.
Su Sanlang returned home to fetch them. By this time, most of the villagers had gathered at the riverbank. Earlier, while he was gone to get the larger net, many of the village children had run ahead to alert their fathers, asking them to bring nets.
The riverbank quickly became crowded. The moment Su Sanlang left, the giant fish, having finished drinking the water from the foam, swam away again. The villagers muttered among themselves, puzzled:
“What’s going on? The fish leave as soon as Su Sanlang steps away.”
“I don’t understand either. Let’s wait—he’ll be back soon.”
Not long after, Su Sanlang returned, armed with iron hooks, a spear, and rope. His mind was fully focused on those giant fish—today, he was determined to catch them. With his little daughter’s miraculous bait, these fish had no chance of escaping.
The villagers watched as he tossed a small object into the water. Almost immediately, the huge fish returned once more. Everyone rushed to the riverbank to help.
Finally, with the villagers’ assistance, Su Sanlang managed to haul all the giant fish onto the shore. There were five in total, each weighing several dozen jin.
The villagers carried them into the village. As they reached the entrance, the elders and women gathered around, exclaiming in astonishment:
“My goodness! How can there be fish this big? My heavens—they must be magical!”
The Qin family matron yelled for her children and their spouses to come see. Everyone was amazed, and when they learned that little Fu Bao had been involved, they understood the secret: Su Sanlang truly had a remarkable little daughter.
Since it had been a joint effort to pull the fish from the river, the villagers divided the catch among themselves. Each household received over twenty jin of fish.
Even the elders of the clan came over, marveling at the giant fish. Su Laotou couldn’t stop grinning and loudly invited the clan head, “Old brother, why don’t you stay for dinner? Let’s taste these big fish together.”
The clan head nodded. “It would be rude to refuse. Let’s have a drink while we’re at it.”
He turned to his son standing nearby. “Go home and bring the jar of wine over.”
“Yes, Father. But you shouldn’t drink too much.”
The clan head waved him off. “I know. Go quickly.”
Tonight, the Su household was lively. Not only did they host the clan head, but they also invited the village head and several village elders.
In the kitchen, Old Madam Su and the second and third daughters-in-law were busy preparing the meal.
Meanwhile, Su Muyao sneaked into the kitchen. She spotted Old Madam Su frying some pork crisps and setting them aside. Curious, she reached for a bowl—but accidentally touched her grandmother’s hand, getting caught in the act.
“Hehe, Granny,” she giggled.
“You little glutton,” Old Madam Su teased, tapping her nose.
Embarrassed, Su Muyao laughed nervously, thinking to herself: It’s okay, I’m just a child.
Old Madam Su sprinkled a little salt into the bowl of pork crisps and handed it to her granddaughter. Su Muyao nibbled on them but noticed the salt tasted unusual—salty, yet with a faint bitterness.
“Granny, can I see the salt jar?”
“You little glutton, that’s enough salt. Too much and it’ll be too salty.”
“I’m not adding more. I just want to see what the salt looks like,” Su Muyao said.
Old Madam Su handed the jar over. Inside, the salt was yellowish and coarse, with unevenly sized grains.
“Granny, is salt supposed to look like this?”
Old Madam Su nodded. “Yes, some grains are bigger and need to be crushed to make them finer.”
Su Muyao remembered the books she had on refining salt in ancient times—and the salt crystals Xiao Bai had gifted her. Clearly, there were salt mines in the mountains. While she had plenty of salt in her space, she realized villagers could also refine it and sell it for profit. She didn’t consider that in ancient times, private salt mining and trade were strictly forbidden.
“Granny, I have salt now—you can use mine from now on,” she said, pulling several bags of refined salt from her space.
Old Madam Su, astonished at her granddaughter’s sudden display, quickly grabbed the bags and hid them in her arms. Peeking out of the kitchen to make sure no one was watching, she exhaled in relief.
“My little treasure! Don’t suddenly make things appear like that, understand? If others see, they’ll think you’re a witch.”
Su Muyao nodded obediently and left the kitchen.
The grandmother and daughters-in-law studied the salt for a while before opening it. As soon as the bag was torn, the fine grains poured out. Old Madam Su quickly funneled them into a container.
The second daughter-in-law observed, “Mother, this salt is even whiter and finer than that green salt we had.”
Old Madam Su dipped a finger and tasted it.
“The flavor is perfect. Salty, but without any bitterness or astringency—this is the finest salt,” she said, eyes sparkling.
Unaware, they didn’t realize that even in the imperial court, such high-quality salt didn’t exist. They assumed it was the kind only wealthy officials could afford.