“Fish! So many fish! Hurry, scoop them up…!”
Seeing the two big, plump fish, Li Mutou became wildly excited. He quickly threw the fish from the rattan net into the basket and immediately cast the net again.
For some reason, the fish seemed to have gone mad with hunger. Even when the large nets came down, they didn’t flee—they just foolishly let themselves be caught.
The three brothers took turns casting their nets, growing more and more excited!
They had never seen so many “stupid” fish before!
At that moment, Shen Qingping and Shen Qingli, who were watching in shock, suddenly understood what it meant to “walk right into a trap.”
It was simply too vivid.
Especially Shen Qingli—she hadn’t expected that thing to be so powerful!
Or perhaps the fish in ancient rivers were just too hungry and had never encountered such high-tech bait before.
Whatever the reason, they were certain to catch a lot of fish today.
Soon, the three brothers filled their basket and hurriedly asked their two cousins to run home and bring buckets!
There were too many fish—they couldn’t let them all die. They planned to bring some home and keep them alive in a water jar so they could eat them over several days.
The brothers kept catching fish while carrying buckets back home. Before long, they had filled an entire large jar with fish.
Naturally, the commotion attracted the attention of other villagers. It would be a lie to say they weren’t envious.
No one knew what kind of bait they had used—those fish were rushing over as if their lives depended on it!
It was almost surreal.
But envy was one thing—no one felt comfortable intruding. After all, there was an unspoken rule in the village: whoever set the bait got to catch the fish.
Food was precious, and people had used their own food as bait just to catch fish.
However, there were simply too many fish. The Li brothers were exhausted but still couldn’t catch them all. Thinking of the already full jar at home, Li Shitou turned to Shen Qingli and said:
“Cousin, our jar is already full, and there are still so many fish here. Why don’t we let the other villagers come catch some too? Otherwise, it would be such a waste.
It wasn’t easy to attract so many fish!”
In his mind, these fish had definitely been drawn by his cousins’ good fortune. Otherwise, why would the same method suddenly work so well this time?
The only difference was that his cousins were there.
What else could it be if not their luck?
The three brothers firmly believed this.
So naturally, how to deal with the fish should be up to them.
Shen Qingli and Shen Qingping had no objections. They had already caught more than enough, and sharing with the villagers would earn them a good reputation—only benefits, no downsides.
Seeing the cousins agree, Li Shitou quickly called out to some nearby friends:
“Zhuzi! Acai! Come over here to catch fish—there are lots here!”
Once they shouted, the villagers understood that the Li family had caught enough. Immediately, people excitedly ran over.
Sure enough, the fish were clustered together, practically within reach.
Everyone eagerly cast their nets and scooped up fish, quickly dividing up the remaining ones.
Only after Shen Qingli’s bait had been completely consumed did the water finally return to calm.
By then, all the villagers had gained a full harvest.
Everyone caught at least four or five big fish!
Although it wasn’t as many as the Li family had caught, they were more than satisfied—it was their best catch in recent times.
In their hearts, they were grateful to the Li brothers and the two young sisters.
If the Li family hadn’t shared their fishing spot, how could they have caught so many? Catching even two fish would have been considered very good!
Thus, everyone happily walked back to the village together. Along the way, some people asked about their “secret method.” Li Mutou cheerfully shared:
“Ah, there’s no secret! The reason we caught so many fish is entirely because of our cousins’ good fortune—they’re our family’s lucky stars!
Oh, right—Doctor Zheng was also safely rescued because of them, haven’t you heard? Now he’s their master, teaching them medicine! Impressive, right?”
“That’s right! My two cousins are amazing—we all benefited from their luck today!
And you guys—since you’ve eaten our fish today, you’d better treat my cousins well from now on, got it?”
Li Tietou shamelessly chimed in, trying to turn the village boys into loyal supporters of his cousins.
After all, as the saying goes, “When you eat someone’s food, you owe them a favor.”
And now was exactly the time to press that advantage.
Sure enough, people immediately responded:
“Don’t worry, Brother Tietou! Your sisters are our sisters—we’ll definitely look after them!”
“Exactly! Just for today’s fish, if anyone dares say otherwise, I’ll be the first to beat him up!”
“By the way, Brother Shitou, the village head’s son is getting married in a few days, right? Your family will help out? Mine too—let’s go together.”
“Of course! A wedding in the village head’s family is a big event—we’ll all go.”
…
And so, the group of youths chatted and laughed as they returned to the village.
Then they hurried home with their catches, knowing they’d surely be praised by the elders for bringing back such big fish.
That very evening, Li Family Village was buzzing with excitement!
Many households had received a large number of fish. Once people asked around, they learned what had happened.
So that evening, many villagers brought small gifts to the Li family to express their thanks.
After all, fish counted as meat—it was very valuable.
At first, Old Master Li and Old Madam Li were confused by the steady stream of visitors. But once they understood what had happened, Old Madam Li smiled even more brightly.
She told everyone she met that her daughter and granddaughters were lucky stars—
The entire village had benefited from them.
And so, after this incident, the reputation of Shen Qingli and Shen Qingping as “lucky stars” gradually spread throughout Li Family Village.
Thanks to them,
That night, everyone in the Li family enjoyed a delicious pot of crucian carp tofu soup.
Most of the fish in the river were crucian carp. Since they had many small bones, they were best suited for making soup.
Moreover, Old Madam Li’s cooking was truly excellent. The pot of fish soup left the entire family deeply satisfied.
Especially Doctor Zheng—he hadn’t expected to be so lucky. On his very first day eating with the Li family, he got to enjoy something as good as fish soup.
Fortunately, the Li family had two large jars—one for water, and one for keeping fish.
With the fish kept alive in water, they could be eaten over several days.
Not only did they enjoy the soup, but they also had plenty of fish stored away.
The whole family was delighted.