Chapter 359: Chapter 238: Big Bling-Bling Eyes

Gu Nan had no choice but to speed up his reeling. The electric reel was running nonstop, and he had to rub some ice on it because it was getting ridiculously hot.

This big fella was just unlucky to have run into someone who was practically cheating.

And sure enough, before it could even start its second burst of energy, Gu Nan went full beast mode, applying constant, unrelenting pressure. He was reeling in the line even faster than before.

The great fish wasn’t willing to just give up and die. It summoned its remaining strength and settled in for a war of attrition.

For the next half hour, it was a tug-of-war, the line pulling back and forth between them.

When Gu Nan worked with the electric reel, the great fish was helpless, forced to be slowly dragged in.

But when the electric reel overheated and shut down, the sudden decrease in tension let the fish know this was another chance to escape.

The six people on the boat were all fighting in silence. When you’re battling a huge fish, you really don’t have the energy for small talk.

After a total of one hour and twenty-some minutes, Gu Nan finally managed to drag the massive creature on his hook out of the water.

Its large, torpedo-like body was a delightful sight. It was unmistakably a tuna—the very target of their trip.

But it was still over thirty meters from the fishing boat, so Gu Nan couldn’t quite make out the specific species.

Yi Chen was also panting with exhaustion. She had done her best to keep her own fish from getting away, but even with the help of her electric reel, the fish had still managed to pull out over five hundred meters of line.

Fortunately, after such a long struggle, her fish was also clearly exhausted and had slowed down.

Seeing Gu Nan’s fish finally surface, she breathed a sigh of relief.

’Fishing for these monsters that weigh hundreds of catties is really too much for someone my size.’

Luckily, she had turned off her electric reel for a while, so it was ready to be turned back on to continue the tug-of-war. She herself went over to Gu Nan’s side to help out.

"What a huge tuna! Could it be a bluefin?"

"Hard to say..." Gu Nan shook his head and spent a few more minutes pulling the massive tuna to the side of the boat.

He estimated it to be over two and a half meters long, but when he saw its sparkling eyes, he felt a slight pang of disappointment.

"It’s a big-eye tuna!"

It wasn’t their target species, but a big-eye tuna was still an excellent catch. It was the second-most valuable type of tuna.

Depending on the fat content, the price per catty could range from fifty to one hundred and fifty yuan.

With tuna, the bigger the fish, the thicker the fat. Generally, those over two hundred catties command a higher price per catty.

Gu Nan estimated his catch could sell for at least a hundred yuan per catty. After all, he could tell its approximate weight just from its length—if it wasn’t three hundred catties, it was close.

To avoid attracting sharks, he didn’t use a speargun, which was typically used for hunting large tuna. Instead, he stuck with a gaff.

A gaff creates a small wound and doesn’t cause a large amount of bleeding.

Normally, it would take several people to handle this, but his fish’s stamina had been completely drained, so he could manage it alone.

The gaff accurately pierced the fish’s head. It thrashed on the surface for a short while, and then... there was no ’and then’.

Yi Chen skillfully looped a rope around the fish’s tail, tightened it, and then started the crane to hoist the fish aboard.

The commotion had already attracted the attention of An Jun and the others. They had wanted to ask if it was a bluefin, but Gu Nan had spoken loudly enough for them to hear that it was a big-eye tuna.

Still, seeing the two-meter-plus behemoth up close, the group was awestruck.

Looking at pictures could never compare to the wonder of seeing the real thing. A massive tuna, as fat as a pig, appearing right before their eyes was truly a thrill—after all, this was what they were here to catch themselves.

Fortunately, An Jun and the others had a high tolerance for this sort of thing, all thanks to Gu Nan. He had sent countless huge catches to their shop, so they had gradually gotten used to it.

Yi Chen glanced at the number on the screen next to the crane and shouted, "Ah Nan, this tuna is huge! It’s over three hundred and twenty-seven catties."

Gu Nan nodded in satisfaction. "That’s really good. Even after it’s been bled and gutted, it’ll probably still weigh close to three hundred catties. That’s a quick thirty thousand yuan."

Yi Chen smiled and nodded. She then operated the crane to gently lower the fish onto the deck, grabbed a fish knife, and quickly bled the large tuna.

This part was no trouble for her. She had specifically learned how to cut and portion tuna. It was only due to a lack of strength that her butchering wasn’t perfect, but bleeding and gutting a fish was a simple task.

The tuna’s innards were collected, not thrown away. This would make for excellent chum.

If they came across a deserted island or a reef area, they could use it to fish for coral fish and groupers.

Gu Nan had already gone back to fighting the second tuna. Because Yi Chen had already worn down a lot of its stamina, he couldn’t judge its size by the pull on the line now that he’d taken over.

But he was sure of one thing: it wasn’t a small fish.

Besides, given the habits of tuna, fish that school together are usually of a similar size.

Such a feeding frenzy was, after all, a fleeting event.

As the sardines moved on, the seabirds and the various well-fed predators also dispersed.

Gu Nan only had time to land the second big-eye tuna, which, as expected, was about the same size as the first.

An Jun and Ye Jing, with the help of their respective girlfriends, also successfully landed their fish.

They couldn’t be more satisfied, having made such a great catch on an afternoon they had expected to spend just traveling.

An Jun stared at his huge fish, drool practically dripping from the corner of his mouth. He immediately suggested, "Ah Nan, how about we cut mine up and have a tuna feast tonight?"

Gu Nan shook his head decisively. "We have to put out the fish-attracting lights and keep fishing tonight. Besides, fresh-caught large tuna tastes pretty average if it hasn’t been aged. It has a sour taste. Let’s wait until we get back!"

"Since you’re already in the business of sashimi and raw-marinated seafood, why don’t you learn how to age fish?"

An Jun frowned at the suggestion. "Isn’t the cost of aging a bit too high? My shop has expanded, but I’m not planning to go the mid-to-high-end route just yet."

A piece of tuna loses at least twenty percent of its weight after aging. That’s a significant cost.

If you’re not targeting the high-end market, it’s really not necessary.

"Who said anything about selling it? I meant for you to make it for us to eat!"

As soon as Gu Nan said that, Ye Jing slapped his thigh and laughed. "Great idea, great idea! I’ve never in my life tried aged tuna. I hear it’s even more flavorful, is that right?"

"..." An Jun was speechless. He hadn’t expected that to be Gu Nan’s angle.

But then he thought about it. If his raw-marinated seafood shop could eventually become a local institution, adding aged fish to the menu wouldn’t be a bad idea.

Besides, his own mouth was watering at the thought!

By the time they had put the few tuna into the refrigerated hold, the sky had already darkened. Yi Chen took out some snowflake beef and cut off several thick slabs. Clearly, they were having pan-seared steak for dinner.

Fishing for huge tuna in the afternoon, even with the help of electric reels, was physically demanding.

They might even catch more big tuna tonight under the fish-attracting lights. If they didn’t eat more meat, where would they get the energy?

So, tonight’s dinner was extremely nutritious: plenty of milk, eggs, and steak, plus a large basin of shrimp cakes fried that afternoon.

The shrimp cakes had cooled, but they had a soft texture that gave them a unique flavor.

After they had eaten and drunk their fill, Gu Nan finally lowered the fish-attracting light into the water.

The group sat in the lounge while An Jun showed off his tea-making skills.

From the lounge, they could keep an eye on the fish finder. A quick glance was all it took to see if any fish were approaching.

"Ah Nan, should we do a live stream tonight?" Yi Chen had been busy for a while, her fingers tapping away at her phone.

She had a lot on her plate to manage. They now had several sailfish and four big-eye tuna on the boat.

Based on their previous arrangement, Ye Jing would sell his catch to them, which meant they had three tuna they could handle.

There were quite a few wealthy buyers in their fish-selling group chat. Upon learning they had three big-eye tuna weighing around three hundred catties each, more than a dozen people had already placed orders.

Also, because of the photos she posted on her Moments, some group members found out they had gone deep-sea fishing. They were being @’d in the group chat with strong requests for a live stream of them catching big fish.

Gu Nan thought about it for a moment. The scene that afternoon would have been perfect for a live stream, but things were too hectic, and they hadn’t even considered it.

Since the group members were so eager to see it, he figured a live stream tonight wouldn’t be a bad idea if the fish showed up.

"Alright, go ahead and get ready. And let the group know. If the fish come, we’ll stream. If not, then we won’t."

It was uncertain whether any fish would appear. It was quiet for now, with only a few small fish scattered on the fish finder. Gu Nan himself wasn’t sure if they would encounter any tuna tonight.

Yi Chen nodded and got up to prepare the live-streaming equipment, while Gu Nan and the others remained in the lounge, continuing to sip their tea.

With his buddies around, he didn’t feel lonely even out at sea. In fact, Gu Nan especially enjoyed the feeling of everyone gathered together.

The older he got, the more he realized that the days of his childhood—playing together all the time, even sleeping over when they were tired—were long gone.

In the future, after they all got married and had kids, their opportunities to get together would become even rarer. He really cherished these moments.

After a short while, Yi Chen had the live-streaming equipment set up, ready to go as soon as the fish arrived.

However, it was already 8:30 PM, and the fish finder remained stubbornly quiet.

Just then, An Jun glanced over at the screen and his eyes widened. "Ah Nan, look! A school of fish just appeared on the screen!"

Gu Nan quickly turned his head and saw that there was indeed a school of fish.

But this school was slowly rising from the seabed. Their speed didn’t seem fast, and for now, they were only just appearing at the bottom right corner of the screen.

He instantly realized he had stopped in the wrong spot. If he had moved a few dozen meters to the right, he would have spotted the school on the bottom long ago. Well, it wasn’t too late.

"Chenchen, get the stream ready. The rest of you, go change out your line rigs. Looks like we’re bottom fishing tonight. I’ll start the boat."

The school seemed to be rising, but the exact situation was still unknown. For now, bottom fishing was the right call.

Gu Nan hurried over to start the fishing boat and headed toward the school of fish.

The others swarmed out, each preparing their gear.

Yi Chen didn’t rush to set up the live stream either. She went to change her line rig first.

They had three fishing rods to set up, which would take longer. Fishing was more important than streaming right now.

The fish-attracting light hadn’t drawn in any tuna, but they had unexpectedly discovered a school of fish. Tonight wouldn’t be a waste after all.

Gu Nan stopped the boat and quickly began his preparations.

By the time he had changed his rig, he saw on the fish finder that the school had already moved up to the middle water column.

The water here was over 130 meters deep, and the school had stopped at a depth of sixty to seventy meters. That was the layer they needed to fish.

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