Golden Fishing Village

The fish swarmed in the sea, so it was difficult to cast the fishing line, but it was not appropriate to use the trawl net. It was dark at night with strong winds and high waves, so it was inconvenient to cast the trawl net, and once the fishing boat started, the fish swarm would be easily frightened and scattered.

The red snapper swarm was not like the Spanish mackerel. Its population was not large and the number was not large. Once it was frightened and scattered, the fishing net would be useless.

This was because it was difficult to catch red snappers in large quantities. Ao Muyang had to drive away the tiger first, and then release the golden drops to attract the fish swarm back. During this period, he took a small boat on the sea, and from time to time he released a golden drop to stabilize them, and then directed everyone to cast the fishing line.

A long fishing line stretched on the sea, and the hook with the bait floated in the water, waiting for the big fish to take the bait.

After the longline fishing was ready, Ao Muyang could rest. It was almost dawn at this time, so he and Lu Zhizi simply watched the sunrise on the bow of the boat wearing a cotton coat.

Lu Zhizi cooked hot cocoa, and the two of them sipped it together. The hot drink was full of fragrance, and it was very comfortable to drink at this time.

Earlier, everyone was busy on the boat, and Lu Wuyi was also woken up. He drank hot cocoa for a while, and when the fishing line was fully spread out and the boat was calm again, he went back to sleep.

Lu Zhizi asked him if he wanted to watch the sunrise, and he said he would wake him up then.

When a ray of light appeared on the sea in the east, Lu Zhizi went to call him, but what he got in return was a howl: "Can you spare my life? You are my sister, my dear sister, can you let me sleep? I have dark circles under my eyes, why are you still arguing and not letting me sleep? Is there any justice?"

Lu Zhizi was too lazy to pay attention to him.

From the early morning until noon, the fishermen began to collect the fishing lines.

As the hooks were collected, big fish with red appearances were caught.

"Real bream!" Ao Muyang said.

"Yes, it's really cool!" Lu Wuyi followed.

Red snapper can grow to a considerable size. In the past, when fishing resources were abundant, fishermen could catch fish as big as one meter long. Now, it is no longer possible. Eighty centimeters is rare.

The fishhook brought up a lot of red snapper weighing only about one pound. These fish are not small fish and can be caught. Moreover, they are of the greatest value. The Hongyang people call them "boy snapper", also known as boy chicken.

The reason for this name is not because the pronunciation of snapper is diao, but because the pronunciation of boy snapper has a special meaning. This is not the bad taste of the Hongyang people. The reason is that the meat of the red snapper is as tender as chicken, so it is also commonly known as sea chicken, and boy chicken is derived from this common name.

Boy snapper refers to those snappers that have not yet spawned or mated. They are about one year old and have a particularly high nutritional value. Wild boy snapper can be a main dish even on the table of a five-star hotel.

After collecting the fishing nets, they harvested more than 200 red snappers of all sizes, which was a lot. The fishermen were very happy. They sang fishing songs and shouted slogans, and continued to break through the waves.

There was no value in continuing to cast longline fishing in the surrounding waters. The remaining forces of the snapper school had long disappeared, and it was unknown where they went.

The purpose of this trip to the sea was achieved by catching prawns and red snappers. The rest depended on luck. If you can come across something, you can catch something.

The Big Dragon Head sailed from the coast into the deep sea. Ao Muyang went down from time to time to ride the tiger to explore the way. Later, he made some gains and encountered a school of mullets.

This kind of fish is very common. It has a powerful ability to live in fresh water, brackish water and salt water, that is, they have a strong tolerance to the living environment.

But it is quite rare to encounter mullets in the deep sea, because they like to live in coastal areas, bays and river estuaries. For example, there are many brackish and freshwater mullet farms at the river estuaries in the southern coastal areas of my country.

Mullets are not valuable, but they are better than nothing. When the fishing nets are cast, there will be a big harvest.

Sail along the way and sing fishermen's songs. As usual, after two or three days at sea, the Big Dragon Head begins to return.

"The fuel tank of this ship is still a little small. In the future, we can stay at sea for a whole month with the Dragon Head. When all the cabins are full, we can go back." Ao Mudong said with a beaming eyebrow.

Ao Muyang said: "Do you think that ship is nuclear-powered? Staying at sea for a whole month, don't dream."

"That won't happen if you go back after two days."

It's okay for the Big Dragon Head to stay at sea. The fuel tank of this ship is not too big, but it can support it for ten days or eight days. It's no problem to go to the northern waters and Fuso waters.

But Ao Muyang didn't want to stay at sea for a long time for safety. In this case, there was no need to fill up the fishing boat with oil. You know, after fully loaded with oil, the extra load is too heavy, and there will still be extra fuel consumption.

This year's last trip to the sea, they had a good harvest, and when they returned to the dock, everyone was in high spirits.

Ao Daguo said with regret: "This time it's a good harvest, but it's a pity that we don't compete with Yingtou Zong now, otherwise we will definitely get the first place this time."

"If we open Yingtou Zong all year, even if we don't have anything to do with this trip, we can still get the Zongtou Flag. I'm not bragging, we can go to sea for one month and other boats go to sea for a year." Ao Mudong said confidently.

Yingtou Zong is a name for a local folk fishery competition in Hongyang. It is to set a period of time as the fishing season every year, and then everyone registers the catch during this period, and finally compares who has the most harvest. This is called Yingtou Zong.

In the past, there were many such fishery competitions, and the fishing season was set for a short time, often for a fishing season. For example, the Yingtou Zong of large and small yellow croakers is carried out for a period of time in the spring and autumn seasons every year.

As Hongyang City gradually became a metropolis, the city began to develop by relying on industry, transportation and even tourism. Fishery production gradually entered a period of transformation and decline. The folk custom of evaluating the first place in the head of the mane became increasingly diluted and simplified. In the 21st century, it disappeared directly. No fishermen participated in this activity, and no unit organized it.

The reason why I mentioned this old custom of fishermen today is that there was also a La Yingtou Mane activity in the past. It was held once at the end of each year. After evaluating the mane, everyone went back to celebrate the New Year.

The speaker is unintentional, but the listener is interested. Ao Mudong and Ao Daguo chatted for a few words and stopped talking. However, Ao Muyang was moved and said, "There are fewer and fewer traditional activities in our fishermen. These activities are all intangible cultural heritage. We should find a way to preserve them. Take this "Yingtou Zong" for example. What an interesting custom, right? If we do it again, it will definitely be exciting."

Ao Daguo said, "What's exciting? How many fishing boats are there on the sea now? How many fish can be caught? Besides, there is no unit to organize it. In the past, the county party committee took the lead, and everyone was enthusiastic with rewards. Now? Humph."

As he said that, he shook his head.

It is not difficult to find an organizing unit. Ao Muyang can tell Dai Zongxi and let the Hongyang Ocean and Fisheries Bureau take the lead. But Ao Daguo mentioned a problem. There are fewer fish in the sea now, and even fewer in the near sea. The resources of large and small yellow croakers are almost extinct. Indeed, not many fishermen are interested in participating in such activities.