Chapter 017: Bring out the big one

As the popularity in the live stream room began to rise, Lin Yang's fishing spot also saw faster action, progressing from slow to quick bites and now practically getting bites continuously.

Moreover, they were all wild Crucian Carp weighing at least two or three taels, with the occasional one weighing over half a pound.

The fish were biting well, and the popularity of the live stream room was increasing too, now approaching three hundred viewers.

At this time, when most people were getting up for breakfast and preparing for work, one would normally expect platform traffic to be low, but anglers are a different crowd.

Fishers unable to fish due to work commitments would scratch their itch by catching a bit of a live stream.

Lin Yang's live stream showed promising fishing, and he had a great atmosphere going in the room, making it a prime spot for viewers to tune in while having their breakfast without missing a thing.

More than half an hour passed.

Two rounds of prize draws had taken place, and two lucky winners were chosen by the system, receiving Lin Yang's secret bait recipe.

Later arrivals, upon seeing the frantic activity in Lin Yang's fishing spot after he had fed the fish, grew more curious about the bait, leading to an increasing number joining the heart-clicking lottery.

Unbeknownst to them, the hearts had broken through the thirty thousand mark, giving Lin Yang's live stream entrance another boost in traffic and exposing it on more user interfaces.

While live streaming, Lin Yang sneakily checked his account's backend.

So far, his followers had increased to over 4,300, and he estimated that by the end of the morning, he would definitely break through the 5,000 followers milestone.

Also, because of the remarkable effect of the secret bait shown on the live stream, nearly two hundred orders had already been placed.

As Lin Yang was looking at his phone, the float on the water's surface in the camera shot moved again.

The float gave a 'plop' as it dipped halfway suddenly, followed by another forceful dip, and the rest of the float plunged beneath the water completely.

Lin Yang looked up and noticed the float had disappeared, momentarily stunned.

"The host's bobber is under, what are you thinking about?"

"Strike, lift the rod, it's under, brother!"

"Damn, is the host daydreaming? It's under and he's not striking."

"Lift the rod, I'm so anxious watching this, what are you doing?"

"Don't panic, maybe the host is doing it on purpose. He says he's a new host, but he doesn't seem like a novice. He could be teasing us."

Lin Yang had indeed been distracted, but he didn't show any signs of panic despite the slight delay, and with the rod in hand, he deftly flicked his wrist to set the hook, bending the rod into an arc.

However, the force transmitted from the fish after the hook set felt huge, as though he had snagged a brick at the bottom of the water.

His rod, designed to handle fish up to half a pound, would usually bend at about the midpoint of one section, but now the whole rod was curved into a large arc.

"Seems like we've got a big one on, the line is a bit light, let's see if we can pull it up," he muttered in a low voice.

The live stream room, initially full of different comments, fell silent as everyone involuntarily held their breath after hearing Lin Yang's deliberately subdued voice.

He had previously shared his line setup, 0.8 main line with a 0.4 leader, which was fine for Crucian Carp, but if it was a big fish, that could be problematic.

Thin lines have low strength, and any strong pull could potentially snap the line and lose the fish.

"To encounter a big fish in such cold water, the host has some good luck."

"Judging by the bend in the rod, the fish seems to have a decent size. It's a big bend in the rod."

"There are quite a few large wild Carps around here, too. Could it be the host has stumbled upon one?"

"Judging by the bend of the rod, this fish is probably around two to three pounds."

Lin Yang glanced through the barrage of comments and saw that the audience's attention had shifted to the rod and the size of the fish. A spark of inspiration struck him, and he came up with an idea to heat up the atmosphere in the live broadcast room.

"Feels like the fish underwater isn't small. Seeing everyone discussing it, I'll start a separate guessing game."

"Everyone guess the species and weight of the fish. Once we pull it up, we'll reveal the results. The one with the closest answer will get an extra portion of my special bait mix to stop you from saying I'm stingy. This time it's not about luck; it's all about skill."

Starting a guessing game is a common technique used by experienced streamers to liven up the mood.

Game streamers guess loot drops or kill counts, and beauty streamers guess the outcomes of PKs; these are activities that many viewers enjoy.

Lin Yang's suggestion to guess the species and weight of the fish immediately received unanimous support from the over three hundred people in the live stream room.

"I'm in! It's rare to guess the catch, and I want to join the fray."

"This is good. Hurry up and start the guessing game; it's time to show off our real skills."

"Watching a live stream and getting bait for free doesn't seem too bad."

Lin Yang held the rod with one hand and quickly set up the guessing event with his phone, submitting it, and a new betting option appeared on the live broadcast page.

The entry threshold for the guessing game was very low; you could join in with a lollipop worth one tenth of a yuan, and each account could only guess once. The rule was to win by guessing the weight closest to the actual situation.

Suddenly, the number of participants surged, reaching over a hundred in the blink of an eye.

Before the results were revealed, Lin Yang did not know the other participants' guesses. He put down his phone and started to handle the fish with ease.

When a big fish meets a small hook and thin line, if not startled, the fish behaves quite docilely, swimming slowly underwater.

The fishing line setup was very delicate, so Lin Yang didn't dare to force the fish in too quickly. He had to be very careful, moving back and forth around the fishing spot area, following the movements of the fish underwater.

"Need help, bro?" asked the man sitting in the middle after setting down his rod.

"Brother, did you bring a big landing net? I think this fish isn't small," Lin Yang said.

"I have a 40-centimeter diameter landing net head in the car; wait for me to go get it."

At this moment, the two men's conversation was clearly transmitted to the live stream room, and the audience began to tease.

"A 40-caliber net? That's a bit of an exaggeration. Isn't that using an anti-aircraft gun to hit a mosquito?"

"I guessed a 550g Crucian Carp. Listening to the streamer, it seems like I have no chance."

"I guessed a 600g Crucian Carp. I have a similar sensitivity rod, and I think it's about right."

"If it were a big fish of three to five pounds, the rod's bend would be even more exaggerated. I guessed a Carp weighing two pounds."

"Could the streamer be deliberately setting us up? He's got a small landing net next to him. Wouldn't need the big net for a fish of one or two pounds."

"Possible. This guy is as slippery as an eel; he might be playing us for the show."

The audience got it wrong there. Lin Yang had no intention of deliberately prolonging the fight with the fish.

Although the fish underwater didn't dash off with full strength, it had good stamina. After dragging back and forth for three minutes with no sign of tiring or coming to the surface, Lin Yang felt as if he was being pulled around by the fish underwater.

"Has the streamer caught a whale? It's been three minutes. In spring, the water is cold, and fish have weaker stamina. Even a Carp should be showing its belly by now."

"Hard to say. A Crucian Carp under a pound definitely wouldn't have this stamina. Seems like my bet is lost."

"Looking forward to it. Waiting for the streamer to land the fish and reveal the mystery."