Chapter 12 Windfall!_1

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His skin became more delicate, and his physique a bit stronger.

More than an hour later, the warm feeling in his stomach had dissipated, and after digesting most of the fish, Liang Qu was comparing himself to his reflection in the water and noticed he had become more handsome.

Still a bit dark, but his originally rough skin was now much smoother and appeared very masculine. Clenching his fist, he could feel a significant increase in strength, and his swings created a vigorous wind.

If one were to say that Liang Qu had been brought up on coarse grains and vegetable broth before, then after eating the Treasure Fish, it was as if he had been nourished with meat, eggs, and milk. Although both diets supported healthy development, the nutritional value was completely different, and so was his appearance.

It was so comfortable, feeling full of strength was just too wonderful.

He could jump higher, run faster, and breathe more easily, as if his whole body had become more relaxed.

"No wonder a Treasure Fish is favored by martial masters; it truly fortifies the foundation, nourishes the spirit, and toughens the body. If I had a hundred of these, I might not even need to go to any Martial Arts School and could directly overcome the four stages of skin, flesh, bone, and blood."

Liang Qu stood up, got dressed, and once he confirmed that the excessive redness in his cheeks had faded, he easily rowed the paddle back to the wharf, eager to sell the Treasure Fish in his hands and exchange it for the opportunity to advance in status.

However, before he could even reach the shore to pay the mooring fee, he saw from afar that a large crowd had gathered at the riverbank, making quite a commotion.

What day is it?

Wasn't the sacrifice month just last month? What other holiday is there that I don't know about?

Liang Qu put down the oar, picked up the pole, and made his way to the wharf, where someone came over to collect the fee.

After taking out two cents from his pocket and paying the fee, he held his fish basket and looked around the crowd, quickly finding the tall figure of Li Libo.

Indeed, where there was excitement, there he was; he truly was a lover of fun from olden times.

Liang Qu pulled him out and asked, "What's happened?"

"Eh... who is it." Being pulled from the crowd that was enjoying the spectacle, Li Libo had a look of discontent, but the tremendous strength on his wrist prevented him from resisting. He showed his teeth as he left the crowd and turned around to see that it was Liang Qu, "Why is it you, kid? What kind of medicine have you taken, your grip is so strong?"

Liang Qu was unmoved, "You still haven't told me, what's the situation with all these people?"

"Hey, you've come just in time. Someone at our wharf also caught a Treasure Fish! It's shaped like a blackfish but completely red, weighs two pounds and three taels six money. Someone caught one before, what's it called, Red Blood Perch? One pound is worth one silver coin!"

Li Libo was very proud, as if he had caught the Treasure Fish himself, completely oblivious to the change in Liang Qu's expression.

Treasure Fish are neither plentiful nor scarce; at any given wharf there's always one or two lucky ones per month, but Liang Qu hadn't expected that just as he was about to sell his Treasure Fish, someone else had caught one too.

Fortunately, it wasn't a problem. Treasure Fish were always in high demand, and encountering another wouldn't affect the sale. Perhaps if the martial master bought two at once, he might even give some extra silver out of happiness.

Seeing that there were many people around, Liang Qu cleared his throat and shouted, "Our Shangrao Wharf is really blessed by the River God, catching two Treasure Fish in one day!"

Li Libo, who was closest to him, covered his ears in pain from the shout, "What nonsense are you talking about? Chen Jiechang only caught one Treasure Fish!"

Just then everyone's gaze shifted towards them, and Liang Qu lifted his fish basket, picked up the Bull Horn Pomfret by the gills, and raised it high in the air.

"The second one I'm talking about isn't his; it's this one!"

Wow!

The onlooking crowd gasped in amazement, and the tightly formed circle quickly split into two.

"Isn't this just a pomfret?"

"It's not just a pomfret, look closely, there are horns on that fish's head!"

"Really, eh, theres are horns on the head, it's definitely a Treasure Fish, it's a Treasure Fish!"

Once confirmed by the surrounding people, the already bustling wharf became even noisier, with more and more people gathering to catch a glimpse of the prestigious Treasure Fish.

People had heard of Treasure Fishes before, which had extraordinary color patterns, but today there was one with a unique shape, with horns on its head!

"Who caught it?"

"It's Ashui, the son of the old Liang Family! He's amazing at catching fish, brings in over thirty every day."

"Old Liang? The one who passed away last month? Such good luck."

"The Liang Family's fate is not yet sealed!"

"Amazing, one Treasure Fish is worth several months of my rice and grain! If I could catch one, I'd die with no regrets."

"If you caught one, the one cashing in would be the old madam of the dark alley, hahaha!"

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The crowd was abuzz with excitement, after all, catching two treasure fish on the same day at the wharf was extremely rare, and everyone was trying to bask in the good fortune.

Liang Qu scanned the crowd and saw the envy and blatant longing in everyone's eyes, something he never thought would be true as described in the novels, but there it was, visible to the naked eye.

"Ashui, my family has an unmarried daughter, what do you say about betrothing her to you?"

"Uncle Chen Yi, isn't your daughter only nine years old?" Recognizing the speaker as Chen Yi whom he had met before, Liang Qu was numbed by the familiarity.

"His family won't do, they're not a match for such a fine young chap like you, come to my place, and I'll let you meet my daughter."

"Come off it, Second Master Shi, your girl is already eighteen."

"Don't you know about 'a girl of eighteen is like a golden brick'?"

Chen Qingjiang could support a large family on his own, and Liang Qu, an orphan who was handsome and capable at fishing, was even more sought after; anyone with a daughter at home wanted to sink their teeth in.

Thinking back to the carriage that had avoided him when he first arrived, it hadn't even been a month and Liang Qu had experienced the caprice of "Thirty years on the east bank of the river, thirty years on the west."

But Liang Qu harbored no resentment; when one is poor, one must fend strictly for oneself. This is the helplessness of the lower class.

Surrounded by the crowd, he found his way back.

Liang Qu saw Chen Jiechang, who had also caught a treasure fish, a man in his twenties, tall and slender, just as dark-skinned – no fisherman was ever fair – and he was also known at Shangrao Wharf for his exceptional fishing skills, even stronger than Uncle Chen, earning well over a hundred cents a day.

Chen Jiechang saw Liang Qu, and naturally, he was displeased that the attention he used to enjoy alone was now shared, but he maintained a smile on his face.

This was the pleasure of the villagers, if I live better than you, I am content, and vice versa.

In his previous life, Liang Qu had an uncle who wore a sour face all day long after he got into a prestigious university, outperforming his grandson. Whenever they met, he insisted that the major was more important than the university, and after graduation, it was all about the importance of connections in society.

Both men glanced at the treasure fish the other had caught.

Chen Jiechang's fish resembled a blackfish, only completely different in color; it was auburn throughout, as if cast in fresh blood—an impressive color indeed.

"The martial master is here, the Martial Master has come!"

"Make way, make way!"

"The Martial Master is here to see the treasure fish!"

The crowd parted to make way, and Liang Qu, along with Chen Jiechang, looked up to see the arrival of three men, all seemingly taller and sturdier than the common folks around, standing with exceptionally straight backs.

So these are martial artists? Surely they must just be warriors?

Only those who break through the fourth barrier could be called martial masters, the rest were merely warriors, and there were hardly any martial masters in the whole of Pingyang Town. The laypeople often confused the two, perhaps knowingly, but still, they used the same names.

Among the three, the one who took the lead introduced himself as Hu, who was en route from Pingyang Town to Yixing City on business. Having heard that there were treasure fish at the wharf, he came to have a look and would purchase them if they proved to be genuine.

Chen Jiechang hurriedly called out, "Martial Master, please look at mine."

Martial Artist Hu came over to Chen Jiechang and took a glance, "Red Blood Perch, how much does it weigh?"

Chen Jiechang, a bit nervous, replied, "Two pounds, seven taels, six cents!"

"Will you sell it for three taels of silver?"

"Sell, sell, sell!"

Chen Jiechang was beaming with joy; three taels of silver were enough for more than a year's supply of rice. Last month, a Tiger Head Spotted Fish weighing three pounds and six taels from the neighboring wharf only fetched three taels and five cents, which made his Red Blood Perch even more valuable!

Martial Artist Hu took the fish and paid the money without weighing it, obviously sure the seller wouldn't dare to deceive him.

He then approached Liang Qu and was surprised to see the fish with two horns on its head, "Bull Horn Pomfret? Quite rare, how much does it weigh?"

Observing Martial Artist Hu's expression, Liang Qu replied gently, "Three pounds, two taels, and one cent."

He had already had it weighed while everyone was watching the spectacle, so there was no mistake.

"Six taels and five cents, will you sell?"

"Six taels?"

Chen Jiechang stopped dead in his tracks, while the surrounding fishermen fell silent.