Chapter 104: The Treasure of Greenlight Fish

Chasing away the night herons, Xia Qing knocked out another fish, checked the tester, and saw the red light flash. She chopped the fish with a few swift strokes, tossing the chunks to the magpies and crows. “You’ve all worked hard catching bugs lately. Eat up and recharge.”

The flock of birds scrambled for the fish and devoured it in seconds. Xia Qing casually knocked out another fish and started testing it. This time, her hand froze mid-swing. Wide-eyed, Xia Qing stared in disbelief at the Xiang Tester as it lit up green.

There was actually a Greenlight spring water fish in her pond!

Without hesitation, Xia Qing scooped up the Greenlight fish, which had only a measly 0.18% Xiang element, and dropped it gently into a nearby water bucket.

It wasn’t her first time knocking out fish, and Xia Qing was confident in her aim, but she still found herself muttering, “Come on, wake up. You’ve got to wake up…”

The waiting birds grew impatient when Xia Qing suddenly stopped moving. The boldest egret waddled over, craned its neck, and was about to peck at the fish in the bucket.

“Don’t even think about it. This one’s off limits.” Xia Qing pushed the egret’s head aside. Luckily, this egret was well-behaved and didn’t take a chunk out of her hand.

Not long after, the Greenlight fish floating belly-up shivered twice, then flipped upright with a splash and darted to the bottom of the bucket, making the whole thing wobble. Xia Qing hurried to slap on the lid, grinning so wide she could hardly contain herself.

With one Greenlight fish in hand, how far could she be from having a whole school of them?

But how do you tell males from females in fish? Was this one male? If so, she’d have to catch a female next.

Xia Qing placed a stone on the bucket lid to weigh it down and went back to catching fish.

All the rest in the net were Redlight fish. No matter how many times she cast the net—twenty more this time—they were all Redlight. Still, Xia Qing was in high spirits and kept at it.

Some of the birds, full from their meal, groomed their feathers while others curiously watched Xia Qing fish. Even the frogs by the pond wouldn’t dare croak, peeking out with just their eyes as they stared cautiously at the “crazy” Xia Qing.

One net after another, Xia Qing tested each fish: Redlight fish went into a big water tank, while Yellowlight and Greenlight fish went into the bucket.

“Baa.”

Between Xia Qing’s off-key singing and the clanking of fish biting the iron rings, Boss Sheep couldn’t take it anymore, grumbling from where it rested nearby for Xia Qing to pipe down.

Xia Qing called Boss Sheep over. “You finished your break, Boss? Come help me pull up the net, there’s rations in it for you!”

“Baa~~”

Food was all the incentive Boss Sheep needed. With a little falsetto bleat, it trotted right over.

Xia Qing took out a sealed chunk of rations, tore it open, pinched a bit, and stuffed it into Boss Sheep’s mouth. Then she slung the iron-wire net over its spiral horn. “You hold the net, I’ll test the fish. When Zhong Tao’s group comes tomorrow, all these Redlight fish are getting traded for your rations.”

Evolved fish were a handful, but next to Boss Sheep’s strength, they hardly put up a fight. With its help, Xia Qing’s testing speed doubled.

Were the fish hiding at the bottom, too scared to surface? Not a chance. This bunch was just as gluttonous as Boss Sheep. Toss in a handful of Evolved Insects, and they’d all scramble to be the first in the net.

She finally stopped when the big water tank was so full the fish were packed scale to scale.

Edible fish were a tiny portion of the catch, but thanks to sheer numbers, after testing over six hundred, Xia Qing landed one Greenlight and six Yellowlight fish.

Those seven edible fish, each the size of a palm, were all treasures. Xia Qing let Boss Sheep carry the heavy water tank of Redlight fish, steadied it with one hand, and carried her little fish bucket in the other as they headed home.

After filling the big tank with filtered water, Xia Qing left it alone. Evolved fish were incredibly resilient; Redlight fish could go days in there without keeling over. What mattered now were her precious fish.

She took the large wooden tub she’d just made for Boss Sheep, scrubbed it clean, and set it up on the sun-drenched second floor. Pouring in twenty liters of pure spring water, she finally released her prized fish into their new home.

Boss Sheep hooked its front hooves over the edge and watched the fish swim for a while, then squinted at Xia Qing.

Worried Boss Sheep might get grumpy and knock over the tub or push it down the stairs with its head, Xia Qing pressed her hand on the tub and spoke soothingly. “Sorry, this one isn’t great, but let the fish use it first. I’ll make you a proper, sheep-friendly bath next—one where you can soak and snack at the same time.”

Food did the trick. Boss Sheep immediately perked up and clip-clopped off to the stairs.

Xia Qing didn’t wait for the sheep to nudge her; she followed to chop up fresh grass, crumbled the rations, and mixed in some special feed.

Qi Fu said the perilla would bloom and seed by the end of July, so Xia Qing had stopped cutting it for Boss Sheep to eat. She wanted the perilla to rest, flower, and set as much seed as possible, so she could plant more next year.

Once Boss Sheep had its dinner, Xia Qing started prepping her own.

With good food on hand, Xia Qing never shortchanged herself. She filled the big pot with water, got the fire going, rinsed the rice, and put the steel rice bowl to steam over the pot.

Then she got to work on tonight’s main course—Fish with Sour Bamboo Shoots.

Xia Qing turned on her walkie-talkie and called, “Qi Ge, you there?”

To her surprise, Qi Fu’s voice on the other end sounded like he’d been waiting for her call, full of anticipation. “Hey Xia Qing, finished for the day?”

“Yeah.” Xia Qing asked, “Qi Ge, do you know how to tell male from female fish? I got lucky today and netted two Yellowlight fish. Planning to eat one.”

Qi Fu had dug his own fish pond, so he knew just how many fish you had to catch to test out two Yellowlights. He glanced at Director Tang and Luo Pei, who were chatting in his living room. If they hadn’t come to learn woodworking, he might be eating fish tonight too…

Qi Fu felt a pang. He almost wanted to cry.

“Start with the pectoral fins. Female pectoral fins are more oval; males are pointed. You can also feel the belly—males are firmer, females are soft. Or just check their build…”

“Thanks, Qi Ge. I’ll let you get back to work, I’ve got fish to clean.” Xia Qing could hear Qi Fu’s mood dip, so she jotted down the tips and didn’t interrupt him any further.

She switched off the walkie-talkie and hadn’t even reached the fish tank when Zhang San’s call came in.

“Xia Qing, how many males did you catch? If you can’t tell, send me a picture and I’ll take a look.” Xia Qing instantly recognized Zhang San’s gentle but scheming tone.

She’d known he would call and cheerfully replied as she stood by the tank, watching the four Yellowlight fish swimming inside, “Both are male. With the ones I marinated and some sour bamboo shoot, I have enough for a stew. Want one, Third Brother?”

Zhang San’s voice softened into grandfatherly warmth. “Of course. What would you like in exchange?”

“One Yellowlight fish, six slices of Greenlight perilla, and anything from your current stash of seeds that’s worth it,” Xia Qing replied without hesitation.

“Let me check.” Zhang San, careful as ever, hung up to get a definite answer before calling back. “I can give you three Greenlight sponge gourds or a little bag of Greenlight cabbage seeds. Which do you want?”