Fishing Livestream
Chapter 673 - 673 660 Outsmarting Oneself

673: Chapter 660: Outsmarting Oneself 673: Chapter 660: Outsmarting Oneself “This is for adding water to the pond, it’s not usually turned on!

It wasn’t turned on today either!” Zhang’s expression slightly changed, and he continued to stubbornly argue through gritted teeth.

Yue Feng: “Not turned on?

If it wasn’t turned on, why did the float of the anglers at the big shed on the southwestern corner move?

What, there’s wind inside the shed?

Wind strong enough to make it happen?

Do you really take everyone for a fool?

If it really hadn’t been turned on, why were the fish biting just fine before and then suddenly stopped?

And that shorted wire, running from the well’s submersible pump all the way into the house with no other appliances attached!

Could it short circuit if you didn’t flip the switch on?

Flipping the switch on, that means pumping water, right?”

Since faces had already been torn, Yue Feng didn’t hold back, pointing at Zhang Wenliang and bombarding him with questions.

What Yue Feng said could be verified with evidence, and anyone with clear eyes could see who was telling the truth and who was lying.

This whole issue was originally Zhang Wenliang’s fault.

Yue Feng’s aggressive measures were nothing more than a prank gone bad, and without causing a significant accident, even if it came down to assigning blame, the consequences would not be severe.

When the anglers in the pit heard what Yue Feng said, they were not happy.

“Damn it, no wonder the fish suddenly stopped biting.

Turns out he’s been secretly pumping well water into the pond!”

“Zhang, you’ve gone a bit too far, haven’t you?

This is not okay!”

“I felt it was okay the last few times I came to fish here and I accepted the high price, because I like it, but now you’re pumping well water in, Zhang, aren’t you going too far?”

“Eight hundred and eighty for a ticket, and you’re pumping cold water into the pond?

What’s this supposed to mean?

I’m not fishing anymore, give me a refund!”

“Exactly, this is too much, refund!”

Places like the Big Cannon Pit inherently operate at a loss from fishing fees, with a negligible amount of fish being taken ashore.

Most of those who come to play are not short on cash and are looking for the thrill of continuous bites.

But today, the fish just weren’t biting satisfactorily.

They had spent their money but hadn’t enjoyed the thrilling experience of constant bites.

If it had been due to natural causes, it would have been one thing, but now that they’d heard it was because the owner was pumping water, which led to the fish not biting, the anglers obviously couldn’t accept it, and they all started demanding refunds.

Zhang couldn’t reply to Yue Feng’s accusations and, with his face turning red, he saw that things were spiraling out of control, and his hoodlum arrogance surfaced once more.

He became furious with shame and pushed Yue Feng, shouting, “You’re slandering me!

You dare cause trouble here?

Haven’t you asked around who Zhang Yidao is?

I’ve slaughtered three-hundred-pound sows, do you think I’m afraid of a young lad like you weighing barely over a hundred pounds?

Dream on if you think you can tarnish my reputation, not a chance!”

Yue Feng stood unmoved, but Qiangzi, seeing the other side resort to violence, immediately took offense and rushed over, kicking Zhang Wenliang in the abdomen.

“Damn your mother, you really think you’re someone, huh?

You think you can cheat people and be justified?

What, you’re good at slaughtering pigs, so you think you’re good at killing people too?

Come on, call whoever you want now, any tricks you have, I’m ready for them,” Qiangzi said, with the aggression of someone unafraid of confrontation showing through.

Yue Feng continued, “You like to make a big deal out of things, so let’s make a big deal.

Kid, call the police!

Say there’s fraud going on here, didn’t the advertisement say they put in five thousand pounds of fish?

Let the police uncle drain the water and we’ll see how much fish there really is!

If there’s a pound missing, let the Trade and Market Bureau fine you until you don’t even have underpants left!”

Zhang Wenliang did usually act quite the ruffian, but in reality, he was nothing but a loudmouth who lacked real courage.

After taking a kick from Qiangzi, he was crouching for a long time without getting up.

Hearing that Yue Feng wanted to call the police, he felt even more panicked inside.

Pumping well water and other mischief could be denied if there was no solid evidence, but the pond currently held at most three thousand pounds of fish.

If the water really were drained, the missing two thousand pounds of fish could never just appear out of thin air.

At that moment, a middle-aged man who was watching the commotion walked over and helped Zhang Wenliang up.

“Brother, how should I address you?

Fishing is just a leisure activity that costs money, is it worth taking it so seriously?

Give me some face, let’s forget about this, alright?”

Yue Feng glanced at the middle-aged man attempting to mediate and said, “Are we the ones being overly serious?

Today if we don’t get an explanation, this just won’t do!”

“How do you want to settle this?”

“Apologize!

Refund the money!” Yue Feng stated his position clearly.

“Murder doesn’t go beyond the head; you’re a bit…”

“A bit what?

Over the top?”

“I’m Zhang Wenlei, head of Zhangjiazhuang village.

Give me some face, and let’s let bygones be bygones, okay?

Those who want to keep playing can continue, and anyone who feels shortchanged, let Little Third refund your fishing fee!

How does that sound?”

Hearing this proposal, Yue Feng could barely accept it, despite having confidently landed ashore himself.

As soon as Zhang Wenliang heard his older brother say this, he immediately became anxious, “Refund?

Impossible, all the fish are already in the pond, there’s more than a two yuan difference per pound, do you want to bankrupt me!”

Upon hearing that, Zhang Wenlei said, “So should we call the police and have you taken away to squat behind bars?

Can’t you understand simple logic?”

After this, Zhang Wenliang stopped talking.

The rest was simple, those who wanted a refund got one.

Yue Feng ended up with a catch of 307 pounds, but he didn’t take advantage of the owner.

After the fish were weighed and lifted out of the water in front of everyone, they were released back into the pond, and he packed up his gear and left.

The other anglers followed suit, dumping their fish back into the pond and getting refunds!

After such a fuss, Zhang Wenliang’s Winter Fishing Hall was completely infamous in the surrounding area.

This ‘infamous’ wasn’t the kind that meant popular, but one that implied a huge loss of face!

Secretly tampering with the water in the 5,000-pound Big Cannon Pit was discovered by the newly crowned Fishing King Yue Feng, who almost got into a fight over it, ending with a refund and a loss of both his wife and his troops.

The pond was closed for a day, and expecting a crowd the next day, fishing was to start at eight.

But by half-past eight, only two people had turned up.

That left Zhang Wenliang stunned.

To open would certainly mean a loss.

Not to open would mean slapping his own face, given the announcements he’d made.

Zhang Wenliang, feeling that something was amiss, made some inquiries and found out that the handsome young man he had almost come to blows with the day before was the new national Fishing King of the year, an extremely well-known figure in the W city area.

Now, with WeChat and such so advanced, the news of his deceit spread far and wide.

Who would still come to play?

Even the two anglers who arrived today hadn’t heard the news before.

With 3,000 pounds of fish in the pit, it was definitely not viable for just two people to fish; it would surely be a loss.

Zhang Wenliang found an excuse to close the door and send the customers away, but he then faced a difficult decision.

Continue to close the pit for regular fishing?

What if no one showed up again?

Or just drain the pond?

Reopen after a few days?

This might be the safest solution, but even so, the loss was significant.

Over 3,000 pounds of fish in the pit, the difference in price between buying live fish and selling them on like leftover cooked ones was at least 1.5 yuan per pound; just the price difference alone would mean a loss of almost five thousand yuan.

It would vanish without a trace, without causing a ripple.

After all this trouble, the once popular Winter Fishing Hall saw a significant drop in patronage, and its reputation plummeted.

Half a month later, when it reopened, it no longer enjoyed its former popularity.

A fishing area that accommodated twenty people often sat half empty, and the business’s trajectory continued downhill.

In less than a month, the more fish they stocked, the more losses they accumulated, and the less willing they were to stock good fish.

A vicious cycle.

With over a month to go until the New Year, they shut down early.

Of course, that’s a story for another time.