Reincarnated as a Fisherman and a Dad Chapter 176
On Sunday, nothing much happened. It was a peaceful day. The family attended the Sunday service together.
The children threw tantrums after church because they realized they were heading back home instead of going to Jollibee. Their little feet stomped in disappointment. Maya solved the problem by making a mango graham float... She admitted that her children were difficult to handle, but she still found them adorable. Fortunately, her husband kept them entertained that day, playing with them and distracting them from their earlier frustration.
To be precise, children were difficult to handle, not just hers, but children in general. You can't convince them with reason and logic since they can't yet understand them. Their world was still ruled by feelings rather than explanations.
The day remained simple as the family spent time together at home after the Sunday service... although at 5 pm, Karlos was invited by his friends for a drink, and he happily got drunk with them.
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Karlos and Brandon left at 6 am to go to the shrimp farm, the sky was already bright. Their form of transportation was Karlos's tricycle.
When they arrived, Pond No. 1 was already being drained halfway, the waterline visibly lower than before, revealing parts of the pond's bottom. Karlos and Brandon were greeted by Zaldy, the manager of the Alejandro shrimp farm, who had been overseeing the process.
Zaldy was surprised that Karlos and Brandon showed up in a tricycle, but he didn't ask about it and chose to remain professional. He knew Karlos was related to the Alejandro family since the ownership had been transferred to him. Zaldy just had to keep doing his job and shut down his curiosity, focusing only on his responsibilities.
"Sir Karlos, Sir Brandon. You've arrived at the right time. We are already draining the water. In three to four hours, the water will be gone and we can harvest the remaining shrimp without a problem," he said with a smile.
Actually, he was happy because the shrimp had grown significantly in just a few days. If he remembered correctly, it started when Karlos and Brandon first showed up. At that time, the shrimp were already as thick as a finger. They were healthy and firm, a sign of good farming conditions. But within a week, the size of the shrimp had increased by a quarter, a growth rate that surprised everyone. Zaldy and the other workers were happy because it meant more profit and proved their hard work had paid off.
As they talked, the other workers were pulling nets to harvest the shrimp. They used cast nets, throwing them into the water and letting them sink before pulling them back in.
"So far, we have already caught 1.2 tons of shrimp. Pond No. 1 can handle two to three tons of shrimp, that's about 120,000 shrimps. Of course, this is just an estimation, and no one can predict the exact weight of our harvest," Zaldy explained, his eyes glancing at the pond.
"Excuse me, I have a question. Where's the drainage? I can't see the pipe," Brandon asked, squinting toward the pond, trying to locate where the water was flowing out.
"It's under the pond. I'll take you to where the water leaves." Zaldy called for someone to bring the truck. Their shrimp farm had a truck for buying feed and other essential products, a necessity for large-scale operations.
The truck arrived and took them to the edge of the shrimp farm, dozens of meters away from the mangroves. They saw a pipe releasing water in a steady, nonstop stream.
"The drainage has a filter to make sure the shrimp won't escape. You don't have to worry," Zaldy assured the two. They had triple-checked the drainage, ensuring no mistakes were made.
Once things were confirmed, they returned to Pond No. 1 to help with the harvest. The entire shrimp farm was three hectares wide, with each pond being about half a hectare in size, the farm had five ponds in total.
"Sir, are you sure you want to do this? You can just watch from the corner and let us do the rest. I've hired more people just for today's harvest. You don't have to help us," Zaldy said to Karlos, slightly concerned.
"No wonder there are more people. It's alright, I also want to help so that things go faster," Karlos grinned.
Karlos and Brandon had their own cast nets to use. They threw them into the water to catch the shrimp, continuing until they had filled four buckets. By that time, two trucks and a car showed up.
Alfred stepped out of the car and saw Karlos pulling a net. He didn't find it surprising, as he knew Karlos was a fisherman.
"Let me introduce you to Mr. Geronimo. He's the buyer from the restaurant Mr. Chubby. He's responsible for buying shrimp from this farm every month," Alfred gestured.
"It's nice to meet you. I'm Karlos." Karlos wiped his hand before extending it to Geronimo, showing basic courtesy.
"Hello." Geronimo smiled. He had seen the young masters of the Alejandro family from afar and believed that Karlos resembled them. Just like the others, he deduced that Karlos was related to the wealthy family, though he didn't voice it.
The two trucks could carry three tons each, large enough for bulk transport. Since shrimp needed ice for storage, they would have to divide the load between the two trucks.
The workers carried the shrimp they had already harvested and loaded them into the truck. They had already been weighed, but the buyer weighed them again just to be sure. Mr. Geronimo was surprised when he found that the shrimp were larger than the average adult size. They were about 33 grams each and 18 centimeters long, well above standard.
"The size is perfect. This is considered jumbo. We are going to buy it at the price of 490 pesos per kilogram," Mr. Geronimo said, checking his notes and nodding.
Zaldy was happy, and so were Karlos and Brandon. They had discussed the price of shrimp earlier. Smaller ones could be sold for 300 to 330 pesos, while jumbo ones were priced around 470 to 500 pesos. 490 pesos per kilogram was a great price.
The shrimp were placed in styrofoam boxes, covered in ice, and then stacked. Karlos and Brandon helped despite being the owners of the farm. They were not afraid to get their hands dirty, they couldn't stay still and watch the others work. It wasn't in their nature to be idle.
[Thank you guys for reading this novel.]