Leaning on her cane, Granny smiled. "These are the fish fry your Uncle Jinyu gave me. There weren't many, just eighteen that I released. My legs were hurting a few months ago, so I haven't been out to check on them in a long time. I have no idea how many survived."
Li Xiang said, "There are definitely more than ten."
At the same time, he was inwardly thankful. 'Good thing I came back.'
In his previous life, while he was working in the big city, his grandmother had never once mentioned her leg pain to him. But in this life, she often drank soup stewed with Tier One Spirit Grass, and her leg problems had vanished. Even after walking such a long way today, she was still full of vigor and hadn't even frowned once.
The villagers all said it was a miracle that her leg pain disappeared as soon as her grandson came home.
Some people said it was understandable, explaining that it just showed how well Li Xiang was taking care of his grandmother. Ever since Li Xiang returned, his granny hadn't done any heavy labor, and most of the time, she didn't even have to cook.
"Granny, you rest over on the side. I'll drain the water first and catch the fish," said Li Xiang.
Li Xiang set up his phone stand on the path, adjusted the angle, and started recording. Then, he shouldered his shovel, picked a low-lying spot, and dug a small opening in the paddy ridge. Instantly, water began to gush out with a RUSH.
He then placed a bamboo basket at the opening.
The water would flow through the basket and into the adjacent ditch, but the fish would be trapped inside.
He had originally brought the basket with him because he planned to go up the mountain to forage for mushrooms after checking on the rice paddy. Since there were fish, he could use it to catch them first.
"Here one comes, here one comes!"
A moment later, even Granny Lian cried out from the side. A glistening, dark Rice Paddy Fish was thrashing about energetically, swimming toward the opening with the "rushing" current.
This fish was surprisingly Spiritual. It seemed to see the people ahead or sense the danger, for it suddenly flicked its tail, sending up a big splash as it turned to flee.
However, the current slowed it down. It struggled furiously against the flow, trying to get back.
"Oh-ho, you think I'd let a fish that's practically in my grasp get away?" Li Xiang raised an eyebrow, immediately took off his shoes and socks, rolled up his pant legs, and deftly waded into the paddy field.
Soon, Li Xiang had caught the glistening, dark, and plump fish, which was over thirty centimeters long. Since he had only brought one bamboo basket, he held it in his hands for the time being.
Li Xiang climbed back onto the bank to wait for the water to finish draining.
The other fish weren't as smart as the first one. See, two of them swam right into the bamboo basket on their own, no catching required.
By the time the paddy field was almost dry, there were five Rice Paddy Fish in the basket. Including the one in Li Xiang's hands, that made six.
Li Xiang tossed the cleverest fish into the basket and then placed the basket in the ditch outside the paddy.
"Granny, can you watch the fish for me here? Don't let the basket tip over. I'm going into the field to catch the rest."
"Alrighty. Be careful now, don't slip and fall." Granny watched over the makeshift fish-creel while Li Xiang went down into the field.
'Whoa, there are quite a lot of fish in here.' The water was almost gone, leaving only a few puddles where fish flopped around in the mud, making them very conspicuous. As a Tier One Transcendent, Li Xiang's movements were swift, precise, and decisive. He caught a fish almost every time he bent down, then returned to toss it into the basket.
The rice paddy wasn't very large. In less than twenty minutes, Li Xiang had combed through the entire field two or three times. In the end, he had caught a total of sixteen Rice Paddy Fish. He also had an extra prize: a large black fish weighing several pounds, along with a dozen or so small loaches.
Granny gasped and asked in confusion, "But I didn't release any black fish fry."
Li Xiang thought for a moment, then said, "It probably jumped over from the creek outside."
This type of black fish has an extremely strong survival instinct. It can live in various bodies of water, including rivers, lakes, and swamps. Not only can it swim, but it can also slither on land and even survive out of water for as long as three days.
Its meat is tender with few bones, perfect for making dishes like fish with pickled mustard greens or spicy boiled fish fillets.
The thought of fish with pickled mustard greens, which he hadn't eaten in a long time, made Li Xiang's mouth water.
As for the sixteen Rice Paddy Fish, they were a type of black carp, also known as "rice-flower fish." They get their name from feeding on fallen rice blossoms in the paddies, which gives their meat a floral fragrance. During the Qianlong era of the Qing Dynasty, they were once a tribute item for the imperial court. They also have few bones, tender meat, soft bones, no fishy smell, and are high in protein, typically weighing between 50 and 250 grams.
These were truly organic fish, as no pesticides were used in Li Xiang's family rice paddy. Why would they spray pesticides on a field grown for their own consumption? Besides, his grandmother didn't have the stamina for that kind of work anyway.
The Rice Paddy Fish probably also ate insect eggs or bugs that fell into the water. This might be one of the reasons why there were so few pests and the rice was growing so well.
Their harvest bountiful, Li Xiang walked with his grandmother along the small country path, chatting as they went. From time to time, Granny would let out a happy laugh. Since Li Xiang had returned to keep her company, she had laughed more than she had in the past several years combined.
Because the paddy had just been drained, it was still quite wet. Li Xiang planned to wait until tomorrow, when it was a bit drier, to harvest the rice. He had checked the weather forecast, which predicted sunny days for the next few days.
Back home, he placed the Rice Paddy Fish and the black fish in the middle tank of the "Overlapping Waterfall." The first tank was their source of drinking water, so he definitely couldn't keep fish in it, while the last tank was a bit too low, and Li Xiang worried the black fish might jump out and escape.
He also filmed a short video of this process. While he was releasing the fish, his grandmother held the phone and filmed from the side. After her "training" from the previous short film, Granny had already mastered basic filming techniques and even got a few close-up shots of the fish.
As for the loaches, he left them for his grandmother to handle. They would have Loach and Tofu Stew for lunch. There were still two blocks of tofu left in the fridge, which came in handy.
While his grandmother went to cook, Li Xiang headed to the vegetable patch in the backyard to get busy. He watered the plants, pulled some weeds, and checked on the growth of the vegetables he had planted earlier.
A small patch of greens on the side hadn't grown well, so after a moment's thought, Li Xiang planted some garlic there instead.
Planting garlic also had its own set of rules. The older generation had many sayings: "Plant onions deep, plant garlic shallow." "The best time is around the Cold Dew." "To plant garlic, just press it in the mud." "Onions, chives, and garlic shouldn't be neighbors." "An inch deep, two inches apart, that's the safest way to plant." "Use manure and ash, and your harvest will be vast."
Li Xiang's gardening secrets were mostly passed down from his grandmother. If he didn't have a few tricks up his sleeve, he wouldn't have dared to come back to the countryside to farm.
Moreover, since returning, Li Xiang felt much happier than he ever did working in the big city. It was as if he had started a new chapter in his life.
By the time he finished his work in the garden, his grandmother had lunch ready.
There was fragrant Loach and Tofu Stew, Spicy Rabbit Ribs, Stir-fried Spinach, Stir-fried Pumpkin, and a Bottle Gourd and Egg Soup.
Although there were only two of them, Li Xiang had a large appetite, so his grandmother had specially prepared four dishes and a soup. Everything was served in large bowls, for fear that her dear grandson wouldn't have enough to eat.
After lunch, Li Xiang sat in the backyard gazebo. The WiFi signal was strong. He brewed a pot of wild, fragrant tea and began editing the Rice Paddy Fish video from the morning. He didn't do much processing, focusing on keeping it authentic, and then uploaded it.
After a short rest, Li Xiang grabbed another bamboo basket, took his High-Density Blade in hand, and headed up the mountain again. The two yellow dogs chased after him, BARK BARK, wanting to follow, but Li Xiang shooed them back home.
"Dahuang, Er Huang, get back and guard the house! Protect Granny."
The two dogs were very Spiritual and reluctantly turned back toward home.
With the two dogs at home, Li Xiang felt more at ease.
After entering the mountains, he started a livestream. There weren't many viewers online. The count started at a few dozen, slowly climbed to two or three hundred, and then plateaued. After all, his follower base was only a few tens of thousands.
It was worth noting that the guy who bought the Black Truffles last time also came online. He was in the capital of Sichuan Province, just two or three hundred kilometers away. He said he had received the mushrooms and that the quality was excellent—definitely worth the price.
Man, as soon as the guy said that live, the fans got excited. Several of them started clamoring to place pre-orders too.