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墨書 Inktalez
Hong Shun's childhood was quite enviable for his friends. His father ran a small shop in Guangzhou, and although he could only return once a year, he always brought back toys and snacks that couldn't be found here. Every New Year, when his father returned from Guangzhou, a large group of children would follow Hong Shun around.
Originally, there were plans to bring Hong Shun to Guangzhou for school when he reached the right age, as the education there was undoubtedly of a much higher standard than in Cha Dong.
However, life is unpredictable. A fire destroyed the shop, taking away their money and leaving them with nothing but memories. All that remained was Hong Shun and his elderly, ailing grandmother, struggling to get by in this remote ancient town. For the two of them—one old and one young—earning a living was incredibly difficult.
Hong Shun made do by scavenging discarded fishing lines from the riverbank and fashioning floats from sticks. He learned to fish by watching others; this was how he earned some money. The little he made wasn’t enough to feed them but was saved up to buy medicine for his grandmother and cover school expenses.
In the past couple of years, his grandmother passed away, leaving young Hong Shun without any relatives in this world. Relying on the meager monthly support from the government and occasionally supplementing it with fishing, life had become somewhat easier for him.
A few days ago, while chatting with Kang Ziyu, Shi Tian casually mentioned Hong Shun. Hearing about Hong Shun's hardships from Kang Ziyu prompted both of them to visit Cha Dong the very next morning.
"Sister Xiao Yu, did you open this shop?"
"I'm not here to buy anything. Last year, a guy named Shi Tian Ge lent me a fishing rod and said I should return it once the Star Brand Fishing Gear Store opened. I'm here to return the rod!"
Seeing Kang Ziyu running the store made Hong Shun smile as he pulled out a prepared red envelope from his pocket and handed it to her.
This was something he had planned; once the Fishing Tackle Shop opened, he intended for this red envelope to serve as rent for the rod Shi Tian had lent him. The envelope wasn't large; it contained only ten dollars, but Shi Tian appreciated the gesture nonetheless.
Getting up from behind the counter, Shi Tian ruffled Hong Shun's hair and took both the rod and the red envelope from him.
The rod was wrapped in cloth, indicating that Hong Shun took good care of it. Along with the rod were some bait and a cheap plastic box that he had used when buying small items; everything inside was still there. It was unclear whether Hong Shun hadn’t used them or had replaced them after using them up.
Shi Tian could tell that the bait had not been used at all. If it had been used even once, it would have been either damaged by rocks at the riverbank or faded from sun exposure.
"School's out for summer! Do you have time? Let's go fishing together!" After putting away the rod and sitting down on the sofa with Hong Shun, Shi Tian proposed a fishing trip.
Since arriving in Cha Dong, Shi Tian had checked in with Old Zhou and Aunt Huang about how Hong Shun was doing lately. It seemed that this little guy was doing quite well now. He no longer needed to use just a rod; having learned how to bait fish holes from Shi Tian, he had started using nets instead and even supplied Old Zhou’s store with fish.
Catching two or three pounds of yellow catfish wasn’t going to make anyone rich, but it was enough for buying some stationery.
"Jiao Jiao fish are hard to catch during the day; let’s wait until evening! I’ll go prepare some bait now, and we can fish together tonight. I know where there are plenty of Jiao Jiao fish; I guarantee you’ll have a great time! It’s just a bit far—over half an hour's walk."
Seeing Hong Shun’s serious expression made Shi Tian smile slightly. Poor kids grow up fast; at just fifteen years old, he already knew how to protect commercial secrets!
"There are so many fish in the river; why do we only catch Jiao Jiao fish? Is it just because they’re valuable?"
Pouring a cup of tea for Hong Shun, Shi Tian continued: "There are many fish worth more than Jiao Jiao fish. For example, Hai Li fish can sell for dozens of dollars each. If you catch Shi Ban, you can sell it for more than one dollar per pound."
Shi Tian showed Hong Shun his achievements on his phone: over ten pounds of Shi Ban, tuna weighing over a pound, along with Dongsha's rubies and Red-tailed Silversides. The photos in Shi Tian's album kept Hong Shun captivated for over half an hour.
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