Back to the Past to Become a Fishing King-Chapter 602 - 348: Bluffing and Intimidation

"By the way, bro, how much are you getting paid to help slaughter a pig these days?"

Zhang Yang was nodding repeatedly apologizing to the other party, then suddenly threw out a new question.

"500, uh... what did you say??"

The other party, unsuspecting, casually answered, and then realized he'd slipped up, staring at Zhang Yang with a bit of dismay, his mind a bit puzzled.

All anglers who came to the Fishing King Cup qualifiers had signed up from around Dongshan Province. Zhang Yang's question about the payment for slaughtering a pig was actually local competitive fishing lingo.

It wasn't about actually butchering pigs like a butcher, but about joining forces to target a specific team or angler in response to some call.

The money was easy to earn, and many people, who stood no chance of qualifying themselves, took it to cover entry fees and other expenses with a little side income.

After getting the truth out, Zhang Yang's mouth tilted slightly upwards, and he fixed his gaze on this guy, saying word by word, "My name is Zhang Yang, owner of Mingyang Fishing Tackle Company, and also the captain of the company's fishing team.

We're all people in the circle, so I won't play games with you. Just fish your fish honestly, and we won't interfere with each other, got it!

If you really want to earn money as a mercenary, tell me. After the match, I'll reimburse you with no problem.

However, let me remind you of one thing; don't play any tricks on me unless you don't want to participate in competitive fishing for the rest of your life! My father-in-law works at the Chinese Fishing Association in Beijing, I'm not bluffing!"

While Zhang Yang said he wasn't bluffing, all his words were both soft and hard, all designed to intimidate.

The angler next door, already baffled by Zhang Yang's tactic, was thoroughly dissuaded when Zhang Yang made his intentions clear.

Although the 'pig slaughter' task wasn't very risky, it thrived on being covert. If a targeted angler became aware of the disruption next door and guarded against it, excessive actions could easily be caught in the act.

If it gets serious enough to call the referee over and make a big fuss, a lifetime ban could be the outcome. Especially since Zhang Yang mentioned his father-in-law worked in the system, the risk increased dramatically!

"I misunderstood just now! I thought you were talking about pig slaughtering in my village! Rest assured, brother, I'm a decent person, not into disrupting competitions!"

The neighboring angler hastily tried to cover up his tracks, not mentioning disruption again.

What, you asked why Zhang Yang offered to reimburse after the match, and why didn't the other party admit it?

Little buddy asking this question, surely hasn't mingled in society much, this is just rhetoric. Even if Zhang Yang did offer, the other party wouldn't dare to take it. Taking money from unrelated people would only confirm the offense.

"Hehe! I've said what needed to be said! During the match, my phone will just be placed behind us recording! You do your best, don't let my jest affect your results!"

Zhang Yang chuckled, pulled out his phone in front of the neighboring angler, adjusted it at the zipper of his rod bag for a reliable angle, and placed it there.

As for the recording function, Zhang Yang hadn't even activated it.

This clever maneuver completely extinguished the mischief from the neighboring angler. With the phone set up, any disruption would be plain dumb.

After dealing with the angler with mediocre mental strength nearby, Zhang Yang glanced at the time on his wristwatch.

With only two minutes left until the match, Zhang Yang did a final check of his gear and bait, confirmed everything was in place, and awaited the match's official start.

While Zhang Yang managed to intimidate the mischievous guy with a few jokes, the next door angler lacked Zhang Yang's mental fortitude, his heart racing like a thief caught red-handed, his movements becoming uncoordinated.

Continuing the match in such a state, even if his fishing spot was not bad, it would be tough to perform well.

Minutes flew by, and soon the referee's starter pistol went off, Zhang Yang pinched two small moist Triangle Cannons with his dual hook, and began swinging at a furious pace.

Having already familiarized himself with the fish conditions at this spot last round, Zhang Yang knew the fish were dense enough to consistently catch them, although their feeding activity wasn't high. There wasn't going to be a drastic response to aggressive fishing methods.

Under such conditions, achieving the same state of double-tail Flying Kicking as in outpost fishing yesterday was nearly impossible. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

However, as long as the frequency remained stable, there was no shortage of fish.

The fish conditions at this spot seemed like an open-book exam for Zhang Yang, presenting no difficulty whatsoever.

Thanks to Zhang Yang's continuous groundbaiting last round, some of the old fish still lingered at the spot after weighing in, which made Zhang Yang's fishing faster in this second round compared to the first.

After just five casts, the bobber at his spot showed motion, and after ten more, he tried fishing for real.

And within just two seconds of the dual hook reaching the bottom, there were two consecutive small gentle movements.

The pronounced downward dip was already good for today's fishing conditions. Zhang Yang seized the moment, flicked his wrist, and went for it!

The pull from the rod tip was somewhat heavy, and when Zhang Yang finally brought the fish to the surface, he couldn't help but laugh.

Damn, the fish conditions were even more frenzied than the last round. First catch and right away there were two tails.

Quickly detaching hooks and putting them into the fish net, Zhang Yang soon got into fighting mode after casting off again.

Baiting, casting, biting, hooking, reeling, unhooking—Zhang Yang's sequence of actions was smooth as silk. Even the harshest critics couldn't find a single flaw in his technical operations.

One carp after another was hooked by Zhang Yang, adding to his lead. This seamless and smooth fishing felt incredibly satisfying, and any remaining displeasure Zhang Yang felt vanished without a trace as the fishing proceeded smoothly.

...

While Zhang Yang was smoothly collecting fish here, it was a different story for another angler in the team, Wang Yan, who wasn't so lucky.

Just after Wang Yan set down his tackle box, another person nearby locked onto him, approached the angler on Wang Yan's left, and whispered a few words. Soon the two reached some sort of agreement.

Following that, Wang Yan observed the neighboring angler behaving unusually, taking out a whole bag of light bran from his tackle box and remodifying the ground bait he'd already prepared.

Wang Yan was fishing for slow fish with mixed catches in this round, and the conditions weren't great. Fishing a mixed catch wouldn't normally involve floating tactics.

But the neighboring angler did just that, using a lure so white it exploded upon entering the water, something more appropriate for floating fish or bighead carp fishing.

This strategy wasn't about catching fish but blatantly disrupting Wang Yan's performance.