Chapter 978: Building Nerve
The original plan was to pause halfway through the second session to start releasing fish, but after a temporary discussion just now, it was decided that starting from the next round, they will continue releasing high-activity competition fish—three hundred pounds in the second round and another two hundred pounds in the third round!
The released fish include smooth-mouthed, raw-mouthed, and semi-raw-mouthed fish; their sizes are quite uniform, but their sources are complex. I hope everyone performs well in the next two matches!
That concludes my speech. Now, staff, please take your positions and prepare to release fish for the second round!"
Cong Jie is really Cong Jie; even though he is now rarely active in the frontline competitive fishing circle, he still maintains his own style and attitude in doing things.
After his speech, no one complained about unfair fish conditions; even those who loudly criticized earlier had been silenced by his words.
…
"Is this your idol, Brother Feng?" Wang Xiaomin glanced at Teacher Cong, then turned to look at Yue Feng!
It's no secret within the team that Cong Jie is Yue Feng's idol, but Wang Xiaomin and the other two, who have been engaged in fishing for a short time, do not know this legendary figure in the fishing world.
Yue Feng nodded with a smile: "Yep! Teacher Cong is my idol! What do you think? Just from his speech earlier, isn't this old man quite the character?"
"Old man? He looks only about forty or fifty; isn't calling him that a bit excessive?" Wang Zhen couldn't help but pick at Yue Feng's words.
"Forty or fifty? He was born in '61, Teacher Cong is sixty already!" Zhao Zheng interjected suddenly.
"Whoa, sixty and still so energetic? What great physical fitness! Cluck-a-cluck indeed!"
Yue Feng nodded with a smile: "Time doesn't favor anyone; good physical fitness comes from extreme self-discipline! Now you understand why I like to remind you to get up early for morning exercise? With the current state of the old man, once the competition heats up, facing off against him, who knows if you could keep up!"
"Uh, that makes sense, I have no words to counter!"
Yue Feng waved his hand: "Alright, enough joking around! The fish are being taken out of the containers. Focus up, and check their size, appearance, and species!"
Soon, staff carried the fish basket to the edge of the pit, spread plastic cloth along the rim, and poured the fish from the basket into the pit.
With a simple observation, Yue Feng noticed that the released fish were all uniformly carp, with very consistent size, mostly around one and a half ounces, with the largest not exceeding two ounces.
Although the sizes were similar, the appearances of the fish showed significant differences.
Some had slender bodies resembling wild carp, others were silver-white and slightly short and thick, and some had yellowish scales with body types between the two! A quick glance revealed at least three different species.
A full two large baskets of fish were put into the water, completing the release of three hundred pounds of fish.
Yue Feng pursed his lips: "From now on, it's about everyone's skills; the fish species are diverse and the habits varied, so there's no unified tactical fishing approach!
Let me emphasize two points for everyone to note.
First, pay attention to the success rate of catching the bite; raw-mouthed fish will definitely be the first to open their mouths, so the first to two rounds focus mainly on grabbing the raw-mouthed fish while also making a nest to grow the fish group in the spot!
Second, emphasize the state of the bait, and constantly gauge the situation of the fish in the spot under different conditions!
At the slightest sign of change, adapt promptly; otherwise, you might be fishing well until suddenly a certain type of fish runs out, and other fish ignore the bait and method suddenly without a bite!
Did everyone understand?"
"Understood!"
"Understood!"
Everyone nodded, agreeing with Yue Feng's two summarized points.
Yue Feng turned to Niu Ben: "Uncle Niu, should we change the lineup slightly for the second round? Let Wang Zhen and Xue Kai go ahead, and we'll follow a bit more steadily!"
Niu Ben nodded: "I think so too; let the young anglers go up first, when there are more fish to grab, things may change later, and you few can handle it more skillfully!"
"Then Xue Kai will start, Wang Zhen second, I'll go third, Zhao Ran fourth, and Zhao Zheng will close! Any objections?"
"Huh? I'm starting?" Xue Kai heard the lineup and scratched his head in uncertainty.
"Huh, my butt! Follow orders and listen to commands!"
"Okay, what if I don't analyze it clearly and mess it up?"
"Then watch how the angler next to you fishes, imitate them! A session is only 15 minutes; how bad could it be?"
"Alright!"
…
Having agreed on the order of appearance, it's soon time for the second round draw again.
With a gesture from Yue Feng, Xue Kai consciously walked leisurely onto the stage to draw lots.
After a short while, the draw concluded and the results came out!
In the second round, the opponent is Hua Clan! Yuefeng Fishing Tackle's position hasn't changed from the last round—still the second fishing slot—Hua Clan is in the first, and Zhongsheng Team is in the third with Tianyuan in the fourth.
After Xue Kai reported the drawing result, Yue Feng waved everyone together: "Since it's still the same fishing spot, let's use the underwater topography as much as possible! I guess the small terrain structure of the fishing spot should be effective, so pay attention when you get on the field!
Additionally, Xue Kai, are you preparing new bait or using the leftovers from last round?"
Xue Kai looked at the leftover bait from the captain's previous round, it's only been a little over an hour, and the state is still good.
"I'll use it for now; it seems pretty good, except for the last small ball of adjustments, the rest hasn't collapsed in water yet!"
"Alright then, use it for now, and adjust immediately if there's a problem! It's about honor, let's not hold back the brother team! Show all your skills! When in the game, stay calm, don't panic!"
"Okay!" Xue Kai nodded and strode onto the stage in front.
Beside them, at position one, Han Luofeng saw Xue Kai going on stage first and was momentarily bewildered.
Yue Feng has some nerve! With such a complex fish condition, he let a young trainee start first?
"Hey, Xue Kai, what was your captain thinking, letting you start first? Not afraid of messing up and losing to us?" Unable to resist, Han Luofeng asked.
Xue Kai shook his head: "I'm the weakest in comprehensive skills on our team, especially lacking in mental qualities, so they put me first to train my courage! What about you, Captain Han? Aren't you going to compete for fish when you start? Why have you come out first?"
"You're kidding about competing for fish, and kidding about training courage!" Han Luofeng felt a bit off after hearing Xue Kai's words!
With the competition at such a critical juncture, every match affects the final total points ranking, and they're thinking of training courage at this point?
What's more, with such a complicated fish condition, it's more demanding on the angler's comprehensive skills; it's fine for raw-mouthed fish, but how can you be certain there will be competitive fish conditions for smooth-mouthed fish?
If the fish condition isn't clearly analyzed, and the opponent gains an initial advantage and snowballs from there, it would be tough to catch up later.
"Aren't you afraid of falling behind in the first session and not being able to catch up later?" Han Luofeng still wouldn't give up and kept asking.
The next moment, Han Luofeng received a response that left him speechless.
Xue Kai replied: "Our team captain said, if I analyze the first session well, I'll fish accordingly; if not, I'll imitate what you do, keeping up with your rhythm!"
Han Luofeng: "What the heck!!!!"