10: Chapter 10 First Experience of Taiwan Fishing 10: Chapter 10 First Experience of Taiwan Fishing Ding!
Congratulations, you’ve earned a reward: “System pays the bill”.
“System pays the bill”: To do a good job, one must first sharpen one’s tools.
A qualified fishing gear shop worker must also be an excellent fisherman.
As a beginner’s benefit, I’ll cover your expenses!
Suddenly, Yue Feng had a stack of paper money in his hand!
He counted it with a surprised look on his face, and the amount was exactly the same as the total cost price of the products!
This left Yue Feng both surprised and regretful.
Had he known about such a reward, he would have chosen better equipment earlier.
Unfortunately, the task was completed, and there was no pill for regret.
Yue Feng shook his head and began to arrange the new set of equipment he had just acquired.
Getting a new set of equipment without spending a dime definitely made him excited.
Yue Feng examined this and fiddled with that, cherishing it for a long time before finally setting it down.
Now that the system was paying, there was no psychological pressure to use it.
He packed the rod bag and placed the fishing box, tidying everything up neatly before storing it in the back storage room.
Looking at his brand-new fishing gear, Yue Feng secretly decided that he must go out fishing tomorrow if the shop wasn’t busy, to try out his new equipment!
The next day, at exactly 5:30 a.m., Yue Feng got up on time to open the shop.
He had just managed to clean up the shop when customers began arriving.
There were more customers coming in to shop today than Yue Feng had anticipated.
From the first customer at just before six in the morning, people kept coming in continuously until after eight, sending away five or six waves of people, totaling more than a dozen altogether.
When the flow of incoming customers stopped, Yue Feng quickly calculated that he had sold almost 30 packs of carp bait that morning alone, bringing in over 700 in sales!
It was clear that the effects of the promotions and going out fishing were starting to show.
Most of the sales came from the special Rice Wine, of which there was a substantial stock still in the store, four to five boxes, so there was no worry about running out soon.
All that was needed was some effort to mix the Rice Wine with Wild Fishing Companion and then package it for sale.
Rice Wine was not a worry, but other items like earthworms had already sold out and needed restocking.
Earthworms might not look impressive, retailing at only 1.5 per box, but the profit margin was quite good.
The cost price was 0.6, so a box sold earned more than a box’s price, and everyone from old men to young people typically kept them when going out to fish.
Yue Feng quickly took an inventory of the items low in stock, and then dialed the supplier’s number listed on the stock list.
Yue Feng stocked up from a fishing gear wholesale market located in the city center.
The stock list had the names of the goods and their prices, so Yue Feng didn’t need to make the trip himself.
A simple phone call to record the quantities and types of goods he needed was enough, and the next morning, a delivery truck would pass by and deliver the goods right to his door, with the delivery driver collecting the payment.
After sorting out the restocking, Yue Feng paid another visit to the print shop to pick up the self-adhesive labels he had ordered.
The labels printed “Yue Feng’s Fishing Gear Special Supply”, with the product names and uses manually written in parentheses at the bottom, followed by a mobile number.
Having the branded self-adhesive labels made his self-packed baits look a lot more appealing!
After eating lunch in the shop, Yue Feng couldn’t sit still any longer.
Since there was no business doing that time of day and he had just acquired a whole set of Taiwan Fishing gear the night before, he hadn’t yet had the chance to test the waters with it!
This time going fishing, Yue Feng looked considerably more professional.
With the fishing box tied to the back seat of the motorcycle, the rod bag strapped to his back, and the fish protection placed in the bucket hanging on the handlebar, he looked quite like a seasoned fisherman.
After two days of fishing, Yue Feng had already gained a rough understanding of the fish situation downstream of Qinglong Lake.
The midday period overall was the worst time of day, with most anglers in a fishless window, and many experienced fishermen gathered together in small groups, bringing out liquor and dishes to share a drink.
There were also those who had risen early, taking this time to rest briefly either in their cars or in a sheltered, warm place, waiting to fish again once the afternoon bite began.
Yue Feng was aiming for this effect of everyone not catching fish,
Under the watchful eyes of many, he rode his scooter to the riverbank, then unloaded his gear and began methodically baiting the spot.
With a full set of fishing equipment, Yue Feng no longer planned to engage in traditional fishing.
His twelve-foot rod, or three-point-six meters, was just right for fishing a bit beyond the riverbank’s aquatic plants, suitable for this season.
After setting up his gear, he started baiting.
Today, Yue Feng didn’t use earthworms but decided to try out a commercially prepared bait mix.
Having prepared the bait, Yue Feng then took out a new set of ready-made lines.
The line setup for Taiwan Fishing differed somewhat from traditional fishing, with the main line as long as the fishing rod, and the float used was a vertical float.
Yue Feng’s line setup now included a 1.0 main line, a 0.6 leader, and size three Red Sleeve Hooks.
To save trouble, Yue Feng didn’t tie his hooks to the main line himself; he used ready-made line sets sold in stores.
As for the float, it was a Peacock Feather float he had won in a lucky draw.
This season, a 1.2g lead weight was just right for crucian carp fishing.
After adjusting the float for the lead weight and finding his fishing spots, setting four and fishing two, Yue Feng finally started to pull out his retired fiberglass rod and attach the baiting device to cast the bait.
With all the preparations done, Yue Feng could finally breathe a sigh of relief.
Now, he just needed to cast every so often and wait for a fish to bite.
To give an objective and fair assessment, under regular wild fishing conditions, Taiwan Fishing, as a method, was somewhat superior to traditional fishing.
Taiwan Fishing is not about fishing on a platform but is a shorthand for the method known as “sliding sinker fishing,” which started in Taiwan by fishing experts in the eighties and, upon being introduced to the Mainland, quickly became widespread across the nation.
Compared to the traditional Seven-star float and Sky Hook method, the advantages of Taiwan Fishing were very clear.
The existence of vertical floats and sliding sinkers allowed for extremely precise balance adjustments of the entire line setup, greatly enhancing sensitivity.
Beyond that, Taiwan Fishing used a double-hooked line—one long hook leader and one short.
The classic method of setting four and fishing two became very popular back then and has had a lasting impact even decades later.
About five minutes after Yue Feng had baited the area, he saw the first sign of a fish.
The Peacock Feather Float smoothly flipped, descending slowly, suddenly giving a very strong and exaggerated dip.
With a clack, the float plunged nearly two units downwards.
This type of biting action was much clearer and more abrupt than with a Seven-star float.
Yue Feng thought it was a small crucian carp disturbing the bait and didn’t take it seriously, letting the float continue downward.
But even though he was targeting three units, the float stabilized around five units and didn’t sink further.
After a few more seconds, Yue Feng didn’t lift the rod, and the float simply rose to the top.
In the sliding sinker fishing method, a strong dip followed by the float rising is often a sign of a crucian carp eating the bait and then lifting its head.
In professional fishing terms, this type of float behavior is generally called a “dead bite,” with a very high hooking rate.
Moved by the thought, Yue Feng lifted the rod to set the hook, and he struck true!