“This was then, this is now.” Charles Warren frowned in thought and said, “For the family to develop, we can’t do without qianjin. To get more qianjin, we must expand the profitability of our family’s assets.”

“Isn’t that right? If we don’t expand the fleet, how can we increase profits?” David Warren looked at Charles Warren eagerly.

But Charles Warren just smiled mysteriously. “Sixth Uncle, you’re an expert in fishing. I have a few ideas I’d like to discuss with you. Have you ever thought about a fishing method called trawling? It’s a way for two boats to work together in fishing.”

Then, Charles Warren pulled David Warren down to squat, and started sketching on the deck.

Trawling was a very common fishing method on Earth for Charles Warren. It’s a professional fishing technique, and its efficiency is far beyond that of casting nets, which is more of a recreational tool.

If not for the excellent natural ecology of the Anjiang, with David Warren’s extremely unprofessional fishing methods, he’d have lost his shirt by now.

Of course, trawling is so powerful that it causes great harm to the natural environment, and Charles Warren is quite resistant to it. But the family is facing a situation where, if they don’t develop, they’ll be wiped out.

At worst, once the family grows strong, they can abandon this kind of natural fishing method.

“Shouzhe, your idea is quite ingenious.” David Warren, being a professional, quickly understood the principle, but he frowned and said, “But such a huge net would be extremely difficult to make, and our fishing boats probably can’t pull it, right?”

Can’t pull it!

Alright, Charles Warren immediately realized where the problem was. Sailing ships are not like diesel-powered mechanical boats; they don’t have the strength to drag such a giant net.

“Then let’s start with a smaller one, as long as it can be pulled.” Charles Warren said, “Let’s make a small trawl net, three or four zhang wide and six or seven zhang long, shaped like a cone, like a big bag, with inward-facing barbs inside to prevent the catch from escaping…”

“That’s worth a try.” David Warren’s eyes lit up. “I’ll go back and gather twenty net weavers to make it together. It should be finished in two months.”

Twenty people, two months…

Charles Warren felt rather helpless about this. The productivity of this Xuanwu world really is low. But it’s precisely because of this that the natural resources here are so well protected.

Unlike the world Charles Warren came from, where the nearby seas have almost been plowed flat by trawling, forcing the government to introduce all kinds of fishing bans. The power of trawling is no joke.

“Don’t rush, Sixth Uncle. Take a look at this fishing tool. It’s not as good as trawling, but it’s simple to operate. If we get it right, even ordinary people can use it.”

Then, Charles Warren drew another fishing tool for David Warren, called the ban zheng. This fishing method is somewhat similar to casting nets, but while casting nets cover the catch from above, the ban zheng scoops up the catch from below.

The ban zheng is overall much more complex than casting nets, but once the supports and levers are set up, it’s actually easier and less labor-intensive than casting nets. Its advantage is that, once it’s ready, any ordinary laborer, even minors, can operate it.

In addition, the ban zheng has an even more powerful evolved form: the river-blocking gang net. If they could make that, its killing power would be at least as strong as a small trawl net.

“Shouzhe, you, you, you—where did you get these wild ideas?” David Warren was so excited he was trembling. “If we can pull all this off, we’ll be rich.”

“Just something I came across in an old miscellaneous book when I had nothing to do,” Charles Warren said again. “Sixth Uncle, let me tell you about the ground cage and the maze array…”

These two are also extremely powerful fishing tools, so much so that they’ve been listed as prohibited fishing gear by the state. Their power is evident, and both are passive fixed fishing gear.

Once installed and deployed, you just need to check them at set times and places, kind of like going AFK in a game… Don’t worry about anything, just harvest at regular intervals.

David Warren was about to go crazy. As a Xuanwu “professional fisherman,” Charles Warren seemed to have opened up a whole new world for him.

……

Chapter 7: Catching the Red-scaled Eel

……

“Sixth Uncle, all of this is the family’s secret to rising up. Everything must be kept confidential.” Charles Warren temporarily gave up on explaining lure fishing to him, and said solemnly.

“I understand. I’ll be extra careful with all of this, but when the time comes, please have the family assign me two guards.” David Warren was so excited he was shaking all over. “Also, about that ban zheng, I have some ideas. We can quickly modify a ban zheng from a casting net and try it out first. If it works…”

His eyes were shining, and he couldn’t wait to experiment.

From Dingpu Ferry to the Rocky Shoals, it was all Wang family territory. Ordinary people wouldn’t, and didn’t dare, approach the riverbank. After all, the riverbank was undeveloped, only roughly cleared, and full of all sorts of unintentional dangers.

Moreover, this stretch of river was winding and secluded, with countless hidden spots. Inspired by Charles Warren, the fishing-savvy David Warren had already come up with several plans and ideas.

Once Charles Warren agreed, David Warren steered the boat straight to a hidden little dock along this stretch of river. Each of these small docks was a secret base, usable for many purposes. Even a crafty rabbit has three burrows—how much more so the Wang family’s fishing fleet.