Chapter 306: September Crab Season

One was a smartwatch; opening the other gift revealed a rather stylish mechanical watch.

He happened to recognize this watch, mainly because he had considered it when preparing a gift for her. He’d seen this series of matching watches for couples. The pair cost 52,000, and a single one was 26,000.

“Do you like it? Let me put it on for you.” Yi Chen grinned, putting down the other bag in her hand, then picked up the watch and put it on him.

He found it looked quite good on him and was very pleased.

Since they were matching watches, the bag she had put down obviously contained the one for her.

Gu Nan picked up the bag and opened it. Just as he’d thought, this one didn’t have any outer packaging. It seemed that in order to give him his gift, Yi Chen had specially wrapped his.

Inside the bag was not only the matching mechanical watch but also a white smartwatch, a women’s model.

Gu Nan wasn’t surprised. The smartwatch didn’t come in a matching set for couples, but it did have a women’s model, so they could still serve as matching watches.

He thought for a moment, then picked up the smartwatch and put it on Yi Chen. He then swapped his own to the smartwatch and said, “Let’s save the mechanical watches for when we go out or for formal occasions.”

“Let’s wear the smartwatches for everyday use. Whether we’re fishing or in the seafood shop, we could get wet at any time. The smartwatches are waterproof, so it won’t be a problem.”

“Mhm, I also think this one is better for daily wear.” Yi Chen nodded, delightedly bringing her wrist close to his, letting their watches touch. Then, she took out her phone, took a picture with a CLICK, and posted it to her Moments, showing them off as a couple.

Gu Nan shook his head, amused. At her urging, he also posted it to his Moments.

“By the way, Chenchen, you must have spent all the money you just earned on these gifts! Why don’t you open a bank account? You can hold onto the shop’s profits from now on.”

“You’re the one keeping track of daily expenses anyway. It’s a hassle to keep reimbursing you.”

Yi Chen shook her head. “If you give me the profits, what about your own spending money?”

“There’s something I haven’t told you. Haven’t you ever wondered how I get so much top-quality seafood so easily?” Gu Nan thought for a moment and decided to tell her about his other source of income.

Besides the money from selling fish on the books, Gu Nan had another source: his “cost funds.”

Imported fish would definitely need documentation from foreign fishing companies to clear customs. The game had designated Gu Nan as a minor shareholder in these companies, converting that money into dividends.

After the initial phase, as Gu Nan sold more fish and his daily income grew, this money was recorded within the game and paid out once a month.

According to the game’s arrangements, if his profits increased further, the payouts would become quarterly, or even yearly.

This money was all deposited into a separate bank account that the game had set up for him, distinct from his personal one.

This was also the reason why Gu Nan had a large sum of money on the side that had never been flagged.

So, Gu Nan used this to spin a white lie, telling her that he had another source of income.

Yi Chen was stunned. She thought she’d found herself a boyfriend who ran a seafood shop, but in the blink of an eye, he’d turned into a minor shareholder?

Of course, Gu Nan only mentioned that he had shares in a company in Southeast Asia. He didn’t say anything about Australia or other places that might come up in the future. As long as he had a plausible source for the money, that was enough.

Yi Chen had initially refused to manage the money because she wanted to buy him a gift with money she had earned herself.

Although the money for this gift had ultimately come from Gu Nan’s earnings, her mindset had changed after they became intimate on the boat.

So she nodded and agreed to his suggestion to open a bank account.

From now on, she would hold onto the income from the new shop. The income from the old shop was temporarily handled by Zhao Suying, who was responsible for the rent of the old shop and their residence, as well as the shop’s daily expenses and stock purchases.

So, the money Gu Nan could use from now on was the “cost price” of the imported seafood and the revenue from any seafood he sold directly himself.

He had just made a loan payment on the new boat and currently had a little over 300,000 left, which was more than enough for his expenses.

The lingerie and stockings he bought during the massage earlier might seem like a lot, but they were all disposable items. The total cost was only a little over 500. With 300,000, he could buy an unimaginable amount.

Gu Nan wasn’t an idiot. He wouldn’t just casually buy the underwear Yi Chen would wear regularly online.

He checked the time. It had passed so quickly; it was almost eleven o’clock. Gu Nan had no choice but to take his girlfriend home.

“MEOW~”

As soon as she got home and opened the door, Gulu meowed upon seeing them.

Previously, when he went out to sea with Wang Junhe and Guo Xiao, Gulu had been sent to his grandma’s place to be fed and to keep the old woman company.

His grandma ended up taking care of it as if it were her own grandchild. When Gu Nan came back, he had originally planned to take Gulu home, but he noticed the reluctance in his grandma’s eyes and decided to let her keep the cat. Besides, there was still the big orange cat at the old shop.

But now his parents had taken over the big orange cat as well. Without realizing it, Gu Nan had lost two cats he’d gotten for free.

“Looks like Grandma’s taking great care of Gulu. It’s gotten fat!” Gu Nan chuckled, petting Gulu a couple of times.

“Anything Grandma raises is bound to get fat,” Yi Chen giggled, giving the cat a few pets as well. “You should hurry back and get some rest. It’s late.”

Gu Nan nodded, gave her an affectionate hug, and then went home.

The new shop had just opened, so he didn’t go out to sea for three consecutive days, instead staying put at the shop.

For one, his game space inventory was still sufficient. For another, Yi Chen needed to get used to the new shop’s operations, and Gu Nan needed to help her.

After all, she was only a twenty-year-old girl. The new shop’s business wasn’t dealing with casual customers, but with purchasing managers or owners from many restaurants.

There weren’t many walk-in customers, and their purchase volume was less than that of some of the regulars at the old shop.

But this area had many wealthy people. Over time, the accumulated regular customers alone would be enough to make Gu Nan a fortune.

Once he felt that Yi Chen had adapted to the new shop’s operations, he prepared to go out to sea.

After the fishing ban was lifted, the variety of seafood in the market increased at a visible rate.

This caused the prices of many types of seafood to drop significantly, including imported ones.

The old shop’s business was affected somewhat. Gu Dacheng decided to time his trips to the pier each day to buy some local fish to sell in the shop, operating on a model of small profits and quick turnover.

It was now September 8th. Gu Nan planned to be more diligent, not only to replenish the stock for his aquarium and chilled seafood sections but also to catch more local fish to sell at the old shop.

Many of the fish tanks in the old shop were now empty, and since the new shop had a cold storage unit, he wasn’t worried about having too much stock and nowhere to put it.

He arrived at the pier and moved the Antarctic shrimp, live shrimp bait, and several barrels of mineral water onto the boat, along with bottom traps, crab pots, and shrimp traps.

However, he only brought four crab pots as they took up too much space. The other six were left at the new shop.

He also filled the water barrels on the boat and then took it out to the fueling station to fill up the tank.

Since Gu Nan had planned to go out to sea today, he had taken some time in the afternoon to clean the boat. As a result, the fishing boat wasn’t dirty despite not being used for a week or so.

After fueling up, he set off.

Gu Nan glanced at the time. It was only 7:30 PM.

The new shop didn’t sell local fish, so it didn’t open until 8:00 AM.

It couldn’t open any later, though. Restaurants and eateries opened for lunch and needed to purchase their ingredients for the day in the morning.

If business was good, they might come by in the afternoon as well.

Occasionally, customers would ask for delivery. Gu Dacheng was in charge of that, using a small three-wheeler for short distances and a pickup truck for longer ones.

That’s why Gu Nan had driven the small three-wheeler to the pier tonight. If he caught too much, he would ask his dad to come over with the pickup truck.

The fishing boat sped across the boundless sea. From time to time, he could see small flocks of seabirds dancing over the water’s surface, hunting for small fish and shrimp.

This wasn’t the typical working time for inshore fishing boats. On his way out, Gu Nan saw almost no other fishing vessels.

He did, however, see many buoys on the surface of the sea. Beneath them were gill nets, waiting for fish to swim into them.

The fishing spots for professional anglers were not in the same places as those used by net fishermen.

Fishing spots were usually in areas with a lot of coral or reefs. Setting nets in these places was a guaranteed way to get them snagged on the bottom, which is why anglers and net fishermen could coexist peacefully.

Gu Nan’s destination this time was Sanlian Reef. As a rule, the farther from the coast, the fewer the fishing boats.

Besides, some spots here had sandy bottoms, which were perfect for him to set his bottom traps.

September was crab season. Everyone wanted a piece of the swimming crab action, and since Gu Nan had the pots, why not use them?

Although it was also the season for oysters, abalone, scallops, and sea prawns, they were mostly farmed, so Gu Nan didn’t bother with them.

When he arrived at his destination, there were already quite a few fishing boats there. A quick glance revealed over fifty lights glowing on the sea’s surface—a sight you’d never see during the fishing ban.

He found a spot he had previously discovered that was very suitable for dropping his traps. It was about two hundred meters away from Sanlian Reef.

It wasn’t a prime fishing spot, so no other boats were occupying it.

Gu Nan cast his traps one by one, leaving a distance of over ten meters between each.

Although there were many boats nearby, he didn’t plan on sleeping tonight and figured he’d head back around 5:00 AM, so he wasn’t worried about his traps being stolen.

He wouldn’t be fishing for the game map’s fish tonight. He would find a deserted stretch of sea tomorrow night when he went out again.

Gu Nan circled the area near his traps, used his fish finder to locate the spot with the most resources, and saw a school of fish appearing in the middle to upper water column. He quickly took out the Antarctic shrimp and started chumming.

Then, he took out a fishing rod, attached a luminous float and a hook, and grabbed a bucket. After scooping a handful of live shrimp from the live bait well, he started fishing.

Chumming in a spot dense with fish, the school gathered incredibly fast!

Gu Nan baited his hook with a live shrimp and cast it into the water. He thought he would have to wait a while, but a fish took the bait in less than half a minute.

The next moment, the rod tip was instantly bent double. Gu Nan quickly jerked the rod to set the hook and immediately started reeling in the line.

The fish wasn’t very big, but it struggled fiercely, making the rod tip twitch rapidly.

However, the golden fishing rod drained stamina too quickly. A small fish didn’t have much stamina to begin with, and it was completely depleted in a matter of seconds—more efficient than a juicer.

From the bite to the fish breaking the surface took less than half a minute. Gu Nan lifted the rod, grabbed the line, and hoisted the small, pink sea bream onto the deck.

He thought it was a red sea bream, but a closer look revealed it was a red porgy.

The red porgy looked very similar to a red sea bream, but it was easy to identify: the red porgy has two particularly long spines on its dorsal fin.

Gu Nan’s palm-sized red porgy weighed about a pound, and the first two spines on its dorsal fin were about five centimeters long.

But a red sea bream’s dorsal fin is normal, similar to that of a black porgy or a Yellowfin Gidai—a neat, even row.