Suijun starts with the principle of rewarding diligence.

As the eastern sun rises, the sky is cloudless for ten thousand miles.

Bu Qu stretched, a surge of joy welling up inside him: 'Finally, a sunny day has arrived. If I'm not mistaken, I should be able to catch the treasure fish this afternoon!'

He busied himself inside for a while, making ten white flour steamed buns.

I ate five for breakfast, and saved the remaining five for lunch.

That way, I won't have to go home for lunch.

After tidying up, he went out to Blackwater Lake.

Arriving at the waters where he had caught the ripple fish last time, he anchored his small boat and then dived into the water to observe the situation.

There were many fish near the aquatic plants, but no ripple fish were seen.

Buqu returned to the small sampan and glanced at the sky; the sun was already high in the sky.

"Could it be that these ripple fish are punctual, only showing up early?" He shook his head, thinking, "Or maybe they just haven't appeared in this area yet. Let's wait and see. If they still haven't appeared by the afternoon, I'll expand the search area."

Bu Qu rested and recuperated on the small sampan.

Today is a crucial day for catching the Treasure Fish; there's no rush to improve your progress.

As the sun rises higher, the lake water becomes clearer as well.

Buqu lay motionless at the bow of the boat, only slightly turning his eyes to observe the movements in the water.

Suddenly, a blue-black crucian carp swung its tail onto the surface of the lake, its mouth opening and closing.

Unbeknownst to them, it swam onto Buqu's face.

It sensed the shadow cast by the obscured sunlight, so it looked up at the water and stared at Buqu in disbelief.

After staring at each other for a few moments, the rippled fish blew a few bubbles and prepared to swim away as if nothing had happened.

Suddenly, the lake water surged up, and the water ripple fish made a passive leap.

Bu Qu grabbed the wooden bucket beside him, caught it, and grinned: "Got it!"

......

Fish market.

Seeing Chen Qing arrive at the fish stall carrying a full bucket of fish, Xu Kezhou congratulated him with a smile: "Qing is really capable. Today is another day of a full catch."

He looked up at the sky: "It's only late afternoon!"

Chen Qing replied with a smile, "I was lucky enough to be back early today because the Dragon King treated me to a meal."

A worker carrying an empty fish basket stepped forward to weigh the fish.

Chen Qing sat down familiarly on a stone bench and asked with a smile, "Manager Xu, has anyone caught a treasure fish these past few days?"

Xu Kezhou glanced at the servants of the Zhong family blocking the entrance to the wharf and laughed, "How easy is it to catch a treasure fish? If anyone can catch a treasure fish, that person is none other than you."

The waiter chimed in, "Brother Qing, you're a 'white streak in the waves,' who can catch the treasure fish before you?"

"That's hard to say. Catching the treasure fish depends on both skill and luck. Maybe someone will be lucky?" Chen Qing said modestly, but he couldn't help but smile.

"As expected, neither I nor anyone else could catch the treasure fish. I'm definitely winning this bet!"

He had already begun to imagine himself swaggering in front of Bu Qu, carrying the precious fish.

As they were talking, the waiter had already weighed the fish and handed Chen Qing a string of coins, which amounted to about one hundred coins.

Chen Qing carefully put away the copper coins, planning to take advantage of the bright sunshine today to invite Wang Xiaoya to stroll through the market and get to know each other better.

The maids of the Zhong family sat at the front of the carriage.

One coachman stood beside the wooden sign that read "Collecting the Treasure Fish," while another coachman approached the maid and said, "Lotus Leaf, we've been waiting here for days, but no one has brought up the treasure fish yet. Is it because we don't have enough money?"

Lotus Leaf scoffed, "How could there not be enough money? Normally, the fish market only pays one tael of silver for a treasure fish. The fishermen, after catching one, happily take it to the fish market to sell, don't they? One tael of silver is equivalent to a month's catch for them!"

He Ye was originally the daughter of a fisherman. When she was eight or nine years old, she was spotted by the Zhong family and became the personal maid of the young lady of the Zhong family. She was given the name He Ye and held a high position in the family.

The acquisition of the treasure fish is now a crucial matter for the Zhong family, so they have entrusted her with the responsibility.

He Ye was born into a fishing family, so handling these matters was a natural fit for her.

Seeing the two grooms looking somewhat impatient yet helpless, Lotus Leaf offered words of comfort:

"Treasure fish are rare to begin with, maybe someone will be able to catch one in a couple of days."

"Sigh, let's wait."

"Anyway, it's all the master's orders, so we'll just do as he says."

Lotus Leaf nodded slightly, but a hint of worry lingered in her heart: "The purchase price alone is certainly high enough. I'm just afraid those fishermen, intimidated by the power of the fish market, won't dare bring their prized fish to me."

She didn't have any good solutions to this.

She was under more pressure than the two grooms.

Every day upon returning home, the butler would inquire about the acquisition of the treasure fish.

It's only been a few days now, and the family says that the precious fish is hard to catch and they're just unlucky.

But if you don't receive the treasure fish, you might be punished.

Lotus Leaf looked up at Blackwater Lake and saw a small sampan slowly rowing by.

She jumped off the train, stood on tiptoe to peek inside, and thought to herself, "It's that fisherman who asked me about the details of buying the treasure fish."

The giant silver carp in Blackwater Lake are not very big, generally weighing around two or three pounds. Even the larger ones only weigh four or five pounds.

If someone catches a treasure fish, they usually bring a bucket to the fish market. This saves them fifty coins in parking fees.

Therefore, if someone rows a boat to the fish market, they most likely don't have any treasure fish.

Disappointment inevitably flashed in He Ye's eyes.

In the past few days, only a few fishermen have come to inquire about the details of buying the treasure fish. Bu Qu was the first one, and he left the deepest impression on me.

Only fishermen who dare to ask will have the chance to bring the precious fish to her for sale.

More expectation, more disappointment.

Lotus Leaf withdrew her gaze and sat back down on the wooden plank at the front of the carriage.

Feeling down.

But then a commotion came from the wooden wharf.

"Why did you come to the fish market with an empty boat? Think you have too much money?"

An empty ship?

Lotus Leaf paused for a moment upon hearing this.

Fishermen live frugally; they can't just throw away fifty coins.

Fishermen will row their empty boats to the fish market; there's only one possibility: they've caught a rare fish!

Thinking of this, He Ye was overjoyed and quickly looked up, only to see Bu Qu already carrying a bucket and walking towards her.

"The treasure fish is a water-patterned fish!"

One person with sharp eyes spotted the blue crucian carp in the bucket and recognized it at a glance.

"A patterned fish? The kind that can cure all diseases?"

"Yes, that's the rippled fish!"

"Five taels of silver!"

On the wooden wharf, pairs of ardent eyes gazed at Bu Qu, their eyes filled with envy.

One fish can be equivalent to half a year's harvest; who wouldn't be envious?

The expressions at the fish stall were even more complex.

Chen Qing looked on incredulously.

He could barely catch a few treasure fish in a year, but in just a few days, Buqu caught one.

Why is he so lucky?

But the current situation cannot be faked.

Without the treasure fish, who would row an empty boat to the fish market, and who would carry a wooden bucket toward the Zhong family?

Taking advantage of the fact that everyone's attention was focused on Bu Qu, Chen Qing quietly got up and blended into the fish stall staff. His tall figure was slightly bent over.

He used to be half a head taller than the average person, but now he is a head shorter.

Xu Kezhou stared intently at Bu Qu, his anger rising.

He dared to bypass me and sell the precious fish directly to the Zhong family.

This is not a matter of a few taels of silver.

Bu Qu's behavior is a slap in the face and a challenge to his authority in the fish market!