Suijun starts with the principle of rewarding diligence.

Before long, ripples spread across the lake.

As Wang Erlang looked anxious, Bu Qu suddenly poked his head out.

He shook his head, wiped the water off his face, and revealed a bright smile.

Seeing this, Wang Erlang smiled ingratiatingly, finally easing his anxiety. He reached out his hand to the sampan: "It's good that everyone is alright. Don't be so reckless next time."

Bu Qu chuckled and lifted the fishing net to the water's surface: "Uncle Wang, look, what's this?"

Wang Erlang looked closely and saw a blue-black crucian carp swimming around in the fishing net. What else could it be but a water ripple fish?

How...how is this possible?

He'd watched this child grow up. How could he not know how capable Ah Qu was?

Wang Erlang couldn't believe his eyes, but the live, patterned fish couldn't be faked.

He actually caught the ripple fish from the bottom of the water!

"Ah Qu, when...when did you learn to dive?"

There's no way to answer this question directly. Even if you told the truth, Wang Erlang might not believe you.

Bu Qu casually made up a story: "You'll get it if you keep diving."

He was self-taught!

With such talent, this child is destined for greatness!

Wang Erlang chuckled sheepishly, "If your father knew you had such abilities, he would probably be smiling in his grave."

Bu Qu smiled and casually changed the subject: "Uncle Wang, we found this rippled fish together, so it's a win-win situation. Go to the fish market and sell it later, keep the money for now. If I ever need money in the future, I'll ask you for it."

He had no choice but to entrust the matter to Wang Erlang. With a scoundrel in the family, worse than a gangster, it was impossible to save any money.

Wang Erlang's expression faltered slightly, then he shook his head: "How can that be? You saw the rippled fish first, and you caught it yourself. How can you expect to get a share? It's worth a tael of silver, no small amount of money."

Seeing Buqu hesitate, Wang Erlang added, "If you're worried that your godfather will confiscate it when you go back, you might as well eat it. Eating this water-patterned fish should help heal your injuries quickly."

"Eat it here?" Bu Qu was taken aback. "Uncle Wang, do you mean I should eat it raw?"

Wang Erlang nodded: "The treasure fish are all eaten raw. That's how the gentlemen in the city eat them. It's said that the doctors in the city have also done tests, and the effects of eating them raw are far stronger than those of cooking them."

Buqu turned his head to look at the rippled fish in the net.

It had been struggling in the net for a long time, but now it had given up. Its mouth opened and closed in the water, as if it were panting.

"I did have things like sashimi in my past life. But when it comes to fish and meat, I only eat them cooked. Even steak has to be very well-done. I just don't feel safe eating raw food..."

Buqu stared blankly at the rippled fish, his heart filled with resentment.

Wang Erlang chuckled and said, "You silly boy, you dive into the water without a second thought. But you hesitate to eat a precious fish. Precious fish are no ordinary fish; they're incredibly delicious. If they weren't so rare, those gentlemen would love to have them at every meal!"

"It tastes delicious, but I can't tell."

Bu Qu's lips twitched, and he asked, "Uncle Wang, have you eaten there?"

Wang Erlang shook his head: "How could I bear to eat such expensive fish?"

"Why don't you try it first?"

"I'm not sick. I ate it just to satisfy my appetite. What's the difference between that and wasting a precious resource?"

Wang Erlang's words didn't seem wrong, but they sounded very strange.

Bu Qu's lips twitched again, thinking to himself, "So it means I'm sick...and it really is! I just went swimming, and I feel a little dizzy; my cold seems to be getting worse."

He climbed onto the sampan and hauled the fishing net up.

The rippled fish jumped twice on the sampan and then remained still. Just as Wang Erlang had said, it would die as soon as it left the water.

Bu Qu took the rippled fish out of the fishing net, held it in his hands, and looked it over: "Can this thing really be eaten raw?"

Wang Erlang chuckled and urged, "Eat it while it's fresh. The effects will diminish if it's left too long."

Bu Qu raised his hand, put the rippled fish to his mouth and licked it. It really didn't have much of a fishy smell, which was quite different from ordinary fish.

Aside from the different taste, the texture is also fantastic. The fish scales are very smooth and have a bouncy, springy feel when squeezed.

He took a careful bite, and the chewy fish skin cracked open, revealing fish meat that was cool, soft, and glutinous like pudding, with a subtle sweetness.

The most amazing thing is that it has no fish bones!

"If that's the texture, eating it raw doesn't seem so unacceptable."

Buqu devoured the rippled fish, leaving nothing behind.

Before long, a warm current surged from my abdomen and spread throughout my body.

He reached up and touched his forehead, finding the fever had subsided. Looking down at his body, he saw the bruises fading at a visible rate.

In the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, her body had recovered, her skin was smooth and radiant, and there was no trace of the beating she had received just a few days ago.

Bu Qu clicked his tongue in amazement: 'No wonder this water-patterned fish can sell for a tael of silver. With its medicinal properties, even three or five taels wouldn't be expensive. The market price is probably only a tael; unscrupulous fishmongers must have undervalued it.'

Fish market vendors are middlemen or middlemen in the fish market.

The fish they buy from fishermen can then be sold through large households, restaurants, brothels, and other channels.

The harder the fishermen work, the more money they earn from their fish farms!

Some fishermen have considered bypassing fish stalls and directly connecting with restaurants or similar establishments.

In situations like these, the fish farm's "fish tyrant" (a type of fish) can come in handy.

If a fisherman dares to sell privately even once, the fishing bullies will keep targeting him and robbing him from then on.

Before long, life will become unbearable.

Buqu's adoptive father, Li Xian, was involved in the activities of a fishing tyrant.

Seeing the changes in Bu Qu, Wang Erlang couldn't help but marvel: "I had only heard of the miraculous nature of the Water Pattern Fish before. Seeing it today, it surpasses even the rumors. A treasure fish is a treasure fish; its value is well-deserved."

Bu Qu nodded in agreement, adding, "Not only that, it's also incredibly delicious. If we have the chance to catch another one, we'll definitely let Uncle Wang try it!"

Upon hearing this, Wang Erlang laughed and scolded, "Do you think the rippled fish are some small fish and shrimp in a rotten ditch that you can catch whenever you want?"

Bu Qu remained silent, his gaze drifting towards the lake.

Seeing this, Wang Erlang felt a little guilty: "Could he have caught another rippled fish?"

Looking out over the lake, all I could see was shimmering water; there were no fish to be seen.

"A-Qu, what are you looking at?"

"I just dived to the bottom of the lake, and there are a lot of fish near the seaweed."

"Are they all rippled fish?"

"No, it's just some ordinary crucian carp and tilapia."

Wang Erlang's face twitched. If the bottom of the water were full of ripple fish, wouldn't he be rolling in money?

Now that he has fully recovered, Buqu has no reason to remain idle.

"Uncle Wang, you wait on the boat, I'll go into the water and scoop up a net."

"Let's take a break."

Wang Erlang reached out to stop him, but Buqu had already grabbed the fishing net and jumped into Blackwater Lake.

"I was overthinking it. Aqu has grown up and knows what he's doing," he muttered to himself.

The original plan was to catch the treasure fish in the lake. Now, the treasure fish has been eaten by Bu Qu, and he has taken the fishing net to the bottom of the lake.

Wang Erlang had no choice but to lie on the sampan and sunbathe.

He squinted, somewhat puzzled: How did life suddenly become so leisurely?