I'm a Druid at a farmhouse.

Chapter 23 This is the real skill

The mournful wail of the fishing boats echoed through the silent valley, so sharp it seemed to tear a hole in the night sky.

On Zhao Qian's usually composed face, veins were now bulging. He was hunched over, his arm muscles taut like stone, gripping the top-of-the-line fishing rod that had been stretched into a terrifying full moon shape.

"Buzzing—"

The sound of the line breaking showed no sign of stopping, and the fishing reel was scorching hot, as if it would spark at any moment.

"Old Zhao! Hold on! Hold on!"

Deng Shen arrived at some point, and upon seeing this scene, he jumped up and down anxiously, shouting encouragement.

Song You stood to the side, his expression calm.

He closed his eyes, and a thought sank to the bottom of the water.

Fragments of the fish's consciousness surged in chaotically, filled with fear and awe of the enormous creature.

A giant creature, far larger than the previous large bluefish, was dragging a fishing line and frantically sprinting underwater.

"The collective consciousness of this school of fish is really unreliable," Song You muttered to himself.

They can understand his commands and perform simple actions, such as sacrifices.

However, once it encounters individual businesses that exceed the regulations, it completely loses its binding force.

My Druid rank is still too low.

This big guy was probably lured out by the high-quality bait Zhao Qian provided; he was simply greedy and took the bait.

"Boss Song! Catch the net!" Zhao Qian gritted his teeth and squeezed out the words.

He felt like his arm was about to break; the force of that thing underwater was simply unreasonable.

He even suspected that he had caught a water buffalo instead of a fish.

"Don't rush, let's walk it a little longer, it hasn't run out of energy yet." Song You's voice wasn't loud, but it clearly reached Zhao Qian's ears, carrying a reassuring strength.

Zhao Qian took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down.

That's right, the other party is really an expert, let's listen to him.

Another ten minutes of back-and-forth struggle ensued.

Zhao Qian felt like all his strength had been drained away. Sweat dripped down his face, and his expensive professional fishing suit was soaked through and clung tightly to his body.

The giant creature underwater finally showed signs of exhaustion, and its struggles weakened considerably.

"Now!" Song You shouted.

He picked up the net, which was bigger than a bucket, with one hand, took a step, and walked steadily to the water's edge.

Seeing this, Zhao Qian used his last bit of strength to pull back sharply, raising the fishing rod high into the air.

"Splash—"

A huge black shadow was forcibly dragged out of the water, creating a huge splash under the moonlight.

It was a large, jet-black mandarin fish, long and slender, exuding explosive power. The part of it that was above the water was thicker than Zhao Qian's thigh.

"Good heavens!" Deng Shen gasped in astonishment.

Song You's eyes narrowed, and the muscles in his arms bulged slightly.

Instead of immediately casting the net, he anticipated the direction in which the big fish struggled, flicked his wrist, and the huge landing net precisely cut into the water from the side and below at a tricky angle.

The net opened and steadily caught the exhausted mandarin fish.

"receive!"

With a powerful pull, Song You lifted the large mandarin fish, estimated to weigh seventy or eighty pounds, from the water and slammed it heavily onto the grassy bank.

"Bang!"

With a muffled thud, the big fish bounced wildly on the ground, its tail slapping against the ground with loud cracking sounds.

Zhao Qian's legs went weak, and he sat down on the ground with a thud, panting heavily.

He looked at the struggling giant on the ground, then at his own fishing rod that had almost snapped. His face was first filled with lingering fear, then overwhelmed with immense joy.

He won!

"Old Zhao! Awesome!" Deng Shen was the first to rush up, excitedly patting Zhao Qian on the shoulder.

Zhao Qian waved his hand, struggled to get up from the ground, and walked up to Song You. His disheveled appearance and tired face could not hide his excitement.

"Thank you, Mr. Song!" His thanks came from the bottom of his heart.

Without Song You's precise netting at the last moment, he would have definitely lost the fish today.

"You're welcome." Song You pointed to the half-spilled bucket of instant noodles on the ground and joked, "Brother Zhao, you're not going to have dinner tonight."

Zhao Qian looked down and realized that his "luxury" dinner, which included two sausages, was completely ruined. He didn't care at all and burst into laughter.

"Worth it! Absolutely worth it! Trading a bowl of instant noodles for this huge thing is a steal!"

He pulled his phone out of his pocket and started snapping photos of the big mandarin fish, then transferred some money to Song You.

"Boss Song, the money for the fish and today's meal is all in here."

Song You glanced at it and transferred two thousand.

He returned the money, only accepting the 1,200 yuan night fishing fee.

"Brother Zhao, we agreed on an overnight stay, so consider this fish a freebie."

Zhao Qian was taken aback for a moment, and then looked at Song You with even greater respect.

"Alright! Boss Song, I, Zhao Qian, am determined to be your friend!"

This night is destined to be sleepless.

Zhao Qian and Deng Shen excitedly discussed the big mandarin fish they had caught, while Song You accompanied them, quickly prepared the fish, and put it in the large freezer.

As dawn broke, Zhao Qian and Deng Shencai prepared to leave, satisfied.

Before leaving, Zhao Qian pulled Song You aside, his expression serious.

"Boss Song, you absolutely must attend that exchange meeting."

"OK."

After the two left, the courtyard returned to its tranquility.

Song You stretched, having not slept all night, but he felt no drowsiness whatsoever.

He tidied up the yard a bit, then went to the gate and hung up a handwritten wooden sign.

[The boss goes into town and opens for business in the afternoon].

After doing all this, he took out his phone and posted the exact same status update on Douyin.

Everything is ready; let's go into town.

Song You locked the courtyard gate and strolled to the simple bus stop at the village entrance to wait.

After waiting for about half an hour, I didn't see a single bus, let alone a ghost.

An uncle working in the field next door straightened up and called out to him, "Youya, waiting for the bus?"

"Yes, Uncle Wang."

"Don't wait!" Uncle Wang chuckled. "This bus in our village only runs twice a day, once at six in the morning and once at noon. If you wait now, you won't get a bus until noon!"

Song You stood there, stunned.

He looked at the empty road and then at the blazing sun overhead, speechless for a moment.

He silently turned around, walked back to his own yard, and went straight to the carport.

A few minutes later, a buzzing sound of an electric motor began to emanate from the engine.

A slightly worn blue electric tricycle slowly drove out of the gate of the farmhouse.

Several snakeskin bags were placed on the truck bed.

Song You straddled the driver's seat, wearing a straw hat, turned on the ignition, and bumped off toward Xiangcheng.

After driving for two or three hours, around ten o'clock, Song You spotted a familiar figure in the city.

Isn't that Tian Wenwu, the big businessman? How come he's wearing a yellow robe?