The scavenger fish, scientifically called the leopard pleco (leopard-patterned armored catfish), is an invasive species similar to tilapia. It became well known for its habit of eating leftover bait and algae in the water. Many fish farmers actually like to keep them.
When Xiang Ye was in middle school, he also kept fish. Back then, his aunt's restaurant went out of business and gave their aquarium to Xiang Ye's father. Since his dad was busy with work, Xiang Ye started raising fish at home.
He kept "map fish" (a species popular with beginners because it's easy to care for), and these fish can develop markings on their bodies resembling characters or words. Xiang Ye once had a black-and-red map fish that grew a character meaning "dang" on its side. When he posted a picture on QQ space, some people even offered 200 yuan to buy it, but Xiang Ye never sold it.
Unfortunately, when the family's water pump broke, all the fish died overnight.
Anyway, that was a tangent—but Xiang Ye was definitely familiar with scavenger fish.
The reason scavengers spread into the native rivers of Yan and Huang was mainly twofold. First, some fish keepers who moved or stopped keeping fish released their aquarium fish into local waters, causing scavengers to enter the rivers.
Second, there were also the people who deliberately released fish for religious or superstitious "mercy" reasons. They caused great environmental harm—not only with scavengers but also tilapia.
Though some tilapia escaped from fish farms, the volume was much smaller than the amount released by these "mercy releases."
In any case, these fish have become a real pest. They have no natural enemies; their hard armor makes them unpalatable to most predators, and they love to feed on fish eggs, which is troublesome.
However, right now, this pest was helping Xiang Ye!
After tossing the scavenger into the small bucket, Xiang Ye's system chimed immediately.
"Ding! Congratulations, host, on completing the daily task: catching ten species of fish. Reward granted: Skill — Fishing Master (Professional Level)."
As the voice faded, a torrent of fishing knowledge instantly filled Xiang Ye's mind.
He absorbed detailed lessons about his current Pole Fishing method, the traditional single-hook straight fishing, which baits matched which fish, how to select fishing spots like river bends and eddies, how to read underwater currents and where fish might be lurking, and much more.
If before this, Xiang Ye was just an amateur beginner, now he could easily compete in master-level fishing tournaments and even make a living from it!
Of course, the professional level meant he could fish professionally. If he ever advanced to the Master level, it would mean he had reached the world's top tier of anglers.
In the past, Xiang Ye thought that just knowing how to use Float Setting meant he "knew fishing." Looking back, he realized he had been a novice among novices!
Fishing is all about buff, and now, even without buff, Xiang Ye was confident he could still catch a decent haul. But if buff were available, why not use them?
"How's it going?" Ai Bai asked over the phone while Xiang Ye was still absorbing the flood of knowledge.
"Done fishing. Wait for me—I'll pack up and head back. Need me to help you carry anything?" Xiang Ye perked up hearing Ai Bai's voice.
"No need, just come back, get ready, then head to my partner's place. I'm leaving now to buy meat and stuff."
Seeing Xiang Ye was about to return, Ai Bai smiled and hung up. At this point, Xiang Ye put Shaoqing back into the cat carrier.
He released all the fish he caught back into the river, except for the scavenger, which he stomped on to kill. His family had plenty of fish to eat, so there was no need to waste river resources.
After cleaning up, Xiang Ye went home.
When he arrived, Ai Bai had already left, and the room was completely tidied up. Xiang Ye scratched his head.
From today on, he would be alone in this home. But what to do with this room? That needed some thought.
"Meow…" Shaoqing woke up and meowed once, then tried to get down. Xiang Ye didn't stop him.
He watched as Shaoqing went straight to his litter pad and began to do his business. Xiang Ye had heard cats were cleaner than dogs and would instinctively use litter boxes, but since he'd never owned one before, this was his first time seeing it.
Well, it was convenient—it saved him some trouble.
After cleaning the litter pad, Xiang Ye changed clothes and then drove to Ai Bai's house with Shaoqing.
Of course, he didn't come empty-handed. From the silver carp and bighead carp he'd caught a few days ago, he picked out a 20-plus-Jin (about 10+ kg) fish to celebrate their housewarming.
Xiang Ye had been to Wang Fangfei's house a few times before, mostly accompanying Ai Bai when delivering stuff, so he knew the way well.
Driving there, Xiang Ye quickly arrived and rang the doorbell. After someone helped him get in the elevator, he reached their apartment.
When Ai Bai opened the door and saw Xiang Ye, her first glance wasn't at the fish or Xiang Ye himself, but at Shaoqing in his arms. It seemed that tough guys couldn't resist a cat.
"Wow, where'd you get a cat?"
"I found him in a trash bin when I went grocery shopping yesterday. Probably abandoned by his mother. Since you were gone, and I wanted some company, I took him in," Xiang Ye explained with a smile.
"Cat? Where's the cat?" Suddenly, two girls ran out from inside.
One was naturally Ai Bai's girlfriend Wang Fangfei, and the other was a girl Xiang Ye didn't know.
The new girl was slightly taller than Wang Fangfei, but still under 1.6 meters. Slim and pretty, with a round face, big eyes, and twin ponytails, she stopped shyly upon seeing Xiang Ye but kept her eyes fixed on Shaoqing.
Wang Fangfei was less shy—she immediately jumped in front of Xiang Ye and began teasing Shaoqing with her finger, showing her affection.
Watching his girlfriend's enthusiasm, Ai Bai sighed—she had wanted to pet Shaoqing too but now had to just carry the fish to the kitchen.
Xiang Ye handed Shaoqing to Wang Fangfei and took off his shoes before entering.
This book is provided by FunNovel Novel Book | Fan Fiction Novel [Beautiful Free Novel Book]