As nets were pulled into the boat, the harvest grew larger and larger.
However, most of them were just ordinary goods, with nothing particularly eye-catching.
When they reached the last net and had almost given up hope, they were surprised to find that they had caught a new species.
This is a fish that is entirely red, and it's quite large, about 30 centimeters long by my estimation.
"A red fish, what a good thing!"
Ah-Can was pulling the next few fishing nets, so he was the first to see them.
However, he couldn't immediately recognize what kind of fish it was.
Fish that are red or yellow generally command a good price.
Feng Ye peered inside and his eyes lit up with surprise: "Holy crap, it's a parrotfish!"
"Oh? A parrotfish?"
Ah-Can looked at it carefully, "It really is! I didn't even recognize it just now."
"Only one net left, and we still managed to catch a parrotfish, that's pretty good."
Parrotfish and parrotmouth fish are the same fish, also known as red wedge snapper, scientifically named Roselle.
It gets its name from its vibrant colors and mouth shape, which resembles that of a parrot. The red parrotfish is famous for its bright colors, just like a parrot, and its body color varies.
Not only red, but also white, blue, red and white, blue and white, and so on.
Parrotfish are not a natural species; they were created by chance, through a series of accidental events.
It is a hybrid species bred from the red devil ray and the purple firemouth ray.
Male parrotfish are infertile, while female parrotfish can interbreed with males of other species to produce offspring.
Ah-Can quickly pulled the parrotfish onto the boat and brought it to Feng Ye's side.
Feng Ye grabbed it and tore off the network cable that was wrapped around it, freeing it.
Just as he opened the live water tank to put it in, the parrotfish opened its mouth slightly.
Feng Ye suddenly noticed a yellow thing inside its mouth.
He looked at it with suspicion, then pried it out and discovered it was a small piece of yellow coral.
It's not very big, about two centimeters square.
If it weren't for the fact that its color was different from its body, Feng Ye might have really overlooked it.
Parrotfish may not have particularly large teeth at first glance, but they are the world's strongest chewers.
Its teeth are made of one of the world's strongest biological minerals, a type of mineral called fluorapatite.
This ore is harder than silver or gold and can withstand great pressure.
According to the Smithsonian Institution, this pressure is roughly equivalent to the weight of more than 80 elephants.
Parrotfish eat large amounts of coral every day, chewing and crushing it. Their digestive system absorbs the nutrients while expelling indigestible calcium particles.
These particles are an important component of white sand beaches.
In a way, parrotfish build their enchanting white sand beaches with their feces.
Therefore, Feng Ye was not surprised at all to find coral in the mouth of a parrotfish.
However, coral is worthless nowadays.
Even if this piece were only yellow, or even red, especially oxblood red, it wouldn't be worth much money these days.
The price surge in coral didn't begin until the 2008 financial crisis.
In just three years, the price of red coral skyrocketed sevenfold, a truly astonishing increase.
Feng Ye shook his head and threw the piece of yellow coral into the sea.
Even in later generations, yellow coral was not very valuable.
Besides, it's so small, there's no need to keep it.
If it's red coral, even if it's a little small, he'll keep it.
What did you throw into the sea?
Ah-chan asked curiously.
He saw Feng Ye's movements, but couldn't make out what it was.
Feng Ye smiled and said, "It's nothing, just a small piece of coral."
"Coral, huh? That thing is pretty, but it's really useless."
"Hmm, and it's yellow. I wish it were red."
"Red coral is just something that looks festive, but it's not worth much money."
Ah-chan said dismissively, "I have a pretty big piece of red coral at home, but it's just for decoration and doesn't really do anything."
"Holy crap, you have red coral at home?"
Feng Ye's eyes widened, and he stopped cutting the fish, staring at A-Can in surprise. "How come I didn't know?"
“My mother locked it up, of course you wouldn’t know.”
"how come?"
Feng Ye became curious.
"you guess!"
"Did you find it on the beach, or was it a gift from someone?"
"Neither."
"Tell me already, stop keeping me in suspense."
"I knew you wouldn't guess."
Ah-Can smiled and said, "That was my mother's dowry. She said that although it wasn't worth much, it meant a lot to her, so she kept it all this time."
"Damn! So it was your mother's dowry. How could I have guessed?"
Feng Ye rolled her eyes, then asked, "It must be huge, right?"
Ah-Can nodded: "It's not small, it's about half a person's height."
"So big!"
Feng Ye was speechless.
Ah-Can said nonchalantly, "What's the use of being big? It's worthless."
"How could it be useless?"
Feng Ye countered, "In ancient times, red coral was regarded as an auspicious and lucky object, representing noble power, so it was also called 'auspicious treasure'."
"In the Qing Dynasty, the hat ornaments and court beads worn by officials of the second rank when attending court were made of red coral."
"Furthermore, many of the prayer beads held by Tibetan lamas and high monks are also made of red coral."
"No matter what you say, it doesn't change the fact that it's worthless."
"It's worthless now, but it might be valuable in the future!"
Who knows what the future holds?
"Gold is valued in times of chaos, antiques are valued in times of prosperity. Look at those old broken bottles and jars in our house, people are buying them for high prices, aren't they? Maybe the price of coral will go up too."
Feng Ye explained patiently.
He was genuinely worried that Ah-chan's family wouldn't value it and might throw the red coral away one day.
It's important to know that the price of red coral skyrocketed after the price surge.
Depending on factors such as type, quality, size, and color, the price can range from several hundred yuan to several thousand yuan per gram.
Collector-quality red coral can fetch tens of thousands of yuan per gram, or even more. Regarding the red coral, the response was, "What you said makes some sense. Let's keep it; it won't get in the way anyway."
Ah-Can listened and nodded thoughtfully.
Feng Ye continued, "Think about it, if the value of coral really skyrockets in the future, the red coral in your house will be priceless."
"Then my mother must have struck it rich!"
Ah-Can shrugged, not taking it too seriously, and simply said, "I hope it's true what you said, that there will be a day when prices skyrocket."
"Yes, that day will definitely come, it's just a matter of time."
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