The others quickly grabbed their tools. If Jian Dan were to chisel it open a couple more times, he could definitely manage it, but they'd probably all have heart attacks by then.
"Yes, yes, you take a break first, we'll take care of the rest."
Seeing that they were trying not to laugh, Jian Dan knew they were laughing at her, and rolled her eyes in annoyance.
"snort!
"Let me tell you, this is what you call getting a bargain and then complaining. With your meager efforts, you won't even get to eat fish by tomorrow."
The group dug along the simple marks, then made some minor repairs. Soon, a distinct, soft "crackling" sound was heard, and the group took a few steps back.
Holding a long pole, I went to poke at it from a distance. After a while, the ice surface made a crisp sound. The ice block in the middle broke off from the inner ice surface, was pushed up by the sudden flow of water below, and floated up sharply, crashing onto the ice surface next to it with a muffled sound.
Water gushed out from beneath the ice hole, instantly covering the surrounding ice surface with a layer of ice flowers.
"I'll go down first. You all be careful, it's quite slippery here."
"Okay, the water down here is cold. Will the basket be able to hold up in a while?"
"If only we had fishing nets."
"What are you thinking? You want a fishing net too? Come on, come on, tie this rope properly, or the basket will sink again."
This is inland, so fishing is only occasional, and fishing nets are naturally out of the question.
However, after a quick look, I realized that there are no fishing nets available. But I think a substitute would be fine, right?
Seeing them bustling around the hole, Jianqiao quietly took a few steps back, took out two burlap sacks from his basket, tore the opening of one sack, and then took out a piece of thick iron wire, threaded it through the double layer at the edge, and stretched the opening of the burlap sack into a circle. If you ignored the material underneath, it could be used as a makeshift fishing net.
Lin Dongfang and the others had just secured their baskets to the edge of the ice hole when...
"Look at the villagers over there, it seems like they all do it this way?"
Yuan Ye lay prone at the edge of the ice hole, looking down.
"Is this thing working? I feel like the fish can't go in there."
"What's the rush? We just put it in. It'll take a while for the fish to swim over."
I felt that the simple part was almost done. I lifted it up and tried it out. It felt okay. Then I started to twist the wire again.
Right now, the ice surface is covered with villagers chiseling holes, and although they haven't seen a single fish yet, they are all overjoyed.
The group of educated youth looked around and finally noticed that Jian Dan was quietly fiddling with something.
"Simple, what are you doing?"
"Hmm? Wait a minute, wait a minute, it's almost screwed on. Be careful, don't prick your hand."
"Take these and try them out, see if they can catch fish."
Ling Weidong took it first, checked the opening of the sack, examined it carefully, and then used his own hands to shape the supporting wire into an oval.
"That ice hole is small and so round, it's not easy to get in or out."
"Dongfang, do you see if you have any longer sticks? We can use them to secure it to this wire loop; isn't that a ready-made fishing net?"
Sometimes you have to admit that when it comes to hands-on skills, boys are slightly better. After a little effort, they can fix the parts that she didn't like earlier by fiddling with them and then tie a long stick to them, and it really becomes a pretty big fishing net.
In the harsh winter, the water surface freezes over, resulting in low oxygen levels underwater. When the ice is broken, air enters near the hole, increasing the oxygen content. Fish, seeking more oxygen, gather near the hole to breathe, which explains why fish swim to the hole when a hole is made in the ice.
This is common sense; the villagers know it, and so do the educated youth.
Holding freshly made fishing nets, several boys surrounded the ice hole so tightly that not even a few could squeeze in.
Seeing her still eager to watch the commotion with her legs crossed, Tan Yajun helplessly pulled her away.
"Alright, you'll see it in a minute, won't you? Don't get too close, that ice over there is really slippery,"
The river was quite wide, and there were many onlookers on the ice. Children as big as Tiger and his friends were running around with the adults, their laughter echoing everywhere.
There was still a movable fishing net over there, and several boys took turns watching it. Soon, there was movement, and Yuan Ye, who was holding the stick, stumbled and almost got pulled into the ice hole by its weight. Terrified, he immediately called for help.
"Hey, someone come quick and give me a hand."
Several people immediately pounced on it, and in a moment, the heavy sack was pulled up by several people. Yuan Ye was both surprised and frightened, and sat down directly on the ice.
The sack was thrown onto the ice, and the fish inside splashed and slid out.
Several young female educated youths immediately gathered around.
"Such a big catch on the first net?"
It was meat, and not only them, but even the children who saw it gathered around with shining eyes.
In winter, fish like to gather under the ice, which often causes the water to surge and the snow on the ice surface to bulge slightly. This is a sign that there are fish on the ice.
Next, observe the color. Ice layers with schools of fish often contain air bubbles, and the direction in which the bubbles are concentrated indicates the direction in which the fish are swimming. Such ice layers appear grayish in color.
In addition, one must be able to listen to the sounds beneath the ice. Experienced fishermen can pinpoint the location of schools of fish simply by pressing their ears to the ice and listening to the sound of the water flowing.
These are essential skills for winter fishing in the north, and they are also applicable here.
Of course, in rural areas, especially in places like this where large-scale winter fishing is not feasible, villagers rely on the experience of the elderly.
As for the educated youth, Lin Dongfang and his group relied on intuition.
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