Chapter 387: Hurry! Give Me a Hand!

Xiong Sheng walked over brimming with confidence.

Wang Yun, however, simply watched him with a smirk.

This guy was all smiles on the surface, but behind the scenes, he was nothing but a snake. He loved tossing out those passive-aggressive, thinly veiled insults—probably thinking he was clever about it.

A glint of mischief flashed in Wang Yun’s eyes.

“Alright then, Mr. Xiong, we’ll be counting on you for this demonstration.”

As he spoke, he subtly signaled to Brother Hu and Xiao Gang.

From where Xiong Sheng was standing, he couldn’t see it at all.

With a sense of self-importance, Xiong Sheng squeezed into position, taking over where Brother Hu had been gripping the rod.

Without hesitation, he forcefully pried Brother Hu’s hands off, acting as if it was his right.

“Mr. Xiong, hold tight now, we’re letting go,” Brother Hu said, barely clinging to the rod with just three fingers, as if reluctant to part with it.

Xiong Sheng, however, didn’t even acknowledge him. He didn’t nod, didn’t glance over. He simply ignored Brother Hu’s words entirely.

The three of them let go at the same time.

And in that exact instant—

“Hhh—Shit!”

Xiong Sheng instinctively gasped, his breath catching in his throat.

The sea exploded with a deafening crash.

The massive Nian Swallow Fish thrashed its powerful tail against the water’s surface. It had reached its limit—the pain from the hook in its mouth had sent it into a frenzy.

Nian Swallow Fish—as its name suggests—was the kind of catch that only appeared once in years, if you were lucky.

It was massive, it was aggressive, and anything that crossed its path got swallowed whole. Even sharks, the so-called deep-sea overlords, preferred to avoid this beast.

Not because they feared it, but simply because fighting it wasn’t worth the trouble.

Its extreme aggressiveness gave it an incredibly firm, lean meat texture—making it one of the rarest, most expensive delicacies in high-end foreign restaurants.

In some places, only one or two of these fish would hit the market per year and the moment they did, they’d be auctioned off instantly.

Ordinary people would never even get a chance to see one.

There’s an old saying: Three years without work, but one job pays for three.

And for the lucky fishermen who caught a Nian Swallow Fish, this proverb couldn’t be truer.

“W-What the hell?! How is this even possible?!”

Xiong Sheng jerked forward violently, his stomach slamming against the boat’s railing.

The entire vessel rocked under the strain.

To his credit, his reflexes were good. Despite the overwhelming force, he hadn’t been yanked into the ocean yet.

His stance was solid.

But even the best footing meant nothing when the force pulling against you was completely beyond your limits.

At this moment, Xiong Sheng was practically bowing forward, legs spread wide, both hands clenching the fishing rod like his life depended on it. His neck, arms—even his face—bulged with thick veins from the strain.

Not even two seconds passed before the moonlight caught his face, turning him into the perfect shade of boiled lobster.

His face, neck, and arms flushed bright red.

“Th-this… this—”

Xiong Sheng could barely form a single coherent sentence.

Forget about showing off his technique—at this point, he was fighting for survival. His eyes darted desperately toward Wang Yun.

But Wang Yun, Brother Hu, and Xiao Gang?

The three of them turned their heads away in perfect sync.

“Wow, Mr. Xiong, that fish must be huge. Do we have a container big enough to hold it?” Wang Yun mused aloud.

“When I got on the boat earlier, I saw a bucket. That should do the trick,” Brother Hu chimed in.

“Yeah, where’d that bucket go?” Xiao Gang added, pretending to scan the deck.

The three of them casually started ‘looking’ for the nonexistent bucket.

Meanwhile, Xiong Sheng’s entire face was purple from the effort—his eyes bloodshot, his breath ragged, his hands trembling.

Splash!

Another violent thrash—this time, the Nian Swallow Fish’s body fully surfaced.

“Hrrnn—uhh—!!!”

Xiong Sheng gawked in sheer terror. For a brief moment, he completely forgot about the pain, the humiliation, and even the burning in his muscles.

This was a deep-sea fish. A real Nian Swallow Fish.

This thing was worth a fortune.

“H-Help! Help me, damn it!”

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Xiong Sheng managed to squeeze out a full sentence.

At the sound of his desperate plea, Wang Yun’s lips curled into a smirk. But still, he turned back agonizingly slowly.

“Oh wow. That thing is huge,” Wang Yun said, feigning shock as he pointed at the water, but he didn’t move an inch.

“Help! Hurry help!”

Xiong Sheng was losing it. His cheeks were puffed out, his body trembling, his arms screaming in agony—he looked like a freaking pufferfish.

Wang Yun pretended to startle.

“Oh, you two stop looking for that damn bucket and help him already,” he called out to Brother Hu and Xiao Gang.

But neither of them even bothered to look up.

Brother Hu shook out his arms dramatically, stretching his fingers.

“Ahh, I’m wiped. I must’ve used the wrong muscles earlier. My hands are still numb.”

Xiao Gang sighed. “Boss, wasn’t Mr. Xiong supposed to be demonstrating for us? If we help, won’t we mess up his lesson?”

He winced exaggeratedly, rubbing his shoulder. “I think I might’ve dislocated something too.”

Their atrocious acting was so bad that Wang Yun almost burst out laughing.

Meanwhile, Xiong Sheng wanted to commit murder.

Just moments ago, he had considered letting go of the rod. He figured he could just blame them for dropping it too suddenly.

But then he saw the damn fish.

And now, there was no way in hell he was letting go.

This thing was worth a king’s ransom.

And to make matters worse? He had already missed his one chance to let go without looking like a fool.

He’d never hear the end of it if he let go now.