This time, Wang Chao didn’t immediately hook the fish, thinking that the movement of the bobber wasn’t stable enough. However, after it dipped, the bobber slowly rose half a notch, which was a more characteristic movement.

Only when the fish has taken the bait and lifts its head will it produce this kind of up-bobbing movement. A dip followed by a brief suspension and then an upward rise—this combination of movements means a higher success rate when lifting the rod.

Wang Chao thought like this, and did just that, predicting he would hit the target. Unexpectedly, he landed a double catch, which is purely luck beyond skill.

"Wow, Teacher Wang Chao caught a double catch on his first attempt, instantly catching up to Zhang Yang’s two-fish advantage! Teacher Yu, your prediction is spot-on!" Sun Yi exclaimed as Wang Chao caught the fish.

"Haha, at their level, such reaction speed is normal!" Yu Wensheng smiled calmly, noncommittal.

"Now that Teacher Wang Chao has officially started, what do you think is next? Do you think they’ll change their tactics?" Sun Yi continued to ask.

Yu Wensheng shook his head: "Actually, in the current situation, although their strategies for attracting fish are slightly different, they are both fishing about ten centimeters above the bottom.

Unless a more aggressive fish scenario appears, I don’t think there will be any major adjustments."

"No adjustments? Just fish like this? Doesn’t that take us back to the pre-competition analysis? With Zhang Yang’s high double-catch rate, doesn’t Teacher Wang Chao stand a smaller chance of winning?" Sun Yi was not satisfied with Yu’s judgment and looked at him with doubt.

Yu Wensheng explained: "Indeed, the odds are smaller, but there’s no choice. In the current fish situation, there’s no foundation for taking further risks!

The competition time is too short; they have to change locations every fifteen minutes. The bites come relatively quickly; a rash adjustment is unlikely to lead to significant improvement but carries significant risk. If Zhang Yang seizes the opportunity and increases his catch count, it would be even more disadvantageous for Wang Chao!

Choosing the lesser of two evils, Wang Chao surely understands this principle!"

"Hmm, I understand what you mean. As it stands, the two are on different paths to the same goal, still in a roughly equal win-lose state!"

"Equal? That’s hard to achieve, at best 46 to 54! If Wang Chao cannot perform exceptionally, according to previous technique statistics, even 46 to 54 may be unlikely!" Yu Wensheng directly poured cold water on Sun Yi.

"Uh..." Sun Yi was at a loss for words.

Sun Yi, who was only marginally knowledgeable about fishing, excelled in hosting and managing the flow of the show, not in technical analysis. She only knew Zhang Yang’s double-catch rate was high, not fully understanding how significant that difference was.

Yu Wensheng, on the other hand, knew the huge gap in double-catch rate was hard to close; realistically, Wang Chao’s chances of winning were slim—nowhere near 46 to 54, not even 37 to 63. But it couldn’t be openly stated in front of live broadcast cameras.

"Haha, but this is just theoretical speculation; the actual situation might be different. If the fish condition is really good, and every cast results in a bite, both could have a high double-catch rate, nullifying Zhang Yang’s technical advantage!" Yu Wensheng quickly added, bringing the conversation back.

Sun Yi: "Let’s watch and see! This is only the quarterfinals, but why does it feel as tense as a final match?"

...

The match on the field continued, and Wang Chao’s next move was again predicted by Yu Wensheng.

Wang Chao didn’t make any further adjustments, either, and like Zhang Yang, fished at the level slightly above bottom, close to their initial position.

In the first dozen casts, though his range was slightly dispersed, Wang Chao had good fish activity, with the bobber reacting to nearly every cast. The bites he hit were all at the precise twelve o’clock position.

Zhang Yang, though fishing steadily without haste, was actually paying attention to Wang Chao’s every move. When he noticed Wang Chao was also fishing close to the bottom, Zhang Yang smiled knowingly.

Even when the fish situation was slightly worse, the guys at Pond One could win. Wouldn’t they win now that the situation was much better? Definitely!

With great confidence, Zhang Yang once again started his double-catching performance.

Using the normal double-hook bait, casting the rod into the water, the bobber turned over and descended steadily.

Ignoring small accelerating movements, passing on small bites, the second bump indicated a fish at the bottom. Zhang Yang still didn’t rush to lift the rod, waiting until the bobber steadied and began to rise before decisively lifting the rod.

Feeling the weight from the fishing setup underwater, Zhang Yang knew the outcome of this cast even before the fish surfaced.

With continuous letting the hook drift, the double-catch was robust. As the rod raised to lift the fish above the water, true to form, two fish were hanging on the hooks.

Zhang Yang brought the fish to the net and glanced at the fish’s mouth before unhooking them.

The top hook was correctly positioned near twelve o’clock, but the bottom hook was a bit slow, and the hook was slightly deep inside the fish’s mouth. 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Seeing this, Zhang Yang knew his previous timing had been slightly late, and he could fine-tune the bobber action for the next cast.

Thus, on the next cast, Zhang Yang repeated his technique, casting again to continue fishing.

This way, Zhang Yang, like a student in an open-book exam, with an understanding of the fish situation and fishing techniques, operated flawlessly. Through continuous practice over several casts, he quickly identified the most optimal timing for the current fish situation to catch a double.

"Wow, Teacher Yu, look, Zhang Yang got another double!" Sun Yi’s beautiful eyes fixed on the camera, unable to contain her excitement when Zhang Yang scored his third double catch.

Yu Wensheng smiled and nodded: "The better the fish condition, the easier it is to catch a double. From this perspective, Wang Chao also has a chance; it just depends on when he can align the fish condition with his timing!"

"What about Zhang Yang then?"

"Zhang Yang has already synchronized his timing with the bobber movement!"

"Ah? Does that mean there’s no chance left? How did you figure that out? Teach me, please!" Sun Yi, once again stirred by Yu’s seemingly arbitrary comment, exclaimed.

"Which way the wind blows is still early to determine, can’t make judgments now, but sharing where the judgment comes from can be useful for you and the anglers watching in front of their TVs!

Did you notice that after Zhang Yang’s first two double catches, he specifically checked the hooking position on the fish’s mouth? For the third double catch, did he directly work on unhooking without even looking this time?"

"Look at where the hook is on the fish’s mouth? What’s the significance of that?"

"Oh, little Sun, asking that question shows your fishing skills aren’t very professional!"

"Hehe, I’m not a pro, my profession is hosting! You say it, don’t change the topic; viewers with less technical expertise are listening too!"

"Alright, then let me explain! It’s a simple principle, the timing of hooking based on different bobber movements results in different hook positions in the mouth! If the bite is good and the timing appropriate, the hook will be positioned at twelve o’clock on the fish’s mouth.

If you hook too eagerly, the hook will hang shallowly, maybe only slightly on the outer circle’s oily layer, and a little force will tear it off!

If you hook too slowly, the hook will sink deeper, catching inside the oral cavity’s deeper part!

Okay, once you understand the basic hooking skills, applying it to double-catching follows the same logic. But exceeding excellence requires the angler to make judgments based on the current fish condition.

Zhang Yang observed the hook positions on his earlier double catches to confirm this; one hook was slightly deep, one was correct, which means there’s not much discrepancy, but if both are too deep or one too shallow, adjustments are needed when hooking or lifting the rod preemptively!"