Back to the Past to Become a Fishing King-Chapter 641 - 372: Steel Stem Float Fishing in the Heated Shelter (Part 2)

"I've been fishing with Xiaobin and them for two days! The bites are great! Old Zhai released fish this year of all sizes, from tiny ones to three or four taels of crucian carp! After a few casts, it's a continuous catch, and the fresh fish hardly seems affected by the cold snap!"

"That's great news! Let's find a place to set up our gear and fishing tackle, and I'll come to join you guys later!"

"Hey, don't rush off, just bring your gear over and join us right away! It's been ages since we've all fished together, let's have some fun!" Yan Jundan said enthusiastically.

"No problem! I'll go unload the gear first!"

Zhang Yang got some general information about the fish situation and turned to walk towards the team members smoking at the entrance.

"Yan Jundan and the guys have been here fishing for two days with freshly stocked crucian carp, pure fresh fish, really fun to catch! Unload the gear, everyone, stop standing around!"

With Zhang Yang's prompting, everyone quickly opened the back doors of the van and deftly organized the equipment, then they all squeezed into the shed.

Zhang Yang pointed towards the south bank: "Head straight to the south bank, Yan Jundan and the others are over there! The fish situation is good, let's start fishing!"

Soon, they arrived at the spot where Yan Jundan and the others had prepared earlier.

"This is Brother Yan, Yan Jundan, our old friend! Brother Yan, these are the new anglers who just joined our team, Han Mocheng and Xiaobao! You already know Liu Zi and Meng Fan, no introductions needed!"

Zhang Yang introduced everyone, and Han Mocheng and Xiaobao greeted each other, making their acquaintance.

"Expanding the team again? Not bad!! Meng Fan, Liu Zi, you two won quite a bit of money from us last winter!" Brother Yan chuckled as he took out a pack of Great White cigarettes from his pocket and passed them around.

"Hehe, Brother Yan, you're joking again. When it comes to competitive fishing in the shed, you're the master! Last winter, we spent at least tens of thousands on fishing together!" Meng Fan said, giving Brother Yan a thumbs up and speaking truthfully.

"Come on, others might not know, but I do! You two always went to eat hot pot after fishing! Besides the fishing fee, most of what you spent turned into little beef cubes in your stomachs, right?"

"Hahahaha!"

The familiar group burst into laughter again.

Brother Yan and their gang arrived earlier, and their preparations were mostly done. After a brief introduction, Zhang Yang and his group quickly got ready.

In this competitive fishing event, Zhang Yang didn't let everyone prepare their own bait but took on the role of the team's logistics manager. He found a medium-sized bait mixing bowl and randomly took out several packets of different baits, preparing them on the spot.

While Zhang Yang was mixing the bait, Liu Zi, Meng Fan, and others took out their 2.7-meter short rods, new tackle sets, and small shed bobbers to adjust the floating position and find the bottom.

When Zhang Yang was gathering information earlier, he had already gotten a preliminary understanding of the warm shed fishing situation. The newly stocked fresh crucian carp, with the relatively higher water temperature in the shed, had good bites, so Zhang Yang had a clear approach to preparing the bait.

The fish were active, so a little extra lubricating powder could be added to the bait mix. The resulting bait balls would be rounder, larger, and more suitable for aggressive fishing techniques.

In the cooler winter temperatures, shrimp powder was essential. Zhang Yang and the team used special-grade imported Peruvian shrimp powder sourced from the factory. With Zhang Yang's skillful preparation, the bowl had half a basin of well-prepared, aromatic bait.

"The bait's ready! It's randomly made, haven't tested it, so not sure how good it is. Everyone take some to try first! We can adjust if needed!"

Zhang Yang announced, grabbing a fist-sized amount of bait for himself and distributing the rest to his teammates.

"Zhang Yang, keeping the action going, still adjusting, or are you ready to jump in?" Brother Yan called over to Zhang Yang across several fishing spots after seeing they were about ready.

"Getting adjusted first! Brother Yan, you guys start! We'll join once we're all set!"

"Alright! We'll do it together later for fun!"

"Ok!"

Temporarily declining Brother Yan's invitation, Zhang Yang leisurely attached a new main line to the fishing rod and opened his float box.

The main line for the fishing tackle was 0.6, and Zhang Yang chose it without hesitation, but he was slightly uncertain about which bobber to use.

Even though the newly stocked fish had decent bites, it's still relative.

The shed's temperature was about ten degrees, while the water temperature was surely below ten. Under such low temperatures, although the crucian carp would take the bait, they wouldn't be as lively as in the open-air practice pole pond.

Normally, for small crucian carp fishing outdoors, a float that holds about 1.2g of lead is sufficient, but this lead weight is evidently too much for winter shed fishing.

Zhang Yang hesitated not because of which lead weight to use, but rather which float type to choose.

In shed fishing, with shallower water and lighter tackle, the float would definitely be different from outdoor fishing.

Typically, when bottom fishing for crucian carp, the float length is over forty centimeters, up to 49 centimeters.

But in the shed, this length is excessive, so Zhang Yang ultimately chose a short float just over thirty centimeters from his box.

Long float body, short float foot, a slender design, a very typical bottom-attacking float type.

Besides the different float type and shorter overall length, this rarely-used float had an obvious feature.

Steel foot!

Yes, you read that right, it's a steel foot!

Standard crucian carp floats are dominated by carbon rods, but the 12-scale old float Zhang Yang took out had a steel foot.

Steel foot means using a heavier thin steel rod as the float foot.

This material is heavier, and combined with the long body and short foot design, the float's center of gravity is lower, making it a great choice for bottom fishing.

Zhang Yang chose this seemingly outdated float for a reason.

If the shed's fish bites were as quick as Brother Yan suggested, then this steel foot float could quickly break through layers, flip, and settle in place, while the twelve-scale short tail would be sensitive enough, possibly ideal for the current fish conditions.

Since Zhang Yang got this float, he hadn't used it much; it was an old collection from Lao Zhao's exhibition visits, but today it was back in action.

After changing the float, Zhang Yang briefly adjusted the fishing scale.

Two-scale adjustment, three-scale fishing, a typical low adjustment, high fishing method for sheds. With everything ready, Zhang Yang casually pulled two round bait balls, gently flicked his wrist, and cast into the water before him.

Used to a 3.6-meter rod, the switch to 2.7 meters felt incredibly light, even describable as featherlike.

As the tackle hit the water, the float quickly turned over and soon settled into the secondary placement position. The leader was short, only thirty doubled, so the secondary placement time was brief.

Zhang Yang made a few casual casts to get a feel, quickly noticing some bite actions.

Brother Yan wasn't exaggerating; the bites were indeed decent, generally happening as the bait reached the bottom. In this wintry weather, getting a bite of about half a visible unit was quite satisfying for Zhang Yang.

After a few casual casts, the fishing spot had active fish, and Zhang Yang caught a few, gauging the size of the fish in the heated pool.

The most active crucian carp currently biting weighed less than one tael per tail, with three weighing around two taels. They seemed small but had decent bites and activity levels, matching the steel foot float Zhang Yang chose.

"The bites today are good, boss! Just three casts and they're biting! I'm ready here! Can you give me some guidance?" Xiaobao, who was next to Zhang Yang, approached with a smile.

When it comes to Xiaobao, Zhang Yang had mixed feelings. Xiaobao's fishing skills had improved moderately, but his thick-skinned nature was impressive. Sometimes after getting scolded, he'd soon act like nothing happened, without the slightest embarrassment.

This boldness and openness allowed him to learn more; whenever he didn't understand, he'd ask, and if unsure, he'd seek advice, never feeling embarrassed, no matter the audience.

Xiaobao was well aware that among the five team members, he was the only newbie here at the Winter Fishing Hall. Letting the team leader check and guide him was certainly the right move!