I transmigrated into the body of a poor scholar, and my teacher told me to pass the imperial exams and bring honor to my ancestors.
I pulled out a fishing rod instead. "Teacher, fishing is the true way."
My teacher was so furious he wanted to disown me on the spot.
The whole village gathered by the river to watch me make a fool of myself.
That is, until I kept hauling in fish after fish, catching more in one morning than the whole village caught in a month.
The village chief dropped to his knees on the spot. "Brother Shen, do you need a sidekick? The kind who can cheer you on and shout, 'That's amazing!'"
Later, I opened a fish ball stall, hoping to make a modest living.
But then!
The county magistrate came in disguise and queued up to buy fish balls, even finishing every drop of the soup.
The richest man in town came with a sack of silver, begging to become a franchisee. "Boss Shen, let me put up a sign that says 'Shen's Shop' too! Name your price!"
Even my teacher sneaked over to ask, "Um… Could you save a place for me in your fishing class?"
Before I knew it, I'd turned the whole village into an aquaculture base, the county seat into a fish ball distribution hub, and the prefectural capital into a fishing empire.
A local magnate got jealous and tried to steal my fishpond. Right in front of him, I caught a three-jin carp from a dry well. "The Dragon King says if you touch my fishpond, he'll invite you for tea tonight." The magnate fell to his knees in fright.
When the emperor heard I was richer than the state, he summoned me to the capital to ask for advice on governing the country.
The whole court waited for me to present a treasure.
I pulled out a fishing rod. "Your Majesty, it's better to teach a man to fish than to give him fish… But first, I'll have to charge him tuition for fishing lessons."
The emperor stared at me for a long while, then turned to his eunuch. "Go get My fishing rod too."
See how one fishing enthusiast uses a single fishing rod to set an entire dynasty in motion.
