I Saved a Lucky Carp and Became the Boss of the Fishing Port

Lin Jianhai spent six years drifting from place to place without accomplishing anything. When he returned to his hometown, all he inherited was his late father's broken-down boat, the See the Mountain, and a mountain of bad debt. The Jiang family called the shots at the fishing harbor. They gave him seven days to pay up, or they would seize the boat to settle the debt.

On the day he had nowhere left to turn, he saw a golden koi stranded at the shallow-water dock, its gills tightly bound by plastic cord. Everyone at the harbor stood watching. No one moved. Old Chen, the veteran helmsman, shouted from shore, "You mustn't save the golden koi. If you do, you'll have to repay the favor." Still, Lin jumped into the water.

From then on, his luck changed. For three days straight, every other boat at the harbor came back with empty nets, while his nets were bursting with fish. A lottery ticket he bought on a whim won the grand prize. In three months, he went from drowning in debt to becoming a rising star at the fishing harbor. Everyone called him Brother Hai.

But after every huge catch, something happened to the person who had helped him the most. His partner, A Jian, died beyond the fish reefs, his fingernails packed with rust. Old Chen started taking detours whenever he saw Lin, leaving him with just one warning: "What you've taken will have to be given back sooner or later."

Then Lin uncovered an old photograph his father had left behind. It showed the very same shallow-water dock in the background, with a blurry golden shape in the water. On the back, a line was written: I didn't dare save it, so now it's your turn.

A hundred years ago, this fishing harbor made a pact with the sea. The fish weren't repaying him. They were raising him. Once he was at his fattest, he was meant to be dragged down to the fish reefs. And for three generations, the Jiang family had been waiting for someone to dive in and save that fish.