"Since you insist on going, then let's go together. As usual, the catch from the single trawling net will belong to each of us, and we will split the catch from the double trawling net 50-50. However, I will have the first choice." Xiang Yang said.
Wu Shiwen nodded quickly. He was not afraid of anything else, but he was afraid that Xiang Yang would not play with him.
"How much time do you need to prepare supplies?" Xiang Yang asked Wu Shiwen.
"No need for supplies. The supplies on my ship are enough to keep me going for two or three months. Brother Yang, please wait for an hour and I will call all the crew members on my ship over." Wu Shiwen said.
Xiang Yang nodded, "Well, hurry up."
Wu Shiwen hurriedly called one by one.
Xiang Yang, Xu Fang, Chen Qingsheng and Chen Guan worked together to plan the voyage.
"Captain, the shortest route to Naha is to sail northeast along the coast after leaving Qinglong Bay, cross the QZ Strait, and then head east. In this way, at our speed, we should be able to reach our destination in less than a week." Officer Chen reported everything to Xiang Yang while holding the nautical chart.
"Go through the QZ Strait?" Xiang Yang asked.
Officer Chen nodded.
Xiang Yang pondered for a moment, shook his head and said, "If we don't go through the Chuanzhou Strait, the sea water temperature will change very quickly under the impact of the Kuroshio Current. The marine fish coming from the tropics will not go to the QZ Strait where the sea water temperature is lower. The fishery resources along this route will also sink to deep water due to unexpected changes in water temperature. We may not be able to find fish, so we can't just waste the whole journey. We must catch one or two nets on the way, at least to ensure that this trip is not a loss."
"So what do you mean?" asked Officer Chen.
Xiang Yang pointed to the south and said, "After we go out to sea, we will head south directly. We will bypass the Manila waters and then head north."
Chen Qingsheng said with shame: "Captain, you have bypassed the southernmost tip of our country. When we go north again, not to mention being stuck on the only way to catch fish, I'm afraid even the flood season in Naha will have passed."
Xiang Yang shook his head and said, "Even if we don't bypass the Manila waters, we should at least bypass the Dongsha waters. Believe in my judgment, warm-water fish will follow the Kuroshio and slowly swim northward according to the temperature difference. It takes at least half a month from the Kuroshio passing through to the arrival of the fishing season. After more than half a month, the temperature difference brought by the Kuroshio gradually disappears, and the fish begin to migrate south again. If we take this route, we can just catch up with the first wave of fishing season, and at the same time, we can also follow the big fish school."
"Okay, let's do as the captain says." Xu Fang said.
"Well, I'll go draw the nautical chart." Officer Chen also said.
"Well, go ahead." Xiang Yang nodded with a smile.
Soon, Wu Shiwen's crew members arrived at the dock one after another.
Three long whistles were sounded one after another at the Qinglongwan Wharf.
There were three fishing boats, with the ocean-going processing mother ship in the front, Wu Shiwen's large drift net fishing boat in the middle, and the large trawler led by Chen Qingsheng at the end. The three fishing boats were lined up in a row and slowly sailed towards the south.
Time slowly passed and two days passed.
That day, Xiang Yang was standing on the bow of the boat looking at the scenery, when Fang Youqun suddenly said in surprise: "Brother Yang, look, there is an island over there, and there are people on the island."
Xiang Yang looked up and saw that the two islands were one big and one small. The big one looked very big, and the small one was probably not even as big as a basketball court. On the bigger island, there were large reefs emerging from the sea and some very sparse vegetation. Faintly, you could see some houses and people living on it.
"It's normal. There are a lot of islands in Dongsha, and many of them are guarded by people." Xiang Yang said.
At this time, Xu Fang strode over and asked, "Captain, the conservation area ahead is where fishing boats are not allowed to enter. Should we bypass the conservation area and continue south, or go directly east?"
Xiang Yang hesitated for a moment and said directly: "Go east."
Xu Fang didn't seem surprised at Xiang Yang's answer. He continued to ask, "Captain, do you want to drag the net forward?"
Xiang Yang nodded, "I'm just waiting for those tropical waters to follow the Kuroshio to the north. If I don't drag the nets now, why would I come here because the fuel cost is too cheap?"
Xu Fang nodded, "Yes, Boss, I'll go inform Chen Qingsheng right away."
Soon, the fleet turned around and sailed towards the eastern waters.
The three fishing boats also slowly lined up in a row, started their winches and lowered their fishing nets into the sea.
Sailing eastward.
The sea water here has become very turbid after being washed by the Kuroshio Current.
The sea was pitch black, with no visibility at all. Lying on the side of the ship and looking at the sea, it was like looking at a huge mouth that was about to swallow everything. It was very scary.
The three fishing boats moved slowly forward.
“Chiu!”
At this moment, loud cries were heard from the sky.
"What's that sound?" Fang Youqun raised his head curiously and looked up into the air.
"Wow, Brother Yang, look, they're wild geese." Fang Youqun said with excitement.
Xiang Yang looked up at the sky, then said with a smile: "Nonsense, that's a red-crowned crane."
"What? Red-crowned cranes can fly?" Fang Youqun asked in surprise.
Xiang Yang nodded, "Of course the red-crowned crane can fly. Not only can it fly, but it can also fly very fast."
The skeleton of the red-crowned crane is hard on the outside and hollow on the inside, and is seven times stronger than that of human bones. During migration, the cranes are arranged in an ingenious wedge shape. The individuals behind can take advantage of the airflow generated by the flapping wings of the individuals in front in turn, allowing them to fly quickly, labor-savingly, and sustainably. They can reach speeds of around 40 kilometers per hour, fly at altitudes exceeding 5,000 meters, and sing while flying.
The red-crowned crane is a large wading bird that can grow to more than one meter in length. It has a long neck and legs, and is mostly white, with a bright red head, black throat and neck, white ears to headrest, and black legs. When standing, the neck, tail feathers and legs are black, the head is red, and the rest is all white.
Many people have seen red-crowned cranes in zoos, but few have seen them fly.
That’s because most people can’t see the red-crowned cranes when they are flying. Most of the red-crowned cranes in zoos have their wing feathers clipped or are tamed.
In fact, red-crowned cranes often move in pairs, family groups, or small groups.
During the migration season and winter, several or dozens of family groups often form larger groups, sometimes with up to a hundred individuals.
But no matter how many red-crowned cranes migrate, they are still dispersed into small groups or family groups within a certain area when they move around.
At night, red-crowned cranes generally like to live on shallow beaches surrounded by water or by reed ponds. They mainly feed on fish, shrimps, aquatic insects, mollusks, and stems, leaves, tubers, bulbs and fruits of aquatic plants.