Chapter 4: The Ways of the World

Su Yu was pleasantly surprised. Ever since he had regained consciousness, he had wondered if he possessed a system, but he had been too busy to ponder it. Now that it had manifested so unexpectedly, he was naturally overjoyed.

It appeared to be a system that converted experience points into skill points, and he already had a guess as to what those skill points were for.

Host: Su Yu
Age: 19
Strength: 8
Speed: 8
Skill Points: 1
Skill: Fishing Lv2+

Glancing at the plus sign next to his fishing skill, he tapped it firmly with his mind.

"Hum..."

In an instant, Fishing Lv2 upgraded to Fishing Lv3. A wave of specialized fishing techniques flooded his brain as if he had experienced an epiphany; he suddenly understood everything, even down to the exact amount of force required in his hands.

He believed this not only granted him the knowledge of how much strength to apply, but had also automatically generated muscle memory. The effect was subtle since he had only leveled up once, but he knew it would become remarkably apparent after eight or ten levels.

"Splash!"

Distracted by his own thoughts, the half-pound silver carp he had caught managed to wriggle free from the branch and fall back into the water.

Su Yu snapped back to reality. "Hey, you think you're getting away?"

Without hesitation, he gripped the wooden branch and thrust it downward with force, pinning the carp once more.

This time, however, he gained no experience points, a detail that left him deep in thought.

Nevertheless, it didn't hinder his fishing. He now had an intuitive grasp of where the fish liked to gather in the river. While not perfectly precise, he could sense their general location. Thus, a fishing frenzy ensued.

"Time to head back."

He tightened the grass rope tied around his waist, which now held several fish, each weighing at least half a pound.

The river was shallow, so there weren't any large fish. There was a deep pool at the foot of the mountain downstream that likely held bigger ones, but they were rare in the main river.

Climbing onto the bank, Su Yu opened his system interface while walking home.

Host: Su Yu
Age: 19
Strength: 8
Speed: 8
Skill Points: 35
Skill: Fishing Lv3

Thirty-five skill points. The number of points seemed unrelated to the quantity of fish, but rather tied to their size—or perhaps their vitality. He wasn't certain, but simply put, the larger the fish, the more experience points it yielded.

He had caught seven or eight fish, the largest being three pounds, some medium ones around a pound, and mostly half-pounders.

In total, he had nearly ten pounds of fish, which left him quite satisfied. More importantly, he had discovered the system's true potential; it was clearly not just for fishing.

He walked home cautiously, avoiding prying eyes. In these times, the collective mentality was strong, and resources were often viewed as belonging to the group. While the San Shui Wan village didn't operate under a communal kitchen system, organized hunting was usually done for the village as a whole.

Of course, no one would snatch what you caught individually, but there would always be people making snide remarks or harboring jealousy. A few fish were usually overlooked, but if he brought home too much, some shameless people would surely come begging.

After taking several detours, he finally reached home. As he entered, a little girl with braided hair came running toward him.

"Ah... Third Brother, did you catch fish?"

The little girl was eight years old. Aside from a slight accent and calling him "Third Brother" with a unique inflection, she spoke clearly.

"Shh! Keep it down. Don't let everyone know, or Uncle will stir up Grandma to come and take them."

His grandmother lived in the center of the village, while his home was at the far western end. He wasn't truly worried about his uncle, but he used this to scare the little girl. She wouldn't understand complex logic, but she knew well that their grandmother often took their best things. Despite her age, she was more sensible than most children—the children of the poor grew up early, after all. That was why she had thrown herself over him during the day to protect her Third Brother.

Hearing this, the girl covered her mouth, daring not to make a sound.

"Go, get a basin. I'll clean these, and I'll stew fish for you at noon."

The girl was obedient; she fetched a wooden basin and drew water, her diligence making his heart ache.

Su Yu cleaned the fish quickly. He decided to stew the half-pounders; with so many people in his family, they would be able to finish them. He set aside the three-pound fish, however.

"Little one, watch the fire. Don't let the water boil away. I'm going to take a fish to the village secretary."

Su Daqiang had helped him secure ten yuan earlier that day, and it wouldn't be right to show no gratitude. Even though they were relatives within the same clan and village, etiquette had to be observed.

The girl nodded obediently and sat before the stove, feeding firewood into the hearth. In rural areas, it was common for seven or eight-year-olds to cook. Even if the stove was taller than her, it was a daily reality for children to stand on stools to cook.

One couldn't expect gourmet food, of course; as long as it was cooked through and not too salty or bland, it was enough. Today, Su Yu was doing the cooking; he only needed her to watch the fire.

Su Yu carried the fish to Su Daqiang's house. He didn't sneak around; if anyone asked, he would simply say he caught them in the river and was gifting one to the old secretary. Everyone in the village knew about the events of the day, so people would only praise him for his manners. No one would dare be jealous, given Su Daqiang's prestige.

"Old Secretary? Old Secretary?" He knocked on the door and called out.

"Who is it? Oh, it's Su Yu. Come in, come in."

The door was opened by Su Daqiang's wife. She had clearly just returned from the fields, as she hadn't even changed her clothes.

"Are you looking for Daqiang? Dear, Su Yu is here to see you."

As the old woman called out, Su Yu entered politely, greeted her, and stood at the entrance of the courtyard.

"Su Yu, you're here. What's this?"

Su Daqiang came out and immediately saw the fish. His wife had seen it too, but she hadn't dared to ask, fearing the fish might not be for them. In this era, food was precious. People didn't visit during mealtimes, and they brought their own rations when visiting relatives. It wasn't out of stinginess, but because food was survival.

"Hehe, Old Secretary, I went fishing in the river earlier and caught a few extra. I couldn't finish them, so I brought one for you and the auntie. Quick, find a large basin—this fish is still alive!"