"Now's my chance!"
Seeing the giant lobster take the offensive, Li Yang's movements suddenly quickened. His hands shot out like lightning, impossibly managing to grab both of the lobster's claws at once.
Sensing the situation, the giant lobster rapidly flicked its tail, trying to retreat. But what kind of strength did Li Yang possess? How could it escape once he had it in his grasp?
"Come on out!"
A smile on his face, Li Yang used his terrifying strength to forcefully drag the giant lobster out from the crevice in the reef.
Pinning the massive crustacean down with one hand, Li Yang used his other to quickly tie up its two claws.
Finally, with everything secured, the giant lobster was completely at Li Yang's mercy, a prisoner of war.
He brought the lobster ashore. By now, it was already past ten o'clock at night.
There was almost no one left on the coast.
'First, I need to deal with this giant lobster.'
Li Yang had no intention of bringing the giant lobster home. After a moment's thought, he pulled out his phone, looked up the information and phone number for the "Spicy Lobster House," and made the call.
...
The owner of the "Spicy Lobster House" was a middle-aged man from Sichuan who had opened his restaurant in Coastal City five years ago.
His skill with lobsters was undeniable, but he was always just a step behind the "First Lobster House," owned by Lin Qiang's family. The two restaurants were in constant competition.
"Haha, Zhang Dazhi, I'll be taking my leave now," a portly, middle-aged man laughed heartily at Zhang Dazhi.
Today, Zhang Dazhi had run into Lin Kunming of the "First Lobster House." As the saying goes, those in the same trade are bitter rivals, so their meeting was naturally anything but harmonious. However, because his business was better, Lin Kunming naturally had the upper hand.
"Hmph!"
Watching Lin Kunming's departing figure, Zhang Dazhi snorted coldly. 'It's all thanks to that ninety-three-centimeter lobster. How else could you possibly compete with me?'
He knew in his heart the respective strengths and weaknesses of their two restaurants.
Most of the time, the taste of the lobster at both places was comparable. It all came down to reputation and gimmickry—that's what attracted more customers.
And with the largest lobster in Coastal City, the "First Lobster House" clearly had the bigger name.
It wasn't that Zhang Dazhi hadn't thought of buying a bigger one; he simply couldn't. Even if one was caught somewhere, it would be bought by someone else before it ever reached him.
This world wasn't short on rich people, and plenty of them would be interested in such a huge lobster. It was perfectly normal for some wealthy individuals to buy one just to raise at home or to eat. Someone had once caught a 1.2-meter-long lobster that was bought for six hundred thousand yuan and eaten.
A single meal costing millions was not just talk.
After another snort, Zhang Dazhi felt a wave of helplessness. He knew that unless he also had a show-stopping treasure for his restaurant, he'd never have a chance to surpass the "First Lobster House."
Just as he was thinking this, his phone suddenly rang. He glanced at it and saw the call was from his restaurant.
"Hello."
Answering the call, Zhang Dazhi's expression was calm at first, but it changed in less than three seconds. He shot to his feet, his face filled with astonished delight. "What did you say? A one-meter-long lobster?! ...Hurry to the beach... I'm heading there too... Right, don't let a word of this get out!"
After hanging up, Zhang Dazhi's face was alight with joy.
He hurried out of the hotel, preparing to drive to the beach.
In the parking lot, Lin Kunming was on the phone and hadn't left yet. He saw the smile on Zhang Dazhi's face and couldn't help but feel a little puzzled.
'What could Zhang Dazhi possibly be so happy about?'
However, the moment Zhang Dazhi saw Lin Kunming, his smile vanished. He put on a stern expression, got in his car, and drove away immediately.
Lin Kunming was on the phone with his son.
"Dad, it's all settled then. I have forty-five classmates coming over tomorrow," Lin Qiang said cheerfully over the phone. "If they think the food is good, they'll bring their families to eat here in the future. Won't that indirectly bring a lot more business to our restaurant?"
Lin Qiang was in a great mood. The matter was resolved, and his dad had agreed.
Except for a few people like Li Yang, Zhou Yao, and Sun Datao, everyone else in the class was coming to his family's restaurant for lobster tomorrow.
'After we eat tomorrow, we should all take a picture together. I wonder what kind of face Li Yang will make?'
Lin Qiang thought excitedly to himself, feeling like he was rallying the entire class to ostracize Li Yang.
On the other end of the line, Lin Kunming nodded. "Alright, but this is a one-time thing. I can give your classmates a 10% off coupon, though."
Lin Kunming wasn't generous enough to just give away free meals.
But they were his son's classmates, so he couldn't very well refuse and make his son lose face.
After hanging up, Lin Kunming couldn't resist another glance at Zhang Dazhi's car, which was now just a speck in the distance.
Thinking of the smile on Zhang Dazhi's face, Lin Kunming felt a strange sense of foreboding. But the feeling was fleeting. He shook his head, put it out of his mind, and made a call to his restaurant to reserve tables and set aside enough lobster for his son's classmates.
...
Zhang Dazhi arrived at the beach, brimming with excitement. He wasn't alone; two other employees from the "Spicy Lobster House" were with him.
Upon arriving, Zhang Dazhi quickly found Li Yang. The moment he saw the giant lobster at Li Yang's feet, his eyes lit up, unable to hide the delighted surprise on his face.
The "First Lobster House" was only able to suppress his restaurant because of its ninety-three-centimeter lobster. The one before him was definitely longer than ninety-three centimeters!
"Hello, I'm Zhang Dazhi, the owner of the Spicy Lobster House. I was wondering if you would be willing to sell this lobster, young brother?" Taking a deep breath, Zhang Dazhi tried to calm himself before getting straight to the point.
He spoke very politely. He was determined to get this lobster, but he knew the ball was in Li Yang's court.
Li Yang smiled. "Since I'm the one who called you, I'm obviously planning to sell. I'm just wondering what price Boss Zhang is offering?"
Zhang Dazhi thought for a moment and said, "Could I measure its length and weight first?"
Li Yang nodded, not refusing.
The measurement was over quickly. The results showed that the giant lobster was 101 centimeters long and weighed twenty-three jin.
Knowing the exact length, Zhang Dazhi's heart burned even hotter. He thought for a moment and said, "Young brother, a price for a lobster this big is hard to estimate. It's not right to calculate it by weight. However, lobsters of this size have been caught before, and you can look up their prices. The transaction price is usually around one hundred fifty thousand. How about this, I'll add thirty thousand and buy it for one hundred eighty thousand."