After buying the boat, the next issue was hiring a crew.
The four positions of captain, first mate, chief engineer, and first assistant engineer were essential for any ocean-going fishing vessel. There were also the second mate, third mate, second assistant engineer, electricians, boatswain, head chef, and so on, with each post having its own responsibilities. (You can look these up if you're interested. This isn't a dedicated novel about ocean fishing, so I won't pad the story with details and will just gloss over them.)
With Uncle Jin Yang's help, Li Yang prepared to hire a group of capable people with good reputations, offering them wages slightly higher than other fishing boats.
As for the head chef position, he thought for a moment and decided against hiring an outsider, instead thinking of his younger uncle.
Li Guohai had a younger brother named Li Guoyang, who was Li Yang's younger uncle.
Li Guoyang's son, Li Yang's older cousin Li Jun, happened to be a chef. Li Jun had recently gotten married just over a year ago.
After some thought, Li Yang called Li Jun to ask if he'd be interested in coming to work on the boat for him.
...
Li Jun's family was of modest means, far less well-off than Li Yang's. They had managed to earn just over a million yuan in their entire lives, which was only enough for the down payment on a house in the city.
"Alright, Xiaoyang, I'm in. I've actually been thinking about changing jobs recently anyway," Li Jun said with a laugh.
After he hung up, a young woman beside him asked, "Li Jun, who was that on the phone?"
The young woman wasn't conventionally beautiful and was a little on the plump side, but she had a very cute overall appearance.
This was Li Jun's wife, Zhang Ya. They had been together for seven years, ever since college, and had a very strong relationship.
"It was my uncle's son, Li Yang," Li Jun said with a smile.
"Xiaoyang bought a fishing boat and wants me to be the chef on board."
Hearing this, Zhang Ya remarked curiously, "Your cousin's family must be pretty well-off."
She didn't have any other thoughts about it, though. 'Right now, Li Jun and I don't have much,' she thought, 'but we can build our own future through hard work.'
"Xiaojun, did you say Xiaoyang bought a fishing boat? And he wants you to be the chef?" Just then, Li Jun's father, Li Guoyang, walked over, asking in surprise.
"Yeah, Dad. My current pay isn't great, and Xiaoyang is offering me double what I make now," said Li Jun.
Now that he was married, with a mortgage and car payments to consider, he wanted to work harder and earn more to give Zhang Ya a better life. That was why he was planning to find a new job.
Li Guoyang thought for a moment, then said, "I'm going to ask my older brother. Where did Xiaoyang get that kind of money?"
Buying a large fishing boat was a huge deal. He knew his older brother's family was more comfortable financially, but only to a certain extent. Besides, Li Guohai was still in the hospital. For them to buy a fishing boat at a time like this was certainly a shock.
Li Guoyang made the call and hung up a short while later.
A look of shock was in his eyes. He never would have imagined that Li Yang had found a Dragon Palace Slit Shell on the beach and sold it for the astronomical price of seven million!
When he explained the situation to his family, Li Jun, Zhang Ya, and the others were filled with envy.
But living by the sea, they knew that finds like this were purely a matter of luck. A few years ago, someone in their neighborhood had caught a grouper and sold it for several hundred thousand.
"Xiaojun, since Xiaoyang has asked you to be the chef on his boat, make sure you do a good job," Li Guoyang advised. "Xiaoyang may be young, but he's much sharper than you. You listen to what he says. On that boat, he's the boss."
Li Jun nodded seriously. "I know, Dad."
He had an honest and dependable nature, which was precisely why Li Yang had thought of him.
As for his other relatives… Li Yang had no intention of turning the boat into a family-run business.
'I know my boat will bring in one good haul after another, and the crew's compensation will definitely be excellent. When hiring crew members, character is the most important factor.'
...
"Holy crap, Brother Li, you bought a fishing boat? You're gonna go out to sea and fish?"
After finishing up at the construction site, Sun Datao came looking for Li Yang. When he heard the news, his eyes went wide as saucers.
Then, Sun Datao grew excited again. "Brother Li, you still need people for your boat? What about me?"
His dream had always been to buy a big fishing boat and head out to sea.
Li Yang smiled. "You're in. Once all the paperwork for the boat is settled in a few days, we'll head out."
Sun Datao was tall and built like a tank. If nothing else, there was no questioning his strength.
'No matter what, it's always good to have someone you're close to on a boat.'
Of course, with Li Yang's current physical condition, he could take on dozens of opponents without a problem.
But in terms of sheer physique, Sun Datao was far more intimidating. His burly frame alone was enough to keep a lot of people in line.
He and Sun Datao were good friends. Sun Datao was currently working construction, so bringing him onto the boat would give Li Yang a reliable hand.
Watching the excited Sun Datao, Li Yang thought to himself, 'Sun Datao can be my right-hand man, and Brother Li Jun will be in charge of the food. Add about ten more people to that…'
The whole crew would be a dozen or so people.
"Haha! Brother Li, I'm going to go tell my parents right now. Don't worry, they'll definitely agree. And even if they don't, I'm coming anyway!"
Hearing Li Yang's confirmation, Sun Datao grew even more excited and said hurriedly.
He had absolutely no interest in construction work anyway.
...
For the next while, Li Yang simply waited.
Buying the boat and handling the paperwork all took time. Li Yang used this period to focus on his cultivation.
While he cultivated, his octopus avatar swam through the depths of the ocean, searching for targets like schools of large yellow croakers.
"Hm?"
Suddenly, Li Yang's focus sharpened.
His consciousness synced with the ocean floor. The octopus avatar was swimming along when a swordfish suddenly charged it. The fish was sixty centimeters long and attacked the avatar directly.
The octopus avatar dodged frantically, but one of its tentacles was still severed.
The swordfish wheeled around and attacked again, looking utterly vicious.
'No way. It's only been a day since the octopus avatar was created, and it's already going to die in the ocean…' Li Yang grew tense.
Right now, the octopus avatar was barely larger than the palm of his hand; any decent-sized fish posed a huge threat.
However, the seabed was dotted with reefs. The octopus avatar spotted a crevice in one, quickly swam inside, and hid.
The swordfish circled the area for a moment before turning to leave.
"Phew, that was close." Li Yang let out a slight sigh of relief. 'The ocean floor is truly dangerous everywhere.'
'Time to get back to cultivating!'
Seeing that his octopus avatar was safe, Li Yang relaxed and resumed his practice.
As he cultivated, the octopus avatar, for once, lay still.
Previously, the avatar had been like a busy little bee, constantly roaming the seabed without a moment's rest.
For Li Yang, the sooner he could find a school of large yellow croakers, the better.
HUMMM…
Li Yang sensed a peculiar energy from the world around him, which then flowed into his body.
His mind split between two tasks. As Li Yang sank into his cultivation, the small octopus avatar, which shared his consciousness, also subconsciously began to circulate the Cultivation Technique.
As it circulated the Cultivation Technique, a trace of that same peculiar energy seemed to emerge from the surrounding seawater and enter its body.
As it absorbed the energy, its severed tentacle began to regrow at a speed visible to the naked eye. Moreover, its other tentacles seemed to be growing longer as well.
"This is…"
Li Yang, deep in his cultivation, suddenly snapped back to reality, his face a mask of utter shock.
'The octopus avatar... is cultivating too?'