On the riverbank, Da Lang, who was catching fish with his younger siblings and guests, suddenly caught a whiff of a strong barbecue aroma.
In that moment of distraction, a fish swam past his feet.
Qi Xian shouted, "Da Lang, fish! Fish!"
He looked so anxious, as if he couldn't wait to jump into the river himself to help spear the rare big fish.
Unfortunately, Shi Tou and Ah Gu just instructed him not to go into the river, fearing he'd catch a cold.
This time of year, even with the sun in the sky, the river water is still cold. Not only did Qi Xian want to go in but couldn't, the two gentlemen of the Song Family were also begged by the servants not to go into the river.
But the Da Lang brothers and sisters had no such restrictions, grabbing their homemade fish spears and rolling up their cotton pants before heading into the river.
The water wasn't too cold, nor too deep—half as shallow as in the summer. This part of the river barely reached Si Niang's thigh.
