Reincarnated as a Fisherman and a Dad

[Pujimaki]

Reincarnated as a Fisherman and a Dad Chapter 194


Maya woke up from a nap and found her husband doing the dishes.

"...Karlos." Maya smiled affectionately. She stood up, walked over to Karlos, and hugged him lovingly from behind. She saw Karlos's butt and gave it a playful slap. Karlos didn't mind at all. This certainly wasn't the first time it had happened anyway.

"I can smell the beer." She said while squeezing Karlos's ass.

"Yeah, just one bottle, though."

Maya helped Karlos prepare the dishes while he shared details of his conversation with Gustavo regarding the ice shop.

"I support it. Gustavo is someone we can trust."

Maya was actually somewhat worried because they had been earning a substantial amount over the past few months, and she wasn't sure what to do with all the money. The couple had already set aside millions in education funds for the twins, yet millions still remained in their savings account.

Investing in another business seemed like a sensible idea.

That night, Maya had no choice but to give the twins a warm shower because they were filthy from playing on the beach. Sand clung to every inch of their skin.

Watching her two babies growing up so healthily, Maya decided it was finally time to potty train them. She was getting tired of changing diapers. The children would always yell her name whenever they soiled themselves, which had become quite a chore.

They would be turning 2 years old in January. She felt a bit melancholy that her children were growing up so fast, but she was happy nonetheless.

"You two are still so adorable!" Maya tickled them while dressing them in clean clothes, making the twins giggle uncontrollably. Today had been a delightful day filled with fun activities, and the children were eagerly anticipating the next morning so they could play with their friends again.

.........

......

...

Early the next day, Karlos and his two partners started their work early. They bought 9 gallons of diesel from Edmond for 800 pesos. They then went to the small store near the beach to purchase 3 blocks of ice, only to find that the ice was already sold out.

"Considering that we're not going to stay out at sea all day, the fish won't spoil."

To be honest, it all depended on the weather, but it was true that they had never experienced any spoilage before.

The fishermen in their neighborhood always cooperated whenever heavy labor was involved. They helped push each boat to the shoreline until everyone was set to sail.

As Karlos and the others traveled further out, he recalled his conversation with Gustavo.

"Speaking of ice, Gustavo actually asked me about a good business for our beach area. I suggested an ice shop."

"An ice shop, huh." Andres was quite interested. However, he knew that starting an ice business was fairly expensive, and he wasn't sure if he possessed the proper business acumen.

"That's expensive, right?" Brandon asked.

"It is. Probably half a million pesos. But I offered Gustavo a business deal."

"You're interested investing in an ice shop?"

"Why not? It seems like a solid idea. I told him I'd shoulder half of the investment, but I want a 50% stake in the business."

"Isn't that a bit much? You just supply half the funds and automatically own half the business, while Gustavo has to manage the shop and the entire operation. You earn money while doing practically nothing. I'm not sure if Gustavo will agree to that," Brandon offered, sharing his perspective.

"I know he won't agree outright. I only offered that steep deal because I know Gustavo will counteroffer."

"Are you sure about that?"

"It depends. Either way, I won't lose anything."

It didn't matter if Gustavo shouldered the entire investment or found another partner to work with. Karlos already owned plenty of assets and had no reason to feel bitter about it.

As the sea breeze brushed against Andres's face, he had a sudden realization.

'Karlos and Brandon already own a shrimp farm while I don't have anything. Starting a business is necessary to keep the money circulating.' Andres had previously been invited by the two to visit the shrimp farm, and he was shocked to learn that the entire operation was actually owned by Karlos, with Brandon holding a 5% stake.

It would be a lie to say he wasn't envious, but he also readily admitted that his two friends deserved their success. They worked exceptionally hard.

Now, Andres felt that he should also own a business aside from being a fisherman.

"If Gustavo is interested in partnering with you, then I want in on it too," Andres said.

"Hey, count me in as well! You can't just leave me behind." As someone who knew all about Karlos's incredible luck, Brandon wanted a piece of the business, too.

"You guys want a share in the ice shop?"

"Yeah. In fact, we could just open our own ice shop instead, just the three of us," Andres suggested.

"And who's going to manage it? Our main career is fishing, and we're always out at sea. Our children are still young, and our wives can't handle running a business at the moment," Karlos pointed out.

Karlos had actually brought up the idea of hiring a helper or maid to Maya, but she was strongly against having another adult living in their home. It didn't matter whether the helper was a relative or a stranger, Maya preferred to keep their household private.

Her first reason was that she and Karlos maintained an active sex life, and it would be embarrassing if someone else were around.

The second reason was the fear of an affair. What had happened when Claire tried to seduce Karlos was something Maya never wanted to experience again. She would rather manage the entire household herself than let another woman into their home.

And if the helper were a man instead, Karlos would be the one to object. He certainly wouldn't like having another man in the house while he was out working.

So yes, the couple felt that hiring a helper or a maid would do more harm than good.

"We could hire employees to run the place instead," Andres noted.

"That's a possibility. How about this? If Gustavo doesn't contact me within a week, we'll launch our own ice shop. I already gave Gustavo my word, and it would be disrespectful to go back on it. In fact, it would be even more disrespectful if we built our own ice shop to compete directly against his."

Andres and Brandon readily agreed with his reasoning.

[Thank you for reading this novel.]

 

[Pujimaki]

Reincarnated as a Fisherman and a Dad Chapter 195


That day, their catch didn't suffer any spoilage, but they agreed that having ice was better because it kept the quality of the fish pristine. They earned about 517,000 pesos that day. They were slowly growing numb to earning such a huge amount on a daily basis.

'I talked to Antonio, and he said that his commercial trawler boat earned 1 million pesos in three to four days. But his net profit was only 600,000 to 700,000 pesos because the operating expenses were quite high whenever they stayed at sea longer,' Karlos thought.

He couldn't believe that their mid-sized bangka earned money faster than a commercial trawler.

For reference, a commercial trawler could only harvest fish once or twice per day. They deployed a massive trawling net that was at least 100 meters long and 40 meters deep. It was extremely heavy, taking many hours just to haul the entire net back in, especially when it was filled with fish.

So it was not surprising that a commercial trawler could only net 1 million pesos in three days. Karlos and his mid-sized bangka were actually the abnormal ones. The fact that they didn't have to wait long to land a catch was a massive blessing in itself.

Right as the bangka reached the shore, a group of teenagers was already waiting for them. These teens earned hundreds of pesos just by pushing the boat, perhaps this was why they didn't bother going to school, knowing they could make easy money just by idling around the beach.

Yet the thing that caught Karlos's attention most was Gustavo, who was standing at the beach store.

"Do you need help carrying stuff?" Gustavo asked.

"I won't decline your goodwill. You can carry this." Karlos passed him the thermos.

After thinking about it, they decided to leave the storage boxes and fuel gallons in the boat, as those items weren't critical to bring back.

Brandon and Andres exchanged a quick glance, confirming their suspicions.

'It seems like Gustavo is really interested in partnering with Karlos.'

They stared at Karlos's back as he walked ahead. They realized what an amazing person Karlos was. His understanding of the world was far broader than that of the typical folks living in town. He was remarkably knowledgeable, too. Following someone like him was certainly not a bad idea. In fact, they constantly reaped good fortune just by staying close to him.

The four men reached Karlos's house and stored the equipment in the shed.

"I guess you're here because you want to talk to me," Karlos said.

"That's right," Gustavo nodded, then glanced uncertainly at Brandon and Andres, who lingered nearby.

"Don't worry, Brandon and Andres can be trusted."

"We're actually interested in investing in your business too," Andres chimed in.

"Really?"

Gustavo was caught off guard. He had been mulling it over all night. He lacked confidence in running a venture alone and was terrified of shouldering the entire investment only to lose everything. At the same time, he fully agreed that starting an ice shop was a solid idea since local competition was practically nonexistent.

Since he didn't want to shoulder all the risk himself, bringing Karlos into the equation felt like a wise move.

And now, realizing that Andres and Brandon were also eager to join the partnership, he was even more relieved. Having four people divide the initial investment meant far less individual risk if the business didn't work out.

Gustavo wanted to run a business, but he lacked confidence in his entrepreneurial skills. He was scared to do it completely on his own. After all, he had studied Marine Engineering, not business management.

To take this big step, he needed the guidance of someone he could trust implicitly. Knowing that Karlos was already a co-owner of a successful shrimp farm was more than enough reason for Gustavo to place his trust in him.

"Okay, let's talk in my garden. I built a small kubo there where we can sit down and chat."

Once they finished putting the equipment away in the shed, Karlos opened the door and spoke to Maya, who was holding the twins. She had held them back earlier so they wouldn't disturb them while Karlos was carrying heavy gear, which could be dangerous.

"Babe, we're going to discuss some business in the garden."

"Papa!"

Now that Karlos's hands were free, Maya released the twins. They immediately rushed over and hugged his legs, and Karlos gently patted their heads.

"Alright, I'll bring you all something to drink," Maya nodded.

"Mama, I want to pway in the gawden too," Iñigo said.

"Okay, just don't disturb Papa and his friends while they're talking," Maya said, letting the children head outside. "And remember, don't pick the plants or flowers."

"Hehe!"

Karlos scooped up the twins and walked down the pathway along the right side of the house, with the other three men following closely behind.

He set the twins down on the grass, and they immediately dashed over to the swing Karlos had built for them a few months ago.

With the sound of innocent giggles echoing in the background, Karlos and the men got straight to business regarding the ice shop.

"I have no issue with bringing more partners into the business. But let's get the financial expectations clear first," Gustavo said.

"In exchange for a 50% stake in the business, you'll need to provide 500,000 pesos in total capital. I'll be the one managing the shop day-to-day, and we'll be using my family's property as the storefront. The 500,000 pesos investment will be used to purchase the commercial ice makers and renovate the space." After thinking it through, Gustavo had decided it was best to let them supply the main capital while he contributed the physical location and labor. This way, he felt completely comfortable yielding half ownership to them.

Brandon and Andres were taken aback. Gustavo was asking for half a million pesos upfront. Sure, they could easily afford it given how much they had earned over the past few months, but it was still a substantial sum of money.

Instead of answering immediately, Brandon and Andres looked over at Karlos. They had silently agreed that Karlos was the ultimate decision-maker of their group. He possessed a clear grasp of business dynamics and had yet to experience a single failure. Whatever he decided, they were prepared to follow.


[Thank you for reading this novel.]