"It seems I need to make a trip to Shenchuan and Lushun," Li Haochen thought for a long time. He decided to start with abalone and sea cucumber. Although their growth period was long, their returns were ten to tens of times higher than ordinary seafood. With the spatial dimension providing a twofold speed advantage, wealth accumulation would not be slow.
As for fish, shrimp, and crabs, he'd let them be. With the large cages in Butterfly Bay and Niuwei Bay, there would be no shortage of these. However, he could focus on sea snails and oysters. Since they wouldn't run away while being raised, it was convenient. Initial accumulation would rely on these.
The next day, Li Haochen called Gu Xiaonian and assigned him a new task: to acquire sea snails and scallops of all varieties.
After arranging this, Li Haochen drove to the dock.
Upon arriving, Li Haochen naturally didn't forget to greet the security guard, Uncle Wang Xiaoming, and offer him two packs of cigarettes.
"Uncle Ming, it's been a while. How have you been lately!"
"Haochen, you haven't been here for quite some time. What have you been busy with!" In fact, he knew everything about Li Haochen's business, even the mountain he had acquired recently. Although some things were beyond his understanding, he didn't think Li Haochen was messing around.
"This and that, just busy with trivial matters, hahaha!"
After chatting with Wang Xiaoming for a few sentences and asking him to look after his car, Li Haochen went to the Star辰号.
After many days of absence, it was covered in dust. Li Haochen rolled up his pant legs, rolled up his sleeves, turned on the high-pressure washer, and began to clean. When it was almost done, he called for a fuel tanker to refuel.
Half an hour later, the cleaning was completed, and the fuel and water were also filled. Li Haochen patted the side of the boat, "It's been a long time since I've touched you, hehe!"
After re-checking all the equipment and confirming everything was normal, Li Haochen sounded the horn, and the Star辰号 slowly sailed out. However, its destination was not Shenchuan or Lushun, but the shipyard. It was time for the Star辰号 to get a major overhaul.
He had already called Li Yongxin when he arrived. As soon as the Star辰号 entered the dry dock, Li Yongxin appeared on the shore. "Boss Li, let's go inside and sit for a while. This maintenance will take two to three hours."
"So long?"
"This is considered fast. I've called two shifts of technicians, so it's this fast. Otherwise, it would take a whole day, hehe!"
"Then thank you!"
Li Haochen followed Li Yongxin inside. During this time, he kept trying to sell him various new luxury fishing boats. Seeing that he was unmoved, he changed the subject, "Boss Li, how are those fishing boats?"
"They are quite good."
Li Haochen was not lying. The last time he visited Dai Changrun and the others, they all praised the fishing boats.
"That's good. Boss Li, will there be a chance to order another batch?"
"Not yet. If I need them, I will definitely contact Manager Li, hehe!"
Li Haochen had originally planned to increase the number of fishing boats. However, now that he had made peace with the Hong and Li families and there was no blockade of seafood, the fishing boats were no longer so important.
Seeing that Li Haochen was not very interested, Li Yongxin naturally did not pester him like a fly. They chatted about trivial matters, current events, and football. Time flew by.
This major overhaul was indeed not cheap, costing 4,000 silver dollars. If his fifteen fishing boats were serviced twice a year, this amount would be considerable.
After paying, Li Haochen boarded the Star辰号 and sailed away. It had to be said that the Star辰号, after its major overhaul, felt completely different when sailing. It had a smooth, unhindered feel. The money was well spent.
"Let's go, we're going to buy abalone!"
Li Haochen made a left turn and proceeded towards Shenchuan at full speed.
Shenchuan was not far from Binhai. It would take seven to eight hours to reach by boat, but it was much farther by car, requiring a full day's drive.
By the time he reached the waters of Shenchuan, it was already past nine o'clock at night. After some thought, he decided to spend the night at sea. If he went to the dock at this hour, he would have to finish the procedures by midnight.
He had originally wanted to go fishing, but after seven hours of sailing and given the late hour, he abandoned the idea. Although he couldn't fish, he could still set down some cages. After all, he just had to throw them in, and let nature take its course. Otherwise, wouldn't the seven or eight hours of sleep be wasted? Making money while lying down was a great deal.
However, as soon as he threw them in, he regretted it. It was still the fishing ban period, and if he was caught by the enforcement team, it would be game over. Li Haochen slapped his forehead, a wry smile on his face. He quickly sank the ropes that secured the cages to the seabed and decided to retrieve them by diving into the spatial dimension the next day.
The next morning, a harsh horn blast from outside the ship woke Li Haochen. He quickly put on his clothes and went outside.
Upon seeing the situation, his heart tightened. He quickly scanned the side of the ship and then remembered that he had sunk the ropes of the cages to the seabed last night. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.
"Hello, we are from the Shenchuan Marine Comprehensive Law Enforcement Detachment. We will be boarding to conduct a routine inspection of your vessel. Please cooperate."
"No problem, please!"
After two enforcement officers boarded the ship, they opened their chest-mounted recorders and said, "Here are our credentials."
Li Haochen took the credentials and glanced at them a few times, nodding to signal them to proceed with the inspection.
More than ten minutes later, the two enforcement officers returned to the deck. "Mr. Li, thank you very much for your cooperation."
"It is our duty, and you have worked hard!"
Watching the direction the enforcement team left, Li Haochen dared not dive in immediately. They had only been gone for a few minutes, and there was a possibility they were using binoculars for stakeout enforcement. He decided to wait.
After waiting for another half an hour, Li Haochen entered the spatial dimension and began to put on his diving gear. After checking that everything was in order, he came out and walked to the stern of the ship.
"Plop~"
With a clear splash, several white flowers churned, and Li Haochen had already dived into the seabed. The water clarity below was not good, but it was not difficult to find the cages.
Soon, Li Haochen found the cages not far from the anchor chain. He had no intention of checking their contents. He quickly brought them into the spatial dimension, threw them into the seawater by the beach, and ran out to continue. Fortunately, he had only set down more than thirty cages yesterday, otherwise, he would have been busy for a while.
It took about half an hour to finally bring them all into the spatial dimension. Just as he was about to go out to board the ship and set sail, he decided it was better to change out of his diving gear. Scuba diving was not allowed here. If those enforcement officers made a surprise return, it would be hard to explain. Although there was no evidence indicating he was fishing, it was better to avoid trouble. Being targeted was not a pleasant experience, especially by law enforcement agencies.
After changing his clothes and taking a deep breath, he went out into the outside world. A minute later, Li Haochen surfaced. Just as he climbed onto the ship, the enforcement team had indeed returned, making Li Haochen's mouth twitch. What the heck, were they bored?
"Excuse me, we need to board again for a routine inspection. Please cooperate!"
"Hurry up, I need to leave!"
A few minutes later, the two men met on the deck without finding anything. The leading man looked at the completely wet Li Haochen again and said, "Mr. Li, thank you again for your cooperation."
"Enough, if there's nothing wrong, I'm leaving."
Li Haochen was no longer in a good mood. They had come to check twice in such a short time? Were they that idle?