Li Hao Chen had just raised the anchor when the Mu family boats on both sides saw this and quickly raised their anchors as well.
However, Li Hao Chen's Starship was an innovative yacht, unlike their pure fishing boats. It was much more agile and had a faster maximum speed. With a sharp left turn and acceleration, Li Hao Chen zipped behind Mu Family Army No. 18, flooring the throttle and instantly picking up speed.
"Holy shit, catch up. No. 18, you on the right, I'm on the left. Chase him from both sides. Xiao Liu, get on deck and film. You only get paid if you have evidence."
For a while, a strange phenomenon was observed near Dunhuang Island: boat chasing, yes, boat chasing.
Li Hao Chen's Starship was significantly faster than their two fishing boats. Li Hao Chen kept reducing his speed, down to 28 knots, before the two pursuers could catch up.
Looking at the fuel gauge, Li Hao Chen grinned, "Heh heh, I'm rich, let's play."
On Mu Family Army No. 08, Lan Qi Cheng stared grimly at the Starship a hundred meters away, then at his own boat, "Damn it, this broken piece of junk."
"Captain, this won't do. Look, he's clearly holding back speed, while we're at maximum. As the gap widens, we'll run out of fuel before him."
Lan Qi Cheng's eyes darkened, and he picked up the radio, "No. 18, how much fuel do you have left?"
Liao Gang understood Lan Qi Cheng's intention as soon as he heard it, but he wasn't foolish enough to help him, "Heh heh, about the same as you."
"I..."
"Ah, what did you say? Bad signal, can't hear..."
"Fuck, no signal?" Lan Qi Cheng stomped his foot, looking at No. 18, which was forty to fifty meters away.
"Captain, what about us then?"
Lan Qi Cheng was very reluctant to give up the easy money, 200,000 yuan, at least tens of thousands could be shared. But the fact remained that he couldn't catch up. While he was hesitating, Li Hao Chen arrogantly spoke into the radio, "Hahaha, are you eunuchs impotent? You're done so quickly? Come on, hurry up, I'll even give you two more knots."
The word "impotent" might have struck a nerve with Lan Qi Cheng. He glared, clenched his fists, and slammed the steering wheel, "Damn it, Starship, I'll never rest until I'm done with you."
The two crew members beside him wanted to persuade him, but seeing Lan Qi Cheng's expression, they didn't dare to speak. At worst, they would run out of gas and call for a tow. They wouldn't have to pay.
Li Hao Chen's occasional provocations drove Lan Qi Cheng mad. He wanted to get his hands on Li Hao Chen and grind him into the ground, but he couldn't catch up, so he could only stare with bloodshot eyes.
After an unknown amount of time chasing, both boats were almost out of fuel. Lan Qi Cheng looked at the Starship ahead through his binoculars, "Huh, its speed has slowed down a bit? Could it be..."
Seeing the Starship continuing to slow down, Lan Qi Cheng laughed with some certainty, "Hahaha, it must be out of fuel."
"Xiao Liu, go film. Let's get ready to ram them. Hahaha."
Li Hao Chen's Starship was indeed out of fuel, but he still had two 60-liter reserve tanks. "Hahaha, luckily I brought two cans of oil when I set off. It should last me until Zhoushan Pier."
As soon as he finished refueling, Li Hao Chen came out to find the deck of Mu Family Army No. 08 filled with people trying to get close and board. Li Hao Chen grinned, then executed a sharp tail spin, drenching Lan Qi Cheng and his crew, flashed them the international gesture, and sped away.
"Holy shit, bastard, let's chase!"
This time, it wasn't just Lan Qi Cheng's problem. All the other crew members stood on deck, glaring at the Starship that had just left, holding cans and other items, ready to throw them at it the moment it got close.
Who would have thought that ten minutes later, the engine of Mu Family Army No. 08 coughed, sputtered a few times, and then died.
"Star... Ship..." Lan Qi Cheng gritted his teeth, squeezing these three words out from between his teeth.
After a few minutes of driving without seeing any boats following behind, Li Hao Chen became suspicious, "Out of fuel or playing hard to get?"
Li Hao Chen decided to go back and take a look. Even if they were playing hard to get, it wouldn't matter as long as he didn't get too close. They couldn't catch up at all.
Lan Qi Cheng, who was desperately calling for rescue, was almost choked to death by Li Hao Chen's unexpected return.
"Good thing I was smart enough to stay far away, hehe!"
Li Hao Chen watched as the crew of the No. 08 boat continuously threw bowls, pots, pans, cans, and fruits at him. However, the distance was a bit too far, rendering their efforts useless.
Watching these monkey-like performances, Li Hao Chen couldn't stop laughing, bent over, patted his butt, and shouted in his broken Cantonese, "You can't blow me down, you can't make me long, pa pa pa... hahaha!"
Still not satisfied, Li Hao Chen even started dancing the Seagrass dance on deck. His infuriating demeanor made everyone on the No. 08 boat jump with anger. With nothing to throw, they could only curse from afar.
Li Hao Chen knew he couldn't win the verbal argument, so he had already slipped into the cabin and set off. Of course, the moment he set off, he didn't forget to use the radio to have the last word before turning it off and heading towards Zhoushan Pier.
Without the disruptive Mu family boats, Li Hao Chen sailed at an economical speed. With limited fuel, he dared not be reckless.
After more than an hour of excitement and no danger, they finally entered Zhoushan Pier.
Perhaps it was a characteristic of all piers, but as soon as Li Hao Chen docked his boat, security guards approached him, "Boss, are you looking for long-term or short-term rental?"
"Uh, what's the difference?"
"Long-term rental is cheaper, 5,000 a month. Short-term rental is 200 a day, it can be one day or multiple days. Less than a day is also calculated as one day."
"Damn, this is considered cheap? More expensive than Binhai..." Li Hao Chen inwardly scoffed, but didn't say anything. It was their territory, and no one would do something stupid without reason.
After paying 200 yuan and offering a pack of "Red Double Happiness" cigarettes as a bribe, he got the number for refueling.
A few minutes later, a fuel truck arrived, so quickly that Li Hao Chen was almost incredulous, "Brother, your gas station is really fast, I give you a thumbs up."
The refueling man looked distressed, "Ah, boss, it's just that there's no business, that's why we're so fast. Don't you see there are few boats at the pier? They've all gone to Binhai for the fishing competition."
Li Hao Chen chuckled sheepishly. He dared not say that he was the one who orchestrated this competition. If they knew, they might even mug him.
Refueling took quite a long time, a full half hour before the tank was full. The two cans of oil he had earlier made Li Hao Chen realize the importance of preparedness, so this time he bought a full 10 cans.
When paying, Li Hao Chen's mouth twitched, "Thanks to Great Emperor Putin!"
Li Hao Chen got on the boat, inspected it, locked the cabin door, and headed towards the city. It was rare to be ashore, and he had paid for a day's rental, so he might as well stay longer.
Instead of using a ride-hailing service, there was a bus stop right next to the pier. Li Hao Chen sat on the bus, enjoying the scenery along the way in Zhoushan City.