When Huangfu Yun saw the little guy's hands grabbing his daughter-in-law's breasts and his pink face rubbing against them, he immediately let out a strange cry.
"Get out of my way, I'm perfectly well-behaved..."
When Zhuang Rui saw his wife standing right next to him, he quickly tried to distance himself from the situation, which only made everyone burst into laughter.
After Huangfu Yun and his wife had taken a ride, Zhuang Rui also took Qin Xuanbing on board. They flew around in the sky and found it quite impressive. The stability and noise level were incomparable to those of military helicopters.
The helicopter's cabin is fully enclosed and features bulletproof and noise-absorbing glass, making it very comfortable to sit inside.
Originally, this was ordered by a Hong Kong tycoon, but Qin Haoran knew that his son-in-law wanted to buy a helicopter for the ship, so he shamelessly approached the tycoon and got the helicopter from him, which was considered a gift from the Qin family to Zhuang Rui.
Although Zhuang Rui hadn't mentioned the time he helped Qin's Jewelry select diamonds in South Africa, Qin Haoran still felt uneasy about it and took this opportunity to give Zhuang Rui some compensation.
The drilling platform and floating crane on the ferry had been fully commissioned five days ago, but because they had to wait for the helicopter, Zhuang Rui's original departure time was delayed by almost a week.
However, since Macau is adjacent to Hong Kong, he stayed at his father-in-law's house for a few days with his children and Qin Xuanbing. This made the old man very happy, and his health, which was still poor, miraculously improved.
Of course, Zhuang Rui wouldn't reveal that he was helping the old man with his health. He only did so after the old man had fallen asleep, from several rooms away, so he didn't have to worry about being discovered. ...
As the maiden voyage of a newly named ferry was supposed to be celebrated, Zhuang Rui was somewhat tired of the rituals of worshipping heaven and earth and offering pig heads in Hong Kong and Macau, so he simply omitted them.
However, early the next morning, many Hong Kong and Macao celebrities who had heard the news rushed to Zhuang Rui's "Xuan Rui" ship, because Zhuang Rui was no less impressive than them in terms of wealth or status, and such a young man was naturally worth befriending.
However, once they boarded the ship, they all stared at each other, secretly cursing Zhuang Rui as a country bumpkin. What was originally a luxury ferry had been turned into a mess by Zhuang Rui, with the platform on the deck and the two arm-shaped floating cranes looking particularly out of place.
At exactly 9:10 a.m., eighteen cannon salutes were fired from the ship, followed by a bright whistle, and the ship slowly began to move.
Since there were many celebrities from Hong Kong and Macau on board, the maiden voyage on the first day only circled the waters near Hong Kong. In the evening, the ship stopped at the Macau pier, and Zhuang Rui personally escorted everyone off the ship.
Meanwhile, on a remote island in the Malaysian archipelago, Hui Ge also received news of the maiden voyage of the "Xuan Rui".
Chapter 933 South China Sea
"This ship is so comfortable. Even if you put a mahjong set on the deck, it probably wouldn't sway at all..."
Zhuang Rui stood at the bow of the "Xuan Rui" ship, wearing sunglasses, his loose clothes clinging to his body in the sea breeze.
Looking down at the bow of the ship, dozens of meters below, cutting through a huge white wave, and then looking back at his wife wearing a bikini swimsuit with a towel over it, he couldn't help but whisper, "Xuanbing, how about we do a Titanic-style look?"
Although she had given birth, Qin Xuanbing's figure had recovered very well and was much fuller than before. Her demeanor exuded the charm of a young married woman, and even Zhuang Rui was often dazzled by her.
After its maiden voyage yesterday, the "Xuanrui" departed from the Macau port at 7:00 a.m. this morning, heading towards the junction of the South China Sea and the Strait of Malacca, which will be the first stop for Zhuang Rui's salvage operation of the sunken ship.
It's only a little past 10 a.m. Huangfu Yun and his wife went to a casino in Macau yesterday and slept in quite late. Besides Zhuang Rui and his wife, the only other person on the deck is King Kong, who is playing with Fang Fang and Yuan Yuan.
"Get lost! You're not afraid of losing face, but I am..."
Qin Xuanbing blushed slightly upon hearing this and nestled against Zhuang Rui. Her soft skin immediately aroused Zhuang Rui's fantasies, and he involuntarily got an erection.
"You really are..."
Qin Xuanbing felt something hard in her lower abdomen and immediately glared at Zhuang Rui in annoyance. However, in Zhuang Rui's eyes, her charming appearance was a signal from his wife, and his hands immediately became restless.
"No, you don't really want to, do you?"
Qin Xuanbing felt a pair of large hands on her chest and was immediately startled. However, her body went weak, and she quickly said, "No, who knows how many people are watching you..."
Upon hearing this, Zhuang Rui immediately thought of the cameras that Li Zhen had installed on the ship, and his lust subsided by half. He realized that if he had gone any further, someone in the monitoring room would have been watching the spectacle.
"Oh dear, Xiao Fangfang has run off to the poolside again, I need to go keep an eye on her..."
It's said that after parents have children, they spend almost half of their time living for their children. Qin Xuanbing is no exception. When she saw Fangfang sneaking to the edge of the swimming pool, she quickly let go of Zhuang Rui and walked towards her son.
"Hey...hey, I'm telling you, you..."
Zhuang Rui had a tent set up underneath, but it was immediately revealed when his wife left. Seeing Peng Fei walking out of the cabin in the distance, he quickly turned around and pretended to be admiring the scenery.
"Brother Zhuang, this boat is really exhilarating, 100 times better than the yacht we rode on at sea last time..."
Peng Fei didn't notice Zhuang Rui's appearance. He stood next to Zhuang Rui, breathing in the sea breeze with ease. The month or so he spent searching for Zhuang Rui last time had almost cost him his life.
"You little rascal, you've learned to enjoy life now, huh..."
Zhuang Rui laughed and scolded upon hearing this.
"Tch, brother, who would choose to suffer when they can enjoy life? We had no choice back then, did we?"
Peng Fei waved his hand dismissively and said that his former unit had a very high level of secrecy, but one good thing was that it didn't have as many constraints as other units. This made the people who came out of that unit seem a bit lazy and dislike following rules.
Not to mention Peng Fei, even Zhou Rui in the past acquired several submachine guns when he first entered Tibet, completely disregarding the national regulations prohibiting private possession of firearms. Now, Li Zhen is even more formidable, almost turning this merchant ship into a warship.
"Alright, stop talking nonsense. Is the bilge all modified yet?"
Zhuang Rui was most concerned about this matter. In his opinion, if word got out about the two cannons and the torpedo launcher, the relevant departments would definitely not turn a blind eye.
"Brother Zhuang, don't worry. Cabins three and sixteen have been completely sealed off, and the stairs leading down to them have been modified. The crew can't get into those two places at all..."
Peng Fei still acted nonchalantly. He knew a bit more than Zhuang Rui. For example, this arms deal was completely under the state's surveillance. If someone hadn't intervened, he wouldn't have been able to buy these things at all.
"Yes, these crew members aren't our own people. We'll recruit some from the mainland and gradually replace them all..."
To be honest, apart from the bearded man on the ship who suited Zhuang Rui's temperament, he didn't think much of the other crew members, such as some of the Portuguese crew members.
These lazy guys, when they're not on a voyage, almost always spend their time on Macau Island.
If they were to settle down properly in Macau, Zhuang Rui wouldn't say anything. But these guys either hang out in casinos, solicit prostitutes for the night in hotels, and do all sorts of things like fighting. When they return to the ship the next day, they all have black eyes.
Although he got the ship for free, Zhuang Rui had high hopes for it, as he was counting on it to salvage the underwater treasures of the five oceans. If Zhuang Rui hadn't been short of manpower, he would have dismissed these guys long ago.
"Hey, isn't that easy to handle? We have plenty of retired navy soldiers. When we find the South China Sea Fleet, those guys will be scrambling to get their hands on us!"
Peng Fei, a former soldier, immediately offered a solution upon hearing the matter. The navy's service period is five years, which is enough time for many ordinary soldiers to master the basic skills of a sailor, and they are also highly disciplined. They can be put to use as soon as they are recruited.
Now that the military no longer assigns discharged soldiers to jobs, many rural soldiers want to become non-commissioned officers. However, the number of non-commissioned officer positions available each year is limited. Zhuang Rui's need for some retired soldiers would solve a problem for the military leadership.
Upon hearing this, Zhuang Rui realized it made perfect sense and immediately said happily, "Great idea! I'll call my brother right away and ask him to get a batch of people..."
"It's no big deal, Brother Zhuang. I'll take care of it later, so you don't need to bother that person..."
Upon hearing Zhuang Rui's words, Peng Fei immediately chuckled. Ouyang Lei was truly frustrated that he had to go to the deputy chief for such a trivial matter.
"Uh, then I'll leave it to you..."
Zhuang Rui touched his nose, feeling that he had made a mountain out of a molehill. At this moment, the ferry had already entered the South China Sea. On the vast sea, small islands and reefs could be seen from time to time.
The South China Sea, the world's third largest continental sea, is vast, covering more than three million square kilometers and dotted with thousands of islands, reefs, shoals, and sandbars.
The South China Sea not only possesses exceptionally rich fishery and deep-sea flora and fauna resources, but more importantly, its seabed also holds staggering oil and natural gas resources, making its crucial strategic position all the more significant.
Before the mid-20th century, China (the Qing Dynasty, the Republic of China, the People's Republic of China, etc.) claimed sovereignty over the South China Sea without any disputes from other countries. However, since the large-scale exploration of seabed oil and gas resources, the South China Sea dispute has become complicated.
Because, according to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, possessing islands and reefs means possessing resources beneath the islands and reefs and in the surrounding waters. After occupying Chinese islands and reefs, relevant countries have introduced external investment and engaged in rampant, predatory exploitation of oil and gas resources.
Currently, apart from a small portion under Chinese control, the islands and reefs of the Spratly Islands have been divided up by neighboring countries. Vietnam occupies the most, with over 30 of the 44 islands and reefs illegally occupied by Vietnam.
In recent years, frictions have been constant over the development of the South China Sea. China's repeated concessions have only emboldened smaller countries to scramble to get involved in the South China Sea.
Although the ship was sailing on the high seas, after entering the South China Sea, they frequently saw warships flying foreign flags patrolling the waters, which made Zhuang Rui and Peng Fei very uncomfortable.
"Damn it, if they come to provoke us, we'll have to fight them..."
Peng Fei was inherently fearless, and since he had modified the ship to be no less capable than a small warship, he spoke with great arrogance.
"Come on, let's not get involved in politics. We're just salvaging a shipwreck, and it's in international waters. Everything we salvage is ours, and nobody else can touch it..."
Although Zhuang Rui was also indignant, he had no desire to get involved in these national-level conflicts, nor did he have the qualifications to do so.
What Zhuang Rui wants to do most right now is to open a marine shipwreck museum inside the Dingguang Museum before the start of the school year in September.
The ship that the gambling king gifted him was truly a godsend, because if Zhuang Rui followed the domestic regulations for the management of sunken ships and objects, he wouldn't even be able to obtain a salvage license. But with this ship, Zhuang Rui didn't even consider salvaging sunken ships in Chinese waters; he went straight to the high seas to do it.
According to a 1995 regulation of the International Maritime Organization, all items salvaged from shipwrecks on the high seas belong to the individual who wrecked the ship, and Zhuang Rui can completely ignore the shipwrecking nation.
"Brother Zhuang, are we really going to be able to salvage the sunken ship this time?"
Peng Fei didn't know where Zhuang Rui got his confidence from, wanting to sail the ship directly to the waters near the Strait of Malacca in the South China Sea. If there were no sunken ships below, wouldn't it be a pointless fuss?
"Hehe, you'll find out when the time comes..."
Zhuang Rui laughed upon hearing this, but did not explain why. He couldn't explain it clearly; he couldn't very well say that he sensed the spiritual energy emanating from an antique at the bottom of the sea, could he?
When they returned from Pirate Island, they took this sea route. Zhuang Rui noted down dozens of coordinates along the way, all of which were shipwrecks imbued with rich spiritual energy.
The destination this time is the high seas where the South China Sea meets the Strait of Malacca.
Chapter 934 The Traitor (Part 1)
"If Zheng He's fleet had learned from the practices of European countries, our country wouldn't have become so weak in the mid-to-late Ming Dynasty..."
As the ferry slowly approached its destination, Zhuang Rui, standing at the bow, felt a pang of emotion. The sea route he was now traveling was the same one Zheng He had taken during his voyages to the Western Ocean.
When Zheng He first embarked on his voyages to the Western Ocean, he set off from Liujiagang, crossed the Strait of Malacca, entered the Indian Ocean, and visited more than 30 countries.
Zheng He's fleet for his voyages to the Western Ocean consisted of more than 240 ships and 27,400 crew members. It was organized entirely according to maritime navigation and military standards, making it a formidable mobile naval force in the world at that time.
The renowned international scholar, Dr. Joseph Needham of Britain, concluded that "the Ming Dynasty navy was probably superior to any Asian country in history, and even to any European country of the same era, so much so that all European countries combined could not match the Ming Dynasty navy."
Unfortunately, China has always revered itself as a nation of etiquette, possessing immense military power yet deliberately cultivating friendly relations with other countries. Had it followed the example of Britain and Portugal, perhaps China would also have numerous colonies around the world.
"Boss, we're still two hours away from the coordinates you provided. Should we anchor at those coordinates? Please advise..."
Just as Zhuang Rui was reminiscing about his ancestors, his walkie-talkie rang. It was the bearded captain asking Zhuang Rui for instructions.
As a captain who was temporarily hired with only a one-year contract, Clyde knew his place very well. Apart from matters related to navigation, which he could make his own decisions on, he turned a blind eye to everything else.
These days, Zhuang Rui's men have been carrying out some kind of modification work in the hold, but Clyde has never asked about it. He even severely punished one of his first mates because the first mate was drunk and insisted on seeing what was going on in the hold.
“Clyde, you are the captain. You should know that you are the boss on this ship. Is it necessary to report everything to that young man?”
Inside the cockpit at the bow of the ship, a first mate with three horizontal bars on his shoulder, looking resentful, was verbally urging Clyde on.
“Jack, that’s our boss. He can fire you or me anytime. Then you won’t even be able to stay in Macau, let alone work in a casino…”
Clyde gave his subordinate a disapproving look. If he hadn't spent more than ten years with Jack and had always been his second-in-command, Clyde would have kicked this drunkard and gambler off the ship.
“Oh, so many, Captain. I think you’re right, but what are they doing down there? Are they trafficking drugs? Good heavens, if that’s the case, then we…”
Jack's eyes darted around, and he steered the conversation back to the renovations being done at the bottom of the ship's cabin. He had pretended to be drunk and gone down there a few days ago, but he was dragged back up by two burly security guards and didn't see anything.
"Drug trafficking? What a joke! Do you know how much our boss is worth? At least several billion. Do you know about the Klaus Gold Anchor Treasure? That's what our boss got..."