The Sea Queen of 1985

Chapter 78: Chapter 78: The Importance of Connections

No one could argue with that. Mazu held a sacred place in the hearts of fishermen.

”Mr. Han, with a deposit this large, would you like me to set up a fixed-term account for you? The interest rate is higher than a standard savings account,” President Li asked. ’Although Han Xiaorui’s cash flow isn’t as high as Boss Zhang’s right now, that doesn’t mean it won’t be in the future!’

Han Xiaorui shook her head. ”Thank you, President Li, but I don’t plan on putting this into a fixed-term account. I’m saving up right now because I want to buy a big boat.”

Hearing this, President Li’s eyes lit up. ”Buying a boat, you say? If you’re short on funds, our bank can provide a loan! What’s more, I have an old army buddy who works at the Shencheng Shipyard.”

”If you have some free time, I can help you schedule an appointment, or I could even take you to the shipyard for a tour.”

Han Xiaorui was taken aback. ”You’re amazing, President Li. You even know people at the shipyard.”

’If I’m going to live here, I need to do more than just get along with the villagers. I have to actively expand my network outside the village, too!’

”Heh, it’s all part of the job,” President Li said modestly, though his expression was one of clear satisfaction.

’This is what connections get you!’

’Isn’t the financial services business all about taking depositors’ money and loaning it out at a higher interest rate?’

’Besides, the government is encouraging private citizens to buy sea vessels right now. There are policies in place for it.’

Han Xiaorui thought for a moment, then nodded. ”I would like to take you up on that, President Li. It’s just that the weather has been good lately, so I need to be out fishing to save up more money.”

President Li nodded. ”I understand. In that case, give me a call ahead of time when the weather turns bad. Even if I’m not free, I’ll have a staff member take you for a look.”

Han Xiaorui smiled gratefully. ”Thank you, President Li.”

The teller at the counter finished the transfer and handed the passbook to Han Xiaorui.

Han Xiaorui immediately withdrew the odd 2,900 yuan, leaving an even 270,000 yuan in her account.

President Li saw what Han Xiaorui was doing and smiled. ’She’s quite cautious.’

’But that’s a good thing. When you lend money to someone like her, you can be confident you’ll get the principal and interest back.’

After leaving the bank, Han Xiaorui hurried to the docks.

There, she saw a middle-aged man, about forty years old, carefully examining the horseshoe crabs on her boat.

They were large and in good condition—top-grade specimens.

Liang Xiaoyu stood nearby, watching him. ”You can look, but don’t touch. If you handle them to death, who’s going to pay for it?”

The man quickly pulled out a business card and introduced himself. ”I’m Wu Di, a manager at Shencheng Bo Kang Marine Biological Co., Ltd. I specialize in purchasing horseshoe crabs.”

”In that case, you’ll have to wait. Our boss went to the bank to handle a payment. She’ll be back soon.” Liang Xiaoyu took the card and examined it closely. It didn’t look like a fake.

When Han Xiaorui got back, Liang Xiaoyu quickly handed her the card. ”He’s here to buy the horseshoe crabs.”

Han Xiaorui glanced at the card, then smiled. ”Manager Wu, what’s your offer?”

Wu Di thought for a moment, then said, ”For those over two jin, I can offer 10 yuan per jin for the males and 20 yuan per jin for the females. For those under two jin, the price is half that. This is the same price our company pays its regular suppliers.”

Worried that Han Xiaorui wouldn’t believe him, Wu Di even showed her a company purchase order.

Han Xiaorui already knew from Boss Zhang that this was the current market price for horseshoe crabs.

”Alright, that price works for me. But I’m not selling any that are under two jin. Set those aside for me.”

Manager Wu was taken aback. ”About thirty percent of your catch is under two jin. If you don’t sell them, you won’t be able to eat them all!”

”I’m not going to eat them. I’m releasing the small ones,” Han Xiaorui replied. ’I’ve already gained so much; I can’t just take and take without giving back.’

Catching the large and releasing the small was her way of showing reverence for the ocean.

Wu Di stared for a moment, then gave her a thumbs-up. ”Mr. Han, you’ve got real principles. Some people use fine-mesh nets that catch everything, practically scraping the seabed clean.”

Han Xiaorui gave a wry smile. ”I can’t control what other people do. I can only control myself.”

They separated the males from the females, then sorted out the ones that weighed over two jin.

Male horseshoe crabs: 10 yuan/jin, 369 jin, totaling 3,690 yuan.

Female horseshoe crabs: 20 yuan/jin, 373 jin, totaling 7,460 yuan.

The remaining three to four hundred jin were all under two jin, and Han Xiaorui refused to sell any of them.

Manager Wu had brought cash and paid Han Xiaorui 11,150 yuan on the spot.

Han Xiaorui accepted the money. ”Thanks, Manager Wu.”

Wu Di said warmly, ”Next time you have a catch, you have to call me!”

Horseshoe crab blood is blue, and it’s used to test for bacterial contamination, giving it a vital role in medical science.

Although his company was newly established, it was fully equipped.

The only thing they lacked was a supply of high-quality horseshoe crabs like these.

Han Xiaorui nodded and replied, ”Alright. Next time I have some, I’ll call you directly, Manager Wu.”

Seeing Han Xiaorui about to leave, Wu Di’s gaze fell on the horseshoe crabs that were just over a jin each. ”Mr. Han, I’ll raise my offer. How about you sell those to me?”

”No!” Han Xiaorui refused. ”I didn’t know much about it before, but after seeing your business card, I realize how high their medicinal value is. With such a high price, a lot of people are going to be trying to catch them.”

”If everyone sells them, big and small alike, they might go extinct one day! It’s one thing to harvest the large, mature ones, but these smaller ones haven’t even finished growing. Using them now would be a terrible waste.”

Despite Manager Wu’s continued attempts to persuade her, Han Xiaorui remained firm in her refusal.

Although he was a little disappointed, Manager Wu deeply admired Han Xiaorui for not bowing to the allure of money.

’With such a huge income today, she really doesn’t need to chase after this pittance.’

Watching Han Xiaorui pilot her boat away, Manager Wu found himself eagerly awaiting her next call.

Liang Xiaoyu came into the cabin, praising her nonstop. ”Xiao Rui, you’re really something else. Those three hundred-plus jin of horseshoe crabs, even at five yuan a jin, could have sold for almost 2,000 yuan.”

”Anyone else would have been thrilled to sell them, but not you. You just refuse and decide to release them instead.”

Han Xiaorui smiled. ”That little bit of money is nothing compared to what I earned today.”

”They grow slowly. If they’re overfished, they’ll go extinct sooner or later.”

While Liang Xiaoyu admired Han Xiaorui, she also felt a touch of melancholy. ”But even if you don’t catch them, someone else will! Other people aren’t as principled as you are!”

Han Xiaorui laughed heartily. ”That’s true, but I can’t control other people! I can only control myself!”

”When we get back to our area near Jinsha Bay, I’ll release them all. Since their medicinal value is so high, if someone could figure out how to farm them, there would be an inexhaustible supply.”

Liang Xiaoyu nodded. ”That’s true. It’s just like with chickens, ducks, geese, pigs, and cows. They can be farmed. No matter how many we eat, we’ll never run out.”

Upon reaching the waters near Jinshan Bay, Han Xiaorui infused the horseshoe crabs with her Water Ability, enhancing their life force in the hope that they would thrive and multiply on the seabed.

Han Xiaorui couldn’t change the world, but she was willing to use her power to give these precious marine creatures a better chance at survival.

Today’s haul had been enormous, and both Han Xiaorui and Liang Xiaoyu were overjoyed.

They got home at just 12:00 PM. Han Xiaorui and Liang Xiaoyu washed and chopped vegetables, and started making lunch.

Just as they finished cooking, Han Xiaoqing returned with the children.

”Mama!”

”Mama!”

...

At the sound of those cheerful calls, all her hard work and exhaustion melted away, transforming into the simple sweetness of life.