The Sea Queen of 1985

Chapter 272: Chapter 272: Arrested Upon Entry

In Wu Lingling’s eyes, Han Xiaorui could do anything.

Not only had she been abroad, but she could also speak English and Japanese. It was so impressive.

The train was slow, but they were all young and filled with excitement, so they didn’t feel tired at all.

Han Xiaorui took them straight to a guesthouse not far from the convention center.

It was the designated guesthouse for organizations from Shencheng attending the trade fair, and rooms had already been arranged for them.

The guesthouse staff had to carefully inspect and verify their identification and official documents from their work unit before allowing them to check in.

After stowing their luggage, Han Xiaorui led the group to a quick meal before they used their work passes to enter the exhibition area.

Zhou Wei was there with the staff, sweating profusely as they set up the booth.

Thankfully, Han Xiaorui’s arrival with her team sped up the process, and they finally finished setting up by three in the afternoon.

Seeing this, Yu Zhenxing asked, ”Why aren’t you putting the fish in the tanks?”

Zhou Wei and Han Xiaorui both turned to look at Yu Zhenxing at the same time.

Yu Zhenxing was taken aback. ”Can’t we?”

Han Xiaorui shook her head with a laugh. ”Of course not. Last time, at the foreign trade fair in Shencheng, we put the fish in the tanks, assuming no one would steal them.”

”But in reality, we were too naive. With fish that beautiful, and no doors or locks, it’s no surprise so many were stolen.”

Zhou Wei nodded. ”Exactly. In Shencheng, we could restock the same day. But Yue Province is so far away that even if we flew in replacements, they might not arrive in time, which would disrupt things. That’s why we’ve prepared lots of small fish containers to pack the fish in when we leave. It’s more of a hassle, but it’s safer.”

Han Xiaorui nodded. ”Especially our new product, the Panda Butterfly Tail. It’s so beautiful that anyone who sees it instantly wants one. However, this variety is only available for pre-order, and the delivery time is as long as six months.”

Yu Zhenxing was taken aback. ”With terms that strict, will anyone still buy them?”

Han Xiaorui said proudly, ”Most people wouldn’t buy it or be willing to wait. But it’s our Panda Butterfly Tail. The ’Panda’ in the name alone proves its rarity. How could it be as common as regular stock?”

Yu Zhenxing smiled and nodded. ”Then I really must have a look!”

They did one last check to make sure everything was ready before leaving.

Back at the guesthouse, they had a meal of local specialties, and then everyone returned to their rooms to rest.

Han Xiaorui called Ye Feng. ”I’m doing great, so don’t worry. The trade fair is only three days long, so we’ll be back soon.”

Ye Feng chuckled. ”Don’t worry about things at home. Uncle Yang, Wu Jiao, Wu Yao, and I are all helping with the kids.”

”And I have some good news for you. Our fleet has found the first shipwreck site and begun salvage operations. Everything is going smoothly.”

”Perhaps by the time you get back, the entire ship will have been raised. I’ll take you to see it when it is.”

Han Xiaorui nodded. ”Great! I’m curious to see if there’s anything besides the ingots.”

Ye Feng replied, ”We’ve confirmed there’s a lot of exquisite porcelain, though it’s likely been heavily damaged by seawater erosion, which is a shame. But the most surprising discovery was a captain’s log, found in a sealed chest on the seabed.”

”Experts have placed it in a special container for restoration. Once it’s restored, we’ll have a new piece of authentic history. More than the treasure, I’m curious about that log. I want to know what really happened on that day.”

Han Xiaorui was astonished. ”I’m curious too! Is this the appeal of archaeology?”

Ye Feng nodded. ”I think so. It’s fascinating.”

After hanging up with him, she called Wu Jiao and Wu Yao.

She learned that Chen Yishui had taken the crew out fishing that day. The catch wasn’t as big as when Han Xiaorui was present, but she was the owner and had other responsibilities.

They couldn’t expect the owner to come along every time. Fortunately, Yang Zhigang had gone with them this time, and the haul was still pretty good.

In any case, it was still making money for Han Xiaorui.

With everything at home running smoothly, Han Xiaorui could focus all her energy on the upcoming three-day trade fair.

Kuno Hiroo and his assistant checked into a hotel designated for foreign guests to attend the Canton Fair.

The Kuno family was now one of the top three import-export businesses in Japan.

The annual Canton Fair was an important event for them to discover new items and source products for their clients.

He had heard that Han Xiaorui’s ornamental fish farm was also participating in the trade fair.

Kuno Hiroo planned to visit Han Xiaorui’s booth on the last day, after he had taken care of his other business.

He arranged his schedule this way not because he didn’t value her ornamental fish, but because he had already signed an exclusive distribution contract for Japan.

Han Xiaorui’s fish could only be sold in Japan through him.

The deal was already in the bag; there was no fear of it falling through.

This gave him ample time to deal with other matters.

Meanwhile, another person was feeling utterly frustrated: Yamamoto Ichiro had been arrested the moment he entered the country.

He was representing his company at the Canton Fair and had no idea he was already a wanted criminal in Hua Country.

It turned out that the earlier investigation into Luo Guang had uncovered sufficient evidence to prove Yamamoto Ichiro was the mastermind.

They couldn’t arrest him in Japan, so Ye Feng had suggested to the relevant authorities that they not tip him off.

Instead, they would wait for Yamamoto Ichiro to enter the country and arrest him then.

Ye Feng had been keeping a close watch on the case and had already spoken to his old army contacts in Yue Province.

Although the Japanese could be difficult to handle, and authorities sometimes had to look the other way to attract foreign investment, this case was different. Yamamoto Ichiro was sent to Shencheng overnight.

Accompanying Yamamoto Ichiro was his father-in-law, Yamamoto Yoshihiko. Judging by the fact that they shared a surname, Yamamoto Ichiro had married into his wife’s family.

Because their two previous attempts had failed, Yamamoto Yoshihiko was curious and had come to see things for himself.

He was known as an authority in Japan’s ornamental fish circles, but his inability to breed fish superior to those from Hua Country left him deeply frustrated.

Now, he could only purchase ornamental fish from the Kuno family to study, but his research had yet to yield any breakthroughs.

He had thought that enough time had passed for the whole affair to have blown over, but he never expected his son-in-law to be arrested.

He no longer cared about ornamental fish; he contacted the embassy and activated his network of contacts within the country, trying to pull strings to get his son-in-law released.

If it weren’t for Ye Feng, Yamamoto Ichiro might have been released.

But with Ye Feng refusing to back down, there would be no release, only strict punishment.

Han Xiaorui knew nothing of this, but Kuno Hiroo, as a fellow Japanese national, was informed of the Yamamoto family’s predicament.

That evening, someone came to the hotel to visit Kuno Hiroo.

”Mr. Kuno, you have deep connections with the government in Shencheng. Could you please use your influence to get them to release Yamamoto Ichiro?”

Kuno Hiroo paused, taken aback. He recalled both Ye Feng and Han Xiaorui mentioning that their family had been kidnapped by Japanese nationals.

Yamamoto Ichiro was arrested upon his return; this incident had to be connected to Han Xiaorui and Ye Feng.

Kuno Hiroo thought for a moment. ’On one hand, I have my friends and suppliers, Ye Feng and Han Xiaorui. On the other, there’s Yamamoto Ichiro, who, having failed in business, resorted to underhanded methods like kidnapping their family to steal their techniques. It’s utterly despicable and shameless.’

’I can’t help with this,’ he thought. ’But I can’t say that directly!’