The Sea Queen of 1985

Chapter 489: Chapter 489: Kuno Hiroo Arrives to Propose Cooperation

In March, the peach blossoms bloomed. Han Xiaorui’s Peach Garden was filled with them.

Bees flitted among the trees, gathering nectar from the blossoms.

Soon, there would be plenty of honey and delicious peaches.

Because the temperature on the island was lower than on the mainland, the peach blossoms there bloomed a week later.

After two years of growth, the peach trees had grown tall and were covered in blossoms.

Han Xiaorui had people place many beehives among them to collect a large amount of honey.

However, an experienced fruit farmer advised against letting the trees bear fruit this year. Next year would be their third year, and that would be the time to let them fruit.

Not only would the peaches be plentiful, but they would also be very sweet.

Han Xiaorui was one to take good advice, so after the blossoms had bloomed for a while, she prepared to have them knocked off the trees.

However, the tourists weren’t happy about it.

”We came to see the peach blossoms, not to pick peaches! If you knock them all off, the trees will be bare and ugly. This won’t be Peach Blossom Island anymore!”

Some tourists even called the police, reporting that someone was destroying public property.

The scenic area’s management received the tourist feedback and reported it to Han Xiaorui.

Han Xiaorui didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. She felt the tourists had a point, because the peach blossoms really were beautiful.

With the Daoist Temple and the sacred meditation site, the peach blossoms gave the place a truly immersive feel.

Especially after *Legend of the Condor Heroes* was introduced, everyone fell in love with Huang Laoxie’s Peach Blossom Island.

This was a scenic area, after all, not an orchard.

It was worth sacrificing the peaches for the sake of the blossoms.

The scenic area in Jinshan was operating well. It was not only highly renowned in Shencheng but also very famous in the surrounding areas.

On April 16th, the water park and aquarium had their soft opening.

Han Xiaorui brought the children to play. The attractions inside were very fun and well-designed.

Pingping, An’an, Cai Wenjun, and Yang Min especially loved the water slides.

They would slide down from the top and splash into the pool below.

Fortunately, the weather had warmed up, and the days were a bit hot, so they wouldn’t catch a cold playing here.

The aquarium featured dolphins, beluga whales, and all sorts of other marine life. The variety was rich, and the venue itself was also a lot of fun.

Yang Min blinked. ”Auntie Xiao Rui, the water park and the amusement park are both so much fun. You’re so nice for building such a fun place for us.”

Han Xiaorui chuckled. ”You can come play once a week, but not too often.”

”Okay!” Yang Minmin agreed. ”I’ll play with Pingping and An’an.”

An adult was required to accompany children at both the aquarium and the water park.

The safety measures were also excellent.

There were many lifeguards and safety officers on duty, constantly watching to ensure the visitors’ safety.

For the May Day holiday, there was a vacation.

The water park and aquarium had their grand opening.

It was Shencheng’s largest and most advanced water park and aquarium, entirely designed and built domestically within Hua Country.

The attraction was created by absorbing advanced international experience and combining it with local conditions.

They ran a wave of advertisements not only on Shencheng television but also on national TV and in the newspapers.

Any tourist who came to Shencheng would make a stop here to have some fun.

As a result, the Jinshan Bay Commercial District saw an incalculable surge in foot traffic, and its economy developed rapidly.

When Kuno Hiroo visited again a year later, he was met with a bustling atmosphere completely different from before.

”Ms. Han, I think next time I visit Jinshan Bay, I won’t drive. I’ll take a boat directly. Perhaps then I won’t get stuck in traffic,” Kuno Hiroo complimented. He could feel the changes every time he visited.

’I’ll have to come more often,’ he thought. ’Otherwise, after a while, I won’t even recognize Shencheng with its rapid development.’

In Japan, many of his friends looked down on Hua Country, thinking it was backward and only capable of handling low-end manufacturing.

They believed that Japan, on the other hand, handled high-end, precision, and cutting-edge industries from the United States—sectors with high-tech content, high added value, and high profits.

With the United States’ support, Hua Country could never surpass Japan’s technology.

But Kuno Hiroo knew a lot about Hua Country. Ye Feng’s investments in the semiconductor industry alone told Kuno Hiroo that things weren’t as his friends imagined.

’Lagging now doesn’t mean lagging forever.’

The vigorous development of Shencheng’s Jinshan Bay further confirmed Kuno Hiroo’s deductions.

He was very pessimistic about his own country’s future!

However, many of his countrymen were immersed in a false sense of prosperity, all while a US military base sat right next door.

’Their wealth could be snatched away at any moment.’

Han Xiaorui smiled. ”You’re right, taking a boat, you definitely wouldn’t get stuck in traffic. The sea is so wide, after all. So, what brings you here this time, Kuno Hiroo?”

Kuno Hiroo chuckled. ”I’d like to discuss some business with you, Ms. Han.”

”Besides ornamental fish, what else do I have that could possibly interest you, Mr. Kuno?” Han Xiaorui asked, surprised and confused.

Kuno Hiroo chuckled again. ”There’s a fish farming company back home that wants to buy your fish fry.”

Even when raised under the same conditions, seafood that came from Jinshan Bay Farm’s fry tasted better.

They had now become a hot commodity, sought after by many large-scale coastal seafood farms. Selling them was never a concern.

As soon as this year’s total number of fry was tallied, buyers began snatching them up, paying in full even before taking delivery.

Their sincerity was overflowing.

Han Xiaorui shook her head. ”I’m sorry, you’re too late. This year’s fry have all been sold.”

Kuno Hiroo smiled. ”Please, do me a favor. I know you still have a batch of two million fry.”

Han Xiaorui thought of the fry she was preparing to release into the sea. Her tone was firm. ”No, those aren’t for sale. I’m going to release them. If you want fry, I can put you on the list and reserve some for you next year. But it’s impossible this year!”

’She didn’t want to break her promise to the sea for money.’

”You released one million fry last year. You can release one million again this year and sell the other million to my buyer. How about that?” Kuno Hiroo was very well-informed about Han Xiaorui’s operations; his employees had been keeping a close eye on her company.

Han Xiaorui thought for a moment, but still shook her head. ”No. I once made a promise to Mazu that the number of fry I release would be directly proportional to the growth of the farm’s hatchery.”

”The total number of fry has doubled, so the number I release must also double. You’re suddenly trying to cut in line, disrupting my plans and forcing me to break my promise to Mazu. I absolutely cannot do that.”

If it were anyone else, Kuno Hiroo might have had a way to make them change their mind, but with Han Xiaorui, he was at a loss.

”Five hundred thousand?” Kuno Hiroo lowered the amount.

Han Xiaorui was exasperated. She waved her hand. ”Really, I can’t. If you’re that desperate, I can spare one hundred thousand fry from the batch allocated for my own seafood farm and sell those to you. You can try raising them, but what works in Shencheng might not necessarily work where you are.”

”It’s a small number, but at least your trip won’t be a total waste. Besides, phrasing it this way shows your buyer that you’re being responsible. If they raise them successfully, you can increase the quantity next year.”

Kuno Hiroo couldn’t win the argument against Han Xiaorui. He could only settle for the next best thing and accept her proposal. Otherwise, he would leave with nothing at all.