Chapter 869: Give a Slap and a Sweet Date

Xiao Peng glanced at Ping Te and said, "There's a saying in my hometown, 'If you want to do your job well, you must first sharpen your tools.' It means that if you want to do something well, you must be well prepared. We're engaged in marine salvage, and our weapons are our ships and the various tools on board. Although your 'Sentinel' is an offshore vessel, its displacement is a bit small and its working capacity is somewhat poor. If you can't even guarantee the basic tools, then I can't let you continue to do this job!"

Pingte's face changed drastically after hearing this. Hooks became anxious after hearing this: "Mr. Xiao, you are a respected figure in this industry, but you can't just deny our work. We have been working in this industry for more than ten years!"

After hearing what he said, the people around him also started to argue, and the whole deck was in chaos.

Pingte quickly waved his hand to stop everyone from talking. "Mr. Xiao, we don't want this either. I also want a large ship like yours for my work. Who in the ocean exploration industry wouldn't want your 'Calypso'? But you have to consider that not everyone can afford such a high price!"

Xiao Peng said, "I think you've misunderstood something. My 'Calysop' isn't expensive. If you didn't include the helicopter and advanced electronic equipment, the cost of that ship would be about the same as your 'Sentinel'."

"Ah?" Everyone was stunned after hearing this.

Xiao Peng grinned. "MADE IN CHINA, the epitome of quality and low price... The same ship can be bought from China for about a third of the price. Take my 'Luna', for example. You all think I got a great deal, but in reality, building a new ship in China would be around the same price, maybe even cheaper. But I just can't wait that long. In our industry, a good ship is crucial!"

Pingte smiled bitterly and said, "Mr. Xiao, I understand what you're saying, but right now we can't even afford the 200,000 yuan repair costs. We're counting on turning this sunken ship over! We really can't afford the additional 300,000 yuan you mentioned. And how long will such a large project take? We're all hoping to salvage everything quickly and get paid quickly. We're really at a loss!"

After hearing this, Xiao Peng turned to look at Huang Linze: "Dude, you taught me this, didn't you? You even jumped out of the pot without rice in it?"

Huang Linze smiled embarrassedly after hearing this: "Mr. Xiao, after all, we are working together, and many things..."

Xiao Peng waved his hand: "No need to explain, go back to the company and accept the punishment! We can turn a blind eye to other things to help cover up the past, but we must never let our guard down when it comes to safety! We are Chinese, the nation that attaches the most importance to the word "safety" in the world. Even "The Wandering Earth" did not forget to promote the saying "Of the thousands of roads, safety comes first." What's wrong with you? Did you forget this after going abroad? Marine salvage is not like any other industry! If you want to make a living in this industry, you must respect the ocean! If you don't understand even a little bit, don't do this job!"

Huang Linze's smile froze on his face. He hadn't expected Xiao Peng to react so strongly to this matter.

Xiao Peng turned to Ping Te and said, "Ping Te, the reason you used a Class II barge was because of cost considerations. You wanted to use the marine engineering tools on your own ship for salvage, and not use a barge with marine engineering equipment to reduce costs, right?"

Pingte nodded without denying it.

Xiao Peng continued, "You can't use a Class II barge for this salvage operation. You must use a barge equipped with marine engineering tools. If I knew you were going to use the marine engineering tools on your own ship for the salvage operation, then you would be left sitting on the bench like the Ifrit. Of course, you can also choose to withdraw from the Tri-State Alliance!"

His words were quite harsh, and there was silence on the boat.

Pingte gritted his teeth and said, "If it costs more, it costs more! I'll contact the Alliance and ask them to send a large barge over."

Hooks was furious after hearing this. "What kind of alliance is this?! Isn't this just about generating revenue for the alliance's barges? We haven't even made any money since joining the alliance, and now they're trying to generate revenue for both the shipyard and the barges, and we're the ones paying for it!"

"Shut up!" Pint turned his head and yelled at Hooks. "Safety is paramount at sea, there's no denying that! Do you want us to just sit there doing nothing like before? Joining the Alliance might be more work, but it does guarantee you'll make money! What else do you want? If you don't shut up, go back to being a temporary worker on a fishing boat!"

The people on their boat all have other jobs, like Hooks, who usually works as a helper on a fishing boat.

After all, most ocean exploration companies are usually idle. Aside from a few well-run large-scale companies, the rest are a slacker. Take Pint's Coastal Sentinel Ocean Exploration Company, for example. Everyone is usually busy with their own business, including the offshore vessel Sentinel, which is usually anchored under an offshore company to save on berthing fees. Expect those offshore companies to take better care of this vessel? The poor maintenance of the vessel's offshore tools is also related to this.

After hearing this, Hooks simply chose to shut up.

Seeing that no one was talking, Xiao Peng said, "Are you all done talking? So, is it my turn to speak now?"

Pingte said, "Mr. Xiao, please speak."

Although he was polite in his words, his tone was stiff, completely different from his attitude just now.

Xiao Peng said, "Since this is your first time working with the Salvage Alliance, it's understandable that you're unfamiliar with the alliance's regulations. So, you should find a large barge, and the rental will be calculated based on the rate for a Class II barge."

"What?" Pingte was stunned after hearing this.

Xiao Peng smiled and said, "I can still make the decisions on these matters. I came to inspect your work this time to identify any problems, but don't be afraid if there are any. We can solve them as soon as possible. Can you really say that two people are compatible right from the start when it comes to dating? Everyone needs to get used to each other, but this only happens once. After this salvage operation, you must repair the tools on the ship as soon as possible. The problems on your ship have been recorded. If you don't complete them within the rectification period, I can only apologize next time! My friend Hooks, this doesn't count as creating benefits for the barge owner, right?"

"No problem, no problem!" Pingte said excitedly, "Hooks, shut the fuck up from now on!"

Xiao Peng smiled and said, "Okay, don't get excited. Pingte, we've finished discussing official matters, now it's time to talk about personal matters: Is there anything to eat? I'm a little hungry!"

"Yes! Of course!" Pingte said excitedly, "My wife is the ship's chef. She's Austrian, and her grilled ribs are incredible! I guarantee you won't be disappointed!"

"Then I won't be polite!"