Chapter 196 Morality is to restrain oneself, not to kidnap others
"Xiao! Phone call!" Early the next morning, Pascal woke up Xiao Peng who was still sleeping there.
Xiao Peng yawned and answered the phone: "Hello, Brother Chen, what's going on? Why are you calling me so early? Can't you let me sleep well?"
"Is it still early?" Chen Zetao's voice came: "It's already past seven o'clock! Don't you guys get up early on the boat?"
Xiao Peng exploded when he heard about getting up early: "Getting up so early? Then why didn't you mention that I have to work the night shift to watch the ship? Do you think everyone can sleep when the ship is at sea at night? Who's responsible for the collision? I'm on my last shift! I just fell asleep and you woke me up with a phone call!"
Chen Zetao said angrily, "I don't know. Sorry to disturb your sleep, how about you sleep a little longer?"
Xiao Peng sighed and said, "How can I sleep if you've already woken me up? Forget it, Brother Chen, just tell me what you want to say."
Chen Zetao quickly said, "Well, the people from the State Oceanic Administration and the Ministry of Education wanted to express their gratitude to you. They didn't know you had changed your phone number and couldn't reach you, so they contacted me."
Xiao Peng yawned after hearing this: "What are they thanking me for?"
Chen Zetao said, "Your livestream was quite lively last night! The National Deep Sea Base received 110,000 yuan in sponsorships! And that was only the first day!"
After hearing this, Xiao Peng curled his lips and said, "Alright, stop insulting me! Are those tips for me? They were all given to the twins during their live broadcast. I can refuse the money, so how do they account for it? They are a bunch of hooligans!"
Chen Zetao blinked after hearing this: "Then how do we solve this problem?"
Xiao Peng said, "It's okay. I wanted to give them money but they refused. The live streaming website also contacted me privately, wanting to host a live streaming event specifically for the twins. I let them negotiate it themselves. From now on, the money from their side will be theirs, and the money from mine will belong to the Deep Sea Base."
After hearing this, Chen Zetao said, "Wouldn't the cost of the deep-sea base be much less this way?"
Xiao Peng's face was filled with gloom. "Brother Chen, wouldn't it be better if everyone contributed for free like me?"
"Uh, that's not what I meant." Chen Zetao quickly changed the subject, "Brother Xiao, strike while the iron is hot. You have to start your live broadcast while things are hot. The Ministry of Education has even issued a document asking students to watch your live broadcast to promote ocean knowledge and get more young people interested in the ocean!"
Xiao Peng completely exploded: "Brother Chen! Are you trying to kill me? I'm working! You know I signed that bullshit confidentiality agreement! I even have to turn off the monitor when I'm live streaming in the cabin! Let's count how much trouble you've caused me. Just those two experts were enough to give me a hard time! And then Zhang Cuijian told me there were more experts coming! Damn it, you're trying to kill me!"
"Don't get excited!" Chen Zetao said hurriedly, "What you're doing isn't just benefiting China! I'm telling you, it's no exaggeration to say you're benefiting all of humanity. Our country's overseas channels have already broadcast your live broadcast from yesterday in its entirety, allowing even more people to understand the ocean! Even the French Ministry of Education urgently contacted China last night requesting cooperation!"
Xiao Peng said helplessly, "I benefit all of humanity, but who benefits me? Hey, Brother Chen, you guys are keeping my identity a secret, right? If it gets out, I'll be mad at you!"
Chen Zetao was silent for a moment before saying, "Brother Xiao, are you kidding me? You've made the ship's information public yourself. Wouldn't it be too easy for someone to investigate you?"
Xiao Peng's face was filled with black lines, damn, this is messed up!
"I don't care!" Xiao Peng started to act like a spoiled brat. "If you piss me off, I won't broadcast! Otherwise, you can start an ocean salvage company and become famous! Or you can contact other ocean exploration companies and let them do it. How could there be an idiot like me? Delaying my own work to provide benefits to others for free? I can broadcast, but I have to prioritize my own work!"
Chen Zetao was silent for a moment and said, "Brother Xiao, you are indeed giving me face in this matter, but since it has come to this, you are also a Chinese. You should do something for the country, right?"
Xiao Peng frowned and said, "Brother Chen, you know I hate moral kidnapping the most. Morality is about restraining oneself, not kidnapping others! If I don't consider the country, then why am I going out to sea now? Isn't it all about who to sell the rhodium to? And you guys are so good, you still think I'm not doing my job? Why don't I just announce the matter now?"
The "thing" he was referring to was the Ansaldo incident. Why had Xiao Peng kept it secret? If he did, according to customary law, the wealth would belong to the country that owned the ship!
This is not China's territorial waters!
According to Chinese law, any wealth discovered from China's territory and territorial waters belongs to the country. This is why China does not have private marine salvage companies.
At that time, several British warships carrying the wealth plundered from China were found in the South China Sea and were salvaged and became Chinese property. Britain made a lot of noise about this.
However, leaving China's territorial waters is subject to another set of laws, namely the International Convention on the Law of the Sea. If a warship is found sunken here, it will always belong to the country that owns the warship.
Even if Xiao Peng really wanted to salvage the 'Ansaldo', he could only do it secretly and transport the items away secretly, which is almost like stealing.
After hearing what Xiao Peng said, Chen Zetao was silent for a while. What should he say about this matter? Xiao Peng is not doing live streaming for money or fame, so he really doesn't know where to start.
Xiao Peng continued, "Brother Chen, please don't say things like 'I've forgotten my roots after going abroad.' Otherwise, we won't even be friends anymore. If I were to forget my roots, I wouldn't be doing these things. But you have to consider my perspective too! I have to work and earn money too. I have so many people to support! You can't say I don't care just because I have a lot of money. If I don't care, that's my business, but I'm not satisfied! If I were satisfied, wouldn't it be better for me to return home and retire now? Why would I continue to risk my life at sea?"
Chen Zetao sighed after hearing this: "Brother Xiao, I understand your difficulties. In fact, many of our situations are exactly the same. Those words just now are also the words I hear the most! Go to hell, do whatever you want, just be happy! Let those people come to me!"
After hearing Chen Zetao's words, Xiao Peng was silent for a while. Although Chen Zetao didn't tell him much, Xiao Peng had some guesses about his background in his mind. After hearing his words, Xiao Peng had a judgment in his mind.
"Brother Chen," Xiao Peng said, "Whoever the hell is looking for you, let him come directly to me. I'll give him a slap in the face if I don't! Also, please contact the Ocean Bureau for me and ask how much this ROV is! I'll give them double the price, I don't owe them anything! Tell them, if anyone talks nonsense again, I'll take everything away and I'm done with this!"
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