Chapter 653 Who is he?
"Isabel, this is a no! He has to give me an explanation!" The old lady was so imposing. Even when facing Isabel Tourelle, whose physique rivaled that of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson and Arnold Schwarzenegger, she refused to back down: "He has to go on a date with me today!"
Isabelle Tourelle hurriedly said, "Ms. Lechal, this gentleman is a member of our store. For the sake of business, if you have any requests, please wait until we leave."
The old lady known as 'Ms. Lechal' said, "If I wasn't doing this for myself, why would I invest so much money here? If I can't even meet such a request, how can I continue to invest here?"
Hearing her say this, Isabelle turned around and persuaded Xiao Peng: "Sir, since Ms. Lechner admires you so much, how about having dinner together? It's just a meal. You have to know that Ms. Lechner is a very powerful person in Paris..."
Xiao Peng waved his hands directly: "Impossible, eating with her makes me sick."
"Puchi!" William, who was hiding aside and watching the fun, laughed out loud.
Abby saw him laughing there and walked over to him angrily: "William, what are you doing here? Why don't you go and do something about it?"
William said, "How can I care? If this matter gets out of hand, it will be troublesome for you. Besides, you can just stand here and relax. If Xiao Peng can't even handle something like this, then he's not my idol."
"Do you know that old woman?" Abby asked.
William spread his hands and said, "I don't know him. But he dared to confront Prince Hedingen head-on, and he couldn't handle Lechal?" At this point, he lowered his voice and said, "He doesn't even give a single face to a legitimate king like me, let alone others!"
Abby was stunned. "He went to confront the Prince of Hedingen? The German one? What made him so reckless?"
William asked back: "Don't you know?"
Abby spread her hands: "Of course I don't know, we just met for the first time yesterday!"
William smiled and said, "But just now, when you felt nervous when someone approached you, you immediately leaned towards him. This is human nature, which means you feel safe close to him."
Abby didn't deny it: "Yeah, it all comes down to that kick he gave you yesterday!"
William didn't know what to say after hearing this.
Abby continued, "I'm a doctor, so I can naturally look at the problem from a rational perspective. After all, I've lived for so long, and this is the first time a man has stepped forward to help me shoulder the responsibility. When I needed a father, one didn't know I existed, and the other passed away early. Whether I was bullied at school or in situations where a parent needed to step in, my father has never appeared in my life. I don't deny that this life experience has made me more inferior, sensitive, and insecure than ordinary children. So his behavior yesterday made me happy, but do you think I could like him because of such a small thing? Do you think it's possible? But who is he? You seem to know him!"
William said, "Of course! He's the famous 'Salvage King' Xiao Peng. Don't you know him?"
Abby turned into a black question mark face: "'Salvage King'? What kind of nickname is that?"
William said helplessly: "Don't you watch the news?"
Abby shook her head. "Of course not. I'd rather rent a DVD and watch a movie. What exactly does he do? You seem to admire him?"
"Yes!" William did not deny it. "He is now a leader in the marine salvage industry. He will be of great help to the Netherlands."
Abby nodded and said, "'Sea Coachman', huh?"
The Netherlands was once one of the wealthiest regions in Europe. Back then, they were part of the Spanish Empire, which derived half of its tax revenue from the Netherlands. In 1581, the seven northern provinces of the Netherlands formed the United Republic. Because Holland was the largest province, it was also known as the Dutch Republic. The current provinces of North Holland and South Holland were then part of the same province.
After independence, they began developing finance and maritime transport. The world's first stock exchange was invented by the Dutch, and the first national bank also appeared in the Netherlands. Despite its small size, it is still recognized as one of the 11 most developed countries in the world.
Their real fortune came from the shipbuilding industry. The Dutch shipbuilding industry has been in the world's leading position for five hundred years, especially in the 15th and 16th centuries. There were hundreds of shipyards in Amsterdam alone, and they built ships quickly and cheaply, almost one-third of the cost of British shipyards. Most European ships of that period were purchased from the Netherlands.
At the time, the Netherlands virtually monopolized maritime trade, with both the East India Company and the West India Company initially founded by the Dutch. Just how powerful was the Dutch at the time? The combined navies of Britain and France were less than half the size of the Dutch navy.
Why were they called the "Coachmen of the Sea"? The Dutch were known in Europe for their wealth. While cargo ships of that era were often equipped with cannons to protect against pirates, the Dutch were the first to design merchant ships designed solely for cargo, without cannons, to allow for greater cargo capacity. Movies about that era often depict sailing ships with large, round bellies. These were typical Dutch merchant ships: narrow decks and large bellies. Port tax at the time was calculated based on deck width; the narrower the deck, the lower the tax.
The fact that the Netherlands made so much money naturally aroused envy. The British Empire, which originated from pirates, defeated Spain and was ready to attack the Netherlands. However, the Netherlands was not Spain. Their navy was strong and experienced, and they beat Britain to a pulp at the beginning.
However, they suffered because their country was too small and their population was too small. While everyone was engaged in a fierce battle with the British at sea, the French took advantage of the situation and attacked their base. The "Sea Coachman" was defeated, and this is how the British Empire, the "Empire on which the Sun Never Sets," came into being.
William said to Abby, "There are a lot of Dutch shipwrecks in the ocean right now. If all the treasures on them were salvaged, they could buy half of Europe. But finding these shipwrecks is too difficult, so I want to work with Xiao Peng. His achievements in this industry are amazing. He has become a billionaire in just a few years!"
"Let's cooperate, why did you challenge him to a triathlon?" Abby asked puzzledly.
William snorted coldly, "Why compete with him in a triathlon? It's because he doesn't even give me face. Don't worry about him. How could he take this 'Ms. Lechal' seriously?"
"But there are so many of them!" Abby was still a little worried, and at this moment a cry of surprise came from the crowd.
William and Abby turned around and looked in the direction of the sound, and both of them gasped: Why is there someone lying on the ground?
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