Chapter 248: 248
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Can a snake be related to the Queen?
Yes!
And, her name is the Ice Queen, whose story of ancestry is as follows. It's not that this species does not have males, but rather that, among their ancestors, there was once an individual so powerful, she could kill off 95 percent of the world's strongest warriors in an instant. She was the instigator, whose presence made people start to realize, for the first time, the terror of this species that was living in the distant ocean.
Then, as early as 700 years ago, and long before Argyll was born, this humanoid monster was given the official title of The Ice Queen, and was given the role of Honorary Dean by 17 Royal Magic Caster Senates. She was then conferred as nobility in 21 countries, with extremely large feudal territories also granted to her.
As there was no such thing as national and ethnic concepts in the mind of the wild Ice Queen, she was willing to accept any title, from whichever countries desired to confer them upon her. There were even several hostile countries that tried with luck, inviting her over. Every single one of them had succeeded, without any effort whatsoever.
These countries, without exception, had her feudal dominion placed in territories that were disputed with other neighboring countries. Her lands were so wide and vast, they filled all of the princes with jealousy. Even the Gilnan Empire, which was the most powerful kingdom at the time, decided to tenure her with four territories!
This is the real reason why everybody named her The Ice Queen, because when all of her territories were added up, the total area was even bigger than an entire kingdom, not to mention that no one would dare invade her territories.
The root cause of her intimidating effect, which was far greater than the devil's, happened back in the days of her unevolved form, when she liked to hunt for birds and their eggs. There was one time, when she was almost torn to pieces by the raging Firebird couple, after she had accidentally eaten the egg of the Firebird. She had barely managed to escape by hiding from their clutches by fleeing into the deep sea.
Fast forward to two years after this incident, and the Ice Queen returned to find the Firebird couple. She told them that she would bury the hatchet, if they would either pluck off one of the two long, beautiful feathers on their tails by themselves, or allow her to do so. The outcome was obvious, as the Firebirds, who treasured their feathers more than anything, could never agree to such terms! The negotiation was broken, before the conversation could even get started.
So, what would not be freely given, the Ice Queen determined to take. After a series of battles, the Firebird couple looked at the four bloody feathers on the ground, yelling and crying over their cruel misfortune.
Once they were done yelling and crying, the Firebird couple decided to find helpers to seek their revenge. Unfortunately, the two helpers they found also ended up having their own feathers mercilessly plucked away.
This incident had provoked the entire Firebird clan, which led to more than ten years of fighting between the two parties. When all was said and done, the entire conflict resulted in 83 Firebirds' losing their two tail feathers, which were the sources of their pride and the symbols of their beauty. Adding to this terror, 17 of them were actually killed. After suffering such atrocities, the Firebirds panicked, hiding themselves among other social animals.
The Firebird, which was a magical creature that could compete with even the Great Dragon, had been defeated. In fact, it was this war, which had lasted for more than a decade, that first set the terrific name of The Ice Queen in stone. Even the Great Dragons humbled themselves in front of her, lest their fangs be plucked away.
What about this young man?
He is apparently teaching The Ice Queen to speak? Doesn't that mean that the Ice Queen then has opened up her ingenuity, and is not far from evolving into a higher level being?
Should we nip this relationship in the bud, or try to build a good relationship with him as well?
These thoughts appeared in Argyll's mind, but when he thought of the Ice Queen, who had yet to evolve, and the mysterious young man, Argyll had to extinguish the ideas entirely. He did this because he honestly figured that the possibility of either was little to none. With the ability to randomly give out such a peerless weapon, not even that idiot Balu would believe that he was not awesome!
Better not try anything, but just attempt to build a good relationship, then.
Would the young man possibly be the son of the Goddess of Fortune? Otherwise, why did all the good things happened to be his?
After thinking through a few indignant grievances, Argyll carefully walked toward the young man. It seemed like the reason that the giant white python had not launched an attack was because the old man had a similar look as Chen Fan. Hence, all the python did was keep an eye on him.
Chen Fan was slightly surprised, when he finally came into contact with this old man, as he looked so energetic, even despite his gray hair. His gorgeous fine-crafted robes, along with the two dazzling gemstone rings on his hand, made him look like quite a pampered and privileged noble!
In fact, Chen Fan thought that these two adjectives perfectly described him. He was, indeed, pampered and privileged.
"Hey, do you like this ring?" Argyll quickly pulled out the two rings, insisting on giving one to Chen Fan. As he did so, his expression seemed to be signifying that Chen Fan would be looking down on him, if Chen Fan didn't accept it.
As the two seemed to be unable to communicate with each other clearly, Argyll took out some paper and quill pens, then outlined the shape of a sailing boat and a nautical compass. He used this drawing, along with his rich facial expressions and gesturing, which made it easy for Chen Fan to now understand what he meant.
"You lost your nautical compass, and you would like to trade in order to get one from me?" Chen Fan nodded his head, which made Argyll feel instantly relieved. A nautical compass was sold everywhere, and even the most expensive ones only cost about a dozen dollars.
After completing the compass trade, Argyll suddenly had an idea. Why couldn't he just learn the language of this young man, along with The Ice Queen?
Argyll had studied their texts, which were similar to the structure of the common language, except for the difference between the words and the pronunciations of the meanings. Those who were capable of becoming magic casters were no fools, so Argyll was confident that he would master the language faster than the Ice Queen!
He decided that it didn't matter if he had to pester them consistently and gradually. He was determined that, however possible, he must build a good relationship with the Ice Queen and this young man. This was vital, because his motherland, the Kingdom of Rhine, was a mere second-rate country. It still had a big gap, when compared to the great empires.
But, if he could secure friendship with the Ice Queen...
The more he thought about it, the more excited he was. Argyll decided to stay, and made Chen Fan understand his intention through sketching and gesturing, just as he had done before with the trade. After getting Chen Fan's permission, he sat down on the beach, setting his every intention towards learning this new foreign language!
......
At 11:30, Chen Fan rubbed his sore bottom and got up from the beach. He planned to go back to Zhongyun to buy the compass for Argyll, as well as to get some delicacies from the hotel. He would like to let this guy try some Chinese delicacies, specifically!
When returning to the dock, riding on the electric eel, Chen Fan discovered that, at the left side of the dock, on the beach that had always been unattended, seven to eight cars had showed up from out of nowhere, three of which were Mercedes, two that were BMWs, one Mercedes MPV, and one Honda MPV.
In front of the cars, a large group of corpulent, middle-aged men looked as if they were commanding the world, as they were standing next to a few young men and women, all wearing business suits, and all of whom were obviously their subservient attendants.
Most likely, the leaders had gotten bored again, and had come to inspect him, he guessed. The group was currently two to three hundred meters away from the dock, and had no way of spotting the electric eel, as it was still submerged below the surface. Therefore, Chen Fan did not care much about them.
"Hey, Wang Bing! Get someone to help me buy a few nautical compasses, and have the hotel chef prepare some abalones, sea cucumbers, and what not. Then have Xiao Zhou send it to us! Also, tell Xiao Zhou to bring the seafood transport truck, as I've gotten my hands on some wild seafood!"
After the phone call, Chen Fan leisurely laid on the sofa, waiting for his men to send things over.
After about half an hour, the truck driver Xiao Zhou arrived with the Dongfeng extended box truck. He approached with a Ding Dong sound, then carefully handed the food box and the nautical compasses to Chen Fan.
"Boss, do we load all this seafood onto the truck?"
"Yep, just load all of them up! By the way, why is the guy called Wang, or something like it, not with you?" Chen Fan put the food box aside, then rolled up his sleeves to help him move the seafood crate. The task was usually done by two people, because one person would have a hard time carrying such heavy crates alone!
"He left halfway to handle something urgent!" Xiao Zhou, the driver, saw that Chen Fan was trying to help, and immediately said anxiously, "It's OK, I can do it myself!"
"I am not that incompetent! Surely carrying a crate or two won't hurt me!" Chen Fan insisted on helping, picking up the bottom of the tuck net and helping to place it on to the carriage.
Dip Dip… Dip Dip…
When the loading process of the seafood was about to be complete, a motorcade, consisting of eight cars, drove past the dock entrance. It was led by the Mercedes MPV, which had dark reflective glass, such that allowed no one to even be able to get a glance of the interior. The remaining Mercedes and BMWs also drove off the dock without stopping.
The last one, which was a Honda Odyssey, however, stopped at the dock entrance with a screech. Then, a young man in a suit emerged from the vehicle.
"What's the phone number of the dock owner?" The tall young man wrinkled his nose, appearing as if the strong fishy odor made him uncomfortable. He walked, his eyes filled with pride, to the seafood transport truck. Once there, he took out a pack of YuXi brand cigarettes. He also took two for Chen Fan and Xiao Zhou, who were still carrying and loading the seafood.
"What's the matter?" Chen Fan subconsciously glanced around the dock. He saw that nothing shady was stored on the front. In fact, the dock was somehow empty, with only one diving cabin and a covered car in the distance, the Maybach 62S Zeppelin.
"I simply would like to talk to your boss, so just tell me his phone number." The young man was about twenty-four to twenty-five years old. He had an obvious lack of both experience and good taste. Otherwise, he should've immediately recognized the value of Chen Fan's outfit.
"I am the owner of this dock. Spill it, and make it quick." Chen Fan did not accept the YuXi cigarette that the young man offered, as he felt that the class of such cigarettes, which was a brand worth no more than 20 yuan, was too low for his standards. Plus, the young man's attitude had ticked him off.
"You are the boss?" The young man's attitude became slightly better. He took out a business card and said, "Let me introduce myself, I am the deputy manager of the engineering management department of Shentai Real Estate. My name is Jiang Ze, and the caravan that just drove past are the bosses of our company. Our company is planning to develop this sector, making it into a seaside villa resort area. Therefore, this dock must be removed. I am here to discuss with you the compensation."
"You're going to remove my dock? Well then, hmmmm, how much do you plan to compensate me?" said Chen Fan, squinting and leaning by the truck.
If the price was suitable, he wouldn't mind letting them dismantle it, then simply have someone get another one. After all, having to deal with these real estate developers was the utmost annoying task!
Jiang Ze carefully looked around the dock and said, "Well, our standard of compensation towards warehouses includes the loss of production, as well as business suspension, a relocation subsidy, renovation expenses, equipment transportation expenses, and finally, the compensation according to the structure and the area of the factory. If you have ownership of the land, we will also compensate you for that."
That sounds about right!
Chen Fan nodded his head. This real estate company did not sound as dishonest as it first seemed, after all! Unlike some developers, who take over the houses of the residents and offer them an amount of compensation to where these people aren't even able to purchase one-third of the original area, this company seemed pretty generous, or at the least, fair.
According to the amount the young man had suggested, Chen Fan estimated that he could make a small profit from the deal. After all, the ship's machinery and equipment were never used, and therefore, there was no such thing as a loss of business to begin with!
"My dock has an area of 1600 square meters. It is 12 meters in height, is a fully steel structure, and cost seven million yuan, including the machinery. As you can see, this dock is brand new, and even the freshly painted anti-rust paint is specially made for marine-use. That alone cost me about five hundred thousand yuan. There are also two automatic gates, which cost another five hundred thousand..." Chen Fan pointed to the big iron gate next to him, while he spoke. "All you have to pay me is a total of eight million yuan, as well as handling a few demolition permits. Also, I would purchase a few villas, once you are ready for business."
"Heh… Heh…we may discuss that later, regarding the demolition permit…" Jiang Ze gave a hollow smile and said, "Let's see, I'll have the company's finance department drop by this afternoon, as they have the professional accountants on staff and could figure out the estimated compensation for the dock in no time."
"OK!" Chen Fan had Xiao Zhou to first send the seafood back. Then, when Jiang Ze had left with his Honda Odyssey, Chen Fan drove his Maybach to another dock. He didn't close the gate, since there was nothing worth stealing, thus making it even easier for the real estate company to come estimate the compensation that afternoon.
The wild seafood that was served by the special first-class chefs was indeed extraordinary. Argyll, who was so used to palace cuisine, saw that Chen Fan was preparing to entertain him, and he wanted to deliberately refuse at first. But, once he saw those delicious and attractive seafood dishes, he could no longer decline.
The abalone especially thrilled Argyll, who felt the indescribable taste that blasted on his taste buds. It almost felt like his tongue had died and gone to the heavens!
Argyll, don't forget that you have once eaten at a dinner party hosted by a king, so steady! Steady!
Argyll quietly reassured himself in his mind.
"This is the best food I have ever eaten in my life!" At last, Argyll could no longer hold himself back, and he yelled loudly.
After the delicious meal, Chen Fan continued his Chinese language lessons with Argyll and the giant python until 4 p.m. He then returned to Zhongyun, riding the electric eel. The accountants from the real estate company should have the amount of compensation ready by now!
He landed on a random reef near the dock, then walked towards the entrance. He saw that the Honda Odyssey was again parked there, and Jiang Ze and two other young men were busily discussing something.
"Done with your calculations?"
"Yes, we're done." Jiang Ze again took out his YuXi cigarettes and handed one to Chen Fan. This time, Chen Fan did not decline his offer, but took the cigarette and promptly set it in his mouth.
"With such a location, and the various compensation plans for the demolition, we would like to compensate you with 3.27 million for this dock, and offer a demolition permit for 500 square meters." Jiang Ze took out a handout filled will all sorts of data, then passed it to Chen Fan. There were no sign of awkwardness on his face, which showed that he was an old pro at making these kind of deals already.
"Are you treating me like an idiot?" After he casually read through the first few lines of the contract, a wildfire was ignited in Chen Fan, running all the way from his soles to the top of his head.
The compensation for the steel-plated room was calculated in terms of scrap metal, and as for the rest of the materials, such as the marine anti-rust paint, the top high-strength alloy bracket, the top sunshade steel plate, which cost more than 2,000 yuan per piece, they weren't even freaking included! What was even more irritating, was that the big iron gates that Chen Fan knew were worth a small fortune, apparently were being counted as scrap metal!
"I'm not gonna sell it, so you can go build your villa wherever the heck you want! But, it sure as heck won't be here!" Chen Fan didn't even feel like negotiating, so he immediately spat out the cigarette and said, "This YuXi is awfully bad! It tastes like straw."
"You!" Jiang Ze's self-esteem was crushed by Chen Fan's bad temper. He tried his best to hold back his own emotions and said, "The amount we suggested is based on current market standards. The few other docks in this area received the same amount as well."
"This dock was designed by the architectural design master De Meilong, the same guy who designed the Bird's Nest National Stadium. Also, my dock was fully hand-built. Do you know how much that cost?!" Chen Fan calmly looked at him, being careful to pronounce each syllable clearly. "Eight million USD, not in Ren-Min-Bi! "
As the situation grew more intense, the two accountants, who were working on the calculations with their calculators, quickly came closer, trying to help resolve the situation. Merchants only seek wealth, thus, they knew that it was best to not go against the owner, if at all possible. Although they were not afraid of the owner at all.
"Mr. Chen, this is the best price we can offer, as it's regulated by the company policies. If you are not satisfied, you may bring it to our boss. I believe he would definitely be willing to compensate you more." Jiang Ze took a deep breath, replying with a fairly fake smile.
"Tell your boss that I'm not going to sell this dock! I won't sell it, even if he is willing to pay 100 million upfront!" Chen Fan sat on the sofa with a disdainful expression, then said, "You may leave now, as you are not welcome here any longer. "
"Mr. Chen, since we managed to take over the development rights of this land, you should know that we have the ability to develop this land. It is not good for both parties to be in a state of turmoil, so I hope you will cooperate."
"Wow, are you threatening me now?" Chen Fan's expression was filled with disbelief!
"We are lawful businessmen, so how could we be threatening people? All I offered was some advice with good intentions, as there's still room for negotiation for the compensation issue, but it's absolute that this dock shall be demolished."
"If that's the case, then just come to dismantle it. No compensation will be needed. I would then just tear down the villa the second that you build one, just so we don't owe each other!"
Please report us if you find any errors so we can fix it asap!
Can a snake be related to the Queen?
Yes!
And, her name is the Ice Queen, whose story of ancestry is as follows. It's not that this species does not have males, but rather that, among their ancestors, there was once an individual so powerful, she could kill off 95 percent of the world's strongest warriors in an instant. She was the instigator, whose presence made people start to realize, for the first time, the terror of this species that was living in the distant ocean.
Then, as early as 700 years ago, and long before Argyll was born, this humanoid monster was given the official title of The Ice Queen, and was given the role of Honorary Dean by 17 Royal Magic Caster Senates. She was then conferred as nobility in 21 countries, with extremely large feudal territories also granted to her.
As there was no such thing as national and ethnic concepts in the mind of the wild Ice Queen, she was willing to accept any title, from whichever countries desired to confer them upon her. There were even several hostile countries that tried with luck, inviting her over. Every single one of them had succeeded, without any effort whatsoever.
These countries, without exception, had her feudal dominion placed in territories that were disputed with other neighboring countries. Her lands were so wide and vast, they filled all of the princes with jealousy. Even the Gilnan Empire, which was the most powerful kingdom at the time, decided to tenure her with four territories!
This is the real reason why everybody named her The Ice Queen, because when all of her territories were added up, the total area was even bigger than an entire kingdom, not to mention that no one would dare invade her territories.
The root cause of her intimidating effect, which was far greater than the devil's, happened back in the days of her unevolved form, when she liked to hunt for birds and their eggs. There was one time, when she was almost torn to pieces by the raging Firebird couple, after she had accidentally eaten the egg of the Firebird. She had barely managed to escape by hiding from their clutches by fleeing into the deep sea.
Fast forward to two years after this incident, and the Ice Queen returned to find the Firebird couple. She told them that she would bury the hatchet, if they would either pluck off one of the two long, beautiful feathers on their tails by themselves, or allow her to do so. The outcome was obvious, as the Firebirds, who treasured their feathers more than anything, could never agree to such terms! The negotiation was broken, before the conversation could even get started.
So, what would not be freely given, the Ice Queen determined to take. After a series of battles, the Firebird couple looked at the four bloody feathers on the ground, yelling and crying over their cruel misfortune.
Once they were done yelling and crying, the Firebird couple decided to find helpers to seek their revenge. Unfortunately, the two helpers they found also ended up having their own feathers mercilessly plucked away.
This incident had provoked the entire Firebird clan, which led to more than ten years of fighting between the two parties. When all was said and done, the entire conflict resulted in 83 Firebirds' losing their two tail feathers, which were the sources of their pride and the symbols of their beauty. Adding to this terror, 17 of them were actually killed. After suffering such atrocities, the Firebirds panicked, hiding themselves among other social animals.
The Firebird, which was a magical creature that could compete with even the Great Dragon, had been defeated. In fact, it was this war, which had lasted for more than a decade, that first set the terrific name of The Ice Queen in stone. Even the Great Dragons humbled themselves in front of her, lest their fangs be plucked away.
What about this young man?
He is apparently teaching The Ice Queen to speak? Doesn't that mean that the Ice Queen then has opened up her ingenuity, and is not far from evolving into a higher level being?
Should we nip this relationship in the bud, or try to build a good relationship with him as well?
These thoughts appeared in Argyll's mind, but when he thought of the Ice Queen, who had yet to evolve, and the mysterious young man, Argyll had to extinguish the ideas entirely. He did this because he honestly figured that the possibility of either was little to none. With the ability to randomly give out such a peerless weapon, not even that idiot Balu would believe that he was not awesome!
Better not try anything, but just attempt to build a good relationship, then.
Would the young man possibly be the son of the Goddess of Fortune? Otherwise, why did all the good things happened to be his?
After thinking through a few indignant grievances, Argyll carefully walked toward the young man. It seemed like the reason that the giant white python had not launched an attack was because the old man had a similar look as Chen Fan. Hence, all the python did was keep an eye on him.
Chen Fan was slightly surprised, when he finally came into contact with this old man, as he looked so energetic, even despite his gray hair. His gorgeous fine-crafted robes, along with the two dazzling gemstone rings on his hand, made him look like quite a pampered and privileged noble!
In fact, Chen Fan thought that these two adjectives perfectly described him. He was, indeed, pampered and privileged.
"Hey, do you like this ring?" Argyll quickly pulled out the two rings, insisting on giving one to Chen Fan. As he did so, his expression seemed to be signifying that Chen Fan would be looking down on him, if Chen Fan didn't accept it.
As the two seemed to be unable to communicate with each other clearly, Argyll took out some paper and quill pens, then outlined the shape of a sailing boat and a nautical compass. He used this drawing, along with his rich facial expressions and gesturing, which made it easy for Chen Fan to now understand what he meant.
"You lost your nautical compass, and you would like to trade in order to get one from me?" Chen Fan nodded his head, which made Argyll feel instantly relieved. A nautical compass was sold everywhere, and even the most expensive ones only cost about a dozen dollars.
After completing the compass trade, Argyll suddenly had an idea. Why couldn't he just learn the language of this young man, along with The Ice Queen?
Argyll had studied their texts, which were similar to the structure of the common language, except for the difference between the words and the pronunciations of the meanings. Those who were capable of becoming magic casters were no fools, so Argyll was confident that he would master the language faster than the Ice Queen!
He decided that it didn't matter if he had to pester them consistently and gradually. He was determined that, however possible, he must build a good relationship with the Ice Queen and this young man. This was vital, because his motherland, the Kingdom of Rhine, was a mere second-rate country. It still had a big gap, when compared to the great empires.
But, if he could secure friendship with the Ice Queen...
The more he thought about it, the more excited he was. Argyll decided to stay, and made Chen Fan understand his intention through sketching and gesturing, just as he had done before with the trade. After getting Chen Fan's permission, he sat down on the beach, setting his every intention towards learning this new foreign language!
......
At 11:30, Chen Fan rubbed his sore bottom and got up from the beach. He planned to go back to Zhongyun to buy the compass for Argyll, as well as to get some delicacies from the hotel. He would like to let this guy try some Chinese delicacies, specifically!
When returning to the dock, riding on the electric eel, Chen Fan discovered that, at the left side of the dock, on the beach that had always been unattended, seven to eight cars had showed up from out of nowhere, three of which were Mercedes, two that were BMWs, one Mercedes MPV, and one Honda MPV.
In front of the cars, a large group of corpulent, middle-aged men looked as if they were commanding the world, as they were standing next to a few young men and women, all wearing business suits, and all of whom were obviously their subservient attendants.
Most likely, the leaders had gotten bored again, and had come to inspect him, he guessed. The group was currently two to three hundred meters away from the dock, and had no way of spotting the electric eel, as it was still submerged below the surface. Therefore, Chen Fan did not care much about them.
"Hey, Wang Bing! Get someone to help me buy a few nautical compasses, and have the hotel chef prepare some abalones, sea cucumbers, and what not. Then have Xiao Zhou send it to us! Also, tell Xiao Zhou to bring the seafood transport truck, as I've gotten my hands on some wild seafood!"
After the phone call, Chen Fan leisurely laid on the sofa, waiting for his men to send things over.
After about half an hour, the truck driver Xiao Zhou arrived with the Dongfeng extended box truck. He approached with a Ding Dong sound, then carefully handed the food box and the nautical compasses to Chen Fan.
"Boss, do we load all this seafood onto the truck?"
"Yep, just load all of them up! By the way, why is the guy called Wang, or something like it, not with you?" Chen Fan put the food box aside, then rolled up his sleeves to help him move the seafood crate. The task was usually done by two people, because one person would have a hard time carrying such heavy crates alone!
"He left halfway to handle something urgent!" Xiao Zhou, the driver, saw that Chen Fan was trying to help, and immediately said anxiously, "It's OK, I can do it myself!"
"I am not that incompetent! Surely carrying a crate or two won't hurt me!" Chen Fan insisted on helping, picking up the bottom of the tuck net and helping to place it on to the carriage.
Dip Dip… Dip Dip…
When the loading process of the seafood was about to be complete, a motorcade, consisting of eight cars, drove past the dock entrance. It was led by the Mercedes MPV, which had dark reflective glass, such that allowed no one to even be able to get a glance of the interior. The remaining Mercedes and BMWs also drove off the dock without stopping.
The last one, which was a Honda Odyssey, however, stopped at the dock entrance with a screech. Then, a young man in a suit emerged from the vehicle.
"What's the phone number of the dock owner?" The tall young man wrinkled his nose, appearing as if the strong fishy odor made him uncomfortable. He walked, his eyes filled with pride, to the seafood transport truck. Once there, he took out a pack of YuXi brand cigarettes. He also took two for Chen Fan and Xiao Zhou, who were still carrying and loading the seafood.
"What's the matter?" Chen Fan subconsciously glanced around the dock. He saw that nothing shady was stored on the front. In fact, the dock was somehow empty, with only one diving cabin and a covered car in the distance, the Maybach 62S Zeppelin.
"I simply would like to talk to your boss, so just tell me his phone number." The young man was about twenty-four to twenty-five years old. He had an obvious lack of both experience and good taste. Otherwise, he should've immediately recognized the value of Chen Fan's outfit.
"I am the owner of this dock. Spill it, and make it quick." Chen Fan did not accept the YuXi cigarette that the young man offered, as he felt that the class of such cigarettes, which was a brand worth no more than 20 yuan, was too low for his standards. Plus, the young man's attitude had ticked him off.
"You are the boss?" The young man's attitude became slightly better. He took out a business card and said, "Let me introduce myself, I am the deputy manager of the engineering management department of Shentai Real Estate. My name is Jiang Ze, and the caravan that just drove past are the bosses of our company. Our company is planning to develop this sector, making it into a seaside villa resort area. Therefore, this dock must be removed. I am here to discuss with you the compensation."
"You're going to remove my dock? Well then, hmmmm, how much do you plan to compensate me?" said Chen Fan, squinting and leaning by the truck.
If the price was suitable, he wouldn't mind letting them dismantle it, then simply have someone get another one. After all, having to deal with these real estate developers was the utmost annoying task!
Jiang Ze carefully looked around the dock and said, "Well, our standard of compensation towards warehouses includes the loss of production, as well as business suspension, a relocation subsidy, renovation expenses, equipment transportation expenses, and finally, the compensation according to the structure and the area of the factory. If you have ownership of the land, we will also compensate you for that."
That sounds about right!
Chen Fan nodded his head. This real estate company did not sound as dishonest as it first seemed, after all! Unlike some developers, who take over the houses of the residents and offer them an amount of compensation to where these people aren't even able to purchase one-third of the original area, this company seemed pretty generous, or at the least, fair.
According to the amount the young man had suggested, Chen Fan estimated that he could make a small profit from the deal. After all, the ship's machinery and equipment were never used, and therefore, there was no such thing as a loss of business to begin with!
"My dock has an area of 1600 square meters. It is 12 meters in height, is a fully steel structure, and cost seven million yuan, including the machinery. As you can see, this dock is brand new, and even the freshly painted anti-rust paint is specially made for marine-use. That alone cost me about five hundred thousand yuan. There are also two automatic gates, which cost another five hundred thousand..." Chen Fan pointed to the big iron gate next to him, while he spoke. "All you have to pay me is a total of eight million yuan, as well as handling a few demolition permits. Also, I would purchase a few villas, once you are ready for business."
"Heh… Heh…we may discuss that later, regarding the demolition permit…" Jiang Ze gave a hollow smile and said, "Let's see, I'll have the company's finance department drop by this afternoon, as they have the professional accountants on staff and could figure out the estimated compensation for the dock in no time."
"OK!" Chen Fan had Xiao Zhou to first send the seafood back. Then, when Jiang Ze had left with his Honda Odyssey, Chen Fan drove his Maybach to another dock. He didn't close the gate, since there was nothing worth stealing, thus making it even easier for the real estate company to come estimate the compensation that afternoon.
The wild seafood that was served by the special first-class chefs was indeed extraordinary. Argyll, who was so used to palace cuisine, saw that Chen Fan was preparing to entertain him, and he wanted to deliberately refuse at first. But, once he saw those delicious and attractive seafood dishes, he could no longer decline.
The abalone especially thrilled Argyll, who felt the indescribable taste that blasted on his taste buds. It almost felt like his tongue had died and gone to the heavens!
Argyll, don't forget that you have once eaten at a dinner party hosted by a king, so steady! Steady!
Argyll quietly reassured himself in his mind.
"This is the best food I have ever eaten in my life!" At last, Argyll could no longer hold himself back, and he yelled loudly.
After the delicious meal, Chen Fan continued his Chinese language lessons with Argyll and the giant python until 4 p.m. He then returned to Zhongyun, riding the electric eel. The accountants from the real estate company should have the amount of compensation ready by now!
He landed on a random reef near the dock, then walked towards the entrance. He saw that the Honda Odyssey was again parked there, and Jiang Ze and two other young men were busily discussing something.
"Done with your calculations?"
"Yes, we're done." Jiang Ze again took out his YuXi cigarettes and handed one to Chen Fan. This time, Chen Fan did not decline his offer, but took the cigarette and promptly set it in his mouth.
"With such a location, and the various compensation plans for the demolition, we would like to compensate you with 3.27 million for this dock, and offer a demolition permit for 500 square meters." Jiang Ze took out a handout filled will all sorts of data, then passed it to Chen Fan. There were no sign of awkwardness on his face, which showed that he was an old pro at making these kind of deals already.
"Are you treating me like an idiot?" After he casually read through the first few lines of the contract, a wildfire was ignited in Chen Fan, running all the way from his soles to the top of his head.
The compensation for the steel-plated room was calculated in terms of scrap metal, and as for the rest of the materials, such as the marine anti-rust paint, the top high-strength alloy bracket, the top sunshade steel plate, which cost more than 2,000 yuan per piece, they weren't even freaking included! What was even more irritating, was that the big iron gates that Chen Fan knew were worth a small fortune, apparently were being counted as scrap metal!
"I'm not gonna sell it, so you can go build your villa wherever the heck you want! But, it sure as heck won't be here!" Chen Fan didn't even feel like negotiating, so he immediately spat out the cigarette and said, "This YuXi is awfully bad! It tastes like straw."
"You!" Jiang Ze's self-esteem was crushed by Chen Fan's bad temper. He tried his best to hold back his own emotions and said, "The amount we suggested is based on current market standards. The few other docks in this area received the same amount as well."
"This dock was designed by the architectural design master De Meilong, the same guy who designed the Bird's Nest National Stadium. Also, my dock was fully hand-built. Do you know how much that cost?!" Chen Fan calmly looked at him, being careful to pronounce each syllable clearly. "Eight million USD, not in Ren-Min-Bi! "
As the situation grew more intense, the two accountants, who were working on the calculations with their calculators, quickly came closer, trying to help resolve the situation. Merchants only seek wealth, thus, they knew that it was best to not go against the owner, if at all possible. Although they were not afraid of the owner at all.
"Mr. Chen, this is the best price we can offer, as it's regulated by the company policies. If you are not satisfied, you may bring it to our boss. I believe he would definitely be willing to compensate you more." Jiang Ze took a deep breath, replying with a fairly fake smile.
"Tell your boss that I'm not going to sell this dock! I won't sell it, even if he is willing to pay 100 million upfront!" Chen Fan sat on the sofa with a disdainful expression, then said, "You may leave now, as you are not welcome here any longer. "
"Mr. Chen, since we managed to take over the development rights of this land, you should know that we have the ability to develop this land. It is not good for both parties to be in a state of turmoil, so I hope you will cooperate."
"Wow, are you threatening me now?" Chen Fan's expression was filled with disbelief!
"We are lawful businessmen, so how could we be threatening people? All I offered was some advice with good intentions, as there's still room for negotiation for the compensation issue, but it's absolute that this dock shall be demolished."
"If that's the case, then just come to dismantle it. No compensation will be needed. I would then just tear down the villa the second that you build one, just so we don't owe each other!"
Can a snake be related to the Queen?Yes!And, her name is the Ice Queen, whose story of ancestry is as follows. It's not that this species does not have males, but rather that, among their ancestors, there was once an individual so powerful, she could kill off 95 percent of the world's strongest warriors in an instant. She was the instigator, whose presence made people start to realize, for the first time, the terror of this species that was living in the distant ocean.Then, as early as 700 years ago, and long before Argyll was born, this humanoid monster was given the official title of The Ice Queen, and was given the role of Honorary Dean by 17 Royal Magic Caster Senates. She was then conferred as nobility in 21 countries, with extremely large feudal territories also granted to her.As there was no such thing as national and ethnic concepts in the mind of the wild Ice Queen, she was willing to accept any title, from whichever countries desired to confer them upon her. There were even several hostile countries that tried with luck, inviting her over. Every single one of them had succeeded, without any effort whatsoever.These countries, without exception, had her feudal dominion placed in territories that were disputed with other neighboring countries. Her lands were so wide and vast, they filled all of the princes with jealousy. Even the Gilnan Empire, which was the most powerful kingdom at the time, decided to tenure her with four territories!This is the real reason why everybody named her The Ice Queen, because when all of her territories were added up, the total area was even bigger than an entire kingdom, not to mention that no one would dare invade her territories.The root cause of her intimidating effect, which was far greater than the devil's, happened back in the days of her unevolved form, when she liked to hunt for birds and their eggs. There was one time, when she was almost torn to pieces by the raging Firebird couple, after she had accidentally eaten the egg of the Firebird. She had barely managed to escape by hiding from their clutches by fleeing into the deep sea.Fast forward to two years after this incident, and the Ice Queen returned to find the Firebird couple. She told them that she would bury the hatchet, if they would either pluck off one of the two long, beautiful feathers on their tails by themselves, or allow her to do so. The outcome was obvious, as the Firebirds, who treasured their feathers more than anything, could never agree to such terms! The negotiation was broken, before the conversation could even get started.So, what would not be freely given, the Ice Queen determined to take. After a series of battles, the Firebird couple looked at the four bloody feathers on the ground, yelling and crying over their cruel misfortune.Once they were done yelling and crying, the Firebird couple decided to find helpers to seek their revenge. Unfortunately, the two helpers they found also ended up having their own feathers mercilessly plucked away.This incident had provoked the entire Firebird clan, which led to more than ten years of fighting between the two parties. When all was said and done, the entire conflict resulted in 83 Firebirds' losing their two tail feathers, which were the sources of their pride and the symbols of their beauty. Adding to this terror, 17 of them were actually killed. After suffering such atrocities, the Firebirds panicked, hiding themselves among other social animals.The Firebird, which was a magical creature that could compete with even the Great Dragon, had been defeated. In fact, it was this war, which had lasted for more than a decade, that first set the terrific name of The Ice Queen in stone. Even the Great Dragons humbled themselves in front of her, lest their fangs be plucked away.What about this young man?He is apparently teaching The Ice Queen to speak? Doesn't that mean that the Ice Queen then has opened up her ingenuity, and is not far from evolving into a higher level being?Should we nip this relationship in the bud, or try to build a good relationship with him as well?These thoughts appeared in Argyll's mind, but when he thought of the Ice Queen, who had yet to evolve, and the mysterious young man, Argyll had to extinguish the ideas entirely. He did this because he honestly figured that the possibility of either was little to none. With the ability to randomly give out such a peerless weapon, not even that idiot Balu would believe that he was not awesome!Better not try anything, but just attempt to build a good relationship, then.Would the young man possibly be the son of the Goddess of Fortune? Otherwise, why did all the good things happened to be his?After thinking through a few indignant grievances, Argyll carefully walked toward the young man. It seemed like the reason that the giant white python had not launched an attack was because the old man had a similar look as Chen Fan. Hence, all the python did was keep an eye on him.Chen Fan was slightly surprised, when he finally came into contact with this old man, as he looked so energetic, even despite his gray hair. His gorgeous fine-crafted robes, along with the two dazzling gemstone rings on his hand, made him look like quite a pampered and privileged noble!In fact, Chen Fan thought that these two adjectives perfectly described him. He was, indeed, pampered and privileged."Hey, do you like this ring?" Argyll quickly pulled out the two rings, insisting on giving one to Chen Fan. As he did so, his expression seemed to be signifying that Chen Fan would be looking down on him, if Chen Fan didn't accept it.As the two seemed to be unable to communicate with each other clearly, Argyll took out some paper and quill pens, then outlined the shape of a sailing boat and a nautical compass. He used this drawing, along with his rich facial expressions and gesturing, which made it easy for Chen Fan to now understand what he meant."You lost your nautical compass, and you would like to trade in order to get one from me?" Chen Fan nodded his head, which made Argyll feel instantly relieved. A nautical compass was sold everywhere, and even the most expensive ones only cost about a dozen dollars.After completing the compass trade, Argyll suddenly had an idea. Why couldn't he just learn the language of this young man, along with The Ice Queen?Argyll had studied their texts, which were similar to the structure of the common language, except for the difference between the words and the pronunciations of the meanings. Those who were capable of becoming magic casters were no fools, so Argyll was confident that he would master the language faster than the Ice Queen!He decided that it didn't matter if he had to pester them consistently and gradually. He was determined that, however possible, he must build a good relationship with the Ice Queen and this young man. This was vital, because his motherland, the Kingdom of Rhine, was a mere second-rate country. It still had a big gap, when compared to the great empires.But, if he could secure friendship with the Ice Queen...The more he thought about it, the more excited he was. Argyll decided to stay, and made Chen Fan understand his intention through sketching and gesturing, just as he had done before with the trade. After getting Chen Fan's permission, he sat down on the beach, setting his every intention towards learning this new foreign language!......At 11:30, Chen Fan rubbed his sore bottom and got up from the beach. He planned to go back to Zhongyun to buy the compass for Argyll, as well as to get some delicacies from the hotel. He would like to let this guy try some Chinese delicacies, specifically!When returning to the dock, riding on the electric eel, Chen Fan discovered that, at the left side of the dock, on the beach that had always been unattended, seven to eight cars had showed up from out of nowhere, three of which were Mercedes, two that were BMWs, one Mercedes MPV, and one Honda MPV.In front of the cars, a large group of corpulent, middle-aged men looked as if they were commanding the world, as they were standing next to a few young men and women, all wearing business suits, and all of whom were obviously their subservient attendants.Most likely, the leaders had gotten bored again, and had come to inspect him, he guessed. The group was currently two to three hundred meters away from the dock, and had no way of spotting the electric eel, as it was still submerged below the surface. Therefore, Chen Fan did not care much about them."Hey, Wang Bing! Get someone to help me buy a few nautical compasses, and have the hotel chef prepare some abalones, sea cucumbers, and what not. Then have Xiao Zhou send it to us! Also, tell Xiao Zhou to bring the seafood transport truck, as I've gotten my hands on some wild seafood!"After the phone call, Chen Fan leisurely laid on the sofa, waiting for his men to send things over.After about half an hour, the truck driver Xiao Zhou arrived with the Dongfeng extended box truck. He approached with a Ding Dong sound, then carefully handed the food box and the nautical compasses to Chen Fan."Boss, do we load all this seafood onto the truck?""Yep, just load all of them up! By the way, why is the guy called Wang, or something like it, not with you?" Chen Fan put the food box aside, then rolled up his sleeves to help him move the seafood crate. The task was usually done by two people, because one person would have a hard time carrying such heavy crates alone!"He left halfway to handle something urgent!" Xiao Zhou, the driver, saw that Chen Fan was trying to help, and immediately said anxiously, "It's OK, I can do it myself!""I am not that incompetent! Surely carrying a crate or two won't hurt me!" Chen Fan insisted on helping, picking up the bottom of the tuck net and helping to place it on to the carriage.Dip Dip Dip DipWhen the loading process of the seafood was about to be complete, a motorcade, consisting of eight cars, drove past the dock entrance. It was led by the Mercedes MPV, which had dark reflective glass, such that allowed no one to even be able to get a glance of the interior. The remaining Mercedes and BMWs also drove off the dock without stopping.The last one, which was a Honda Odyssey, however, stopped at the dock entrance with a screech. Then, a young man in a suit emerged from the vehicle."What's the phone number of the dock owner?" The tall young man wrinkled his nose, appearing as if the strong fishy odor made him uncomfortable. He walked, his eyes filled with pride, to the seafood transport truck. Once there, he took out a pack of YuXi brand cigarettes. He also took two for Chen Fan and Xiao Zhou, who were still carrying and loading the seafood."What's the matter?" Chen Fan subconsciously glanced around the dock. He saw that nothing shady was stored on the front. In fact, the dock was somehow empty, with only one diving cabin and a covered car in the distance, the Maybach 62S Zeppelin."I simply would like to talk to your boss, so just tell me his phone number." The young man was about twenty-four to twenty-five years old. He had an obvious lack of both experience and good taste. Otherwise, he should've immediately recognized the value of Chen Fan's outfit."I am the owner of this dock. Spill it, and make it quick." Chen Fan did not accept the YuXi cigarette that the young man offered, as he felt that the class of such cigarettes, which was a brand worth no more than 20 yuan, was too low for his standards. Plus, the young man's attitude had ticked him off."You are the boss?" The young man's attitude became slightly better. He took out a business card and said, "Let me introduce myself, I am the deputy manager of the engineering management department of Shentai Real Estate. My name is Jiang Ze, and the caravan that just drove past are the bosses of our company. Our company is planning to develop this sector, making it into a seaside villa resort area. Therefore, this dock must be removed. I am here to discuss with you the compensation.""You're going to remove my dock? Well then, hmmmm, how much do you plan to compensate me?" said Chen Fan, squinting and leaning by the truck.If the price was suitable, he wouldn't mind letting them dismantle it, then simply have someone get another one. After all, having to deal with these real estate developers was the utmost annoying task!Jiang Ze carefully looked around the dock and said, "Well, our standard of compensation towards warehouses includes the loss of production, as well as business suspension, a relocation subsidy, renovation expenses, equipment transportation expenses, and finally, the compensation according to the structure and the area of the factory. If you have ownership of the land, we will also compensate you for that."That sounds about right!Chen Fan nodded his head. This real estate company did not sound as dishonest as it first seemed, after all! Unlike some developers, who take over the houses of the residents and offer them an amount of compensation to where these people aren't even able to purchase one-third of the original area, this company seemed pretty generous, or at the least, fair.According to the amount the young man had suggested, Chen Fan estimated that he could make a small profit from the deal. After all, the ship's machinery and equipment were never used, and therefore, there was no such thing as a loss of business to begin with!"My dock has an area of 1600 square meters. It is 12 meters in height, is a fully steel structure, and cost seven million yuan, including the machinery. As you can see, this dock is brand new, and even the freshly painted anti-rust paint is specially made for marine-use. That alone cost me about five hundred thousand yuan. There are also two automatic gates, which cost another five hundred thousand..." Chen Fan pointed to the big iron gate next to him, while he spoke. "All you have to pay me is a total of eight million yuan, as well as handling a few demolition permits. Also, I would purchase a few villas, once you are ready for business.""Heh Hehwe may discuss that later, regarding the demolition permit" Jiang Ze gave a hollow smile and said, "Let's see, I'll have the company's finance department drop by this afternoon, as they have the professional accountants on staff and could figure out the estimated compensation for the dock in no time.""OK!" Chen Fan had Xiao Zhou to first send the seafood back. Then, when Jiang Ze had left with his Honda Odyssey, Chen Fan drove his Maybach to another dock. He didn't close the gate, since there was nothing worth stealing, thus making it even easier for the real estate company to come estimate the compensation that afternoon.The wild seafood that was served by the special first-class chefs was indeed extraordinary. Argyll, who was so used to palace cuisine, saw that Chen Fan was preparing to entertain him, and he wanted to deliberately refuse at first. But, once he saw those delicious and attractive seafood dishes, he could no longer decline.The abalone especially thrilled Argyll, who felt the indescribable taste that blasted on his taste buds. It almost felt like his tongue had died and gone to the heavens!Argyll, don't forget that you have once eaten at a dinner party hosted by a king, so steady! Steady!Argyll quietly reassured himself in his mind."This is the best food I have ever eaten in my life!" At last, Argyll could no longer hold himself back, and he yelled loudly.After the delicious meal, Chen Fan continued his Chinese language lessons with Argyll and the giant python until 4 p.m. He then returned to Zhongyun, riding the electric eel. The accountants from the real estate company should have the amount of compensation ready by now!He landed on a random reef near the dock, then walked towards the entrance. He sawthat the Honda Odyssey was again parked there, and Jiang Ze and two other young men were busily discussing something."Done with your calculations?""Yes, we're done." Jiang Ze again took out his YuXi cigarettes and handed one to Chen Fan. This time, Chen Fan did not decline his offer, but took the cigarette and promptly set it in his mouth."With such a location, and the various compensation plans for the demolition, we would like to compensate you with 3.27 million for this dock, and offer a demolition permit for 500 square meters." Jiang Ze took out a handout filled will all sorts of data, then passed it to Chen Fan. There were no sign of awkwardness on his face, which showed that he was an old pro at making these kind of deals already."Are you treating me like an idiot?" After he casually read through the first few lines of the contract, a wildfire was ignited in Chen Fan, running all the way from his soles to the top of his head.The compensation for the steel-plated room was calculated in terms of scrap metal, and as for the rest of the materials, such as the marine anti-rust paint, the top high-strength alloy bracket, the top sunshade steel plate, which cost more than 2,000 yuan per piece, they weren't even freaking included! What was even more irritating, was that the big iron gates that Chen Fan knew were worth a small fortune, apparently were being counted as scrap metal!"I'm not gonna sell it, so you can go build your villa wherever the heck you want! But, it sure as heck won't be here!" Chen Fan didn't even feel like negotiating, so he immediately spat out the cigarette and said, "This YuXi is awfully bad! It tastes like straw.""You!" Jiang Ze's self-esteem was crushed by Chen Fan's bad temper. He tried his best to hold back his own emotions and said, "The amount we suggested is based on current market standards. The few other docks in this area received the same amount as well.""This dock was designed by the architectural design master De Meilong, the same guy who designed the Bird's Nest National Stadium. Also, my dock was fully hand-built. Do you know how much that cost?!" Chen Fan calmly looked at him, being careful to pronounce each syllable clearly. "Eight million USD, not in Ren-Min-Bi! "As the situation grew more intense, the two accountants, who were working on the calculations with their calculators, quickly came closer, trying to help resolve the situation. Merchants only seek wealth, thus, they knew that it was best to not go against the owner, if at all possible. Although they were not afraid of the owner at all."Mr. Chen, this is the best price we can offer, as it's regulated by the company policies. If you are not satisfied, you may bring it to our boss. I believe he would definitely be willing to compensate you more." Jiang Ze took a deep breath, replying with a fairly fake smile."Tell your boss that I'm not going to sell this dock! I won't sell it, even if he is willing to pay 100 million upfront!" Chen Fan sat on the sofa with a disdainful expression, then said, "You may leave now, as you are not welcome here any longer. ""Mr. Chen, since we managed to take over the development rights of this land, you should know that we have the ability to develop this land. It is not good for both parties to be in a state of turmoil, so I hope you will cooperate.""Wow, are you threatening me now?" Chen Fan's expression was filled with disbelief!"We are lawful businessmen, so how could we be threatening people? All I offered was some advice with good intentions, as there's still room for negotiation for the compensation issue, but it's absolute that this dock shall be demolished.""If that's the case, then just come to dismantle it. No compensation will be needed. I would then just tear down the villa the second that you build one, just so we don't owe each other!"
