The next day, after breakfast, Li Haochen rode his bike to Dai Changrun's dormitory.
Upon arriving, the air was filled with the aroma of cooking.
"Uncle Dai, already cooking?"
"Benefactor, please come in and sit. It's just finished boiling, and we'll be able to eat soon."
"I've already eaten, please go ahead."
However, when the food was ready, Li Haochen couldn't refuse the enthusiastic hospitality of Dai Changrun and his family and ate a bowl, feeling quite full.
After breakfast, they took a taxi to the shipyard, where Li Yongxin was already waiting.
After some meaningless pleasantries, Li Yongxin led Li Haochen and his group to the dock where the boat would be launched.
The Qianlong One was already secured on several large inflatable rollers, with a big red flower and fluttering ribbons on the exterior of the cabin. This was a treatment he hadn't received when he bought the Xingchen Hao.
"Boss Li, the auspicious time has arrived. Let's launch her."
Li Haochen nodded, took the hammer handed to him by Li Yongxin, and walked to the securing bolt.
At this moment, at Li Yongxin's signal, the shipyard workers lit two strings of firecrackers, tens of thousands of pops, and the noise shook the heavens.
Li Haochen raised the hammer high and smashed it down on the iron bolt with a clang. The fishing boat slowly slid down the ramp into the sea.
"Boom—"
With a loud splash, the fishing boat, like a tumbler, swayed left and right but quickly settled steadily on the sea.
"Congratulations, congratulations, Boss Li! May your boat always be full of catch and your profits skyrocket."
"Thank you for your kind words, Mr. Li."
After chatting with Li Yongxin for a while, he boarded the new fishing boat with the three members of the Dai family. Li Haochen, of course, did not sit in the driver's seat, but merely beside it.
He originally thought Dai Changrun would be driving, but it turned out to be Dai Zirui, who was about the same age. Although his operation wasn't very skilled, there were no major mistakes. It was likely due to not having much hands-on experience yet.
Indeed, shortly after the fishing boat set sail, Dai Zirui's operation became much more adept.
"Well done, Zirui, you're getting steadier."
"I took the driving test a long time ago, but I haven't had much practice, so I'm not driving very well, hehe!" Dai Zirui scratched his head sheepishly.
"You're much better than I was when I started. Let me tell you..."
After a short chat, the boat reached the pier, and they found a mooring spot. Before they could disembark, Wang Xiaoming walked over. Seeing Li Haochen on the boat, he asked curiously, "Haochen, what's this?"
"Uncle Ming, it's a new boat. I'll be renting a berth here from now on, hehe!"
"You're something, kid. Why not get a few more boats and start a company, hehe!"
Li Haochen just smiled. Getting more boats wasn't a problem, but running a company was beyond him. He didn't have the energy to manage it.
The paperwork was completed quickly, the price remained the same, 4,500 per month, and Li Haochen paid for a year upfront.
"Thank you, Uncle Ming. After the New Year, I'll have two more boats. Please reserve two spots for me, hehe!"
Wang Xiaoming watched Li Haochen leave, extremely pleased with him. He muttered to himself, "He's really good. He'd be quite a match for my little devil, hehe!"
Leaving the pier, Li Haochen parted ways with Dai Changrun and his family. He had preparations to make for the ancestral worship ceremony and various supplies for setting sail.
Upon returning home, Murong Yanran and the others had already gone back to work, but they had prepared the offerings for the ceremony and left two large red envelopes nearby.
Li Haochen also prepared several red envelopes and took the offerings by bike to Dai Changrun's place.
When he arrived, he saw that the area outside the house was piled high with fishing nets, traps, and longlines, a truly impressive amount, resembling small mountains.
"Uncle Dai, why so many? Will they all fit?"
"Benefactor, it's not that much. Our old small boat was more capable than this. Now the new boat is more than double the size, and I still think this is too little, hehe."
"Uh, alright, as long as you can manage it. By the way, how much did these cost? I'll transfer the money to you."
"No, don't transfer any money. These fishing nets and traps are our tools for making a living, so of course, we have to prepare them ourselves."
Li Haochen knew about Dai Changrun's stubbornness in this regard and let it be.
With so many items, they had to call a small truck from Huolala. The truck had just enough space for three people. Li Haochen placed the offerings in the truck and let the Dai Changrun family go first.
Li Haochen, on the other hand, rode his electric scooter to the market to buy supplies for the sea voyage.
He bought some rice, flour, oil, salt, vegetables, and meat. The new boat's maiden voyage wasn't planned to be long, and he would leave it to them to handle such matters in the future.
Arriving at the pier, they had already moved all the gear onto the boat and arranged them neatly.
Seeing Li Haochen arrive, they brought down a small table and the offerings.
"Benefactor, it's about time. Let's begin."
After placing the oil, rice, and vegetables, Li Haochen washed his hands and came out. Dai Changrun had already set up the three types of sacrificial animals and five types of fruits, along with incense, candles, and wine.
The "three sacrificial animals" and "five fruits" were not used randomly. For the "three sacrificial animals," there were large and small categories. Ancient emperors or large-scale sacrifices used pigs, cattle, and sheep, known as the "large three sacrificial animals." Ordinary people generally used small "three sacrificial animals," which referred to chickens, ducks, and fish, or pigs, fish, and chickens. Nowadays, ducks are rarely seen on altars; most commonly, it's chickens, pigs, and fish.
The "five fruits" referred to five types of fruits, all chosen for their auspicious meanings, such as pineapples, citrus, pomelos, sugarcane, and apples. For instance, pomelos offer blessings of peace; apples symbolize smooth sailing and peace; pineapples, with their homophone for "prosperous," represent prosperity. These five fruits also symbolize metal, wood, water, fire, and earth, signifying favorable weather and abundant harvests.
Li Haochen took the incense, bowed three times very devoutly, and then placed his hands into the censer. Following that, he took the paper money, bowed three times, and proceeded through the rest of the rituals. Dai Changrun, who was presiding, chanted prayers, wishing the new boat smooth sailing, peace, and great fortune.
After everyone completed the ritual, Li Haochen and Dai Zirui each set off a string of firecrackers.
"The ceremony is complete!"
As soon as Dai Changrun spoke, Li Haochen and Dai Zirui lit the firecrackers and threw them on both sides of the fishing boat. They exploded with a rapid crackling sound, symbolizing the expulsion of disasters, warding off evil spirits, and bringing prosperity and flourishing fortune.
"Uncle Dai, Auntie, Zirui, may you have smooth sailing and rolling in wealth."
Li Haochen handed over three large red envelopes, one for each of them. This time, Dai Changrun did not refuse and accepted them gladly.
A while later, after the incense, candles, and paper money had burned out, the sacrificial items were tidied up.
Dai Changrun and his family boarded the boat to prepare, while Li Haochen called for a fuel tanker to refuel.
Since the fishing boat did not have an ice-making machine, Li Haochen also ordered two thousand tons of seawater ice from the cold storage.
With all supplies accounted for, they boarded the boat and set off.
Dai Zirui sat in the driver's seat, his expression excited, and sounded the ship's horn.
"Beep—!"