Chapter 52

Jifeng shook his head slightly and said, "I’ve already checked, the area of West Island is sufficient. Have someone bring me the aerial survey data of West Island, and I’ll find someone to design it. As for the exploration and refining of oil, you can proceed according to your plan. Has South Korea conducted any exploration in the waters around Jeju Island?"

Jin Tonghao was very clear about this, after all, his former employer SK was in this business. "South Korea doesn’t have deep-sea areas, it’s all shallow seas, so they have already conducted explorations. They almost didn’t find any oil in the waters, so I think if we repeat the exploration, it would not only be a waste of effort but also a waste of money."

A smile crept onto Jifeng’s lips, and he said, "You’ll know when the time comes. I’ll purchase a deep-sea oil exploration platform and designate a place for you. I think it will give you a pleasant surprise." Jifeng was confident because he had learned this from Thomas, the owner of the energy shop, during a casual conversation. It was said that in the next century, when global oil supplies were becoming increasingly insufficient, numerous oil exploration personnel conducted extensive deep-sea explorations worldwide. Ultimately, they discovered a massive deep-sea oil field in the shallow waters 30 nautical miles north of Jeju Island, which was even claimed to be one of the top three in Asia. However, the oil layer was too deep, and the South Koreans at the time definitely didn’t explore to such depths. Otherwise, acquiring Jeju Island wouldn’t have been so easy. In the eyes of the South Korean government, Jeju Island was only suitable for tourism and had significant strategic value, but it was resource-poor, making negotiations easier.

If it weren’t for the fame of the Jeju oil field, Thomas wouldn’t have mentioned it. He wouldn’t bother remembering small oil fields because, in his view, they weren’t worth investing in.

In fact, the market itself had various energy trades. Many stalls during the Republic of China period sold crude oil, and in the high-level shops that lacked oil, Jifeng often saw their clerks going to purchase it, and the transaction volumes were not small. However, the prices, in Jifeng’s view, were somewhat unreasonable.

Jifeng was very supportive of Jin Tonghao’s suggestion to invest in and build a petrochemical refining project in another country. When the crude oil was available, it could be directly transported there for refining and then brought back. At least, the entire process wouldn’t be controlled by others, and the only cost would be the taxes paid to the country where the petrochemical project was located. This was still more cost-effective than buying refined oil directly from other countries. Moreover, the refining technology was not particularly advanced, and a set of equipment would cost a few million to a few billion dollars.

After instructing Jin Tonghao to perfect the plan and prepare for the construction bidding next month, Jifeng dismissed him. He thought it was better for Jin Tonghao to go back and finalize the plan rather than continue discussing it here, otherwise, he would be talking in circles.

As soon as Jin Tonghao left, Xu Qiang’s phone call came in: "Xiao Ji, the first batch of naval equipment has arrived. Do you want to come and take a look?"

Jifeng almost didn’t think before responding, "Uncle, I won’t come for now. I’ll wait until everything is almost ready and then check it all at once. Don’t overwork yourself, take care of your health. How about I bring Auntie over to keep you company? Xiao Xian has been worried about you."

"My health is fine, no need for them to worry. If you don’t want to come, that’s fine. I’ll call you when everything is almost ready." Without waiting for Jifeng to respond, he hung up the phone.

Hearing the busy signal, Jifeng shook his head helplessly. His future father-in-law was really energetic. Since taking over the island’s defense, he had been training a bunch of new recruits and patrolling the waters almost every day. It was hard to imagine where he got so much energy.

There were still many new recruits on Jeju Island. Anyone who turned 18 and was not in school could choose to serve in the military before or after university. No one could escape this, and those who tried to evade it without special circumstances faced the risk of their entire family being expelled. Even their families wouldn’t dare to cover for them.

Fortunately, there were former South Korean military officers and soldiers who had returned, otherwise, Jifeng would have faced the awkward situation of having soldiers but no one to lead them. As for whether these returnees were reliable, it wasn’t a concern for Jifeng at the moment. They couldn’t cause much trouble anyway, and once the people Cold Indifference recruited arrived, they could create some obstacles for them.

Slipping into the Shenlong Space, he noticed that the herd of cows had increased by a few more calves in just two days, and the beef cattle herd had also grown by four or five. Now, there were 104 dairy cows and 105 beef cattle, and even the adult elephant’s belly was noticeably swollen.

Jifeng was particularly pleased to see the pregnant cows and elephants. The reproduction rate was truly astonishing, but with the vast, endless grasslands, even if the population increased by several times, there would still be enough food for them.

Jifeng also noticed that the grass in the fields grew back quickly after being grazed by the cattle. The herd’s intelligence was not high; they only knew to move forward and eat, without realizing they could turn back to eat the fresher grass.

Jifeng then looked at the Kadaniel fish eggs in the lake and saw that some had already hatched into small fish. The tiny lives swam freely at the bottom of the lake, forming groups that resembled squads of soldiers, munching on the new, tender aquatic plants.

In Jifeng’s understanding, newly hatched fish should feed on plankton, but there were no such things in the lake. He scratched his head for a long time, trying to figure out why they were eating aquatic plants. He concluded that they must have been so hungry that they had no choice but to eat the plants, as there was nothing else to eat in the lake.

He also discovered another type of fish egg, nearly twice the size of the Kadaniel fish eggs, and laid in different areas. Jifeng felt even more relaxed, realizing that the Balong fish were also reproducing rapidly. He thought about catching some large fish to eat, as their reproduction rate in the space was so fast that they would never run out.

Looking at the empty fields, Jifeng pondered what to plant. He didn’t lack for fruits, as there were over a dozen varieties in his courtyard, and he and Xu Xian had become accustomed to their taste, finding the fruits outside to be of poor quality in comparison.

After thinking for a long time, Jifeng still couldn’t decide what to plant and decided to put the question aside. Although he grew up in the countryside and moved to the city in middle school, he hadn’t done much farm work and wasn’t skilled at planting.

After practicing the Body Strengthening Technique several times, Jifeng checked the time and realized it was almost dawn. He also noticed that if he practiced the Body Strengthening Technique in the space at night, he wouldn’t feel tired but would instead feel refreshed and fully recovered.

After returning to his hotel room, taking a shower, and having breakfast, Jifeng went outside to buy some chicks. He gave half of them to Lin Hui and said, "Secretary Lin, have someone raise them and see how long it takes for them to start laying eggs."

Lin Hui looked at Jifeng with a mix of amusement and exasperation, then at the dozens of chicks in her hands, and smiled, "Boss, I know this without feeding them. These are ordinary egg-laying chickens here, and they need at least 160 days to start laying eggs. If you want to raise egg-laying chickens on the farm, this isn’t a good breed; their egg production isn’t high."

Jifeng had gradually adapted to Jifeng’s daily odd questions. Besides, he had four helpers, and it was hard for her, a beauty, to accept raising chickens.

Jifeng rubbed his nose, thinking he only liked eating chicken and eggs and hadn’t studied how they laid eggs. "Are you sure?"

"Of course, if you really want to raise them, I can ask Manager Li or Manager Park to help you." Lin Hui nodded quickly, unwilling to take on this task and preferring to pass it to the others.

Jifeng waved his hand, declined, and left with the box. Once outside, he threw the chicks into the Shenlong Space. Since it took over 100 days outside, he wanted to see how long it would take for them to start laying eggs inside. With the abundant grass, he wasn’t worried about them going hungry. They could also catch small fish in the lake if they wanted to try something new, depending on their ability.

Jin Tonghao’s efficiency was impressive. On the third day after Jifeng’s instructions, he brought the detailed aerial survey and geological data of West Island. Jin Tonghao even had professionals analyze the geological data, confirming that it was suitable for the power station’s foundation, as the station would need to last for decades without any risk of the island collapsing.

After dismissing Jin Tonghao, Jifeng took the data to the market and chatted with a few familiar stall owners before heading to the energy shop where he had placed his order.

"Oh, Jifeng, you’re finally here. I thought you didn’t want the items you ordered," Thomas said, brightening up as Jifeng entered. He stood up and gave Jifeng a big bear hug.

Jifeng smiled and lightly punched him, saying, "Of course not. This time, I have more business for you. It’s still about the nuclear power box. I need you to design a power station for my island. Give me a good price, or I’ll find someone else at the market."

Thomas laughed, "No problem, sit down. I’ve been eager to get started. Your nuclear power box arrived a few days ago. Do you want to take it with you this time?"

Jifeng was slightly surprised, "It’s already ready? You’re really efficient."

Thomas smiled proudly, "Jifeng, you should know that the technology for these small nuclear power boxes isn’t complicated. In our place, even a primary school student could handle it."