Rebirth of Hong Kong Island, leading the technology war

Chapter 652 New Land Reclamation Technology

Zhao Dongmei came to the ship's side and looked at the schools of fish, sea turtles, and all kinds of jellyfish in the seawater.

When she could clearly see the white sand on the seabed, as well as the colorful coral reefs and the vibrant anemones, her expression became even more astonished.

Zhao Dongmei couldn't help but glance at Kevin: "Mr. Kevin, is this...is this scientifically sound?"

"No, that's not scientific!"

Kevin's tone was almost manic.

"This is impossible! I've never seen seawater of this quality around Hong Kong Island before! Something must be wrong! Is this...is this an illusion!?"

Zhao Dongmei was speechless for a moment. How could it be possible for so many people to have hallucinations at the same time if only one person was hallucinating?
In fact, Zhao Dongmei understood why Kevin was so shocked, because she and others were equally shocked; their worldviews were shattered.

I've never seen such clean waters near Hong Kong Island, nor have I ever seen such brightly colored sea anemones. The sea around Hong Kong Island has always given people a hazy feeling, with little sign of life.

There are so many large-headed, brightly colored fish, and sea turtles can be seen everywhere. It is truly incredible that all these species appear here at the same time.

It is very likely that even the Great Barrier Reef in South Australia does not have such a high species density.

To be honest, Zhao Dongmei felt a little embarrassed. She was the deputy minister of the environmental protection department on Hong Kong Island, yet she didn't even know that there was such a beautiful marine area near Hong Kong Island.

If someone had told Zhao Dongmei before that the waters around Tenglong Island were like this, she would not have believed it at all, thinking it was an exaggeration and bragging.

Even if someone recorded a video or took a photo and sent it to Zhao Dongmei, she would still think that it had been processed and filtered in various ways, that it was fake, and that the real situation would never be like that.

As the saying goes, prejudice is a mountain.

Only now, seeing all this, did Zhao Dongmei realize that she had indeed misunderstood. Tenglong Island is such a beautiful place, the best tourist destination on Hong Kong Island besides Victoria Peak and Victoria Harbour!
I can't believe this is a private island. How did the Hu family manage to buy it? I've never heard of any exorbitant transaction like this!

Zhao Dongmei is very knowledgeable about island transactions. For an island of this quality, just the Tenglong Bay alone can increase the island's value tenfold, or even dozens of times.

It's even impossible to sell them; developing them into a tourist area would be the most cost-effective option.

Just then, a colleague pointed to the back of the official boat and said, "Look, look! Another boat is coming in!"

"There's also a yacht."

Zhao Dongmei looked back and saw a medium-sized cruise ship sailing in from the entrance of Tenglong Bay, followed by a private luxury yacht.

After the two ships entered Tenglong Bay, they quickly adjusted their bows, made a turn, and headed in another direction.

Zhao Dongmei found it strange and quickly asked the crew, "Where did those two ships go?"

The crew member looked around and replied, "It should be heading to the resort's dock."

Zhao Dongmei was astonished. She knew that a resort had been built on Tenglong Island, but she never expected that there would be a dedicated pier.

Are there two docks here?

The crew member nodded: "Yes, we're heading to the main pier. The resort has its own pier, which is a bit smaller than the main pier, but it's also very beautiful."

The crew members, caught up in the moment, said a few more words.

"The infrastructure here is amazing. The dock is particularly well-built. We'll see it in a bit."

A moment later, the official vessel finally docked at the pier.

After Zhao Dongmei, Kevin, and the others disembarked, they looked around and finally understood why the crew had said that the infrastructure here was of a very high standard.

That's no exaggeration at all.

This pier is made of high-quality materials and is absolutely incomparable to the most rudimentary piers on other outlying islands.

Even some of the larger outlying islands don't have piers of this standard; they're far inferior.

Just then, several electric shuttle buses drove up; those must be the staff from Tenglong Island.

They got off the electric scooter. The person in charge was of average appearance, but seemed reliable.

He came over politely to greet us, introducing himself as Yu Sheng, the head of the logistics department.

Zhao Dongmei observed them closely. They were all wearing uniforms, each with a dignified appearance and proper manners. They had no unnecessary movements, were well-trained, and quite professional.

This shows that Tenglong Island is well-managed and has strict requirements for selecting staff; it's not a laissez-faire management style.

Yu Sheng introduced himself, introducing himself as the head of the logistics management department of Tenglong Island.

After polite greetings, Yu Sheng invited everyone to get into the car.

"Everyone, please get on the bus first and head to the dockside lounge."

Zhao Dongmei nodded and boarded the commuter bus.

Along the way, Zhao Dongmei also carefully observed the surrounding situation and asked the staff to make records, especially video recordings.

This Tenglong Island is truly exceptionally beautiful.

Driving along the coastal highway, you'll find beautiful scenery everywhere, giving you the illusion of being on an island vacation.

Although it is somewhat deserted, the trees, mountains, and sea views of Tenglong Bay create a unique style that cannot be seen on other outlying islands.

What's more, it's incredibly clean here, with smooth, straight roads that are spotless.

Looking at it this way, it seems that Tenglong Island really doesn't have any environmental problems.

Of course, this is only a superficial phenomenon.

As the deputy minister of the environmental protection department, Zhao Dongmei cannot be so arbitrary. There are many cases of falsification, and a thorough investigation must be conducted before drawing conclusions.

Zhao Dongmei also heard that the person who runs the island is a member of the Hu family, namely Hu Jiangshan.

Zhao Dongmei didn't know much about Hu Jiangshan, only that he was a spoiled brat, a spendthrift, and had a bad reputation, even a terrible one.

Zhao Dongmei is now puzzled; it's unbelievable that such a person could manage this island so well.

Zhao Dongmei was not so naive as to believe that Hu Jiangshan was personally managing the affairs, but rather that a professional team sent by the Hu family was handling them.

Zhao Dongmei asked Yu Sheng, "Are you the direct supervisor of this island?"

Yu Sheng quickly waved his hand: "No, no, I'm just a subordinate. There's a big boss above me."

"Is that Boss Hu?"

"Yes, it's Chairman Hu, Chairman Hu Jiangshan. He's waiting for you all in the lounge at the dock."

Zhao Dongmei was somewhat surprised, not expecting Hu Jiangshan to personally receive them.

It seems this young master isn't as ignorant and idle as the rumors suggest; he can still distinguish between what's important and what's urgent.

It's important to understand that environmental protection remains a crucial issue in Hong Kong.

Especially for large-scale projects, if environmental protection standards are not met, the Hong Kong government has the right to require them to be suspended for rectification.

Even if a company has extensive connections, it still needs to handle superficial issues properly. Otherwise, it will give others ammunition to criticize it, allowing competitors to exploit these issues and cause many unexpected troubles.

A moment later, the electric shuttle bus stopped, finally arriving at the dock's command center. Zhao Dongmei was surprised; she hadn't expected the so-called dock command center to be so large.

This is practically an office building; it's not tall, but it occupies a huge area. No wonder they set up the dockside lounge here.

When Yu Sheng led everyone to the lounge, they exclaimed in amazement, exclamations of admiration rose and fell, and they looked at each other, discussing among themselves.

"Wow, is this a lounge? I thought it was a hotel restaurant!"

"It's much more upscale than a hotel restaurant. Look at the view; it's definitely at the level of a high-end seaside restaurant."

"I'm really amazed to see this kind of setup on the island."

"I want to work here too, it's so comfortable!"

Soon, staff invited everyone to sit down and told them that they could choose from a variety of drinks and food, and not to be shy.

Upon inspection, everyone saw that the lounge indeed had a buffet counter similar to a self-service restaurant, offering coffee, drinks, mineral water, fruits, melon seeds, cakes, and everything else imaginable.

Even Kevin couldn't sit still. He had just been on a government ship, and the conditions were far from ideal. He was already parched, so he quickly got himself a drink and raved about it.

"Oh, this juice tastes amazing! It's freshly squeezed and so sweet. It's incredible to find something so delicious on an island."

As they were talking, someone walked over. He was a handsome young man, tall and dashing, with a refined air about him.

The handsome young man walked over and greeted Zhao Dongmei: "Are you Minister Zhao? I'm the owner here, Hu Jiangshan."

"Ah, it's Mr. Hu. It's a pleasure to meet you."

As Zhao Dongmei shook hands with Hu Jiangshan, she was astonished. This was the legendary spendthrift Hu Jiangshan.

This is truly eye-opening.

This is what they mean by "seeing is believing."

This is hardly the behavior of a spendthrift; his speech and attitude are those of the elite among the elite, and there's nothing to criticize.

The environmental protection team sat opposite Hu Jiangshan.

Hu Jiangshan indeed behaved very politely and approachably; you couldn't tell he was a rich second-generation heir at all.

"Everyone, if there's anything you need to see, just let me know and I'll try my best to cooperate."

Zhao Dongmei said, "Mr. Hu, we would like to see the construction site where the land reclamation is taking place and make detailed records, including photos and videos. Is that alright?"

Hu Jiangshan nodded: "Of course, no problem, we'll arrange it right away."

Kevin said, "Mr. Hu, we still need to conduct tests and verifications on the soil and hydrological environment of that place."

Hu Jiangshan hesitated for a moment: "Well... of course, but..."

"Oh? But what?"

Kevin perked up, clearly believing he had caught Hu Jiangshan red-handed.

Hu Jiangshan's hesitant and evasive manner clearly indicates that something is amiss.

Hu Jiangshan said, "But construction has already begun."

Zhao Dongmei and Kevin were frightened.

"What!? Construction has started!?"

"So fast!"

Zhao Dongmei and Kevin were indeed surprised, especially Zhao Dongmei, who knew very well how complicated the process of such a large-scale project was.

Such a large project will definitely require a very long preparation period, often one or two years, before construction can begin.

Sometimes it takes four or five years to prepare, and there are even precedents of it taking ten years or more.

However, Tenglong Island did the opposite. They received the permit and started construction the very next day.

That's too fast! So fast it's making me lose all my friends!
Kevin couldn't help but say, "We haven't even done any monitoring or recording yet, how come you're starting work now?"

Hu Jiangshan said with a wry smile, "I'm sorry, this was my mistake. I thought that as long as we got the construction permit, we could start construction here."

Zhao Dongmei said, "Theoretically, that's true, but we also need to communicate and verify the construction method. If it's a construction method that causes serious environmental damage, we suggest making adjustments, because that might not meet environmental protection requirements. Mr. Hu, do you understand what I mean?"

Hu Jiangshan said, "Of course I can understand, and I'm willing to comply. So I'd like to know what kind of construction methods are not allowed?"

Zhao Dongmei looked at Kevin; this was a question that Kevin really needed to answer.

Kevin is not just a simple environmental expert; he has extensive knowledge of land reclamation.

He is very familiar with all kinds of construction methods, which is why Kevin was called up this time, because he has in-depth knowledge in this field.

Kevin has also published several insightful papers.
Kevin smiled slightly, seemingly believing himself to be the authority.

“Mr. Hu, I know you all prefer to use sand dredging to create land, but this method is not feasible. It causes too much damage to the environment, and the impact cannot be eliminated even after several years. In some cases, it is even irreversible. Therefore, this method should absolutely not be used.”

“Mr. Hu, I hope you did not use this method. If you did, please stop work immediately and do not continue.”

"Oh, I understand."

Zhao Dongmei opened her mouth, but didn't say anything.

Actually, Kevin's words were a bit harsh. While sand-blowing for land reclamation does pollute the environment, it is also highly efficient, so in many cases, this method is still necessary.

Moreover, as for serious environmental pollution problems, it's not that they are completely unsolvable or unavoidable. At least some methods and equipment can be used to reduce the environmental impact.

For example, the Li family also carried out land reclamation projects, covering a larger area. They also used the method of dredging sand to create land, and it was done quite well, without causing any large-scale marine environmental pollution problems.

However, Hu Jiangshan smiled slightly and said, "Then I'm relieved. We're not using sand blowing to create land."

Kevin was completely bewildered.

"If it's not land reclamation by blowing sand, then what method did you use?"

Kevin was clearly quite surprised, unable to imagine that Tenglong Island would use such costly and inefficient methods to carry out such a large-scale project.

Besides, Hu Jiangshan is the boss; how could he possibly understand these things?

Hu Jiangshan thought for a moment and said, "This is probably hard to describe. It's a very new type of island reclamation method, and it's our company's latest technological achievement."

"Huh? The technology your company developed?"

"Yes, I can take a few people to the site in a bit, and then everything will be clear."

Kevin still didn't believe it, but Li Dongmei spoke up first: "Okay, we want to go to the scene as soon as possible."

Hu Jiangshan waved his hand and said, "Arrange it!"

(End of this chapter)