Hong Kong Film: Short mules have no future, I am in charge of Hong Kong

Chapter 210: Try your best to arrive

A few days later, the riots on Bar Street gradually subsided, and those small gangs did not dare to act rashly after Su Hanze's warning. At the same time, the business volume of East Wharf ushered in a wave of growth again. More and more merchants chose to join the platform. They not only enjoyed efficient logistics services, but also obtained more financing opportunities through the platform.

Su Hanze sat in the conference room, listening to his subordinates' reports, with a faint smile on his face. His layout has begun to show results, and this is just the beginning. He whispered: "Next, we will promote the East Wharf model to the mainland and Southeast Asia. Our goal is to make this network cover the entire region, so that every transaction and every freight line cannot bypass us."

Ah Kuan left the meeting room with admiration on his face, and the entire team quickly took action.

After the rain, the air of Hong Kong Island was filled with a hint of moist coolness. The sun shone through the thick clouds and sprinkled on the busy scene of the East Pier. Su Hanze stood in front of the glass window of the command center, watching everything calmly and attentively. His fingertips gently tapped the window frame, the rhythm was slow, but there was a sense of confidence in controlling the overall situation. The pier in front of him was just the beginning. The entire Hong Kong Island, and even further away, would gradually become part of his chessboard.

Ah Kuan hurried into the command center, carrying a stack of organized reports, with a hint of uncontrollable excitement on his face: "Brother Ze, yesterday's transaction volume hit a new high again, especially the freight line we cooperated with the mainland, the efficiency increased by 30%, and several major customers praised our service."

Su Hanze did not look back, but said calmly: "Customer satisfaction is superficial, the real value lies in their dependence. What about the data? Has their freight frequency begun to stabilize?"

Ah Kuan immediately flipped open the document in his hand and took a quick look. "Yes, Brother Ze. They now have a fixed batch of orders every week. Moreover, these customers' working capital has begun to use our platform services, and they are becoming more and more dependent on us."

"Very good." Su Hanze nodded, his voice low but full of confidence. "Next, we will strengthen the maintenance of these core routes to ensure that every batch of goods can be delivered on time. The mainland market has huge potential. What we need to do is to integrate our services into their operating habits before they find other alternatives."

Ah Kuan nodded repeatedly, and then added: "Brother Ze, there is news from Jiangnan. They hope to jointly develop a new route with us to connect Southeast Asia and the mainland. This will not only save time, but also reduce intermediate costs."

Su Hanze turned around and looked at A Kuan with deep eyes: "This is a good thing, but we can't let them lead us by the nose. The right to develop the route must be in our hands. Tell them that we can cooperate, but the leading power must be ours. We can provide technical and resource support, but the final decision-making power must be firmly in our hands."

A Kuan responded and turned around to make arrangements.

A few hours later, the lights in the conference room were bright, and the core team sat around the table, everyone's expression was extremely focused. The whiteboard was filled with route planning and expansion plans, and the desk was filled with thick documents and data analysis charts.

"Brother Ze, according to our preliminary calculations, if this new route is put into operation, transportation efficiency can be increased by at least 40%, while costs can be reduced by nearly 20%." A subordinate in charge of data analysis pushed up his glasses and pointed to a red line on the whiteboard. "But the initial investment will be relatively large. Just the renewal of ships and equipment will require a large amount of funds."

Su Hanze narrowed his eyes slightly and tapped the table with his fingers: "Funding is not a problem. I will talk to the bank about financing. What you need to do is to ensure the feasibility of this plan, especially the nodes and ports in the middle, which must all be opened up. If there are any potential risks, they must be eliminated in advance."

"Understood!" everyone responded in unison.

After the meeting, Su Hanze stayed alone in the conference room, staring at the route map on the whiteboard. The success of this route was not only a commercial breakthrough, but also a brand new beginning. As long as he could control this route, his sphere of influence would expand from Hong Kong Island to a wider international market.

The next morning, Su Hanze got in his car and headed for the headquarters of the largest bank in Hong Kong Island. Beside him were several core financial staff members, each of whom looked extremely nervous. The financing plan was crucial to the advancement of the entire project, and this step could not go wrong.

"Brother Ze, the amount of financing this time is not small. Will the bank have any concerns?" one of his subordinates asked cautiously.

"It's normal to be concerned." Su Hanze said calmly, but his eyes were unusually calm. "But they will agree because they know that this is a business that is sure to make money."

The car slowly stopped in front of the bank building. Su Hanze straightened his collar and walked into the lobby. His steps were steady and calm, and each step seemed to carry some invisible pressure.

In the conference room, several senior bank executives were already waiting, with professional smiles on their faces, but from their eyes it could be seen that they were full of interest in this cooperation.

"Welcome, Mr. Su." The middle-aged man in the lead stood up and extended his hand. "We have studied your project and it is very promising, but the scale of the funds...really requires us to weigh it carefully."

Su Hanze smiled slightly, and said in a leisurely tone: "Mr. Zhou, any project requires investment at the beginning, but the return is the key.

What I bring is not just a project, but an opportunity that can change the market landscape.”

The subsequent negotiations lasted for nearly two hours. Su Hanze always controlled the rhythm and convinced the other party step by step with detailed data and precise analysis. In the end, the bank agreed to provide full financing for his route project, but the condition was that part of the platform's income needed to be used for dividends.

As they walked out of the bank building, Ah Kuan couldn't help but whisper, "Brother Ze, are the bank's dividend conditions too harsh?"

"Harsh?" Su Hanze laughed softly. "Their dividends are just a drop in the bucket. When this route runs stably, they will find that the dividend money is not worth mentioning at all."

After returning to the office, Su Hanze immediately called the team together and began to fully promote the route development plan. His instructions were clear and decisive, and every detail was strictly controlled. In less than a month, the first batch of cargo ships successfully set sail on the new route, greatly shortening the time to reach Southeast Asia and the mainland.

Su Hanze stood in the command center of the East Pier, looking at the real-time data of route operations, a faint smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.

The sea breeze howled, and the waves hit the side of the freighter, making a low sound. Night enveloped the entire sea area, and only the searchlight on the bow broke through the darkness, illuminating a small area of ​​turbulent water in front.

This is a fully loaded container ship, sailing from Hong Kong Island to Southeast Asia along the newly opened route. The crew members are operating the instruments in the cockpit in an orderly manner, with a little fatigue on their faces, but also a hint of pride. This is the first batch of cargo transportation tasks they have carried out, and it is also a key step for Su Hanze's logistics network to enter the international market.

"The sea conditions are relatively calm. At the current speed, we should be able to reach our destination three hours ahead of schedule." The captain looked down at the dashboard and said to his deputy.

"Yes, the planning of this route is indeed good. It saves both time and fuel." The deputy said with a smile, "Mr. Su's team is really amazing. They can figure out such a route. After this trip, we will have made a good start."

"Don't let your guard down. Although this sea area looks calm, there have been reports of some small pirate activities recently." The captain's tone became serious, and his eyes were fixed on the front. The deputy nodded, raised his telescope and looked around. After confirming that there was nothing unusual, he relaxed a little. He was about to say something when suddenly, several bright lights appeared on the sea in the distance, like searchlights shaking.

"Captain, there's a light at twelve o'clock." The mate put down the telescope and his expression immediately became tense.

The captain quickly adjusted the focus of the telescope and scanned the direction of the bright light. His face instantly became serious: "That's not an ordinary fishing boat. It looks like a speedboat."

"Speedboat?" The deputy's voice was a little panicked. "Why are there speedboats in this sea area? And there are quite a few of them, at least three."

"It could be pirates." The captain calmed down and immediately picked up the intercom to issue instructions to the entire crew, "Attention everyone! There is a suspicious ship ahead, it could be pirates, immediately enter the first level alert state."

The crew members acted quickly, the alarm lights in the cockpit flashed, and the atmosphere on the entire freighter instantly became extremely tense. The captain held the communication device tightly and tried to contact the nearby coast guard, but the signal was intermittent and could not be connected.

"The signal is being jammed!" the deputy exclaimed, his face turning paler.

The captain gnashed his teeth as he looked at the speedboats that were approaching. They were moving very fast and were closing the distance in the blink of an eye. Soon, the figures on the speedboats became clearly visible. They were wearing masks and holding weapons in their hands. There was a faint roar.

"They're coming closer!" the deputy's voice trembled.

"Prepare for defense! Close all cargo hold entrances to ensure the safety of the cargo!" The captain gave the order decisively, while ordering the driver to go at full speed in an attempt to shake off the pursuing speedboat.

The roar of the freighter's engine was particularly harsh on the night sea. The huge ship accelerated with difficulty between the waves, while the speedboats were like a group of flexible hunting dogs, biting tightly. Soon, one of the speedboats approached the side of the freighter, and several agile pirates jumped onto the deck with the help of ropes.

On the deck, several crew members on duty quickly raised their protective tools, some holding iron bars, some waving fire extinguishers, trying to stop the pirates from approaching. But the other party's actions were more ferocious, the blades in their hands flashed coldly, and they rushed up with a roar.

"They're coming up! The deck is lost!" The crew's panicked shouts came over the radio.

Inside the cockpit, the captain's face was extremely ugly. He slapped the dashboard fiercely and said, "Quick! Get everyone to retreat to the cockpit and hold this place!"

The crew communicated with each other on the intercom and quickly moved towards the cockpit from all parts of the freighter, but the pirates' attack became more and more fierce. They took control of the deck without much resistance and soon began to try to break through the protection of the cargo hold.

"These people are too professional." The deputy looked at the surveillance footage, despair in his voice, "Their target is very clear, the cargo hold!"

"We can't let them succeed." The captain gritted his teeth and quickly switched to the backup frequency, trying to contact the nearest support ship.

However, at this moment, a loud noise came from the stern of the freighter, and the entire hull shook violently. The captain turned around suddenly, his face full of horror: "They blew up our engine!"

The speed of the freighter suddenly dropped, and the huge inertia caused the entire hull to tilt to one side. The sea water hit the side, making a deafening sound.

The lights in the cockpit flickered, and the faces of several crew members were covered in sweat. They knew that if the engine was completely paralyzed, the freighter would become a prey to the pirates.

"Captain, what...what should we do?" The deputy's voice trembled and he almost cried.

The captain took a deep breath and tried to calm himself down: "Keep guarding the cockpit! As long as we can send out a signal, the coast guard may be able to receive it!"

At the same time, the pirates on the deck had begun to pry open the entrance to the cargo hold. Several crew members tried to stop them, but were forced to retreat step by step by the enemy's firepower. In the night, the pirates showed a ferocious smile under their masks. Their movements were quick and efficient, and they were obviously strictly trained.

The crew members in the cockpit stared at the surveillance screen, their breathing became rapid, and everyone's face was filled with helplessness and fear.

At this moment, there was a sudden noise on the radio, and then a deep male voice came clearly: "This is the Third Coast Guard Patrol Team. We have received your distress signal and are approaching your location. Please hold on!"

This sound seemed to give hope to everyone in the cockpit. Tears welled up in the deputy's eyes: "They're saved! They're saved!"

The captain did not relax. He held the communication device tightly and shouted: "Coastal police, please come as soon as possible! They have already entered the cargo hold, and our hull is seriously damaged!"

The Coast Guard responded forcefully: "Understood, we will do our best to get there!"

Under the night sky, several bright lights were faintly seen approaching in the distance. They were the patrol boats of the Coast Guard rushing in at full speed. The pirates on the deck had obviously noticed this, and their movements became faster, trying to complete the robbery before the Coast Guard arrived.

The crew members in the cockpit held their breath and watched the surveillance screen nervously.

On the deck of the freighter, the pirates' footsteps were clear and heavy. They held sharp knives in their hands and occasionally used the butts of their guns to hit the steel plates of the cargo hold, making a harsh metallic sound. This sound made the crew's nerves like a fully stretched string that could break at any time.

(End of this chapter)