Hong Kong film: The Ni family tycoon, who kills people and then amasses an army.

"They can communicate in a language and are afraid of bullets, so they pose no threat to us."

Ni Yongyao was well aware that these mermaids were unarmed and had no weapons of mass destruction. Faced with guns and ammunition, they would only be slaughtered. Even if they could control the ocean, that ability would be negligible and could not play a significant role.

Therefore, even without guns, Ni Yongyao could deal with these merfolk with his bare hands on land. Moreover, with guns and ammunition, they would surely scatter in all directions.

I went there to recruit and negotiate, not to slaughter mermaids; that wouldn't be of much value.

Upon hearing this, Firefox realized that Mr. Ni knew a lot about mermaids and nodded.

“I understand, Mr. Ni. However, I will prepare a bodyguard team. If you encounter any security issues, I will arrange for these bodyguards to be deployed immediately.”

Ni Yongyao smiled and said, "Okay, you make the arrangements. We'll head to Mermaid Island first thing tomorrow morning."

Delay could lead to unforeseen circumstances. Who knows if these mermaids might have moved to a different location? If we find nothing then, searching for any trace of them again would be like looking for a needle in a haystack.

It can only be said that Li Ruolan was indeed very lucky, otherwise humans would not have only heard of the legends for hundreds of years, and even those who actually saw mermaids would only think that they were hallucinating. This shows how well these mermaids hid.

Ni Yongyao is very interested in the mermaid team, and he has enough leverage to persuade the mermaids. If the mermaids do not agree, Ni Yongyao will also take coercive measures.

……

Soon, the next day, more than a dozen speedboats from Hong Kong Island headed to the uninhabited island. This time, he did not have anyone carry firearms. The mermaids' gathering place was right there, so it was easy to find.

However, the mermaids had already discovered these circumstances and hurriedly returned to their tribe to report them.

On the deserted island, an old figure listens to a report. Although the place is simple, traces of life can still be seen. Many mermaids stay in the sea, but there are also some houses built with templates around.

Mermaids can live on land for a period of time, and their lives and speech are influenced by the surrounding culture. They also use the language of Hong Kong Island.

One of the young mermaids looked terrified: "Chief, we've discovered a fleet of motorboats approaching our island. It's very likely that humans have discovered our presence..."

Mermaids are terrified of humans. Their numbers are scarce because severe environmental damage has made it impossible for them to live in the deep sea. If they appear before humans, they will inevitably become specimens, and there is no possibility of negotiation.

Most humans would show greed towards mermaids, whether as exhibits or for other purposes. Mermaids can bring enormous wealth to ordinary people, which is why they don't show it.

The elderly woman, referred to as the clan chief, coughed and sighed.

“We have nowhere else to go. This is our last home. We hope they haven’t found it, but we must also be prepared for our people to leave at any time.”

Gulai looked helpless. They had no idea how many times their tribe had migrated, one cultural migration after another. They had tried to understand human culture, after all, they were originally one race.

But they are so few that if their last refuge is found now, they will have nowhere else to go.

The other mermaids could only nod in agreement. They included both old and young, but their total number did not exceed one hundred, making them a large group.

It's too late to leave now. They can only hope that their tribe won't be discovered. Gulai looked helpless. Hiding like this isn't a solution. They don't know when they'll be understood by humans.

Moreover, this assassination attempt was also related to the development of the Qingluo Bay project. They naturally knew that Li Ruolan was in charge of this project, but there were even larger companies behind her.

When their assassination attempt failed, they realized their hiding place might be discovered, but they were simply clinging to a sliver of hope and unwilling to leave.

After Ni Yongyao arrived at the deserted island, he glanced around and waved his hand: "Fire Fox, you just follow me. The rest of you stay outside the island and guard it. Don't provoke these mermaids."

Although Firefox was worried about Ni Yongyao's safety, Mr. Ni hadn't brought many men with him, so it should be a sure thing: "Yes, Mr. Ni."

After saying that, Firefox arranged for the bodyguards to be distributed around the island. However, on the surface, there was nothing different about the place, but Ni Yongyao knew that there was a hidden world inside.

Ni Yongyao led Fire Fox through a cave, which was actually connected to the ocean, with many buildings constructed on the water.

There's also a large ship stranded inside. These buildings are constructed from waste materials, and there are even some television sets and other artifacts inside, giving the impression of a place still inhabited, rather than an abandoned one.

It was eerily quiet here, with hardly any sound. But the quieter it was, the more worried Firefox became, and a look of vigilance appeared on his face.

Ni Yongyao, however, remained calm and said, "I am Ni Yongyao, the person in charge of this Qingluo Bay project. I would like to have a talk with you."

"Since I know this is a gathering place for mermaids, and I didn't bring any weapons, that's enough to show my sincerity."

Ni Yongyao squinted at the calm sea, not worried at all. The mermaid was definitely observing them from the shadows, looking for any threat.

Moreover, the Qingluo Bay project destroyed the habitat of these mermaids. He spoke frankly, then paused:

"As for your assassination plan, it's just a temporary fix. Even if the person in charge of the Qingluo Bay project dies, someone else will come to develop this place. Your exposure is inevitable."

"As the person in charge of the Qingluo Bay development, I have complete control over the land reclamation plan."

Ni Yongyao knew exactly what these mermaids needed, and that could be used as negotiating leverage.

As soon as he finished speaking, a mermaid suddenly leaped out of the water, followed by many mermaids emerging from the sea, only their heads showing, looking at Ni Yongyao with wary expressions.

They would flee immediately if anything seemed amiss.

At this moment, Gulei sighed, came to the shore, and revealed his half-human, half-fish body:

"I am the chieftain of the mermaid clan. I wonder what Mr. Ni would like to discuss?"

"Clan leader."

Some of the younger mermaids tried to dissuade them, as they were terrified of being exploited. If they could cooperate with humans, they would have done so long ago. However, many more people cared about the value of mermaids themselves and did not respect their individuality.

Most people want to capture them and display them in museums or make them into specimens, which is why mermaids are afraid of humans.

When Firefox saw these mermaids, she instinctively took a step back. The unknown can be frightening, but she didn't want to embarrass herself while following Mr. Ni. She just didn't expect that there would actually be mermaids.

This was not a legendary creature, but a real one that appeared right in front of them.

Ni Yongyao squinted, realizing that mermaids could indeed communicate, and then stated his conditions:

“I hope to cooperate with you. I will provide the conditions to guarantee your safety and survival, including all the things you need. Our Ni family will provide them.”

"We will continue to develop the Qingluo Bay project, but it will not affect the survival of you mermaids. We will also help your mermaid community if it encounters difficulties in the future."

Ni Yongyao knew that the mermaids were simply a matter of survival. He was the one who called the shots on the entire Hong Kong Island, and basically no one would discover any trace of these mermaids.

Gu Lai was also somewhat tempted, but there's no such thing as a free lunch: "Mr. Ni's offer is indeed hard for us to refuse, but I have one condition: we mermaids must never appear in the public eye."

“If our identities are exposed, even Mr. Ni won’t be able to protect us.”

There are too many wealthy businessmen around the world who covet mermaids, and given that mermaids have a much longer lifespan than ordinary humans, many people feel that mermaids have a great deal of value.

If being exposed to the public eye would mean the extinction of an entire ethnic group, Gulai had no choice, because they had already been discovered by Ni Yongyao.

Ni Yongyao was well aware of the allure of mermaids, and that they might even be coveted by a powerful nation.

"I will keep it a secret, but I need you mermaids to do things for me."

Gu Lai breathed a sigh of relief. Since Ni Yongyao had made demands, he was genuinely trying to negotiate with them. If he hadn't offered so much for the mermaids, they would have suspected his motives.

“Mr. Ni, we will agree to anything within our power, but I hope these conditions will not harm our community.”

Gulai also had its conditions. Their mermaid environment was becoming increasingly difficult, and they would inevitably have to come into contact with humans sooner or later. Reaching an agreement with Ni Yongyao now was not a bad thing.

Ni Yongyao smiled and said, "Actually, I hope to form a mermaid team to help me handle some things. Of course, these things may expose you mermaids."

"But I'm very careful in my work. I won't expose your identities unless I'm absolutely certain. Also, I need mermaid blood and scales for research purposes. Of course, this is like giving you a physical exam."

Ni Yongyao knew the value of mermaids and that it was very likely that he could find new scientific research technologies from them.

After a moment's thought, Gu Lai felt that Ni Yongyao was not going too far, and that he respected their needs. They also understood their own value, so this price was nothing, and they had not sacrificed their individual mermaids.

“Okay, Mr. Ni, we are willing to cooperate with you. Of course, you need to fulfill the agreement in advance. We mermaids are of all ages and need a new environment to take care of us.”

Ni Yongyao smiled slightly, it seemed that the negotiations with the mermaids went very smoothly. The main reason was that Gu Lai also wanted to make contact with humans. After their assassination attempt failed, they knew that the mermaids would be exposed.

If things escalate, their entire clan will perish, so they need powerful people to cooperate with them, and the Ni family is the best choice.

"Firefox, after that you will arrange the handover with the mermaids, provide the environment, and meet all their requirements, including shutting down the surrounding sonar devices, which would be harmful to the mermaids."

They naturally used sonar devices to drive away other marine life during their land reclamation efforts, but these sonar devices would have irreversible effects on the mermaids.

Firefox immediately agreed: "Yes, Mr. Ni."

She never expected to cooperate with the mermaid race (of the King). If they weren't half-human and half-fish, Firefox would have really thought that these mermaids were no different from ordinary humans.

Ni Yongyao waved his hand and said, "Since I have given the mermaids enough sincerity, there just happens to be a task that I need you to complete."

Gulai did not refuse, because finding such a partner was extremely difficult.

"Okay, we mermaids will prove our worth."

……

Seven days later, in the high seas, a Franco warship slowly sailed over, still some distance from the Haojiang River. Admiral Sanchez was in charge of this punitive expedition.

However, the mainland is no longer something they can easily control. Even if they send a warship, there will be at most one. Otherwise, if they come in a big show, their opponent will not be the pirates of Macau, but the warships sent by the mainland.

The mainland would never allow a large number of warships to approach their port, even if Macau was a leased area. The mainland would not agree to this. In the end, the French negotiated with the mainland and agreed that only one warship could be allowed.

With nearly two hundred fully armed soldiers on board, dealing with a dozen or so robbers was no easy task.

Sanchez sipped his wine on the ship's deck, his mind already wandering to the Hao River, a place brimming with gold. Once the robbers were dealt with, they could make a fortune.

"Yamaliu is such an idiot, he actually got killed by a bunch of low-level petty thieves."

Sanchez's lips curled into a sneer. He thought that once his army occupied Haojiang, they could take back a lot of wealth. But while he was daydreaming, little did he know that several figures had already silently appeared beneath the sea.

These merfolk exchanged glances, their hands already prepared with special bombs and underwater weapons. Although there were only a dozen of them, the sea was their domain.

The warship made no discovery of the merfolk. Soon, the entire ship was fitted with time bombs, and silently, no one noticed the anomaly.

P.S.: I'm begging you all for some flowers, ratings, and monthly tickets! ...All.

Chapter 198 Destroying the Franco-class warship and obtaining the five-star assassin Guan Yin!

Sanchez looked out at the sea from the deck of the warship, as if he could soon see the brightly lit Haojiang River. Once there, he would send warships to suppress any dissent.

As for the few robbers, they were no match for their army; he was already immersed in the dream of success.