Reborn in 1981: My Life as a Fisherman

Shi Hailong had his eye on a ship, but he had to search around for the shipyard manager.

That's how it is in government companies; in the end, they couldn't find a factory director, so they hired a senior technician instead.

"My surname is Liu. Young man, are you looking to buy a boat?"

Liu Zhenyuan, wearing black-rimmed glasses, looked surprised.

Because these days, he doesn't think he's heard of anyone buying a boat.

Not to mention young people of this age.

Shi Hailong was delighted to see Master Liu; wasn't this the future contractor for the shipyard?

Before speaking, Shi Hailong took out Secretary Chen's letter of certification.

Without this item, no one would dare sell it to him, let alone take him seriously.

Liu Zhenyuan carefully examined the certificate before smiling and handing it back.

Then, very enthusiastically, they invited Shi Hailong to their office for tea.

After the implementation of the household responsibility system, their shipyard has not sold a single ship for a long time.

Even many production brigades that had originally ordered ships no longer wanted them.

Now I make a living by repairing and maintaining boats for people.

"Master Liu, let's skip the tea and go straight to see the boat. I've already walked around it."

I've looked at several, but I'm still undecided. Perfect, you're the expert, could you give me some more information?

"Alright, Comrade Xiao Shi, let's go..."

So the two of them went together to the shipbuilding area on the beach.

Shi Hailong went directly to the ship he had chosen, and the two of them boarded the ship.

"Master Liu, I think this size of boat is just right, not too big or too small."

For now, I'm not considering trawling operations; I'm thinking of installing an 18-horsepower diesel engine..."

Upon hearing this, Liu Zhenyuan frowned. "Xiao Shi, eighteen horsepower isn't enough to move this boat."

Even without trawling, it's still very strenuous. Do you really expect to go empty-handed?

With an 18-horsepower engine, it's very slow and strained with a load of one or two tons at most, leaving little room for maneuver.

If this ship were to be equipped with mechanical power, it would need at least 30 horsepower, and ideally 60 horsepower.

That way, running becomes very easy, and you're not afraid to go to more distant sea areas.

They are very resilient to wind and waves; those motorboats in your village, each over ten meters long, are all equipped with 135 horsepower.

Upon hearing what Master Liu said, Shi Hailong frowned and pondered.

The boats that the villagers bought a few years later in their previous lives were ten-meter boats with twelve horsepower.

It runs perfectly fine, just emitting a little black smoke; diesel engines are perfectly normal.

Diesel engines are quite amazing, like those tractors with twelve horsepower.

It can carry one ton or three tons without any problem. If you floor the accelerator and it emits a bit of black smoke, you can carry four or five tons.

Of course, Master Liu was a professional, so Shi Hailong asked, "How much is a 30-horsepower one?"

Liu Zhenyuan immediately said, "Weichai marine engine complete set, four-stroke water-cooled, there are several specifications available in the county now."

Thirty, forty, sixty, and eighty horsepower models are all the latest models, equipped with a five-kilowatt generator.

If you buy an 18-horsepower engine, and it's not even a professional marine machine, the whole set will cost around 4,800.

The 30-horsepower version only costs less than a thousand dollars more.

I actually recommend you buy the 60-horsepower one, which only costs a little over 8,000. You can calculate it yourself.

Is it worth it...?

Upon hearing this, Shi Hailong was immediately tempted, particularly by the fact that it came with a 5,000-watt generator.

This will make things much easier with light-based trapping and the like.

There's also the option to install a small winch, so there's no worry about running out of power.

It has to be now. I estimate that in the next few years, the 60-horsepower version of this thing will cost 10,000 to 20,000 yuan. Prices will rise as soon as they rise.

His previous estimate of over 100 horsepower engines costing 10,000 to 20,000 yuan seems to have been accurate.

In later generations, a 60-horsepower horsepower engine was worthless, costing only six or seven thousand, which was even lower than its current price.

But the price varies depending on whether it has a horsepower of 100 or 200. Engines with a horsepower of just over 200 will have different prices.

In later generations, they cost hundreds of thousands, and that's for domestically produced ones; imported ones are even more expensive.

Of course, the six or seven thousand in later generations is not the same concept as the six or seven thousand in today's world.

But there's nothing we can do; these days, the prices of industrial products are what they are, and they'll only get more expensive in the next decade or so.

Just like bicycles cost 150 or 160 yuan now, bicycles like these in later generations will also cost 100 or 200 yuan.

After considering it in his mind, Shi Hailong asked, "What if we install a full set with 60 horsepower?"

Including the boat, how much does it cost in total?

Upon hearing this, Liu Zhenyuan immediately began calculating, and then said to Shi Hailong:

"14,000. If you want electric start, add 500. If you don't want the type of boat with sails and masts..."

That would reduce the price by two thousand.

The ship next to it is the same size as this one, but it has no sails or masts, and it's 2.8 meters wide.

Shi Hailong wasn't surprised; he knew that adding sails and masts wasn't as simple as it seemed.

Two thousand dollars isn't much, because the difference between having a sail and not having a sail makes a huge difference in the hull structure.

The ingredients used are also different.

I'll buy this one for 14,500.

He had seven thousand, plus Zheng Cuizhu's two thousand, and his father had more than four thousand seven hundred.

Today's catch of fish traps should be a little over a thousand.

That's barely enough.

Shi Hailong felt a pang of regret; he had originally only intended to buy a boat worth two or three thousand.

It comes with an eight-horsepower diesel engine.

I never imagined that I would have to buy a boat for 14,500.

This is still a ten-meter boat; of course, the main component is the engine.

However, it is indeed difficult to match the horsepower of a boat of this size; if the horsepower is too small, it will be difficult for a small horse to pull a large cart.

With increased horsepower, the machine becomes more expensive than the ship itself.

The most crucial factor is the cost-effectiveness. An 18-horsepower engine costs four or five thousand yuan, while a 60-horsepower engine only costs a little over eight thousand yuan.

There is definitely enough redundancy, and it won't be a problem to install trawling nets in the future.

"Master Liu, this is the one I want. I've made up my mind. Can you give me a discount?"

Now that the household responsibility system has been implemented, more and more individuals will buy boats in the future.

You can't just give the production brigade the same price...

Upon hearing this, Master Liu hesitated for a moment and said in a low voice, "I can only help you lower the price; I can't make the decision."

However, I think there is hope, as shipyards are not having an easy time right now.

If you decide, then we'll go to the office and sign the agreement.

You also need to pay half of the deposit so I can call the county immediately.

Have someone deliver the engine and components.

The positions for the ship's engines were all pre-reserved, so the machines were installed very quickly once they arrived.

That way, you can come and pick up the boat in five or six days, and I can even fill up the fuel tank for you then.

Shi Hailong nodded and didn't say anything more.

These days, many things can't be judged by later standards; they're all public property.

Master Liu has done a very good job of doing all this.

Everything went smoothly from there, and a very basic sales agreement was signed in the office.

Shi Hailong was straightforward and handed over nine thousand yuan. He figured he had to pay it anyway, and it wouldn't be convenient for him to carry it around.

The shipyard's accountant also issued a very formal receipt.

Of course, Shi Hailong carefully folded and put away the handkerchief that Zheng Cuizhu used to wrap money.

In this era, handkerchiefs, or handkerchiefs, were very popular.

A handkerchief given by a girl carries even more special meaning.

In the 1980s and 90s, many young girls would give their boyfriends handkerchiefs with embroidered designs as tokens of their love.

Liu Zhenyuan was also deeply shocked, and he dared not underestimate Shi Hailong even more.

Because this young man casually took out nine thousand yuan.

What does this mean?!

However, it seems that there are no common surnames with the surname Shi in Lantau Village.

In Liu Zhenyuan's mind, he believed that the money must have been pooled together by the whole family.

That's true, it's rare for an individual to have that much money these days.

The only possibility is that it was pieced together from various sources.