I am a local in North America

Chapter 42 $21!?

Everyone felt deep sympathy for those unfortunate victims.

Bob nodded and said:

"This is already quite good. We only have the obligation to save lives, not the obligation to help them recover their losses."

"With a total king crab quota of over 12 tons, the rental fee is $3.8 per pound. If we only collect our own quota, Captain Jonathan will suffer a huge loss."

"Our willingness to take over this quota is a huge help to him; at least it will help him recoup most of his quota rental costs. If we don't take it over, his entire rental investment will be wasted."

Uncle Feng also nodded in agreement, saying:

"Yes, that should give Captain Jonathan a much-needed breather. But we still don't know if the Fisheries Bureau has used up their quota. They said they only had a dozen or twenty tons left. We need to get in touch with them as soon as possible!"

After considering it, Mr. Su turned to his son, Su Jierui, and asked:
"Son, have you calculated the costs and profits? Approximately how much can we earn?"

Su Jerry replied:

“Captain Jonathan’s price for chartering the quota is higher than ours. Just the charter fee for this 12-ton quota alone would cost about $10.5.”

"If we calculate based on the land purchase price of $11.5 per pound, this part is considered extra catch, and there are basically no additional expenses. To put it bluntly, it's just scooping the extra king crabs from the crab traps into the hold. The total sales amounted to about $31.6, and after deducting the cost of renting the quota, the net profit from this part of the catch would be about... $21!?"

Even after deducting expenses, if we take 20% of this net profit, which is $4.2, we still make a huge profit!

“If we take 20% of these 21, which is $4.2, and distribute it to them, their actual total amount received will be $10.5 in quota rental fees plus $4.2 in profit sharing, totaling $14.7, which is equivalent to nearly half of the total sales.”

“For us, we bear all the fishing risks and operations, and we also get a large return. So I was just thinking that this way we can both help them recover their losses and create new revenue for ourselves…”

Mr. Su was a kind and honest man, and after hearing this, he immediately expressed his opinion:

“Then let’s give them 20% of the profits! That’s equivalent to $1 for each of Captain Jonathan’s four crew members.”

"And on our side, Lao Feng, Bob, you can also get several thousand dollars more. Does anyone object? We need to hurry up and report to the fisheries management department. The temporary transfer procedures for IFQ quotas are a bit complicated, but this situation is special, so we should get approval."

Everyone was trying to make a living at sea, and they felt sorry for Captain Jonathan and his crew who had suffered heavy losses. Everyone thought the distribution plan was quite reasonable.

It's both a timely help and an added bonus, making it a win-win situation.

Worried that money might cause unpleasantness, Mr. Su gave everyone a heads-up, adding:
"The same goes for the $10 reward. My son found the container, so he should get a larger share. And this is my ship, which has the biggest expenses. So... I'm going to give each of you $8000, my son will get $3, and the rest will go into the company account."

"In addition, after we get ashore, I will give each of you an extra $2000, but this $2000 is a bonus for this trip and will not be included in the profit sharing."

As a boat owner, one must safeguard one's own interests while also ensuring the fairness and interests of the fishing workers.

Old Feng and the others naturally didn't say anything about this distribution plan. They felt like they were sitting on a boat when a pie fell from the sky and hit them in the face. They were overjoyed to suddenly have a large sum of money!

Bob and Gavin, who were hired temporarily, also thought that Su's father was a very reliable and generous person.

After all, they were already receiving basic wages and profit sharing, so they didn't actually put in any extra work this time. Even if each of them only received three to five thousand dollars, there wouldn't be much to complain about.

They were having a lively discussion.

On the other hand, Su Jierui's mind was not on this matter.

He finally remembered the container, still secured by ropes, floating beside his crab fishing boat.

I stared at it for a long time.

Su Jierui looked a little confused and asked his father:
"How about we use an angle grinder to cut a hole in the container and see what's inside?"

"By the way, if we tow the container back to the dock, shouldn't it be handled by us? It may not necessarily belong to us, but according to maritime practice, as the salvage party, we also have the right to claim a salvage fee and storage fee from the cargo owner or insurance company."

"After all, Captain Jonathan and his crew don't have a boat, and the rescue vessel won't be responsible for transporting this container; it should have remained abandoned at sea in the first place. It's reasonable for us to earn some compensation for our labor in bringing it back; we need to make that clear to Captain Jonathan and his crew first..."

It has already been delayed for more than an hour.

Old Man Su was anxious to finish dealing with the temporary quota as soon as possible, then set sail and inform the rescue vessel of the coordinates of their upcoming destination.

Pointing at the container, he asked, "Son, do you still want to bring this container with you?"

"It's too big and will interfere with our work. Besides, most of the really good stuff, like high-end components and electronic products, will end up in the sea."

"It's very likely that after a lot of effort to bring it back to the dock, it will only contain a container full of garbage, or cheap clothes, swimming rings, and the like."

The yellow container surface also bears some obvious signs of knocking.

Captain Jonathan and his crew may have tried to pry it open in order to survive, but they lacked the right tools and were unsuccessful.

Bob, his voice excited, slammed his fist into his palm and said:
"I'm starting to think that this is filled with wood! Timber is produced all over North America, and woods like western red cedar, black walnut, and ash are quite valuable!"

A few years ago, when Su Jierui re-laid the outdoor terrace, he chose Western cypress wood, which has unique waterproof and aesthetic properties, and it was indeed not cheap.

If it contained timber, this would explain why the container in front of us has never sunk into the sea and why its draft is relatively shallow.

A 40-foot tall cabinet can hold fifty or sixty cubic meters of timber. If the timber is of a slightly rarer variety, the total value of the goods could easily be tens of thousands of dollars.

Gavin Jr. agreed, and then said:

"It's a pity it's already been soaked in the sea. If it's filled with timber, the price will definitely be greatly reduced!"

Uncle Feng also said excitedly:
"We just picked it up on the side anyway. Even if we earn less money, it's still extra income for our ship. Let's open it and take a look. As long as it's not worthless junk, there's no need to just throw it away. It'll only waste a little more fuel."

Old Su's words did not dispel everyone's strong desire to "open blind boxes," and Brother Wang hurriedly said:
"Boss, you go and talk to Captain Jonathan, I'll go to the warehouse and get the angle grinder!"

Bob quickly chimed in:
"Yes, yes, yes! I'll help too. Anyway, it only requires cutting a window, it won't take too long. Who knows, we might actually get a whole container of black walnut wood? They're very expensive! I once bought a small chest of drawers and it cost over $800!"

Little Gavin was particularly enthusiastic, making the sign of the cross over his chest again and muttering to himself:

"God bless me! Give me a box of new cell phones! Give me a box of new cell phones that haven't been soaked in water!"

"."

After thinking for a moment, Mr. Su realized that although time was tight, he couldn't bear to spoil the mood when he saw how eager the crew members were to try.

Besides, what if it really is something valuable?
After glancing back at the container, Mr. Su made a decisive decision and said in a low voice:

"Alright, cut it open and examine it before deciding what to do with it. Don't do anything yet! Let me discuss it with Captain Jonathan first, to avoid any disputes later, since they were the ones who discovered it first!"

The others were both excited and expectant.

Su Jierui had some vague guesses, but ultimately he didn't have "X-ray vision" and couldn't be sure at the moment.

In his field of vision, a large amount of material information appeared. Through his usual observation and understanding, he could see that it included components such as aluminum alloy, carbon fiber, brake fluid, and coolant, which are all quite common in daily life.

Based on the types of materials and their distribution within the container, he could deduce that there were actually two cars inside the container.
"After being submerged in seawater for so long, the engine has definitely taken in water, and the electronic equipment is most likely completely destroyed. Sigh."

Su Jierui made a preliminary judgment in his mind.

Since it uses a large amount of aluminum alloy and carbon fiber, it's highly likely to be a luxury car. Disassembling it and removing usable parts could potentially yield a considerable sum.
Captain Jonathan and the others were focused on the king crab quota and profit sharing, and didn't care about the container.

After all, they were barely able to save themselves and had no way of bringing it back to the dock. Being able to recover the losses from crab fishing was already a stroke of luck amidst misfortune.

After discussing how to allocate the quota, Mr. Su immediately contacted the fisheries management department and received a reply that he was allowed to transfer the 12.45-ton quota. The two parties also wrote a short agreement on the spot and recorded a video as proof.

Since it involves two or three hundred thousand US dollars, we inevitably need to be more careful with the procedures.

More than ten minutes later, Mr. Su returned to the deck, waving the contract in his hand with a bright smile, and said:

"It's all been discussed! We'll give them 20% of the net profit from this extra quota!"

"Captain Jonathan and his crew have agreed to relinquish all rights to this container as a token of their gratitude. The container is ours now, so let's cut it open and see what's inside!"

"You guys go ahead with your work. I'll contact the buyers at the dock and arrange another time to meet them ashore. If the contents of the container aren't important, quickly untie the mooring lines and discard it. There are a few waves today, so we need to avoid colliding with our ship."

(End of this chapter)