Chapter 34: Are There Places I Haven't Explored?

Hearing President Li's offer, Zeng Shen was amused. "In a year, it'll be the apocalypse."

He confirmed again, asking, "Are you sure we can repay the principal and interest in a year?"

"Yes."

A smile spread across Zeng Shen's face. "President Li, I'd like to take out a hundred million."

"How many million?"

"Seven hundred million."

"What! Seven hundred million?" President Li exclaimed.

"Why not? Isn't it possible?"

"No, it's not. The risk agreement allows for a maximum of 90% of the total amount, which is..." She began calculating the exact figure.

"No need to calculate. Five hundred million should be fine, right?" Zeng Shen interrupted.

After a moment's hesitation, President Li nodded, "Based on Shi Mingqiang's assets, five hundred million should be okay."

"Great, I'll take responsibility for the principal and interest, and transfer one hundred million to her account," Zeng Shen said.

"What!"

Liu Miao, initially shocked by the seven hundred million loan request, was even more astonished to hear Zeng Shen offer her interest-free money.

"Zeng Shen, you can't do that. Lending me money is already a huge help. How can you cover the interest as well?"

"Don't worry about it. I don't need the interest," Zeng Shen waved off her concern, internally calculating. "In a year, money will be worthless. Better to have you owe me a favor now before you become a Tier 3 Water Deity."

As expected, Liu Miao was deeply moved by his generosity, silently noting this favor and contemplating a different form of 'interest' payment.

She gently ran her hand over her crossed legs, feeling the smoothness of her stockings.

Once the formalities were complete, President Li warmly escorted Zeng Shen and Liu Miao out of the bank.

Standing by the camper, Liu Miao bent slightly to express her gratitude, "Zeng Shen, thank you for helping me so much. I don't know how to repay you."

"If you don't know, then owe me for now. I'll let you know when I need something," Zeng Shen replied with a smile.

"Alright, the Jin Hai Dock up ahead is my property. Do you have business there, or would you like to take a tour?"

"Jin Hai Dock is yours?"

"Yes."

Zeng Shen was surprised. When he visited the dock earlier, the system indicated it was a territory established by a Tier 3 Water Deity and several Tier 2 Water Deities. Could Liu Miao be the Tier 3 Water Deity?

That would be great.

Zeng Shen had wanted to explore the dock, hoping to encounter the Water Deities and trigger more first-time bonuses, but outsiders weren't allowed entry.

Seeing Liu Miao's eager expression, Zeng Shen nodded, "Sure, I wanted to explore it the other day, but the guards wouldn't let me in. Since it's your company's area, you can show me around."

"Of course."

As Zeng Shen opened the car door, he asked, "By the way, Liu Jie, how do you manage such a large dock alone? Doesn't anyone help you?"

Liu Miao settled into the passenger seat with a sigh, her voice tinged with a hint of melancholy as she recounted her past, "Nobody helps me now."

"My parents divorced and moved abroad when I was young, and my grandfather raised me, managing the dock."

"A couple of years ago, my grandfather's health declined, so he arranged a match between me and the second son of the Ye family from Yin Hai. If we liked each other, we'd marry and run the dock together."

"The match went smoothly. I didn't feel strongly for the guy, nor did I dislike him. At 25, I hadn't met my supposed 'true love,' so I convinced myself to settle down."

"We registered our marriage the same day, and the next day, started planning the wedding. On our wedding night, I tried to give myself to him, but he had secretly exhausted himself with supplements and couldn't perform. Despite taking more medication, he ended up poisoning himself."

"That incident led to chaos. The Ye family's eldest, Ye Li, aggressively targeted my grandfather's dock, fisheries, and took over our business."

"It led to shareholders pressuring my grandfather to hand over the company's reins to their choice, stressing him into the hospital, leaving me alone."

Driving and listening to Liu Miao's story, Zeng Shen understood her resilience, explaining why she survived three years into the apocalypse to become a Tier 3 Water Deity.

Soon, they were stopped by guards at Jin Hai Dock's entrance.

"Why are you here again? This is a cargo port, not for the public—" The guard started, recognizing the familiar camper, but paused upon seeing Liu Miao in the passenger seat.

"Miss."

"Qin Wei, this is a benefactor of our company. He can freely enter the dock."

"Understood, Miss."

The guard signaled his colleagues to raise the barrier, allowing entry.

[Warning! The host is entering a territory established by a Tier 3 Water Deity and several Tier 2 Water Deities. With the host's strength, escape will be difficult if discovered. Please exit quickly.]

Hearing the warning, Zeng Shen furrowed his brows slightly.

The wording seemed off. Why "entering" rather than "invading"?

Though curious, he was soon distracted by the sights within Jin Hai Dock.

As the city's largest cargo port, it was bustling with containers and forklifts moving about.

"The port's cargo is closely linked to nearby industries, mainly importing and exporting rubber, timber, hardware, and electrical components."

As the camper drove in, Liu Miao narrated the dock's operations to Zeng Shen.

"With a dock this size, why won't the bank lend to you?"

"Because Ye Li, the eldest son of the Ye family in Yin Hai, expanded a small dock into a 1500-ton secondary port last year, offering lower rates and taking over much of our business."

"I see. The dock looks big, but with the Ye family meddling, it's losing money, right?"

"It's not the dock losing money, but the clam farm my grandfather invested heavily in three years ago."

Zeng Shen chatted with Liu Miao while driving around the dock, but received no alerts about encountering Tier 2 Water Deities, so he toured Liu Miao's office building.

Similarly, there were no warning prompts.

Zeng Shen was puzzled.

Were the Tier 2 Water Deities not here?

Or were there places he hadn't explored yet?