Five hours later, Li Haochen stepped onto the soil of San Francisco. This city was once the paradise of everyone's dreams, and also the graveyard of Chinese people. After gold was discovered in Sutter's Mill in northeastern California, the news quickly spread, igniting a worldwide gold rush. People from all over, hoping for overnight riches, began flocking to San Francisco Harbor, and within months, the population surged by tens of thousands.
Companies and workshops for mining and gold panning sprang up like mushrooms. However, a shortage of labor hampered the moneymaking dreams of these capital leeches, so they turned their gaze to China. During those dark days, countless Chinese were trafficked and sold as coolies to dig for gold and build railways. Starving, treated as less than human, countless perished with their bodies never to be found...
Leaving the airport, Li Haochen did not look for a hotel to rest. He had promised Murong Yanran that he would return in three days, and time was running out, leaving him only a day and a half.
Li Haochen rented a car and headed for Monterey. This was the destination of his California trip. Monterey Bay was known for its abundant abalone resources.
However, the journey was quite far, over a hundred kilometers. It would take at least two hours to get there.
The driver was a Black man, likely in his early fifties. Seeing that Li Haochen was not very talkative, the driver didn't initiate conversation. After driving for a while, the driver glanced at the rearview mirror and asked, "Excuse me, do you mind if I play some music?"
"It's fine, go ahead," Li Haochen replied.
"On a dark desert highway, cool wind in my hair
Warm smell of colitas, rising up through the air
Up ahead in the distance, I saw a shimmering light
My head grew heavy and my sight grew dim
I had to stop for the night..."
The driver was a nostalgic soul. As soon as the music started, it was a classic Eagles song, 'Hotel California.'
Traveling on the road in California, listening to this old song brought a unique flavor. The classic guitar melody, the strange and enigmatic lyrics, and the deeply moving, world-weary sentiment could deeply touch one's heart.
Li Haochen felt a bit drowsy, but he dared not sleep. Although the driver gave him a gentle impression, one could never be too careful.
Two hours later, he could faintly hear the sound of waves, and the air was tinged with the faint salty smell of the sea.
A few minutes later, the car stopped by the roadside on Monterey Bay. "Sir, we have arrived at your destination."
"We're here?"
Li Haochen glanced outside. The dim streetlights vaguely illuminated the beach below. He nodded and said, "Thank you. I'll need the car again the day after tomorrow. Could you give me a business card?"
The driver accepted the fare and tip from Li Haochen. He was delighted by his generosity.
"It was my pleasure to serve you. Here is my card. You can call me anytime, 24 hours a day. I wish you a pleasant journey!"
Li Haochen took the card, smiled slightly, and walked down to the beach with his backpack. Although it was night, there were still a few scattered tourists around, and a security post not far away. He couldn't stay here.
He walked along the beach for half an hour until he reached the end of the sand. What followed was a rocky, rugged reef area. Although there were no people here, Li Haochen, to be safe, did not stop. He turned on his light and continued further inland.
After climbing for several hundred meters, he was far from the buildings along the shore. Li Haochen chose a tall, well-hidden reef, turned off his light, waited for a moment to ensure safety, and then entered his spatial dimension.
Li Haochen did not rush to change his equipment and go into the water. He hadn't eaten a bite all day and was ravenously hungry. He also needed to rest and recuperate.
To speed up the cooking process, Li Haochen used hot water. Although the cooked rice didn't taste as good, it saved half the time.
After eating and sitting for a while, he lay down in his tent to sleep. Perhaps driven by his subconscious, he woke up to check his watch. Only three hours had passed. Although he wasn't fully rested, he felt invigorated.
He did some warm-up exercises, put on his diving gear, gathered his tools, and left the spatial dimension. He didn't dare to turn on any lights, and Li Haochen crawled over the reef to reach the water.
He tested the water temperature; it was quite cool, but much warmer than in Alaska.
He cautiously waded into the water. When the water reached his chest, he put the mouthpiece in his mouth, flipped over, and dove underwater. He turned on the waterproof headlamp above him, and the surroundings immediately lit up, but the visibility in the shallow water near the shore was not very good.
The coastline here was different from that in China. There were no tidal flats. Li Haochen had only dived a few meters when the water depth already reached several meters.
He swam along the bottom and soon spotted abalone, and not just one, but... a whole school, which was truly astounding.
He had only dived a few meters, and a patch appeared. However, the sizes here were not large, mostly fist-sized. Li Haochen didn't stop; he continued to dive. This area was too close to the shore, and the strong light could still be seen.
He stopped after half an hour. This spot was far enough. He took out the steel bar for prying abalone and looked at the large, bowl-sized red abalone below, smiling, "Thank you for the fishing ban!"
He truly had to thank the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. This ban had been in place for five years and had not yet been lifted. With so many years of breeding and the absence of sea otters as a natural predator, the number of red abalone had clearly increased.
Li Haochen grabbed a large red abalone with his hand and tested its suction. It was very strong. Trying to pry it out with bare hands was out of the question. However, by inserting the steel piece along the edge of its skirt and prying it forcefully, it could be removed smoothly.
Looking at the large red abalone in his hand, it was at least eighteen centimeters long and likely weighed around two catties. A specimen of this size would sell for ten to twenty thousand yuan.
Seeing the endless expanse of large red abalone below, Li Haochen's eyes gleamed with excitement. My goodness, how much money would that be? He quickly got to work.
In less than ten minutes, the net bag hanging from his waist was already full of red abalone. This net bag alone was worth at least two hundred thousand yuan. This was truly faster than making money with a printing press.
Li Haochen brought the red abalone into his spatial dimension and quickly came out to continue. He couldn't waste time. This was truly when time was money.
The repetitive action of prying abalone was indeed monotonous, but Li Haochen didn't feel bored at all. On the contrary, his emotions soared higher and higher with each wave. Just try making hundreds of thousands every ten minutes and see if your emotions wouldn't skyrocket.
Thus, apart from the time it took to change oxygen tanks, Li Haochen spent all his time prying abalone. That night, he worked underwater for nearly ten hours, continuing until past seven o'clock the next morning before entering his spatial dimension to rest.
If it hadn't been for the daylight, which he feared might attract other abalone poachers, he probably would have continued his efforts until tonight.