HLM -Chapter 1123 Aquarium

The captain spoke righteously: “We don’t know about these things; we only know what’s in our orders…”

“Shut up! Get out of here immediately!” Wang Bo pulled out his phone and called the new Prime Minister, Carmetti Johnson.

“I don’t know what the government and military are thinking, sending troops into our town. Prime Minister, please understand: Lake Haweya belongs to Sunset Town. If it no longer belongs to Sunset Town, then it has no reason to exist!”

His words were heavy. He had only spoken with Carmetti once before, a while after Carmetti was elected, when he called to congratulate him on becoming Prime Minister.

Carmetti’s voice was deep and magnetic. He said, “Mayor Wang, calm down. Maybe there was a miscommunication somewhere. I’ll have someone help resolve this for you.”

After hanging up, Wang Bo called Police Commissioner Miller McBland to ask what was going on.

Miller said, “These soldiers are here to protect the freshwater corals. You know, these things are destined to be national treasures of New Zealand; many people will try to get their hands on them.”

Wang Bo replied, “I know, but I can protect them. You should also understand, Commissioner, that according to the constitution, this is my private property.”

New Zealand’s constitution is sacred and inviolable. As long as the government structure hasn’t collapsed, his property is legally protected.

Miller gave a wry smile. “Yes, it is indeed your private property, but considering it may be difficult for you to guard alone, the military is willing to lend a hand.”

“Why is the military intervening in police matters? Isn’t protecting citizens’ property the responsibility of the police? Are the army planning to interfere with our work?”

Miller said, “That’s a harsh way to put it. But you have to understand, if you can’t protect it…”

“I can protect it. My property—I can protect it very well!” Wang Bo gritted his teeth, emphasizing “my property.”

Miller replied, “But we need to be absolutely certain.”

Wang Bo said, “Then establish an AOS task force in Sunset Town. I don’t believe any foreign army would dare attack Sunset Town. As long as it’s not another country invading, we and the AOS can handle it.”

Miller shook his head. Wang Bo continued, “Or this—let’s make this public to the media. Let the whole country see how the state behaves when there’s a treasure in someone’s home.”

This made Miller yield. He said, “Wang, you’re making a big deal out of nothing. Calm down first. I’ll contact the military; this issue needs communication, right?”

“Communication my foot!” Wang Bo was so furious he laughed bitterly. The police headquarters was clearly trying to treat him like a pushover.

He could guess that the wealth and potential of Sunset Town had made the government greedy—they were trying to grab the fruits for themselves.

This was a wake-up call. He had to be vigilant, for example, strictly controlling who could enter town. Otherwise, if the state sent a large number of people in, they could seize the mayor’s position in the next election.

In the end, Miller agreed to his suggestion and moved the AOS task force headquarters from Cromwell to Sunset Town.

AOS wasn’t a dedicated combat unit. Its officers usually worked in various police stations and were only assembled in emergencies.

However, Sunset Town was some distance from these officers’ stations, so assembling them wasn’t easy. Therefore, four officers accompanied Commander Sam to Sunset Town.

A full AOS task force required at least 12 members. The remaining seven would need to be selected from surrounding stations.

Miller told Wang Bo that, according to his plan, the new AOS team would need to be selected and, after selection, sent to the Royal Police Academy in Wellington for training.

Wang Bo agreed. This was the best option. As for personnel selection and training, that could be addressed later.

Additionally, Sunset Town became a key focus area for the STG task force, a special operations police unit responsible for non-civil violent conflicts.

The New Zealand government was indeed making a strong effort to protect the freshwater corals.

The intercept boats stayed, the four soldiers left, and Wang Bo’s firmness had won him control over Sunset Town.

But after the soldiers left, another team of experts arrived. They were sent by the government to discuss Wang Bo building an aquarium on Lake Haweya.

New Zealand had a national aquarium, a very modern-style building. It wasn’t in Auckland, the largest city, nor in Wellington, the capital, but in Napier, a city on the east coast of the North Island in Hawke’s Bay.

The aquarium housed a variety of marine life. Wang Bo hadn’t visited it, but Eva had. She said the overall area wasn’t very large. Wang Bo, having often visited large aquariums in the coastal city, wasn’t very interested.

Looking at these experts, Wang Bo felt they probably had no ill intent. The New Zealand government didn’t yet have the power to control a group of reputable, dignified scholars to do dirty work for them.

Seeing his skeptical gaze, a professor from the University of Otago’s aquaculture department said, “You don’t need to invest, Mayor Wang. The state will fund this aquarium. We have no other agenda—we just want a better environment to study freshwater corals.”

Wang Bo asked, “I support your research on these corals, but an aquarium? Is that feasible? What could freshwater hold?”

Another silver-haired professor smiled. “Mayor Wang, forgive my frankness, but you lack understanding of freshwater animals and fish. In fact, a freshwater aquarium can have a rich diversity of species.”

“There are many freshwater predatory fish: Amazon catfish, beluga sturgeon, Nile perch, New Guinea bass, Coho salmon, six-whiskered catfish, giant arapaimas, and so on.”

“And ornamental freshwater fish are even more numerous—more than marine fish. Additionally, around the world, there are many remarkable freshwater creatures. These are all fascinating.”

Wang Bo checked online. The national aquarium ticket prices weren’t cheap: adults 20 NZD, children over 3 years old 10 NZD, infants free. Students could get 2 NZD off with a student ID.

“New Zealand student IDs are that useless?” he exclaimed.

Others were even more surprised. “What? What did you say?”

He mentioned the ticket prices. The professors smiled helplessly. “Mayor Wang, is that the point?”

Wang Bo laughed. “Of course. Seeing the ticket prices, I think you’ve indeed made a good proposal. Let’s build an aquarium!”