HLM -Chapter 1284 Rewarding the Experts

After flying back to Sunset Town, someone pointed out of the airplane window during landing: “Look, there’s Sunset Town. We’re passing through the Arch of Triumph from the air, which means we’re entering the town.”

Wang Bo pressed his face to the window and looked down. The most prominent landmark indeed was the towering Arch of Triumph—the gateway into Sunset Town from Oak City and the town’s iconic structure.

The visitor’s comment reminded him. Once back in the office, he discussed with a few trusted aides: “I once had an idea: what if we erect several statues in the town square—one of me, one of Charlie, one of Bowen? Shouldn’t this matter be put on the agenda?”

At these words, everyone became interested and asked eagerly:

“Boss, what about me? Don’t I get one?”

“I have to have a statue. I’m the town’s first genuinely outstanding university graduate worker.”

“Of course, I should have one too—I even brought many of my clansmen here.”

“Atulu, you can’t. You’re too big; one statue of you would take up the space of several people.”

The big Maori man chuckled good-naturedly: “That’s simple. I can use a photo of myself from childhood—I was very slim back then.”

This matter wasn’t urgent. Wang Bo planned to start with three statues: himself, Bowen, and Charlie. Others could be considered later.

Looking at the town’s development to this point, these three had clearly contributed the most, and with Charlie and Bowen now serving as deputy mayors, they could be seen as Sunset Town’s “big three.”

When news spread that the town planned to erect statues, Oakley—preparing for the Boxing Championship in Paris—called Wang Bo: “You see, aside from political figures, shouldn’t we also have representatives from sports and entertainment? What do you think of me? I’ve already chosen a template for my statue photo and will send it to you immediately.”

Wang Bo smiled wryly. Now everyone wanted to show off at once—he guessed the entire town square wouldn’t even hold them all.

At month’s end, the coral clusters had finished relocating. Wang Bo went to inspect the lakeside and found an unexpected delight.

Originally, because he had placed the coral stones rather deep, in winter, when sunlight was insufficient, the corals beneath the water were hard to see.

After moving them to shallower waters near the shore, with clear water, visitors could now see the corals again. As a result, the previously declining number of tourists increased once more, thanks to the freshwater corals.

Professor Sandler frowned at this. She looked at Wang Bo suspiciously: “You didn’t plan this ahead of time, did you? Using freshwater corals to continue attracting tourists.”

Wang Bo replied irritably, “Am I crazy? Do you think I’d do such a short-sighted thing?”

After considering it, Professor Sandler agreed and dropped the matter.

Coincidentally, at the end of the month, it began to snow at night—heavier than before, falling continuously for two days and nights.

During this time, Wang Bo visited the lakeside to check on the corals. In fact, he didn’t need to worry; Professor Sandler and the team had been monitoring the corals’ activity continuously.

When the snow stopped and the weather grew colder, Wang Bo buttoned his coat and went to the lake: “So, how’s the coral activity holding up?”

Professor Sandler grinned broadly: “Very well. It’s strange—freshwater corals seem to tolerate salt and sulfur better than marine corals. Not only has their activity returned to normal, but their reproductive ability has also increased.”

Coral expansion naturally requires coral reproduction. Although their reproductive speed is fast, due to their size, forming new coral clusters takes considerable time.

Freshwater corals excel here; they reproduce especially quickly, so their population expands much faster than marine corals.

For Professor Sandler and the research team, this was crucial. Strong reproductive ability means freshwater corals can grow their populations and reduce the risk of extinction.

After all, freshwater corals had only been found in Lake Haweya worldwide, and they were so beautiful that preserving them was vitally important.

The New Zealand government also cared deeply about their survival. They were already planning to emulate China’s successful use of giant pandas in diplomacy—hoping to leverage freshwater corals similarly.

The cold weather made the noses of the researchers red. Wang Bo couldn’t bear it: “You don’t need to stay out here. Why don’t we all go soak in a hot spring?”

Professor Sandler stubbornly shook his head: “I need to see the first-hand monitoring data. If anything goes wrong, I want to handle it immediately.”

Wang Bo asked, “Have you had lunch?”

The experts shook their heads. They had gone out to collect data on the freshwater corals as soon as the snow stopped.

Wang Bo shook his head as well. Scientists were truly crazy.

In fact, this was the power of belief. The experts’ faith was in science—so long as there were high-quality topics to support their research, they felt fulfilled.

Wang Bo couldn’t let the experts go hungry—they were town treasures.

He rubbed his hands in the cold and had an idea. He called his father to prepare vegetables and seasonings.

A while later, he returned with a large pot in the car. At the lakeside, he cleared the snow, placed charcoal beneath, and hung the pot: “Come, I’m treating you to lunch—Chinese hotpot.”

Sandler laughed: “I’ve had it before. Many ingredients cooked together—it didn’t impress me.”

Wang Bo said: “Then you didn’t have it authentically, and at the right time. Trust me, eating hotpot now will let you truly appreciate its charm.”

Father Bo prepared the broth. In autumn, he had brewed a large jar of chive flower paste specifically for winter hotpot.

Atulu hung the pot and added spring water. It was a special copper hotpot, a “yuan-yang” (double-flavor) pot.

Wang Bo, adding the broth, was surprised: “Hey, Atulu, what are you doing here?”

The big Maori laughed: “I smelled the aroma early—where there’s good food, I appear.”

Wang Bo couldn’t help but wonder if Atulu had something like a “Lord’s Heart” for food—a “glutton’s heart.”

The yuan-yang pot had one side spicy and numbing, the other a clear broth.

In such cold weather, mutton was perfect for nourishment. Wang Bo prepared the clear broth simply with water, ginger slices, scallion segments, goji berries, and red dates.

For mutton, the meat’s freshness must stand out, so the broth should not overpower it.

The spicy broth was more complex, using large amounts of chili oil and Sichuan pepper oil. The main oil was beef tallow.

Beef tallow not only enhanced flavor but helped retain heat and color.

Lard and vegetable oils were used sparingly, only to add aroma—the main fat was Wang Bo’s homemade beef tallow.