50s: Starting with a storage ring

Chapter 343 Report
Therefore, the old security guards got completely drunk every night.

When Sun Zhiwei came in, the only things left in the port besides the old ships that were docked there were three drunk security guards in the security room.

He easily found the data storage room in Beniche port and obtained the data on all 500-plus ships sealed in the port.

Many of the ships here are transport vessels, and he couldn't possibly photograph all of these useless ship data.

So, after careful selection, he only managed to photograph detailed information on 12 aircraft carriers, 16 submarines, 35 battleships, and 32 cruisers, a total of 95 ships.

Then, a summary report of the other ships was photographed. Of the remaining 400-plus ships, more than 200 were destroyers and frigates.

Their combat capabilities are average, roughly the same as our current active-duty warships.

There are also more than 200 transport ships and landing ships, which are not technologically advanced and will not have much combat capability even if they are restored to service in the future.

Therefore, in the report, he only briefly mentioned these ships.

Actually, these materials aren't very useful once they're obtained domestically, as they're all outdated information. But it's not a big deal if you don't know them.

He didn't understand the strategic decisions made by the higher-ups, but naturally, the more detailed information he had about the enemy, the better.

Ghost Fleet is an important part of the M country's war potential.

He felt that the domestic authorities should have a clear understanding of this information, which is why he made this trip.

Having obtained the necessary documents, Sun Zhiwei returned all the original documents to their original places, and then obtained the personal information of the management of Beniche Port.

Among these materials, he found one key figure: Edwin Raymond, a ship appraiser in Benedictine Port.

Raymond's main job was to assess the condition of the mothballed ships and provide recommendations on how to handle them.

If Sun Zhiwei wanted to obtain the ship dismantling contract, the only people with decision-making power besides the director of the Port Federal Maritime Administration were him, the appraiser.

Often, even the director of the administration has to listen to him, since Edwin Raymond is the real expert.

From this personal profile, Sun Zhiwei obtained Edwin Raymond's family information, address, and contact number.

With his mission accomplished, Sun Zhiwei boarded his pre-booked flight back to Washington the following day.

That evening, the latest intelligence was transmitted to Deputy Director Han of the liaison office through the restroom water tanks in the mall.

Two weeks later, one afternoon, Sun Zhiwei received a phone call in his shop from Brian Clark, the manager of the Swell Gold Mine.

"Oh my god, BOSS, you won! Just now, when they dug to 95 meters, they discovered a new vein. Zorn has already taken samples for testing."

"Okay, I understand. This doesn't need to be publicized. Just the few of you know. You know what to do next, right?"

"Boss, I understand what you mean. I'll call you back when I have more details."

"No need to call anymore. I will come over at the end of the year and we can talk in person. Remember to call me if there are any changes to your monthly expenses."

"Boss, I'll request an additional 20% fee now, because we need to add some equipment. There are second-hand machines available in the nearby mines, which can be bought very cheaply."

"I don't care about any of that. You're the boss. Just manage things well over there. As long as your accounts match up at the end of the year, that's fine."

"Don't worry, boss. I'm not a fool like Curry. Besides, you've already given me more than enough."

"There will be even more starting next month, so do your best and don't let me down."

"Understood, thank you for your trust."

From the phone call, the new mine manager, Ryan Clark, seemed quite satisfied with his current treatment.

Sun Zhiwei was not surprised. According to the commission he offered, Clark would receive 2% commission each month, which is equivalent to $7000.

With an additional monthly salary of $1500, Clark earned a high income of $8500 a month, or $10 a year. In the United States in 1977, few white-collar workers could earn that much money; he had already entered the ranks of the very high-income earners.

Sun Zhiwei is not good at understanding people's hearts, so he is always suspicious of everyone.

We should only take Ryan Clark's words with a grain of salt and wait and see what he does. He'll know the truth when he goes to the mine in a few months, so there's no need to rush.

It was already September, and he thought of something: the college entrance examination would be reinstated at the end of November, and he didn't know if his two children at home were prepared.

He had told Tong Jiajia about this before he left, but because there was no news about it at the time, and he couldn't say it explicitly, he spoke rather vaguely.

Now that the old leader has returned to power, and a symposium on science and education was held in August, the news should have spread. It's time to send a letter home.

That day, he sent a meeting request to Deputy Director Han through the water tank channel.

The next day, Deputy Director Han sent back a message of approval.

The following evening at 9 p.m., Sun Zhiwei changed his clothes again and entered the liaison office through the back door.

After walking through the empty corridor, I arrived at Deputy Director Han's office. The lights were on, and Old Han was waiting for me.

"Dong dong."

"Please come in."

"Director, I'm here."

"Yes, please sit down and pour yourself some tea."

"How have you been lately? Why did you suddenly want to come see me?" Generally speaking, unless it's something important, he shouldn't come to see his superiors, as it would increase the risk of exposure.

Before Sun Zhiwei could answer, Lao Han produced a telegram:

"By the way, the intelligence you gathered about the 'Ghost Fleet' a while ago is being taken very seriously. Here, this is a commendation telegram, take a look."

There were no outsiders present, and since Lao Han was already familiar with him, they skipped the reading process and simply gave it to him to read himself.

Sun Zhiwei glanced at it and put it away; he wanted to keep it as a memento.

When the quantity increases, he will compile a booklet to leave for his daughter.

"Director, there have been some major changes on my end, so I wanted to report on them and ask for opinions from the domestic authorities."

Upon hearing of the change in circumstances, Lao Han also became serious.

"You tell me, I'll write it down."

"Let me start from the beginning."

"At the beginning of the year, I noticed that it was hard to find a job, so I studied some appraisal knowledge and then took an appraisal certificate from the M Country Appraisers Association."

"After I got the certificate, I opened a small shop to appraise all kinds of items for customers."

"Because the appraiser certificate from the M Country Appraisers Association is highly valued and recognized by clients, my business is doing quite well, and I earn several thousand dollars a month."

“In February, a young man came to the store. He was a lieutenant and he looked very down and out.”

"Out of sympathy, I bought one of his antiques at a relatively high price and gave him some pep talk."

"After I lectured him, the young man seemed to be encouraged. He said he would thank me in the future and then left."

(End of this chapter)