Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 135, Section 134: The Speculation on Aircraft Ownership Certificates and the Conspiracy Hidden Behind It
Andrea Strong received a satisfactory reply from Fang Wen.

He will return along the route Fang Wen flew, eventually landing in Wuhan.

Fang Wen discussed with him the experience of using a compass for positioning based on a map, and arranged the landing and takeoff schedules for the transit airport.

As for the British base, it has been confirmed by telegram that the Shrike can be taken directly upon arrival in Calcutta.

To get there, one would take a ship. At present, there is no full-scale war, and there is no blockade of passenger ships along the coast.

With such meticulous arrangements, Andrea Strong believed that the mission could be completed successfully and accepted the assignment directly.

He took the boat ticket given to him by Fang Wen and $300 for travel expenses and set off immediately.

After watching Andrea Strong board the shuttle bus back to Shanghai, Fang Wenzhun entered the tung oil-for-airplanes trading market.

Inside the trading floor, some of the tung oil merchants eagerly surrounded Neil, wanting to sign the trading contracts immediately.

Some sat or stood in twos or threes, chatting idly.

Anyway, it's going to be finished today, so it doesn't matter if it's sooner or later. It's also good for colleagues to get to know each other and build rapport.

Among them was Fang Wen's fourth brother-in-law, Wu Ziyue.

Fang Wen walked over with a smile on his face.

"Brother-in-law, you're here too."

Wu Ziyue had never told outsiders that he was the brother-in-law of the owner of Taishan Airlines. Fang Wen's remark surprised the tung oil merchants around him.

This gave him a little pleasure. He clasped his hands in farewell to his companions and said, "My brother-in-law is here. Let's talk again next time."

The tung oil merchants responded one after another.

"Mr. Wu, you're busy. I'll treat you to tea next time."

"Go ahead, Mr. Wu. We're not far apart, so there'll be plenty of time in the future. It's rare for you to bring your wife and kids back, so spend more time with your family."

After exchanging pleasantries for a while, Wu Ziyue came over.

"Fang Wen, I'm bringing your sister back to visit relatives, and while we're at it, we'll sign the contract for exchanging this year's tung oil for airplanes."

"Where are my sister and the others?" Fang Wen asked.

“In the city. Your nephew has never been to Shanghai, so his mother took him to the amusement park.”

“I can’t go to the city. How about this, brother-in-law, I’ll take the documents over and sign them now so you can go back to the city to be with my sister. Also, when you go, please tell my sister about Sixth Sister.”

"What's wrong with Sixth Sister?" Wu Ziyue asked, puzzled.

Fang Wen explained it once, took the contract to Neil, and got it done directly. He also got the aircraft ownership certificate ready for Wu Ziyue.

After seeing her brother-in-law off, the other tung oil merchants gathered around.

One of them asked a question that everyone was concerned about.

"General Manager Fang, I heard that after this year's tung oil-for-aircraft transaction, Taishan Airlines will temporarily suspend the tung oil-for-aircraft project because it is not expanding for the time being. Is that true?"

There are several reasons for suspending the use of tung oil for aircraft, one of which is the saturation of Taishan Airlines' domestic routes.

There are other reasons as well. For example, the Boeing 247 is just an overused passenger aircraft model, and there will be better ones in the future. The more 247s you buy now, the more you will lose in the future.

Of course, these things couldn't be said to outsiders. Fang Wen smiled and replied, "It's not a permanent pause, but a temporary one. Just like eating, there's always a time when you're full. When you're full, you need to rest and catch your breath, right?"

The tung oil merchants laughed in response. Indeed, Taishan Airlines had built such a large operation in less than two years. They were all businessmen, and they knew how to proceed once the business expanded rapidly.

Therefore, no one at the trade fair asked about exchanging tung oil for airplanes anymore.

It was precisely because the tung oil-for-airplanes project was confirmed to be suspended that new changes occurred at the trade fair.

Some people have actually started buying other people's transaction contracts.

Their purpose in purchasing the deed was to obtain the aircraft ownership certificate.

Today, aircraft ownership certificates are not only a symbol of ownership, but also provide a fixed monthly rental income, making them more valuable than the original price of tung oil.

Now that the exchange of tung oil for airplanes has been suspended, the property's value has increased even further since the ownership certificate for the property has not yet been filled out.

Some tung oil merchants buy it for friends.

Some are things that I want myself.

They acquire the deed for 20-30% more than the transaction value, then use the deed to transfer ownership on the spot, filling in the new owner's name on the aircraft ownership certificate they receive.

The value of aircraft ownership certificates was revealed through the manipulation of a group of tung oil merchants.

Subsequently, someone came to Taishan Airlines with the aircraft ownership certificate to inquire whether it could be renamed and transferred.

Fang Wen thought that as long as the owner agreed, it would only be a matter of changing the company's lease agreement.

He then agreed to the request.

He didn't expect that a series of changes would occur after the authority to change the name on aircraft ownership certificates was relaxed.

Those businessmen who knew that aircraft ownership certificates could be changed at will had a peculiar idea.

These days, anything can be bought and sold in Shanghai.

Stocks and bonds have already appeared.

Why can't we buy and sell aircraft ownership certificates?
There are quite a few speculative businessmen who have ideas and dare to act.

Immediately, people began selling and buying at the trading venue.

This move attracted businessmen and speculators who discovered the value of aircraft ownership certificates to join in.

There was even a trading counter specifically applied for at the Shanghai Stock Exchange, dedicated to the acquisition and sale of aircraft ownership certificates.

When this news reached the airport, Fang Wen was receiving two guests.

Taishan Airlines General Manager's Office.

Fang Wen warmly welcomed the two.

His wife, Kwong Ming-chu, was also by his side.

Mr. Lin and Mr. Liang, who came from Shanghai, each carried a suitcase.

They opened the two boxes.

"This is the original manuscript, and this is the translated version. We've taken a look; it contains information on manufacturing two types of weaponry. We hope General Manager Fang will make good use of it."

Fang Wen solemnly assured: "I will ensure that these weapons data are used where they are needed, and they will never be stained with the blood of my countrymen."

With Fang Wen's assurance, the two smiled with delight.

Mr. Lin then took out a booklet: "I have compiled the Asia-Europe trip that General Manager Fang mentioned the other day. It consists of three parts: 'Crossing China,' 'South Asia Trip,' and 'Mediterranean Experiences.' It will be published in three installments in the newspaper. Please check if there are any errors in the content."

Fang Wen took the booklet, read it through, and nodded: "Mr. Lin's literary skills are excellent, with a kind of elegant and unrestrained feel, much better than what I wrote myself."

"Let me see." Kuang Mingzhu took the booklet from her husband's hand, also admiring the writing style of the talented woman from the Republic of China era.

Fang Wen then presented a substantial sum as a translation fee and invited the two to his home.

Kuang Mingzhu loved literature and greatly admired Mr. Lin, so she specially cooked several of her favorite dishes to entertain him.

The dishes were served, the wine was poured, and the four of them chatted and laughed.

At this moment, Qiuju came in: "Son-in-law, someone from the company is looking for you. They say they have something to tell you."

Fang Wen stood up: "Excuse me, I'll be right outside."

He went outside and saw that it was the manager of the ticketing company.

I couldn't help but ask.

What happened to the ticketing company?

"General Manager, it's not the ticketing company, it's someone in Shanghai who's using our aircraft ownership certificates to speculate."

"Speculating on aircraft ownership certificates?" Fang Wen asked in surprise.

"Yes, they opened a counter at the Shanghai Stock Exchange specifically for buying and selling. Both parties in the transaction pay a commission to the counter, and the people at the counter announce the previous day's transaction prices every day. It's only been a few days, and many people are already bringing their property ownership certificates to buy and sell, without even knowing if those aircraft property ownership certificates are genuine or fake."

"Okay, you can go back now. I'll handle it."

Fang Wen told the ticket company manager to go back, then turned and went back into his room.

After sitting down at the table, Kuang Mingzhu asked, "What's the matter?" "Someone is eyeing the aircraft ownership certificate," Fang Wen repeated the ticketing manager's words.

Kuang Mingzhu analyzed, "The aircraft ownership certificate has nothing to do with us; it belongs to the owner. We can't control whether they want to buy or sell it. But the problem is that someone might forge it, and those who bought fake aircraft ownership certificates might cause trouble at Taishan Airlines."

Fang Wen nodded; this was exactly what he was worried about—why did he have to get into such trouble out of nowhere?

Mr. Liang said, “I’ve been to the Shanghai Securities and Commodities Exchange. A few years ago, the Nationalist government specifically legislated for it, saying that each region could only establish one exchange for buying and selling securities or similar commodities. This meant that it was our exclusive exchange, but it had a bad reputation.”

"Why is your reputation bad?" Fang Wen asked.

"They issued their own company's stock, traded it, and then colluded with outsiders to drive up the market price and pursue huge profits. They managed to raise the stock's face value of 25 yuan to more than 400 yuan, which resulted in other speculators turning against them and selling off all their shares. Ultimately, they were unable to buy back the shares, which led to a run on the company by shareholders."

Isn't this just a case of manipulating stock prices and causing a crash? These days, people are actually doing things like this.

They would rather issue their own stocks, manipulate the market, and open their own stock exchange, reaping all the benefits.

Fang Wen sighed.

"A financial market without order is nothing but a scam."

Mr. Liang nodded in agreement: "That's not all. They lost their credibility, and the exchange was unable to repay its shareholders. They should have gone bankrupt. In the end, they mortgaged all their assets to the Japanese, and now the Japanese are secretly controlling the exchange."

Upon hearing Mr. Liang's words, Fang Wen immediately became alert.

Is the Japanese trying to use commercial means to deal with Taishan Airlines?
Thinking about it this way, it's quite possible. The Japanese have wasted three months of their time on Liu Shijie's matter, so how could they be willing to accept it? Using this method to damage the reputation of Taishan Airlines should be one of their new tactics.

Fang Wen sneered inwardly. He wasn't afraid of the Japanese in aerial combat, and he wasn't afraid of the same in the financial world.

Are the Japanese trying to smear Taishan Airlines with a large number of fake aircraft ownership certificates? Just wait and see.

After seeing off Mr. Liang and Mr. Lin, Fang Wen and Kuang Mingzhu discussed things.

"Regardless of whether the Japanese are behind it or not, we have to deal with the aircraft ownership certificate issue."

"How to care?"

"Since they want to use fake documents to impersonate real ones in transactions and then use this to cause trouble, we'll go along with their wishes and make a batch of fake documents to sell to them."

Kuang Mingzhu smiled and said, "Sir, you're so naughty. Let's go make the arrangements now."

Starting the next day, the aircraft ownership certificate trading counter at the Shanghai Securities and Commodities Exchange suddenly became extremely busy.

People kept coming to trade aircraft ownership certificates.

These property ownership certificates all look very real, and even the people at the counter can't tell the difference between them.

One or two is fine, but when a dozen or so aircraft ownership certificates suddenly appear for trading, the number becomes too large.

The counter staff politely declined, saying, "We're closed for the day. Please come back tomorrow."

Those posing as traders at Taishan Airlines picked up the aircraft ownership certificates in their hands.

Zhao Shanhu, who had run away due to kidney stones, had the loudest voice: "Yesterday we closed at five o'clock, why are we closing so early today?"

Their loud voices attracted other traders to come and watch.

I've met a lot of people.

The counter staff quickly explained, "We are intermediaries who take a commission. If you want to sell, how can the transaction be completed if no one buys it?"

“That’s strange. I didn’t dare to sell the past two days, so I observed your counter. There were plenty of people trading every day, both buying and selling. There was never a situation where there were no buyers,” Zhao Shanhu said loudly.

He was telling the truth. Everyone has seen the commotion surrounding aircraft ownership certificates these past two days, and today's incident is indeed a bit strange.

Seeing that things had gone well, Zhao Shanhu suddenly realized, "Oh, I understand now. You're putting on a show for everyone, probably waiting for the right moment to scam someone and run away."

"No, we didn't lie to you," the counter staff hurriedly explained.

"They didn't lie and just took our aircraft ownership certificates," Zhao Shanhu said smugly.

A property certificate is worth several hundred silver dollars, which is no small amount.

The spectators didn't say anything; they just waited to see how it would end.

If we don't accept their money, these guys will definitely come and cause trouble every day, and this counter will be labeled as a scam.

Accept it. Anyone with eyes can see the trickery involved.

After a period of stalemate, several buyers suddenly entered from outside.

They confiscated the documents from Zhao Shanhu and the others.

This farce has finally come to an end.

The seasoned veterans at the exchange figured it out.

"Those guys at the counter speak Japanese."

"The people causing trouble look familiar to me. Aren't they security guards from Taishan Airlines?"

"So this is what happened: the Japanese wanted to target Taishan Airlines, but they ended up turning the tables on them."

"Then why buy those certificates?"

“These guys are so stubborn. They used a fake document to frame someone. They won’t reveal their identities until the very last step.”

"I understand. Taishan Airlines will just go along with the Japanese's plan and rip them off."

"Yes, those documents are definitely fake, they're worth two or three thousand silver dollars. I just don't know how the Japanese plan to deal with Taishan Airlines."

"I understand. Oh dear, I have to tell the people at Taishan Airlines, otherwise something big is bound to happen later."

After saying that, the trader hurriedly ran out.

Zhao Shanhu and his men returned with silver dollars and excitedly described what they had done at the exchange, which everyone enjoyed listening to.

Kuang Mingzhu smiled and gave each person a hundred silver dollars as a performance fee.

Just then, a car sped by.

The person parked the car and jogged over.

"I'm looking for Fang Wen. Who is Fang Wen?"

Fang Wen walked over: "That's me."

The man, panting heavily, said, "General Manager Fang, you must be careful of the Japanese trying to undermine us from the start."

"What do you mean by 'drawing the firewood from under the cauldron'?" Fang Wen asked, puzzled.

"The Japanese are really collecting aircraft ownership certificates; they want to take over the overall ownership of the aircraft and then control your company."

The man revealed the Japanese plan.

Fang Wen was surprised that the Japanese had come up with such a plan.

This plan seems unsolvable, as it could limit Taishan Airlines' development by ceasing the lease of aircraft to Taishan Airlines.

But the Japanese were oversimplifying things.

Let alone this lease method with its dispersed ownership, it's incredibly difficult to gather all the ownership rights for the aircraft.

Even if the funds are raised and the lease is terminated, it won't make much difference to Taishan Airlines.

The Japanese had no idea what Taishan Airlines' most important assets were: the pilots, Fang Wen himself, and the diligent employees.

Even if all the planes are gone, Taishan Airlines and the assets owned by Fang Wen can easily rebuild.

It's just buying a few more planes; it can also accelerate the upgrading of Taishan Airlines' aviation assets.

He was considering whether to take this opportunity to sabotage the Japanese.

They made all the owners of those aircraft ownership certificates sell them to the Japanese.

He cooperated with the Japanese to put on a show, making them believe that they had been severely damaged.

Then, they would make a high-profile purchase of several high-performance passenger planes, giving the Japanese a good slap in the face.

As for which passenger plane to switch to, Fang Wen knew exactly what to do.

In this era, there is not only the Boeing 247, but also another comparable aircraft.

If the Japanese really want to pull some kind of drastic measure, he'll play along, and while he's at it, he'll acquire that 2000-kilometer-range passenger plane with a capacity of 22 passengers from Europe, and incidentally complete the development of the Asia-Europe route.

(End of this chapter)