Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 180, Page 179: Secrets of Japanese Air Force Bomber Development, German-Japanese Robbery Plan
Fang Wen and Lin Shuiwang sat in the hotel lobby on the first floor, waiting as if nothing had happened.

Half an hour later, Indiana returned and immediately came over when he saw Fang Wen.

Report on the follow-up situation.

"The two of them went out to eat and didn't have any contact with anyone else. They were right behind me."

As they spoke, two Japanese men in suits walked into the hotel.

They walked and talked, in high spirits.

Instead of going upstairs, he sat on the sofa next to Fang Wen.

To avoid arousing suspicion, Indiana immediately left the area and went to another corner of the hall.

After the two Japanese men sat down, they saw what Fang Wen and Lin Shuiwang looked like, but stopped talking and waited quietly.

Fang Wen couldn't help but wonder if they had something else to do.
He exchanged a glance with Lin Shuiwang, and then stood up as well.

With no outsiders present, the two Japanese men continued their conversation.

In the distance, Indiana continued to report in a low voice: "They are not professional intelligence personnel, but they have received some counter-surveillance training, but they are clumsy. They should have been specially trained for this trip abroad."

Fang Wen handed a hotel room key to Indiana: "Your room is 604, Lin Shuiwang's is 602, and mine is 603."

When they received the keys in Indiana, the Japanese had a problem.

The two Japanese men stood up, their faces beaming.

They were facing a guest who had just entered the hotel.

A handshake and a bow demonstrate how much importance one places on that person.

This should be the Junkers representative we met with.

After exchanging pleasantries for a while, the three of them went to the hotel's coffee shop.

The coffee shop seats were spaced far apart and people could see each other, so there was no way to eavesdrop. Fang Wen and his group didn't go in after they realized this.

After a while, the man left, and the two Japanese men went upstairs.

Thinking that it would be inconvenient for Indiana to know about the eavesdropping, Fang Wen gave Indiana a task.

"Go and follow that person. It would be best if you could find out his identity. Also, investigate Junkers Company while you're at it."

“Okay.” Indiana nodded. This was exactly what he had come to Vienna to do. He went straight out and followed his target with a man at the door who was pretending to read a newspaper.

At the same time, Fang Wen and Lin Shuiwang immediately entered the elevator and went to the 6th floor.

After exiting the elevator, I immediately entered room 604.

604 is located diagonally below 705, where the Japanese live, making it a good spot for eavesdropping.

Fang Wen opened another suitcase, inside which was a bugging radio.

Compared to future semiconductor devices, the eavesdropping radio, composed of vacuum tubes, circuits, frequency modulators, and other equipment, was much simpler.

But it was the first wireless eavesdropping device ever made in that era.

Fang Wen turned on the remote switch.

Because it is a fixed frequency, no tuning is needed at all, and after a moment, a slight sound is heard.

That was the creaking sound of the bed board being pressed down; someone must have gone to bed to rest.

After a while, a similar sound came from it again.

Fang Wen guessed that the two Japanese men were currently lying on the beds upstairs.

It was still before bedtime, and after having eaten and drunk coffee, the two were even more unable to sleep, so they started chatting in Japanese.

Lin Shuiwang has been studying Japanese for the past six months, and with his talent for languages, he can now read and write Japanese without any problems.

In preparation for the future war of resistance, Fang Wen also studied Japanese in his spare time, but he was not as good as Lin Shuiwang. He could not speak fluently, but he could understand it.

The two listened to the Japanese conversation.

"Noguchi-kun, the Junkers people haven't agreed yet. How long are we supposed to wait?"

“Mr. Iwashita, there’s a Chinese saying, ‘Haste makes waste.’ We can’t rush things; there will always be a chance.”

"Noguchi-kun, you know more about airplanes. I want to ask you, why are we buying the Ju52/3M, G.38, and K37 this time?"

"Iwashita-kun, the Junkers Ju 52/3m is a three-engine transport aircraft that was only launched last year. It has great capabilities, with good range and payload. It can also be modified with landing gear to allow it to land on water or flat terrain. We could buy it as a passenger plane and modify it into a bomber. But that's very unlikely. The Nazi Party also values ​​the Ju 52/3m, so it's probably impossible for us to buy it."

"That's why we came up with the second option: to buy their technology products from 5 years ago?"

"Although the G.38 and K37 are technologies from five years ago, they are far superior to our existing aircraft. We lack bomber technology. Although the G.38 is a civilian airliner, it fully meets the requirements of a heavy strategic bomber. We only need to modify the interior to a bomber structure. The K37 is a light bomber developed 27 years ago, but it is a technology that we can master and mass-produce."

(The Japanese Type 93 light bomber, whose prototype technology was derived from the Junkers K-37 light bomber)
The Japanese conversation continued, gradually shifting towards everyday discussions.

Because he only had two hours of listening time, Fang Wen turned off the wireless listening device.

He was roughly aware of the matter that Mitsubishi had sent people to negotiate with Junkers.

The Japanese wanted to acquire German bomber technology.

Given Japan's current military industrial capacity, they simply cannot build heavy strategic bombers, not even after the end of World War II.

Furthermore, the technology for light bombers was not yet perfect, which is why they came to Europe to purchase related technologies.

If this attempt to stop them succeeds, it will at least delay the development of the Japanese air force, which would be very beneficial to China.

After putting away the wireless eavesdropping radio, Fang Wen waited for the situation in Indiana to be investigated.

Indiana didn't return until more than two hours later.

He explained what he knew about the situation.

"Two years ago, Junkers faced serious financial problems that nearly led to the group's bankruptcy. The company's shareholders held a meeting to try to force Hugo Junkers out of the company."

Fang Wen nodded. He knew that Hugo Junkers was the company's founder and had been ousted from his company by the other shareholders, which showed how serious the problem was at the time.

Fang Wen could guess why this was the case. The advancement of aircraft manufacturing technology in this era required a large number of experiments and sufficient experience in design and manufacturing. Junkers, such a large aircraft company, must have invested too much in research and development, and sales had not kept up.

The story continues in Indiana.

Hugo Junkers was not ousted; he owned a large number of Junkers' patented technologies, which were used in most of Junkers' aircraft models and engines at the time.

If he leaves the company, having the patent license revoked would be bad enough.

Junkers devised a plan to solve this problem by acquiring Junkers' engine patent portfolio and injecting it into a new company.

So last year, Junkers Engine Patent Center was established.

The new company then licensed these patented technologies to many companies, most of which belonged to Junkers Engine Company.

However, what truly resolved this financial crisis was Hugo Junkers' sale of "Junkers Thermal Technology" to Bosch.

Upon hearing this, Fang Wen couldn't help but sigh.

Bosch is poised to become the world's largest automotive technology supplier, and Junkers Thermal Technology deserves some credit for that.

Junkers, however, seems to have disappeared into history.

He asked, "So, Junkers, which is currently not doing well in business, is very likely to sell its technical data to the Japanese?"

Indiana responded: "If Hugo Junkers were still in control of the company, probably not, but it's hard to say now."

Has Junkers gotten into some kind of trouble again?
Fang Wen listened to Indiana's explanation.

It turns out that after the Nazi Party gained control of the Weimar Parliament this year, Chancellor Mustache immediately implemented a large number of governing measures.

All long-range civil aircraft development programs in the German aviation industry were cancelled.

Hugo Junkers, the first person in the Weimar German aviation industry, was forced to transfer all his patents.

At the time, Hugo Junkers neither agreed nor refused, but was therefore suspected by the Nazis of refusing to obey their plans.

Shortly afterward, his shares were confiscated, and he was placed under house arrest.

Junkers, the company that developed the largest civilian airliner, terminated a large number of projects, leaving only the Ju 52 heavy transport aircraft and the Ju 89 strategic bomber. The rest of them participated in the bidding for single-engine and twin-engine military projects hosted by the Imperial Air Ministry.

After listening to Indiana's explanation, Fang Wen gained a better understanding of the whole situation.

The Japanese were aware of the current situation facing the Junkers company. They weren't looking for Hugo Junkers himself, but rather the Nazis who had taken over the company, hoping to exchange the Ju 52/3m, G.38, and K37 for their offer.

纳粹那边显然是不愿意出售Ju52/3m，但对于卖给日本人5年前的G.38和k37技术倒是有想法。

The two sides are probably in the bargaining stage right now, and it would be best for me to sabotage the deal at this point.

So how do we sabotage this deal?
Fang Wen pondered this deeply.

There are many methods.

Just kill those two Japanese.

Or to sow discord between the two sides.

But that wouldn't be the best approach.

He suddenly realized that if he stopped the transaction before it was completed, a new transaction would continue before long.

It would be better to let the deal go through, then cut off the supply lines and take everything from both sides.

This way, the aircraft technology and the Japanese payment would be in their own hands, and people on both sides might suspect that the other side was secretly sabotaging them.

Upon having this idea, Fang Wen couldn't help but be moved; this was the way to operate in chaotic times.

He immediately shared this idea with Lin Shuiwang and Indiana.

Lin Shuiwang was in complete agreement with the proposal.

Indiana hesitated only slightly before agreeing.

Three days passed, with the two sides holding talks each day for the three days.

Through wireless eavesdropping, Fang Wen learned that the negotiations were progressing steadily.

On the fourth day, both sides finalized the arrangements and agreed to meet at a restaurant 200 meters outside the hotel.

Fang Wen also learned about this from the Japanese through wireless eavesdropping.

Now we need to plan how to take action.

The three discussed the matter in room 604.

Lin Shuiwang said, "How about I go tomorrow, and after they finish their transaction, I'll open fire. Give me a powerful submachine gun, and I'll wipe them all out."

Fang Wen denied it: "We can't show our faces. This matter will cause a huge uproar, and we must prevent the investigation from reaching us."

Indiana thought for a moment: "Go find my friends, they know where to hire hitmen."

Fang Wen shook his head again. People in the intelligence community would investigate from both sides, which would leave more evidence against him. He didn't have the backing of the United States or the United Kingdom, so he could easily be betrayed.

Just then, a sharp siren sounded outside the room.

That was a fire alarm; there must have been more houses burned down by the Nazis nearby.

Fang Wen suddenly had a flash of inspiration.

During this period, in order to rapidly expand the Nazi Party, Hitler allowed anyone to join, resulting in a complex membership.

The deaths of those six Weimar officers were due to their hiring of a SA member to assassinate Hitler.

He could also find a group of people from the Nazis to do his bidding, which would make things even more complicated.

He shared his idea, and Lin Shuiwang and Indiana agreed.

Furthermore, a follow-up supplementary plan was designed.

If the hired man fails or runs away with the goods, that will be the time for Fang Wen and his two companions to make their move.

After making the decision, the three immediately went downstairs and drove around the streets of Vienna in their rented car, looking for opportunities.

At 9 p.m. in Vienna, the night would have been very quiet at this time last year.

But now, the streets are filled with hysterical revelers.

Their numbers grew, their momentum increased, and they began to confront the police.

Fang Wen drove his car into this chaotic neighborhood, stopped it at the police's request, and observed the area using his mechanical senses.

These people were a very diverse group, including Nazi supporters, opportunists, and gangsters.

Therefore, their performances varied.

Some people held up signs and shouted loudly.

Someone behind them laughed and echoed.

And further back, in groups, their eyes fierce.

These small groups are the real fighting force in the team; most of them are local Viennese gangs and thugs.

They were also the ones Fang Wen was looking for to carry out the attack.

The three men got out of the car, walked around in a circle, passed through the police cordon, and arrived at an alley controlled by Nazi demonstrators.

"Put this on." Fang Wen took out a silk scarf and tied it around his mouth and nose first, completing the face concealment.

Lin Shuiwang and Indiana did the same.

Three masked men walked through the alley, secretly carrying handguns for their own safety.

But the ways of holding a gun are different.

Lin Shuiwang was the most obvious, brandishing a Mauser pistol and holding it at his sides.

Indiana's right hand was pressed against his waist, and through his jacket, on his belt was his favorite Colt 1911.

Fang Wen held a Browning pistol in his right hand, his hand tucked into his sleeve.

The three men's unusual behavior has attracted attention from time to time.

Two tall men blocked his way.

He said menacingly in German, "Who are you? This is our place."

Lin Shuiwang translated in a low voice for Fang Wen.

Judging from these words, they are definitely gangsters with a strong sense of territory.

Fang Wen said, "I want to hire a group of people to do things. It's simple, but the pay is generous."

After Lin Shuiwang translated, a voice came from behind the two burly men. The burly men opened their mouths, and a man walked over.

He asked directly in English, "Explain yourself."

"Find a group of skilled men to help me steal two items. The reward is 5 Imperial Marks or 1 US dollars. A fifth of the amount will be paid as a deposit first."

The reward was quite high, even higher than what they had meticulously planned for a robbery, and the gang leader was tempted.

"How to start, when to start? How to hand over the items?"

That's a professional question, but he didn't ask what the thing was; he's quite sensible.

Indiana replied, "We'll take action tomorrow. We'll meet you outside. Just hand over the items to us, and the balance will be paid on the spot."

Negotiations are ongoing, mainly focusing on the various details of the operation.

But they didn't inform the gangs in advance where they would carry out their plan.

After finishing, Fang Wen handed over 10,000 Imperial Marks wrapped in newspaper as a deposit to the gang leader, and the three of them turned and left.

Once they were out of the alley, Lin Shuiwang let out a sigh of relief: "That was a bit scary. I was afraid even with a gun in my hand. How can Indiana be so bold?"

Indiana laughed and said, "I'm scared too, but in that situation, you must not show it. You have to stay focused, and if the other side dares to do anything reckless, just shoot."

The two looked at Fang Wen, who smiled and said, "Of course I'm scared."

Yes, the chairman of Taishan Airlines, and with businesses in the United States, how could such a person not value his life?

Lin Shuiwang and Indiana were relieved.

That night, they still had something to do: retrieve equipment from the plane to prepare for tomorrow's events.

(End of this chapter)