usatvline Chapter 86: Turning against guests
Chapter 86: Turning against guests
In the International Settlement, the location of Martlon Commercial Bank was very special.
Opposite it is the Japanese consulate.
Most of the businesses in the International Settlement were opened by British and Americans.
There are also some in other countries, but they account for a very small proportion.
For example, Germany, Portugal, Spain and so on.
Most of these chambers of commerce were foreigners who entered China during the previous dynasty and took root in China.
Unlike countries like Britain, the United States, Japan and France, the businesses opened by citizens of the Third Reich in Shanghai generally did not sell much goods.
Their main business is the processing and sales of various industrial equipment and industrial products.
The most common ones are high-tech jobs such as machine tools and seamless steel pipes.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the Third Reich's industrial level was definitely among the world's leading.
Its strong manufacturing capabilities and excellent quality once made China's industrial dependence on it far exceed that of countries such as Britain and the United States.
Even the equipment of the Central Army was purchased according to the standard German-equipped regiment.
On the second floor of the company, Chen Yang's eyes lit up when he saw Jenny, the secretary of Bearded Bernard.
This girl looks really unusual, a bit like the Third Reich star in the future, Nikolai Cavanis.
With golden hair, three-dimensional facial features and a high nose bridge, she is completely different from other Chinese girls.
Jenny politely led Chen Yang into the office, and before leaving she even winked at him, which made Chen Yang feel itchy.
It is said that girls in the Third Reich were open-minded, and the rumors are true...
Inside the office.
Much like George had described him, Bernard was a citizen of the Third Reich with a full beard.
He was about 40 or 50 years old and had a very serious expression.
He had been in Shanghai for a long time. Since the Third Reich occupied Qingdao, many citizens of the Third Reich took the opportunity to enter China.
Bernard has good relations with several domestic factories. He is also a member of the NC Party. Among the Third Reich businessmen in Shanghai, he is one of the more powerful ones.
Seeing Chen Yang coming in, Bernard didn't even raise his head. While signing the document in his hand, he said, "Mr. Chen, what do you want to talk to me about?"
"It seems that our company has no business dealings with your bank."
"Besides, I'm personally not interested in things like crafts and red wine."
"You have five minutes to explain why you're here. After five minutes, I have to go out and do something."
Chen Yang frowned slightly. Not only did this German guy not speak Chinese well, he couldn't even chat well. He ruined the conversation right from the start.
If it were a Chinese businessman, he would definitely start by talking about all sorts of things. But this German guy is different. His straightforward tone is enough to choke people.
If the businessman had a bad temper, he would have turned the table over by now.
"Mr. Bernard, we can actually communicate in German." Chen Yang tried hard to put on a smile...
"Hmm," Bernard looked at Chen Yang in surprise.
Having been in Shanghai for many years, he had met many Chinese businessmen, but he had never seen anyone who could speak German so fluently.
"Mr. Chen, you can actually speak German. How rare, how rare." Bernard put down the pen in his hand and said, "It seems that Mr. Chen came here prepared. I wonder what he wants to talk to me about?"
Chen Yang smiled and said, "Mr. Bernard, I have some tungsten ore. I wonder if your bank is interested."
"What? Tungsten mine?" Bernard's expression suddenly became extremely excited.
For an industrial country like the Third Reich, the demand for tungsten ore was huge.
Alloy materials are required for tool heads of various machine tools and industrial equipment.
But the Third Reich did not produce tungsten ore, so the Third Reich has always been the largest purchaser of tungsten ore in China...
Since the head of the Third Reich announced the withdrawal of arms aid to China in February, China has also stopped supplying tungsten ore to the Third Reich.
Bernard tried every possible way to find tungsten ore, but this kind of material has always been strictly controlled by the government.
In addition, a part of it was controlled by the Red Party, and as a businessman of the Third Reich, he had no ability to contact these people.
Bernard suppressed his shock and said, "Excuse me, Mr. Chen, you are kidding, right? As far as I know, tungsten ore is a very important controlled material in your country. Mr. Chen's company still does this kind of business?"
Seeing Bernard's expression change, Chen Yang felt more confident...
"Mr. Bernard, there is an old saying in China: snakes have their own paths, and rats have their own paths."
"You just need to tell me whether you are interested in tungsten ore or not. How you got it is not your concern."
"I'm sorry," Bernard said quickly, "I didn't mean to pry into Mr. Chen's business secrets."
"How much tungsten ore do you have..."
Chen Yang raised a finger and said: "One hundred tons..."
"One hundred tons," Bernard almost jumped up.
In the material lists provided by the Nationalist government in the past, the export volume of tungsten ore was controlled at around 50 tons each time.
Sometimes they only gave him 20 to 30 tons, which was a pitiful amount, and only once a month. But this guy took out 100 tons in one go.
real or fake?
Bernard didn't know that the reserves of tungsten ore in China were very large. The reason why the Nationalist government only took out a small amount each time was because someone had already taken out a large portion of it and sold it privately to the Americans and the British.
"Mr. Chen, I don't know how much you are going to sell it for. I can offer you fifty thousand dollars..." Bernard almost trembled as he quoted the price.
Chen Yang was stunned for a moment. The real price of one hundred tons of tungsten ore was only around 40,000 US dollars.
Bernard actually increased his interest by 20% at once. It seems that without China as a partner, the Third Reich will have a hard time...
"Mr. Bernard, I don't want money..." Chen Yang took out the list of supplies he had prepared long ago and said, "I want to exchange arms with you."
"Arms?" Bernard frowned and said, "Mr. Chen, I'm in the business of industrial equipment. I can't do anything about arms."
Chen Yang smiled slightly and said, "Mr. Bernard, since I came to see you, I must have done my homework."
"You have been collecting rare metals in China under the guise of selling industrial equipment. Your real purpose is to provide strategic reserve materials for Rheinland in Switzerland."
"I believe you just need to negotiate with your superiors. These weapons should not be difficult for you..."
Bernard was shocked and looked at Chen Yang in disbelief.
Rhein Company was the weapons company of the Third Reich. Due to the defeat in World War I, the Third Reich was affected by the Treaty of Versailles and could not mass-produce infantry weapons.
Rheinland Company simply changed its identity and went to Switzerland as a neutral country to manufacture weapons for the Third Reich.
Now that the S2 season is about to begin, the head of the Third Reich even used a large portion of foreign exchange funds to help Rheinland Company mass-produce weapons.
But how did this Chinese person know such a defense-level secret?
Looking at Bernard's changing expression, Chen Yang said slowly: "Mr. Bernard, from now on, you have one minute to think about it..."