Chapter 220 Let’s Rob A Vehicle to Play with
A wooden box that was about a meter long, was within the electric eel"s grasp. Its tininess could not be expressed in words. With just a light pinch of its claw, the box broke into pieces.
What made Chen Fan startled, was seeing that there were another 10 smaller square boxes within the large box that had just shattered. These small boxes were stored better than their predecessor.
Before the electric eel could open them, it already could smell a faint scent of musk coming from the small boxes. This fragrant scent was so very enchanting, it might make one soften themselves and even develop an obsession over it.
Chen Fan eagerly opened one wooden box, and a bundle that was wrapped with thick silk cloth dropped out of it. It was a white resin-like object with an irregular surface, about the size of a bowl"s size. It had an ever-changing, seductive fragrance to it.
"It"s ambergris!" Chen Fan was quick in identifying this item. Other than it, what else could be more aromatic than the smell of musk?
Chen Fan continued to open a few more boxes, discovering that they all contained ambergris. This condensate, which was occasionally produced by sperm whales, had remained a dreamlike and priceless treasure in the perfume industry, ever since ancient times. Especially white colored ambergris, which were the most expensive kinds.
During ancient times, ambergris was always a product used exclusively by the royal family. In fact, European n.o.ble ladies were even willing to spend all of their husbands" wealth in exchange for it. Today, any perfume that contains natural ambergris could charge a price of a few hundred American dollars per ounce.
With this large amount of white ambergris, it did not only symbolize a huge sum of wealth, but also embodied a cla.s.s, the type of cla.s.s that could not be bought with any amount of money. Without a doubt, Chen Fan intended to possess this priceless commodity.
After arranging the remaining 42 boxes in order, Chen Fan was determined to destroy that armed carrier. He would then return to retrieve the ambergris.
...
As time pa.s.sed slowly, the electric eel kept swimming back and forth on the surface of the oceanic trench, which was about 7000 meters deep. After it waited until the wee hours of the morning, the eel finally caught sight of the red colored carrier s.h.i.+p with its keen vision.
It was a time before dawn, which was the darkest, and also when a person"s body feels its most tired and relaxed. Thus, it was the best time to commit any crime.
"Ooh…" The eel relentlessly took a gulp of seawater, then slowly clenched the long spears on its claw.
Regardless of the size of a commercial carrier s.h.i.+p, its body is usually not too thick. What supports the s.h.i.+p is the s.h.i.+p"s main beam, therefore, as long as the eel"s spears did not pierce the beam, it would be safe.
"Weng, weng, weng!"
This s.h.i.+p was a 200 meters long, 30 meters wide, and 17 meters tall freighter that weighed 10 thousand tons, making it seem like an ancient monster moving in the water. The combination of noise coming from the huge propellers of the s.h.i.+p and strong waves that were created as the s.h.i.+p thrust forward, had made the marine creatures within its vicinity flee in fear.
"Three, two, one!"
When the giant s.h.i.+p finally steered to its reserved slot, the electric eel swung its tail and swam with its fastest speed, which was equivalent to a nautical speed of nearly 300 knots. At this fast rate, it headed straight toward the base of the s.h.i.+p.
What exactly is the magnitude of an approximate 300 knots? Well, converting it into the metric unit would mean that the eel travelled 150 meters per second, which was faster than a F1 racing car!
As the eel"s spears were extended to an angle of 10 degrees, they clashed with the s.h.i.+p"s body. Bright sparks blasted out immediately, as the two collided with each other. The base deck of this s.h.i.+p was made with a j.a.panese produced 8mm metal plate, yet a big hole with a diameter of 15 meters was immediately made from the impact. Seawater abruptly gushed into the hole.
This impact had made a loud noise, which awoke everyone aboard. Everyone was terrified, as they had no clue of what to do next. However, they were only in the beginning of their nightmare. Just as all of them crawled out from bed and were rus.h.i.+ng to the deck, there was a piercing, metallic screeching and a metal rubbing noise coming from the bottom of the s.h.i.+p. It could not be described in words just how loud that noise was, but over twenty men, all of whom were militarily trained, actually thought that it was louder than when a 150mm howitzer was detonated.
"The s.h.i.+p is sinking!" someone shrieked loudly. What happened next, was that the sailors, who had discovered the tilting of the s.h.i.+p, instantly ran for the lifeboat.
"Stop, please stop, now!" A few soldiers, who were patrolling at the deck, pulled their bolts, preparing to fire a warning. A total of 64 freshly armed cable cars, plus several cartons of firearms and bombs were readied, so if anything happened to them, the soldiers" a.s.ses would be kicked.
In the midst of any turmoil, n.o.body obeyed orders. A sailor, who was pa.s.sing by, was nice enough to give them a reminder. "Run for your lives! Otherwise, when the s.h.i.+p sinks and creates a turbulent flow, it could easily engulf any s.h.i.+p weighing less than a hundred tons!"
"Hong Rong Rong"
Most likely due to the engine, the cabin had been immersed into the water and the engines of the 12 cylinder boats shuddered violently, unable to start up.
"Let"s all run, too!" A soldier screamed, as he discovered that the tilting angle of the s.h.i.+p was still increasing. He immediately ran to the s.h.i.+p deck to get into a lifeboat nearest to him.
It is common knowledge that, when a s.h.i.+p has sunk, it would create a turbulent flow. Not knowing that things were so bad that it could not be saved, the soldiers weren"t bright enough to realize the reality of the situation that they were in. This was probably due to the regime that they were under, which stressed getting their cargo delivered, or else they would face severe punishment.
Three minutes had been counting since the eel"s attack. Thus, it only took three minutes for it to sink into the seawater with a sound of "gulu, gulu". The turbulent flow it caused forcibly, made those two rubber lifeboats that struggling to flee be affixed into a "V" shape.
The electric eel did not immediately abscond after launching its attack against the s.h.i.+p. Instead, it quickly swam to the s.h.i.+p"s back, where the entrance that was designed for cargo disembarkment was located. Arriving, it then swayed open its door.
This s.h.i.+p, which was 17 meters high and 30 meters wide, was way bigger than the eel. When it entered the warehouse, it spotted dozens of armored personnel carriers (APC), as well as different types of grey polyethylene plastic boxes.
Chen Fan"s objective was simple: to rob an APC and some munitions to play with. Now that the s.h.i.+p cabin had been filled with seawater, the eel no longer decided to be picky. It used its front claw to grip on an APC, which was affixed to the deck with a rope, then opened its mouth widely and swallowed the vehicle, which was 7.6 meters long, 3 meters wide, and 2.5 meters tall.
Harboring the armed vehicle in its mouth, the eel flashed its two claws and went on to grab over ten grey munition boxes. Thereafter, it transferred those goods from its front claw to its back claws, then continued to go deeper in to grab another ten munition boxes. It then paused for a while, waiting for the s.h.i.+p to sink completely into darkness, and only then did it turn its head toward Zhongyun City.
At that time, the giant s.h.i.+p had sunken only a few meters into the water. Thus, the goods had not yet been soaked completely. So, the functionality of the APC should not have been affected. After all, it was waterproof, which was a basic requirement for any armed vehicle. There were also a number of military armored cars that could travel in water, just like a boat.
Those weapons and munitions were not even an issue, as they were packaged in huge polyethylene boxes, which were inherently waterproof. Bullets, grenades, rocket missiles… none of them were aquaphobic. So long as the eel didn"t dive into deep waters, and as long as it brought those boxes under great pressure, there shouldn"t be a problem.
On their journey back to Zhongyun City, Chen Fan increased the eel"s speed to its maximum, so that he could propel forward in the ocean. Upon arriving at Zhongyun City, the electric eel first went around to find a place in the shallow waters to store the munition boxes. After that, it dived into the hole, then spit the armed personnel carrier from its mouth into it.
Next, it returned to the munition boxes and held them in its mouth, then hoisted them into the hole as well. As the hole was dug into a depth of over a thousand meters deep underwater, exposure to the exterior might cause them to burst, due to enormous water pressure.
When the eel finished its job, it went to search for a few sharks to fill its stomach. It then took a rest for two hours. Thereafter, it prepared to venture back into the j.a.panese oceanic trench in order to bring home those ambergris that were in the ancient sunken s.h.i.+ps. To carry those ambergris, the eel took a cable that was anch.o.r.ed a few hundred meters deep, in order to fasten it around those wooden boxes.
One could be very impressed with the j.a.panese military"s efficiency, as just as the eel arrived on the side of the trench, there were already three military helicopters flying above the giant s.h.i.+p that had sunk. One of those helicopters even discarded some cylindrical objects into the sea, the exact use of which remained unknown.
......
At dawn, the sky was bathed in a faint fog. There were sounds of birds chirping, insects squeaking, and also some noises of dogs barking from a distance.
Located at the foot of Gomoku Hill in s.h.i.+njuku, Tokyo, there lied a land which was 1.5 square meters large. A pseudo-vintage courtyard was erected there, fully constructed with green roof tiles and white walls.
The surroundings of this courtyard were encircled with shallow waters, alongside tall and verdant pine trees, as well as different kinds of Mao bamboos that stood upright in the air.
Amid the faint white fog, a magnificent smell proliferated, resulting from the combination of the landscapes. If one had not been aware of the fact that they were living in the 21st century, most people would concur that this place was a paradise.
At the same time, people who came here would unanimously regard the owner of this extremely vast land as someone who was no less wealthy than the world"s richest man, as property prices in s.h.i.+njuku could cost up to 10,000 American dollars per square meter.
Now, let"s s.h.i.+ft our attentions back to the center of this courtyard. All four sides of the building were surrounded with pond water, and occasionally, you could see some flying birds pa.s.s by the second story of this little building.
Currently, a 58-year-old Nakagawa Ohno tossed and turned, while lying on his bed. As one ages, they will grow more attached to their possessions. They no longer have the drive that they had when they were still young.
He sighed, as he rose up to take a stroll on the veranda outside the house. This veranda, which stretched across the pond, had been built with thick cedarwood, displaying a style that was naturally ancient.
Wearing a white robe, Nagasawa Ohno s.h.i.+vered and found a fis.h.i.+ng rod at the corner of the wall. He intended to do something to occupy his thoughts, which were heavily clouded with gloomy emotions.
Five days ago, his youngest granddaughter, who resided at Tianhai City in China, had lost contact with her family. Up until then, there had not been a single piece of information on her whereabouts. Nagasawa sent over ten of his j.a.panese employees, who were based in China, to look for her, but the only information they discovered was that she had gotten into a car with a man in front of the Union Bank of Switzerland.
It took these experienced men so much effort, only to steal footage from a few buildings adjacent to the bank. Unfortunately, there wasn"t anyone that could capture a clear reflection of the actual chain of events.
Things were not as simple to deal with in foreign countries, as opposed to one"s home country. In addition, she was wanted by local police authorities, and as such, he would not be able to report her to the police, and was never prepared to do so anyway.
In his ming, lodging a police report when things happened, was a privilege only for the weak! As an elderly person, who had experienced numerous hards.h.i.+ps, he could only count on his own power and abilities. Hence, he never relied on those police, who were not much stronger than any ordinary person.
"Five days, five days have pa.s.sed. Yet, I still haven"t received any phone calls related to Miko"s whereabouts…" Nagasawa Ohno stared at the pond for quite a long while, only then he throwing his fish hook into the water.
The merciless truth had been placed before him, was such that he could only mercilessly stifle the hopes that existed in his heart. All these years, he had experienced countless killings, and it had not caused him to cry tears of sorrow. It had only cultivated within him a deep yearning for revenge.
His fis.h.i.+ng skills appeared to be very skillful. The hook did not even stay in the water for 10 seconds, and the next thing seen was the bamboo rod taking a slump. Underneath the water, an indistinct image of a struggling huge carp could be seen.
"Deng, deng, deng..."
A light footstep sound came from outside, breaking the silence at the corridor. It was a middle-aged man in his forties. He wore a well-trimmed black suit and had a stern face, which made him look smart.
"Uncle, the giant s.h.i.+p of ours that helped the military transport armed personnel carriers has sunk. The Minister of Defence just called to request that you contact him after you wake up." This well-behaved middle-aged man bowed to Nagasawa Ohno"s side and whispered.
"When was that?" Nagasawa Ohno"s face quickly turned cold.
"At around 4 this morning, the accident happened on top of the oceanic trench that was about 8000 meters deep. I did not dare to disturb your sleep once I got the news. Now that I see you are fis.h.i.+ng here, only then did I decide to inform you."
"Did you know the cause?" Nagasawa Ohno looked up to the sky, and sighed desolately.
"Tentatively, it remains unknown, but the military has already stepped in to investigate the matter. Unfortunately, they could not find out what caused it at this moment. Now that the s.h.i.+p has already sunken 8000 meters underwater, they are considering whether to deploy the Kaiko unmanned submarine vessel for investigation."
"Investigate what exactly?" Nagasawa Ohno laughed absent-mindedly. "At 8000 meters under the sea, there"s no way you can find out anything. Even if the s.h.i.+p hadn"t been crushed into a steel plate under that great amount of water pressure, what findings could they get regarding what caused the accident, just based on those scratches on the debris?"
"How about the sailors on the s.h.i.+p?"
"Currently under the military"s interrogation."
"Please send some people to enquire about the matter again, once they arrive back in Tokyo." Nagasawa Ohno threw the fis.h.i.+ng rod away, leaving it to the unlucky carp to carry it away in the water.
"Dial the Minister of Defence, please!"
"Yes sir!" the man responded, as he took out a golden Vertu cell phone from his pocket and dialed a few numbers. After that, he pa.s.sed the phone to Nagasawa Ohno respectfully.
The call was speedily received, and the old man, who sat on a divan, blurted out, "I am Nagasawa Ohno. "
Immediately after, the defence minister spoke in a coa.r.s.e tone and said angrily, "Ohno-kun, I hope you could give us a proper explanation. Otherwise, I would suggest that we terminate our project collaborations immediately."
"What kind of explanation do you want?" Nagasawa Ohno spoke unaffectedly with his usual self-contained poise. But his grasp on the handle of the rattan bamboo lounge chair grew tight, thus making a creaking sound.
"The armored personnel carriers, all 64 of them, belonged to the highest range of weaponry configuration. Just one set of laser suppressed sighting system would already cost us 800,000 American dollars. Including the other supplemental components, every vehicle itself would have a purchase price of 8 million dollars. Add to that 521 tons of various munition equipment, and the grand total would be 700 million dollars. This is to say that, we"ve altogether lost a sum of 1,212,000,000 dollars."
"So, you"re trying to say that I should bear the cost of your Ministry of Defence"s losses?"
"Ohno-kun, we didn"t want to see this happen, but initially, when you took this job to s.h.i.+p these firearms, we"d already agreed that, in the event that any problems should arise, you were to bear the consequences."
"So, what if I"m not willing to make this payment?" Nagasawa Ohno said casually.
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PS: 4,000 words, hehe! (To be continued. If you wish to know what happens next, please log onto www.qidian.com for more chapters. Go support the author and authorized reading!)