Zhou Wen followed Su Jixian, led by the Chinese employee, to a spacious office on the second floor. Inside, a tall, thin foreign man about thirty years old came up to him. He looked at Su Jixian and greeted him enthusiastically in Chinese: "Dear
Su, I'm glad to see you. Is there any good business you want to cooperate with us? You know, I've been looking forward to this for a long time."
Su Jixian also smiled, shook hands with him and exchanged greetings before telling him his purpose.
The American named Crete heard that Zhou Wen needed to buy a diving suit, so he looked Zhou Wen up and down in surprise. Looking at Zhou Wen's somewhat worn suit jacket, he frowned and said: "This
Sir, I don’t know why you need a diving suit? But I still have to remind you that this kind of equipment cannot be put on and used. It requires professionals to use it safely, and the value of such a piece of equipment is not low.
"
Zhou Wen knew that in any era there would inevitably be the bias of judging people based on appearance, not to mention that his attire today was indeed misleading, but there was nothing unfair about it.
Under the surprised gazes of Su Jixian and the foreigner, Zhou Wen took out a stack of U.S. dollars from his pocket and said with a smile: "Mr. Crete, thank you for your advice. Of course, the diving suit I purchased will be professional."
You don’t have to worry about use or payment. Please quote a price now, and then we can inspect the goods and pay. Everyone’s time is valuable, isn’t it?”
Zhou Wen didn't have time to bargain with this foreigner. Of course he didn't care how much a diving suit cost. As long as you have it, money doesn't matter.
Crete was also infected by Zhou Wen's actions and laughed and said: "Okay, okay, I like this gentleman's style very much. Indeed, as you said, everyone's time is precious. Let's go, I'll take the lead first
How about you go see the goods and then we trade on the spot?" Zhou Wen naturally obeyed the order happily.
The warehouse is in a yard behind the small western-style building. Crete is a person who has worked hard in the mall for many years. Now of course he knows that he may have made a mistake just now. This Chinese man should not be a simple person. On the way, he also talked to him enthusiastically.
Zhou Wen started chatting.
Only then did Zhou Wen find out that Crete's company did not sell diving suits. It was only because of Su Jixian's relationship that he agreed to transfer one of the company's spare diving suits to Zhou Wen.
Zhou Wen naturally expressed his gratitude to both of them. Of course he knew that the market demand for this kind of special equipment was not large, and there would not be any company that specialized in this kind of business. It seemed that he had found the right one when he came to Su Jixian this time.
People.
Crete's company has two kinds of diving suits. One is a deep-sea diving suit, which is relatively bulky. The head is a large copper helmet with a fiberglass mask, which wraps the entire head and is connected and sealed with the shoulders. The appearance
Like the space suits of previous generations, this diving suit can dive about 200 meters.
There is also a more advanced one-piece waterproof suit made from unknown materials from head to toe. The diving goggles and oxygen mask are separated and can be taken off or put on at any time as needed. However, the diving depth is limited, at most 70
-80 meters deep, of course Zhou Wen chose this more portable and advanced one.
For such a diving suit plus a 12-liter oxygen tank, Crete quoted a price of 600 US dollars. Zhou Wen did not hesitate and paid directly to pick up the goods and leave.
Zhou Wen, carrying two heavy boxes, came to the reception hall and saw Mandel sitting on the sofa talking to the young man next to him. After seeing Zhou Wen, Mandel stood up happily to say hello.
At this time, Zhou Wen had time to introduce Su Jixian and Mandel to each other.
Su Jixian had completely taken a new look at Zhou Wen at this time. He originally thought that such a young colonel officer as Zhou Wen must be a playboy of a certain big shot in the army. Now it seems that this man's performance has repeatedly refreshed his understanding (this is also the reason why Zhou Wen
It’s very helpless, age is a flaw!).
He was well-educated, well-educated, and could speak fluent English. He also had close friendship with the top figures of the German brother company, which was also well-known in Shanghai. You must know that this period was the honeymoon of the cooperation between the Nanjing government and the German government.
During this period, the National Army was purchasing a large amount of German equipment, and German Brothers Company was one of the largest middlemen.
Su Jixian began to be confused about Zhou Wen's origins, but that didn't stop him from being prepared to treat this extraordinary young officer with more enthusiasm and sincerity.
At this time, Zhou Wen also learned about the young man next to Mandel. The German young man named Joseph was indeed a Jew as Zhou Wen suspected, and he was also a Jew who had served in the German army. As for why he came to China, Zhou Wen also
It's not hard to guess why.
In Germany during this period, the German National Socialist Workers' Party, also known as the Nazi Party in later generations, had begun to enter the political arena. The Nazism and anti-Semitism they promoted had begun to be implemented in Germany, and they were the first example of anti-Semitism.
The measure was to exclude all German soldiers with Jewish ancestry from the German army.
After Joseph was forced to retire, even though he was a highly skilled German engineering and explosives expert, under the general trend of Germany's comprehensive suppression of Jews, even finding a job that could make a living became a luxury.
In desperation, Joseph had no choice but to take his father and mother, who were also laid off from the factory, and spent all their little savings from Germany to Shanghai, China, known as the gold rush land, in search of a job that could support his family and make a living.
Jewish families like Joseph were quite lucky, because during this period, although Germany began to direct conflicts and hatred against the Jews, it did not yet implement strict personal control. At least they were not restricted from going abroad.
If they had waited a few more years, even seeking refuge abroad would have become a luxury for them. The Jews of that period had been thoroughly monitored and controlled by the secret police, and the final outcome was to be sent to concentration camps and brutally massacred.
Mandel, on the other hand, has not been affected by the trend of domestic anti-Semitism. First of all, he is an upright person, and secondly, he also has many friends of Jewish origin, including Hobert, a German firearms engineer who helped Zhou Wen a lot. So faced with being trapped in
When Joseph's family was in trouble, Mandel still extended a helping hand. After learning that he was a demolition engineer, he took him to this American-run engineering company. He knew that whether it was road construction or housing project construction,
Skilled blasting engineers or workers will be needed.
But Zhou Wen became concerned as soon as he heard about Joseph's background.