Chapter 52: 52, Airport And Flight Paths Confirmed, Bartering For A Boeing 80
The map unfolded by Shunzi was in the traditional ink style map format. Although not as detailed as modern maps, it was still clear enough to identify locations.
Perfectly suitable for this presentation.
“The Boeing 80 can carry 20 passengers. Excluding one bodyguard and one flight attendant, it can actually seat 18 people. Its range can reach 700 kilometers. This is a map with Shanghai as the starting point and a radius of 700 kilometers. We need to select a fixed flight path and then build airports on both ends.”
The Eight Great Families from the Northeast all gathered around the map, discussing.
“In my opinion, fly to Beiping.”
“Can’t reach it. 700 kilometers north can only reach Xuzhou.”
“That works too. It covers the entire Central Plains with plenty of passenger sources.”
“The Japanese are about to enter the pass. This line is too dangerous.”
“The more so, the more profitable it is.”
“Don’t just look north. I think flying to Hefei is also possible. It’s in the hinterland and borders the coastline.”
“The distance is too short. No good.”
“Then further down, to Nanchang.”
The group discussed animatedly. Fang Wen did not join in; no matter which direction they flew, it worked for him.
The key was to settle the matter so they could procure the airplane.
Finally, after considering various factors and consulting Fang Wen’s opinion, they decided on Fuyang as the endpoint of the flight path.
Fuyang is located in the middle section between the Yellow River and the Yangtze River.
To the north are the Central Plains city cluster, to the southwest is Wuhan, and to the southeast is Hefei. If the airplane lands there, it can cover a very large area.
With the flight path decided, the Eight Great Families felt like success was imminent.
Having had no proper business for a long time, they eagerly discussed sending people to Fuyang, wanting to get the airport construction there done early.
Fang Wen spoke up to remind them:
“Wait, even if we settle on the airport, there’s a more important matter. How do we buy the airplane? The Boeing Company in the United States only accepts US dollars.”
“Then exchange silver dollars for it,” one patriarch said.
Shopkeeper Liu explained: “No good. The people at Citibank said we’re on the silver standard and they’re on the gold standard. We have to exchange at the pure gold to pure silver rate. That way, using silver dollars would be too much of a loss for us.”
“Why the loss?” Several patriarchs didn’t understand.
Shopkeeper Liu continued: “Our silver dollars are minted from silver, 90% silver and 10% copper purity, which works as silver. But in the United States, it’s not gold but US dollars, and those are very valuable. Three silver dollars can exchange for one US dollar, but because of the Japanese war, it’s now four silver dollars for one US dollar. For the full price of 130,000, we’d have to pay 520,000 silver dollars. But they won’t accept that many silver dollars.”
The patriarchs looked at each other.
A foreign bank actually unwilling to exchange US dollars because there were too many silver dollars.
This also showed that Republic of China currency had no transaction value on the international market.
As the families showed difficulty, Fang Wen, who had a plan in mind, said: “I have a way: barter.”
“What barter? Do the Americans lack anything?” Several patriarchs asked in surprise.
“Yes, this thing.” Fang Wen took the small bucket handed over by Fang Shouxin and showed it to the patriarchs.
Clear oil-like, with a strange smell.
Although the Northeast didn’t produce this, some of the patriarchs had done business with it.
“Tung oil?”
“Right, tung oil. Demand is huge abroad. I’ve already sent a telegram to the Boeing Company’s sales side, and they’re willing to trade for a large amount of tung oil.”
“This stuff for ship paint? The Americans want it?” No one present could believe it.
Fang Wen explained: “This is only produced in the south here, but it’s the world’s largest output, accounting for 90%. The US has huge demand, mostly procured from our country.”
One of the patriarchs remembered.
“A few years ago, a Sichuan merchant came to buy furs and ginseng. We chatted idly, and he mentioned foreigners going directly to the Western Sichuan hinterland to acquire tung oil. We took it as a curiosity, didn’t think it was true.”
“What price?” The patriarchs were all businessmen, very interested in the key transaction price.
“The US side prices it in pounds, one pound at 12 cents. One pound is about nine taels,” Fang Wen replied.
“Bring the abacus.”
Several patriarchs took out their small abacuses and fiddled with them.
They calculated the result.
A 130,000 US dollar airplane would require 1.08 million pounds of tung oil, or 540 tons.
This quantity seemed large, but actually only a small portion of the entire tung oil market.
Plus, acquiring tung oil themselves would be cheap, allowing them to make another profit.
But the problem was they had no business channels or resources for southern tung oil and couldn’t gather so much tung oil at once.
Fang Wen smiled and made another suggestion.
“My fourth sister’s husband’s family does the tung oil business. He runs a shop in Changde receiving goods. Part of the tung oil from the Western Hunan region goes through him to Shanghai. He doesn’t have over 500 tons alone, but pooling from the entire Western Hunan, it can be done.”
Hearing there was a supply source, the families immediately got excited and asked Fang Wen for his fourth sister’s husband’s contact address, immediately dispatching subordinates.
The airline company wasn’t established yet, but investments from various sides had already begun.
From April onward, the Northeast Eight Great Families banded together, busy around this matter.
The people sent to Changde had sent back a telegram saying they had met with Fang Wen’s fourth sister’s husband’s family.
They had gone to Western Hunan, and with a promise of 10% above market price, tung oil merchants in Western Hunan eagerly sold their inventories.
This tung oil was loaded into specialized tung oil cargo ships, passing through the Yuan River via Leiyang, Hengyang, Yueyang, and Yiyang, then into Dongting Lake, finally entering the Yangtze River to be stored in a Nanjing warehouse.
As for airport construction.
They sent people to Fuyang to contact the local government, negotiate opening the flight path, and purchasing land to build the airport.
The local government here was already under National Government management, and with money paving the way, they were accommodating.
But one thing was quite difficult.
In Fuyang, there were many bandits. Upon hearing of the airport, the bandits actually wanted a cut, demanding annual tribute to them.
Paying the local people was fine for the Eight Great Families, but the bandits wanting a cut—they firmly refused.
Could they give it? Those people had no credit whatsoever; giving would only bring more trouble.
Besides, in a place overrun by bandits, how many people would dare fly?
This problem was handed to those holding dry shares—it was time to see their capabilities.
Soon after, a regular army unit set out from Hefei and went straight to Fuyang, launching an encirclement and suppression against the bandits there.
But bandits wouldn’t stand still waiting to be suppressed. Seeing the situation turn bad, they fled without a trace.
To eliminate them and restore stability to the area, their hideouts had to be found.
For this, Fang Wen, who had been idle at home with nothing to do, decided to fly the Potez 25 to do its true job: long-range reconnaissance.
