In postwar Europe, everything was so cheap, and yet so expensive.
A few cigarettes could buy you a night with a woman; a loaf of bread could make a girl lift her skirt.
The contrast between cheap and expensive was so stark. Human life was cheap; goods were precious.
"With the crew, the fleet can get moving. Although there are still German submarines in the Mediterranean, they usually don’t attack Spanish merchant ships—especially empty ones. The problem is, after leaving Taranto, where do we go? Before the war, we could go through the Suez Canal into the Indian Ocean, but now the British have closed the canal. Without their permission, we can’t get through at all."
Actually, Pierre had thought the same thing—this was even why he registered a Spanish company. After all, Spain’s neutral stance had always been ambiguous, with both the Allies and Germany doing everything possible to keep it from joining the other side.
As for the Suez Canal, Pierre believed the issue could be resolved through Washington.
After all, with Truman’s influence, he could definitely help.
But now, with Berlin’s promise, the problem was much simpler.
"We’ll go straight through Gibraltar into the Atlantic, then head for the Caribbean, pass through the Panama Canal, and enter the Pacific. There are business opportunities everywhere there."
What’s the situation in South America now?
Those countries never had many merchant ships to begin with. Their goods transport relied entirely on Britain and America. But after the war broke out, British and American merchant ships all returned home, leaving them with no way to export their goods. This was true for Brazil and Argentina on the east coast, and also for Peru and Chile on the west coast.
Now, as long as you have ships going there, you’ll get orders hand over fist—and at high prices, too. You could even earn back the cost of buying the ships in a single trip.
"Through Gibraltar? There are German submarines there!"
Alberto exclaimed in shock.
"Without an escort, we’re just floating targets!"
"Mr. Alberto, sometimes God smiles on the lucky, don’t you think?"
Pierre replied with a mysterious smile.
"But, Mr. Li, no crew would be willing to take such risks."
"Tell the sailors I’ll give each of them an extra 10 kilograms of sugar, and when we reach Panama, each will get a $20 bonus!"
Having money really does make you bold—sometimes you can just throw cash at a problem and solve it.
Actually, he would have preferred to pay salaries in white sugar. But once you leave Italy, leave Europe, white sugar just isn’t worth much anymore.
As a person, you have to be a little more decent. After all, I’m a conscientious capitalist.
Alberto was momentarily stunned, then spoke.
"Sir, I don’t think anyone would refuse, but..."
Alberto lowered his voice.
"There’s one more thing I think you should know."
"Our ships aren’t empty. I mean, a few of them aren’t empty."
Soon after, standing on the deck of the Tunisia, staring at the cargo holds filled to the brim, Pierre said calmly,
"You mean, all this cargo on the ships belongs to the Germans?"
"Yes, Mr. Li. Last year, to reinforce North Africa and avoid defeat, the Germans shipped a huge amount of supplies—87,562 tons in total. All this was loaded onto the ships, but just as the convoy was about to depart, news of the North African surrender came. The supplies have been stuck on the ships ever since. Later, they planned to send them to Yugoslavia, but you know what happened next—Italy pulled out of the war, and the cargo remained here. You know how long it takes to load and unload..."
After his explanation, Alberto emphasized,
"Now, because of the chaos, no one is interested in these munitions. After all, there are still plenty of supplies left in the military warehouses in Italy, sir."
Of course, he didn’t mention that many of the canned goods and foodstuffs had already been taken by the powerful and sold on the black market.
Looking at the cannons in the cargo hold, wrapped in protective covers, Pierre’s expression was a bit odd.
I was just buying ships—who would have thought they’d come with a bonus cache of munitions!
And it’s tens of thousands of tons!
There are tanks, cannons, and a huge stockpile of weapons and ammunition.
What should I do with all these German munitions?
"Is there an inventory list?"
After thinking for a moment, Pierre asked.
Of course there was a list. After receiving it, even though he wasn’t very familiar with military equipment, Pierre was still shocked by the sheer variety of weapons and ammunition.
"There’s even a 122mm howitzer?"
Aren’t these supposed to be German weapons?
How is there Soviet stuff in here?
"And what on earth is this 7.62cm FK 288/1(r)?"
He didn’t know what these weapons were, but looking at the haphazardly compiled inventory in his hands, Pierre tapped his fingers on the table and muttered to himself,
"Maybe these weapons could..."
At that thought, Pierre suddenly became excited and jumped to his feet.
"Yes, that’s it! I can send these weapons to China. Yes, that’s it..."
Perhaps for other countries, this mishmash of weapons would be more trouble than they’re worth, but for China, which urgently needed all kinds of arms, this was a godsend.
Not only could they be used to fight the Japanese and strengthen the military at home, but they could also help him achieve another goal.
"Maybe they could help me open another door!"
At that moment, Pierre could hardly sit still. If it weren’t for the matter of the steel mill, he’d probably be heading back to the US right now.
However, acquiring the steel mill wasn’t going smoothly. Because the steel company was also in Taranto, Pierre made a point of visiting the plant, looking down from the hill at the vast steelworks, the towering blast furnaces and sprawling workshops.
In a few years, the equipment from this plant would stand on the soil of North Borneo!
"They think we’re taking advantage of their misfortune. They believe the plant is worth at least $5 million," Mickey said bluntly.
"I rejected them outright. They still don’t seem to understand the situation—they’re probably still waiting to see what happens."
"Yes, maybe it’s still a bit early. We can wait a bit longer. By the second half of the year, they’ll probably understand."
In the second half of the year, when the north is liberated and Fiat is confiscated, those guys will be desperate to sell the plant at a huge loss.
"The second half of the year..."
Mickey thought for a moment, a little regretful.
"Then we’ll wait. But..."
Before he could finish, Pierre smiled and said,
"Don’t worry, you’ll definitely get your consultant’s fee."
Finally, he looked once more at the steel plant below. If he’d only been mildly interested in Fiat before, now he was thoroughly intrigued—after all, this was a juicy piece of meat!