novelsite Chapter 14 Zhang Yiqiang
Chapter 14 Zhang Yiqiang
Two o'clock in the afternoon, Tempelhof district, a warehouse area on the edge of the old airport.
The scene here is completely different from that in Oberhausen. Oberhausen is a regular railway marshalling yard, where everything is well-organized; while here it is a typical gray area: rusty barbed wire fences, potholed asphalt roads, haphazardly piled containers and old machinery, and the air is filled with engine oil, dust and some indescribable smell of decay.
Chen Yishang was driving his Ford Transit van, its paint chipped and peeling. Wang Zhengyang was in the passenger seat, and Li Zhenhua and Zhang Haitao were in the back. All four were dressed in work clothes and wearing hard hats, looking like ordinary construction workers.
"It's that big red door up ahead," Chen Yishang said in a low voice, pointing to a warehouse about 100 meters away. The warehouse looked quite old; the red bricks on the exterior walls had turned black, and the corrugated iron roof was rusted, but the door was a brand-new electric roller shutter door, and two black BMW X5s were parked in front of it, their wheels covered in mud.
The pickup truck stopped at the warehouse entrance. Before they could even get out, the roller shutter door swung open halfway, and three men stepped out. The leader was a short, stocky middle-aged Chinese man, bald, wearing a flashy printed shirt and tight jeans, with a thick gold chain around his neck, and a Rolex Submariner on his left wrist that gleamed tackyly in the dim light—it was Zhang Yiqiang from the photo.
Behind him were two young men, one tall and one short, both dressed in black tracksuits, their eyes warily scanning the pickup truck and its occupants. The taller one had his hands in his pockets, while the shorter one chewed gum, his hands resting on his lower back.
"Master Chen, long time no see." Zhang Yiqiang grinned, revealing a set of teeth stained yellow by smoking, but the smile didn't reach his eyes. "I heard you've landed a big job recently? Don't forget your old friends now that you've made a fortune."
Chen Yishang got out of the car, a businessman's usual slightly ingratiating smile on his face: "Boss Zhang, you're too kind. I'm just running errands for a friend, making a living. This is Engineer Wang, the technical lead for the project. He's here today to check on the materials."
Wang Zhengyang got out of the car, nodded to Zhang Yiqiang, and said calmly, "Boss Zhang, thank you for your trouble."
Zhang Yiqiang's gaze swept over Wang Zhengyang for a few seconds. Wang Zhengyang was deliberately wearing slightly worn work clothes today, but his upright posture and aloof demeanor made him stand out from his surroundings. Zhang, a seasoned veteran, could tell at a glance that this was no ordinary construction site technician.
"Mr. Wang is young and promising," Zhang Yiqiang chuckled. "Come in and take a look; the goods are all ready."
The warehouse interior was much larger than it appeared from the outside, with a ceiling height exceeding eight meters, and was divided into several areas. Near the entrance, bundles of steel bars, rebar, and I-beams were piled up, all bearing labels from reputable manufacturers—these were the "showroom goods." Further inside, the scene changed: unlabeled steel plates were stacked in the corners, their surfaces showing varying degrees of rust; some sealed wooden crates bore indistinct Russian or Eastern European script; and in the innermost area, several piles of items were covered with tarpaulins, their contents obscured.
Zhang Yiqiang led them to a pile of steel plates and lifted the tarpaulin. "Q390C, 12mm thick. The original is ThyssenKrupp, but this is... well, it's from a smuggled supplier, hence the price. Feel the texture, the surface finish, it's indistinguishable from the genuine product."
Wang Zhengyang stepped forward, not touching it with his hands, but seemingly casually placing his hand on the edge of the steel plate. A mechanically intuitive sense of touch instantly took hold.
The first steel plate: Internally uniform, sulfur and phosphorus content slightly higher than standard, but still within usable range, with one small, palm-sized inclusion defect. The second plate: Surface has minor rolling folds, approximately 0.5 mm deep, which will affect welding quality. The third plate: Good quality, close to genuine product level…
He quickly "scanned" a dozen or so steel plates and got a sense of the situation: this batch of goods was indeed the factory's "substandard products" or "processing products." Most of them were usable, but about 30% had defects of varying degrees and needed to be strictly screened.
"Where's the welding wire?" Wang Zhengyang asked.
Zhang Yiqiang took out several rolls of welding wire from a cardboard box next to him. "ER50-6, 1.2 mm diameter, genuine Atlantic brand. However, this batch is specifically for export to the Middle East; the packaging is different, but the product is the same."
Wang Zhengyang took a roll of welding wire and gently ran his fingers over its surface. His perception was: the copper plating was uniform, the steel core composition met standards, but… the storage environment was problematic. There were slight signs of moisture inside the wire, which could cause porosity during welding. It could still be salvaged with properly sealed packaging and a desiccant.
"Price?" Wang Zhengyang put down the welding wire and looked at Zhang Yiqiang.
"Steel plates are 950 euros per ton, and welding wire is 5 euros per kilogram. These are cash prices, excluding tax," Zhang Yiqiang quoted, which was about 45% lower than the prices quoted through regular channels. "If the quantity is large, we can negotiate."
Wang Zhengyang remained silent for a few seconds, as if calculating. In reality, he was observing other areas of the warehouse. The mechanically-friendly perception, like invisible tentacles, extended outwards.
The piles of things covered by the canvas... were irregularly shaped, with a high metal density, but their internal structure was complex, not simply steel. The outline of one of the long, narrow objects resembled... a gun barrel? Another square object had a sophisticated internal mechanical structure, like some kind of optical instrument?
What intrigued him even more was the small compartment deep within the warehouse. The iron door was tightly shut, but the lock was a combination of an electronic combination lock and a mechanical lock. The compartment walls were thickened, and inside there was… lead? A lead shielding layer. The items stored inside were either radioactive or extremely valuable precision equipment.
"Boss Zhang's business is quite large," Wang Zhengyang said casually. "Are all these goods...from legitimate sources?"
Zhang Yiqiang's smile froze for a moment, then became even more exaggerated: "Engineer Wang, you're joking. We building materials people value genuine products. As for the source? They're all from legitimate factories, it's just that the distribution channels... are a bit flexible. Don't worry, in Berlin, I, Zhang Yiqiang, have been in this business for so many years, I still have a good reputation."
Credit? Wang Zhengyang sneered inwardly. Talk about credit with someone who might be involved in arms smuggling?
"Alright then," Wang Zhengyang decided, "we'll take two tons of steel plates and two hundred kilograms of welding wire first, to test the quality. If there are no problems, we'll have larger orders later. But there are two conditions: first, we want to select the goods ourselves; second, we want to use an ultrasonic flaw detector to randomly inspect the goods before delivery, and we won't accept anything that doesn't meet the standards."
A flicker of displeasure crossed Zhang Yiqiang's eyes, but he quickly concealed it. "Selecting goods is fine, but random checks... isn't that unnecessary? All the goods here are of good quality."
"There are standards for engineering projects," Wang Zhengyang said calmly but firmly. "If Boss Zhang finds it troublesome, we can find other suppliers."
This is a negotiation tactic—a strategic retreat. Zhang Yiqiang urgently needs cash and won't easily give up this deal.
Sure enough, Zhang Yiqiang gritted his teeth and said, "Fine! We'll do it according to Engineer Wang's rules. When do we need the goods?"
"We'll come tomorrow afternoon, at the same time, with our vehicle. Cash transaction, all payment settled immediately," Wang Zhengyang said. "Also, Boss Zhang, do you have any more 'special' goods? Like bulletproof materials? Special alloys?"
Zhang Yiqiang's pupils suddenly contracted. He stared at Wang Zhengyang for a full five seconds, then slowly grinned, his smile becoming dangerous and ambiguous: "Engineer Wang... you have quite the appetite. That kind of stuff... we do have it, but the price isn't this high, and it requires a deeper... trust."
"Money is not a problem." Wang Zhengyang met his gaze. "Trust can be built slowly. Boss Zhang can consider it. Next time we meet, we can talk about deeper cooperation."
After saying that, he didn't linger and nodded to Chen Yishang: "Master Chen, let's go back and prepare the truck and cash for tomorrow's delivery."
On the way back, the car was silent. Only when they reached the main road did Chen Yishang lower his voice and say, "Dr. Wang, that Zhang Yiqiang... he's not simple. Those two henchmen behind him are armed."
"I know." Wang Zhengyang looked at the street scene rushing past the window. "The transaction is tomorrow. Bring two more people, and have Wang Jianguo and Liu Qiming come too. Bring walkie-talkies, don't turn off the car, and stay alert."
"You really want to do bigger business with him? That kind of person..."
"Sometimes, we find what we need in dangerous places," Wang Zhengyang said coldly. "But remember, we're only buying materials; we know nothing else and won't ask anything else. Understand?"
"clear."