Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 436 Lieutenant Colonel Sked of Hot Spring City, Rune Ring

Fang Wen did not give a direct answer to Bai Yunfei's question.

After all, this involves his secret partnership with Indiana.

This relationship cannot be known to outsiders, and Fang Wen will need to do many things through the Indiana connection in the future.

He replied, "The technology was commissioned by the U.S. Army for development. I don't know the details either. I'll find out when I get to the U.S.."

After saying that, he shouted down to the wing: "We're on board, get ready to take off."

The soldiers, Gong Xiuneng and Zhao Junping, happily climbed onto the buoy and put on their clothes in the cabin.

Fang Wen also got back into the driver's seat.

Gong Xiu was able to close the cabin door.

He started the engine and used mechanical sensors to perform pre-flight checks on the aircraft.

The plane is in good condition and has enough fuel in its tanks to take off.

Immediately, the plane accelerated over the sea and took off into the sky.

The remaining 2000-kilometer journey went smoothly without any further incidents.

Around noon, the plane arrived over New York.

Fang Wen turned to the communications officer Zhao Junping beside him and said, "Send a telegram to Taishan International and tell Lin Shuiwang to come pick us up. Tell him to arrange an extra truck."

"Yes." Zhao Junping took out his notebook, searched for the commercial radio communication frequency of Taishan International, then wrote the Morse code and sent the message using a wireless device.

At the same time, Fang Wen controlled the aircraft to circle in the sky and picked up the microphone to call the airport control tower.

After obtaining permission from the ground control tower, it landed on the airport runway.

After the plane came to a stop, two airport staff members and a man in a suit came over.

They waved from below, signaling for the plane to drive into the hangar.

Once the plane was parked in the hangar, Fang Wen opened the cabin door and went out to talk to the man in the suit.

"Hello, Mr. Fang, I'm from Pan Am. This aircraft has successfully completed its transatlantic flight. Could our company use it for some promotional activities?"

"No, I have personal belongings on the plane, and I also have my own things to do, so I won't participate in your promotional activities."

Fang Wen said this because he had no interest in participating in Pan Am's unilateral propaganda; he would rather use that time to do his own thing.

After all, besides learning individual rocket launcher skills, he also wanted to visit his parents, brothers, and in-laws when he came to the United States.

The other party did not press the matter further and simply said goodbye and left.

Several tens of minutes later, three cars and one truck drove from the back gate of the airport into the loading area.

There, Fang Wen and his group waited, with a pile of bundles wrapped in tablecloths on the ground.

These items were loaded onto trucks, with some soldiers guarding them on the trucks while the others left in cars.

As usual, if there was a car available, Fang Wen would drive himself. He got into the first Ford Mercury sedan and led the way out of the airport's back gate.

After exiting the airport, Lin Shuiwang, sitting in the passenger seat, asked, "What's in the truck?"

"I went to Greenland on the way and found some things left behind by the Vikings," Fang Wen replied calmly.

"Another treasure has been found?! It's a pity I'm not here this time." Lin Shuiwang couldn't help but think of the trip to Lake Van. He had accompanied Fang Wen there, and they had worked with American intelligence agents as well as the German Wehrmacht. The whole process was quite interesting.

"The Viking treasure isn't very valuable. There's a lot of silver and a lot of ironware, but little gold. Before I go west, I'll try to find someone to sell it."

“Okay. I know some art dealers, I’ll contact them once I’m settled.”

After finishing his conversation with Lin Shuiwang, Fang Wen said to Bai Yunfei in the back seat, "This is the most prosperous city of American imperialism. That bridge over there is the Brooklyn Bridge. Cross the bridge and you'll be in Manhattan."

(The Brooklyn Bridge over 100 years ago)

Bai Yunfei stared blankly at the scene outside.

The Brooklyn Bridge is a two-lane bridge with railway tracks on the upper level, where cars come and go and trains roar overhead.

And in the distance, towering skyscrapers are faintly visible through the smog.

He sighed, "How could we have fallen so far behind?"

Fang Wen replied, "We will catch up. We missed more than 100 years, but in the next hundred years, we will have all of this."

"Is that so?" Lin Shuiwang asked uncertainly.

Bai Yunfei was still staring blankly outside.

"It definitely will," Fang Wen affirmed.

He stopped talking, drove across the Brooklyn Bridge, and then drove along Broadway until he reached the headquarters of Taishan International on the north side of Manhattan Island.

There is a three-story dormitory building there, which was originally used by the shipping company for senior executives to rest.

It has now become the reception area for Taishan International, and Fang Wen and his group have found a place to stay here.

As soon as the convoy entered the courtyard, Lin Shuiwang got busy, leading Fang Wen and the others to a resting place, and organizing the soldiers to unload the goods from the trucks and put them in the warehouse on the first floor.

After doing all that, he left to find art dealers in Manhattan.

An hour later, Lin Shuiwang led a short, stout man over.

He introduced the man to Fang Wen: "General Manager, he is Pochi, the most famous art dealer on Queen's Road. He has a deep understanding of European classical art."

"Are you familiar with Viking art?" Fang Wen asked.

Poch replied, "Strictly speaking, the Vikings weren't particularly interested in art; they preferred other people's artwork. I think you're referring to the treasure looted by the Vikings."

"I'm not too sure about that, go check it out."

Fang Wen led Boqi to the room where the items were stored.

The soldiers guarding the door opened it.

The three of them walked in.

The bundles wrapped in tablecloths were placed on the ground.

"Is it these?" Pochi asked.

"It was taken from an ancient Viking longship. I was worried about residual ancient Black Death virus, so I didn't touch any of the items directly with my hands," Fang Wen replied.

"The Black Death happened hundreds of years ago, it shouldn't be like that," Poch said, but took out gloves and put them on.

He untied the first bundle and took out the silverware inside.

"This is a piece of silverware in the style of northern France, with runic symbols on it, which represent its connection to the Vikings. At that time, the French king gave the Seine River estuary to the Vikings in order to stop them from plundering, and those Vikings settled there and became known as the Normans."

With a few words, Poch explained the origin of the silverware.

Fang Wen shook his head: "It wasn't discovered in France."

“Could it be the British Isles? The Normans once conquered England,” Poch asked.

Fang Wen shook his head again: "Further north, in the northern region of Greenland."

Pochi looked surprised: "My God, that's a no-man's land, how did you get there?"

“It was relatively easy for me to get there, but the question is how the Vikings got there.” Fang Wen’s words filled Boqi with curiosity about these ancient artifacts.

He has his own way of making judgments.

Then, the packages were opened one by one.

He made bold guesses based on the results of the item identification.

"I think this must have been the wealth of a Viking chieftain at the time, because these artifacts have a lot of runes on them. He must have been very prestigious back then, receiving valuable gifts from Viking tribes all over the world. Can you describe what you saw at the time?"

Fang Wen recalled: "A long wooden boat was moored in the middle of a frozen lake, next to a small island with many corpses dressed in the same clothes. They had killed each other. At first, I didn't find anything on the boat, which I found strange, wondering why they died. Later, I found a sealed space at the bow. When I opened it, these items were inside. There was also a wooden platform with a skull covered with dry branches. He must be the Viking chief you mentioned."

At this point, Fang Wen took out the ring wrapped in a handkerchief and handed it to Boqi.

“This is what I took from his finger bone.”

Poch took the ring, looked at the symbol on the ring face, and explained:

"This is also a rune, which the ancient Germanic people believed to be a gift from Odin, the father of the gods, to mankind. Runes were therefore endowed with the mystical power of communication and healing."

"Ancient Germanic people?" Lin Shuiwang asked in confusion, "Aren't we talking about the Vikings?"

“The ancient Germanic peoples had many branches, and the Germanic peoples of northern Europe were the Vikings,” Poch explained.

"What do the runes on the ring represent?" Fang Wen asked, more concerned with the ring itself.

Poch examined it carefully and recalled, "Runes are usually divided into three groups, each with eight runes, each representing a different meaning and energy. I've never seen the combination of runes on this ring before; it's much more complex."

Fang Wen calmly retrieved the handkerchief containing the ring; the most valuable item from this haul was this ring.

He decided to sell the rest and convert them into cash, since he wouldn't be staying in New York any longer.

He then instructed Poch to find a buyer and demanded that the matter be resolved within the next two days.

After seeing Boqi off, Fang Wen and Lin Shuiwang went out.

At a public phone booth outside, Lin Shuiwang dialed a number and gave his code name.

A moment later, the call was successfully transferred, and Indiana's voice came through the receiver: "What is it?"

“My boss is in America, and he wants to see you,” Lin Shuiwang replied.

"Fang is here? Let's go to the restaurant where we met last time. I'll be right there."

After hanging up the phone, Lin Shuiwang led Fang Wen to an inconspicuous roadside restaurant.

There, the two found a seat away from the window and each ordered a steak.

Half an hour later, before the steak had even arrived, Indiana showed up.

He looked around as soon as he entered, and when he saw Fang Wen, he walked over and sat down.

"Fang, it's been a long time."

"Yes, how are you doing at the Investigation Bureau?"

"It's alright. I'm in charge of affairs in the New York area, so there's a lot to do."

At this point in the conversation, Indiana expressed her special thanks to Fang Wen.

When Fang Wen brought the Holy Blood Cross to Trinity Church in New York, it indirectly established a good relationship between him and the church. Through this relationship, he made many new friends and laid a foundation in New York.

At the same time, Indiana also revealed a little-known secret.

“There’s a rumor about you that you have mastered some kind of witchcraft that can cure any disease.”

"I know witchcraft?" Fang Wen was stunned, but then he understood.

It's probably because of the healing power of the four-faced golden Buddha.

He told Indiana about the golden Buddha, and Indiana was filled with envy: "So that's how it is. If I ever get a terminal illness, could you give me a chance to get treatment?"

"of course can."

Fang Wen's words left the decision to Indiana.

He took out an envelope.

"What you're looking for is inside. I hope you succeed. I can't stay here any longer; I have to go back to the station."

After saying this, he shook hands with Fang Wen, got up and left.

After watching Indiana get on the bus, Fang Wen opened the envelope and took out the paper inside to read.

The document contained intelligence about man-portable rocket technology that Indiana had obtained through his channels.

The earliest research and development of rocket technology began during World War I.

At that time, various countries on the European battlefield were trying to use rocket technology.

France was the first to use the Le Prier rocket, which was mounted on aircraft to strike German reconnaissance balloons.

The Leprechaun rocket's main body was a cardboard tube, with black powder at the tail for propulsion and a wooden nose cone at the front to tear open the balloon's bladder.

In actual combat, the Le Prier rocket achieved some success, but it also exposed shortcomings such as short effective range, low accuracy, and the impact on the flight performance of fighter jets carrying the rockets.

(A French Air Force Neuport 17, World War I. The four long tubes between the upper and lower wings were Le Prier rockets of that time.)
This weapon caught the attention of the US military.

在1918年由R.H.戈达德博士主导研发51毫米单兵火箭发射器，其设计包含68厘米发射管和63千克火箭弹，最大射程达68米。

However, the project was terminated due to the end of World War I.

Over the next 10 years, although countries invested in rocket technology, there was no substantial progress.

In the United States, the Army-funded rocket laboratory project for man-portable rocket launchers has been unable to be realized due to technological bottlenecks.

At this point, Indiana had essentially exhausted all the intelligence she could provide.

In the end, there was only one sentence.

Lieutenant Colonel Skod is currently on leave at the spa town of Spa.

Clearly, this statement is the most valuable.

The lieutenant colonel named Skord was likely highly skilled in manned rocket launcher technology.

Fang Wen memorized the contents of the envelope, then asked Lin Shuiwang to get matches from the counter and burned all the papers inside the envelope.

Fang Wen only got up and left after the papers had turned to ashes in the ashtray.

Having a clear objective, Fang Wen decided to leave New York.

He entrusted the auction of the Viking treasure to Lin Shuiwang and left three soldiers to guard it.

Then he telegraphed Las Vegas, instructing Lin Jiu to inform his family and in-laws that he was going to visit them.

After doing all this, Fang Wen returned to the airport and flew to the hot spring city with 17 soldiers, Bai Yunfei, Gong Xiuneng, and Zhao Junshi.

After the plane took off, Fang Wen explained the situation.

"Next, we're going to Hot Springs in Garland County, Arkansas, in the south-central United States, where someone very important is going to meet us. We don't know the exact location yet, so we'll have to play it by ear."

(End of this chapter)