Rebirth 77: From Beachcombing to Becoming a Tycoon and Spoiling My Wife

Wang Qun glared at Zhang Hao with annoyance.

"This is my job, why would I be afraid of getting my hands dirty?"

"Why are you stopping me? Get out of my way."

He shook his hand and pushed Zhang Hao away. He didn't even know how he had ever taken on such a disciple.

Zhang Hao stood there dumbfounded, cold sweat pouring down his face, his eyes filled with panic. He ran up to Wang Qun and knelt down immediately.

"Comrade Wang Qun, I beg you, don't go in. Let me go inside and take another look. If it can be fixed, I will definitely fix it."

"There's really no need to go in."

Wang Qun looked at Zhang Hao in front of him and sensed something was wrong. He put his hand on Zhang Hao's shoulder.

Did you make a mistake?

Faced with Wang Qun's questioning, Zhang Hao's panicked eyes darted around, and he shook his head.

"No, absolutely not. Maybe, maybe I'm mistaken. I'll go down and check again. Really."

He looked up at Wang Qun pleadingly.

Wang Qun, however, was not swayed by this. He had been in the business for so many years and had seen all sorts of people. Would he be persuaded by a mere young upstart?

"I didn't do anything wrong, so what's wrong with me going down to check?"

Even if Wang An was slow to realize it, he would have noticed that there might be a problem.

He called over the crew members who were smoking below and said, "A few of you come up here and hold Zhang Hao down."

The crew immediately boarded the ship and pinned Zhang Hao to the ground.

Wang Qun walked into the engine compartment without looking back. He arrived at the disassembly area and looked at the parts in front of him.

"What exactly happened?"

Wang An recounted the engine malfunction in detail.

After understanding the situation, Wang Qun looked at Yang Bai.

"You called me over because you must have noticed something was wrong. Tell me, what did you notice that was wrong?"

Yang Bai nodded.

"Truly worthy of being called Master Wang."

He pointed to the faulty parts that had been separated out.

"These screws and washers are showing signs of wear. I suspect it's not a major engine problem. Replacing these washers and screws should fix it within half a day, and we can set sail tomorrow."

Wang Qun looked at Yang Bai with surprise. "You know so much? Why don't you become my apprentice? No cigarettes needed?"

A captain who can make this kind of judgment must have been on board for at least a decade and frequently go down into the cabin to investigate malfunctions.

Yang Bai has only been sailing for a few years.

Less than half a year.

That's the level of achievement.

Especially for large ships with a displacement of hundreds of tons, the engines are completely different from those of small-displacement ships and wooden boats.

Yang Bai said with a smile.

"My knowledge is nothing but a amateur compared to Master Wang's. Check it out quickly. If it's really as I said, it can be fixed and we can go out to sea tomorrow."

He felt a huge weight lifted off his shoulders; a major malfunction would have been a real problem.

Wang Qun remained silent for a long time, then said, "This means that Zhang Hao has started to have wicked thoughts."

He didn't want to take this wicked disciple as his own, but he still taught him anyway.

This incident has added another stain to his life.

He wanted the truth more than a stain on his reputation.

Wang Qun began to inspect the parts, and Yang Bai's judgment on the washer screws was correct.

If these few screws and washers malfunction, people might mistakenly believe that there has been a major engine accident. This can be avoided with a little more care.

He then looked at the flywheel and crankshaft, which were completely undamaged despite the oil stains.

His eyes narrowed slightly, his fists clenched, and he said in a deep voice.

"Go and fetch Zhang Hao over here!"

Wang An immediately ordered someone to bring Zhang Hao down.

Wang Qun, holding the worn-out gasket, questioned him.

"Zhang Hao, it's clearly just that the gasket screws are worn out. You diagnosed it as a crankcase rupture causing the oil leak?"

Replacing the entire crankcase, flywheel, crankshaft, oil pan, and a bunch of small parts? Am I teaching you this kind of over-repair?!

Faced with his former master's repeated questioning, Zhang Hao didn't even dare to raise his head.

He simply said, "Yes, it was because I didn't learn it well enough. I regret my mistake and accept the consequences."

Wang Qun shook his head in disappointment. "Even now, you still won't tell me?"

"Do you want me to list the missing parts?"

Zhang Hao shuddered and stammered, "Wang Qun, these parts are consumables, it's normal for them to get lost, is it really necessary to explain that to you?"

"Lost it?" Wang Qun smiled. "This boat was just repaired today, wasn't it?"

Wang An nodded and said, "Yes, it was only repaired today."

"Then search this ship, it's bound to be there."

Wang Qun's face turned ashen; he showed no sign of letting the matter go.

Wang An immediately ordered a search, especially of the places Zhang Qun frequented.

The other two searched Zhang Qun's body but found nothing.

After waiting for a while, a crew member came out carrying a locked wooden box.

"Captain Wang, we found this in Zhang Hao's wardrobe."

He shook it twice, and a dull metallic clanging sound came from inside.

Zhang Hao's heart was in his throat.

He had just gotten up to grab it when two crew members immediately held him down.

Zhang Hao roared, "Stop! Stop right there! These are my private things; you have no right to open them!"

Seeing his anxious look, Wang Qun picked up the hammer, raised it high above his head, and slammed it down hard.

One hammer blow, two hammer blows, three hammer blows.

【Ding】

The lock was completely smashed open.

Wang Qun pulled out the broken lock, opened the wooden box, and found it filled with clattering, missing small parts.

He picked up a good part, held it up to him, and demanded, "Lost it? Isn't it right in your wooden box?"

"They've grown eyes and gotten into your wooden box, haven't they?!"

Zhang Hao began to tremble all over.

Faced with Wang Qun's repeated questioning, he could no longer hold back and burst into tears.

"Old Wang, I have no choice. I... I got into gambling and I owe a lot of money."

"I can only exchange small parts for some money, I really have no other choice."

Good parts from a ship are different from scrap metal; there are people who specialize in collecting these.

A sealing gasket for an oil pipe can fetch a good price. It might only sell for a few cents as scrap, but a good one can get two dollars if sold to a dealer on the black market, while a good one can get eight dollars.

Such a large sum of money was simply too much for Zhang Hao, who was deeply addicted to gambling, to handle.

The engine seals and bolts had a minor problem, which gave him a chance to steal the small parts and replace the old ones with new ones later.

If it sells successfully, this box can fetch at least a hundred yuan.

Zhang Hao slapped himself as he spoke.

"Old Wang, I was wrong, I really know I was wrong, please just let me go like a fart."

"If I go to jail, I won't be able to pay off my gambling debts, and I'll just have to die."

"Out of consideration for our past relationship as master and apprentice, I'm willing to resign and find a way to make a living."

Wang Qun coldly stared at Zhang Hao, whose face was swollen from being slapped.

"That's your own fault. Damn it, I feel disgusted just thinking about being your master. I shouldn't have taken you in because of the cigarettes."