Chapter 23: The Spoils of Sultan Selim I

After the Hessen came ashore, Zhang Hainuo learned that they had discovered an ancient shipwreck on the seabed southeast of Crete. Divers, after scraping away the surface sediment, found a large number of gold coins and gold artifacts. Due to the passage of time, the wooden crates that had originally contained them had long since rotted away, leaving behind a gleaming golden sight. This was why Hessen had described their find as a "golden ship".

Once the submarine was secured, Hessen and his crew brought out several small bags filled with such treasures to share their discovery with their comrades ashore. As the crew members received the bags from their shipmates, the weighty feel of the contents filled them with joy.

Regardless of whether these were the legendary Turkish treasures, several experienced crew members reached into the bags, felt the gold coins, and even tested them with their teeth, all exclaiming:

"Real gold! Pure gold!"

"Are these Egyptian coins?"

Zhang Hainuo also retrieved a few coins from the bags. They were slightly larger than 20-mark German gold coins but thinner, with some irregularities along the edges. One side bore a vase-like pattern, seemingly with a head wearing a floral wreath in the center, while the other side featured Arabic script in two lines.

Taking one of the coins from Zhang Hainuo, Otto examined it against the sunlight, quietly reading aloud:

"All things are not the master, only Allah, Muhammad is the messenger of Allah!"

"Well, this is indeed an Arabic-style coin, but I cannot be certain whether they are from the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt. Many Islamic countries' coins feature similar inscriptions!" Otto remarked after studying it.

Zhang Hainuo nodded. It was not urgent to determine their era; the key was to find out how many gold coins Hessen and his team had salvaged.

"We have over 24,000 coins, 86 large gold objects, 361 small gold objects, and 29 gold objects set with rubies, sapphires, and emeralds. The total value is difficult to estimate!" Hessen excitedly informed Zhang Hainuo. "It took us a whole week to salvage them. The storage compartments, mess hall, and even the living quarters are filled with gold. Once we transfer these to U-21, refuel the submarine, and stock up on supplies, we'll search the area near the sunken ship again. I believe there are other ships filled with gold nearby!"

However, Zhang Hainuo's expression suddenly darkened.

"What's wrong, Hainuo?" Hessen noticed and immediately subdued his excitement because he knew his partner would not be downcast over trivial matters.

Zhang Hainuo pulled him aside and recounted the frequent appearances of British warships in the area and his recent encounter in Antalya. However, he didn't mention Otto's suggestion because it didn't even consider the weight of the newly salvaged gold.

"Indeed! It's no longer safe here. If I'm not mistaken, the Ottoman government is negotiating for better terms with the Allies, so it will be difficult for us to obtain the parts needed to repair U-21!" Hessen made a calm and correct judgment despite just recovering from his excitement.

"I think so too!" Zhang Hainuo affirmed his deduction.

"How about holding a meeting with the officers after dinner?" Hessen suggested.

"I was thinking the same!" Zhang Hainuo agreed. He glanced at the jubilant crew members, including the officers, who were all in high spirits. "Let's wait until later to inform them of these developments!"

Later, Hessen returned to his "old friend," U-21, while Zhang Hainuo went back to his "sweetheart," U-148, which had been apart from him for over half a month. As he descended into the interior, most of the crew gathered in the chamber where the gold coins and artifacts were stored. Some were jokingly wearing large gold objects as hats, others claimed they would use a particular gold bowl as their dining utensil from then on, and one person even sat in a corner, hugging a large bag of gold coins, counting them.

Watching these sincere crew members, Zhang Hainuo's feelings were complex. He had never seen so much gold before. Due to the war, the current price of gold was rising, and it was expected to continue to rise in the next ten years. Considering the age of these artifacts, their value was likely calculated by a different method!

"Hey Hainuo, how much do you think all this gold is worth?" Edvin, holding a cylindrical gold object likely used for ancient rituals in one hand and a slightly smaller gold jug in the other, approached him with an animated expression.

"Enough to make every one of us here a millionaire!" Zhang Hainuo replied.

Edvin chuckled, "A millionaire? A millionaire with a million marks?"

"Well..." Before Zhang Hainuo could respond, Otto interjected:

"In the gold standard system, one million marks can buy over a ton of gold!"

Seeing the calm expression on this Baden nobleman's face and then glancing at his own resigned good brother, Edvin suddenly realized that he still had a long way to go before becoming a millionaire: They had salvaged only about ten tons of gold, which had to be divided among over seventy people. In the end, he would only get less than half a ton!

Seeing Edvin's joy gradually fade into disappointment, Otto and Zhang Hainuo decided to end the joke.

"Lieutenant Edvin, I was referring to the conversion under the gold standard system. Since the war began, the value of gold in the market has skyrocketed. During last Christmas, the black market price of gold in Baden reportedly reached 17 marks per gram, which means that 100 kilograms of gold is worth 1.7 million marks!"

In this little prank, Otto showed his childish side. Despite being promoted from second lieutenant to lieutenant after returning from North America, he didn't hold back in teasing Edvin.

Moreover, considering everything they had just discussed, Zhang Hainuo felt relieved—someone finally thought along the same lines as him, and it was a true-born German with no foresight.