034 : King of money
“It is still far. Pour sand, hit more hammers.”
bang. bang. pug. pug.
Foundation work was in full swing.
A steel pipe pile in the form of a pipe was driven into the ground, the soil was dug out, sand was poured into the pile, and a huge hammer was driven down with a pile driver.
The thumping sound suddenly changed to a dull thumping sound.
“Boss, I think it’s done.”
“Right. When you hear this sound, the sand pile is complete.”
“I will memorize it well.”
Not only my father, but all the employees were growing in real time, listening to my instructions and learning.
The US Army Corps of Engineers informed the meaning and exact process of the work ordered.
The employees were full of passion and pride to live well, so they sucked up field knowledge like a sponge.
“Okay, bring the bulldozer now. If you put a thick layer of sand over these piles of sand, the water will drain away. Then the soft ground hardens.”
Quy Nhon land, like other Vietnamese lands, was a soft ground made of red mud just a little beyond the sandy beach.
If you use it as a paddy field, it is difficult to build a building or use it as a road.
Such land needs to be staked to drain the water and replace the mud with sand to make it a solid ground for dump trucks to run on.
“Yes, boss. Everyone, let’s go.”
My father dragged the team and rushed away.
Now, the bulldozer team just pushed the sand and leveled the ground, and today’s work was over.
‘20,000 dollars for this kind of work, the US soldiers really have a lot of money.’
The foundation ground work alone brought in $30,000 a week. Even after taking care of the personnel expenses of the employees, it was a little over 12,000 dollars.
Even after giving the employees 300 dollars a month, or 80,000 won in Korean currency, the money piled up.
If the U.S. Corps of Engineers pointed out, everything became money.
“Hey CS! Let’s talk.”
As I was wiping my sweat with a proud heart, I heard a voice calling me from somewhere.
It was Sergeant Mark, a member of the Corps of Engineers.
He and other American soldiers called me CS.
Not only was the pronunciation of Chan Soo difficult, but he hated it because ‘Su’ in Chan Soo sounds the same as sue, which means lawsuit in English.
“What is it, Mark?”
“Let’s have a beer or something. Are you done working today?”
Mark flicked at me and threw a can of beer.
As Mark said, my regular day is over.
From now on, we had to fight the second round against the US forces.
It was like overtime work for me, and in terms of value for money, it was much more profitable than my regular routine.
“Oh, the beer is really cold today.”
When American soldiers came to Vietnam to go to war, they brought a large refrigerator to fill with beer.
I put on a look of annoyance as I sipped my beer. American soldiers are bound to get tired of seeing my expression like this.
“CS, don’t avoid my eyes. Today, I need to hear why the 8th platoon dormitory construction is late. It’s crazy that soldiers discriminate against each other by platoon. The platoon in front sleeps coolly with the air conditioner turned on, but some say that let alone the air conditioner, they can’t sleep because of the mosquitoes.”
“What am I going to do? You need a container to create a dormitory.”
“What are you talking about. Containers are numerous. There are more than 20 of them in the yard that I checked.”
“It’s all full of stuff. The original purpose of the container is to store things, not accommodation. To be honest, the US soldiers took so much that our employees sleep in 10 people in one container.”
“No, just empty the container. Soldiers come first in the army, storage of things comes first? What’s in it? I’ll make sure to put them all in the yard.”
Yes, the wait is finally worth the wait.
How come the U.S. soldiers do not deviate from my expectations by an inch?
“What is it? It’s all building materials like steel bars, H-beams, and cement. You can’t just leave it in the yard. They say it hardens and rusts because of the moisture.”
“Oh, what a big problem that is. Isn’t it just a matter of building a warehouse quickly and putting it there?”
“It’s not going to be a stupid temporary warehouse. Since this is a soft ground, foundation piles must be driven in, and the walls must be filled with insulation to prevent moisture. That way, you can store heavy items like cement and H-beams.”
“Who doesn’t know that? I’m in the Corps of Engineers! Build whatever you want right now. Whether it’s insulation or piles, Saigon will procure it for you. CS is enough to build a warehouse.”
“Well, if the Corps of Engineers gives you an order and takes care of the materials, you can do it… I think the regulations will be a bit problematic? I don’t know about foundation ground work, but it’s a rule that BR subcontracts port-related construction.”
We came as a subcontractor for BR.
In principle, all port-related constructions had to be done under the management and supervision of BR.
If the warehouse was also part of the port construction, there was potential for problems.
“I don’t need everything. Do we have to put up with the fact that the guys from BR are deliberately late? After the Corps of Engineers gives the order and we supervise it, it’s over. In CS, you just do what we tell you to do.”
Oh yea! finally got the job done
What Sergeant Mark said is right, all of this is a problem with BR coming late on purpose.
When the engineers from BR Company came with the advance party in the beginning, they clearly knew that they would have to build tents in an empty field and start with barracks and lodgings that would be eaten by mosquitoes.
That’s why BR Corporation intends to creep in after we’ve gone through so much dog-like suffering.
We had to use BR’s idle business to make money as much as possible.
“Are you handing out warehouse orders?”
“Of course. Don’t worry, the Corps of Engineers will write a report and place a construction order. Empty the container right away and start thinking about making a dormitory.”
Everything is difficult at first, so it becomes a habit. If we beat BR and entrust the warehouse construction directly to us, we will be entrusted with other constructions as well.
“If you do that, the container will be emptied in no time.”
“great. Start right away tomorrow.”
“Because the warehouse needs foundation ground work, insulated walls and even a dehumidifier to be installed, it takes about two weeks to put in the full amount of manpower. I’ll give you an estimate of eighty thousand dollars.”
“okay. Give me a quote or something. I’ll take the campsite payment right away. Instead, we need to build it as quickly as possible.”
“Believe me, fast is our specialty. And, accommodation is still full option, right? It’s four thousand dollars a piece.”
“Attach one more bathroom and one more shower. The longer I waited, the better it should be.”
“Then five thousand dollars.”
“OK! it was contracted This is a labor cost.”
Sergeant Mark dropped an A-ration box and several cases of beer from the jeep.
A-Ration is a U.S. combat ration, but it was fresh ingredients frozen. It was on a different level from the C-ration combat rations, which were stuffed with minced meat and beans in a tin can.
“A-ration! That’s ribs too. Mark, thank you.”
Even in the 21st century, beef ribs were too expensive to eat.
After all, America in the 1960s was super-rich.
Although I lost some money to Vietnam.
I’ll take some of them.
“It’s a bribe from the members of the 8th Platoon who asked us to build an accommodation quickly. Don’t ignore their urgency.”
“OK! Even if you stay up all night, I will build it quickly.”
Excited. Earn money and get delicious ribs.
Furthermore, since we skipped the BR company and contracted the warehouse right away, it was ours without paying any construction costs.
“Everyone, tonight’s side dish is meat.”
“Waaa!”
I called the staff around me.
“I also got a large warehouse order for $80,000.”
“Wowaaa!”
“We are rich.”
“We are rich!”
“Let’s skip overtime today. Beer Party!”
“Party Hee Hee!”
I ran to the dorm with a box of ribs, and the staff who were preparing to cook dinner were excited.
“Wearing a yellow shirt~”
The staff from the National Orchestra started singing by tapping drums, and some of the staff played harmonica.
They are nobles with a lot of talent and excitement.
“That silent person wearing a yellow shirt~”
“Somehow I like it~ Somehow I like it!!”
“Usha, uhsha!”
An impromptu campfire started and the 250 employees all sang in chorus.
My father came back from work before he knew it and sang with me on his shoulder.
To be able to share this experience as a father and colleague…
Thanks to this, I was able to forget the idea that this place was a battlefield for a while.
**
fortnight later.
Time passed without blinking an eye.
This place, which had been covered in mud and thick jungle, began to take on the appearance of a supply base to some extent.
The thrill of remittance of more than 150,000 dollars that I had earned one by one on the ferry to Saigon was indescribable.
But, that’s not what’s more important.
I always received work through the Corps of Engineers, but at some point Gothel started calling me directly.
No matter how much people need to be fed, as things progressed like this, they began to notice that Quyen Nhon is a land of opportunity.
Knock. Knock.
I caught my breath for a moment in front of the command and control room and knocked.
“come in.”
“Yes, Colonel Gothel.”
The command and control room where Lieutenant Colonel Gothel stayed was in a place where you had to pass to the guard post.
It was a three-story building made of H-beams and 40-foot containers.
It was in the form of a temporary building with steel stairs attached to it based on containers, but as a 21st century constructor, I did my best to design it, so it was cool even when I saw it.
On the second floor, iron plates were added to make a veranda, so it was luxurious enough to be called a temporary building.
“Will you smoke one?”
“it’s okay.”
Gothel got up from his desk and headed to the veranda.
A large parasol was spread out on the veranda, which was covered with palm trees and decorated with awnings.
There is no better place to enjoy a cigar.
The cool air from the air conditioner was scattered in all directions from the ceiling fan rotating slowly on the ceiling, so it was refreshing.
No matter how much money it is, leaving the door open and turning on the air conditioner. Isn’t it a waste of oil for the generator?
During the Vietnam War, Saigon’s officers’ club dehumidified air conditioners and enjoyed whiskey while warming the stove… I guess it wasn’t a bluff.
“Let’s have a cold drink.”
“Yes, Colonel.”
Gothel pointed to the refrigerator with a familiar chin and I made a refreshing drink with just tonic water and ice cubes.
Since I was on duty, I didn’t drink whiskey and enjoyed the bittersweet tonic water itself.
It’s not as tasty as Gothel, but there was a reason why he drank tonic water every now and then.
It was believed that tonic water contains an antimalarial ingredient called quinine, so if you drink it frequently, you will not be bitten by mosquitoes or get malaria.
“How is the construction of the third warehouse and guard post going?”
Ask about the progress of the construction.
that’s why you called me
“It will be finished before this evening.”
“already?”
Even though I am not a soldier, I even set up a guard post.
Since the troops commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Gothel were the concept of an advance corps of a logistical base, there were few combat soldiers, and they were mainly composed of engineers and support soldiers.
Perhaps because of the composition of the troops, the work continued day and night.
It started with a command control room and barracks accommodation, followed by a material warehouse and various food storage warehouses, and finally, they asked to build a guard post with containers.
Fortification construction was an operation that the US military considered very important, so it was possible because there was no limit on expenditure.
To be honest, I also wanted to take on the construction of the barbed wire fence around the camp, but it was difficult to provide the service, so the sappers did it themselves.
It was like my money, but it was a waste.
I have to make the US soldiers play more.
We can do better if we do.
They were useless good guys.
“I worked hard because it was an emergency local service procurement.”
Emergency local procurement was an issue that could be reported after the campsite’s authority.
In other words, Lieutenant Colonel Gothel could be said to be the king here in Quy Nhon. king of money.
“Good work, soldiers’ work performance will improve.”
“It will put pressure not only on work performance, but also on the Viet Cong. Their strategy is to sneak up on the field trenches and throw grenades, but they wouldn’t even dare to try it at Quy Nhon’s outpost.”
“You speak like a military instructor.”
“I just moved what the noncommissioned officers were saying. We will write a service completion report soon. The noncommissioned officer will file the report.”
“great! great. Report right now.”
At my words, Gothel gave a satisfied smile.
Because if I write a service report, it will be immediately transformed into a logistic base operation report and reported to the headquarters.
Godel had a good deal of fun with the report that he had set up a supply base early using a steel box for logistics transportation called a container.
He probably got the best grades among the commanders of the logistics depot advance team.
middle age, middle age,
I’ll give you a promotion, give me the money.
“Lieutenant Colonel, I have a question for you.”
“Questions? What is it, tell me.”
I called for joy in my heart.
Right now they’re giving away pennies, but sooner or later they’ll be pouring out money like Aladdin’s lamp.
To do so, Gothel had to be promoted a little higher.
It was simpler than it looked, so it was easy to handle.
“When is BR coming? Only when BR comes, will construction of the port begin in earnest.”
I was just a subcontractor for BR.
In principle, construction supervisors had to be dispatched from the US mainland to proceed with the work.
“They say it’s a dredge and it will take at least a month to bring in all sorts of equipment.”
Did you use the equipment excuse? The words seem so.
“Is it one month?”
I pretended to be surprised, but it was as expected.
“BR didn’t seem to know that you could clean up the area so quickly.”
It means you have one more month to spare.
BR decided that it would take us two months to do the initial setup.
In that respect, even in Gothel’s eyes, my ability must have been somewhat surprising.
“A month is empty… Lieutenant Colonel, why can’t you give me more work?”
“You tell me. What can I help you with?”
It was always like this.
Outwardly, I begged for a job, and Gothel reluctantly agreed.
The more I worked, the more Gothel’s commanding skills became outstanding.
It was because it was different from the general behavior of the logistics base.
Once you hear the modifier that you are a commander who carries out creative operations, you cannot stop doing this.
Before BR came along, we had to extract as much money as possible from businesses other than ports.
Out of several options, this will be the best.
It was unpaved, but it made a solid ground for the dump truck to pass through, so it was worth a start.
“I think…”
