Sword: Heart of Iron

Chapter 89 Discussion
The two discussed the Changzhi issue for a long time and finally set two tones.

Corrupt officials must be investigated!

But we cannot be hasty and cannot launch a large-scale anti-corruption campaign right away.

First we need to strike a glare on the mountain to scare the tigers so that these parasites will behave themselves.

Special matters must be handled specially in times of war. The construction of the arsenal is imminent. If anyone dares to come and cause trouble, don't blame the bullets for having no eyes.

A new group of grassroots backbone officials will be trained to ensure a smooth transition of power during the major purge.

Now that he was here, it seemed that he would not be able to become the provincial governor. Although Huang Shaohong was depressed, he was also determined to put Changzhi in order.

As for the task of monitoring Wang Feng.
Huang Shaohong shook his head.

With the country in crisis, he could not do anything that would go against the national interest.

After seeing Huang Shaohong off, Wang Feng looked down at the time.

It's still early
I won't feel at ease until the arsenal is completed.

Thinking of this, Wang Feng called Yao Boxi and Huai Hanpeng.

A few minutes later, the two walked into the office accompanied by guards.

Yao Boxi was the first to say, "Sir!"

After all the contacts along the way, Wang Feng developed a liking for this top student from Zhejiang University's Department of Chemistry, and they became much more familiar with each other after several conversations.

Huai Hanpeng was a little nervous, and still a little scared when he saw Wang Feng again.

"Hello, sir."

Waking up from a daze and finding a gun pointed at my head, anyone who has experienced this would be terrified for a long time.

Wang Feng nodded and pointed to the two chairs in front of the desk: "Sit down and talk."

"How's the equipment at the Arsenal?"

Yao Boxi: "Some of the equipment has been unpacked. It has been bumped and knocked around a lot along the way, but the core components have not been damaged. There shouldn't be any major problems."

Wang Feng breathed a sigh of relief.

For precision instruments, even the slightest bump can cause irreversible damage to the equipment.

Before transportation, he stuffed the wooden boxes with rags to act as a cushion.

Not even a little bit.

Wang Feng: "That's great. Let's assemble the machine as soon as possible. What do you think about the location of the arsenal?"

Yao Boxi: "Sir, if you want to build a factory, it would be best if it is near a river and has a flatter terrain."

“Or it may be near a mining area, so it is convenient to obtain materials.”

Wang Feng pondered in his heart.

According to the location advantage, this arrangement is indeed the most reasonable.

Huai Hanpeng hesitated, wanting to say something but not daring to: "Sir, isn't this too obvious?"

Wang Feng frowned: "Tell me in detail."

Huai Hanpeng was not as natural as Yao Boxi. He took a deep breath and said, "If it is built on flat ground, it will be easily discovered by Japanese reconnaissance planes in the sky, and then it will attract bombing."

Even though he seems surprisingly timid, he is actually a genuine college student.

Graduated from the College of Engineering of National Shanxi University.

It is considered a famous university today. It was founded in 1902 and is a product of the late Qing government's "Western learning coming to the East."

The Imperial University of Peking and the Beiyang University were established during the same period, and they were the pinnacle of modern Chinese higher education.

When the Japanese army bombed the Taiyuan Beiguan Arsenal, he was on duty in the factory and personally experienced an asymmetric bombing.

When the sharp air raid alarm sounded, all the workers in the factory suddenly became chaotic and rushed to hide in the air raid shelter.

Whoever runs slower is more likely to be killed.

In the sky, Japanese bombers were like dark clouds, dropping bombs like crazy, making it hard for people to breathe.

The fighter jet dived downward, and the humming sound of the propeller was like the scream of the god of death, coming from far away and gripping everyone's heart.

The fighter planes of the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army took off and wanted to engage in a fight with the enemy planes, but they were far inferior to the enemy in both quality and quantity, and could only take the beating.

Fireballs streaked across the sky and then fell heavily to the ground.

Wang Feng waved the pen in his hand and nodded secretly, feeling that there was some truth in what he said.

It has to be admitted that it is not difficult to surpass the Japanese army in infantry.

One or two years at most.

But there is still a long way to go if we want to compete with the Japanese for air supremacy.

Not to mention how to manufacture airplanes, the time cost just to train a group of qualified pilots is enough to train several batches of infantry.

If you can't beat him, you can hide from him!
I remember that in history, the Eighth Route Army established an arsenal behind enemy lines.

More than half of the products are produced in caves, although the environmental conditions are not as good as those in regular factories.

But it’s safer.

The same is true for the Xiajiashan Village Arsenal.

Moreover, the investment in digging caves is much less than that in building large-scale factories, which can promote factory production to the greatest extent.

I never expected this guy to be such a talented guy!
Wang Feng nodded: "That makes sense. Compared to high-efficiency production, the most urgent task is to ensure that the factory can continue to produce."

He still knows the difference between having one meal full and having every meal full.

Wang Feng put down his pen and took out a stack of drawings from the drawer: "Take a look and see how long it will take to start mass production if the equipment is fully deployed."

This stack of drawings is a replica, which Zhao Fangyuan just sent over. The drawings he drew on that day are still in Xiajiashan Village. Yao Boxi is proficient in chemistry and has a vague understanding of firearms. After taking the drawings, he only glanced at them and gave way to Huai Hanpeng to study them carefully.

Huai Hanpeng's face was almost stuck to the paper: "The rear-end is locked and the bolt is pulled back. It looks like a Lee-Enfield rifle."

"Can shorten bullet reload speed"

"The dust cover is similar to that of the Type 38 rifle, which can prevent mud and sand from entering the core components of the gun to the greatest extent possible."

"Tsk tsk tsk, what a masterpiece!"

"Sir, may I ask, who drew this blueprint?" Huai Hanpeng said weakly.

Wang Feng smiled and said, "I drew this with my own hands when I was defending the entrance to Tuancheng."

Huai Hanpeng was a little surprised and wanted to take the opportunity to flatter him: "Sir."

As a result, he was interrupted by Wang Feng after he said two words: "Time is tight, let's get down to business."

Huai Hanpeng's heart tightened, fearing that his action had angered Wang Feng, and he hurriedly said, "One month is enough if the equipment is complete and the raw materials are sufficient!"

"It takes half a month to produce a sample gun, and half a month to start mass production!"

"The specific output depends on the production line and workers."

Wang Feng nodded, calculating the time in his mind.

It is now mid-November and the soil is frozen hard in winter, making it difficult to dig a cave. Even if the soldiers are mobilized to work day and night, it will take at least a month.

As a result, the mass production of the Type 24 rifle will not start until February next year at the latest.

By then, we would be facing the Jinpu War.

Before that, we might have to resist the Japanese attack on Changzhi.

Wang Feng frowned: "If we produce bullets first, how long will it take?"

Huai Hanpeng estimated: "Then the time can be shortened by half."

"The key lies in the output of the primer"

After saying that, he glanced at Yao Boxi beside him.

The main component of primer is mercury fulminate, which is a chemical product.

He doesn't understand chemistry either.

Yao Boxi pondered for a moment and said, "When we withdrew from Taiyuan, we carried a large amount of fulminate, which should be enough for a while."

“Chemical equipment should be manufactured as a priority.”

Wang Feng held his forehead and sighed.

Ugh.
It’s hard for a clever woman to make a meal without rice!
It seems that a lot of good things were brought out from the Taiyuan Arsenal, but there are more things to be produced.

The priorities are high everywhere, and you're losing sight of one thing while focusing on another!

"Let's give priority to producing bullets. The rifle issue can be put on hold for now." Wang Feng rubbed his temple.

Bullets are the most important thing, what’s the use of having more rifles?

If it lacks ammunition, its power is not as good as the red tassel spear.

Huai Hanpeng sensed something was wrong and asked tentatively: "Sir, are we going to fight again?"

Wang Feng was a little surprised: "Yes, what's wrong?"

Huai Hanpeng was worried: "Those journalists and political commentators outside said that after the fall of Beijing and Shanghai, the Japanese army would definitely march straight into Wuhan and capture it."

"This way, we should have plenty of time."

If you want to develop industry, you need a long-term stable region. The bombing of Taiyuan Arsenal is the best example.

Too close to the front line.

"Humph!" Wang Feng snorted coldly, "This is nonsense. You don't understand any military common sense at all. This is simply a fallacy!"

"With the loss of Beijing and Shanghai, the Japanese army must open up the Jinpu Line next. Only after clearing the land on the right side can they advance westward."

"Go down and prepare, and resume production as soon as possible!"

Changzhi County Recruiting Station.

The streets were bustling with people, except for the area near the recruitment station where there were few people.

Even a little sad
Few people volunteered to join the army.

Thinking back to the conscription in Yangqu, Jinzhong and other places, the scene was not particularly lively, but there was a constant stream of people coming to register.

It's not like it is now, where less than a hundred people are recruited in two or three hours.

The reason why people lined the streets to welcome the troops when they entered the city and it was a grand occasion was because they knew the army was there to protect them and they could sleep more peacefully.

But when the time came for them to take up arms and go to the battlefield to defend their country and fight to the death with the Japanese invaders, all of them were silent.

There are several reasons for this.

The national consciousness of the lower-class people is too weak.

Home is home, country is country.

Two different things.
In addition, due to geographical factors, Changzhi is too far away from the front line, and the brutal acts of the Japanese army remained only rumors.

Although Yan Laoxi was not successful in the war of resistance, he had been entrenched in Shanxi for decades. The society was relatively stable, the people were relatively wealthy compared to other regions, and their willingness to join the army was very low.

As the saying goes - good steel is not used to make nails, and good men do not become soldiers!

If we want to motivate the people to join the army, we need to work hard.

At least the slogans should be shouted loudly.

(End of this chapter)