Bright Sword: From Border Region Manufacturing to Major National Heavy Industry

Chapter 341 The Fengtian Arsenal is a pity.
Japanese Military Police Headquarters

Tomohiro Uemura was not angry when Yoshio Shinozuka hung up on him on the phone.

He calmly put the phone receiver back on the shelf, and his initially annoyed expression quickly returned to normal.

We Osaka people value peace of mind the most.

People who are easily angered and manic, and who are often controlled by their emotions, are not good at business.

The natural gas plant business is gone, but that's okay. We still have plenty of other businesses. There's no need to be saddened by what we've lost.

Looking at Fujita Ichiji in front of him, Uemura Tomohisa smiled and said, "Fujita-kun, what's wrong? Don't you want to stay in the combat unit anymore?"

That's right. After escaping from the Eighth Route Army, Fujita Ichiji thought it over and over again and eventually found Uemura Tomoyuki's side.

Fujita Ichiji shook his head firmly: "Even if the combat troops stay in the logistics department, it is still very dangerous. I want to move to a place with higher security."

Fujita Ichiji already knew that the Kawashima Brigade had suffered a crushing defeat, that even the brigade commander Kawashima had died, and that Kitano Chuuni had also perished.

He was also relieved that he had been abandoned by them.

Otherwise, I'd most likely be in that command center by then.

After that shell landed, he certainly wouldn't be standing unharmed in front of Uemura Tomohisa right now.

Therefore, Fujita Ichiji carefully considered the matter and decided that if he didn't stay with the combat troops, he would have to find another place to work.

“No problem.” Uemura Tomohisa held up five fingers and gently patted Fujita Ichiji’s shoulder, saying, “You want to serve the Empire in a different place, that’s fine, but it still depends on whether you have the ability.”

"Minister Uemura, I've already prepared five small gold bars for you." Fujita Ichiji took out five gold bars and placed them in Uemura Tomoyuki's hand.

Fujita Ichiji trusted Kamimura Tomoyuki's abilities.

Although they charge high fees, their reputation has always been impeccable.

They can arrange it if they want.

Whether it's the military police captain in Heyuan County or someone working in the Kumamoto Division, everything is taken care of.

There were even rumors that Minister Kamimura was secretly selling weapons to the Chinese.

The Chinese don't know how to use this weapon, but they'll teach them.

With that kind of reputation, it's no wonder their business is booming; even the military can't do anything about them.

After all, the military needs them to raise funds.

Without military funding, the war cannot continue.

Uemura Tomoyuki took the five gold bars and bit them one by one with his teeth. Even though there were many marks on them, he didn't mind at all.

Having confirmed that there were no problems with the five gold bars, Uemura Tomohisa smiled so broadly that his eyes narrowed into slits: "Fujita-kun, it seems your abilities are indeed beyond question. So, where would you like to serve?"

"Is there a kind of mission that doesn't require going to the battlefield, doesn't involve danger, and is easy?" Fujita Ichiji couldn't think of a good place to go, so he asked Uemura Tomohisa for suggestions.

"I do have some, but with your abilities, I doubt it's enough." Uemura Tomoyuki weighed the five gold bars in his hand, hinting to Fujita Ichiji to give him more.

"These damn Osaka people, all they think about is money, they're so greedy." Fujita Ichiji cursed inwardly as he looked at Uemura Tomoyuki's greedy expression, but still took out two more gold bars: "Captain Uemura, these are my last two gold bars, this is all I can do."

"Hey, Fujita-kun, don't lose confidence in yourself." Uemura Tomoyuki took the two gold bars, examined them with his teeth, and smiled broadly. "The military police are short of a chief of the confidential office, and I think you're quite suitable."

"Thank you for your trust, Minister Uemura. I'm willing to go." Fujita Ichiji immediately agreed upon hearing this.

The head of the confidential office was mainly responsible for guarding confidential files. He sat in his office drinking tea all day long, without having to go out and contact the Eighth Route Army or the Shanxi-Suiyuan Army, let alone the battlefield. It was practically the best place to lie down and relax.

These seven gold bars are more worthwhile than ever before.

"You're willing to go, right?" Uemura Tomoyuki looked at Fujita Ichiji with a smile. "There's still one small link that needs to be smoothed over, and that's the head of the confidential office..."

Before Uemura Tomohisa could finish speaking, Fujita Ichiji took out his money bag and dumped the silver dollars, paper, and pens inside onto Uemura Tomohisa's table: "Minister Uemura, this is all the money I have."

Fujita Ichiji understood perfectly well what this so-called "smoothing" meant; it was just a disguised way of demanding more money.

The people of Osaka are so greedy, it's like they're in their very bones.

However, in order to become the head of the confidential office, Fujita Ichiji was not stingy with this last bit of money.

Becoming the head of the confidential office means having time to peruse the secrets inside. Guarding this huge pile of secrets is like guarding a treasury, a treasure trove.

I'll definitely earn back the money I've donated to Shangcun Zhiyong in no time, with interest.

"Fujita-kun, look at you! I only said I wanted to smooth things over, I didn't say I wanted money. You're too kind." Although Uemura Tomoyuki said this, his hands were quick as lightning. He accepted all of Fujita Ichiji's last bit of money, then quickly picked up a pen, wrote a letter of dismissal and a letter of appointment, and handed them to Fujita Ichiji: "Fujita-kun, take this letter of dismissal to the head of the confidential office and tell him to get out of here immediately. Then you will take his place."

“Minister Uemura, this person hasn’t moved yet. Isn’t this a bit…” Fujita Ichiji hadn’t expected that there was no vacancy for the position of Chief of the Confidential Office. It was Uemura Tomohisa who was forcibly creating the vacancy.

"What, do you not want to be the head of the confidential office?" Uemura Tomoyuki glared at him and said, "This person is not capable enough for this position. I'm firing him. What's the problem with that?"

"No, no, I'll go take up my post right away." Fujita Ichiji nodded repeatedly, perfectly understanding what Uemura Tomoyuki meant.

On the surface, it's said that this person is not capable enough for the position, but in reality, it's just that they haven't shown enough filial piety.

The other party was also implying that if his subsequent tributes were insufficient, he would also be dismissed.

But Fujita Ichiji believed in his abilities.

"Fujita-kun, I believe that with your abilities, you won't let me down, right?" Uemura Tomoyuki's smile was warm and welcoming, but inwardly he was secretly chuckling: This fool's money is so easy to make.

It's much less risky than secretly selling natural gas, and you can earn much more.

"Of course, of course." Fujita Ichiji nodded repeatedly and quickly left Uemura Tomoyuki's office, heading to the confidential room.

Upon arriving at the confidential office, Fujita Ichiji threw the dismissal letter written by Uemura Tomoyuki in front of the office director: "Sorry, you've been dismissed. Pack your things and move to another place."

"Baka! You're firing me for no reason! Uemura Tomoyuki, this is utter nonsense!" The head of the confidential office was furious, cursing inwardly. "I just paid a little less in tribute this month, and they fire me like this? These Osaka parasites, the empire will be destroyed by them sooner or later."

“There’s no such thing as a dismissal without a reason. It must be because you’re not competent for the job,” Fujita Ichiji said seriously.

"Fujita Ichiji, you must have given Uemura Tomohisa a huge sum of money as a bribe, right?" The head of the confidential office sneered. "Don't think that Uemura Tomohisa is so easy to deal with. He's a bottomless pit. As long as you can't keep up with his demands, you won't last long."

"No need for you to worry about that," Fujita Ichiji waved his hand.

The head of the confidential office was quickly dismissed, and Fujita Ichiji plopped down in a chair with a document right in front of him.

Fujita Ichiji casually picked up the document, glanced at its contents, and chuckled, "Isn't this a sure way to make money?" The document stated that two Kuomintang spies had been arrested and were to be secretly transferred.

If we just contact the Military Intelligence Bureau and leak this information to them, they can give me ten or eight gold bars as a reward. That's not too much to ask, is it?

He recouped the money he spent on buying the official position in one fell swoop.

The former chief of staff was too stupid. He was guarding this mountain of gold and silver but couldn't do his job. He deserved to be fired by Minister Uemura.

what!
If I leak the secret and the military finds out, won't I be in big trouble?

That's not true. The money I gave to Minister Kamimura wasn't given for nothing.

If I share some of the money I earn with him, he will definitely protect me and cover for me.

However, this matter certainly cannot be done too blatantly; it must be done discreetly.

Fujita Ichiji carefully considered the operational details of this matter.

……

A secret contact point.

"This Zhang Wanhe, it's been an hour since the rendezvous time, and he still hasn't shown up."

Yan Kai paced back and forth here, like an ant on a hot pan.

Commander Yan has given orders to acquire more Hell Missiles as soon as possible.

Although the Japanese army has temporarily retreated, who knows when they will make a comeback?

If I can't make contact with Zhang Wanhe today, I won't be able to explain myself when I get back.

"Deputy Factory Director Yan, should we urge him again?" a trusted aide suggested.

"It's no use." Yan Kai shook his head. "Zhang Wanhe is definitely doing this on purpose. Let's wait and see."

Yan Kai also felt some regret.

Having already obtained the Hell Missiles and Hell Cannon shells, he no longer paid much attention to Zhang Wanhe.

Yan Kai thought, "If we crack the core technology of these Hell Missiles and Hell Cannon Shells, our Jin-Sui Army will also be able to manufacture ammunition."

Who would have thought that the anti-disassembly device created by the Eighth Route Army's military experts could not be cracked.

Zhang Wanhe hasn't come yet; he's definitely keeping me waiting on purpose.

After waiting for almost another hour, Yan Kai was about to give up when Zhang Wanhe finally appeared, albeit slowly.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Yan, I've been too busy. I apologize." Zhang Wanhe pretended to apologize.

"Your army is impressive. You managed to capture another Japanese natural gas plant without anyone noticing." Yan Kai indicated that he didn't mind and tentatively added, "Your logistics minister is indeed busier now, which is understandable."

On his way here, Yan Kai heard about the disappearance of the Japanese natural gas plant.

This wasn't done by the Jin-Sui Army, nor by their own troops, so it was probably done by the Eighth Route Army.

These Eighth Route Army soldiers are really too much trouble. The Japanese have already mobilized their troops to prepare for another sweep, but they still take the time to rob the Japanese natural gas arsenal.

You should know that there are Japanese troops guarding that area.

These Eighth Route Army soldiers took it down without even using weapons; I really don't know how they did it.

"Hehe, just good luck, just good luck." Zhang Wanhe couldn't hide the fact that our Eighth Route Army had taken over the Japanese natural gas plant, so he simply admitted it and looked at Yan Kai: "Mr. Yan, congratulations. Your Jin-Sui Army has also driven back the Japanese and you don't have to be forced to withdraw from Jin Province."

"Thank you," Yan Kai replied casually, then said, "Minister Zhang, we're both short on time, so I'll get straight to the point. Our battle with the Japanese has taken a heavy toll on our weapons and ammunition; even our three Hellfire cannons were destroyed by Japanese planes. Could I perhaps trade some more with you?"

"Were all three hell cannons blown up?" Zhang Wanhe was stunned, thinking to himself that the Japanese planes were really hateful.

However, there was nothing they could do. The Jin-Sui Army had no anti-aircraft weapons, and the Japanese planes were high above them, able to see everything on the ground clearly.

Our combat troops here, didn't they also have their hell cannons bombed by the Japanese planes?

Once we develop our air defense weapons and radar, let's see if those Japanese planes will still be so arrogant!
“Yes, without anti-aircraft weapons, the Japanese have absolute air superiority and can accurately strike the ground from high altitude. These hellish cannons have nowhere to hide.” Yan Kai sighed, then, remembering something, couldn’t help but ask, “Minister Zhang, do you have the capability to manufacture anti-aircraft weapons? If you can, please don’t be stingy.”

“Mr. Yan, what are you saying?” Zhang Wanhe immediately waved his hand. “What do you take this anti-aircraft weapon for? Do you think anyone can make it? We can’t even make the most basic rifles right now, let alone anti-aircraft weapons. That’s pure wishful thinking.”

Zhang Wanhe denied it because he didn't want the Jin-Sui Army to find out too early.

They can't keep secrets.

If the Japanese find out in advance that our arsenal can produce anti-aircraft weapons, they will definitely be on guard.

Even Yoshio Shinotsuka will have to start his sweep soon.

This has put our arsenal's production schedule under pressure again.

As for how the anti-aircraft weapons shone on the battlefield, the Jin-Sui Army was bound to be envious, but we'll get to that later.

“Minister Zhang, don’t be modest. Although you can’t manufacture guns over there, you can manufacture artillery.” Yan Kai didn’t believe Zhang Wanhe’s words. “The cannon on his shoulder, the Hell Cannon, and the Hell Missiles, those are all artillery. You might even be able to manufacture anti-aircraft guns over there, or you might even be secretly working on it.”

“Mr. Yan, you know perfectly well that to build anti-aircraft weapons, you need seamless steel pipes at the very least, which we can’t make.” Zhang Wanhe shook his head.

"You've already obtained the equipment from the Taiyuan Arsenal, haven't you? There's equipment here that can manufacture seamless steel pipes," Yan Kai pointed out.

"Even if we have this equipment, what about seamless steel pipe technology, and all those parts for air defense weapons, and their structural principles? Do you think the answers to these technical problems just fall from the sky?" Zhang Wanhe shook his head again. "The military industry in the mountain city is stronger, but I haven't seen them manufacture air defense weapons. They still have to rely on imports."

"That seems to be true." Yan Kai was speechless. Anti-aircraft guns involve many key technical problems. Given the conditions of the Eighth Route Army, even if a skilled military expert emerged, it would be unrealistic to solve these problems in a short period of time.

"If only the Fengtian Arsenal hadn't fallen into the hands of the Japanese," Zhang Wanhe sighed.

The Fengtian Arsenal was Marshal Zhang's arsenal, capable of manufacturing not only anti-aircraft guns but also airplanes and warships.

Unfortunately, General Zhang's spendthrift son was just as stupid as Commander Yan, refusing to blow up the arsenal beforehand and letting the Japanese benefit for nothing.

Now, the Fengtian Arsenal has been occupied by the most elite Kwantung Army of the Japanese, which has more than a million troops. Taking back the Fengtian Arsenal is as difficult as climbing to heaven.

"Alright, alright, Minister Zhang, let's not talk about this anymore." Yan Kai cut off the topic, clearly realizing that this was a sarcastic remark directed at our Commander Yan.

"Alright, alright, let's not talk about these unpleasant topics anymore." Zhang Wanhe waved his hand, then looked at Yan Kai knowingly and asked, "Mr. Yan, what kind of deal do you want to make with me?"

(End of this chapter)