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

Chapter 74 Brigade Commander, Your calculations are wrong.
Filled with curiosity, the brigade commander followed Li Yunlong to a small room in the scrap yard.

The small room was filled with a lot of broken and junk items, including a broken radio, a broken flashlight, a broken motorcycle engine, copper wire coils, and even... a broken radio station!

That's right, it's a radio station!

As an intelligence officer, the brigade commander knew best the significance of the radio.

He quickly went up and rummaged around for a bit. There were six radios, though they were all in terrible condition.

But some of the parts inside are still intact.

Our army has very few radios; they are only provided to divisions and brigades, and the lower-level combat units have none at all.

If the radio breaks down and there are no spare parts available, there's nothing we can do but leave it as is.

If we take the parts from these six broken radios and take them back, we might be able to use them to repair the radios that are missing parts and are stored in the headquarters' logistics warehouse.

"Not bad. I didn't expect that this scrap yard could actually turn waste into treasure." The brigade commander's face showed a few smiles.

Ding Wei also came over and said to the brigade commander, "Brigade commander, I've also found some things here that the arsenal should be able to use."

"Really?" The brigade commander asked curiously, following Ding Wei to another location.

Here, there are a lot of scrap metal, some of which are quite conspicuous. Upon closer inspection, they turn out to be small machines, and even small lathes.

That's right, it's a machine lathe!

Even if it's rotten and scrapped, it's still a machine lathe.

"Move all of these back, don't leave out a single screw." The brigade commander's smile widened even more.

"Brigade Commander, what kind of machines are these?" Li Yunlong asked.

"It's a mess, I don't recognize many of them, never mind, let's take them all back to the arsenal and see if we can..." The brigade commander didn't finish his sentence.

Li Yunlong, beaming, chimed in, "How about we get another Hell Cannon for Lao Ding, shall we?"

The brigade commander's expression immediately turned serious: "I don't know if we can exchange it for a Hell Cannon, but take the Hell Cannon you have back to my brigade headquarters."

"Brigade Commander, what's wrong? Don't you already have a Hell Cannon? Why are you still eyeing my cannon?" Li Yunlong shouted immediately.

"What do you mean I'm eyeing your artillery!" The brigade commander glared and snapped, "Look at the mess you've made this time! If I don't teach you a lesson, you really think you can..."

"Brigade Commander, Brigade Commander, calm down, calm down!" Li Yunlong quickly interrupted the brigade commander, trying to shut him up by mentioning the lucrative deals in Ping'an County. "Brigade Commander, you don't know yet, do you? Old Ding and I also brought back some good stuff for you in Ping'an County. The arsenal will definitely need it."

"Did they find something good in Ping'an County too?" The brigade commander was naturally very interested when he heard this.

Right!

At the beginning, I was so focused on cursing that I forgot about this detail.

The brigade commander asked, "What good stuff is it?"

"We retrieved some copper wire and copper billets, all intact," Li Yunlong replied. "There was also some acidic liquid, but we don't know what it is."

"Hmm, not bad. It sounds like you and Ding Wei really made a fortune in Ping'an County." The brigade commander nodded, quite satisfied.

This acidic liquid is most likely industrial acid.

“Brigade Commander, look, let’s keep the cannon for me, and give Lao Ding another one. You can stay at the brigade headquarters peacefully from now on, while Lao Ding and I go out and build up your fortune. Isn’t that a great deal? Don’t you think so?” Li Yunlong seized the opportunity to steer the conversation back on track. “Hmm, that’s right, it sounds like a good idea!” The brigade commander initially agreed with Li Yunlong, but then his tone shifted abruptly, and he angrily rebuked, “Do you think I’m stupid? Giving you even one cannon has caused me so much trouble. Give you two, and you’ll be in complete chaos! Do you know how I felt at the brigade headquarters when you were causing trouble? Every day felt like an eternity! I want to live a few more years! Let me tell you, Li Yunlong, go back and bring the cannon to my brigade headquarters immediately. There’s no room for discussion!”

“Brigade Commander, your calculations are incorrect,” Li Yunlong pointed out.

"How come the calculation is wrong again? What's wrong with it?" The brigade commander didn't quite understand what Li Yunlong meant.

“You said it yourself, you want to live a few more years, right?” Li Yunlong explained to the brigade commander, “While Lao Ding and I are out there earning you money, you’re living like a year in the brigade headquarters. One day in the brigade headquarters is equivalent to one year. That’s not just living a few more years, it’s living way longer…”

"Go away, what nonsense are you spouting!" The brigade commander interrupted Li Yunlong and roared, "I'll make this clear to you one last time: when you get back, immediately, right now, take your artillery... never mind, I'll have the guard platoon take it to the brigade headquarters myself."

"Brigadier, this is unfair! This is not fair!" Li Yunlong cried out. "I've brought back so much wealth for you, and you not only don't reward me, but you also took my cannon! No, no, I can't give it to you, I absolutely can't give it to you."

"You won't give it to me, huh? No problem." The brigade commander said calmly. "I will report this to headquarters. You, Li Yunlong, instigated local troops to attack Heyuan County without permission, and you led your troops to attack Ping'an County without authorization. That's a serious offense. In the end, you still won't be able to keep this cannon. Think about it carefully: do you want to give it to me or to headquarters?"

"Fine, fine, brigade commander, I admit defeat, I admit defeat, okay?" Li Yunlong finally gave in.

If the brigade commander really handles things strictly by official procedures, the cannon might end up being taken by the headquarters leaders, and I might never have a chance to get it back.

The artillery was handed over to the brigade commander simply so that he could keep it for a few days.

Anyway, we're out of shells, so there's no point in keeping the cannon.

Furthermore, since the brigade commander was frightened this time, we should give him a way out.

Brother Li from the arsenal said that once the shells are manufactured, he'll give me thirty more and send me to do a big job.

Without cannons, this huge job definitely couldn't be done.

In the end, the brigade commander will just return the cannon to me anyway.

If the brigade commander doesn't give it to them, it will delay the military production of the arsenal!

How could the brigade commander's skinny arms possibly outmaneuver the thick legs of Brother Li from the arsenal?

"You're lucky you know what's good for you." Seeing that Li Yunlong was willing to give him the cannon, the brigade commander glanced at him. "Just by looking at you, Li Yunlong, I know what kind of shit you're going to take."

You want the cannon back? Let me tell you, it's not that easy!

All the scrap metal from the junkyard was packed up and taken away. Li Yunlong's Hell Cannon was taken away by the brigade commander's guard platoon. Ding Wei approached Li Yunlong and asked, "Old Li, did the brigade commander confiscate your Hell Cannon?"

If Li Yunlong's Hell Cannon couldn't be saved, Ding Wei couldn't help but wonder if his own Hell Cannon would also be lost.

"Old Ding, don't worry, I just asked the brigade commander to keep it for me temporarily," Li Yunlong said casually. "The brigade commander will return it to me soon."

"It doesn't look quite right to me," Ding Weicai said, disbelieving.

"Old Ding, I'm not bragging," Li Yunlong said confidently. "When the time comes, I won't just be able to get my cannon back, I'll also get the brigade commander's cannon. Do you believe me?"

"If you don't blow it, will you die?!" Ding Wei was even more unconvinced.

He had heard that Cheng the Blind Man of the 772nd Regiment wanted the brigade commander's cannon, but as soon as he opened his mouth, the brigade commander kicked him out of the brigade headquarters!
You, Li Yunlong, are already doing well to get your own hell cannon back. You still want to covet the brigade commander's hell cannon? Do you think you're the division commander?
"Haha, just you wait and see, Lao Ding."

……

(End of this chapter)