You were tasked with guarding the Sihang Warehouse, and you brought out a Tiger tank?

Standing in front of Lin Feng were two hydraulic presses, one large and one small, each with a capacity of 100 tons.

This hydraulic press is not the kind of small machine that used to be found in rural areas where you could just press it to produce water; it is a crucial piece of equipment for the military manufacturing industry.

"These two big guys will be the crown jewels of our arsenal from now on," Lin Feng said excitedly, patting the thick hydraulic column of the hydraulic press.

Sun Ziqiang nodded repeatedly: "This is really good stuff."

Within the Great Xia Dynasty, most of the poor warlords' arsenals used the rudimentary method of sand casting to produce gun and cannon parts.

It involves pouring molten iron into a mold made of sand and letting it cool and solidify.

The parts made using this rudimentary method are full of invisible pinholes and air bubbles, and the metal structure is very loose and brittle like a biscuit.

It's okay for making pots and pans.

It is used as a load-bearing component for artillery breechblocks and gun barrels.

It couldn't fire more than a few shells before the barrel exploded.

But a hydraulic press is different; it's for forging.

The red-hot steel ingot is placed on it, and hundreds of tons of pressure crash down with a 'bang,' directly squeezing out the impurities in the steel and compressing the metal's crystalline structure tightly.

Parts forged in this way are more than ten times stronger and tougher than those made by sand casting.

Of course, these are just two hundred-ton hydraulic presses, which can at most manufacture parts for firearms and small- to medium-caliber artillery.

As for the thousand-ton hydraulic press, it is a true national treasure. Even if the White Party is wasteful, they will still remember to rush to the rear of the mountain city after the war starts.

In fact, apart from the Shanghai arsenal, only Fengtian and Jincheng in the entire Great Xia had a 2000-ton hydraulic press for pressing large forgings such as barrels, breechblocks, and gun carriages for large-caliber artillery pieces of 100mm and above.

However, now, both of these important hydraulic presses have fallen into the hands of the Japanese.

As for the 10,000-ton hydraulic press capable of pressing ultra-large forgings such as jet engine turbine disks, ship crankshafts, and rudder shafts, it wasn't until 62 years after the establishment of New China Construction that the first domestically produced 12000-ton free forging hydraulic press was built in Shanghai.

With a sigh, Lin Feng turned around, looked at the cave full of machines, and began to issue specific construction tasks:

"Old Sun, we can start working on the chemical and mechanical manufacturing sectors today."

As for the blast furnaces for steelmaking, we'll build them gradually.

For the initial steel raw materials, we used the high-quality steel ingots that we brought from various warehouses in Shanghai.

If that's not enough, then throw all those completely destroyed Japanese guns and cannons that we've captured along the way, as well as those destroyed tanks and armored vehicles, into a crucible and remelt them.

The Japanese steel is of decent quality; we can't waste it.

"Understood." Sun Ziqiang took out his notebook and quickly wrote it down.

"Next, I'll set some hard targets for you."

Lin Feng held up one finger:

"First, establish a bullet factory immediately."

"Our troops are expanding now, and the consumption of bullets is astronomical."

In the initial stage, you should organize manpower to produce reloaded bullets.

The brass cartridge cases salvaged from the battlefield can be reshaped, primed, filled with propellant, and fitted with a projectile for immediate use.

Once the production line is streamlined, the next step is to achieve complete self-production of bullets of all calibers.

"Second, chemical plants."

Lin Feng's expression turned serious:

"Warfare is all about the amount of explosives used."

You don't need to worry about the raw materials for the chemical plant. I will provide you with the purest acid and alkali raw materials such as nitric acid and sulfuric acid through special channels.

Your task is to turn these raw materials into fertilizer and then into high explosives.

In particular, nitrocellulose, the basic material for smokeless gunpowder, must be mass-produced for me.

I don't want my soldiers fighting with inferior gunpowder that puffs out black smoke and makes it impossible for the enemy to see anything.

"Don't worry, Commander. We have chemical equipment and enough chemical engineers. As long as we have pure acids and bases, making nitrocellulose will be a piece of cake," Sun Ziqiang assured, patting his chest.

"Third, the artillery shell fuse processing plant and the mortar shell casting workshop."

Lin Feng walked to a precision Hans lathe and touched the tool holder:

"The mortar shell body has low technical content and can be mass-produced directly by sand casting."

However, setting the fuse for an artillery shell is a delicate task.

Even the slightest error could result in a dud or an explosion inside the cannon barrel.

You must select the most skilled master craftsmen and use these precision lathes to improve the yield rate of my fuses.

"Last, and most crucial one."

Lin Feng took a deep breath and stared intently at Sun Ziqiang:

"I want you to immediately set up a repair and refurbishment workshop for tanks, armored vehicles, and heavy weapons."

Lin Feng was very clear-headed and did not have unrealistic ambitions.

Given his current industrial foundation, it's unrealistic for him to build a 150mm heavy artillery piece or a tank from scratch.

"However, our goal is to achieve absolute self-sufficiency in ammunition and rapid equipment repair."

Think about it, how many Type 92 infantry guns and 75mm mountain guns that we captured from the Japanese on the battlefield?

And our own tanks and artillery that had their breech damaged, their running gear blown off, and their artillery damaged in battle.

In the past, when they broke, they could only be used as scrap metal or spare parts.

Now we have factories, hydraulic presses, and so many machine tools.

The breechblock is broken? We'll forge a steel billet ourselves and carve one out.

The gear is broken? We'll machine one ourselves and replace it.

"I want you to fix all those broken-down iron lumps and get them back on the battlefield to beat the Japanese."

At this point, Lin Feng suddenly had a flash of inspiration and thought of the urgent airport construction plan.

Building an airport involves a huge amount of earthwork. If you rely solely on manpower to dig and fill, it will take forever to complete the project.

"Oh, right, Lao Sun, there's something else."

Lin Feng pointed outside the cave, a wicked smile playing on his lips:

"Don't rush to melt down those Japanese tanks that we captured earlier that were completely scrapped and beyond repair."

Have someone take down all the turrets on top for me.

The tank cannons and machine guns inside were all completely removed, and new gun mounts and gun mounts were welded on and issued to the infantry as fixed firing positions.

In short, not a single part can be wasted.

Sun Ziqiang scratched his head, somewhat puzzled, and asked, "Commander, dismantling the weapons is fine, but what about the bare vehicle body? Are we going to use it as a tractor?"

"A tractor? That's too narrow-minded!"

Lin Feng excitedly gestured to indicate the name:

"Think of a way to use the steel we have to weld large bulldozer blades to the front of those tracked chassis, or modify them to install mechanical excavators."

"Just modify them into tracked engineering vehicles."

Sun Ziqiang was taken aback at first, then suddenly turned his head to look at the two hundred-ton hydraulic presses and the cave full of precision machine tools.

In an instant, blueprints for the modification of gear transmission, hydraulic linkages, and steel plate welding flashed through his mind.

"Wonderful!"

Sun Ziqiang slapped his thigh excitedly, his eyes shining:

"The chassis, tracks, and engine are all readily available."

With our equipment, we can forge a few load-bearing connecting rods, machine a few transmission gears, and weld a large shovel onto them.

"No problem, leave the job to me."

"it is good."

Lin Feng nodded in satisfaction and immediately made the decision:

"I'll hand over all the skilled workers who were transferred from Shanghai to you."

In the next few days, you should prioritize getting these engineering vehicles ready for me.

"Perfect timing! Our underground arsenal is going to be expanded further. Leveling the land and clearing away the rubble will put them to great use soon."

"Your Excellency, just you wait and see."

Sun Ziqiang suddenly saluted and shouted:

"As long as you provide enough food and raw materials, I, Sun Ziqiang, will keep this arsenal running for you even if I don't sleep."

We absolutely will not delay your important business!

Lin Feng smiled with satisfaction.

This industrial base was hidden next to the century-old coal city.

He now has a second leg outside of the system, allowing him to walk on both legs.

This also saves a lot of money, which can be used to purchase urgently needed weapons and equipment within the system, rather than simply buying bullets and shells to supply the troops.