Bright Sword: I built Italian cannons for Li Yunlong

The process of improving tung oil went more smoothly than expected.

Thanks to the mature chemical theories in his mind, Zhou Zhen successfully found the optimal mixing ratio of tung oil and castor oil through only one week of repeated mixing experiments.

The newly obtained improved tung oil retains its excellent waterproof and windproof properties while its ductility is greatly enhanced.

Cotton fabric treated with it can be folded and rubbed normally, and the oil film on the surface will not crack or peel off.

He took the dark brown tarpaulin from the successful experiment and went to find Li Yunlong.

"Old Li, look, it's done. It's waterproof, windproof, and flexible enough. The only problem is that it can't be washed frequently."

Li Yunlong took it and rubbed it vigorously a few times, his eyes lighting up: "Damn it, what's the problem! As long as it blocks the wind and rain, it's a good thing. We're all men, why bother with all that fuss? Just don't wash it!"

On the day of the inspection, a cold wind howled. On the threshing ground, two groups of soldiers, one wearing new cotton-padded clothes and the other old, stood in two rows.

The soldiers, dressed in old-fashioned cotton-padded clothes, quickly shivered and had to hunch their shoulders to keep warm.

However, the soldiers in the new cotton-padded clothes could calmly face the cold wind.

This scene presented a stark contrast to the one on the threshing floor.

Two hours later, Li Yunlong pulled aside a soldier wearing a new type of cotton-padded uniform and asked, "How are you feeling?"

The soldier, clad in his new gear, exclaimed excitedly, "Reporting, Commander! Except for my face, I feel warm all over. This cloak is amazing; not a single cold wind can get in!"

Another person excitedly said, "With this, we won't have to stomp our feet in the cold every night when we're on guard duty."

"Great! That's fantastic!" Li Yunlong slapped his thigh excitedly and turned to run towards the communications room.

"Get me to headquarters! I, Old Li, want to personally report the good news to the boss!"

Several days later, at the Eighth Route Army headquarters.

The deputy commander stroked the cloak on the table, which smelled of tung oil, and the well-fitting new cotton-padded coat, a delighted smile spreading across his face: "This Li Yunlong, he's even managed to embroider a golden phoenix!"

He handed the report to the chief of staff.

"Look at Zhou Zhen. He solved the problem of medical disinfection with boric acid, and now this improvement to cotton-padded clothing is a real lifesaver!"

The chief of staff carefully reviewed the documents, nodding repeatedly: "Commander, it seems we made the right decision to keep Comrade Zhou Zhen. Such talent is the most needed asset in our revolutionary ranks."

The deputy commander walked to the map and decisively ordered: "Issue a commendation! Order the clothing factories to operate at full capacity and prioritize supplying the front-line troops."

"Tell Li Yunlong to just focus on being a good factory manager. If he needs any support, headquarters will do its best to coordinate."

"As for Comrade Zhou Zhen, he should be given full trust and support, and any reasonable needs of his must be met first!"

When the order reached the clothing factory, Li Yunlong grinned broadly and said smugly to Zhou Zhen, "Did you hear that? The boss told us to go all out!"

"Hehe, Old Li is a pro wherever he goes. He's good at fighting, and he's also excellent at embroidery... no, I mean, production!"

After boasting, he immediately threw himself into the production of the new cotton-padded clothes, and the entire clothing factory's machines ran day and night.

After Zhou Zhen compiled all the technology into a book and submitted it, the other clothing factories in the base area also sprang into action.

It is foreseeable that the frontline soldiers will not be freezing this year.

However, both tung oil and boric acid solution are merely stopgap measures.

We still need to find a way to improve the industrial base of the entire base area, but this is not something he can accomplish in the short term. It requires great support from the organization and more talent to devote themselves to this cause.

"This is a good opportunity to treat as a long-term endeavor."

While Zhou Zhen and Li Yunlong were working at full capacity to produce new cotton-padded clothes and capes.

The brigade command post was filled with smoke. The brigade commander stared at the map spread out on the table, his brows furrowed in worry.

"Damn it, supplies are running low again." He slammed a logistics report on the table. "The ammunition shortages reported by each regiment add up to enough for a tough battle. If we don't find a solution soon, we'll be using firewood sticks next time the Japanese raid."

The staff officer opened the map and pointed to a marked location: "Brigade Commander, this is the garrison of the 2nd Regiment of the 8th Brigade of the puppet army. The actual strength is about 1,500 men, supervised and commanded by a reinforced Japanese squad of more than 40 men."

"According to inside intelligence, a batch of ammunition and supplies arrived just five days ago."

He lowered his voice: "This is a small supply depot for the Japanese in this area. Besides ammunition, there should also be chemical raw materials such as sulfuric acid and nitric acid. Most importantly... there is a batch of sulfanilamide that was just transported from Taiyuan."

"Qijia Town is located at the junction of three counties in this area. The Japanese have built it into a small distribution center for supplies. If we destroy it, at least five surrounding strongholds will be cut off from supplies for half a month."

"Secondly, the supplies in Qijia Town can solve our urgent needs for at least three months."

"Moreover, according to reliable sources, the commander of the puppet army garrison, Feng Chang'an, is a fence-sitter who values ​​his life in battle. His troops are undisciplined, and if the battle goes against them, it will be difficult for the enemy to organize a counterattack."

The brigade commander's eyes lit up, but then narrowed again: "Qijia Town... I've been there. That place looks like a turtle shell."

"Four corner towers, a main fort in the middle, and barbed wire and moats on the outside."

"A full-scale assault? We'd need to commit a whole regiment."

"A direct assault is definitely not going to work." The staff officer pointed to the map. "Brigadier, look here. There's a small slope extending down from the ridge on the north side."

"Our comrades have surveyed the area and found that this small slope is only about 100 meters away from the north wall, which is just enough to avoid the searchlights."

"We just need to send a small, elite team in to infiltrate the area, and then, during the shift change, launch a surprise attack on the north gate."

"As long as they can blow open the city gate, they can take advantage of the surprise attack and control the two firing points on the northwest and northeast sides of the city gate."

"If we can hold out for five minutes, our main force will be able to successfully penetrate into Qijia Town."

The brigade commander stared at the map for a long time: "To achieve this operational effect, we must wait until the day when the enemy is most likely to relax their guard."

The staff officer also said, "During this period, the temperature has dropped throughout northwestern Shanxi. Judging from previous years, the temperature should drop below zero very soon. And the coldest day is when those traitors are most likely to relax their guard."

At this point, the staff officer paused, pondered for a moment, and then said in a solemn tone, "To launch a surprise attack, the assault team must be in position two hours before the enemy's shift change. That means they need to lie prone in the wilderness at minus ten degrees Celsius for two hours, waiting for the signal for the general offensive."

The command post was completely silent.

Everyone understands what this means.