World War: Battleship Arms Dealers

Chen Feng opened the blueprints and began to explain in detail. He spoke slowly, but explained every detail very clearly.

"The total weight is 5.4 tons, and the dimensions are as follows: 4.02 meters long, 2.06 meters wide, and 1.72 meters high. The power system uses the improved tractor engine from our Sharjah factory, a four-cylinder air-cooled engine with 60 horsepower, which is sufficient."

His finger pointed to the transmission system diagram: "The gearbox has four forward gears and one reverse gear. The steering mechanism is a simple clutch-brake type, which achieves steering by controlling the speed difference between the two tracks. The suspension system is a leaf spring type, with five road wheels on each side. It has a simple structure and is easy to manufacture."

Liu Yongfu quickly recorded the key data, his mind already calculating the production difficulties.

"Armor." Chen Feng flipped to the materials specifications page. "13mm steel plates on the front of the hull, 6mm on the sides and rear, and 5mm on the top and bottom plates. All of them can be produced using the American rolling mill we imported last year. The welding process should follow shipyard standards, and the welds in key areas should be double-reinforced."

"What about the weapon system?" Liu Yongfu asked, his voice a little dry.

"Don't install it for now." Chen Feng closed the blueprints. "But the vehicle body has reserved mounting positions for machine guns and ammunition storage compartments. The turret is designed to rotate 360 ​​degrees and has standard weapon mount interfaces. Remember, on the 'agricultural version,' these are interfaces 'used for installing agricultural equipment such as searchlights and spraying devices.'"

Liu Yongfu gave a wry smile. This kind of explanation might fool a layman, but anyone with even a basic understanding of military affairs could see through it immediately. However, he didn't question it, but instead continued to ask, "Mass production timeline?"

"Within three months, I want to see the first prototype vehicle roll off the production line for testing. Within six months, monthly production should reach ten vehicles. A year later, monthly production should reach thirty vehicles." Chen Feng's tone left no room for argument. "I will give you the highest priority—funding, materials, and personnel will all be allocated with priority."

"So urgent?" Liu Yongfu was taken aback. "Commander-in-Chief, even with our full commitment, our factory is still..."

"So we need to adjust the production plan." Chen Feng pulled out a document from his pocket, a handwritten production allocation plan. "Look, the first automobile plant in Sharjah will be transformed to specialize in producing chassis and transmission systems. The machinery plant in Penang will be responsible for suspension and running gear. The shipyard in Jakarta will set aside a workshop specifically for welding the body and armor. Final assembly will be completed at the new factory in Dubai."

Liu Yongfu took the document and quickly skimmed through it. The plan was very detailed, even including worker allocation, raw material procurement channels, and transportation routes. Clearly, Chen Feng had been thinking about it for a long time.

"President, may I ask a question?" Liu Yongfu put down the documents, looked directly into Chen Feng's eyes, and said, "Where did these designs come from? I've seen tractor designs from Germany, Britain, and France, and they're completely different from this. This vehicle is clearly..."

"It was designed for the battlefield," Chen Feng finished for him, then remained silent for more than ten seconds. The computer in the secret room, those technical files from another era—he could never tell anyone about them.

"Minister Liu," Chen Feng finally spoke, his voice low and serious, "How long have you been with me?"

"Eleven years and four months," Liu Yongfu answered without hesitation, "starting from when you were in Dubai."

"Then you should know that everything I do has its reasons." Chen Feng stood up and walked to the window. Outside, Dubai Harbour was beginning to awaken, the outline of the cranes gradually becoming clear in the morning light. "The war in Europe is changing the rules of the world. The old order is collapsing, and the new order has not yet been established. In this gap, small countries cannot simply passively adapt to the rules if they want to survive."

He turned around, his eyes sharp as knives: "We need to participate in setting the rules. And setting the rules requires leverage—technological leverage, industrial leverage, strategic leverage. These 'agricultural vehicles' are one of those leverages for the future."

Liu Yongfu was filled with awe. He had followed Chen Feng for so many years, witnessing firsthand how Lanfang had transformed from a chaotic colony and princely state into a nation with a nascent industrial base, a burgeoning navy, and a place in international trade. All of this stemmed from Chen Feng's seemingly risky, yet deeply thoughtful, decisions.

"I understand." Liu Yongfu stood up straight. "Three months, the first prototype. I guarantee it."

"No." Chen Feng shook his head. "Don't make promises to me. Make promises to this country. Make promises to the workers sweating in the factories, to the farmers toiling in the fields, to the young people serving on naval ships—make promises that every product you make strengthens the foundation of their survival."

Liu Yongfu nodded solemnly, rewrapped the blueprints, and held them in his arms as if they were a baby.

Chen Feng escorted him to the office door, giving him final instructions: "The blueprints will be distributed in three parts, and each factory will only know its own portion. The final assembly plant will receive the complete blueprints, but all workers there will need to undergo a new safety review. The confidentiality level is the highest."

"Yes."

After Liu Yongfu left, Chen Feng didn't leave immediately. He stood in the corridor of the Ministry of Industry building, looking out at the city through the window. It was a Dubai morning; the call to prayer at the mosque had just ended, pedestrians were beginning to appear on the streets, trams were clanging, and newsboys were hawking their morning papers on street corners—the headlines still reporting on the war in Europe.

The world was still operating at its old pace, but Chen Feng knew that change had already begun.

Another blueprint he carried—the design for the Panzer II tank—hadn't been brought out yet. It would only become his next card after the Panzer I went into mass production successfully, after the Germans had shed enough blood at Verdun, and after they truly realized the need for a weapon capable of breaching trenches. (The British tanks appeared on the Somme; the editor has delayed the details somewhat.)

And now, the first move has been made.

At the same time, at the Wilhelmshaven naval base in Germany.

A thick fog shrouded the harbor, reducing visibility to less than 100 meters. On the dock, massive ship silhouettes loomed in and out of the fog, like sleeping steel behemoths. The air was thick with the salty smell of seawater, the pungent odor of fuel oil, and a faint, acrid smell of burning—the result of welding work being carried out by workers on the warships still under repair.

The battleship "Frederick the Great" was docked beside dry dock number three. A horrifying gash, over eight meters long, stretched along the waterline on its port side, its steel plates curled outwards like a wound ripped open by a giant beast. The dry dock was filled with scaffolding, and workers scrambled across the hull like ants. Sparks from welding flashed in the mist, emitting a blinding blue-white light.

Grand Admiral Alfred von Tirpitz stood motionless on the observation platform at the edge of the dock, his hands behind his back. He was sixty-seven years old, still tall and straight, but his dark blue admiral's uniform looked looser than it had a few years ago—he had lost eight pounds in the past two months.