1949: Starting from Northeast China

In 1976, the domestic civilian use of liquefied petroleum gas cylinders began its initial promotion phase.

At that time, when a reporter from Anshan Daily visited veteran technical cadres of Ansteel, he heard an anecdote from an engineer surnamed Zhou.

According to Engineer Zhou, in the summer of 1949, a friend surnamed Jiang who had returned from abroad explained to him in detail the manufacturing principles and process of steel gas containers, and left behind several pages of hand-drawn drawings and chemical extraction plans.

Later, the friend disappeared after returning to his hometown to visit relatives. Although the blueprints have been preserved to this day, the plan could not be implemented immediately due to the limited equipment and shortage of chemical raw materials at the time.

It wasn't until the late 1960s that these early technical documents were rediscovered, providing important reference for promoting the independent manufacturing of domestic liquefied petroleum gas cylinders.

Jiang Fan stood frozen in front of the screen, reading the passage over and over again.

In 1976, the retired engineer surnamed Zhou was definitely Zhou Chunsheng.

The friend who returned to China with the surname Jiang must be himself.

"After returning home to visit relatives, I disappeared without a trace; the blueprints have been preserved to this day..."

In other words, Zhou Chunsheng neither lost the blueprints nor disregarded them.

He preserved his life's work for over twenty years.

The official reason given for not being able to produce it at the time was "limited equipment conditions and shortage of chemical raw materials".

But Jiang Fan knew that it wasn't just that reason.

I even gave him the most basic oil absorption method. As long as the higher-ups pay attention, I can definitely figure it out if I grit my teeth.

There must have been some other unforeseen event that caused the project to be put on hold.

For a moment, Jiang Fan didn't know whether he should be happy or regretful.

Fortunately, Zhou Chunsheng did not let him down, and those materials ultimately made a contribution to the new China.

Unfortunately, this was not the kind of wish-fulfillment story he had imagined: "In 1949, gas cylinders were manufactured, foreign exchange was immediately earned, and Ansteel took off from the spot."

Indeed, history has its own immense and heavy inertia.

Even if you force your way in and give it a push, it will still move forward at its own pace...

Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck Jiang Fan.

His hands immediately flew across the keyboard, typing out a search term:

Discovery time of Daqing Oilfield

According to actual history, the Daqing Oilfield was discovered on September 26, 1959, when Drilling Team 1205, led by the "Iron Man" Wang Jinxi, drilled the first industrial oil well, marking the complete removal of China's label as an oil-free country.

Before leaving, Chief Li personally promised to give him an explanation within a week.

If his words are truly believed by higher-ups, and the exploration team really goes to Zhaozhou...

  

The discovery time of the Daqing Oilfield will definitely change.

The moment the page loaded, Jiang Fan's pupils contracted sharply.

The very first sentence of the entry reads:

Daqing Oilfield, located in DQ City, Heilongjiang Province, is my country's largest oilfield. On June 11, 1949, Drilling Team 1205, led by the "Iron Man" Wang Jinxi, first discovered industrial-grade oil flow near Zhaozhou County...

October 1949, 6!

Jiang Fan stared at the date, his breath catching in his throat.

I left on the evening of June 3, 1949.

In other words, less than eight days after I left, the exploration team arranged by Chief Li struck oil in Zhaozhou.

The discovery of the Daqing Oilfield occurred a full ten years earlier than the actual historical records suggest!

Ten years.

For a newly established China, which was in dire need of rebuilding, this meant immense strategic depth and industrial strength!

Even so, with crude oil as a safety net, the gas cylinders still failed to be installed in 1949.

This shows that the resistance Zhou Chunsheng encountered was much greater than expected.

What exactly happened?

Jiang Fan lay on the table, his chin resting on his crossed forearms, deep in thought.

Is it because the equipment is not in place, or because the factory does not support it?

It's still Zhou Chunsheng...

After thinking it over, Jiang Fan had an answer in his mind: it must be Zhou Chunsheng's problem.

After all, Zhou Chunsheng is a mechanical engineer, so it's really asking too much of him to try his hand at chemical engineering.

However, Jiang Fan didn't blame him, but he still felt a little empty inside.

He had imagined he could single-handedly ignite an industrial revolution; he even indulged in the vulgar fantasy that future history textbooks might include the following:

"In 1949, Comrade Jiang Fan first proposed the manufacture of civilian gas containers..."

Traces were left, but only one was a friend surnamed Jiang; not even his full name was mentioned.

Jiang Fan is not a saint; he also has the vanity of a young person.

He could only manage a helpless, bitter smile:

"Well, it's better than nothing changing."

He then flipped through a few more pages of materials, trying to find more information about Zhou Chunsheng's later life, but it seemed that after leaving behind this anecdote, the engineer disappeared into the vast river of history and never made any more earth-shattering achievements.

"call--"

Jiang Fan let out a long sigh, closed the webpage, closed his eyes, leaned back in his chair, and fell into a long silence.

Since the Daqing Oilfield was indeed discovered ahead of schedule, it proves that the time-travel mechanism of this watch is real and effective, and the timeline is consistent.

Therefore, I absolutely have a reason to go back again.

Oh, and there's one more thing!

Now that we've covered national affairs, isn't it time to investigate personal matters?

Before he left, he revealed to his great-grandfather the shortcut to getting rich by settling down and buying a house in Beijing.

So now... am I already a distinguished native of Beijing, a hidden third-generation rich kid with a courtyard house within the Second Ring Road?

Jiang Fan suppressed his wildly beating heart, immediately picked up his phone, and dialed his mother's number.

The phone rang several times before it was answered.

"Feed? Mom."

"Oh dear, what's wrong, son? Why did you suddenly decide to call your mother?"

On the other end of the phone, the mother's voice carried a hint of surprise and joy.

Jiang Fan didn't bother with pleasantries and went straight to the question he most wanted to confirm:

"Mom, can I ask you something? What's our great-grandfather's name?"

There was a noticeable two-second silence on the other end of the phone, which puzzled the mother.

"Why are you suddenly asking about this, child? Your great-grandfather's name was Jiang Daiji, what's wrong?"

Jiang Fan's grip on his phone tightened suddenly:

"What about my great-grandmother?"

"Your great-grandmother's name is Sudan? No, what's wrong with you today? You're acting so strange."

It matches up!

It really was Aunt Su, and it really was my great-grandmother.

Jiang Fan suppressed his excitement, his Adam's apple bobbing:

"Did your great-grandfather work at Anshan Iron and Steel Company before?"

"Hmm, what's wrong? Your great-grandfather worked at Anshan Iron and Steel Group when he was young, and worked there for most of his life before moving away."

Upon hearing the words "move away," Jiang Fan's eyes widened instantly, and he repeatedly asked:

"Moved away? Where did they move to? Did they go to Beijing?!"

The mother's voice was filled with doubt, but she still answered truthfully:

"What BJ? They moved to Shenyang. Your grandfather served in the army and came back. After being discharged, he was assigned to a machinery factory in Shenyang and settled down. Your great-grandfather and great-grandmother moved there to live out their retirement."

"I'm not trying to be mean, but why are you asking about these old almanacs? I haven't seen you care about them for decades..."

They moved to Shenyang?

Not BJ?

Jiang Fan's heart sank instantly.

In other words, my great-grandfather didn't take the suggestion of settling down in Beijing seriously at all.

That shortcut to wealth that could have saved the entire family three generations from hard work was simply missed.