Returning to 1949, I decided to hand it over to the state.

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 retired technical staff of the Northern Steel Plant, an engineer surnamed Zhou mentioned an old story.

According to Engineer Zhou, in the summer of the early years of the People's Republic of China, a friend surnamed Jiang who had returned from abroad explained to him in detail the manufacturing principles and processes of steel gas containers, and left behind several pages of hand-drawn drawings and chemical extraction plans.

Later, after the friend returned to his hometown in the south, there was no further news. Although the blueprints were kept, the project could not be put into trial production immediately due to the limited equipment and raw materials available at the factory at the time.

It wasn't until the mid-to-late 1960s that these early technical documents were rediscovered, providing important references for the subsequent independent trial production of civilian liquefied 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 to his hometown, he was never heard from again; 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 reason given in the documents for not being able to produce it at the time was "limited by equipment conditions and shortage of chemical raw materials".

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

I've even handed over the most basic, rudimentary absorption method to him. As long as the factory is determined, they might be able to make it if they grit their teeth and persevere.

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; those materials ultimately helped the factory accumulate technical expertise.

Unfortunately, this was not the kind of smooth-sailing scenario he had imagined: "In the early years of the People's Republic of China, gas cylinders were manufactured, immediately opening up opportunities and allowing the Northern Steel Plant to soar to new heights."

Indeed, reality 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:

Oilfield discovery time

According to his understanding of the original timeline, the discovery of the Beiyuan Oilfield should have occurred in the late 1950s, when a famous drilling team drilled the first industrial oil well, which completely reversed the passive situation of domestic energy supply.

He had already told Lao Li in person about his speculation that there might be a large oil-bearing structure in the area.

The other party clearly stated at the time that they would arrange exploration forces to verify it as soon as possible.

The instant the page loaded, Jiang Fan's pupils contracted sharply—

The very first sentence of the entry reads:

Beiyuan Oilfield, located in Beiyuan City, Beifang Province, is the largest oilfield in China. In the early 1950s, the famous Drilling Team 1205 first drilled industrial oil flow in the area...

The exact date of that "early 1950s" was a whole year earlier than he remembered.

Jiang Fan stared at that year, his breath catching in his throat.

In other words, less than a week after he left, the exploration team arranged by the factory struck oil in the North Plains region.

Ten years.

For an industrial system that is in dire need of rebuilding, this means a great deal of strategic depth and development confidence.

Even so, with crude oil as a safety net, gas cylinders still failed to be installed in the early years of the People's Republic of China.

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 a problem with Zhou Chunsheng.

After all, Zhou Chunsheng is a mechanical engineer, so it was indeed difficult for him to delve into the details of chemical engineering.

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

He had imagined that he could single-handedly spark an industrial revolution, and he even had the vulgar fantasy that future chapters of technological history might record:

"In the early years of the People's Republic of China, Comrade Jiang Fan first proposed a technical solution for manufacturing civilian gas containers..."

Traces were left, but only the phrase "a friend surnamed Jiang" was used; not even his full name was mentioned.

Jiang Fan is not a saint; he also has the little 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 documents, trying to find more information about Zhou Chunsheng's later life, but it seemed that after leaving behind this old story, the engineer gradually disappeared into the vast archives, and there was no further widely known follow-up.

"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 oil field was indeed discovered ahead of schedule, it proves that the time travel mechanism of this watch is real and effective, and the timeline is continuous.

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

Oh, and there's one more thing!

Now that you've covered the big news at the factory, isn't it time to check on the little things at home?

Before he left, he had told his great-grandfather about his suggestion to settle down in the capital.

So now... am I already a hidden little millionaire with a Beijing hukou and an old 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:

"And what about my great-grandmother?"

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

It matches up!

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

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

"Did our great-grandfather work at a steel mill in the north before?"

"Hmm, what's wrong? Your great-grandfather worked at a steel factory in the north for most of his life when he was young, and then he moved 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 the capital?!"

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

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

Not to criticize you, but why are you asking about these old almanacs? I haven't seen you care about them for decades...

They moved to the provincial capital?

Not the capital?

Jiang Fan's heart sank instantly.

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

That piece of life advice that could have saved the entire family decades of hardship was simply missed.