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

After much deliberation, Jiang Fan still felt that it was more reliable to bring the "entrenching tool" with him.

The reason is actually very simple.

The war to protect the nation, which was about to break out in 1950, was fought mostly on open plains and rugged hilly terrain.

In many movies, Chinese People's Volunteer Army soldiers braved American planes and artillery fire, using old-fashioned wooden-handled iron shovels to dig trenches and build air-raid shelters, shovel by shovel.

While the scene was certainly moving, from a modern military perspective, it was far too inefficient.

A multi-functional folding entrenching tool that incorporates modern industrial wisdom can play a terrifying role in that kind of battlefield environment!

First, it can dig.

Faced with the insane firepower of the US military, the most effective tactic of the Chinese People's Volunteer Army was to dig tunnels and build reverse slope defensive fortifications.

When fully unfolded, a folding entrenching tool is a standard-length shovel; you can dig while crouching or shovel while standing.

When folded at a 90-degree angle, it becomes a hoe, which is much lighter and easier to use than the long, clumsy, and easily broken wooden-handled shovel.

If a soldier carries it and marches for dozens of kilometers, his physical exertion will be significantly reduced.

Secondly, it can chop.

The shovel has an edge on one side and a serrated edge on the other, which can be used to cut branches and saw tree stumps.

In the frigid North Korea, where temperatures can drop to minus 30 or 40 degrees Celsius, this thing is a multi-functional survival tool for setting up temporary camps and collecting firewood for warmth.

Even when conducting nighttime infiltration and surprise attacks, if they encountered American barbed wire, they could simply use a saw to wedge it in and pull, which was far more efficient than slowly cutting it with pliers.

Finally, it can be used for self-defense.

In close combat and melee, a high-carbon steel entrenching tool becomes an extremely lethal weapon when wielded.

Its center of gravity is forward, making it powerful and heavy to swing. It is more agile than a bayonet and easier to handle than an entrenching tool.

With a single shovel strike, a US military helmet can be dented. Soldiers holding such a handy tool would definitely feel a surge in their sense of security.

This thing was practically a tailor-made individual weapon for the Chinese People's Volunteer Army in 1950.

Most importantly, the timing was just right at the crucial moment.

It is now June 1949. Chiang Kai-shek's remaining troops are still putting up a stubborn resistance in the southwest, and the whole country has not yet been fully liberated.

The frontline troops still face arduous tasks in pursuing the remaining enemy forces and suppressing bandits in the mountains.

In such high-intensity marching and combat operations, everything from clearing roads through mountains and building bridges over rivers to constructing temporary camps requires readily available tools.

If we could have ensured that Anshan Iron and Steel Group mastered the technology by the second half of 1949 and mass-produced the folding entrenching shovel, allowing a million-strong army to become familiar with and use this new generation of individual soldier tools a year ahead of schedule...

When gunfire erupts in Korea in 1950, will our soldiers be able to shed less blood?

With this in mind, Jiang Fan no longer hesitated.

He immediately opened the local flash sale app on his phone and placed an order for a top-of-the-line military-grade multi-functional folding entrenching shovel.

The product details state: It is made of high-carbon steel in one piece, with mud drainage holes, and has a wood saw and machete blade on the side. The end also hides a fire starter and a compass.

The title of "King of Tools" is well-deserved.

This shovel, incorporating modern ergonomics, would definitely have given the engineers at Anshan Iron and Steel Group in 1949 a small industrial shock.

While waiting for the delivery guy to bring his food, Jiang Fan didn't just sit idle.

Now that we've decided to go back to 1949, we must do our research thoroughly this time.

The manufacturing process of gas cylinders has actually been preserved. This time, I brought back enough theory to try and crack that tough nut.

But the most crucial question is: once it's made, how do we sell it?

In 1949, ordinary people in China were struggling to get enough to eat.

Do you want them to spend a lot of money to buy a metal can and then have to pay to refill it regularly?

That's simply a fantasy.

Therefore, for the domestic civilian market, in the early stages, we can only rely on government subsidies to build brand awareness before we can gradually recoup our costs.

Secondly, in order to quickly generate huge economic value from gas cylinders, and even exchange them for valuable foreign exchange and industrial mother machines for the country, this military-modified version of the "gas cylinder mortar" must realize its strategic significance as soon as possible.

Jiang Fan immediately sat down at the computer and began frantically searching for diplomatic and trade historical materials from 1949.

To earn foreign exchange, you first need to understand:

At that time, which place in China had the most foreigners? Or rather, which place had foreigners with real gold and silver?

But the search results left him stunned for a while.

Surprisingly, the answers were Guangdong and Guangxi, and Chongqing.

The reason is simple: in the summer of 1949, a large number of diplomats, journalists and arms dealers from the United States and other Western countries were still retreating south with the Kuomintang government.

Although Chiang Kai-shek suffered repeated defeats, he still had a large army in the southwest of China, and many Western countries were still taking a wait-and-see attitude, hoping to continue to seize interests in China through him.

Chongqing, in particular, served as the wartime capital during the War of Resistance against Japan. It was home to numerous Western embassies and consulates and commercial institutions, making it the most concentrated area for intelligence trading and arms sales in all of China at the time.

Jiang Fan stared at the screen, his brows gradually furrowing.

There are the most Americans in Chongqing.

If the actual "gas cylinder mortar" were sold there, it would most likely end up in the hands of the Americans.

"No, absolutely not!"

Jiang Fan shook his head.

Before countermeasures are found, no matter how high the price offered by the US, it is absolutely impossible for them to sell such a simple weapon with extremely high combat effectiveness to an enemy they are destined to fight on the Korean battlefield.

This has nothing to do with commercial interests; it's a matter of principle!

Since we can't sell to Europe and America, the only option left is the place Jiang Fan mentioned to the leader.

Jiang Fan immediately typed another term into the search box:

The First Arab-Israeli War

He had an impression of this history, but couldn't recall the details.

Pressing the Enter key quickly brings up the information on the webpage:

On May 14, 1948, Israel declared its independence.

The following day, a coalition of five Arab countries—Egypt, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan—launched an attack on Israel.

The first Middle East war thus broke out.

The war lasted for nearly a year, and the Arab coalition was ultimately defeated.

In July 1949, the two sides formally signed an armistice agreement...

Jiang Fan looked at the timeline and analyzed it carefully.

In other words, in June 1949, when he was about to return, the war was in its most intense final stages.

Lacking unified command and heavy weaponry, the Arab coalition forces have been suffering repeated defeats at the hands of Israel, which is backed by the United States, and are in their most frustrated and desperate moment.

What if...we sold the "gas cylinder mortar" to those Arab countries?!

On the one hand, this kind of simple heavy weapon, which is sturdy and durable and can be used on a large scale without the need for sophisticated arsenals, is definitely a lifeline for Arab guerrillas who lack artillery.

It can greatly narrow the gap between the two sides in terms of firepower at the grassroots level.

On the other hand, this can be seen as planting a thorn in America's strategic backyard. If you don't let the new China have an easy time, then we'll make things difficult for you in the Middle East.

Although, in retrospect, the essence of this war was a scheme secretly orchestrated by the United States to control the lifeline of Middle Eastern oil.

But now it seems to be the key to breaking the deadlock.

Anyway, we manufactured the equipment. As the seller, I only care about collecting foreign exchange to exchange for the machines. As for who the buyer uses them to bomb, that's none of my business.

The more Jiang Fan thought about it, the more he felt that this idea of ​​"exporting to earn foreign exchange" was simply perfect!

But after the initial excitement, he quickly calmed down and realized a very real barrier.

Why would those incredibly wealthy Arab tycoons believe that a newly established China, which had just emerged from the ruins and lacked even heavy industry, could produce "tin cans" that could fight on the battlefield?

After all, the international community at the time did not recognize the status of the new China at all, and there were no diplomatic channels for it.

You can't swindle real money just by talking; you have to let them see the terrifying power of a gas cylinder explosion firsthand.

But then another question arises...

How can we let them see us when we are separated by thousands of miles?