Chapter 9: The Story of Old Jiao and the Explosive

The brigade commander was somewhat shocked to hear Zhang Qian's words, but having weathered many storms, he immediately reacted and said to Zhang Qian: "It's great that you think this way. People of this era often hide their knowledge. I will report the school matter to the central authority. First, tell me how you plan to arrange the smokeless powder."

"First, I need to make some personnel adjustments. In our logistics department's arsenal, many of the comrades responsible for reloading bullets are veteran workers with several years of experience; their prior experience makes them pick up new skills relatively quickly." After thinking, Zhang Qian continued to the brigade commander: "I also need a batch of comrades who manufacture grenades in the arsenal. While producing smokeless powder, I can also try to teach them how to make yellow explosive."

Hearing yet another new term, and it's an explosive, Li Yunlong became interested again.

"Section Chief Zhang, what is this yellow explosive? Old Li, I've fought for so many years and this is the first time I've heard of this thing."

Hearing Li Yunlong's question, Zhang Wanhe spoke up to explain: "You Li Yunlong always complain that our border-made grenades lack power, not as good as the Japanese melon grenades, constantly saying the quality is poor and yet you come to me for them. The problem is that our border-made grenades still use black powder as the filling—something left by our ancestors, which is good, but the times keep changing and technology keeps advancing; we've already fallen behind, and falling behind means getting beaten."

Li Yunlong, hearing Zhang Wanhe's words, recalled an ambush on the Japanese when a battalion's soldiers threw grenades at the enemy's necessary route; the grenades ended up scattered all over the ground, but few exploded, because it had rained and the powder got damp. Moreover, grenades made in the border region often only burst into two halves, failing to achieve the effect expected of offensive grenades in many cases.

"Hehehe, look at what you, Old Zhang, are saying—if it can draw out pus, it's a good plaster. Those old tubes are weapons from the Qing dynasty, and Hanyang-made items are historical pieces; our soldiers may dislike them, but anything that can fire bullets is fine, as long as it can shoot the Japanese, it's a good weapon."

Bringing up the grenade matter, the brigade commander gave Li Yunlong another glare, then told Zhang Qian: "I'll arrange the personnel you need within three days, but I hope you can quickly produce the smokeless powder and yellow explosive. For our Eighth Route Army, grenades and bullets are truly vital."

The brigade commander rose from the kang, straightened his clothes, and walked toward the door; Zhang Qian and the two others also stood up to see him off. After leaving the cave dwelling, the brigade commander pointed his whip at Li Yunlong and said.

"Li Yunlong, come with me to the nd Regiment and the Independent Regiment. I want to see how these two regiments allocate weapons and the morale of their soldiers. You brat, if you dare to openly come to the logistics department for weapons again, I'll break your leg! And you say the logistics department is like a landlord wealthy old miser, but when Zhang Qian returned he gave our Eighth Route Army a large batch of material for making cotton clothes, and in a little over a month there will also be a batch of French weapons and equipment. The division commander said this batch of weapons is allocated to our brigade; first go with me to inspect those two regiments, then we can discuss together how to distribute them."

Li Yunlong bared his big white teeth and waved at Zhang Wanhe and Zhang Qian; behind him stood a pillar holding wine and Huzi.

"Hehehe, I knew the brigade commander cared for his people, always thinking of good things for little Li. Thank you, Section Chief Zhang; if there's anything, just call me Li Yunlong— as long as it doesn't violate discipline and I can do it, I'll definitely get it done. Old Zhang, I'm off; I'll take those few bottles of wine. The brigade commander said it's a bribe, hahaha."

Zhang Qian and Zhang Wanhe were speechless; Li Yunlong truly lived up to his shameless reputation. They first said goodbye to the brigade commander, then in unison told Li Yunlong: "Get lost, haha."

After everyone left, Zhang Qian opened the system and, using the trade interface, began to check how much copper could be exchanged for two laborers.

Two laborer workshops can yield 1.5 tons of copper per month.

"---- Damn author is going to start doing calculations again"

I checked: the weight of a 7.92mm Mauser rifle bullet, regardless of function, is generally over 20 grams, and the copper in a bullet is about half its total weight. 1.5 tons of copper can make roughly 150,000 rounds. This isn't me directly teleporting bullets from thin air; I'm providing raw material, so a little extra isn't excessive, and bullets are made gradually anyway. By the way, I revised the setting in chapter one: now, in outsiders' eyes, supplies come through legitimate channels. If you've been reading from the start, you can go back and take a look.

Zhang Qian began preparing the materials, after all, handing over improvised chemical work to the comrades is a matter that requires caution; we must ensure safety while maximizing output as much as possible.

The busy three days passed.

The comrades promised by the brigade commander also arrived, transferred from the various arsenals in the border region; they are now gathered in a larger workshop. Zhang Qian looked at this group of comrades who have struggled in the arsenal for years, continually lamenting how harsh the era's environment can be. There are old and young among them; even that old man is a disabled person missing an arm, and the youngest comrade appears to be only 167 years old. Zhang Qian walked up to them and said.

"Comrades, I am deeply grateful that you have come here from the various arsenals in the base area. The brigade commander should have told you why I gathered you all. You may not yet know me; I am Zhang Qian, the newly appointed head of the Procurement Department of the Logistics Department, established just last month. The cotton uniforms you wear are made from the cotton I brought back. This time we will produce smokeless powder and yellow explosive, which may be dangerous and could even cause deaths—are you afraid? Do you have confidence?"

At this moment, the old man missing an arm stepped forward; everyone seemed to know him, and he commanded great respect in the crowd.

"Section Chief Zhang, I'm Jiao Chun; you can call me Old Jiao. My family has been generations of old craftsmen; my ancestors started making firecrackers in Shenyang, and I've known how to make black powder since childhood. In 1931, when the Japanese invaded, I didn't want to be a slave of a conquered nation, so I, my elder brother, and our extended family of seven joined the guerrillas, where we specialized in making black powder and grenades for the guerrillas. I also know about smokeless powder and yellow explosive, and I've even researched them." Old Jiao glanced at his empty left sleeve, holding back tears, and continued: "Later, our whole family came to the base area; my elder brother, his wife, and my wife all died in explosions while making powder; my only son also died when he touched dud explosives. My two nephews—one died at Pingxingguan, the other at Guangyang. Now the Jiao family is just me alone; no family remains, my home has been taken over—what do I, Old Jiao, have to fear? I only want my death to have some value; I only want to be buried in Shenyang when I die. Section Chief Zhang, rest assured—we folks all have our stories; even if we all die here, we will still learn well from you, as long as we can drive out the Japanese, we are not afraid of death."

After Old Jiao finished speaking, the comrades responded enthusiastically; the youngest child helped the suffering Old Jiao back into the ranks.

Zhang Qian held back tears, looking at the spirited comrades, and gritted his teeth: "From now on I will lead everyone in learning; whatever the Japanese have, we will have in the future, and whatever they lack, we will also have."