A nation's industrial development begins with junior engineers.

"Alright, let's not talk about computers anymore. I heard someone say you made an 'infantry fighting vehicle'?"

"Uh, no. We only modified the 531 prototype and made some rational adjustments..."

"Oh?" The old man who loved tinkering with the air fryer walked to the table, picked up the 531 prototype blueprints that Jiang Xia had revised, and looked at the blueprints that only had a beginning written on them.

"This isn't like you at all. It's your first time drawing blank blueprints, and you've already come up with a 'cat family' lathe. Why don't you make a 'cat car'? Let me tell you, that line on the blueprint was actually said by the person in front of you. I just picked it up and said it..."

"Ha ha ha ha……"

Another old man laughed, even though he still had wine in his mouth.

"Don't listen to what he's saying, it's a cat car, or a rooster car!"

"Hey! You're stuck in that rickshaw, I'll push you away, you forgot?"

As he spoke, the old man who loved tinkering with the air fryer walked to the side, spread his legs, and assumed a horse stance: "Let me tell you, back when we were going into the mountains, this old Liu insisted that he could swim, so he plunged headfirst into the Ru River to check the water level."

"I went to the riverbank alone and looked and looked, but he didn't come up for ages. I was so anxious that I thought about going down into the river to look for him. But then I saw him swim to the other side from below, and he even had a turtle in his hand..."

"Big and tender..." The old man gestured with his hand, indicating a size the size of a large bowl.

"That's great, it shows the leader's a good swimmer, he can even get some turtle water to replenish his energy. But what does this have to do with the 'chicken cart'?" Jiang Xia continued, trying to recall what a "chicken cart" was, though the name sounded familiar...

"Hey, what a load of crap. You think he found that turtle by touching it? He just crashed into it headfirst! Everyone else uses their feet to probe the river, he used his head..."

The elderly man who loved tinkering with the air fryer ignored the other elderly man's attempts to stop him and, in his haste to dodge, revealed the embarrassing story of the elderly man with round-framed glasses.

"After the group crossed the river, he pulled me up and said: 'Oh, political commissar, I can't go on, I'm a little dizzy, can you help me?'"

"How could I possibly lift a ghost! I'm not even that big, he's twice my size. In the end, I found a rickshaw and had him sit on it. I pushed him over and we slowly swayed along behind the line..."

"There's no way around it! This guy in front shouted 'The brave win when paths cross,' and the soldiers got really into it. Then this guy started scratching turtles with his head. That won't do. If the soldiers find out, we'll be in trouble..."

Old Wang and Ding Dana had ferocious expressions, which was because they were trying to suppress their laughter.

They were just holding it in, and Old Wang felt he really couldn't stay in this room any longer. He and Ding Dana exchanged a glance: Should they leave or not?

Retreat! Are we just waiting to die if we don't?

The two men put on the same effort they had when infiltrating enemy territory, lying slightly on the ground, their bodies still, relying solely on the strength of their fingers.

"Ha ha ha ha……"

Inside the room, Little Dumb Hair burst into loud laughter. Old Wang and Ding Dana were both stunned, and their momentum to climb out immediately relaxed.

"As expected of Engineer Jiang, he dares to laugh at that? Even the top leader is blushing..."

"You brat, if you want to die, don't drag us down with you!"

The two sighed inwardly: "Well, the old man's eyes are on us now, what's the point of climbing? We might as well just squat obediently in the corner..."

……

"Alright, you've heard my embarrassing stories. Let's move on to something else. Now tell me why you don't think highly of this 531 prototype!"

"Hey, boss, what are you saying? I didn't..."

"Alright, alright, stop beating around the bush and tell me..."

Jiang Xia paused for a moment. Hey, if it weren't for the old man, others would have seen through his little scheme immediately. See? The old man brought up his past to appease him; he might as well be generous.

"Sir, you're planning to use this Type 531 armored vehicle as a 'battlefield taxi,' right? Did the leaders later decide that it would be a waste of space not to have a turret?"

"That's right, that's how it is. When the original vehicle came out, we felt that using armored vehicles only for transport was a bit of a waste..."

"Yes! We think it should advance along with the tanks!"

Wow, these old folks have a deep understanding!

Jiang Xia originally wanted to complain about the outdated way the Russians used armored vehicles.

At that time, the Russians used armored personnel carriers as taxis, without any function for coordinated attacks. Therefore, their BTR-50s were, in principle, unarmed, with later improved versions being equipped with heavy machine guns or howitzers depending on the battlefield situation.

Since the elders had such foresight, Jiang Xia didn't hold back and directly drew up the Russian BMP-1 on the spot. Anyway, the Russians were still using it as a blueprint, so Jiang Xia, with his thick skin, had no trouble using it.

Well, that's not quite right either. Little Dai Mao isn't some overpowered genius after all. What he actually drew was a rough schematic of our later replica—the ZBD-86. He had seen one of these in a military museum when he visited it, and that's how he got a general understanding of its layout.

The drawings he produced at that time were later improved versions, mainly changing the small back door into a hydraulically driven ramp-type gate.

The howitzer on top of the door was replaced with a 2M-7 twin-mounted 14.5mm naval machine gun, a copy of its predecessor. Interfaces for anti-tank missiles were also provided at both ends.

Just as the two elderly people were admiring the exterior design, they were praising it.

Jiang Xia paused writing. "Boss, that's the general idea. Compared to a 'taxi,' it has a stronger support capability. The 14.5mm twin-mounted naval machine gun can also inflict devastating damage on lightly armored vehicles on the battlefield. At the same time, anti-tank missile interfaces are reserved on both sides, so the crew inside the vehicle, in coordination with the tank, can also engage enemy tanks in a back-and-forth battle..."

"Oh, that's good, that's good! Hey, an anti-tank missile?"

"Yeah, this thing was on the list submitted by the French. It's a bit clumsy though..."

Yes, Jiang Xia was referring to the SS-10 anti-tank missile, which the French began equipping their troops with in 1956. It was chubby, with four non-folding wings, and after launch, it had a wire attached to its rear.

Although Jiangxia's tastes have become spoiled by the various top-attack missiles of later generations, the brilliance of this world's first anti-tank missile to be officially equipped by the armed forces cannot be denied.

As for why the French put something banned by COCOM into the exchange list, even Little Cannon can guess their intentions!

Don't believe me? If you don't believe me, try restarting the engine of this little powerhouse and let it spew out its own fumes.

"Good! Not bad... It's starting to look promising, even better than we expected!"

"but……"

"But what?" The old man and the young man exchanged a glance, knowing that the real show was about to begin.

"Do you two know about the cannon barrels I got in Northeast China? The ones with two holes in one shot?"

The old men fell silent. They had already witnessed the power of those tubes. Hmm? You mean the samples were all taken to the border by that factory manager?

Don't forget Old Wang, who was huddled to the side; his entire stock was used up during the demonstrations for the elderly.

"So, you mean these armored personnel carriers are completely useless?"

"Uh, no. It should be possible to sell it..."

Jiang Xia recalled how two camels fighting in later years had provided a lifeline for a group of struggling Chinese military workers, and couldn't help but blurt out this remark.

"Hey! This kid's got money to burn. You've drawn the design, you've given your reasons for not accepting it, so what exactly are you trying to do?"

"Shall we make a cat-shaped car?"