Courtyard House: I Rely on Time-Space Trade to Build a Nation

The two locked eyes, and the only sound in the cubicle was the faint hum of the machine deep inside the cave.

A few seconds later, Zhao Pingan blinked slowly, the playful expression on his face gradually fading.

Instead, a brighter and more intensely hot light has emerged.

"Old Xu," Zhao Ping'an's voice was a little dry, yet filled with an barely suppressed excitement, "you just said... that over 90% of the Northeast is now our secure rear area?"

"...Yes." Old Xu seemed to realize something as well, and his heart began to beat faster.

"The gold mine is in our hands, is it safe?" Zhao Ping'an continued, his speech gradually quickening.

"The Northeast has seaports, and while land transportation is somewhat hampered by winter snow, its railway system is well-developed... Most importantly, it's safe! We have complete control over it!"

Zhao Ping'an suddenly stood up, placed his hands on the simple wooden table, leaned forward slightly, and his eyes shone with an alarming light:

"Look, a complete steel plant with an annual output of 80 tons is too big a target, the equipment is too complex, and transporting it in by sea is too risky, easily alerting the enemy and attracting international attention. The leaders' concerns are justified!"

"but--"

He uttered those two words with emphasis:

"What if we don't want the 800,000-ton capacity, but instead... instead, a small steel mill with a capacity of 10,000 tons? Or, how about starting with a 10,000-ton rolling mill?"

Wouldn't the equipment be much smaller and lighter? If disassembled, could it be secretly smuggled into Northeast China via land routes, or even broken down into smaller parts and transported through unofficial channels?

"Build a steel mill next to a coal or iron mine! Smelt the ore directly! Supply the steel to nearby arsenals! Make guns, cannons, and shells! We'll produce whatever the front lines need! Forming a closed loop!"

Zhao Ping'an spoke faster and faster, his thoughts flowing like a spring, even becoming somewhat incoherent:

"The Northeast has coal, iron, and now gold mining capital! What we lack is advanced technology and equipment! And the equipment... I can get it! Although the output is small, the technology is advanced, and the product quality is high! More importantly, it's safe! It's entirely on our own territory!"

"With steel, gun barrel production lines can be expanded! Shell casings can be cast ourselves! Even... in the future, we'll have the material base for repairing heavy artillery and manufacturing more complex weapon components! This is no longer just a simple transaction, but an industry in our own hands! We can produce it ourselves!"

Zhao Ping'an took a deep breath, looked at Old Xu who was completely stunned, but whose eyes were also burning with a fierce flame, and said, word by word:

"Old Xu, what do you think... this is feasible?"

Old Xu stared at this comrade who was excessively young but always managed to come up with groundbreaking ideas for a good five or six seconds.

Suddenly, he slapped his thigh, his face transforming from shock into ecstatic joy and a mixture of amusement and disbelief.

"Fine! You, Zhao Ping'an! I'm truly impressed by your brain! This morning you made me inspect a gun barrel factory, just now you were talking to me about heavy artillery, and this afternoon you want me to go to the Northeast to build a steel plant! You really don't give me a single day's rest, every time there's a surprise, every time you go all out!"

He pointed at Zhao Ping'an, his fingers trembling slightly with excitement, but he couldn't stop smiling:

"You! I've finally figured it out. Partnering with you will break my old bones ten years prematurely! But... damn it! This idea sounds amazing! So amazing!"

Old Xu turned around abruptly, flung open the cubicle door, and his voice was loud with excitement:

"I'll report it over the radio right now! Every single word! The price of the heavy artillery, the transportation plan, and your astonishing idea from this 'small steel mill in Northeast China'! I'm going right now!"

He practically ran out of the cave, his footsteps echoing through the cave passage, filled with an impatient force.

The first person to meet with him was not one of these leaders, but Zhu Rui, the commander of the Northeast Field Army Artillery Column.

Zhao Ping'an held this founder of the artillery cause of our Party and our army in high esteem.

He knew that at this time, Commander Zhu was racking his brains to integrate the artillery gathered from all sides—Japanese, American, and miscellaneous types—to build a regular artillery column, and had even begun to plan the prototype of an artillery school.

The "generous gifts" he brought were undoubtedly a timely help to Commander Zhu and the powerful artillery regiment that was being built.

However, before meeting Commander Zhu Rui, Zhao Ping'an received a "generous gift".

Comrades from the logistics department of the Northeast Field Army escorted dozens of heavy boxes to Zhao Ping'an's residence under absolute secrecy.

Upon opening it, the golden light almost illuminated the entire warehouse—a full thousand large, pure-colored yellow croakers!

"Advisor Zhao, this is the first batch of funds specially approved by the headquarters leaders for this special procurement. Please check it." The comrade from the logistics department spoke solemnly.

"Thank you for the organization's trust!" Zhao Ping'an returned the greeting solemnly. He personally inspected, weighed, and recorded the gold bars, handling every procedure meticulously. After the last gold bar was counted and stored, and all outsiders had left, Zhao Ping'an closed the warehouse door alone.

Contact, exchange.

[System currency +300,000,000 (300 million) points.]

[Current system currency: 413,621,660 points.]

Even though he was prepared, Zhao Ping'an's heart still skipped a beat when he saw the huge number of over 6.4 million on the system interface.

This is not just a string of cold numbers; it represents the extent of power projection by the Industrial Cthulhu Empire on the other side of another system.

This is a tremendous force that turned the tide of the war in Northeast China and even accelerated the course of history!

Just as Zhao Ping'an was filled with excitement, that long-lost, emotionless mechanical voice rang out in his mind again, but this time, its content filled him with instant ecstasy.