Canteen System Assistance Notes

"So, my dear friends, how can I help you in America?"

"We have some start-up capital, but it might not be enough. We don't have a fully formed company yet, so we need one or more operational entities." Cheng Enshu is the most familiar of the three with the operations and financial practices of European and American companies. "In these areas," he emphasized, "if we work together, we might achieve quite an impressive performance."

He handed a stack of documents to Hammer's secretary and handed it to Hammer. Hammer briefly read the overview of the first page of the document, then he tilted his head, widened his eyes, and then narrowed his eyes, carefully studying some of the paragraphs.

After a long while, he considered his words and asked a question:

"Liu, I wonder if you were born in the United States? I think you seem a little too proficient in many things."

Chapter 54 Hello, America

Canteen System Assistance

By Forgotten Maple X

2410 words

2020-11-05 12: 00: 00

Whether it was the protagonist's halo given by the Troublesome Alien, the forced setting by the high-dimensional author, or Hammer's broad vision and Liu Helian's two-pronged negotiation strategy, the negotiations between the trio and Hammer progressed rapidly.

If the difficulty of negotiations is described as "marathon," then the negotiations between the Eighth Route Army and Hammer were more like a "relay race": both sides got what they needed and gained something.

With Hammer's cover and help, the Eighth Route Army was able to open a company in the United States and jointly operate a business with Hammer - this was very important for the Eighth Route Army operating under the Chinese Exclusion Act. Moreover, Hammer's identity was enough to shield them from some extra attention.

For example, the Song family consortium.

Hammer was going to take away the right to invest in the areas controlled by the Eighth Route Army, and the invested enterprises should enjoy national treatment - this was just a pie in the sky, and Liu Helian, Zhou Bin and others gave it without any psychological pressure - at the same time, Hammer could use some of the technologies brought by Liu Helian to apply for patents, industrial transformation and even obtain exclusive authorization, and thus get a share of the Eighth Route Army's subsequent investment journey.

To be honest, this price was not cheap, but being able to achieve such a result at this time was already quite surprising to Zhou Bin and others. Next, they would register a series of companies and open a series of businesses according to the plan.

"So, what's your suggestion?" The meeting continued, and Zhou Bin took the lead in the next section. "You said there's a way to avoid those unfriendly gazes. What exactly do we need to do?"

"You just complained about the inconvenience of traveling in the United States."

Hammer's secretary duly produced a letter of intent, which Hammer took and handed to the three men in front of him: "Then let's become standard American businessmen, how about that?

"I remember that Liu's overseas company is still lacking a leader. Why not let this job be handed over to a professional?"

This was a letter of recommendation and a share purchase agreement: Hammer would introduce Liu Helian to the Qichang Foreign Company as an American shareholder. This would give Liu Helian's Haojing channel a legitimate endorsement, and even allow him to compete with Liu Helian's overseas channels. Isn't it normal for a Chinese shareholder of the Qichang Foreign Company to have a channel company in Haojing?

"Look, now you've become an American businessman, right? Mr. Chang really likes American businessmen."

Thanks to the strong purchasing power of the US dollar at the time, when $5 could make one a wealthy family and owner of a business, Liu Helian and others could still accomplish a lot with their $50 capital. With Hammer's help, Liu Helian first used part of his capital to purchase shares in foreign banks, then registered a number of companies, borrowed some money, supplemented his capital, and gradually established what would later become known as the "China Resources System," a red overseas front.

This group will nominally undertake domestic import and export business and establish a cooperative relationship with Qichangyang Bank. In fact, it will become the Eighth Route Army's procurement channel and technology transfer channel in the United States in the future. At the same time, it will find a place to settle for those companies established and acquired by Liu Helian due to organizational arrangements and independent decision-making.

For example, while the aftermath of the Great Depression was still lingering, Liu Helian acquired a cannery in Arizona and, using this as a pretext, began purchasing tin ore on the international futures market to produce tinplate canned goods. The company's contents were a newly established joint venture under the Hammer Cattle Enterprise, the "Delicious Protein Powder Company." In reality, it was a mealworm farm invested in by Zhou Bin. It supplied protein feed to the Hammer cattle farm while also pressing mealworm powder into protein bricks, which were then packaged into canned goods at the cannery and submitted to the US Army for rations bidding. Files shared via Baidu Netdisk: "500 Historical Military Books, Such as Xirang..."

链接:https://pan.baidu.com/s/14V6X4c1IALlypl9XF9_g9Q?pwd=j3ut

Extraction code: j3ut Copy this content to open

For example, through Hammer's introduction, Liu Helian met Henry Ford, an industrial capitalist who disdained financial influence and believed in large-scale industry and mass production. Using Hammer's Goodyear shares, Liu Helian transformed the first generation of radial reinforced rubber tire technology, gaining access to the Ford consortium. He then acquired some key equipment from Ford Steel for the Eighth Route Army's Huinong Iron Works and established a new aircraft manufacturing facility, the "Skunk Works," under Ford Motor Company. This facility planned to "develop" aircraft, train aviation talent for the Eighth Route Army, and, incidentally, meet the United States' robust demand for aircraft manufacturing during World War II.

Finally, Liu Helian also registered a pharmaceutical company called Celta Health, into which he injected some newly registered patents and projects, such as Eucommia ulmoides extract and "a bactericidal actinomycete product", in preparation for the next step.

The rest of 1937 flew by. As the war against Japan continued to worsen, Liu Helian and his companions felt as if they were isolated from the ravages of war. In the United States, while the shadow of the Great Depression still lingered, the country remained peaceful and tranquil.

It was as if, under the shining light of Roosevelt's New Deal, the American people could really have a turkey on the table and a car in the garage.

This gave everyone on the Eighth Route Army delegation, especially Liu Helian, a strange illusion: the war, hardship, and struggles of their distant homeland had little to do with them. This peaceful and tranquil life seemed to belong to them and everyone around them. But it was ultimately an illusion, a potentially fatal one for underground workers. Amidst the complex and difficult work, Liu Helian had to constantly remind himself that this distant ocean wasn't home. This comforting sense of ease was merely a fleeting illusion, belonging not to him, much less to the people back home.

They came with a mission.

During the short Christmas holiday, the three main members of the delegation were finally able to put aside their busy work and gather again at the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco to share their work gains during this period.

"On my side, in addition to running the many companies established by Comrade Liu, I've also established connections with overseas Chinese leaders in the United States. Honestly, their influence is still quite significant at the grassroots level here—especially in the Southeast Asian region. Recruiting Southeast Asian machinists and purchasing rubber futures and spot goods are already on track. The American rules are certainly difficult, but once you understand them, getting things running is pretty straightforward."

Zhou Bin handled his job with ease. Compared to the China Resources system in China, which had to avoid the KMT's exclusion and blockade and did not attract too much attention, the system in the United States obviously had more room to display its capabilities.

After saying this, he sighed, "Honestly, the United States is truly powerful. As much as I hate to admit it, its industrial and commercial development far surpasses even the Soviet Union. The gap between us is even greater, so great that it makes me a little despair."

"Canada also has a very good industrial base. Although not as strong as the United States, it is probably the most promising among the Commonwealth countries."

Liu Helian's thoughts were interrupted by Cheng Enshu. Unlike him, Cheng Enshu was sent to Canada to perform some business tasks after arriving in the United States.

"However, the business landscape varies greatly between different Canadian provinces. Some provinces even have written laws that exclude Asians. If it weren't for my American identity, my actions would be greatly hindered. Fortunately, I have fulfilled my mission and completed all the tasks assigned to me by the organization."

"On my side, the planned plan is basically complete. Next, I will go back to contact Remington and Westinghouse to complete the matters regarding munitions and supplies."

Liu Helian wrote down the work of the three people in his notebook, and planned to use his mobile phone to send it back to the cafeteria terminal in Fushe to report the progress of his work in the United States.

"Then I'm going to England."

Chapter 55 Hello, Winchester

Canteen System Assistance

By Forgotten Maple X

2411 words

2020-11-06 12: 00: 00

In addition to approaching the Marine Corps and working to expand the production of the M1 mountain gun, Liu Helian and his team also had the task of purchasing some light weapons in the United States.

The central government's primary target was the large inventory of Mosin-Nagant rifles remaining at the Remington factory. These were orders placed during the Tsarist era, and Remington had successfully fulfilled them with American-style quality and extravagance, but later became unable to deliver them. Liu Helian and his team acquired a large portion of the inventory, along with the corresponding molds, machine tools, and machining equipment, at a relatively low price. Some of these items were also located at the Westinghouse factory, which manufactured boilers and pressure vessels and were now in a state of disuse, and could be purchased at a very low price.

This way, the border region could complete its Soviet weaponry upgrade at a much faster pace. After all, compared to the Soviet Union's direct supply method of transporting supplies from the Yaodu port via third-country freighters, truck transportation via the Northwest Passage was ultimately inferior. If something can be produced domestically, it's best to produce it yourself. This was the central government's intention.

However, after the Remington and Westinghouse deals were finalized, Liu Helian unexpectedly received a letter. The letter was delivered to him through the arms dealer he had found. The envelope had a red wax-sealed paper ribbon and a rather unrestrained cowboy logo on the wax seal.

Oh, it's Winchester.

Why did Winchester contact me? What did this century-old company from New Haven, Connecticut, have in mind? Because most of the time, it was disguised as Hammer, and most of these purchases were believed to be Soviet equipment for its own use or external aid, Liu Helian believed he hadn't been exposed to the Japanese or the KMT.

He read the letter with a frown. It was filled with sincere nonsense written in Russian, with a bunch of etiquette and greetings that Russians liked. At the end, the writer hoped to pick a time for Liu Helian to accept a friendly visit from Wenchang.

Liu Helian suddenly realized: Oh, it turns out that you, the landlord of Winchester, have no surplus food!

At the turn of 1937 and 38, Winchester was having a tough time. The U.S. Army's next-generation standard rifle had been designated the "Garand M1" semi-automatic rifle, and Winchester's semi-automatic rifle was unfortunately not selected. For this century-old manufacturer, it was doing everything it could to convince the U.S. Army to abandon the "unreliable" Garand and replace it with the "G30" semi-automatic rifle it had developed at its own expense:

You see, this thing is difficult to produce, the design is unreliable, and it is very expensive to make. Why don’t you just forget it and take a look at my product?

However, the US Army remained unmoved, wanting only to produce the M1. Driven by pressure to survive, Winchester even attempted to bid for contract production of the Garand M1 rifle; however, even then, Winchester initially failed to win the bid, with the earliest production orders being snatched away by the state-owned Springfield, leaving it in dire straits.

So, at this time, a freight forwarder appeared who seemed to be a Russian buying standard rifles for his younger brother. Wen Factory naturally wanted to seize the opportunity and quickly took action to grab the order.

After accepting the invitation, Liu Helian soon waited for a customer manager with US dollars. When the other party stated his origin directly and began to hint at kickbacks, Liu Helian poured cold water on the smiling and straightforward manager.

"I'm sorry, sir. For the time being, we plan to use Soviet-made three-caliber bullets as our primary ammunition. Well, I understand that German bullets are more common in the Far East, but we don't plan to completely switch to American ammunition," Liu Helian tactfully made an excuse. "I think the recoil of this ammunition might be too strong if fired continuously."

"But you, as a knowledgeable person, must understand that one soldier with a semi-automatic rifle can defeat five soldiers with bolt-action rifles! Your country only needs to equip a small number of semi-automatic rifles to defeat a large number of Japanese troops!" Seeing that the bribery of preserved fruits and Tsarist Russian special forces had failed, the account manager opposite, who had also mastered the essence of customer marketing, quickly switched to bragging without hesitation, "The powerful US Army chose the semi-automatic rifle as its next-generation weapon, and for a reason!"

"But semi-automatic rifles consume more bullets." Liu Helian searched his mind for the military idiot's remarks and continued to negotiate with the other party. "Bullets are not cheap."

"That's for poorly trained soldiers! Skilled soldiers can use semi-automatic weapons to get more shooting opportunities, and they actually use fewer bullets to kill an enemy."

"Hmm... You seem to have convinced me." Liu He nodded, pretending to know nothing. "Then we should go to the army and buy some of the new rifles they are preparing to equip. Can Winchester produce that new type of rifle?"

The account manager was stuck. Winchester naturally couldn't produce the M1 Garand rifle. However, he quickly realized, "That new rifle was designed by Garand. How can an inexperienced novice designer compare with our experienced designer, Mr. Jonathan Browning? The Garand rifle is not only difficult to produce, but also very expensive. It is not suitable for use as a general military equipment!"

"So, does Winchester have any new cutting-edge products? Can I buy them right away?"

Liu Helian knew that at this time, Winchester's semi-automatic design "G30" rifle had not yet completed the final design. It only had Mr. Browning's prototype with serious defects. It was not capable of being put into production immediately, and it was impossible to buy it off the shelf - the perfect G30 would not appear until 40 years later.

After pondering for a while, the account manager touched his nose and his eyes swayed from side to side, like a tumbleweed running around on a windy day.

"Mr. Liu, Winchester actually has no problem with OEM production of Mosin-Nagant.

"We've previously manufactured many British Enfield rifles and have extensive experience. If you're interested..."

Seeing that Liu Helian didn't say anything, he added,

"If you've already bought enough at Remington... bullets will do, too."

However, Liu Helian did not let the account manager go empty-handed in the end. He used some of the funds saved from price negotiations in procurement to buy some of Winchester's signature products: the 12-type shotgun. This kind of thing has a good response in the American civilian market and has a long history and is well-tested. At the same time, he imitated the method of overseas Chinese donating supplies to China and customized a batch of Winchester M7 hunting rifles using 54R bullets from Winchester. He also made some sights for the top marksmen in China who can shoot 400 meters with the naked eye.

Although trench fighting like World War I is unlikely to be common in China, with the improvement of the Eighth Route Army's offensive capabilities, there will probably be a lot of urban street fighting through holes in walls in the future. In addition, due to the close combat needs in guerrilla areas, these shotguns can still play a role. High-precision hunting rifles with sights can help "sharpshooters" like Long Shujin, who can kill three Japanese officers with one magazine, to perform better.

Moreover, maintaining a good cooperative relationship with Winchester will be very useful in the future.

Apart from anything else, Liu Helian knew that in World War II, the most famous product of the Winchester Arsenal was the self-defense weapon used by the so-called "second-line personnel": the compact and exquisite M1 carbine - this was his favorite item in the Winchester product library.

"Many issues in the US are almost resolved. Next, I will prepare to leave for the UK."

Liu Helian pressed the send button, and the green WeChat chat group fell silent for a moment. Then, the only two other users replied with a message:

"Have a nice trip and stay safe."

Chapter 56 Huinong No. 1 Blast Furnace

Canteen System Assistance

By Forgotten Maple X

2185 words

2020-11-09 12: 00: 00

The Gregorian New Year of 38 has long passed, and the Lunar New Year has also passed. Normally, it should be the end of the first lunar month, the farming off-season has not yet passed, and the winter is still there, but it is time to start preparing for the new year's spring sowing.

But at the Huinong Steel Plant construction site, the work was nearly non-stop, 18 hours a day, a frenzy of activity. The food stewards rushed back and forth, the directors blew their whistles furiously, and the tamping workers chanted. Farther away, shift changers emerged from borrowed shacks and houses, forming a massive stream. "Traffic police," waving red and green flags, raced toward the construction zone's entrance, ready to direct the massive shift change.

As for why it doesn't run 24 hours a day, it's probably because the fuel supply from the cafeteria's high-fire stove and the backup generator's oil tank is too inefficient to supply those 30Kw diesel generators to keep running all the time.

Starting with a few hundred men, the force gradually expanded to over a thousand. Soldiers from the 165th Division, newly formed construction engineers, and mobilized civilians—nearly ten thousand people—toiled on this newly cleared land, participating in the construction of the Eighth Route Army's first major project. By the time the Battle of Jinyang began in September, the recruited workers from Shanxi Province had gradually arrived, and the pace of construction had dramatically increased. With the influx of experienced, systematically trained workers, the Huinong Steel Plant's No. 9 blast furnace was finally ready for ignition.

It's like an archer who draws the bow and puts a long, sharp arrow on it.

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"The coking coal plant isn't completely finished yet, but Huinong's coal has a very high lump rate, and the coal preparation plant can produce a lot of lump coal. The mining and beneficiation of magnetite are now well established, and the flux sintering equipment is in operation. Now we can surpass the Americans. There are a lot of lime and fluorite loaded at the starting point of the feed car, all sorted. But calcium carbide? We haven't got any yet, and the calcium carbide plant is still working on it."

"Okay, go ahead."

Lu Gangtie patted the dark-faced man with glasses on the shoulder and pushed him away. He was now the on-site commander, belonging to the "front-line command center" of the general construction commander, responsible for all on-site work. He turned around and caught a man pushing a railcar.

"Have you checked the roof? Is the lining done? Is the bottom ready?"

"Don't worry! The furnace roof seal was puttyed by us ourselves. Even a blade can't penetrate it, and the blast furnace gas can't escape. The furnace interior is all made with magnesia bricks and alkali linings provided by Dingyan, so there's no problem. I checked the furnace bottom half an hour ago, and the steel plates are almost in place," said the man, wearing an armband on his shoulder, clearly a squad leader. A cart was piled with heavy scaffolding parts, and he didn't want to stop. "Old Lu, you've been really crazy today! This is the third time you've asked a question—if there were any more problems here, the blast furnace in Jinyang would have collapsed long ago!"

"That's what you said!"

Lu Gangtie glared at the other man, his voice rising a notch. "How can our No. 1 furnace compare to that thing from Jinyang? If I find any problems, all the cigarettes for next week will be yours!"

After saying that, regardless of the squad leader's pleas for mercy, he turned around and ran towards the blast furnace.

For a year, Lu Gangtie watched this blast furnace rise from the ground up, piece by piece with refractory bricks, from the furnace floor to the body, then to the charge port and throat, ultimately transforming into a massive "chimney" filled with pipes, thin at the top and thick at the bottom. With the dismantling of the tripod, this treasure, like his own child, finally revealed its full form. He wouldn't tolerate any minor issues at this crucial moment!

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"Lao Du! Lao Du!"

Lu Gangtie yelled at the top of his lungs, his voice a little hoarse, "Cough cough cough, fuck, Lao Du!"

"Lu Gong?"

A dark head popped out from the construction hole under the blast furnace that had not yet been closed. It was Du Youlin.

"How's the furnace bottom? Is the mix accurate? Is each layer evenly laid and firmly rammed? Have you tested the water-cooling base to see if there are any leaks?"

Faced with the machine-gun-like questions, Du Youlin's brain immediately froze. He waited for Lu Gangtie to finish his barrage of questions and stared at him for a long time before he suddenly reacted.

"Ah, ah, the base has been laid a long time ago, and now they're laying steel plates... To be honest, when I was in Jinyang before, there was no need to lay steel plates under the blast furnace..."

"The steel plates are to prevent the molten iron from coming down and damaging the furnace bottom." Lu Gangtie rummaged through the bag on his back and found a pair of leather shoes with iron plates. He kicked off his cloth shoes and carefully put them on his feet. "Forget it, forget it. Come on, give me a hand, let me take a look."

A nearby worker reached out and hauled the internationally educated engineer up, like a dusty steelworker. He put on his shoes, pulled out a flashlight, and stamped and jumped on the carbon bricks at the furnace bottom, where a layer of steel plates lay. He assessed the tamping process, then squatted down to check the tightness of the steel plates against the furnace bottom. He inspected the iron and slag holes, and finally nodded thoughtfully.

"It's okay, it's okay..."

Lu Gangtie, his face completely blackened to a charcoal black, rubbed his hands and looked up at the furnace roof. The sky could still be seen from the bottle-shaped blast furnace. The charging bell and the blast furnace flue gas recovery pipe had not yet been connected to the final section. There were still a few holes in the furnace roof, letting sunlight in, creating a bright spot. He looked around. The furnace lining stretched upward like stacked bricks, densely packed together, leaving behind air ducts and eventually disappearing at the top of the furnace's legs.

It's like connecting the steel in the blast furnace with the sun outside the blast furnace.

It seems to connect the present facing the loess and the future shining with light.

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"Old Du, please keep a close eye on this place,"