Canteen System Assistance Notes

"Being a teacher isn't bad either. Let me tell you, if you teach a lot of students, when you're older, you'll have students all over the world..."

A lot of information could be gleaned from this kind of open, seemingly innocuous chatter. Although he hadn't received any Blue Hat training, and even had no intention of gathering intelligence, Midiwedev had mastered this point on his own: compared to the areas ruled by the Guofu, which mostly relied on private schools for primary education, with a few schools providing secondary and higher education, the "border areas" not only established elementary schools but also divided secondary education into military, vocational, teacher training, and general education, cultivating diverse talents.

Although it may not be big enough in terms of scale, the organizational form is much more advanced.

After saying goodbye to the worker, Mr. Xiong took out a net bag from his pocket and walked into the neatly arranged shelves to buy things.

The three doors are quite deep. When you look up, you can see the signs for "Food Area" and "Non-Food Area". I guess they are for the illiterate, as they have pictures on them.

The worker walked towards the "school supplies" area with familiarity.

Go, go pick out what he needs.

"Okay, I also need to record the types of goods and try to make it as comprehensive as possible." Midiwedev took off the cap of his pen and began to record.

"Here we have shochu, made from kaoliang, which is quite good and has a very nice aroma. We also have yellow wine, made from glutinous rice, but what's the famous trademark on it... Oh, there's also beer, with an alcohol content of 3%, it's Hans brand, and it even has a picture of a cabin in the snow, which is quite exquisite.

"Hmm, there's actually foreign liquor here, but it looks like not many people buy it. It's all covered in dust. Let me see, red wine, whiskey, Japanese sake...even cocktails."

Mr. Xiong was completely unaware that his feet had carried his body unconsciously to the "alcoholic beverages" area, and he didn't react at all. He only remembered that there was a row of things, all of which were alcoholic beverages.

"Well, we need to evaluate the liquor the Eighth Route Army sells, especially the ones they brew themselves—we won't know the results if we don't drink a little, right? The commander asked me to investigate more, and this is a necessary part of the investigation. Besides, everyone will have to drink a little during their rest time over the next few days, right?"

Inexplicably, Midi-Wedov quickly convinced himself. He grabbed the bottles on the shelf and stuffed them into the bag. "This needs to be judged, too."

"What is this? I've never seen it before. Try it."

"This thing is so beautiful, I wonder how it tastes?"

Bottle after bottle, like a giant Siberian hamster clinging to a honeycomb, the sturdy Mr. Bear scoured the entire aisle, wanting this and that. With a strange sense of investigation and analysis, he filled his net bag to the brim. Finally, he went to the food section and weighed out a bag of glutinous rice noodles to go with his wine.

He stood in line, exchanged his rubles for Guanghua notes, or Border Region currency, the currency used in the Border Region, and then handed them to the salesperson at the exit to count and pay. Comrade Kosygin handed him just enough rubles to buy a large variety of liquor. Seeing the salesperson's indifferent expression, Mr. Xiong quickly walked out of the supply and marketing store and strolled down the street.

It's still early, what should I do next?

"Hmm, hmm, really good, so many wines... We all went to dinner tonight and couldn't enjoy so many fine wines. Then let me reluctantly help my comrades judge the quality of these wines!" Midiwedev walked briskly, and the wine bottles in the net bag clanged. As for the task of observing the type of goods in detail, he had long thrown it to Siberia.

As the leader of the delegation, Alexey Nikolayevich Kosygin possessed considerable self-control. After a night of intense drinking, he finally managed to control himself and avoid drinking excessively. After forcing himself to stay awake and leading the group back to the guesthouse, he finally gave in to the drowsiness and fell asleep.

But when he woke up the next morning, a polite comrade from the fraternal party came to him and asked him to go to the Fushe Police Station. Hmm? What for?

"Oh, that's right, Comrade Alexei."

The young man who came to report the incident replied in a serious and businesslike manner: "Last night, a fellow villager in the area called the police, saying that a big-nosed foreigner was carrying a lot of alcohol.

Wandering around the streets, hugging everyone he saw. Then, for some reason,

He found a fellow villager's stone mill, sat down on it, and started spinning it while holding the millstone. In the end, he actually fell asleep while holding the millstone.

"The police checked him out and found him to be fine, though extremely drunk. He had an ID on him that showed he was a translator for the Soviet delegation..." "Oh, I see, I see. I'm so sorry, my dear comrade. I'll go right away."

Kosygin felt a headache, like a hangover. No, no, this won't do, he thought. We must ban alcohol from the delegation! Especially for the interpreters!

Chapter 222 Performance Report

Drinking is drinking, and business is business. After sobering up, you still have to investigate the things that need to be investigated.

However, it is not known whether the strange joke that "the Russians will give in when talking after losing a drinking match" is true or false. Anyway, judging from the results, the Soviet side basically had sufficient communication with the Eighth Route Army on the itinerary of this visit and did not make any overly troublesome demands.

According to the plan, the delegation would travel north and then west along the axis from Fushe to Huinong, inspecting the Eighth Route Army's military, industrial, transportation, and administrative systems along the way. Although, according to Kosygin, this was primarily to deepen understanding of this southern fraternal party—after all, given previous events, information obtained through a small number of second-hand sources could easily be tainted with personal opinions, so it would be better to observe it firsthand.

However, the Eighth Route Army, well-versed in radio signals, knew that at the same time, a team of serious diplomats was en route to the mountain city, the temporary capital, to investigate the preserved fruit industry's use of Soviet loans for comparison. In short, this was Dalinzi's "invigilation." As "examinees," the Chinese side's "preparations" were clearly foreseen by the Soviets, and the Soviet delegation had no fear of the Eighth Route Army's pre-emptive arrangements.

After all, in their minds, if you can create a sustainable social governance system, an industrial production model that can export products, and a team of soldiers who can defeat the enemy in this poor and backward country through fraud and showmanship, then this kind of "fraud" can no longer be called fraud.

Of course, from the Chinese perspective, the issue has never been how good our performance is, but rather ensuring that the Russians see what we want them to see. In this regard, the Central Committee entrusted this task to Mr. Kang, who excels in this area.

"Report—Commander, reporting to the exercise troops, 1st Company of the 3rd Independent Regiment, 344th Brigade, 115th Division, ready! Please give instructions!"

The Kawaguchi Engineering Training Camp, an engineering school located near Fushi Airport, became the first stop for the Soviet inspection. Part of the 334th Brigade, currently training there, became the main force in this "operation." They were brought back from Hebei Province by Xu Yuanqing and brought to the border region for training. There was a total of one veteran regiment and two new regiments, and many of them were receiving formal military training for the first time.

"The performance report begins now!"

After recuperation, Xu Yuanqing spoke with full energy. He was about to be sent south to support the New Fourth Army, and this performance was a good opportunity to test the troops' achievements. He nodded to the principal beside him, Chen Youque, who took out his microphone and announced the start of the performance.

"First event, the military boxing performance, begins! Prepare for combat!"

The training sessions presented for public viewing and evaluation are distinct from actual training; rather, they fall under the umbrella of a "performance report." In a brief window of opportunity, how can the military's ethos and training standards be fully demonstrated to the reviewers? A set of military boxing exercises, designed to strengthen the body, is a good option. The squad leaders below shouted "one, two, three" in a rhythmic rhythm, while soldiers from a company trotted into the arena, executing the prescribed routines in unison, including blocking punches, tripping legs and elbow presses, and lunging elbow strikes. Finally, at the command, they concluded in unison.

Ah, I have to say, seeing over a hundred people moving in unison, following orders, was quite a spectacle. The two Soviet officers on the stage clapped their hands in satisfaction. It seemed that at least these soldiers were well-nourished and could follow orders and act in unison.

"Second event, comprehensive obstacle course, begins!"

The soldiers, forming two columns, ran from the left and right sides of the parade ground. Someone brought several iron hoops, placed them on the ground, and then lit them with torches. Two soldiers emerged from the ranks and, with swift and agile movements, leaped over the high plank walls, holes in the low walls, shell craters, and other obstacles set up on the field. After clearing all the obstacles, they leaped through the flaming hoops, rifles in hand.

Then, the two armed soldiers loaded their submachine guns with magazines. One aimed, the other held the gun at the hip, and as they rushed forward, they fired at several human-shaped targets erected in the path. Through the binoculars of several Soviet personnel, the multiple human-shaped targets, large and small, arranged within a fifty-meter range, were quickly struck by a barrage of bullets, falling from their iron racks to the ground.

"it is good!"

Sergei Semyonovich Biryuzov, the military commander, couldn't help but cheer for the group of soldiers through the telescope. Compared to the more showy boxing routine, this set of tactical moves seemed more practical and better demonstrated their superior technical and tactical skills.

"The third item is rapid-fire target practice!"

Soldiers armed with submachine guns retreated, while others carrying rifles ran in. They lay down in front of small armored camps, took aim at human-shaped targets about two hundred meters away, and began firing. At this distance, it was difficult to tell if a target had been hit. Therefore, balloons were attached to the targets. Whenever a bullet penetrated the paper, the balloons would fly up, signaling a hit. With the crisp crack of Lao Mo's gun, colorful balloons popped out, drawing cheers.

Biryuzov stroked his chin, thinking that these Eighth Route Army soldiers should be able to reach the qualified level of Soviet Army recruits. "Comrade Xu Yuanqing, have they really only trained for six months?"

"Yes." After listening to the translator's retelling, Xu Yuanqing explained, "They are mainly new recruits we recruited in Hebei Province, reorganized civilian armed forces, and a small number of Kuomintang troops who rebelled. To be honest, before coming here, even the Kuomintang soldiers had very poor training and could not be called qualified soldiers. Some even had strong peasant and bandit habits.

"However, most people are not bad at heart. They've simply suffered too much oppression and hardship, making them instinctively cunning and mercenary. Under our June new training regulations, in the melting pot that is the military, we will not only ensure clear rewards and punishments, but also help them recognize their class identity and the purpose and significance of their battles."

He pointed to the soldiers who had completed their performance and said, "Although Moscow can't be built in a day, we will persevere." "The fourth item is artillery firing! Artillery unit, prepare to fire!"

"That's pretty good!" Looking at the withdrawing riflemen and the incoming 45mm anti-tank guns, Biryuzov expressed sincere admiration. He was aware of the current chaos within the Soviet Army's internal training system: Currently, Soviet riflemen's training often felt like "letting their horses run wild in the mountains," with inconsistent training levels across units and even shooting conducted at a distance of 100 meters.

"If you can provide this level of training intensity and ensure that it reaches the majority of troops, these recruits, after combat training, can grow into warriors no less capable than the Soviets."

-—―—————

"Greetings, Soviet comrades. Now, please point out the target. You can choose from several targets."

"Oh, let me introduce you, this is our artillery instructor Jia Guofu, he is our artillery expert." Xu Yuanqing made way, "Come, Instructor Jia, let us show you our artillery skills." "Okay, Chinese comrades, I will..."

Biryuzov pondered for a few seconds. "I'll choose the tree between targets number three and two as my target." He stretched out his hand and pointed at a dead tree in the distance. "I want to see if the Eighth Route Army soldiers can quickly hit this unprepared target!"

"You know, there's no enemy on the battlefield that can march according to predetermined parameters!"

Chapter 223 Soviet Suggestions

“This is a masterpiece!”

After a week of bumpy rides northward on the gravel road, the Soviet delegation visited the artillery school in Wuqi, the chemical plant and magnesia brick factory in Dingyan, the transport convoy service area in Batuwan, and the Soviet-aided horse farm next door—where we found numerous Don Warhorses and Tsarist heavy draft horses imported from the Soviet Union, as well as Qinghai and Mongolian horses for breeding. Peter Kirillovich Koshevoi, a cavalryman, couldn't resist the urge to ride a horse for a long time before finally giving up.

However, when everyone took a flat-bottomed ferry across the Yellow River and arrived at Huinong District, a scene completely different from what they had seen before, and even completely different from other places in the country, came into view - tall towers, dense pipelines, and roaring whistles. Although such a scale was not considered a "big factory" for the six Soviet people who had participated in the construction of real large-scale industries, it was completely not on the same level as several industrial clusters in the Soviet Union.

However, in this land that is supposed to be occupied by "peasants wearing conical hats and alert guerrillas with guns", it is not surprising to see such a mature industrial design style.

, a disciplined construction, and "small but complete" industrial

When you are in love, it always makes people impulsive.

Among them, the metallurgical expert Vasily Vasilyevich Kuznetsov in the visiting delegation was in deep shock.

"Comrade Thirteen, is this really something you guys did?"

"Yes, Comrade Valisi! This is what we built, bit by bit, from scratch. Wang Dexi, I, and many other comrades have contributed our knowledge and wisdom, and of course, the guidance and support of the Party Central Committee is indispensable." Yang Shisan stood energetically beneath the large and tall main distillation tower of the "Huinong Air Separation Plant," his hands on his hips, as if looking at a promising son. "When I was studying for my doctorate in the United States, I saw even more spectacular equipment than this - but those were other people's, not ours. The Huinong Plant may be a little smaller, but I can say that the innovative designs it possesses are among the best in the world!"

As an expert in inorganic chemistry, papermaking, and machinery for the Eighth Route Army, a genuine American-educated doctorate, and a skilled combat commander, Yang Shisan was now in high spirits. His Huinong Air Separation Plant not only provided vital liquid oxygen to Huinong Steel and Huinong Machinery Plant, but also supplied liquid nitrogen to the already operational Wuda Chemical Plant for the synthesis of amino compounds, which were used to produce combat fuel and agricultural fertilizers.

"Back then, General Zhu sent a telegram specifically to pull me out of the troops involved in the Jidong Uprising and send me back to the rear to recuperate. Ha, I even complained at the time why they didn't let me lead the troops to fight the Japanese!" "You've even fought in a war?" Kuznetsov was even more astonished. Just how many jobs had this guy done?

"Of course, we started an uprising in eastern Hebei at the time, defeated the Japanese invaders' blockades all the way back to the base. I commanded a regiment and even captured a Japanese staff officer!" "Please allow me to express my respect for you first, and then criticize you."

Kuznetsov grabbed Yang Shisan's hand and frowned. "Respect is given to you as a comrade from a friendly party, and criticism is given to you as a technical expert." He pointed to the roaring compressors and distillation towers behind him, as well as the pipes emitting mist.

"You're taking too much risk!"

"If there are more than two uncertainties in a battle, the commander will tend not to initiate it. And if more than one-third of the construction of an industrial zone uses new technologies, then the designer of this industrial zone is irresponsible!"

Vasily Vasilyevich Kuznetsov found a brick to sit on and said seriously: "I know what you want to say. I have heard it many times along the way: "Our technology is all purchased from the West, and we just splice and integrate it with existing technical equipment."

“Indeed, splicing and integrating off-the-shelf products is a very good method. But do you know what you are splicing together?”

As if heartbroken, Kuznetsov pointed out the surrounding equipment: Refrigeration to separate air! Using oxygen to smelt molten iron! The open-hearth furnace is even divided into two reaction chambers! Comrade Thirteen, did you know that the Soviet Union is only now using 50% oxygen-enriched gas to smelt steel in experimental furnaces?

"You've never built a large steel complex, and yet you're blowing pure oxygen directly into the furnace. You haven't even conducted repeated scientific experiments to determine the flow rate, concentration, or temperature. As an expert, aren't you afraid of the smelter exploding?"

"It's an air separator, and it's an expansion cycle compressor. That over ten-meter-long separation tower is stuffed with hundreds of steel sheets. Each sheet is incredibly thin stainless steel, riddled with holes! Even the Soviets were short of foreign exchange, and you dared to spend so much precious foreign currency on this?"

"What if the finished product doesn't work? What if it doesn't meet the specifications? What if it's completely different from what you planned?" "I just want to ask, are all of you Eighth Route Army soldiers reckless lunatics?"

His speech was like a machine gun, filled with a huge amount of metallurgical terminology. The translator, Mr. Xiong, who was forbidden to drink, was stunned for a long time before he finished the translation. After listening to the retelling, Yang Shisan replied without thinking:

"You are right, Comrade Varisi, but

"But we can't wait."

"I studied in a formal academic environment. Naturally, I understand scientific experimental methods. I'm also aware of the difficulties a technology faces when it moves from the lab to the factory floor."

Yang Shisan recounted the story slowly, his back turned to the roaring distillation tower. "According to normal thinking, a factory like this, built using existing technology but with a completely new approach, would have to first establish a small-scale pilot plant. After several years of debugging, coordination, and improvement, a feasible, scalable fixed plan would be established before large-scale construction could proceed. This wouldn't be the current approach of building and debugging simultaneously, while experimenting with improvements or maintaining the status quo to maintain production."

"But if that's the case, it will take at least five years before we can complete the construction of this factory area." He turned around and asked,

"Comrade Varisi, please imagine this. Imagine that the Soviet Union has an immature but usable weapon. It may still need a lot of improvement, and it may even be considered an outdated product in the eyes of advanced thinking. But now, the White Bandit Army is allying with the imperialist intervention forces to try to extinguish the flames of the October Revolution.

"Right now, that kind of weapon, on the other hand, can be quickly put into production, rapidly arming armies of hundreds of thousands, even millions, creating a powerful fighting force to repel the White Bandit Army. Now, will you ask everyone to wait and see until this weapon is improved and developed before production begins? Or will you first equip the troops with this imperfect but usable weapon, taking the risk?"

What's more, we know that this method is feasible - Yang Shisan thought, but ultimately did not say this out loud.

But this statement seemed to have finally conquered Kuznetsov. The serious, big-nosed expert's eyes darkened and he became a little sad. However, the critical look on his face finally dissipated a lot, and was replaced by the kind of reproach he would give to a naughty student.

"I understand, but no matter what, this is too risky and not worth promoting."

He unfolded a booklet and said, "Let me see if you have any specific questions. I can help answer them."

"Oh, there are quite a few. Yes, starting from here... they have all been translated into Russian."

Yang Shisan walked over quickly and pointed at a series of problems in the booklet: "These are the problems we encounter in actual production. We have thought of many ways, but we can't perfectly solve these problems..." "Let me see... Hmm? Too much nitrogen?"

"Yeah, too much nitrogen."

Yang Shisan threw his hands up resignedly. "Firstly, this air separation unit simply can't be made smaller. Secondly, it's custom-made in the US and Germany, and they don't sell small units. At the time, we calculated the Northwest Corridor's transportation capacity and the steel mill's production capacity, and set up the facility based on a complete steel mill and a supporting ammonia plant. As a result, the second phase of the Huinong plant hasn't been completed, and neither has the second phase of the ammonia plant—and the air separation plant's oxygen output is much less than its nitrogen output, so there's an excess of nitrogen."

"Perhaps initially, to allow for more diverse applications, the production line included nitrogen liquefaction facilities at the back end for easier transportation. However, aside from supplying nitrogen to the first phase of ammonia synthesis, the remaining nitrogen is not needed, except for some nitrogen filling areas in the packaged food factory."

"As for liquid nitrogen, the steel mill's nitriding workshop uses some, and the military horse farm uses some for frozen horse essence... I can't figure out why the comrades who went to Germany and the United States added this equipment." He pointed to a chimney at the foot of the factory where excess nitrogen was being discharged. "Is this really the only way to release it?"

Um...this question...

Kuznetsov rubbed his forehead, thinking over and over, but there seemed to be no immediate solution to consume so much nitrogen, or to utilize the equipment for producing liquid nitrogen. He had imagined many problems the Eighth Route Army might encounter, but he had never imagined it would be this kind—it left even a metallurgical expert like him unable to come up with a solution immediately.

If the equipment was already there, it would be a shame not to utilize the production capacity. If it were in the Soviet Union, there would be no shortage of nitrogen and other things, and reprocessing it into liquid nitrogen would also facilitate storage and transportation. The fact that the Eighth Route Army couldn't use up all the nitrogen and had to release it caught him off guard.

For some reason, he thought of the ice cream that the Soviet Union was vigorously promoting. After Comrade Mikoyan came back from the United States, he promoted this thing throughout the Soviet Union. It was sold in summer and winter, and it was delicious.

"Oh, my dear Comrade Thirteen, nitrogen has many uses, and the equipment for making liquid nitrogen will surely come in handy. For example, how about trying to make ice cream with liquid nitrogen?"

Chapter 224: Discussion Behind Closed Doors (Part 1)

In June 1939, when a Lockheed L14 aircraft painted with the inscription "Northern Aviation" landed at Fushi River Airport, a wisp of cloud was floating in the sky of the border area, slowly moving with the southeast wind, just like this seemingly unchanging land - nothing would change.

But beneath the peaceful heart of the Borderlands, something is changing.

After handing over some documents from the Ministry of Internal Affairs regarding the follow-up of some matters, Kosygin, on behalf of the delegation, asked the Eighth Route Army for an empty cave.

Used for internal communication of the visiting delegation.

The man in the blue hat who was accompanying the team checked the cave and said that there was no problem and they could discuss it in detail.

So, several people sat down in the cave and exchanged their experiences during this period.

"That's basically what I've seen at the steel mill. I observed the second phase of construction at the Huinong Steel Plant. They're preparing materials for a new blast furnace and refining furnace. Based on previous experience, demand for cast iron accounts for a particularly high proportion of steel demand here. They plan to add some cast iron smelting capacity in the second phase and increase the variety of refined steel to meet the needs of military construction."

Kuznetsov, a steel expert, gave his first report. "But it's the same old problem. They surprisingly don't lack senior experts or junior technicians. What they're most lacking are mid-level engineers. I even saw British and Germans in the factory, and Spanish and French in the mines. When I asked around, I found out they were all members of the International Brigade who arrived a while ago."

He offered his suggestions:

"But I estimate that if their planned production capacity is indeed 3 tons per year, these people would only be barely enough. I suggest that we send fewer aid cadres and experts, and instead add a few more teachers from advanced technical schools. Helping them train some engineers would actually be more useful."

"I agree."

Peter Kirillovich Koshevoi nodded in agreement. "I've been to their staff school and advanced classes. The textbooks they use are translated Soviet and some German texts, along with some of their own combat examples and manuals. It's very formal. However, while the trained staff officers have solid basic skills, they're a bit rusty and dogmatic when it comes to handling practical battlefield issues. They need more training."