bookmarkrole #157 - Seven and a half ideas
#157 - Seven and a half ideas
After hurrying along, stopping and starting, the delegation arrived in Wuyuan discreetly ten days later.
"Brother Cangbai, you must be tired after coming all this way. I have prepared a simple banquet to welcome you and wash away the dust. I hope you won't mind the simplicity of the frontier," Qi Lu Ban said, appearing as if he had reunited with an old friend upon seeing Staff Officer Ye.
"Brother Yisheng, you are too kind. I, Ye, have come unannounced and will be bothering you during this time," Staff Officer Ye replied with a smile.
"Not at all, not at all! I couldn't even invite someone like you if I tried! Come, come, Brother Cangbai and esteemed experts, let us drain this cup!" Qi Lu Ban said heartily, raising his glass.
Ren Zhong and Jiang Chongjing accompanied Staff Officer Ye, raising their glasses and drinking them dry.
They were merely playing the role of drinking companions tonight and didn't need to use their brains much, allowing Staff Officer Ye to chat animatedly with Qi Lu Ban about everything under the sun.
Ren Zhong hadn't expected someone like Qi Lu Ban to be so talkative. During the entire two-hour banquet, the two of them never ran out of things to say, and they seemed to have found kindred spirits when discussing the Northern Expedition.
However, nothing substantial was discussed.
On the other hand, Wang Jingwen, a guest brought by Qi Lu Ban, chatted with Jiang Chongjing and Ren Zhong, preventing them from feeling left out.
After chatting for a while, Ren Zhong realized that this man was an expert in water conservancy, so he deliberately brought up topics related to water conservancy. As expected, Wang Jingwen was quickly drawn into Ren Zhong's topics, and the two enthusiastically exchanged ideas on the management of the Yellow River.
Frankly speaking, if Ren Zhong hadn't specifically researched knowledge about water conservancy development when he was engaged in large-scale production, relying solely on common sense, he would not have been a match for Wang Jingwen at all. However, with the new experiences and achievements of the main world in water conservancy management for nearly a century, Ren Zhong's viewpoints were not only refreshing but also groundbreaking. Although some of Wang Jingwen's ideas were somewhat unbelievable, Ren Zhong spoke with certainty, and Wang Jingwen dared not easily deny them.
He greatly admired Ren Zhong's imaginative ideas.
Although Qi Lu Ban didn't have much interaction with Jiang Chongjing and Ren Zhong, he was obviously observing them during his conversation with Staff Officer Ye. Among Ren Zhong and Jiang Chongjing, Qi Lu Ban didn't expect the younger one to be more outstanding!
This invisibly increased his confidence.
To be honest, when the liaison initially conveyed the Border Region's preliminary idea of wanting to trade with him, Qi Lu Ban's first reaction was to refuse.
Because he believed that Wuyuan had no possibility of developing its own military industry, even the simplest production of bullets.
Besides the desert and grassland, there were not many people in the frontier. If he hadn't persisted in immigrating to secure the border and relentlessly developing the Hetao water conservancy over the past ten years, how could there be the current situation of Suiyuan's strong soldiers and sufficient food to protect the good situation in Hetao!
However, tonight, Qi Lu Ban was only meeting with the negotiation team to get a simple feel for the situation and had no intention of discussing serious matters at the banquet.
Therefore, the banquet ended after more than an hour.
"Brother Ren, you chatted with Wang Jingwen so much, what do you think?" Staff Officer Ye asked directly upon returning to his residence.
"They have strong doubts," Ren Zhong didn't hide his feelings. "They indirectly asked how we knew about the mineral resources in Suiyuan. This is what they can't understand the most, because they themselves don't know which places in Suiyuan have iron and copper mines."
"I pretended to say that I accidentally obtained a map of mineral resource distribution in the frontier from a foreigner, which included Suiyuan. Wang Jingwen seemed to believe it and not believe it, but we don't need to consider this. As long as we find the iron ore in our predetermined place, this problem will be easily solved."
"Tomorrow, I will take their people to find the mine. Staff Officer Ye and Minister Jiang will negotiate here. Although they may not be able to reach any agreement, they can have a preliminary understanding of their position. Once I confirm the iron ore, the negotiation will immediately accelerate, and I will assist Staff Officer Ye in bargaining with them."
"Okay, let's do as Brother Ren arranged. Tomorrow, you take a few guards with you. We are very safe in Wuyuan City. Let Wang Qiao take people with you for the guards. Although Qi Lu Ban's crackdown on bandits in Suiyuan is relatively strong, there are inevitably remnants of bandits in the frontier. We should still be careful," Staff Officer Ye said thoughtfully after listening.
At the same time, Qi Lu Ban and Wang Jingwen were also talking about this matter.
"Brother Jingwen, do you think the iron ore mentioned by the Border Region is true, or are they simply trying to deceive us?"
"Commander, I don't think they are trying to deceive us. Although we don't know how they know, they are obviously very confident in this matter. Mr. Ren Zhong, who came today, is young but has extraordinary knowledge. He can easily use knowledge in many aspects, which is completely unlike a young man. Among all the people I know, he can be said to be the first in terms of the breadth of knowledge," Wang Jingwen replied.
"Especially in water conservancy, this person's knowledge is profound, and his ideas are bold. At first glance, they seem a bit absurd, but after careful consideration, they are indeed very reasonable, thinking of what others have not thought of."
"Most importantly, if they are not sure, wouldn't it be self-deception and self-defeating to come all the way to us."
"I think the commander might as well consider whether there is really this iron ore. What requirements should we put forward to meet our needs?"
"If we can really complete our own iron ore and iron-smelting plant, I naturally hope to have an output of tens of thousands of tons of steel per year, especially the wrought iron bullets they mentioned. If this road can be opened, I will not be afraid of the lack of bullets and shells with an output of tens of thousands of tons of iron."
"I'm afraid it's not easy. Even the capital hasn't researched such key technologies as wrought iron bullets. The Border Region has come up with such advanced technology, I'm afraid we will pay a lot. As far as I know, their demand for food this time is probably a very large number. After all, the Border Region's grain production is much worse than our Suiyuan. The lack of grain has always been a major problem for them. They will definitely take this opportunity to make harsh demands on our Suiyuan, perhaps requiring tens of millions of catties every year," Wang Jingwen nodded and said with some embarrassment.
"I admire Mr. Ren's point of view very much. In this frontier, we and the Border Region should work together to resist the enemy. According to Mr. Ren's meaning, the Border Region intends to counterattack to the south bank of the Yellow River in the north. In this case, we have to consider the conquest of Jiuyuan. If our army is strong and has enough food, 100,000 troops may not be able to swallow the First Cavalry Brigade of the little devils stationed in Jiuyuan in one bite."
"The matter of counterattacking the Jiuyuan devils is not urgent. If the Border Region can indeed build this arsenal for us, what if we give them 10,000 tons of grain? Now we lack everything else in Hetao, but we don't lack this food! If we can really build our own arsenal well, even if we produce one million bullets, thousands of shells, and tens of thousands of grenades a year, Jiuyuan is just a piece of cake to me!
I'm not worried about not being able to take Jiuyuan. A mere brigade is not in my eyes. I'm worried that once Jiuyuan moves, the garrison in Mongolia will follow, and then it may attract the main force of the Kwantung Army. If we don't have our own military supply channels by then, our days will be passive.
Of course, if we can be self-sufficient in ammunition, then we are not afraid. On the frontier battlefield, the little devils will at most send one or two divisions. In such a vast land, one or two divisions are nothing under the joint attack of our 120th Division and the Border Region. Although we may not win, it is not a big problem to defend!
The third update, although late, has arrived!