A nation's industrial development begins with junior engineers.

Chapter 797 Stop complaining about being poor! It's shameful! We're just stating the facts

The leader's words were clearly transmitted via digital radio to Comrade Lantian, who was in a gyroplane over Northeast China. Every word carried immense weight, stirring a surge of emotion within this honest and straightforward army commander. He was so moved that he immediately wanted to pound his chest and assure his superior that he would never fail to live up to expectations and would complete the mission to the death!

He had just opened his mouth, and before he could even utter the word "protect," the factory manager, Xiong Huoyan, sitting in the chair next to him, swiftly covered his mouth with his own!

"Ugh...! Xiong... Xiong Da! What... are you doing!" Comrade Lantian was caught off guard by this sudden attack. He finally managed to pry open Director Xiong's hand and glared at him in a low voice.

Xiong Huoyan first glanced at the radio indicator light, which seemed to still be working, then deliberately raised his voice, pointed at the cockpit in a pretentious manner, and shouted, "Hey! Why is there such a loud electrical noise? Crackling and buzzing! Is the power almost gone? Ugh, the signal is so unstable in this deep mountain forest!"

Comrade Lantian was a little confused by Director Xiong's series of actions. His honest face was full of question marks, but he still subconsciously followed the direction of Director Xiong's finger and touched the microphone extending from the driver's console. He honestly replied, "Huh?... The signal is pretty good! This radio works great! It's much better than our old, clunky thing!"

"Nonsense! My communications are down! Hey, it's still a prototype, it needs further optimization!" Factory Director Xiong immediately chimed in, his voice maintaining the same exaggerated tone of concern about communication disruptions, and then proceeded to guide the conversation:

"So... what do you think of this 'Flying Cat Car' we're riding in now, compared to the transport planes you used to climb? Is this low-altitude approach timely enough? Is it stable?"

Upon hearing this, Lantian immediately perked up, forgetting his earlier interruption while expressing his determination, and exclaimed sincerely, "Timely! So timely! Stable! The key is that it can fly close to the ground, and even with the engine off, it can glide silently for a long distance, like a ghost, directly dropping us under the enemy's nose!"

This is so much better than those old transport planes where people wait in line to parachute and drift in the air for ages! Aside from the smaller payload and the inability to transport an entire battalion at once, it's truly a dream come true for our airborne troops!

"Hmm, as long as it works! As long as it works!" Factory Director Xiong nodded pretentiously, then suddenly changed the subject, lowered his voice, and sighed, saying:

"Sigh... What a pity... Brother, everyone wants good stuff. But... there's no funding! The approvals from above are limited, and there are too many applicants for too few! We can't build many, and we can't equip many units! You paratroopers will probably just have to watch enviously, occasionally like today, getting a taste of the prototype from us..."

These words were like a bolt from the blue, instantly waking Comrade Lantian from his euphoria over the new equipment!

"What?! You're just using it for free?"

"That's right! To be honest, brother, these precious machines you've been testing these past few days are prototypes that our Factory 112 scraped together by selling everything we own and saving every penny to help Xiao Jiang get them made. They're mainly for technical verification and are still a long way from being officially put into service."

"This this……"

Comrade Lantian glanced at the paratroopers on guard on the ground, then patted the Flying Cat Car beneath him, and began to complain, counting on his fingers:

"Old Xiong! You know, our 15th Army is a renowned 'thousand-year army'! Now it has been reorganized into an airborne army, and the comrades' will is absolutely unwavering. Whether in the sky or on the ground, as long as the motherland needs them, they won't even flinch! But... but the reality of our assets is truly a headache!"

"Let's not talk about anything else, just the parachute equipment! Those few hundred parachutes we finally managed to buy from our big brother back then were treasured like precious gems, patched up and repaired for three years! As for the planes? A few captured American C-46s and a few Soviet Il-12s, the number was pitifully small, the models were outdated, and many were barely flyable thanks to our ground crew brothers' 'embroidery' skills. Back then, any soldier who got to actually jump from a plane was so happy that he couldn't sleep for three days!"

“There’s no other way,” he sighed, but his tone was defiant. “We’ll just use the most old-fashioned method—parachute tower jumping!”

Do you know what skydiving from a parachute tower is?

"They build a huge iron frame, hang the parachute on the ground with steel rings, open it up, and then use a lift to hoist it up. Once the person is up, they pull the rope, the hook releases, and they jump down holding the already opened parachute. Goodness, the procedure is so complicated, there are more support staff than parachutists! A soldier is lucky if he gets to do it once a week, how is that enough training?"

"Later, when we were really pushed to the limit, we had no choice," Lantian's voice tinged with lingering fear, "we used hydrogen balloons! Those things had a basket hanging down from the bottom, which could hold four people, and we risked jumping into the sky! It saved time and money, but the safety factor was low! Once, the basket detached from the balloon in mid-air and crashed down! Luckily, nothing serious happened, but the hydrogen balloon disappeared in a flash, and we don't even know where it went... The comrades were really not afraid of hardship or death, they were just afraid of not having a chance to practice and not having the equipment to use!"

Factory Director Xiong listened from the side, secretly thinking to himself, "Good heavens... this honest man's way of crying poverty is truly unique... He doesn't whine or complain, he just lays out the facts and recounts his experiences. The effect... the level... is far more sophisticated than throwing a tantrum! I'm impressed!"

"Old Xiong, after saying so much..." Lantian's tone was almost pleading, "Just think of it as supporting our brother unit, and try to think of more solutions!"

"What's that saying again? It's easy to go from frugality to extravagance, but hard to go from extravagance to frugality! With reliable equipment like the Flying Cat Car, how can you bear to let the guys in our team risk climbing helium balloons again!"

Upon hearing this, one of the bigwigs gathered around the equipment sighed softly and said into the microphone in a deep voice, "Comrades... you've worked hard."

"What's the trouble! Old Bear, if you could support us again..." Lan Tian subconsciously interrupted, but suddenly paused: "Huh? Wait a minute..." He abruptly turned his head and glared at Xiong Huoyan, who was pretending to admire the scenery: "Old Bear, you didn't say anything? That voice... Commander?! Commander, can you hear me?"

Realizing what had happened, Comrade Lantian glared at Factory Director Xiong: You tricked me! Didn't you say the radio was out of power?

Factory Director Xiong glared back defiantly: "We've come this far, aren't you going to take the opportunity to back down? This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance, if you don't play the poor card now, you'll waste this opportunity for direct dialogue!"

Seeing that Comrade Lantian still didn't get it, Director Xiong simply twisted it up.

Lantian pried Xiong Da's hands off, even though he knew his old comrade meant well. But if he were to really complain about being poor, he wouldn't be part of the 15th Army!

Didn't you see that during those difficult times, the 15th Army never asked for help from higher authorities? Instead, they overcame difficulties and became self-sufficient?

How did you receive the commendation as a "model unit for combat readiness duty and self-rescue in production" from the military region?

That was achieved through our own efforts: reclaiming 4.2 mu of wasteland, producing 180 million kilograms of grain, achieving a self-sufficiency rate of 83%, and completing 100% qualified major maintenance of military equipment for two consecutive years!

"It's not hard work, sir! The soldiers are not afraid of hard work! What they fear is having strength but nowhere to use it, having energy but no equipment! Today's small battle, though small in scale, proves one thing: paratroopers are of great use!"

"You see, after a wave of airstrikes by attack aircraft, our paratroopers can quickly land, rapidly control the battlefield, mop up the remaining enemy forces, and consolidate the gains! This whole process is incredibly smooth! Today on the battlefield, some of our 15th Army's elite troops, carrying parachutes, actually practiced a low-altitude parachute deployment and occupation maneuver! The results were excellent!"

"Commander! In the past, we were poor and had limited resources, so there was nothing we could do. But things are different now! We can manufacture our own equipment! Could you... allocate more good stuff to our paratroopers?"

See? The Thousand-Year Army is different. When others ask for something, they present the facts and reasons, and even do a live broadcast.

She's really different from those other slutty, dramatic women...

Factory Director Xiong nodded in approval: "Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant! This isn't just complaining about being poor; it's clearly reporting achievements, demonstrating value, and requesting to expand the gains! My old tricks of throwing tantrums are really too vulgar!"

Learned!

The big shot was indeed intrigued and asked with a smile, "Oh? What good things have you set your sights on? Tell me."

Upon hearing that there was a chance, Lantian immediately perked up and began listing the options on his fingers as if they were his own treasures: "We need cat-carts! Whether they're gyrocopters that can fly or mountain cat-carts that can run on the ground, we need them all! Those things are highly mobile, they can carry people and haul cargo, and that's exactly what our airborne troops need! We also need cannons! The soldiers of our 15th Army are strong and healthy, they can carry two cannons at a time without complaining!"

He paused, his voice becoming even more fervent: "Most importantly, we need digital radios and Il-28 modified helicopters that can lick the ground! With these, our troops won't be alone when they go down into the sea!"

We can call for support, grasp the enemy situation, and our sustained combat capability will take a significant leap forward! Moreover, sir, we can manufacture all this equipment ourselves! We won't rely on others!

The big shot pondered for a moment, his gaze slowly sweeping over the huge rooster map on the wall. His finger moved slowly across it, finally landing heavily on the vast western plateau and a certain place in the east.

"Hmm... Real combat experience shows that airborne troops are a decisive force that can deliver the final blow in critical moments. I've heard your opinion. We need to seriously develop the airborne troops."

He paused, then his tone became even more resolute: "If we're going to do it, we must do it properly! Make up for what's lacking, perfect what's incomplete! We need manpower, equipment, and training—everything must keep up! We must make our aerial spearhead even sharper! So that it can strike the enemy in the most unexpected places at any time!"

"Moreover, we now have more confidence and the conditions to do so than ever before!"

Looking at the latest gold mine parameters provided by the geologist through special channels, the bigwig chuckled, "A thousand-ton gold mine, huh? This 'assets' have come at just the right time..."

He casually turned his head and asked, "Oh, by the way, hasn't Secretary Chen come back yet?"

"Yes! Breaking news, he went to the logistics department..."

The big boss narrowed his eyes slightly, a barely perceptible glint of cold light flashing within them: "Oh? You like going to the logistics department so much... Looks like you're quite passionate about logistics work."

Since that's the case, let him, along with the newly appointed comrade he contacted, go down to the grassroots level and carry out the on-site investigation of the "mountain-based, dispersed, and concealed" third-line factory sites.

"No investigation, no right to speak. Let them do their research properly; they don't need to rush back."

"Yes! However... this person may also be connected to the gold theft case..."

"Hey, one thing is one thing. Everything has to follow the rules!"

"Yes!"