Chapter 90: Chasm

  On June 7, 1921, after repeated checks and verifications, the Amet Research Institute of Special Vehicles completed the development task of the tank two months ahead of schedule. The tanks that had been parked in the final assembly workshop of the experimental factory were waiting for their masters to come and show off their prowess.

  "The tank consists of two parts, the hull and the turret. The hull is welded from rolled steel plates, while the turret is cast as a single piece. The driver's compartment is located at the front left side of the hull, it is the only position for the driver. The middle section is the fighting compartment, where the tank commander is located on the left rear side of the gun, the gunner is in front and below the commander, and the loader is on the right side of the gun. The engine room is at the rear of the hull."

  "The tank is a combination of spear and shield, our tanks are equipped with a 105mm rifled gun, a 12.7mm heavy machine gun mounted on the turret top, a coaxial 7.62mm parallel machine gun installed on the right side of the cannon, and a 7.62mm machine gun located in front of the driver's right, its firepower configuration is quite strong."

  "The 105mm tank gun is a logistics equipment department-led research and development of a specialized artillery for use on tanks, which has shown excellent performance in independent testing. It can fire tungsten-core armor-piercing shells, armor-piercing shells, and high-explosive shells, with the armor-piercing shell capable of penetrating 120mm homogeneous armor plate at an angle of 30 degrees at a distance of 2,000 meters. The entire vehicle is equipped with 34 rounds. Equipped with a specialized tank gun sight developed by the Optical Laboratory of the Ministry of Industry, the four observation mirrors allow the gunner and loader to freely elevate and rotate in the vertical and horizontal planes."

  "In terms of protection, the tank has adopted the most stringent protection requirements from inside to outside. In addition to strengthening the isolation protection of shells, fuel tanks and other components, the vehicle is also equipped with a semi-automatic fire extinguishing device and two handheld fire extinguishers. The body made of rolled steel plates can provide better protection, and the installation of side skirts on both sides of the vehicle can further protect the tank."

  Before the first test drive, Hou Yong, as the chief engineer of the tank design, introduced the institute's hard-built tank to the crowd. Although it is still in the prototype state and has not traveled a kilometer or made any mechanical movements, let alone fired a shot, its low but majestic body, especially the 105mm cannon and several intimidating machine guns, gave off a metallic feel even without paint. The army representatives had already shown their liking before the start of various tests.

  On the trial ceremony platform, General Hou was introducing the design performance of the tank word by word. Zhang Yu glanced at Deng Laben beside him, whose eyes were about to pop out, and wondered why several division commanders had unanimously recommended that Deng Laben from the Fifth Division come as one of the representatives of the army. However, looking at his expression, which seemed like he had just seen his first love, he completely understood.

  "Deng Laben, if you really like it, just go ahead and kiss it, why make eyes at it here?"

  "Commander, I've been waiting for this! Once the chief engineer finishes speaking, we'll definitely rush up and give it a kiss. I love these steel monsters, they give people a special feeling of being able to fight and be useful, it's truly a pure man's thing..." Deng Laben said as he leaned in towards Zhang Yu, with a mischievous grin: "Commander, you say this is a very masculine weapon, when it's officially equipped, should our division be the first to use it?"

  "Hey, kid, don't get too close. I haven't decided who to give it to yet, but I know who's the first one to make good use of it. The earlier you're equipped, the better." Zhang Yu said this and then leaned in close to Deng Laben's ear, saying: "You said your troops are the closest to Liuzhou, so you should understand the principle of 'near water tower gets the moon first'. The military academy is currently recruiting excellent soldiers from various divisions to build armored forces. Those with cultural background, who can drive vehicles and so on will be prioritized... If you're really interested in this iron thing, then hurry up and send people over for training..."

  "Also, we have many excellent soldiers, I can guarantee that within the shortest time, 300 outstanding soldiers will be selected to enter the military academy for training... and it will be done this week!"

  "Three hundred people is too many, what will other masters think..."

  Zhang Yu and Deng Laben were haggling like in a vegetable market, while Hou Yong had almost finished introducing the tank's new equipment, including its first short-wave radio and intercom system. He then let everyone freely observe the tank, and the test drivers on the side made preparations, waiting for everyone to satisfy their curiosity before driving the tank for various stationary tests.

  Ten minutes later, the test driver team officially entered the tank. With a loud roar and a large amount of black smoke, the 34-ton monster began to perform some simple actions under the control of the test driver team, such as rotating the turret and elevating the cannon. Then, under the gaze of many onlookers, it slowly started moving out of the experimental factory and came to the largest open area within the institute. Since previous experiments were conducted with tractors, excavators, cranes, etc., but today's experiment was with a mighty tank, the adjacent football field of the institute had to be converted into a tank testing ground as well, otherwise there would not have been enough space for the tank to maneuver.

  "How about it? If you were to organize a troop to defend it, wouldn't that be quite difficult?"

  Put down the telescope, Zhang Yu smiled and looked at Deng La Ben who was concentrating on his expression. Of course, the representative of the logistics equipment department on the left side was also stunned. After the things on the drawing became real objects, even if they knew some design data before, the real object still gave them the most intuitive and shocking impact. The people on the viewing platform were almost all surprised from the beginning of the tank trial to now, just like the people in a poor and backward area seeing a car for the first time.

  "Commander, don't even mention it. If I really had to organize the troops to defend against it, I'd be at a loss for now." Deng Laben put down his binoculars and turned around with a smile on his face, saying to Zhang Yu: "Simply relying on our current weapons, light and heavy machine guns, automatic rifles, mortars and so on, I estimate that even if it just stands there without moving, letting us attack it, we'd still be at a loss. Only cannons with a larger caliber would pose some threat to it..."

  "I think so too, each profession has its own specialization. To deal with such new-type weapon equipment, we must have a new type of weapon." Zhang Yu said this, and suddenly a very special idea flashed through his mind. Tanks are the perfect combination of the sharpest spear and the strongest shield. All along, the People's Army has been pursuing more practical and efficient weapons, and all the equipment they have researched is the sharpest spear. Except for the defensive fragmentation killing single soldier helmet, there really isn't any research on "shields".

  "All things are interdependent, if a weapon has no restraint, the outcome is quite cruel." Zhang Yu muttered to himself, suddenly recalling the tragic past that had befallen China. Faced with the powerful warships and cannons of foreign powers, the Chinese people only had bird guns and fire spears, without shields to counter the enemy's sharp blades, leaving themselves with endless suffering.

  "What weapons we have, there must be those that can match them, whether the potential enemy or the whole world has the ability to confront them. Learning to think from a different perspective will be more beneficial for our military growth." With this in mind, Zhang Yu had an idea, he wanted to bring new weapon development thinking to the entire military-industrial system, that is, spear and shield.

  In the test site, tanks are accelerating and braking suddenly, making emergency stops and sharp turns, and crossing obstacles. The originally lush green grass has been crushed by the tracks, and the air is filled with a faint smell of diesel fuel. The bare tank is covered in mud, and the high-speed rotating tracks are splashing grass debris into the air, leaving behind a trail of smoke as it moves on to its next maneuver.

  "When can we test the weapon system, I especially want to see how the 105mm rifled gun fires?" Deng La asked in a low voice, bypassing Zhang Yu who was frowning and thinking hard, and asking Hou Yong who was sitting on Zhang Yu's left. "I had already inquired before I came, the artillery training ground of the teaching brigade is empty today, why don't we take the tank there to try firing a couple of rounds later?"

  "Master Deng, I think it's not going to work out today. After a brief inspection this afternoon, we will conduct high-speed testing on the highway and off-road, acceleration performance testing, and other vehicle system tests. After completing these tests, there will be a detailed inspection period of about three days. Once reassembled, we will then proceed with the weapons system test. It's estimated that it will be next Tuesday before everything is ready. At that time, I will definitely invite Master Deng to come and guide us!"

  Zhang Yu's conversation woke him up, and after looking at Hou Yong and then at Deng La Ben, he smiled slyly and said: "Hou Gong, after the prototype is finalized, this tank must not be scrapped. We have to leave it for the institute as a trophy. However, before that, you need to use this tank to create an armored series, including armored combat vehicles, armored engineering vehicles, armored ambulances, etc... By the way, what kind of car did your test drive team used to drive? How can they drive so smoothly?"

  "They...?" Hou Yong pointed to the tank slowly entering the specially made water pool, chuckled and shook his head: "When we were selecting drivers at first, we selected a batch of tracked excavator driving masters from China Railway Third Group, of course, also selected a batch from China Highway First Group, as well as test drivers from tractor factories and so on. In the end, the one who stood out was an ordinary agricultural tractor driver. He was particularly good at controlling heavily overloaded tractors and made unimaginable maneuvers on the rugged roads in remote areas of Guizhou. He is a very talented driver... A 34-ton tank is no different from driving a tractor to him..."

  "What about the others?"

  Zhang Yu was very curious that after only a certain amount of theoretical and simulated mechanical operation, the other members had many excellent autonomous driving areas, and it was not surprising to emerge one with great talent. Although it was a whole vehicle dynamic test, the time for testing the loader, gunner, and commander had not yet arrived, but the gunner still made a small performance, when the driver made many unimaginable actions, he always kept that intimidating line cannon pointing in the same direction.

  "They were all short-term trainees from the military academy. Shortly after we received the tank development task, we made some mechanical models together with the logistics equipment department and handed over some theoretical knowledge for them to study. Obviously, their performance was very good."

  The morning test went very smoothly, and the sample car successfully passed through a one-meter-deep pool of water. After climbing back up to the shore, it immediately resumed its high-speed running state. However, due to the remaining water stains on its body, the splashed mud quickly mixed with them, and the lower part of the tank's hull soon became a muddy mess. Especially the skirt and tail sections lost their original metallic color, making it seem as if the tank had emerged from a muddy swamp.

  "Hou Yong, I won't be going to the test this afternoon." Zhang Yu stood up and looked at Deng Laben, who was intently watching the tank fording the river, and said with a smile: "Commander Deng, I'm going to go check out a very special car that's being tested by the American automobile company, it's called a Hummer, are you interested in coming along?"

  "What? Hummer!" Deng Laben put down the binoculars and stood up immediately, with an incredulous expression, asking: "Commander, are you talking about the rumored second-generation military jeep? How did you even come up with a name? Hummer is pretty good."

  The People's Army currently uses military vehicles, in addition to the six-wheeled medium transport trucks and six-by-six heavy-duty off-road cargo trucks that perform routine tasks. These are the backbone of the People's Army's logistics transportation, supplemented by four-wheel jeeps and three-wheeled motorcycles. The first and fifth motorized divisions were equipped with these vehicles, but the poor performance of jeeps and motorcycles in the desert prompted the People's Army to accelerate the updating of military vehicles. Replacing motorcycles and jeeps are Hummers with excellent off-road capabilities.

  In past combat operations, the transportation of People's Army soldiers, escorting logistical supplies, and wartime sentry duties were all reliant on insecure jeeps, which after being mounted with a machine gun became makeshift war vehicles. However, their low protective capabilities and off-road performance were greatly criticized by officers and soldiers. The Hummer's body is made of high-strength, high-hardness steel armor with a fully welded structure, allowing it to easily withstand 7.62mm rifle bullets at close range. The windshield and side windows are equipped with first-generation embedded fiber-reinforced ballistic glass.

  It is actually the easiest to suffer from sudden firepower strikes in the front, and the windshield has a larger front tilt angle and a thickness of nearly 50mm, which can make the bullets shot towards the driver's cab produce a certain degree of bounce, effectively protecting the personnel inside the vehicle. Of course, this car can also provide good protection against shrapnel from medium and small caliber shells exploding at close range.

  The roof hatch has a window, which can be equipped with a 12.7mm heavy machine gun or a universal machine gun as a weapon, and of course, there is also a certain degree of protection for the gunner. The fixed armor plate will provide loyal side and rear protection for the gunner. Depending on the task, the vehicle can be modified to some extent, relying on its strong protective ability, it can be converted into a command vehicle, battlefield ambulance, etc., so this car can naturally replace the jeep as the second-generation standard military vehicle of the People's Army.

  "Right, Hou Yong, you must always remember. A tank is a tracked armored combat vehicle with strong direct firepower, high cross-country mobility and solid protective power. It is the main assault weapon of ground warfare and the basic equipment of armored troops, mainly used to fight against enemy tanks and other armored vehicles, as well as suppress and destroy anti-tank weapons, destroy field fortifications, and annihilate living forces. Don't be misled by the British failure in using them, the greatest enemy of a tank is the enemy's tank, just like snipers, the greatest threat still comes from the opponent's sniper..."

  "Then, the infantry fighting vehicle you mentioned is a armored combat vehicle for infantry maneuver warfare, I know that in terms of firepower, protection and mobility, it must be different from an armored personnel carrier, there should be shooting ports on the vehicle, infantry can shoot while riding, engineer vehicles and ambulance are its derivative products?"

  "After all, you need to know that the infantry fighting vehicle is to enable infantrymen to fight in coordination with tanks. It's impossible to defeat the enemy by relying solely on tanks. Our tanks are meant to make artillery mobile, while infantry fighting vehicles are meant to give infantrymen mobility and striking capability at the same time. As for what specific armored tactics should be like, I think you'll get your answer soon. The instructor officers sent by the Kunming Army Academy will arrive soon, and the technical officers from the Logistics Equipment Department will withdraw. At that time, if you have any questions, you can ask them. They are the ultimate users of weapons and understand what the army really needs better than those technical officers!"

  On the European battlefield, the British first used tanks in war, but both their tactics and the performance of the tanks themselves had some problems. In terms of how to maximize the use of armored forces, apart from the idea of equipping tanks, there were also people thinking about the tactical changes brought about by new weapon equipment. It's not that they lacked excellent materials in this regard, but Zhang Yu didn't plagiarize anything from later generations in terms of specific military strategy and tactics. As a result, the development of the People's Army has often been through slow exploration and growth, rather than relying on Zhang Yu's guidance and help to achieve leapfrog development like in industry. The growth of the army was largely dependent on itself.

  "When we first accepted the research and development task, the General Equipment Department only assigned us to study tanks. Our relevant technical materials, research ideas, etc. were all centered around tanks, and we really didn't think about developing a whole series based on tanks..." Hou Yong stood up, with a slightly apologetic and somewhat pleased expression: "Since the army has better ideas, of course, we will give our closest cooperation. Isn't this good for my group?"

  "After all, those who are capable should work harder. Since Asia Motors has such strength, they should do more." Zhang Yu said, and then left the test site with Yu Ran and Deng Laben to rush to the next experimental project. However, before that, he still needed to do one thing, which was to go home and have a brief meeting with his older brother. During this period of time, he had been entangled with Wang Zhu for a long time and had already come up with a result.

  The car quickly took Zhang Yu back home, of course, along with Deng Laben who was going to test drive the Hummer with him in the afternoon. It had been a long time since Zhang Yu's home was this lively after his marriage. "Deng Laben, you can sit in the living room for a while, or go help my wife in the kitchen, I have something to discuss with the chairman!"

  After getting rid of Deng Laben, this big and rough man, who was busy with his hands and feet but couldn't do anything, he could still wash the vegetables. After helping Li Xiaorong with her work, Zhang Yu finally got rid of this sticky candy. As soon as he entered his study, he saw Zhang Yusheng sitting there frowning and thinking deeply. He closed the door, walked over with a smile, put down a cup of iced tea, and said: "I heard you handled Wang Zhu? He kept asking me where those things came from? It's driving me crazy!"

  "I?" He pointed to his own nose, sighed and motioned for Zhang Yu to sit down. After taking a sip of iced tea, he said, "I didn't get him under control, it was the other way around."

  "If we had known there would be today, we shouldn't have plagiarized so much. Everything was prepared for them, how could they think? If I were in their shoes, I would also doubt these unimaginable technical materials." Zhang Yu picked up his cup and took a sip of the cold tea, feeling refreshed, then played with the teacup in his hand and said: "Today another great project has been successfully completed, our plagiarized tank has once again achieved success. However, I let Hou Yong continue to develop related vehicles in this series without giving detailed reminders, hoping they can succeed..."

  "Are we really wrong? Is it a crime to pursue leapfrog development? Not taking advantage of benefits, not taking shortcuts, and not taking cheap opportunities, what are we supposed to do?! Zhang Yu-sheng complained, then took a big gulp of iced tea, shook his head vigorously, and said: "I didn't tell him all this because we're not people of this era. The knowledge I gave them is all 21st-century popular science, those industrial miracles that are beyond their imagination, are just things we can easily find online, especially in your 30th-century universities, nuclear physics knowledge has become a post-reading material, casually swiping something from our time, it's unimaginable to the people of that era..."

  "Isn't that right? We've only borrowed a few things, and they haven't even had time to mess with the internal combustion engine era stuff, yet they're already having all sorts of doubts. If we give them more advanced technical materials in the future, will we dare let them research it? But I really can't bear to part with them... Doubting is not wrong, but..." Zhang Yu didn't dare say any more, he knew that when it came to certain things, his older brother was even more ruthless than him. Those surnamed Mao and Jiang hadn't even provoked him yet they were already vaporized ahead of time, let alone the fact that these people had such extremely worrisome curiosity.

  "I didn't intend to be harsh, but I can guarantee that Wang Zhu and the others won't have any more doubts!" Zhang Yu Sheng said as he stood up and finished his last sip of iced tea. Looking at Zhang Yu's puzzled expression, he continued: "He kept asking me where those things came from, so I kept asking him why he was striving for it. He said that our business definitely relied to a large extent on the mysterious advanced materials, whether it was politics, industry, economy, etc., they all had their uses in them. It can be said that our revival business today is inseparable from those technical materials. But I asked him back, why do we want to revive? Why do we need to go through so much trouble to develop industries, seize every opportunity to narrow the gap with the powerful countries, and even strive to surpass them in some aspects? I talked a lot with him, of course, without revealing our origins."

  "How did he respond? Is this matter just going to end like this?"

  "He didn't say anything, he said that in the future there won't be any more of these inexplicable problems, and he will make good use of the materials at hand to strive for better results and widen the gap with other strong teams... Moreover, finally, he even asked me if there was any more advanced and complete data! I think he should have understood some things, that some things are not worth asking about, and don't need to be pursued to the end."

  Zhang Yu heard his wife calling him to eat in the dining hall, got up and prepared to go out for dinner, and finally asked Zhang Yusheng: "What were you doing crying with a sad face just now? Maybe your sister-in-law didn't agree to your proposal!"

  "You're just a jinx, whatever you say comes true." Zhang Yu Sheng said with a helpless look at his little brother, and continued in a gloomy tone: "He said she's not good enough for me, there's too big of a gap between us that can't be bridged. The huge difference in status and position are just one obstacle after another on the road to love. The proposal didn't work out, and instead I got a suggestion to break up. Can you blame me for being heartbroken? Forget it, let's go eat, there's still stuff to do downstairs!"