Imperial Capital, General Logistics Department.
Equipment Testing Centers across the country had sent in their latest test data. In conversations with the various locations, everyone had given Kunlun Company's X2 thermal fiber exceptionally high praise, something rarely seen.
Test supervisor Han Chang could no longer sit still.
After careful consideration, Han Chang decided to report to his immediate superior, Ding Songlin.
It was already mid-October. If they moved fast enough, there was still time to let frontline soldiers experience the power of this black technology that winter, protecting them from having to endure life too harshly amid the howling snowstorms.
With that in mind, Han Chang rose and headed for Ding Songlin's office.
When Han Chang entered the office of logistics bigwig Ding Songlin, he found the old man looking full of vigor as he planted flags on an enormous topographic map of the plateau.
Artillery, infantry, rapid mechanized reserve forces, mountain tank regiments, and air support from the four major nearby airports.
"Han Chang, you came at just the right time." Ding Songlin's voice boomed. "Do you know about plateau firing tables?"
Han Chang frowned. "The ones calibrated every year on the plateau by firing countless shells? I have to say, that costs a fortune."
Ding Songlin laughed heartily. "Some money has to be spent! Accurate artillery fire depends entirely on precise firing tables. Plateau conditions differ from the inland areas—thin air, complex terrain, and stronger winds."
"So we need to keep firing, gather enough samples and data, analyze them, and eventually produce reliable plateau firing tables."
"Guess what? I just heard that those guys on the other side don't even have plateau firing tables!"
"After fighting Iron Brother in Kashmir for decades, I always assumed they had plateau firing tables too. Turns out they don't!"
"And intelligence says that not only do they lack them, Iron Brother doesn't have them either. Other than us, no one else in the world has mastered this!"
"In that case, this will be easy! We'll place an artillery battalion here, here, and here, then position two extended-range artillery battalions capable of firing rockets farther back, supported by rapid-response forces..."
"When the time comes, if they dare pull anything, we'll carpet-bomb them with artillery shells!"
"Hmm, they seem to have quite a few imported 155mm mountain guns, but no need to worry. They don't have firing tables, so they won't be able to hit anything accurately. Now that we've found a soft target, we have to bully them hard—bully them to death!"
Sigh~
Han Chang looked at his excited superior and felt speechless. This logistics bigwig ought to have been leading troops on the front lines. Keeping him in logistics making canned goods was truly wasting his talents.
Han Chang said, "Wanting to carpet-bomb the ground with artillery at every turn—sir, that's a textbook case of insufficient-firepower anxiety."
Ding Songlin chuckled. He did not mind young people joking with him, and he said very seriously, "The entire military's insufficient-firepower anxiety is already terminal."
"Sit. What did you come to see me about?"
Han Chang did not beat around the bush. He immediately told Ding Songlin about a highly unconventional thermal technology that had suddenly appeared on the market.
As the person in charge, Han Chang had purchased a batch within his authority and sent it to several key cold-region testing sites to evaluate the performance of this new product.
Within days, the testing sites around the country had sent back astonishing news. Everyone involved in the tests had been full of praise for this new thermal technology, causing quite a stir among the evaluators.
Feeling that the matter was important, Han Chang did not dare delay and came directly to report to his superior.
"It's really that impressive?" Ding Songlin frowned, somewhat unconvinced by Han Chang's words. "If it were as good as you say, this technology should have caused a sensation long ago."
Han Chang handed Ding Songlin a stack of evaluation results from the various locations. "The X series fiber wasn't invented by some major corporation. It came from a very small private company in Jiangnan, so it was disadvantaged from the start."
"It's caused quite a commotion within the chemical fiber industry. Those international giants have even coordinated price cuts to target this company called Kunlun."
Ding Songlin nodded and picked up the reports to examine them in the sunlight.
Gradually, Ding Songlin's expression turned grave. When he set the documents back on the desk, the corners of his eyes were even slightly moist.
"Border troops don't sit in rooms playing on their phones; they have to stand guard and patrol." Ding Songlin sighed. "Across 22,000 kilometers of land borders, with tens of thousands of boundary markers and outposts, people must stand watch and conduct patrols at all times, through every season."
"This is good, very good! If it can be issued to the front lines, it will greatly improve the soldiers' living conditions in harsh environments. Not only is it warm, it's also extremely lightweight. This is exactly what we need!"
"Here is what we'll do. Go to Jiangnan yourself and discuss cooperation with the manufacturer."
"The heavy snow has already begun sealing off the mountains, so you must move quickly!"
"Do everything possible to get it to the frontline troops as soon as possible. As for the other units, they can wait a little, but solving the frontline problem cannot be delayed!"
When Gao Yuan heard that someone from the General Logistics Department wanted to see him, he was actually a little nervous. After all, the other side's background was simply too formidable.
One day in mid-October, Gao Yuan finally met Han Chang. Han Chang was dressed in casual clothes, and if Gao Yuan had not known beforehand, he never would have associated this handsome bespectacled man with the military.
During their conversation, Han Chang was very down-to-earth. Rather than directly discussing procurement, he was extremely interested in Kunlun Company's business.
"Before coming here, I specifically looked into the situation. The entire materials chemistry field now believes that your invention is highly likely to contend for a Nobel Prize. It's black technology capable of rewriting history."
"But it seems you've also run into some trouble. International giants are extremely wary of your technology, and would rather slash their prices than let you capture the market?" Han Chang asked curiously.
Gao Yuan smiled. "My partners and I firmly believe that technology has the power to change the world. As for our competitors, there's really nothing we can do about them. They're genuinely very powerful and can mobilize enormous resources."
"Our sales have actually been rising steadily. The growth simply hasn't been as fast as expected. Based on the current pace of market expansion, we may need two or three years to capture the global market and secure the largest market share."
Han Chang nodded slightly. As the old saying went, even fine wine feared a deep alley. Even the best products and technologies needed promotion and time for consumers to gradually accept them.
Han Chang felt that if Gao Yuan could truly complete a global rollout and become the world's best-selling thermal fiber within two or three years, that speed would already be insane.
Yet Gao Yuan did not see it that way. The system's requirement was perfectly clear: sweep the global market clean. Only after the reshuffle was complete would the system unlock a new journey.
Three years here, three years there—life was short. How many three-year spans could anyone afford to waste?
Gao Yuan was an ambitious man. He wanted more than just making money; he wanted to accomplish more.
Therefore, in his view, taking three years for the X series fiber to reshape the market was far too slow. He had to find a way to accelerate the process.
Gao Yuan and Han Chang were both straightforward men. After briefly getting to know each other, they went straight to the point and began discussing the terms of cooperation, along with the most important issue: price.
As for supply, with the covert assistance of that old man within the high walls of the Imperial Capital, it was no longer a problem troubling Gao Yuan.
What came out of the factory was merely fiber filament, which could not be used directly to make clothing. It had to be sent to fabric mills, where the filament would be woven into bolts of fabric.
During this process, they could choose the fabric count, whether it would be brushed, and whether it would use plain weave, twill weave, and so on.
In addition, the fabric needed to be dyed according to military requirements—army green, jungle camouflage, desert camouflage, snowfield white, and the like.
As everyone knew, the Shaoxing region where Kunlun Company was located was the largest fabric-processing base in the country and even the world, so production would not be an issue at all.
Once the fabric was completed, it would be handed over to factories directly under the General Logistics Department to be made into military uniforms.
Of course, private companies could handle that step as well, but the General Logistics Department had massive production capacity, so there seemed to be no need.
The cooperation process was quickly settled. Next came the most crucial matter: pricing.
Gao Yuan was unexpectedly easy to negotiate with. He agreed to give the military a 30 percent discount off the original factory price. In other words, X1 and X2 Fiber filament would cost 21,000 yuan per ton. X2 Fiber fluff had higher process requirements and lower output, so it was more expensive at 42,000 yuan per ton.
Supplying the military at cost was impossible. First, it did not align with the market economy; second, Gao Yuan needed a great deal of money right now to expand and strengthen the company.
After all, only by growing the company could they attract talent; with more talent, they could accelerate research and development; accelerated research and development would produce better products; and better products would ultimately capture the market. It was a virtuous cycle.
Even when dealing with the most lovable people, he could not run a business at a loss. A 30 percent discount was already an enormous show of sincerity.
"Young Boss Gao, you're truly straightforward! Then it's settled!" Han Chang stood and shook Gao Yuan's hand. "The speed must be fast. Heavy snow has already begun sealing off the frontline mountains. As long as you handle this well, what follows will be a super-sized order beyond anything you can imagine! To be honest, our procurement volumes always start in the millions."
Gao Yuan was slightly stunned, and a look of anticipation appeared on his face.
After all, this was the military. If he truly entered the military supply system, million-yuan orders were probably just Han Chang being modest.
Moreover, the reputation and publicity that would come from entering that supply system would be unprecedented. It would likely trigger a frenzy beyond imagination!
I had once been to Country A. I traveled down the southern slope of the Himalayas, through Nepal, and then to Varanasi in India, where the Ganges River was located.
As soon as I entered India, I started coughing. When I saw the Ganges River, I came down with a fever. By the time I reached Kolkata, I was critically ill and could only flee home in a panic.
Ever since then, I often visited the South Asian subcontinent. Whenever I saw that Country A was still as hopeless as ever, I felt deeply relieved.
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