Chapter 96

"May I ask where Mr. Hu Wenhui is? I need to sit with him."

This was the first thing Ahmed said after stepping out of the airport, addressing the Chinese representative. His serious expression clearly indicated that this was not a casual reunion or diplomatic courtesy, but rather an urgent need to discuss some substantive matters with Hu Wenhui.

"Mr. Ahmed, I'm over here," Hu Wenhui walked over calmly, shook his hand, and then pointed to his car, inviting Ahmed to get in.

The convoy quickly started moving after Ahmed got in the car. The white curtains on the windows were drawn, and one by one, the vehicles drove onto the airport highway.

Ahmed first glanced out the window, seemingly to ease the fatigue from the flight and the car ride, then turned his head and spoke seriously in a rapid manner.

The translator, Zhang, sitting in the front seat, his eyes lit up. After Ahmed finished speaking, he translated excitedly:

"Mr. Ahmed says that President Saddam is very interested in this solution and wants to verify some details. I wonder if the Chinese team has already applied this system and can provide a demonstration for our observation team."

"There's no problem with that, but we need to know which part President Saddam wants to verify. After all, the entire system is very large and involves high-level military secrets. Without a signed contract, I don't think it would be appropriate to conduct a tour."

As Hu Wenhui spoke, he even winked at Ahmed, clearly hinting at something.

Sure enough, after hearing Zhang's translation, Ahmed looked around nervously, as if worried about being overheard: "President Saddam is very interested in the content of the booklet. If possible, we hope to verify the technology mentioned in it as soon as possible."

"Oh, you mean the PRISM program?" Hu Wenhui chuckled. "No problem, but Mr. Ahmed should know that our country doesn't need the PRISM program, so you might have to wait a while for us to set up a demonstration network."

"How long will it take?" Ahmed asked eagerly. "President Saddam hopes to introduce this system as soon as possible."

Hu Wenhui stroked his chin, which was covered in a layer of stubble, and thought for a moment. "About a month. During this time, we can arrange for your observation team to conduct some on-site inspections."

"On-site inspections?"

"Yes, a border conflict is currently taking place in the south of our country." Hu Wenhui nodded firmly.

"Company Commander, Company Commander!" Big Gang Bi, looking somewhat uncomfortable, ran over with his gun.

Although Big Gang Bi joined the army in 1982 as a rural soldier, he was different from the hardworking but not very clever rural soldiers of the past. This guy had a kind of "rural cunning." To put it bluntly, this "rural cunning" was similar to Li Yunlong's style in the TV series "Bright Sword."

Indeed, it was this simple "cunning" that helped Big Gang Bi climb from a regular company to the reconnaissance company, where he became the squad leader of the elite squad.

He was quick to adapt to new things. For example, guiding artillery fire, a task that many urban soldiers struggled with, he could do with remarkable accuracy using a hand-measured coordinate method.

Thanks to this skill, the artillery corps even considered transferring him to become a real artillery observer. However, the promise of a military academy after the war kept him in the reconnaissance company.

"Big Gang Bi, what's the matter with you?" Heng Jianyun emerged from the tent, limping slightly.

"Company Commander, can't we wear our old uniforms and shoes? I feel more comfortable in the liberation shoes. This vest makes it hard to perform tactical maneuvers."

"Stop whining," Heng Jianyun grunted, frowning. "You have to get used to it. Do you know where the soles of these shoes come from? The country imports them from Italy, and each pair costs more than my monthly salary. And this camouflage uniform, though it looks blocky, is actually more effective in hiding than our old striped uniforms."

"Hey, that's strange. How can blocky patterns be better than striped ones?" Big Gang Bi glanced at Heng Jianyun and muttered to himself, "I'm just a simple guy. Whatever the Company Commander says, I'll do. I can't be more capable than the Company Commander."

"You brat, always talking nonsense." Heng Jianyun laughed and kicked him, but lost his balance and almost fell.

Big Gang Bi suppressed his laughter and helped Heng Jianyun up, sighing, "Company Commander, these shoes are really heavy. They're not as comfortable as the liberation shoes."

"Comfortable? When you climb a mountain, your shoes get caked with mud. These boots have a Panama sole that doesn't hold mud, and the high boot shaft and waterproof fabric are much better than the liberation shoes. Get used to them; they can save your life in battle."

"Okay, okay, I'll try." Big Gang Bi nodded reluctantly, then pulled out his Type 81 assault rifle, which no longer seemed to fit that name.

The assault rifle in Big Gang Bi's hand was entirely black, with a thick, perforated tube over the muzzle, clearly a muzzle flash suppressor as proposed by Hu Wenhui. The wooden handguard had been replaced with a strange, fin-like aluminum alloy. If a gun enthusiast from the future saw this, they would recognize it as the famous Picatinny rail, also known as a tactical skeleton.

On this gun, a tactical flashlight was mounted on the left side of the rail, and a grip that could split into a tripod was attached below. The rail extended to the original rear sight position of the Type 81 rifle, which was now replaced by a red dot sight, thanks to Hu Wenhui's early development. The wooden stock had been replaced with a telescoping polymer stock containing a spring to reduce recoil.

This "democratic and free" design was the famous modified Type 81 assault rifle, the CSLR-14.

"Company Commander, this gun is amazing," Big Gang Bi said excitedly, gently caressing the rifle as if it were his wife, marveling at it from all angles. "Look at this sight, it's incredible. How does it work? It can track the target. Wow, we won't be afraid of those Vietnamese monkeys in the jungle anymore. Our guns aim and fire faster than theirs."

"Finally, you realize that," Heng Jianyun said, looking around and walking back to the tent to fetch a roughly 40cm x 40cm iron box, which he threw to Big Gang Bi. "You're smart, so this will be yours from now on."

"Company Commander, what is this?" Big Gang Bi asked, puzzled, holding the large object.

"This is a laser target designator. Just call it a designator. It's very easy to use. I'll teach you, and you just follow orders in battle."

Heng Jianyun removed the protective cover from the designator's lens, turned it on, and pointed to the eyepiece, asking Big Gang Bi to lean in.

"Look through here, yes, that's the right spot," Heng Jianyun, who had only been using the device for half a day, explained. The laser designator was quite "user-friendly," showing the distance directly.

"Turn on the rangefinder by pressing the right button. Do you see the number on the screen?"

The version of the laser designator that Heng Jianyun had was already quite advanced. The initial prototype, which used a red dot counting method, had been abandoned. The Radio Factory No. 2 in Xiucheng had integrated an electronic display, which was a simple task. However, this simple task was a significant challenge for Hu Wenhui, but the higher-ups completed the modification on the same day they were instructed.

"Wow, really? The number changes," Big Gang Bi said in amazement.

"Right, that number is the distance between you and the target. In the future, you won't need artillery observers or soldiers to guide artillery fire. Wherever you need artillery support, just use this device to illuminate the target. I'll show you how to upload the coordinates. The designator has a built-in GPS, and with one button press, the shells will come."

"Really? Is it that good?" Big Gang Bi was skeptical. "If it's that effective, artillery observers will be out of a job."

"Exactly, once the laser designator is widely used, artillery observers will indeed be out of a job."

Heng Jianyun patiently taught Big Gang Bi all the functions of the laser designator. Fortunately, Big Gang Bi was a quick learner and soon mastered its use.

Meanwhile, at the rear of the camp where Heng Jianyun's company was resting, three tall whip antennas were being erected on the tops of Guangzi Mountain, Malijian Mountain, and Moshi Mountain.

In the tunnels inside these three mountains, the best and safest positions had been expanded, lined with waterproof layers and wooden floors, and equipped with a large number of complex electronic devices.

A group of staff, wearing glasses and white lab coats, who didn't look like frontline soldiers, were busy calibrating these devices.

As Big Gang Bi activated the laser designator's positioning and ranging function, a staff member soon shouted excitedly:

"Great, we've received the first positioning information!"