In the repeated discussions of many staff officers, Meng Xiang also felt that he was planning a big attack. At this time, the devil seems to be weak and retreating, but in fact it is still as vicious as before. It's just that they read more ninja words. Thinking of the perseverance of the devil in the Pacific Campaign, Meng Xiang did not dare to be sloppy in the slightest.

However, the development of the economy in the special zone and the arrangement of the arrangement were easily accepted by Zhangjiakou, and Meng Xiang immediately began to fortify there. Without the direct construction of the base, it was all built by his own strength, and Meng Xiang obviously felt the pressure. The cement production of the Qixin Cement Plant was restored, but the fortifications needed not only cement, but also sand and steel bars to form reinforced concrete fortifications. The high price of reinforced concrete still made Meng Xiang feel painful, but fortunately, the machine gun artillery was produced by the base, saving a lot of money.

There are not many fixed fortifications, and Meng Xiangyi's calculations are not as cost-effective as directly producing weapons, and offense is more suitable for the next move than passive defense. The Great Wall is not a place where the footsteps of the vanguard army stop. Crossing the Great Wall and standing on the Mongolian Plateau and looking at the north is what the vanguard army has to do.

From this comparison, Meng Xiang obviously felt the huge help of the base. Clearly, the base is helping more than that.

"Power and energy are the foundation of industry!" Zhou Bai said. However, Huaxia's industrial base is weak, electricity and energy are in short supply, and various power equipment are in short supply. In this country where manpower is abundant, manpower is even replacing the work of cattle and horses. However, when it comes to the Vanguard, this point is well solved by the base.

The engines on tanks, planes, trucks, and warships were all dismantled and then pushed back to be rebuilt. The extra engines of all kinds became the source of power systems for various factories in the war zone. Although Meng Xiang did not dare to choose the best engine, even the steam engine during the First World War was in short supply in China at this time. And the steam engines on these coal-fired high-quality military ships are most suitable for use in China today.

The lack of oil has made coal the main source of energy in the war zone. Imported oil and coal-fired oil were used in military operations. Not to mention the combat reserve oil, even in peacetime training, all kinds of aircraft, vehicles, tanks and ships have become bottomless pits devouring a lot of money.

"Power and energy are also the foundation of modern military affairs." Meng Xiang not only sighed. The experience of later generations gave him more feelings.

The original armies relied on imports and coal-fired oil to survive, but with the expansion of the Vanguard Army, especially with the addition of the Fifth Fleet, fuel was obviously insufficient. Not to mention the oil used for civil ships, just the Zhenyuan went out for a walk, and nearly 1,000 tons of fuel were gone. Even if fuel is cheap in this era, it can't stop the large quantity. There are also the Ashigara Heavy Patrol, and the Canglong are all heavy oil. There is a shortage of talents in the navy, and it is impossible to do without training, but when it comes to training, it is too expensive.

The tanks and vehicles of the army are constantly consuming a lot of fuel in the training of novices, especially those tanks made by Soviet Russia, all of which are oil tigers.

Although those vehicles consume less fuel, there are more than 10,000 vehicles of all kinds in the SAR at this time, and they consume more energy than those tanks and tigers in a day. In the event of war, some of these vehicles were supplied to the military, while the supply of fuel to the other was limited.

The fuel consumption of the aircraft is higher, only the more than 100 transport planes that the vanguard army now has have have made Meng Xiang smack his tongue when he lands several times, and there are nearly a thousand new flight cadets and pilots practicing every day, and the planes at airports around the country continue to take off and land, and a lot of white silver rises into the sky with the green smoke of the engine.

Combined with civilian oil, thousands of tons of oil are consumed in a single day in the war zone. This is really beyond the capacity of the base to coal-fired oil and foreign imports.

Because of the shortage of oil, the power of civil use is mainly coal-burned, but even so, the rapidly increasing demand for coal has also made major coal mines nervous. In order to collect coal, accidents are frequent. Without the need for others to launch a strike and protest, the vanguard army first promulgated the relevant safety production decree under Meng Xiang's instructions. Mine miners are forced to implement strict safety measures, and those who fail to meet the standards are directly closed down, and even the mines are confiscated.

The support of the subsistence allowance also makes the coal workers feel dissatisfied, and they can also go on strike directly.

The labor protection law, which has been in force for a long time, gives workers the right to strike, but according to the employment contract, it is necessary to give three to seven days' notice in advance to avoid causing too much damage.

Although the successive strikes affected the production of the coal mines, Meng Xiang did not impose a stop, as long as they did not violate the relevant marches and strike regulations, the political axe only acted as a neutral mediator for the labor and management.

"I can't do it anymore! I'm not open. A thin mine owner with three large gold rings shouted.

"An eight-hour day, I gave. I also gave one day off a week. We are improving the safety measures. But this gang of poor haha is still not satisfied and asks for a wage increase, which is the third time. I'm definitely quitting. He spoke loudly to several representatives of the miners in the distance.

"If you want me to say, if you use a few more machines, won't you be able to lay off some people? You see, we have installed a new set of electric winches in the mine, which is faster than a hundred people carrying coal. If you save those people, you will pay less taxes. A pot-bellied mine owner next to him said with a red face.

"Yes! However, is that thing expensive? The leaning mine owner asked.

"It's not high, isn't there a power station in the Special Zone? It's easy to pull the line. This electric machine is better than that steam engine. The fat mine owner laughed.

"Oh! So ...... you're here? ”

"Something happened to the safety of the mine, and we are dealing with the issue of compensation!" The fat mine owner smiled bitterly, "Brother, pay attention, don't have an accident, if you have an accident, you will be fined and bankrupt." ”

At the beginning, many coal mine owners either found a relationship or went directly to the door to complain.

But Meng Xiang did not back down at all, which made many coal mine owners unite and stop mining. intended to force the vanguard military and political axes to retreat, but Meng Xiang vigorously started the production of mining vehicles, and the bases in various places reduced production, and the coal mined was given priority to supply the heating and factory operation in winter. The full implementation of the base is not at all sloppy and embarrassed with outsiders.

When the coal mine owners saw that the companies under the name of the vanguard army were making money, they finally could not hold on anymore and opened a coal ban one after another, and the loose alliance collapsed without using violent means.

A crisis was resolved, but it also made Meng Xiang realize that coal alone was not suitable. All kinds of electrical equipment were dismantled from the base and installed in various factories. The power supply from the power station of the base is transmitted to the surrounding cities through the cover of several low-power power stations established, and the electricity supply of the surrounding cities is supplied when the production of the base is not tight. It's just that there weren't many electric systems in World War II, and under many conditions, they couldn't replace the hegemony of the internal combustion engine in the coming decades. The variety of various diesel engines and gasoline engines produced by the base is the most complete and the largest quantity.

It's just that they are stumped by the supply of oil. In 37 years, the oil production in his own territory and occupied areas was only 2.5 million barrels, and the daily production was not enough for the vanguard army, let alone his larger fleet. Later, it was not a joke that the ship could not be driven without fuel.

Even Lao Jiang was helpless at this time, the vanguard army could at least produce coal oil by itself, and it could also be transported by cows to solve most of the fuel problems. And after Lao Jiang fell in Guangdong and other ports, his contact with the vanguard army was also separated by devils. Fuel is even more of a problem. Britain and the United States are obviously on their side in this matter, and except for some civilian lighting kerosene, which is also available in limited quantities, the others shirk under various pretexts. The war in China also increased the risk to the oil merchants, and their adventurous spirit was halted in front of their own naval guns.

The Yanchang and Yongping oilfields discovered in Shaanxi Province cannot solve the practical difficulties with a daily output of several tons. Weng Wenbo, Sun Jianchu and others were staying in the School of Geology in Jixia School Palace at this time, and although the Yumen Oilfield was also being explored, the progress had not been fast. Meng Xiang only knew the location of Yumen Oilfield, but he couldn't remember the specific address of the oilfield. The Yumen Oilfield in later generations was too small.

The central military is desperate to solve the gasoline problem by building factories to produce alcohol from sugar beets, sugar cane and grains to replace gasoline. There are also factories that produce gasoline from tung oil and rapeseed oil. Sichuan's natural gas is also being exploited. Historically, these have played a lot of roles, but they are still a drop in the bucket.

"We need an oil field!" Meng Xiang pondered for a long time and felt that oil should be directly exploited to relieve the pressure of oil in the war zone. Compared with being discovered by the devil, the risk of crazy pounce is still more practical to have oil to strengthen yourself. Besides, as long as you do a good job of secrecy, secretly exploiting oil or extracting oil is not large, so that the devils feel that attacking there is not as cost-effective as Nanyang, and they should not invite wolves.

"But where are you going to mine?"