173: Chapter 173 is officially delivered!

December 2nd, 10:30 AM.

Donghai City, Chengdong Machinery Factory.

The Middle-aged man, who had stayed up all night, poured himself a cup of tea and was eating the breakfast provided by the company.

The breakfast wasn't lavish, consisting only of a basket of steamed buns, pickled vegetables, and a bowl of porridge.

Yet, he ate it with great satisfaction.

Beside him were his colleague, who was also eating breakfast, and his good apprentice, Xiao Sheng.

The young man still had the energy to observe the 3D view displayed on the CNC Machining Center; although his eyes were fixed on the screen, he didn't stop eating his buns, popping them into his mouth one by one.

The Middle-aged man smiled, took a sip of tea, leaned back in his chair, and let out a comfortable sigh.

He had been working for so long, but this was the first time he had pulled an all-nighter with so many colleagues. Fortunately, the machine's upgraded system was incredibly effective, saving him a lot of effort; otherwise, he wouldn't even have time to sleep, let alone have the leisure to eat breakfast here.

"Old Yang."

The Middle-aged man, who was just about to doze off, was interrupted by the voice from beside him.

Opening his eyes, he saw that his colleague, known as the factory's know-it-all, had approached him at some point. Lowering his voice mysteriously, the colleague asked, "Tell me, what exactly are these things we were working overtime on yesterday?"

"Molds, I suppose," the Middle-aged man replied casually. "They should be molds for something, used for shaping."

"That was just the first batch," the colleague continued. "Do you know what the drilling team was working on yesterday?"

"What?"

"Heh, I just went to find out, don't tell anyone else." The colleague chuckled and whispered in his ear, "It's seamless steel pipe."

The Middle-aged man gave his colleague a strange look.

"Isn't it normal for the drilling team to process seamless steel pipes? Why the fuss?"

The colleague gave a mysterious smile. "What if these seamless steel pipes had internal grooves?"

"Internal grooves?" The Middle-aged man was suddenly startled. "Rifling?"

"Do you understand now?"

The colleague wore an expression of "you're finally catching on," tinged with a hint of smugness.

"Are you sure you aren't mistaken?" The Middle-aged man frowned. "Even if there is rifling, it doesn't necessarily mean what you think it does."

"Impossible to be mistaken." The colleague shook his head slightly. "You trust Old Zhang's skills, right? He can identify any material almost instantly once he gets his hands on it."

Old Zhang's experience was indeed rich, and his knowledge of various materials was extensive; this was something acknowledged by many employees in the factory. The Middle-aged man nodded.

Receiving confirmation, the colleague became even more excited.

"Old Zhang said that the round steel blanks used for this batch of seamless steel pipes were delivered personally by President Wang, and their performance far exceeds any alloy material he has ever seen. Just looking at the weight, a round steel bar of the same size is at least half as light as other alloy steels."

"As for strength, high-temperature resistance, high-pressure resistance, and corrosion resistance, it goes without saying—they are truly eye-catching."

"Tell me, this kind of alloy material, processed into seamless steel pipes with internal grooves—if that's not a gun barrel, what is it?"

This was indeed very suspicious; the Middle-aged man couldn't think of any other use.

Could it really be gun barrels?

But... manufacturing guns is illegal.

"Didn't you ask Old Zhang..." The Middle-aged man looked at his excited colleague. "How many steel pipes did they process yesterday?"

"Seventy or eighty, I guess." The colleague looked puzzled. "Why?"

Why?

He was going to spend his life in prison!

Manufacturing a single gun barrel was enough to land one in jail. Now, they had manufactured seventy or eighty—just how many guns did that amount to?

Looking at his colleague, who was still wearing a smug expression, the Middle-aged man's mood plummeted. Even the half-eaten bun in his hand no longer tasted good, and his sleepiness had vanished completely.

Should he hire a lawyer to ask how to handle this kind of situation?

He wasn't the principal offender, right? He didn't even know what was going on; at most, he was an accomplice. Could he get a lighter sentence?

Could he apply for a sentence reduction after being convicted? If he got out earlier, he could still see his daughter get married.

The Middle-aged man felt quite anxious.

On the other side.

Wang Shuo looked at the boxes scattered all over the floor and revealed a slight smile.

These were the polymer suitcases that Lin Junfeng had people manufacture overnight yesterday.

As a factory specializing in plastic production, having ready-made molds meant that manufacturing a few suitcases was as simple as could be.

As for the padding, Wang Shuo directly used polyester foam, which was also readily available and could be cut to fit the shape of the items, making it very convenient.

At this moment, the boxes on the floor were already packed with the Electromagnetic Rifles and accompanying equipment rushed out overnight, such as spare batteries and three magazines filled with bullets; any extras had already been packed into separate boxes.

"President Wang."

Lin Junfeng, who had stayed up all night, came to Wang Shuo's side.

"Everything has been counted; here is the inventory list."

"You've really worked hard."

Wang Shuo took the list and, looking at Lin Junfeng, who already had dark circles under his eyes, said apologetically, "Give everyone two days off, today and tomorrow, to get some good rest. The bonus wages will be distributed by this afternoon."

Hmm, an eighteen-year-old boss is indeed different from an eighty-year-old capitalist.

It's hard to bear making people work overtime; it seems he should use more robots in the future. At least he wouldn't feel guilty about making robots run around the clock.

"President Wang, you are truly considerate. I will go and announce this good news to everyone in a moment."

Lin Junfeng smiled slightly, but inwardly, he couldn't stop himself from smiling bitterly.

Heaven knows, when he caught a sudden glimpse of the finished Electromagnetic Rifles this morning, he was truly stunned, okay? He stood there completely dumbfounded for a full thirty seconds, unable to speak.

He had thought of everything, but he never, ever imagined that his President Wang, with a single phone call that sent two companies into a frenzy and chaos, was actually having them manufacture guns!

Those were guns! Items strictly prohibited from private ownership in Huaxia.

Now, Wang Shuo had made them, and so many of them at that.

Was he planning to smuggle arms abroad?

This put Lin Junfeng in a difficult position. Wang Shuo had been good to him, and he was still counting on Wang Shuo to provide further technical support. If he reported it now... wouldn't that be a bit wrong?

Wang Shuo didn't know what Lin Junfeng was thinking; otherwise, he would surely have been torn between laughter and tears.

After carefully counting the quantity and confirming there were no issues, Wang Shuo took out his phone and sent a message to Zheng Yi.

"Where are you?"

A moment later, his phone rang. Wang Shuo looked down and saw only three words.

"Arriving soon."

When a woman says "arriving soon," you never know how long that actually means, but that did not include Zheng Yi.

Less than a minute after receiving the message, Wang Shuo heard a roaring sound coming from outside the factory.

The sound came from afar and approached rapidly.

He hurried out of the factory building and looked in the direction of the sound, immediately becoming dumbfounded.

Two massive military helicopters were hovering directly above Chengdong Machinery Factory, and the airflow stirred up by the giant rotating blades made it impossible for people to open their eyes.

Seemingly having confirmed Wang Shuo's location, the helicopters turned their noses and slowly landed in the open area in front of Wang Shuo.

All the workers were startled, looking in astonishment at the behemoths before them, feeling somewhat at a loss.

The Middle-aged man was mixed in the crowd, his face pale.

He knew the situation was serious, but he hadn't expected it to reach this level—they didn't even send the police, but sent the military directly?

This... was there any saving him? Should he still hire a lawyer?

Under everyone's gaze, the cabin door opened. Zheng Yi, in military uniform, jumped off the helicopter and walked straight to Wang Shuo, followed by several soldiers marching in formation.

"Sister Zheng." Wang Shuo gave a wry smile. "Can you not make such a big scene every time you come? My little heart can't take it."

Last time it was special forces blowing up the door, and this time, it was even better—they directly flew helicopters over.

"The situation is urgent; using a car is too slow." Zheng Yi explained, "These are all your company's employees, so it shouldn't be a big problem. Just have them keep it confidential afterwards."

Immediately after, Zheng Yi looked at Wang Shuo, feeling slightly nervous.

"Are the things ready?"

"I have fulfilled my mission." Wang Shuo grinned. "A total of sixty KD-001 Electromagnetic Rifles, twenty K-001 Electromagnetic Sniper Rifles, and sixty Electromagnetic Pistols."

"Two spare battery packs for each gun, rechargeable."

"Sixty thousand rounds of ammunition, two hundred and forty rifle magazines, and one hundred and twenty pistol magazines."

"Sister Zheng, here is the inventory list; you can sign for it."

Looking at the paper Wang Shuo handed over, Zheng Yi was slightly stunned.

She hadn't expected that Wang Shuo would actually succeed, and that every single item far exceeded her required standards.

"How come there are so many?"

Zheng Yi asked subconsciously.

"It's better to be prepared." Wang Shuo smiled faintly. "You were in a rush this time; otherwise, there could have been even more."

Zheng Yi nodded, took a deep look at Wang Shuo, and waved to the soldiers behind her. Six soldiers immediately split into two groups and began moving the goods.

Ten minutes later, the loading was complete.

The helicopters took off again and departed.

Wang Shuo looked up as the aircraft disappeared into the horizon, the words Zheng Yi said before leaving still echoing in his mind.

"Wang Shuo, if you have anything you need in the future, just come to me. Bullying you is bullying me, and it is an insult to our Huaxia Defense Department!"

Wang Shuo smiled slightly.

Defense Department...

Can this be considered officially entering the military's radar?

That's fine; it's exactly what he wanted.

It's just that he didn't know if these things would be able to help.