After snow in Novosibirsk, horse-drawn sleighs appear on the streets of the city one after another.
The snowfall continues, and it is unknown when it will stop. The only thing the locals know is that when the concrete road appears again in people's sight, it will definitely be next spring.
Starting early this morning, the "ice and snow season" that lasts for nearly half a year officially begins.
The whole city has changed its lifestyle. Because of the cold and inconvenient transportation, residents can spend a lot of time at home.
However, all munitions factories must not stop. Due to transportation obstacles, a large number of workers have to spend a lot of time in factories with normal heating supply.
Based on this reality, a large number of wooden board houses began to be built in the open spaces of various factories. For no other reason than that, these heated board houses would be used as temporary dormitories for workers, and even workers' families were allowed to live in them.
Umov will soon serve as the governor of the divided Novosibirsk region. His position will be elevated and he will have a heavier burden.
Previously, there were four large cities in Novosibirsk Oblast. Currently, there are only three large cities, Novosibirsk City, Kemerovo and Tomsk, with a population of more than 100,000. As for other cities, the population is often only 20,000 or 30,000.
Among them, Novosibirsk's population of 1.5 million determines its status as a giant, and other cities are simply supporting roles. We can't expect those small cities to do anything, since small cities always stand around railway lines.
Their most important job is obviously to ensure smooth transportation during the ice period, and that is enough.
In 1942, Omsk was legally separated from Novosibirsk. In the foreseeable future, Umov understood that it was only a matter of time before Kemerovo in the east was divided.
The original Novosibirsk Oblast was too big, with several large cities often five to six hundred kilometers apart. If we expected Governor Gorovsky and his few colleagues to manage this behemoth, their ability to move would definitely be very limited.
Now, the Soviet Union must use all its strength to "squeeze" local fighting power from Siberia and the Far East to resist the invasion. This made Stalin very much in need of Siberia's peak organizational mobilization.
The traditional "frontier official" model is no longer suitable for the current war. The huge Novosibirsk state is divided into multiple parts. Each part is directly responsible to Moscow and begins to compete with each other. The comprehensive capabilities will definitely increase rapidly.
Of course, there is a deeper meaning here.
Umov knows very well that the current situation is very similar to the civil war period 20 years ago. At that time, didn't the Polish intervention army also directly attack Donbass? And the Japanese army's 70,000 people not only circled in southern Siberia,
It also tried to establish a puppet "Far Eastern Republic".
Now the only ones that can support the alliance to continue fighting are the large logistics bases: the Ural region and the Siberian region.
If Siberia becomes a single country, it will pose a permanent threat to the alliance, so it must be broken up into several small states.
Umov is very lucky. After another conference, Omsk will be officially separated. In the next few years, several cities will gradually form their own states. His workload will gradually decrease, and the responsibilities he has to bear will also decrease in proportion.
.
A person is already fifty years old, how much time is left? Umov knows that he has basically lost the qualifications for further promotion, because the future is reserved for young people, and holding the position of governor is the limit of his life.
Doing this for a lifetime is enough. The next time is to manage the wartime Novosibirsk Oblast.
It seems that if Umov wants to manage the still huge Novosibirsk Oblast, he must deal with a variety of and huge numbers of incidents, but this is not the case.
Looking at the current population of the state, after the division of Omsk, the Novosibirsk state, large and small cities and various collective farms combined have a population of only three million.
A population of three million was indeed a huge figure for the Soviet Union, but think about the situation in Moscow. Before the war broke out, there were five million people in a corner of Moscow!
Umov only needs to focus on four major things at the moment:
First, the production capacity status of military-related industries.
Second, the state’s completion status of its recruitment tasks.
Third, the material supply situation of all military and civilians.
Fourth, the material supply situation of the Academy of Sciences.
Professionals are responsible for various tasks. For Umov, after he took over Gorlovsky's work, his biggest task was to read a large number of official documents submitted and give instructions, and to monitor all aspects of the work in real time and proceed steadily without going wrong.
Of course, he is by no means a "supervisor". He has great power, especially in controlling the mobilization of materials within the state.
This high degree of power can easily breed corruption. Umov attaches great importance to General Yang Mingzhi, a "scientist", and even believes that his promotion is due to General Berekov's contribution.
It was so sudden. In August, although Umov knew that Novosibirsk Oblast was going to be divided into small pieces, he never thought that he could serve as governor. After all, aren't the qualifications of the first and second deputy governors older?
Regarding personnel transfer orders in this area, although the attitude of the Soviet Congress is very important, Stalin's orders are actually more important.
Many things are difficult to explain clearly. What Umov saw was that after General Berekov arrived, he started research and development of new equipment non-stop, and achieved results that astonished all senior officials.
"His new weapon no longer needs lengthy testing. It should be shipped to Moscow immediately for experts to study it. I should also be prepared to order mass production."
The agreed date of September 26 was about to come, and on the morning of the 25th, Umov made a phone call and invited Yang Mingzhi to his office.
"What do you think? It must be extremely cold outside!" Umov, holding a pipe in his mouth, showed a relaxed attitude.
Yang Mingzhi nodded and shook his coat: "Thank God, the batch of wool coats you provided to the Academy of Sciences has been put to great use."
"Oh, you don't have to thank me for anything. It's necessary to give preferential treatment to scientists. Come on, you're welcome. Please sit down."
Yang Mingzhi immediately approached the sofa beside the office wall and sat down with his legs crossed.
"Comrade Governor, I know your purpose of inviting me here is nothing more than tomorrow."
"Yes, your two firearms have undergone successful testing. Last night, Comrade Commander of the Military Region called me and highly praised your second new weapon. He especially mentioned the drum magazine of your new gun. Now
I have issued a research and development order to Factory 830, and they will soon produce brand new submachine gun drums. I...as the governor, I will truthfully report your achievements to Comrade Stalin."
"Oh! That's right! Thank you so much." Yang Mingzhi bowed slightly politely.
"Today I mainly want to explain to you that the military train will set off tomorrow, and it is expected to leave around noon tomorrow. As far as I know, all your samples are still stored in the Academy of Sciences?"
"Of course, it's safest to leave it to us for the time being."
"That's fine. Your weapons will determine the fate of many people. If they are placed in the warehouse of the train station, I...I won't trust them anyway. However, it is also dangerous to store them as ordnance in the Academy of Sciences.
"
Yang Mingzhi could tell that the old guy was still angry about the reckless gunfire a few days ago.
"You won't have to worry about this soon, they will be shipped out tomorrow."
"Yes, you will also personally escort the sample weapons and unassigned bullets to the train station, but...I..."
"You? What else do you have in mind?"
"Ah, yes, I sent out all the secretaries, and now there are only you and me in the office. I thought about this matter, and I think..."
"Huh?" Yang Mingzhi had a bad feeling, "It doesn't matter if you say so."
"That's right. From your point of view, you must really want your firearms to be mass-produced, right?"
"certainly!"
"Comrade Comrade Commander of the Military Region and I have the same attitude. I have served here for twenty years. The army that emerged from Siberia has excellent combat effectiveness. However, your sample will definitely be handed over to a group of conservative guys. That is a group of
Old guy whose thinking is still stuck in the last century. Have you ever heard of a Russian proverb about firearms?"
"I don't know." Yang Mingzhi replied.
"Using a bayonet is a hero, using bullets is a fool. Although modern warfare must rely on bullets, there are still a group of old and powerful senior people in the army who feel that bolt-action rifles are best, and sabers can still be of great use.
.So you..."
"I...what do you want from me?"
"Hey, I won't talk nonsense anymore!" Umov spread his hands: "I hope you will go back to Moscow again. During this trip you will definitely meet Comrade Stalin in person. As the inventor, you will be able to convince me if you show up and explain it with your own experience.
Those pedantic people. Haha, let me tell you a secret. Comrade Stalin has always supported automatic weapons, but it’s just because his comrades like to pull the big bolt."
"Okay, I understand..."
Yang Mingzhi's old face instantly fell down. He heard another meaning from this Umov's mouth: Is this old guy driving me away?
Damn it! I have only been in this frozen place for more than two weeks. I have been on the train for five or six days. I have been working continuously on a new gun. I just finished the research and development of the new gun, and you are sent back to me? What the hell!
As a decent and decent person, Yang Mingzhi did not stamp his feet in anger.
Think about it, if he were a grumpy old man, he would have to at least curse in front of Umov?!
Yang Mingzhi was surprisingly calm and said coldly: "Comrade, do you really want me to leave?"
"This... this matter is really hard to explain." Umov could guess what Berekov was thinking. Indeed, his own thoughts were too abrupt. "Hey, if you don't want to, I won't
Any power that forces you to do so is just a suggestion."
"No. Since you made the suggestion, there is some rationality in it."
A few minutes ago, Umov had already explained the "reasonableness" of going to Moscow. It was not just a random whim. Yang Mingzhi crossed his legs and tensed up. He gently raised his head and looked at the whitewashed ceiling.
A lot comes to mind.
In that dimension, it was normal for an ordnance production company to send people on business trips to customers. Yang Mingzhi had never been on a business trip back then, but his subordinates often went.
The so-called business trip is to carry a briefcase and sit in a special seat on the high-speed rail. If time is tight, take a plane. At that time, transportation in China was unprecedentedly convenient. It spanned 5,000 kilometers and the journey could be completed within 20 hours, not to mention that the transportation fee was paid in full.
Not to mention reimbursement, there is also food subsidy and so on.
In the Soviet Union in 1942, the traffic situation here was really a mess.
The connection between the east and west of the Union is extremely dependent on the Trans-Siberian Railway and will continue to be dependent on it for a long time.
No matter how beautiful the words are to describe its importance, it cannot change the fact that it is a "little broken road". Yang Mingzhi knew very well what the cost of going to Moscow was. The time spent on transportation alone would take at least a full amount of time to go back and forth.
Ten days.
A lot can be done in ten days!
Seeing General Berekov thinking, Umov realized that he had made a mistake and quickly explained: "I'm sorry, just pretend that I didn't say anything just now."
"No! You have already said it." Yang Mingzhi suddenly raised his head and looked at the panicked Umov, "What did you just say? Comrade Stalin must observe the new weapons in person. In order to mass-produce them, I have to convince the Kremlin
Opponents?"
After hesitating for a while, Umov replied in the affirmative, but also further explained: "I thought about it, you don't have to go. The above is just my suggestion, and it is not the purpose of inviting you here today.
It's just an extra thing. Today, I just have an interview with you and urge you to load the necessary goods into the truck tomorrow morning."
"Yeah, I'm listening."
Umov shrugged: "About this matter, I actually think it is necessary for you to send one or two professionals from the design bureau to escort the transportation in person. As far as I know, when the Firearms Bureau reviews new firearms, the manufacturer must
Accompanying you all the way. Don’t expect the two operators from Lubyanka to be escorts. They are from the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Your belongings will definitely be intercepted by Beria first. I’m afraid it won’t be delivered to Stalin until later.
It's a matter of fact. You must understand that Beria can do anything."
How else could Beria be involved in this matter? For a moment, Yang Mingzhi had to admire Umov's imagination. But then he thought about it and realized that what this old guy said was definitely not nonsense.
The current Ministry of Internal Affairs is the KGB of the future. It is a magical organization that has penetrated basically all parts of the Soviet Union. They have the power to review everything from missiles flying into the air to vinyl records sold in stores and even the heels of leather shoe factories.
Several shoe studs also have the right to be inspected.
If Beria intends to cause trouble, it will indeed be troublesome.
Umov's other rhetoric really needs to be considered.
During this era, the Soviet Union's postal department was still operating as usual. Even because the Trans-Siberian Railway was busier than ever, postal efficiency improved a lot.
It's a pity that Yang Mingzhi is a person who has adapted to the speed of express delivery in the 21st century. If the Soviet postal service in this time and space relies on them, it is better to take the train to transport the goods in person!
In a sense, Stalin was the only client of the design bureau. To serve this "loving father" well, think about it, if you just select two or three young designers from the design bureau, you can count on them to give Stalin advice.
clear and direct?
Bah! When they saw Stalin, they were either in a coma with excitement, or they were so nervous that they were suffocated. Wait, even if that wasn't the case, they would have to take a walk around Lubyanka first, and fall into Beria's hands. I'm afraid they would be scared first.
fainted.
Thinking of this, Yang Mingzhi felt that even if Popov personally led the team, it would be a fool's errand to succeed in this matter.
Who are the people in the design bureau? Except for Popov, who has seen some of the market, the others are all naive and inexperienced young people. Yang Zhiming still remembers that when he first arrived, he stood in front of them wearing a medal. How many of them did not tremble?
If we meet the "loving father", the probability of collective coma is greater.
After thinking about it, a disgusting thought came to my mind.
At this point, Yang Mingzhi could only turn his head to stare at Umov, and shook his head with a tight mouth: "I have thought about your suggestion carefully, and it seems that if I don't go in person, this matter will be really difficult to accomplish."