On the third day of the ninth month of the sixth year of Yan Ning, a groundbreaking ceremony was held for a new factory on a piece of wasteland in the western suburbs of the capital.

The groundbreaking ceremony was very simple, with only a handful of people in attendance.

However, after the groundbreaking ceremony, the construction team moved in and began building the factory facilities in a large-scale manner.

The materials for this factory were prepared long ago.

The entire structure is made of reinforced concrete. With a large number of workers from the construction team participating in the construction, the factory has been fully completed in just over a month.

Meanwhile, the railway branch line connecting the factory to places such as the Beijing Ordnance Manufacturing Bureau, the Beijing Manufacturing Bureau, and the Beijing Iron and Steel Plant has also been completed.

Equipment and machinery from various places were transported here.

On October 23rd of the sixth year of Yanning, a sign was hung at the gate of this factory.

The sign clearly reads: "Beijing Ordnance Manufacturing Bureau, Bureau 903".

Bureau 903, codenamed after the date of its groundbreaking. The outer perimeter was heavily guarded, with personnel from the Privy Council's security bureau even stationed at the entrance.

In early November, Li Xin arrived at the 903rd Bureau.

Not all of the accompanying personnel entered.

Upon entering Bureau 903, a middle-aged man immediately greeted Li Xin, saying, "Greetings, Your Majesty!"

"Engineer Liu, get up."

Li Xin waved his hand and asked, "How's the research going?"

"Your Majesty, the assembly is basically complete."

Liu Yuan, the head of Bureau 903, replied softly, "Previously, the Academy of Sciences, together with the Manufacturing Bureau, developed an internal combustion engine. Of the six machines that were successfully trial-produced, Bureau 903 brought three. One of these three machines was disassembled for improvement and production. The other two have already been assembled into the machine. According to the design in the blueprints, the assembly has been basically successful. However, testing has not yet begun."

"Hmm."

Li Xin nodded slightly.

The internal combustion engine that Liu Yuan mentioned was naturally a new device that Li Xin had found in the field of intelligent technology after the beginning of the sixth year of Yan Ning.

The internal combustion engine is also one of the iconic products of the Second Industrial Revolution.

As the technological level of the Great Gan Kingdom continued to improve, the Academy of Sciences and the Manufacturing Bureau also acquired the conditions to produce internal combustion engines.

Therefore, Li Xin copied it into a book and handed it over to the Academy of Sciences and the Manufacturing Bureau for reproduction.

After six months of imitation, they finally achieved some success.

After successfully imitating the internal combustion engine, Li Xin instructed the Manufacturing Bureau to prepare to build a production line to produce internal combustion engines.

On the other hand, Li Xin established Bureau 903 to be responsible for the research and development of another new piece of equipment!

This new device is a killer weapon!

Led by Liu Yuan, the head of the 903rd Bureau, Li Xin quickly arrived at a heavily guarded workshop of the 903rd Bureau.

As soon as Li Xin entered the workshop, he looked up and saw a huge vehicle parked in front of him.

There are five pairs of road wheels in the huge tracks on both sides. Inside the tracks is a steel shell, and above it is a huge, long cannon barrel that shoots straight into the sky.

Two heavy machine guns were also mounted next to the cannon barrel!

This enormous thing, although it looks a bit awkward, is exactly the same as the tanks of later generations!

That's right!

The ultimate weapon manufactured by Bureau 903 was the tank that Li Xin had searched for in the field of intelligent technology!

With the successful imitation of the internal combustion engine, the equipment of the new era naturally became the representative of the steel torrent—tanks and armored vehicles!

Looking at the tanks and armored vehicles in front of him, Li Xin asked, "Engineer Liu, could you please introduce your achievements?"

"As you command."

Liu Yuan quickly responded and explained, "Your Majesty, the first steel tank manufactured by Bureau 903 is at best a replica. Many parts are still quite rough and not very well coordinated. This steel tank is powered by a newly developed internal combustion engine and uses diesel fuel. The driving speed has not yet been tested, but it is estimated to be around 40 to 50 miles per hour. As long as there is enough fuel, it can travel for more than ten hours."

"This steel armored vehicle is equipped with two newly developed heavy machine guns, with a storage capacity of 5,000 rounds of ammunition. Its main weapon is a 105mm howitzer, with 50 rounds of ammunition on board."

"The main gun can rotate 360 ​​degrees and has a range of about 20 miles. The vehicle can carry six people for the time being."

Li Xin nodded slightly as he listened to Liu Yuan's introduction.

For the first generation of steel armored vehicles that were copied, such data was already very impressive.

Although the workmanship is a bit rough, such a steel monster is a god-like existence in this era.

The outer shell is made of a new type of steel recently developed by the Beijing Steel Plant, making it extremely hard. Even if it were to be hit by a grenade explosion, it would be completely unharmed.

With such weapons, wouldn't we be able to crush everything?

Li Xin smiled and nodded, saying, "Judging from the data, it's already very good! Engineer Liu, let's take it out for a test drive now!"

"yes!"

Liu Yuan quickly agreed.

Immediately, Liu Yuan instructed several drivers to get into the cabin of the steel armored vehicle.

A short while later, a roar resounded, and a wisp of black smoke rose from the steel chariot.

With a roar, the heavy tracks began to turn, and the colossal steel war machine moved forward.

"It moved! It moved!"

The workers in the workshop cheered.

You have to understand that they have been working day and night during this period, all in order to build this behemoth in front of them as soon as possible.

Now, seeing the steel war machines I produced ready for use fills me with sweetness, more so than if I had eaten honey.

Watching the steel war chariot speeding along, Li Xin's face beamed with a smile.

At this moment, the steel chariot suddenly accelerated forward, and its speed increased rapidly in an instant.

The black smoke from the tailpipe was also much thicker.

Just after the steel tank had traveled a certain distance at high speed, a plume of black smoke suddenly rose up, and the steel tank broke down.

"What happened?"

Li Xin asked the question.

Liu Yuan, who was standing beside him, was shocked and quickly went forward to check on him.

The workers nearby rushed forward, helped the people out of the cockpit, and began to disassemble the outer shell.

After inspecting the engine, Liu Yuan walked over to Li Xin and said, "The internal combustion engine's power is still somewhat insufficient and needs improvement. There aren't any major problems elsewhere!"

"good!"

Li Xin nodded slightly, without blaming them.

After all, both the internal combustion engine and the steel war machine are groundbreaking and extremely advanced for this era!

It's already quite impressive that they were able to replicate it to a rough degree!

As for these minor issues, they can be improved little by little!

Li Xin said, "Engineer Liu, this isn't your fault! Take it one step at a time! Don't rush things. One day, the steel chariot will be perfect!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"