Chapter 21: The Soviet Union Trip

  Sun Ke is the only son of Sun Yat-sen, the Father of the Nation, and currently serves as the President of the Legislative Yuan. He will once again visit the Soviet Union as a special envoy of the National Government to seek military aid. Now he sits on a plane from Xi'an to Urumqi, thinking about his conversation with He Juncai at the floating airbase last night.

  This was Sun Ke's fourth visit to the Soviet Union. In January 1938, Sun Ke arrived in Moscow and held talks with Stalin, Molotov, Voroshilov and other Soviet leaders, securing a $500 million military loan from the Soviets to purchase Soviet arms. In March 1939, Sun Ke was ordered to visit the Soviet Union again. On this trip, he secured another $200 million loan from the Soviet Union. On June 13, Sun Ke signed the Sino-Soviet Trade Treaty with Soviet Foreign Trade Minister Anastas Mikoyan, which stipulated that the Soviets would provide special goods (military weapons) and China would repay them in half with mineral products and half with agricultural products, with all materials transported by land. In September 1939, Sun Ke made his third trip to Moscow, signing the Sino-Soviet Aviation Agreement.

  When Sun Ke first visited the Soviet Union, he knew that the Soviet Union's aid to China was due to its own strategic significance, in order to avoid being sandwiched by Japan and Germany. Because Stalin explicitly told him: "The Chinese are not only fighting for themselves, but also for the Soviet Union." Sun Ke also knew that he could be selected as a special envoy to the Soviet Union mainly because he was the son of Sun Yat-sen, who had considerable influence in the Soviet Union.

  Yesterday, I had a conversation on that stunning giant ship all night and gained a lot. Firstly, the giant ship solidified Sun Ke's confidence in resisting war. In addition, He Juncai also handed over some design drawings and samples to Sun Ke, expressing gratitude for Soviet assistance, which greatly reduced the difficulty of his fourth trip to the Soviet Union. Finally, He Juncai shared some international secrets and form analysis with Sun Ke, causing Sun Ke's strong "pro-Soviet" ideology to fluctuate. He Juncai also highly praised Sun Ke's ideas on "constitutionalism" and "democracy", and Sun Ke was very pleased to receive support from this red person next to the chairman.

  Sun Ke opened his briefcase again, took out the materials provided by He Juncai about rockets, radar and wireless telegraphy. The technology of radar and wireless telegraphy undoubtedly proved to be the future direction of military development. He Juncai told him that this information should also be revealed to the Soviet Union through the Soviet Volunteer Air Force, so it's not a big problem. As for the rocket shells, the Soviet Union, which is particularly fond of artillery, will be very satisfied, and He Juncai has also provided several prototype rocket shells and launchers (which are actually disassembled bird-scaring rockets). Sun Ke carefully reviewed these materials again, and according to his feeling, these materials would be quite helpful for this trip to the Soviet Union. Sun Ke closed his eyes again to think about his conversation with He Juncai.

  "There are no eternal enemies between nations, nor are there eternal friends, only interests."

  "It is quite possible that the Soviets would sacrifice aid to China in order to get Japan's commitment, and your judgment on this point may be wrong. Even if there are five years of non-aggression treaty between China and the Soviet Union, what about the examples of Poland and Finland?"

  "I believe that Germany will immediately launch an attack on the Soviet Union after unifying Europe, at the latest by this time next year. So Mr. Sun, this may be the last chance for the Soviet Union to provide us with assistance, we must seize it. We can make more promises and extend the payment period, after 1942 our situation will greatly improve."

  "The delivery must be made before April 1941. My inside information indicates that the Soviet Union may sign a treaty with Japan at that time."

  "Prioritize purchasing fighter jets and ammunition, as well as fuel. Also consider buying more machinery and equipment, especially drilling and refining equipment."

  "This trip by Mr. Sun will have a significant impact, please prioritize national interests above all else. For the sake of national interests, one can sacrifice their own reputation, but absolutely must not harm national interests for the sake of saving face!" He Juncai said this because he hoped that Sun Ke would reveal at an appropriate time that China was no longer able to support them and was negotiating with Japan, in order to create tension with the Soviet Union and speed up aid. However, Sun Ke was extremely displeased with this deceptive approach. When He Juncai said these words, he also thought of future politicians who would sacrifice national interests for their own reputation.

  After talking with He Juncai, Sun Ke felt a lot of pressure, but also gained a lot. Some perspectives from another angle may be somewhat biased. The Soviet Union is not all good, it's just that its centralized mechanism is very suitable for wartime or chaotic times. As for the Soviet Union's great power ambitions, Sun Ke was still relatively clear-headed. The Sino-Soviet border is long, and the Soviet Union's national strength has been greatly enhanced through several five-year plans, while China's national strength is very weak, with regions like Xinjiang only nominally "obeying the central government" but actually semi-independent. Apart from the Xinjiang issue, there are also the Chinese Eastern Railway and Outer Mongolia issues between China and the Soviet Union. However, Sun Ke believed that despite these three "unsolved cases", compared to the precious aid provided by the Soviet Union during the difficult war of resistance, they should not be overemphasized. Sun Ke said that solving these problems would have to wait until "we drive the enemy to the other side of the Yalu River" and China becomes strong. He Juncai agreed with his idea but told him that this time would not be too long. After Germany invades the Soviet Union, we can turn around and assist the Soviet Union, and solve these historical problems along the way.

  "There is still one day left, and I must think carefully." Sun Ke said to himself.

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  The Soviet plane landed at Moscow airport, where Chinese government envoy Shao Lizi was waiting for him.

  "Zhe Sheng (Sun Ke's courtesy name), my younger brother, it has been a year since we parted ways. This time, I'm troubling you again."

  "Zhang Hui (Shao Lizhi's courtesy name) brother, that's what I said. I'm just here to play the role of a persuader, but the burden of seeking Soviet aid still falls on your shoulders, brother." The two like-minded individuals' hands were tightly clasped together.

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  Kremlin, Sun Ke and Shao Lizi are waiting for Stalin's summons. In the past few days, they have had talks with Foreign Trade Minister Mikoyan, People's Commissar of Foreign Affairs Molotov and Defense People's Commissar Voroshilov respectively.

  "Mr. Sun, it seems that General Voroshilov is very interested in the materials and objects you provided. Forgive me, but it's hard to believe that China's technical level has already reached the point of producing such finished products." Molotov said to the two Chinese envoys.

  "Comrade Molotov, the Chinese people are fighting with all their might against the fascist invasion of Japan. Some overseas Chinese are also actively donating money and materials to support us. This time, some data was provided by overseas Chinese to aid us, and we successfully won several air battles using the radar and wireless technology contained within. In the past, your country has given great support to our war efforts, and in order to express our gratitude, we are sharing these materials with you without charge."

  "Now that Germany has defeated France, it is preparing to attack Britain. Its ally Japan has launched a frenzied attack and looting on our country, with the Battle of Zaoyi last month resulting in heavy losses for our country, and General Zhang Zizhong, commander of the 33rd Army Group, sacrificing himself for the nation. After the Japanese army captured Zaoyang and Yichang, our military situation became even more severe. Moreover, Japan has become increasingly frenzied due to Germany's defeat of France. We urgently need the Soviet Union to provide us with more support!" Ambassador Shao Lizi, a literary man, couldn't care about his dignity on this day of national crisis, and every time he had the opportunity, he would repeatedly request aid.

  "We have discussed with Comrade Mikoyan, Minister of Foreign Trade, and hope to expand the scope and quantity of the Treaty of Commerce. China and the Soviet Union can exchange more in terms of resources. In addition, our country also has some research in military technology, and we hope to share the results with your country." Sun Ke added.

  "These matters still need to be decided by Comrade Stalin, he will summon you soon." Molotov had long been in charge of foreign affairs and was very familiar with diplomatic language.

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  Stalin is now in his office looking at two reports. One was sent by Richard Sorge, the "Red Spy", about the secret negotiations between China and Japan in Hong Kong, which was actually real history, but the Military Commission cleverly leaked some unfulfilled clauses to Sorge's "line" in the Japanese high-level.

  Another report was from Colonel Blagoveshchensky, commander of the Soviet Volunteer Air Force fighter regiment, describing the situation and victories of the Chinese air force during this period. Blagoveshchensky emphasized in the material the changes in these aerial battles, especially the precise wireless telegraphy installed on the planes of the squadron commanders and deputy commanders, which accurately guided and commanded. Upon seeing the report, Stalin suddenly remembered the radar and radio design drawings brought by Defense Commissar Voroshilov a few days ago. "Yes, and there's also that rocket projectile," Stalin, who had a special affection for artillery, was actually very interested in rocket artillery.

  After the victory of the October Revolution, the Soviet Union invested a lot of effort in rocketry very early on. In 1921, the 2nd Central Special Design Bureau was established to specialize in rocket research and development, with the primary task of developing qualified solid rocket fuel and engines. After unremitting efforts, Soviet designers successively developed solid rockets that could fly stably for 400 meters, rockets with a range of 1300 meters, as well as PC-8282mm and PC-132132mm air-to-air rockets. Soviet pilots once used the PC-82 rocket to severely punish the arrogant Japanese in the Khalkhin Gol River. In October 1938, rocket artillery truck-mounted experiments officially began, with the ZiS-66X6 heavy-duty truck as the platform, and the rocket artillery had 24 H-shaped launch rails. In March 1939, the "Communist International" factory in Voronezh successfully tested the BM-13-16 with 8 launch rails, which could carry a total of 16 M-13 (an improved version of PC-132) 132mm rockets. The test results showed that the BM-13 was particularly suitable for attacking exposed and concentrated enemy troop gatherings, field fortifications, and tank artillery clusters. This time, Sun Ke brought rocket technology data and physical objects, which were evaluated by Voroshilov to be very helpful in increasing the range of Soviet rockets and achieving miniaturization of rockets. These technologies will be of great help to the subsequent improvement of air-to-air rockets, truck-mounted rocket artillery, and even single-soldier portable rocket launchers currently under research.

  "It seems that we need to have a good talk with the Chinese special envoy." Stalin muttered to himself, and he pressed the call button on the desk.

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  Five days later, on the plane from Moscow to Urumqi, Sun Ke was elated. The results of his fourth visit to the Soviet Union exceeded the sum of the previous three visits. Sun Ke knew that under such severe anti-Japanese circumstances, only the Soviet Union could provide such large-scale assistance to China. Geographically, the Soviet Union is the largest country closest to China, and when facing Japan's threat, the Soviet Union had to strongly support China. However, this revised "Treaty of Commerce" contains more content, including provisions for technical sharing, where China will provide radar, wireless radio and other electronic technologies to the Soviet Union, while the Soviet Union sends experts to guide the establishment of China's military industry and heavy industry.

  The Sino-Soviet Treaty of Commerce also expanded the scope and quantity of goods that China urgently needed to acquire, including fighter planes, weapons and industrial equipment. The first batch of 100 I-16 fighter planes, machine guns and ammunition, as well as oil drilling and refining equipment, had already departed from the air and land (Northwest Passage) to Lanzhou. Among them, the weapons would be directly transported to Chongqing and Chengdu, while the mechanical equipment would be used to expand the production of the Yumen Oil Field. Regarding fighter planes, Sun Ke also informed the People's Commissar for Defense Voroshilov about the situation of the "Zero" carrier-based fighter plane being equipped by the Japanese army, and expressed his hope that he could obtain a fighter plane that could counter it as soon as possible, such as the Yak-1 fighter plane which was still in the trial production stage.

  Equipment lists for steel refining, aluminum electrolysis and mechanical manufacturing are also being drafted. It seems that overnight, China's heavy industry is about to switch from German and American systems to Soviet ones. Of course, China will also have to pay more in mineral resources, starting from 1942, with repayment periods extended up to 30 years.

  In addition, the Soviet Union provided China with a loan of $300 million to purchase Soviet industrial goods and equipment, which China would repay over ten years starting from July 1, 1942, at an annual interest rate of three percent.

  This time, Sun Ke will be able to bring back these significant results to Chongqing, which will greatly strengthen his political position and gradually expand his influence within the Chinese government. This is very beneficial for him to promote his own "democracy" and "constitutionalism".

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