Rebirth: I am in Jin-Cha-Ji

The two sides had huge differences and the debate was very heated.

Many Soviet experts wrote reports to the Soviet Union, stating that there was no need to continue exploration in Karamay.

After all, the Sino-Soviet Oil Company was jointly established by China and the Soviet Union. Soviet leaders trusted their own technicians more and wanted to withdraw from Karamay. However, Chinese technicians insisted that there must be oil fields there and opposed withdrawal. Instead, they advocated further exploration into the hinterland.

Neither China nor the Soviet Union could convince the other.

So I couldn't make a decision.

However, things have changed recently. The Soviet Union is preparing to transfer all of its shares in the Sino-Soviet Oil Company to China. Following the Soviet withdrawal from the Sino-Soviet Oil Company, China established the China National Petroleum Xinjiang Company.

China National Petroleum Corporation Xinjiang Company supports the views of the Chinese personnel and wants to further explore the hinterland.

The Ministry of Geology, based on the judgment of Chinese technicians and reports from the China National Petroleum Corporation Xinjiang Company, also believed that there should be oil in Karamay. However, after all, Soviet experts had previously determined that there was oil, but the reserves were likely very low and not worth mining.

Therefore, although the Ministry of Geology agreed with the judgment of the Chinese technicians, it was unable to make a decision.

However, upon learning this, Wei Hongjun immediately made the decision, respecting the judgment of the frontline technicians and supporting the report of China National Petroleum Xinjiang Company. This was because Wei Hongjun knew that the data submitted by the frontline technicians, especially the Chinese technicians, was correct. It was the Karamay Oilfield. It could be said that they had found the most accurate location. Historically, the first well they drilled after entering Black Oil Mountain, the well they were now planning to establish in the hinterland, had already gushed oil.

Therefore, Wei Hongjun supported the advance to Heiyu Mountain and the drilling of Well No. 1.

Then, between the Songliao Plain and the North China Plain, more emphasis was placed on exploration in the Songliao Plain, not because the Songliao Plain oil fields were better, but because after developing the oil fields in Northeast China, it would be easier to obtain machinery and technology from the Soviet Union to build refineries.

"Old Wei, there aren't enough people."

Yu Qiuli is the director of the Petroleum Industry Bureau and the direct commander of this small oil campaign.

Less than two days after the meeting, he went to see Wei Hongjun again.

"What's wrong?"

"I just came back from Northeast China. Many of the areas we're exploring are uninhabited, and food, clothing, housing, and transportation are all major challenges. It's already August, and in a month or so the weather in Northeast China will drop, with nighttime temperatures quickly dropping to zero degrees. We have to ensure their health. Our drilling teams are already heading to Northeast China, and once they arrive, they have a heavy workload; they must vertically drill wells in a short period of time. We can't expect our drilling teams to drill wells while managing logistics themselves."

“Don’t you have anyone?”

The drilling crew's work is indeed tough.

But the Petroleum Industry Bureau wasn't without personnel. Yu Qiuli shrugged and said, "Old Wei, the Central Committee and the Military Commission originally approved the establishment of a division of oil engineering troops. And the First Petroleum Engineering Division is now entirely staffed with oil workers. The Yumen Oilfield currently has over thirty drilling crews, all from the First Division. We don't have the manpower right now, so for this small engagement, I've mobilized everyone I can. I've contacted the Northeast government, and they say they're fully committed to supporting the Korean War and can't spare many people to help us."

Yu Qiuli felt a little angry when talking about this.

A small oil battle, this is a decision made by the central government.

But the Northeast was not very enthusiastic, and it was not easy for him to meet with the cadres of the Northeast Bureau. Yu Qiuli knew that although he was the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Fuel Industry, he had no influence in the Northeast.

Because Yu Qiuli, like Wei Hongjun, came from the Red Guards, he served in the Hunan-Jiangxi Military Region, later joining the Sixth and Second Red Army Corps. He then served with the Sixth Corps, and later the 120th Division, the Shanxi-Suiyuan Military Region, the Northwest Field Army, and the First Field Army. So, despite also being from the Central Red Army, he wasn't familiar with the cadres of the First and Third Corps.

However, the cadres in Northeast China were mostly from the 115th Division. Yu Qiuli wasn't their immediate superior, so they had no time to bother with him. This was the most obvious example of localism and factionalism in the early days of the People's Republic of China.

He originally wanted to find Lin Dafeng, the Minister of the Fuel Industry, because Lin Dafeng had extensive connections in the Northeast industrial sector.

However, Yu Qiuli and Lin Dafeng were unfamiliar with each other. Yu Qiuli had been responsible for establishing the oil base at the Yumen Oilfield and had returned to Beijing for the oil campaign. Furthermore, the current situation wasn't simply a matter of Northeast China's cooperation; the Petroleum Industry Bureau itself was insufficiently resourceful.

Yu Qiuli was familiar with Wei Hongjun. Not only had they completed "new-style military training" together in Yan'an, but later, during the war against Fu Zuoyi, the Jinsui Army also cooperated with the Jin-Cha-Ji Army. So, he came directly to Wei Hongjun.

"What do you mean?"

"Give us more personnel. Give us at least two more divisions of oil engineering troops."

"Let me think about it."

Wei Hongjun thought for a while and decided that the strength of the Petroleum Industry Bureau should be increased.

Others don't know.

Wei Hongjun knew that whether it was the Songliao Plain or Karamay, there would definitely be good news within a year. If they were lucky, there would be good news within a few months. Once oil was discovered, large-scale development would be necessary.

By then, it will not be a team of hundreds or thousands of people as it is now.

It is to mobilize tens of thousands of people for a major battle.

For example, Karamay's history began with the discovery of its oil fields in 1955. Within just four or five years, the city grew to to people. Most of these people were workers involved in the Karamay oilfield development. Later, their families joined in, and the area became a city.

Karamay is still a small oil field.

When the Daqing Oilfield Campaign began, 3 men were initially mobilized. Over retired PLA troops participated in the campaign. It is indeed imperative to begin organizing oil engineering units now.

Besides, if this oil campaign is successful, the Petroleum Industry Bureau will become independent and become the Ministry of Petroleum Industry. At that time, as a ministry under the State Council, it is necessary to increase its strength.

So after a while, Wei Hongjun said: "Old Yu, I know about this matter. I will report it to the Central Committee immediately and coordinate with the Military Commission.

"We have to be quick. We have eight drilling crews in the Songliao Plain. We have to prepare shelter for them before winter, and we also have to ensure they have food."

Li Siguang thought that 6 drill teams would be enough.

But after Wei Hongjun and Yu Qiuli discussed it, they finally decided to send 8 drilling teams.

"rest assured."

Wei Hongjun didn't waste any time either.

Right now, nothing was more important than finding oil. Therefore, Wei Hongjun immediately approached the Chairman, saying they should prepare in advance. Once the small oil campaign yielded some results, the big campaign would follow.

It is better to start forming a petroleum engineering team now than to find people on short notice.

The Chairman agreed with Wei Hongjun's words.

Therefore, Wei Hongjun was asked to coordinate with the Military Commission.

This wasn't a big deal. After the Korean War broke out, the Military Commission halted its disarmament efforts and even expanded its military. However, after the Korean War stabilized, the issue of disarmament was once again placed before the Military Commission.

After the Korean War, the PLA's troops grew to more than 600 million people.

How to reduce the military is a headache for the Military Commission.

After all, the interests of all parties must be taken into consideration. After all, no one wants to see their troops downsized. Now that Wei Hongjun wants to transfer two divisions to become oil engineering units, the Military Commission is even happier.

Considering the current situation of the oil battle, Wei Hongjun requested to withdraw one division from the Northwest Military Region and one division from the Northeast Military Region. The Northeast Military Region currently has many independent divisions.

They were all local troops that remained in the Northeast after the Fourth Field Army moved south.

Many independent divisions were originally slated for disbanding. However, the Korean War hit, and the Northeast Military Region was short of manpower, so these independent divisions remained in the Northeast. Now, converting the independent divisions into petroleum engineering units is a win-win for everyone.

In August 1951, the small oil battle that left a significant mark in the history of China's petroleum industry officially began.

885 Britain's Concession

When Wei Hongjun was planning the oil campaign, the Prime Minister had already met Bevin in Madrid.

Both were cautious.

After all, this was the first contact between New China and Britain.

Neither side was clear about their respective negotiating styles. Furthermore, one was the second-in-command of the socialist camp, and the other was the second-in-command of the imperialist camp. At a time when the Cold War was in full swing, any meeting was done in secret.

Of course, it is precisely because of the special status of Britain and China in the Western world and the socialist camp that such a meeting is possible. If it were some other small countries, they would not even dare to think about such a thing.

But the intentions of both sides are clear.

One was to bring back the 6000 prisoners from China, and the other was to use these prisoners to negotiate with Britain to help China's economic development. So the negotiations went straight to the point, but unfortunately, the negotiations were not smooth from the beginning.

Bevin was troubled because, while China's demands were legitimate, none of them were acceptable to Britain. When the two sides sat down, the Prime Minister's first condition was that the People's Republic of China obtain a legitimate seat in the United Nations, replacing Taiwan, and that the US Navy withdraw from the Taiwan Strait. This was the most important issue for Chinese diplomacy at the time.

The Prime Minister is a master of "smoothing things over" and understands the principle of asking for an exorbitant price better than anyone else.

If you start by negotiating specific terms, the UK will definitely not agree. To get one, you have to ask for ten. Start from ten and slowly reduce the amount until you get one.

This is a negotiation skill.

The Prime Minister certainly knew that it was not something Britain could decide whether to allow New China to obtain a seat in the United Nations.

But the more this is the case, the more we need to bring it up.

Bevin could only express his apologies.

Bevin stated directly that the British government's position had been consistent. Britain recognized the People's Republic of China as the sole legitimate representative government of China and had supported its membership in the United Nations from the outset. However, Britain was powerless to intervene in this matter because the key to the issue lay with the United States, not Britain. Bevin stated that China could negotiate with the United States. As long as the United States supported it, Britain would have no objections. Therefore, Bevin expressed regret that Britain could not agree to this condition.

After the first condition was rejected, the Prime Minister was not angry, but his face became "ugly".

The atmosphere of the negotiations began to become tense.

But Bevin is not a rookie.

Very calm.

Waiting for China to make other demands.

After a while, the Prime Minister raised the issue of purchasing warships. This was a matter of considerable discussion between the Chinese and British navies in 1. At the time, Britain was facing financial difficulties and was planning to significantly reduce its naval fleet. The Chinese Navy needed warships, so both sides had a need. However, the deal ultimately fell through for various reasons.

Now the Prime Minister has raised it again.

I want to buy two cruisers and two destroyers from the UK, and if possible, I want to buy some transport ships from the UK.

Bevin could only smile bitterly.

He reiterated to the Prime Minister that it was impossible for Britain to engage in arms trade with China under the current circumstances. Bevin told China directly that Britain could not agree to such conditions.

After the Prime Minister's two proposals were rejected in a row, he told Bevin to adjourn the meeting and talk again after a break.

Bevin agreed.

Bevin needs to adjust, too.

After the resumption of negotiations, the Prime Minister demanded that Britain completely abandon its embargo on China and resume China's foreign trade.

Bevin smiled bitterly again.

Because this wasn't something the UK could decide. The Korean War wasn't over yet. Although both sides had temporarily reached a ceasefire, they both knew there would be more fighting. How could the US allow the embargo to be lifted at this point?

As long as the US continues to maintain the embargo, it is impossible for Britain to unilaterally announce the lifting of the embargo. At this stage, the British economy still needs the funds brought by the US "Marshall Plan".

"Mr. Foreign Minister, you seem to have absolutely no sincerity in negotiating."

The Prime Minister appeared disappointed.

Bevin spread his hands and said, "Mr. Zhou, we've finally created this opportunity to meet. And the fact that both sides are able to sit here and negotiate shows I believe we've demonstrated sufficient sincerity. I came here to truly resolve this issue. We're all reasonable people, so why dwell on something unachievable? The conditions you've proposed are not something we can resolve at this stage. Mr. Zhou, you can tell me directly. What exactly does China want in exchange for releasing our people?"

Bevin understood that all the Prime Minister's previous remarks were for the sake of what he would say later.

However, Bevin knew that Britain was at a disadvantage in the negotiations. Over 6000 British troops were in Chinese hands. Bevin was anxious because the Labour Party was unstable. So, Bevin went straight to the point and asked the Prime Minister to set conditions.

China can afford to delay, but he cannot.

So he knew clearly that the Prime Minister was deliberately using conditions that the UK could not meet in order to seize the initiative in the negotiations, but he could only be led astray because the negotiations between the two sides were not unequal in themselves.

The Prime Minister likes the current situation.

So he took a document from the staff member next to him and handed it to Bevin.