Chapter 124 A Painful Lesson! I've Decided to Do Something Absolutely Safe!

Li Jiajun withdrew his gaze; he really hadn't paid any attention to that pile of scrap metal.

Right now, his attention was entirely on the receding taillights of the convoy. As the last military truck disappeared at the end of the road and the kicked-up dust slowly settled, the Li Family Toy Factory, which had been as noisy as a wet market, returned to a kind of unsettling silence.

In the vast factory grounds, apart from the wailing wind blowing through the empty workshops, only he and Wang Dachui remained, standing on the concrete steps at the entrance, looking quite desolate.

Clutching the check with the astonishing amount that he hadn't even had time to warm up in his hands, Li Jiajun couldn't smile at all.

"Get used to it?" "Practice makes perfect?"

Recalling the two sentences Liu Jianguo had said while patting his shoulder before leaving, Li Jiajun's mouth twitched, and he felt speechless.

He held the check up to the sunset to look at it, and unconsciously triggered his iconic voice-over rant mode, muttering to the air:

"This old man... his words are so ominous. What does 'get used to it' mean? Is this factory of mine just a toy? Or is it a logistics warehouse for them? I finally managed to get some equipment together, and before it was even warmed up, they moved everything out overnight. It's only because I have a good mindset; anyone else would have been depressed by now."

"And he even asked me what I'm building next... Listen to that, is that human language? This is clearly reserving a spot for the next shipment! They've latched onto me, haven't they?"

Standing nearby, Wang Dachui heard his boss's mumbling, shrank his neck, and asked cautiously:

"Boss, so... what do we do next? The factory is empty. How about... buying some more high-end equipment? I heard Germany just released a new model of five-axis linkage machine tool..."

"Stop! Cut it out!"

Li Jiajun jumped up as if he were a cat whose tail had been stepped on, pointing at Wang Dachui's nose and roaring:

"Don't mention any high-end equipment to me! Don't mention five-axis or precision machining! That's a trap! A huge trap!"

A few days later.

Li Jiajun had strategically rested for a few days; after all, for a toy factory to be constantly requisitioned, it was psychologically unbearable.

Today, he and Wang Dachui were pacing back and forth in the empty courtyard, brows furrowed, eyes looking bitter and deep, discussing the requisitioning while also reconsidering their future development path.

"Big Hammer, haven't you figured it out yet? Why are we always being targeted? Why are we always being requisitioned?"

Wang Dachui scratched his head, looking honest and simple: "Because... because, Boss, your technology is too awesome?"

"Wrong! Dead wrong!"

Li Jiajun stopped, analyzing in a pained tone:

"It's because the things we make are too high-end! Too advanced! Too easy for those people whose heads are full of war to think the wrong way about!"

He began to review his blood-and-tears history along the way.

The first product, the drone. It was originally meant to be sold to wealthy people for fun, but because the performance was too good, Hassan took it to bomb an armored brigade.

The second product, the stealth stroller. It was originally meant for children to play with, but because the coating was too heaven-defying, the military took it to make stealth fighter jets.

The third product, the elderly joy. It was originally meant for the elderly to get around, but because it was too sturdy and fast, the Punk Elder drove it to Sanbianpo to use as a tank.

The fourth product, the steel balls. It was originally intended to strike back at internet trolls, but because the material was too high-end, it directly became strategic reserve material.

Oh right, and the jump ropes; don't even get me started on the jump ropes.

"Do you see the problem? Li Jiajun, do you see the problem?"

He pointed at his own nose, asking and answering himself:

"The problem is... these things inherently carry a bit of dual-use attribute. As long as you use your brain a little, you can lean them towards military applications."

"So, if I want to completely escape Uncle Liu's clutches... no, wait, escape the fate of being requisitioned, I must make something absolutely civilian, absolutely safe, and absolutely unrelated to war by even half a cent! I need to make something clumsy, basic, and devoid of any technical content!"

Wang Dachui nodded, half-understanding: "Then... Boss, shall we go sell sweet potatoes?"

"Sell sweet potatoes, my foot! I run a factory, not a farm!"

Li Jiajun rolled his eyes at him, his gaze scanning the factory grounds like a radar, trying to find that kind of absolutely safe industrial inspiration.

His gaze swept across the sky. No, he absolutely couldn't make anything that flies; it would easily be mistaken for a reconnaissance plane or a missile.

His gaze swept across the tire tracks on the ground. No, he couldn't make anything with wheels either; it would easily be mistaken for a troop carrier.

His gaze swept across the small river nearby. No, that wouldn't work either; anything in the water would easily be mistaken for a submarine or a torpedo.

"This won't work, that won't work... am I really reduced to selling air?"

Li Jiajun scratched his head in frustration, his gaze wandering aimlessly around the factory.

Finally, his gaze landed once again on that corner. There, piled up, were a few rusty blue iron canisters he hadn't paid attention to a few days ago.

Those were some discarded gas canisters that the workers used for cooking, and there were also a few discarded steel pipes scattered nearby that were used for building sheds.

Earlier, he had just glanced at them and thought they were trash. But now, looking at them again through the colored glasses of searching for something absolutely safe and absolutely low-end, Li Jiajun's eyes suddenly changed.

He walked over slowly, crouched down, and reached out to pat the oil-stained gas canisters. "Clang—" The sound was dull and solid.

"Boss? Why are you looking at this junk?" Wang Dachui followed over, looking disgusted.

Li Jiajun didn't answer; his eyes grew brighter and brighter, as if some kind of great blueprint was reflected in his pupils.

"Big Hammer, look at this thing." Li Jiajun pointed at the gas canisters, his tone carrying a trace of excited trembling, "What is this?"

"It's a gas canister. Old Zhang uses it to cook noodles."

"Right! gas canisters!" Li Jiajun stood up abruptly and slapped his thigh, "What is this thing? This is a household item used for cooking! It's the most basic, most grounded livelihood product!"

He began to analyze excitedly, speaking rapidly: "Look at it, it's heavy, round, and not easy to carry."

"Look at its structure, it's just an iron canister with a valve, simple to an outrageous degree."

"Its use is singular; besides holding gas for cooking, what else can it do? Could someone really carry a gas canister to war? Don't be ridiculous, that image is too beautiful, I don't even dare to imagine it. Who would run around with a bomb on their back?"

Wang Dachui was confused by his boss's logic: "But... Boss, can we make money making this thing? They're everywhere."

"You don't understand!" Li Jiajun put on an inscrutable expression, "What is the biggest pain point of current gas canisters? It's safety! Every year, countless accidents are caused by gas canister leaks and explosions. If we can build an absolutely safe, absolutely explosion-proof gas canister that won't explode even if thrown into a fire, wouldn't that be a great thing for the country and the people?"

"It solves a livelihood pain point, makes money, and most importantly..." He took a deep breath, a confident smile appearing on his face, the kind that comes from being about to take control of one's own destiny:

"This thing absolutely, absolutely cannot be taken for military use! I don't believe it; can Uncle Liu really requisition my gas canisters to throw as grenades?"

"This time, I want to be the true king of civilian products!"

Li Jiajun felt he had realized it. He had completely realized it.

He turned and rushed to the office, shouting as he walked: "Big Hammer! Don't just stand there! Cash that check!"

"Go get stock! I want the best steel! I'm going to build the safest canisters in the world!"

"Also, prepare the streaming equipment! I want to announce to the entire internet that the Li Family Toy Factory... no, wait, the Li family Civilian Safety Equipment Factory, is officially transforming!"

Returning to the empty office, Li Jiajun skillfully set up his phone. Although the background was a mess, his mood at this moment was unprecedentedly relaxed.

He even hummed a little tune and typed that simple, yet positive-energy-filled streaming title on his phone screen: "Starting from Scratch, Building the Safest gas canisters in the Country!"

"Hehe, this time it's solid." Li Jiajun looked at the screen, fixed his hair, and wore that sincere smile of someone who was finally going to be a good person.

"The family will definitely support my decision to transform. After all, who doesn't want a safe gas canister at home?"

With this beautiful vision in mind, his finger pressed heavily on the start-streaming button. But he clearly underestimated the Netizens of this generation, and overestimated his own innocent image.