Chapter 878
The Whole Arrow to the Moon Plan: A Crazy Idea
The black Red Flag silently drove past the south gate of Tangdu City.
The lights on the city wall outline the contours of the ancient capital, while the eaves of the corner towers lift up a crescent moon in the night sky.
This is the inner city of Tangdu. Half a year ago, it was called the "Old City". Its background is gray old buildings and congested streets.
Now called "Tang Imperial City", its reconstruction plan has been approved and demolition and construction will begin soon. In three years, it will become the world's first fully immersive historical and technological experience area.
Lin Xiaoyu's incident was just an accident; the cross-border telecom fraud in Shan State was not originally on Wang Donglai's work schedule.
However, in Wang Dong's view, the time lost and the price paid were worthwhile.
He had read many urban rebirth novels on Qidian.com. After being reborn, the protagonist either becomes a boss, makes a lot of money, and enjoys university life, or goes into the entertainment industry to collect cards, make movies and TV series, sing songs, participate in variety shows, and pick up girls.
Everyone makes different choices, and Wang Donglai doesn't think there's a superior or inferior one.
But he wanted to do something more meaningful.
Making "Dying to Survive" ahead of schedule was fraught with risk, but he didn't consider the box office performance.
The result was still good. For the first time, the whole society focused on the exorbitantly priced drug called "Gleevec". Seven months later, 17 anti-cancer drugs were included in the medical insurance program.
Last year's heavily modified version of "Life Against the Tide" caused Huangtuan and Ele.me's market share to decline again after its release. This year's promise to pay social insurance and housing fund for delivery drivers and purchase commercial insurance are all related.
For Wang Donglai, film is not a tool for making money, but a lever to influence reality.
And now, he's going to make the third one.
"Wa, has Yang Anchao arrived yet?"
"Engineer Yang returned to Tangdu from Jiuquan at 4 p.m. and is currently presiding over the 79th test data analysis meeting of the 'Lishi-9' engine in the assembly and testing hall of the Galaxy Aerospace R&D Center. The meeting is expected to end at 7:20 p.m."
Wang Dong glanced at the time; it was exactly 6:30.
Tell him I'll be there at seven!
Three seconds later, Wa's calm reply rang out: "Engineer Yang said he is waiting for you on the test bench."
……
Galaxy Aerospace R&D Center is located at the deepest part of Tangdu National Civil Aerospace Industrial Base.
After passing through three identity verification checkpoints, the red flag stopped in front of an eight-meter-high explosion-proof gate.
The headlights illuminated the nameplate on the side wall of the gate, which bore only one line of text: Luxtech Ninth Test Stand.
Wang Donglai got off the car and walked alone towards the gate.
There were no accompaniments, no bodyguards, and no assistants.
This is a tacit understanding between him and Yang Anchao: when they talk about aerospace, no one else needs to listen in.
The gate slid open inward, and a wave of heat, carrying the chilling scent of liquid oxygen, rushed out.
The dome of the general assembly hall is 45 meters high, and a huge silver-gray object stands on the central support frame—23 meters high, with a nozzle diameter of 2.3 meters, and thousands of sensor cables hanging from it, like an ancient Titan bound by chains.
This is the seventy-ninth test unit of the Lux-9.
Wang Donglai walked along the visitor corridor, past rows of buzzing data cabinets, past operators checking parameters, and past a small mountain of test report printouts in the corner.
These valuable technical data must be documented in addition to being electronically archived, serving as a double safeguard.
At the front of the crowd, a middle-aged man in dark blue overalls stood with his back to him, holding a walkie-talkie and staring at the waterfall of data pouring down on the main control screen.
This person was Yang Anchao.
"The combustion chamber pressure is stable, the air-fuel mixture fluctuates by ±0.2%, and the turbopump speed is 7.8 rpm."
"Shut down!"
With Yang Anchao's command, the roar of the test bench subsided like a receding tide.
A brief silence fell over the hall, then someone noticed Wang Donglai at the end of the corridor.
"Academician Wang!"
Yang Anchao turned around, and the walkie-talkie slipped from his hand, dangling from his wristband.
He strode over, his brows still furrowed with the seriousness he felt during the test drive, and his eyes bloodshot from not having slept for three days.
"Isn't it seven o'clock?"
"It's ahead of schedule."
Wang Donglai walked alongside him toward the conference area and asked, "The seventy-ninth time, twenty-one more to go?"
Yang Anchao nodded and said, "The Lux-9's type certification test involves one hundred runs. It must pass all operating conditions one hundred times before it can be rated."
How much more is needed?
"Thrust of 1,200 tons, specific impulse of 355 seconds."
Yang Anchao paused, then added, "In all this time, the thrust has only increased by two hundred tons."
Wang Donglai did not respond.
1,200 tons!
Liquid oxygen methane engine, vacuum thrust.
This achievement is the most impressive in the global commercial space industry.
Before the Hercules rocket engine, the world's most powerful rocket engine was the RD-171MV developed by Russia, which reached a terrifying 846 tons.
However, who could have imagined that Wang Donglai's "Lishi" engine would suddenly appear and directly raise that figure to one thousand tons?
The fact that Yang Anchao's team was able to increase the thrust by another 200 tons based on Wang Donglai's research is an extremely impressive achievement.
However, compared to Wang Donglai's terrifying research and development capabilities, Yang Anchao was naturally somewhat dissatisfied with his own research and development progress.
Therefore, even with such an excellent result, Yang Anchao's tone was not proud, but rather weary.
The conference room door closed behind us, shutting out the metallic smell of the test bench.
The oval table was filled with Galaxy Aerospace's core personnel—the chief engineer of the propulsion system, the chief engineer of the structure, the project leader of the lunar base, the chief launch mission coordinator, and a few young faces, probably newcomers.
Wang Donglai took his seat in the main position.
"Today we won't talk about Lux, launch schedules, or commercial orders."
He looked around and said, "Let's just talk about the moon."
The room fell silent.
Yang Anchao slowly put down the thermos in his hand, the bottom of the cup touching the table with a very soft thud.
"Mr. Wang, we are preparing to report to you next week on the first phase of the lunar base plan."
He pulled up the PowerPoint presentation and began to explain: "The site is located on the eastern side of the Shackleton Crater Chain, close to the lava tube cluster. This is our priority cooperation area with the Russian International Lunar Research Station. The sunlight conditions are good, and the proven reserves of water ice resources are sufficient to support the initial development."
He paused, then switched the view.
The structural cross-sectional view of the lava tube slowly unfolds, revealing a weathered layer tens of meters thick at the top, and a spacious interior like an underground dome, with densely packed technical parameters marked on the cross-section.
"Our core strategy is to 'leverage a shell company to gain a strategic advantage'."
Yang Anchao's voice was calm and steady, with the precision unique to engineers, as he explained: "Utilizing the natural radiation shielding and constant temperature environment of the lava tube, the main body of the base will be sunk underground. The first step is to launch a drilling robot to open the tunnel; the second step is to deploy and anchor the inflatable core module; and the third step is to 3D print lunar soil bricks to seal the top."
In the image, a miniature base gradually takes shape inside the tube.
"Phase one goal: to build a research outpost that can accommodate four astronauts and support a 30-day stay."
Yang Anchao looked at Wang Donglai and tentatively said, "We will achieve the first occupancy within five years and expand it into a permanent base within ten years."
Five years!
ten years!
The meeting room was quiet, with only Yang Anchao's voice and the scratching of a pen on paper.
Wang Donglai didn't speak immediately. He stared at the base model floating in the lava tube for a long time, so long that the young faces began to exchange uneasy glances.
Then he spoke.
"Engineer Yang, five years is too long!"
Yang Anchao's movements immediately stopped.
"...What did you say?"
"Five years, 1,800 days!"
Wang Donglai stood up, walked to the holographic projection, and ran his finger through the exquisite base model, saying, "The lava tube is a divinely granted sanctuary, but it is not the only sanctuary."
"You're going to wait five years for robots to dig a hole—can those astronauts trapped in the radiation belts afford to wait that long?"
He turned around, his gaze sharp as a needle.
"Besides, the higher-ups won't wait for you for five years!"
Yang Anchao's Adam's apple bobbed.
"Mr. Wang, it's not that I haven't considered speeding up, the problem is the transportation bottleneck."
"The maximum delivery capacity of a single rocket is 25 tons. Even if the lava tube base only produces the minimum viable product, it would need at least 15 missions to make it feasible. We simply cannot..."
"Who told you we'd be using a 25-ton rocket?"
Wang Donglai interrupted Yang Anchao.
Yang Anchao was stunned.
Wang Donglai asked, "After the Hercules-9 is finalized, what is the next stage goal?"
Yang Anchao subconsciously replied: "A two-thousand-ton-class heavy-lift rocket, with a multi-engine parallel configuration, and a near-Earth payload capacity of no less than one hundred and fifty tons..."
"If you know you need a rocket with a capacity of 2,000 tons, why use a rocket with a capacity of 25 tons to transport the base?"
Wang Donglai's question was like a heavy hammer, slamming into the center of the conference table.
Yang Anchao opened his mouth, but no sound came out.
“You are making a five-year plan based on the maximum carrying capacity of the Lux-9. The Lux-9 can only carry a maximum of 25 tons, so you dismantle the base into parts, send them up one by one, and then have robots assemble them on the lunar surface.”
Wang Donglai paused for a moment and said, "This is the old path that has been used in the aerospace industry for sixty years. It is steady, but slow."
As he spoke, Wang Donglai took out a USB drive, handed it to Yang Anchao, and plugged it into the computer.
Soon, a folder opened, and a brand new hologram appeared in front of everyone.
A rocket's longitudinal profile is dissected layer by layer—propellant tanks, interstage sections, instrument compartments, and engine racks.
However, the cross-sectional diagram is not labeled with performance parameters, but with a completely unfamiliar set of labels:
Liquid oxygen storage tank → Water cycle farm
Fuel tank → Crew quarters (upper level) / Experiment area (lower level)
Classroom → Public Activity Space/Gym
Instrument Cabin → Central Control Room
Fairing → Airlock/Observation Dome
Yang Anchao's pupils suddenly contracted.
"This is……"
"The entire arrow fell to the moon."
Wang Donglai ran his fingertip over the dissected rocket and said, "It's not about dismantling the base into parts and sending it up; it's about sending the entire rocket up—and then the rocket itself becomes the base."
Someone at the conference table gasped.
"The rocket landed upright..."
The head of the lunar base instinctively retorted; he was a young PhD in his early thirties with glasses as thick as the bottom of a bottle.
"Then turn it sideways."
As if knowing someone would ask this question, Wang Donglai immediately pulled up the second image.
The horizontal rocket resembled a giant silver pipe lying flat on the lunar surface.
Its liquid oxygen tank has an inner wall with insulation and four round portholes on the top; the fuel tank is divided into upper and lower layers by a partition, with beds and experimental tables arranged in a staggered manner; the inter-class sections are opened up into a spacious public area, with even a ping-pong table painted in the center.
"After the first-stage rocket lands, the controllable tilting support is activated to adjust the rocket's attitude from vertical to horizontal. The liquid oxygen and methane tanks are emptied to create a ready-made pressure chamber. An insulation layer is added to the inner wall, and pipelines are laid through holes drilled in the chamber wall. The nose fairing is converted into an airlock to dock with the lunar rover. The second-stage rocket retains its power section and is on standby as an emergency return vehicle."
He went on to explain each point, as if he were reading a pre-written acceptance report.
"After the engine frame is removed, a life support system is installed—oxygen production, water recovery, and carbon dioxide reduction."
"The nozzles of four vacuum-equipped Hercules-9 engines were removed, and they were rotated 180 degrees to be converted into thermoelectric generators for a lunar emergency power station."
"Each unit has a power output of 30 kilowatts, and four units connected in parallel are enough to power the entire base for ten years."
He paused, then pulled up the last image.
That was the complete cross-section of the entire rocket after it was converted into a base; every inch of space was redefined, and every structure was given new life.
The silver-gray rocket lay horizontally on the gray lunar surface, its portholes emitting a warm yellow light, and a lunar rover was parked at the airlock door.
The conference room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
Yang Anchao stared at the picture, motionless.
Behind him, Chief Engineer Zhou's glasses were fogged up with a layer of white mist—it was the hot breath he exhaled from holding his breath for too long that fogged up the lenses.
He took off his glasses and slowly wiped them with the corner of his shirt, wiping them for a long time.
The hand of the person in charge of the lunar base was suspended in mid-air, his fingertips trembling slightly.
He is a PhD from Wudaokou, who participated in the deep space exploration demonstration of the China National Space Administration and wrote 23 feasibility reports for lunar bases.
Every report begins with the statement, "Capacity bottleneck is the biggest constraint at present."
Now Wang Donglai tells him: the bottleneck in transportation capacity is not a constraint, but a resource.
"Engineer Yang."
Wang Donglai's voice pulled him back to reality, saying, "You just said that five years is too short, and ten years is reasonable."
"That's because you're assuming we'll still be using the Hercules-9 for the next five years. Each shot weighs 25 tons, and it would take 50 shots to gather enough materials for one base."
He paused, then continued, "If you have a 2,000-ton rocket next year, and it can launch an entire base in one go—do you still think five years is too long?"
Yang Anchao remained silent.
His gaze shifted from the PowerPoint presentation to the cold cup of tea beside him.
A very thin film of tea condensed on the surface of the tea, reflecting the blue light of the display screen.
Thirty years have passed.
He recalled that when he was studying at Harbin Institute of Technology thirty years ago, his mentor stood on the blackboard and wrote the Tsiolkovsky formula, saying, "Xiao Yang, aerospace is a slow process. It is normal to spend ten years on a single model, and it is lucky to be able to complete two models in a lifetime."
He believed it!
Later, he joined the system and participated in key projects. He watched the project go from its inception to its first flight for a full fourteen years, and he accepted it.
It wasn't until he met Wang Donglai that he realized there were true geniuses in this world.
A rocket engine with a thrust of one thousand tons was developed just like that, it's practically a joke.
They said they would build a space station using the power of private enterprises, and they actually built the world's largest space station.
When it was said that they were going to send people to the moon, everyone thought it was a joke, but Wang Donglai actually rode a rocket developed by Galaxy Aerospace and landed on the moon.
Thinking of all this, Yang Anchao's heart warmed. He picked up the now-cold tea and drank it all in one gulp. (End of Chapter)