I really just want to be a scholar

Chapter 1054 Extra Story (Twenty-three) We do!
This aviation base, code-named "SEED CITY", is one of the three secret research centers in the "Five-Year Plan to Mars", but it does not involve areas such as power systems and spacecraft research and development. It is mainly responsible for "simulation", including simulating the scenarios of ultra-high-speed navigation in the universe, simulating the climate environment of Mars, simulating the establishment of a small survival base on Mars, simulating the use of drones to develop resources on Mars, and so on.

It can be said that the goal of the "SEED CITY" air base is to enable humans to adapt in advance to the entire process from space navigation, arriving on Mars, establishing bases, and developing Martian resources - because according to the "Five-Year Plan to Mars", once the manned round-trip experiment to Mars is successful, more than 10,000 Xiaguo "pioneer volunteers" will be transported to Mars to seize the record of "humankind's first Martian city" and seize the opportunity for future development on Mars.

The so-called "moon tourism plan" is just a way to divert the world's attention.

Since "SEED CITY" does not involve manufacturing and flight testing, it does not need to be placed in the Gobi Desert. In fact, it is located inside a mountain somewhere in the suburbs of Beijing, only 20 to 30 kilometers away from the nearest town, and next to it is a large state-owned farm, which makes it very convenient for vehicles, personnel and materials to enter and exit.

It is only about an hour's drive from Qingmu University to here. Enter the underground storage room from the office building of the large farm, and then open the secret door, you can take the underground track train and easily reach "SEED CITY".

The little girl, whose nickname is "Xiaoxiao" and whose real name is Ning Yongxi, seemed particularly excited to come to such a mysterious and large-scale research base for the first time. From the moment she got on the train to the moment she landed and walked into the research and development base, she looked around curiously.

Look, at this moment, she kept waving to her younger brother who was following her father Qin Ke.

"Brother, come over here quickly. There is a fruit and vegetable warehouse that simulates the entire Martian environment!"

Ning Yongxi and her younger brother started school relatively early. They are about to graduate from elementary school when they just turned 11. In September, she and her younger brother will become first-year junior high school students. In fact, if Qin Ke and Ning Qingjun did not want their children to skip grades, with the academic ability of these two little geniuses who have completed the knowledge in high school textbooks at this time, they can completely take the college entrance examination and become undergraduates directly.

Ning Yongxi inherited Qin Ke's excellent genes. Although she is still just a little girl, her height is over 160CM. It is basically certain that she will be over 170CM by the time she reaches high school.

Qin Junyao, whose nickname is "Zheng Zheng", is a boy who developed later. He is a little shorter than his sister, but he is still 159cm tall. He has been calm and serious since he was a child, more like his mother Ning Qingjun, and behaves more like his brother in his daily life.

Seeing his sister calling him, Qin Junyao looked at his father and Academician Lai Mingguang, who was acting as a guide, with an inquiring look. Seeing that they both nodded and indicated that they could go in to visit, he walked towards his sister slowly and said, "Sister, please put down your camera. There is a sign prohibiting taking photos over there."

"I know, you're the only one with good eyesight! Humph!" Ning Yongxi, who had neatly cut shoulder-length hair, made a face and pretended to be angry, but a few seconds later she giggled and came over to pull her brother's wrist: "Hurry up, hurry up, we only have one afternoon to visit, time is precious!"

In front of the "Fruit and Vegetable Cultivation Space Capsule", the staff with guns saluted the two children before swiping their cards to open the door. Ning Yongxi and Qin Junyao were startled, and hurriedly learned to salute back before walking in.

Ning Yongxi was still a little restrained when she first entered, but when she saw the plants inside, her eyes lit up and she pulled her brother to quicken her pace.

"Wow, brother, look, this tomato is so big, almost as big as half a watermelon!"

"Sis, calm down. Didn't you grow the 'Super Giant IV Tomato' yourself in Uncle Wei's plant breeding laboratory? This is only a quarter bigger than it."

"No, no, it's written in the introduction column next to it. This is a cultivation cabin that completely simulates the Martian environment. It's completely vacuum outside the explosion-proof glass, and all the air, soil, light and water here have been gradually synthesized over the past two years. Wow, it's so cool, even cooler than Uncle Wei's plant cultivation laboratory!"

"Yes, yes, I know it's very powerful, sister, can you please let go of your hand first, my wrist is about to be broken by you."

Listening to the chattering conversation of the two children not far away, Qin Ke and Academician Lai Mingguang and others who were accompanying them couldn't help but smile.

Qin Ke turned around and smiled at Academician Lai Mingguang, saying, "Academician Lai, I'm sorry to have caused you trouble today."

Academician Lai Mingguang said hurriedly: "Academician Qin, you are too polite. We use a lot of plant breeding technology here, and it is based on the 'computational seed science' of you and Academician Ning that we have made great progress."

Academician Lai Mingguang is over 50 years old this year, while Qin Ke in front of him is still as young and heroic as a college student. Judging from his appearance, he is probably younger than any other researcher here. However, Academician Lai Mingguang does not dare to be disrespectful to Qin Ke, and even has a vague intention of "behaving like a disciple".

In the path of learning, the most accomplished are the teachers. Qin Ke's attainments in physics, chemistry, biology, etc. are the best in the world. Even Lai Mingguang, who is also a master in biology, feels inferior to him. Especially when conducting research on Martian plant cultivation and planting, he led his team to deeply study the emerging discipline of "computational seed science" and consulted a large amount of first-hand research data and resources from the Green Lime Plant Cultivation Laboratory provided by Qin Ke. He was extremely impressed by Qin Ke's knowledge, character and mind. Moreover, although Qin Ke did not publicly serve in the huge research project of the "Five-Year Plan to Mars", basically the heads of the three secret research centers knew that Academician Qin, who never appeared in public, was the soul of the entire plan, the de facto commander-in-chief and chief engineer. Even the funds of the three research centers had to be approved and issued after his review.

How could Lai Mingguang dare to be negligent towards such an "extra-staff big shot"?

So when he heard that Qin Ke was going to bring his two children to visit today, Academician Lai Mingguang made a decision without hesitation. He and several assistants at the base put down their work, accompanied Qin Ke and his family of three on the tour, and were responsible for giving explanations.

This time, Qin Ke brought his two children to inspect the base, and he had explained in advance that he wanted to experience the "Ultra-High-Speed ​​Space Flight Simulator" in person to see how different it was from the actual ride and how the children felt when riding it. However, Academician Lai Mingguang decided to seize the opportunity and take them around the main "simulation experiment sites" in the R&D base to let Academician Qin see the results of his work, so that he could get more R&D budget next year.

It seems that the effect is quite good now. At least the two children are very satisfied with the tour, and Academician Qin always has a smile on his face.

Academician Lai Mingguang led Qin Ke into the "Fruit and Vegetable Cultivation Space Capsule" and introduced: "Academician Qin, there are currently 22 experimental personnel living here. Since it was officially established two and a half years ago, no materials have been introduced from the outside. In the early stage, they lived on the first batch of reserve materials. Now they have basically achieved self-sufficiency, especially soil."

He pointed to a piece of land with emotion and said: "The soil we used initially had minerals, organic matter and microbial communities removed, and was as similar as possible to the original soil formed by the weathering of Martian rocks. The similarity should be 99%. In the past two years, we have gradually added various nutrients and trace elements to successfully transform the soil into Grade D soil that can allow the 'perfect desert sweet potato' to grow and bear fruit."

At this point, Academician Lai flattered himself: "Of course, the key is that the 'perfect desert sweet potato' cultivated by Academician Qin has the function of conserving soil, which has transformed the soil from D grade to C grade. We can grow five kinds of green fruits and vegetables on it, including tomatoes, radishes, lettuce, mustard greens, and garlic. If we add 'perfect desert sweet potatoes' as staple food, we can basically meet the daily needs of vegetables and fruits. In just five years, after the soil is transformed into B grade, staple foods such as wheat, corn, and soybeans and other fruit and vegetable varieties can be planted."

Qin Ke nodded approvingly, praised them a few times, and then walked towards the young people standing solemnly around the land, shook hands with them one by one, and said sincerely: "Thank you all for your hard work. Without your dedication, this simulation experiment of the 'fruit and vegetable cultivation capsule' would hardly have achieved such good results."

Qin Ke was speaking from his heart. For the past two or three years, 22 young experimenters have been living in this closed "fruit and vegetable cultivation capsule". They cannot go out and have no vacations. They can only communicate with the outside world through the Internet. And they can only communicate with people inside the base. They cannot communicate with their relatives and friends through the Internet. This loneliness and depression is really a torment for young people who like fun and adventure.

Moreover, half a year later, the "Five-Year Plan to Mars" will enter the final stage of "flying to Mars to establish a settlement." They must also serve as technical backbones, risk their lives, and go to Mars to become the first batch of "Martian residents." The pain and tears they go through can be imagined.

It can be said that it was the selfless sacrifice of these young people that enabled Xia State to seize the "Mars initiative".

The young experimental personnel were no strangers to Qin Ke. Hearing the recognition of their work by the famous academician Qin Ke, they were so excited that their eyes were hot. Some of the more sentimental girls even burst into tears when they shook hands with Qin Ke.

"Academician Qin, you are too polite. It is the honor of our lives to be able to participate in such a great experiment!" The leading young man shook Qin Ke's hand with tears in his eyes and replied.

Qin Ke called Ning Yongxi and Qin Junyao who were not far away and told them about the hardships and greatness of these young experimenters. He then said:

"If you really decide to pursue scientific research in the future, you will have to face the long, boring, lonely and even life-threatening experiences like these brothers and sisters. Can you do it? If not, no matter how interested you are in mathematics and physics, you can't be a scientist. You can only be a teacher or professor."

The two children imagined being locked up here for two years, without being able to see their parents, grandparents, Grandpa Qiu, or their classmates and friends. They were shocked, especially when they saw the thin and excited faces of their older brothers and sisters. They felt something hot surging in their hearts.

Thinking of the aspirations they had set since childhood, the examples set by their parents, and the encouragement from Grandpa Qiu, the two siblings looked at each other, bowed deeply to the young experimenters, and then said forcefully in their childish voices:

"We want to be scientists! We will work hard to learn from our older brothers and sisters! We will never bring shame to our parents! We are willing to endure this hardship!"

"I hope you will remember what I said today when you grow up." Qin Ke smiled and gently rubbed the hair of the two children. Then he said to everyone seriously: "Please rest assured that you will have a holiday to visit your family before leaving for Mars. Your family will also receive the best care. The country will not forget your contributions!"

(End of this chapter)