I built an armada.

The delegates began to show expressions of pain; even the wealthiest oil tycoons could not remain indifferent to such a huge cash expenditure.

After a brief silence, Al-Nahyan gritted his teeth and almost roared out, "Seven billion!" This round number seemed like a psychological barrier; once it was broken, the competition seemed to enter its final sprint.

Prince Birdardin frowned and whispered a few words to his advisor. Finally, when the auctioneer looked at him questioningly, he slowly shook his head with a hint of reluctance and put down his paddle.

They've given up! The oil-rich countries have withdrawn from the competition!
The pressure instantly fell entirely on Prince Aziz and Chief Al Nahyan.

"Seven billion...ten million."

For the first time, Aziz's voice carried a subtle hint of seriousness.

"Seven billion... thirty million!"

Al-Nahyan followed closely behind, fine beads of sweat already forming on his forehead.

"Seven billion fifty million".

Aziz raised the price again.

Al-Nahyan's face was flushed, and his breathing was rapid. He stared intently at the massive aircraft carrier, then glanced at Aziz, whose expression was calm but whose eyes were sharp, as he struggled internally.

"Seven billion five hundred million!!"

Finally, as if he had used up all his strength, he shouted it out almost like a roar.

This time, Aziz remained silent.

He stood there quietly, his gaze lingering between the aircraft carrier and Al Nahyan for a good ten seconds. The entire deck was silent except for the howling of the sea breeze.

Finally, he sighed softly, shook his head slightly at the inquiring auctioneer, and gracefully lowered his paddle. He had missed out on this steel behemoth by just fifty million US dollars.

"Seven hundred and fifty million, for the first time!"

"Seven hundred and fifty million, for the second time!"

"Seventy-one hundred and fifty million, for the third time!"

"make a deal!!"

Wang Dehong's loud voice, accompanied by a symbolic hammer-slamming gesture, resounded across the deck even though there was no actual mallet.

"Congratulations! Congratulations to Chief Al-Nahayan of the Shatin Tribe! You have successfully won the bid for this aircraft carrier right here!"

Instantly, all eyes were focused on Al-Nahyan.

He was stunned for a moment, then a huge sense of joy and relaxation welled up inside him, making him involuntarily pump his fist and reveal a victor's smile.

The other delegates, regardless of whether they won the bid or not, all cast envious, jealous, or complicated glances their way.

Bird Aidin and the others quickly composed themselves and went forward to congratulate Al-Nahyan, though their smiles may have concealed ulterior motives.

This is the rule of the game at the top: fierce competition during the game, but after the curtain falls, all the pretense must still be maintained.

Prince Aziz straightened his robes, his face regaining its usual composure. He approached Wang De and asked in a calm tone, "Mr. Wang, congratulations on your successful auction. When will the next aircraft carrier from Longxia available for auction arrive?"

His question immediately caught the attention of several representatives from small oilfield tribes who were slightly less powerful but still harbored fantasies about aircraft carriers. They gathered around, their faces filled with anticipation and a hint of fear from the sky-high price they had just witnessed.

Wang De maintained a professional smile on his face, but his mind was racing with calculations.

The next one?
Currently, looking at the entire East China Sea region, the White Elephant Tribe does have an aircraft carrier, but that is an opponent that needs to be "dealt with," not a commodity that can be auctioned off immediately.

Perhaps... we could try to find a solution through other channels?

His verbal response, however, was swift and composed: "Thank you for your attention, Prince Aziz. Please rest assured that once we have a new aircraft carrier that meets the auction requirements, we will notify all interested partners immediately."

"Longxia Navy is committed to providing our friends with more diverse choices."

After dismissing the inquiring crowd, Wang De immediately arranged for his subordinates to proceed to the next stage with the delegation from the Shatin tribe.

In a temporary, securely set-up meeting room near the dock, Wang De held more in-depth, detailed negotiations with Al-Nahyan and his key advisors.

"Your Excellency, congratulations. Now let's talk about the 'fangs' and 'claws' that this aircraft carrier needs to truly achieve combat capability."

Wang De unfolded a prepared list, "Based on the Fukuno's hull structure and your potential needs, we have tailored a complete shipborne weapon system solution for you, including long-range airborne anti-ship missiles, short-range air defense missiles, anti-submarine torpedo launching systems, and supporting armed helicopters, etc."

"All of this equipment, ammunition stock, and the corresponding training and maintenance support, if calculated over a five-year usage cycle, would cost approximately—"

Immediately, Wang De announced a figure: "1.2 billion US dollars."

Al-Nahyan carefully examined the list and exchanged views with his advisor in hushed tones.

While the price is considerable, it seems acceptable compared to the exorbitant cost of an aircraft carrier. Furthermore, the weapon systems provided by Longxia offer unparalleled compatibility with the carrier.

Wang De seized the opportunity and added a highly attractive promise: "Furthermore, considering that Shatin Tribe is an important partner of ours, once you decide to equip your aircraft carrier fleet with fixed-wing carrier-based fighter jets, our Longxia Aviation Industry Group will give priority to ensuring your supply cycle and technical support!"

Ultimately, after some negotiation, the total contract value for the aircraft carrier and its core weapon system was settled at US$8.3 billion. Both parties were satisfied with the result, and the accompanying personnel immediately began drafting the formal purchase contract.

The contract signing ceremony was held in a simple yet solemn atmosphere.

Holding the weighty contract, Al-Nahyan beamed with satisfaction.

Wang De shook hands warmly with the other party: "It's a pleasure to cooperate, Chief! I believe the Fukuno... no, therefore it will have a new name and will surely regain its glory in your hands!"

After handling the major events related to the aircraft carrier, Wang De did not stop.

He knew all too well that once the purchasing desires of these oil tycoons were ignited, they would not be easily extinguished.

He warmly invited Al-Nahyan and several other representatives who were still interested: "Gentlemen, although the aircraft carrier has already been claimed, our Longxia Navy has many more pieces of equipment with excellent performance and high cost performance."

"If you're interested, please follow me. Right next to us is the berth of our latest Type 052C guided-missile destroyer. I'm sure it won't disappoint you either." Meanwhile, in the Beijing naval port, Wang De, relying on his silver tongue and the formidable strength of Longxia...

While a military procurement storm was brewing, thousands of kilometers away, deep in the vast and desolate Northwest of the Longxia tribe, a completely different scene unfolded.

This is a remote nuclear and strategic weapons research and development base, codenamed "Red Mountain".

The air was dry and solemn.

A heavily camouflaged convoy slowly drove into the core area of ​​the base after passing through layers of checkpoints, identity verification, and radiation detection.

The convoy stopped, and a middle-aged man dressed in casual clothes but looking very energetic, Professor Zhang, was the first to get out of the car.

With a serious expression, he directed the accompanying technicians and security personnel to carefully unload the tightly wrapped core component of the anti-ship ballistic missile, codenamed "Yunfan-1," from a specially designed transport vehicle.

Director Zhao, the person in charge of the base, personally came forward, carefully checked the relevant documents and seals, and after confirming that everything was correct, solemnly signed his name on the handover form.

"Professor Zhang, you must be tired from your journey! Please leave the items to us."

At this moment, another figure who can be regarded as a pillar of defense science and technology in Longxia, Professor Qian, also came over accompanied by his assistant.

He looked at the properly stored "Yunfan-1" components, his eyes gleaming with wisdom and inquiry.

Professor Zhang stepped forward and grasped Professor Qian's hand tightly: "Professor Qian, I delivered the items safely. This trip, especially the exchanges with Comrade Dingping, has been very insightful for me. I have learned a lot of new ideas and methods."

He handed an encrypted storage device to Qian Lao, saying, "Inside are some of my insights on the reentry maneuvering and terminal guidance of 'Yunfan-1', as well as... some inspiring ideas that I 'dug up' from Chief Su."

Old Qian took the storage device, nodded slightly, and a look of satisfaction appeared on his face: "That kid Dingping, his brain always has surprises in store for people."

"Good, good! We can learn from others' experiences. Now that we've developed the Yunfan-1 anti-ship ballistic missile, combined with new ideas, it might really be able to be revitalized."

He paused for a moment, then said to Professor Zhang, "You've worked hard too, take a rest first. Next, we'll have a proper 'consultation' with this 'veteran'."

Just as the two veteran experts were preparing to embark on a new round of research, news came again from the entrance of the base: Chief Engineer Su Dingping had also arrived at the base.

A technological storm concerning a new height of strategic deterrence for Longxia is about to quietly brew in this nameless, deep mountain.

Deep within the Hongshan Base, in a brightly lit laboratory filled with precision instruments and complex blueprints, Qian Xuesen was intently watching the terminal maneuvering data stream of the "Yunfan-1" anti-ship ballistic missile on the screen.

His wrinkled face was a mixture of amazement and deep contemplation.

What captured his full attention was the astonishing ability to achieve rapid, precise, and small-range trajectory changes even at terrifying speeds of up to Mach 15.

This is like trying to make a needle hurtling towards the ground at the speed of a meteorite perform a clever evasion or lock-on fine-tuning at the last moment; the technical difficulty is beyond imagination.

"Wonderful...wonderful..." Old Qian murmured to himself, his fingers unconsciously tracing paths in the air.

This coincides with his lifelong dedication to the "Linsen ballistic conjecture," and even goes further in some aspects.

His original "Lin Sen Ballistic Conjecture" aims to break through the constraints of the fixed trajectory of traditional ballistic missiles and endow them with the ability to maneuver and change course like "skipping stones" at the edge of the atmosphere in order to evade enemy anti-missile systems.

This conjecture is close to being a theoretical breakthrough, but it has always been stuck on the final hurdle of "fine-grained end-point control".

At this moment, we can observe the technical path that Su Dingping achieved on "Yunfan-1", especially the one based on "Lin Sen trajectory" but with exquisite fine-tuning.

The entirely new concept of ultimately achieving terminal target locking and performing a small-scale, lethal trajectory change enlightened him, as if an invisible hand had suddenly parted the fog that had been obscuring his vision.

"This is not just a technological improvement, it's a leap in thinking!" Qian was deeply moved.

He clearly realized that the step Su Dingping had taken was an epoch-making innovation that the countries of the Blue Star had not yet touched upon, or even imagined, in the field of anti-ship ballistic missiles.

It has transformed what was originally an "area" weapon primarily used for regional deterrence into a "pressure point" weapon capable of precisely hunting down mobile sea fortresses, and its strategic significance is immeasurable.

Just then, the laboratory door was gently pushed open, and Su Dingping walked in.

He saw that Mr. Qian was staring at the screen in a daze, so he quietly stood aside and waited.

Noticing the commotion, Mr. Qian snapped out of his reverie and saw that it was Su Dingping. His face immediately lit up with a smile of relief and anticipation: "Dingping is here! Good, just in time! I was pondering your 'stroke of genius'."

He pointed to the data on the screen and said, "You've taken this step faster and more steadily than I expected!"

"Mr. Qian, you flatter me."

Su Dingping quickly stepped forward and said humbly, "The 'Yunfan' series' ability to defeat aircraft carriers is inseparable from the missile physical objects, key technologies, and most importantly, the theoretical foundation of the 'Lin Sen ballistic conjecture' that you provided."

"I'm just standing on the shoulders of giants and making some tentative extensions."

"Hey, no need to be so modest!"

Mr. Qian waved his hand, his expression becoming serious. “The foundation is important, but how high a palace can be built on the foundation is a matter of real skill.”

"Your 'extension' is of great significance! It is not only a powerful tool against aircraft carriers, but also lays the core technological foundation for us to build an absolute anti-access/area denial capability in coastal waters and even the open ocean in the future!"

"Tell me, how exactly did you achieve this small-scale orbital change? I looked at the data, and it seems there are some subtle differences between it and the purely theoretical deduction."

When Qian asked about core technologies, Su Dingping also became serious.

He walked to an electronic whiteboard, drew a diagram, and explained in detail: "Professor Qian, you are right. It is indeed difficult to achieve such precise control in the extreme terminal environment by simply relying on the gliding maneuver of the 'Linsen trajectory'."

"My idea is to introduce a dynamic composite guidance closed loop based on your conjecture."

He continued, "First, we use the soon-to-be-completed 'BeiDou' satellite navigation system, forward-deployed naval radars, and a comprehensive reconnaissance system built with high-altitude drones to conduct real-time precise positioning and trajectory prediction of targets."

"Then, using the computing power of our latest generation of supercomputers, we perform millisecond-level ballistic replanning and control command generation."

"The most crucial step was activating the small attitude control engine array inside the warhead after it re-entered the atmosphere, and applying some of my modifications and extensions to the 'Caromyathian Equation 2' for non-equilibrium plasma control..." (End of Chapter)