I ask you to build tractors, but you build rockets?

February 14, Yushu Base No. 1.

The moon is a lonely planet, and its color is always a monotonous gray. It never has four seasons like the earth, nor can we see the colorful alternation of colors in nature.

Its interior has almost cooled down, so there is no active magma to drive crustal movement.

The gravel from 100 million years ago will still be here 100 million years later, unless the collision of meteorites has caused some displacement.

But those accidental extraterrestrial visitors have no meaning other than adding some trivial scars. They are just an episode in billions of years that is better than nothing.

From the first day when primitive humans saw the moon to several lunar landings, the moon has actually remained unchanged.

Even though there are hundreds of thousands of people on the earth in full swing, the number of humans active on it at the same time has never exceeded 10, and the total number of visits has not exceeded 100 times.

Compared with its long history, humans only touched it lightly a few times very briefly, and then had to leave in a hurry, because each touch required the consumption of unimaginable resources.

The elites who were sent up after being selected from thousands of places will also be surrounded by loneliness when they see the barren gray desert. Once their limited companions disappear from sight, only empty radios can maintain fragile connections.

If you were to ask all the people who had set foot on the moon before this day: whether they had ever gained a sense of belonging here, they would probably get an indifferent shake of the head, or a horrifying laugh.

In this world with only monotonous light and dark space, even Moon Rock would be grateful that he was chosen to be brought to Earth, and then receive the attention of so many living beings that had never been seen in hundreds of millions of years.

But if there are aliens today who can stand about 3.5 kilometers south of the Qom impact crater and look for a slightly raised hill, they may have the illusion that they are on the earth.

Now that it has entered a deep moonlit night, the sand and stones that were heated to nearly two hundred degrees during the moonlight day have rapidly cooled down to hundreds of degrees below zero. They no longer emit a vague shimmer like they did during the moonlight day, but are completely in line with the starry sky background. Black blends in perfectly.

Without light or night vision equipment, the human eye is completely unable to provide any effective guidance in complete darkness.

But the current observer is different. He can see a lighthouse emitting extremely bright cold light in the vast darkness. The strong light not only illuminates its support, but also covers the ground for hundreds of meters.

The bright white light tells the observer that this is a low-lying plain, but what really gives it meaning is the long white building not far away.

It consists of two long strips of the same size. When combined, the length reaches 28 meters, the height is 5 meters, and the width is 7 meters. It provides an activity area of ​​150 square meters and 6 independent cabins.

In the middle of the two living cabins, there is a large square area that emits bright yellow light. Its brightness dims from time to time, as if the internal light source is blocked by something.

And if you get closer, you can find that they are actually two large portholes of 1 meter * 1 meter, formed as a whole without splicing. Opposite the portholes is a square table, which is piled with all kinds of odds and ends. It is not as rigorous as aerospace should be, but it is full of life.

The moving figures inside are shadowed by the yellow light from the top, projected onto the desolate world outside the porthole window.

If you ignore the disharmonious pale moon soil around it, this place looks more like a house in a remote mountainous area. On a moonless night, you can't see your fingers, but the bright light from the incandescent lamp in the old house tells visitors:

Entering here, the silent world will be filled with enthusiasm. There are warm beds, steaming hot water kettles on the coal stove, home-cooked dishes and rice wine that have just been prepared and placed on the table. Simple walls separate the inside and outside of the house. Separated into two worlds.

Regardless of whether they come from the east or the west, as long as they are visitors on the earth, they will have expectations after seeing the combination under the lighthouse, and this is definitely the most precious expectation on the moon.

"It's thawed!"

Li Wei seemed to have regained the same enthusiasm for facing his family when he was on vacation on the ground. With a smile, he took out the torn aluminum foil container from the microwave and placed it on the square table of imitation wood with his hands wearing heat-resistant gloves.

Liu Ming, who couldn't wait for a long time, also put down his rolling pin, picked up a rolled-out dumpling wrapper, then scooped up the meat filling from the disposable heating bowl brought by Li Wei and put it in. He quickly and flexibly turned his fingers in one hand, The final pinch turns it into a perfect dumpling and puts it on the table.

Li Wei next to him was not to be outdone. He picked up the dumpling wrappers equally skillfully and placed another dumpling on the table in a few moments.

On the side of the table by the window, Deng Lei and Fu Xiangjie looked at their rapid movements, both feeling a little embarrassed and at a loss.

Li and Liu are both from the Northeast, and dumplings are a home-cooked food there. They can make and eat dumplings.

Both Deng and Fu were from the south. The only time they made dumplings was during the New Year celebrations when they were in the army. Although they were not completely incompetent, the quality was absolutely terrible.

When they were hesitating whether to sit back and watch or "show off their skills," Liu Ming said in time:

"I have to order at least three more dishes tonight. In addition to the two I ordered, I'll add some cabbage. You guys go see how much is left and what can you do?"

“Aren’t dumplings a staple food?”

Fu Xiangjie asked stupidly, but was immediately pulled away by Deng Lei in time to stay away from the laughter of the two, and then began to count the remaining fresh supplies.

It is now the 15th day since the four people returned to the moon. What they are doing is preparing a sumptuous and lively dinner.

After half a month of hard work, and with the strong assistance of multiple robots, they finally completed the construction of the camp before New Year's Eve, installed and debugged two residential cabins.

During this period, they encountered quite a lot of difficulties, and even almost burned out the circuit of a cabin due to an error in matching the power supply protocol of the nuclear power train, but fortunately, they finally completed the task without any danger.

The first instruction the ground gave them after this was:

Try to use the supplies you already have and prepare a sumptuous dinner with no less than four dishes and one soup (at least two dishes are freshly cooked).

In addition, the holiday will start from February 15th, New Year's Eve, and work will resume on February 18th, the third day of the lunar month.

Well, the stingy United Mining did not even take the seven-day Spring Festival holiday according to regulations, and only allowed three days of rest. However, it ensured that the remaining four days would be calculated as overtime, and would be given three times the statutory salary and additional business trip subsidies.

During the three-day holiday, the astronauts can freely arrange their schedules. They can sleep, play games and relax, and they can also drive the lunar rover (not counting public use for private use).

But the most reassuring thing was the dinner mission. For the first time, the four astronauts felt a sense of belonging on the moon 380,000 kilometers away.

Although only two cabins were delivered in the first batch, they still greatly enriched the lives of astronauts, such as:

Free kitchen (an enclosed automatic cooking machine that can cook a variety of hot dishes, and a multi-function rice cooker);

Independent bathrooms (two, wet and dry are not separated, but bathing requires waiting for clean water provided by the mining unmanned fleet);

Three-dimensional planters (several rows of shelves like bookcases, where many plants can be planted);

Entertainment and leisure (game room, where you can play games, billiards or watch movies);

…

But for the four people who officially "settled" on the moon, the most important item may be that each cabin has a large overall porthole.

It creates a weak but constant connection between the desolate outside and the inside, giving it a sense of peace of mind.

The last meal before the vacation took them almost three hours. This was the most rare time for the four of them to perform a mission. They spent a lot of precious time to satisfy their own spiritual needs, which was always consuming money.

What was finally placed on the table was a large plate of dumplings, a pot of simmered tofu with cabbage, a pre-made roast chicken and pre-prepared braised pork with pickled vegetables. Finally, there was a pot of simple and delicious seaweed and egg drop soup. The solids were brewed directly with boiling water. Just concentrate blocks.

Five dishes were placed on the table. This was the first time that astronauts were able to eat as they did on the ground during a mission.

"Beep beep... zi... this is the capital. I am She Xingjie, a member of the Tianmu 3 team. Please report on the completion of your mission."

Deng Lei: "Report to the command center, the task has been successfully completed, but the cabbage has been simmered with tofu for a long time, and the cabbage is a little burnt!"

"The command center understands, is it a problem with the cooking machine program or the ingredients?"

"The report is that we put the meat in too late and had to extend the heating time."

"Understood, please pay attention next time.

Congratulations to you, you will spend the first lunar year on behalf of the Chinese people. "

After seriously confirming the completion of the task, Academician She stated the purpose of this contact:

"Everyone is getting dressed. We will soon have a 5-minute video conference with the chief. The video will be broadcast to the whole country. You can eat something to fill your stomach first, but don't make it too obvious. Over."

Li Wei: "..."

Deng Lei: "Yes, I promise to complete the mission!"

…

"The first phase of the Yushu Base No. 1 construction project is completed."

"Mankind's first permanent lunar scientific research station has been constructed and will spend the New Year on the moon for the first time."

“United Mining announced that it has taken a substantial step forward in the development of the moon.”

"Aerospace Development Commission: The lunar ice excavation went smoothly and the first batch of pure water will be delivered to Yushu-1."

"Astronauts cooked in space for the first time, making netizens cry."

"..."

February 15th, New Year’s Eve.

For most people across the country, today is the beginning of the 2018 Spring Festival, and major companies have begun to take vacations.

The base is no exception. A large number of middle- and lower-level employees have left here. Only a small number of projects are still staffed, but work has basically stopped.

Lin Ju stood on the top floor of the office building and saw the motorcade stretching along the mountain road.

Last year, in addition to various scientific research tasks, the base's largest expenditure was the construction of three residential communities in the nearest town outside the base. However, the actual expenditure was not much. Most of it was completed in accordance with the conventional real estate company loan mortgage method. After the construction is completed, it can still Collect some funds from employees.

The construction of the family area not only ensures the housing needs of employees, but also facilitates management and confidentiality.

Relying on these high-paying and high-tech groups, nearby villages and towns have also developed rapidly, especially the service industry with minimal investment, which has brought unprecedented prosperity here.

The local government has even started to play with the naming of newly built roads, street lights, street signs and other public facilities that are closer to space. There are such things as "Moon Landing Bridge", "Space Road" and even satellite-style street lights.

Ye Changsi also took the opportunity to work with many local companies to develop cultural creativity and tourism, which can be regarded as a small fortune.

Looking at the prosperous scene with thousands of lights in the distance, Lin Ju's mood improved a lot, but he was soon brought back to reality by Ye Changsi who came to find him.

When the latter came over, he still had a box in his hand. When he opened it, he saw a souvenir in the shape of a trophy. The crystal sculpture was in the shape of a tree.

"Look, the Aviation Development Commission sent it as a commemoration of the Yushu No. 1 Base. It also contains 10 grams of lunar soil there. There is also a small stone in this one."

Lin Ju took a closer look and saw that there was indeed a fine layer of lunar soil under the roots of the tree-like sculpture. It should have been brought back by the Tianmu-3 mission.

However, he just picked it up, admired it for a while and put it aside. Ye Changsi must have come to him for something else.

Sure enough, Ye Changsi immediately continued to speak:

"The laser project has been finalized, with a total of four sub-projects:

Project 210 is to develop the 'Qianjunbang-1' laser defense satellite. The goal is to intercept missiles at takeoff, mid-flight, and end of flight in a 250-kilometer orbit. The indicator is to intercept three targets from different directions within 1 minute. The remaining indicators have no specific requirements;

Project 220 is to develop a ship-based laser air defense system. The overall mass does not exceed 10 tons. It must be able to be driven by 052C, D, 055 series destroyers and Type 001 aircraft carriers. The purpose is for a laser cannon to support an absolute defense network with a radius of 100 kilometers. The harsh Under certain conditions, there must also be an attack range of 20 kilometers;

Project 225 replaces the traditional main gun of the battleship. The overall mass does not exceed 45 tons. It not only has to be air defense, but also can hit satellites within an orbit of 500 kilometers;

Project 230 is to develop an airborne laser weapon platform. The target of installation is Snow Pheasant. The specific tactical indicators are still under study. The mass does not exceed 8 tons and the volume has strict requirements. After success, we will find a way to develop a land-based version for the army.

But the most important thing is the 210 project. We will give whatever we ask for this project. The other three have index scores to give other units some subsystem development tasks. "

These decisions did not exceed Lin Ju's expectations. He nodded without saying anything, and then asked the question he was most concerned about:

"What about the budget? The first 500 million has been received. How much funding can Project 210 get?"

He was answered with an upward finger.

"No upper limit?"

"It's 100 billion!"

Ye Changsi's face turned dark in a rare way. He didn't dare to think of such a result.

"The purchase price of each Qianjun Bang No. 1 cannot be higher than 13 billion. Use 80 billion to purchase 6 Qianjun Bang No. 1 and launch them to form a preliminary defense network. The remaining 20 billion will be used for supporting construction and research.

Counting that 500 million yuan, we will add an additional 9.5 billion yuan to the research budget this year to confirm that we can pay the full 13 billion yuan in procurement costs after we start the construction of Qianjunbang No. 1.

Project 210 has the highest priority and requires two years to manufacture the first one. The others can be postponed appropriately, but Project 220 cannot start in 2020. "