Special forces soldier demobilization: Starting from the county government compound, a meteoric rise

In the city, at the aerospace flight control center.

The entire hall was shrouded in an almost suffocating silence.

Hundreds of top aerospace engineers and physicists held their breath, many with sweaty palms from the intense tension. Their eyes were fixed on the huge circular screen in front of them, displaying real-time telemetry data from 55 million kilometers away.

The red line is fluctuating violently.

That's a signal from the "Xuan Niao 9" manned landing module as it traverses the Martian atmosphere.

Liu Ming sat in the central command position, wearing a crisp black uniform today. The gold "National Advisor" medal on his collar reflected a cold light under the harsh white light. His posture remained as upright as a javelin, his hands crossed on his knees, his fingertips as steady as a rock.

"Signal delay, three minutes."

Ghost Hand sat at the technical desk next to Liu Ming, beads of sweat hanging from his forehead, his fingers flying across the keyboard, his voice hoarse.

"Boss, the current footage is from three minutes ago. According to the trajectory calculations, 'Black Bird' has already activated its recoil engine. The current landing point deviation is less than 500 meters."

"Have we entered the blackout zone?"

Liu Ming spoke, her voice so steady that not a ripple could be heard.

"It's in."

Ghost Hand stared intently at the signal dot, which had turned gray. "There are only sixty seconds left. If the engine output power is insufficient, or if the attitude is adjusted to even a one ten-thousandth deviation, they will become a crater on that red planet."

……

at the same time.

In every corner of the land of Kyushu, countless eyes are glued to this live broadcast that concerns the fate of humanity, through outdoor screens, televisions, and holographic projections.

On the pedestrian street in Ningzhou High-tech Zone, in the classrooms of the newly built Hope Primary School in Qingyun County, and at the outposts along the border.

At this moment, the entire empire seemed to be put on pause. People stopped what they were doing, and even their breathing became cautious. It was a collective tension that the people of Kyushu had never experienced since the successful nuclear fusion of "Pangu".

Because everyone knows in their hearts that this time, we are not just going to plant a flag and take a picture and come back. We are going to take root on that red land that has been barren for billions of years. We are going to establish the first permanent human base!

……

"drop--"

A crisp, heavenly electronic notification sound suddenly rang out in the deathly silent control room!

The originally gray signal dot suddenly burst into a dazzling green light!

"Signal restored! Altitude zero! Speed ​​zero!"

The young female officer in charge of remote sensing suddenly screamed, her voice clearly trembling with tears.

"Landed safely! 'Xuan Niao 9' has successfully landed! Coordinates—Utopia Planitia, Mars!"

"boom--!!!"

Inside the hall, the emotions that had been suppressed for a full hour erupted like a volcano!

Applause, cheers, and even frantic stomping combined into a wave of energy that nearly blew the ceiling off the hall! The senior academicians hugged each other, crying like three-year-olds. The young technicians, on the other hand, threw their folders into the air, the flying papers seeming to be celebrating a great victory in advance.

Liu Ming slowly closed her eyes.

He took a deep breath, feeling the vibration that pierced his chest. He had succeeded; he had finally taken that step.

"Boss! Look! The feed is coming back!"

Tank roared from the other side. He was also dressed in a suit today, but his calloused hands were pounding the table frantically.

On the screen, the signal was translated and sharpened layer by layer, and the desolate, crimson surface of Mars was clearly presented to the world.

The sky was a dark pink, and the distant mountain ridges undulated on the horizon like frozen waves, while the wind whipped up fine sand and gravel.

Then, the hatch slowly slid open.

A figure clad in a silver-white liquid metal pressure suit appeared at the hatch. It was Zhang Zhen, an astronaut from China and an ace trained by the Dragon Fang Brigade.

Zhang Zhen took each step steadily as he descended the gangway, his feet leaving a clear imprint on the soft, dry, rusty sand.

Those were the footprints of Kyushu, and also the first step in human history toward interstellar civilization in a truly meaningful way.

"I represent Kyushu, and I represent all of humanity."

Zhang Zhen's voice, carrying a faint electromagnetic noise, resounded throughout the entire Earth, traveling through millions of kilometers of void.

"I'll settle down here."

Immediately afterwards, Zhang Zhen took out a telescopic pole from behind his back.

With a "click," a specially made five-star red flag, which can remain upright even in the thin atmosphere, was unfurled on that red soil!

The vibrant red, amidst the desolation, is breathtakingly beautiful.

……

"Dad, look, this flag is planted higher than Mount Everest."

Liu Ming looked at the screen, her fingertips lightly tracing the location of the pocket on her chest.

There, he always kept close to his body a photo of his father, Liu Jianguo, and Mr. Lin.

His eyes were slightly warm.

There was a time when we couldn't even defend the waters near our own home; there was a time when we had to kneel and beg for a decent chip. But now, our flag has been planted on the territory of another world.

"General Manager Liu, it's a call from the Grand Secretaries."

Chen Momo walked over, her face flushed, her eyes filled with fervent admiration.

Liu Ming took the phone and said only one sentence to the equally excited old man on the other end.

"Sir, the 'Guanghan Palace' has become the logistics department. Now, our 'Huode Battalion' is officially in operation."

……

The footage was broadcast all over the world.

Those Western leaders who had previously harbored illusions and attempted to bargain over the space treaty through various underhanded means were now all slumped in their offices, their faces ashen.

They watched the red flag fluttering in the wind on the Martian surface, watched the massive swarm of fully automated infrastructure robots that then emerged from the landing module, and watched those robots begin to systematically lay out energy nodes on the Martian ground.

They finally understood that China had not only landed on Mars, but that China was using its terrifying "leapfrog development" infrastructure capabilities to colonize the entire planet at a speed that would make even God despair!

While they were still arguing fiercely over the budget for a spacecraft, China was already building roads, houses, and preparing to mine minerals on another planet.

Generation gap – this refers to the generation gap in civilization levels.

On this day, stock markets around the world came to a standstill again, except in China.

People from Kyushu took to the streets, and burly men in food stalls, shirtless and holding beer mugs, shouted unknown chants at the television.

Children run through the alleys, and the models in their hands are no longer Ultraman, but the majestic "Black Bird" fighter jet.

"Honey, our son says he's a reserve cadre for the next project."

A retired worker wiped away tears and boasted to his wife, "He's going on a business trip to Mars. I heard the salary there is pretty high, and they even provide accommodation."

This is the essence of our times; it is an era that belongs to the strong, and also an interstellar era that belongs to the Nine Provinces.

……

In the evening, Liu Ming walked out of the command center.

He declined all interviews and celebratory banquets. He drove his old Hongqi car through the bustling, otherworldly streets of the capital and returned to his courtyard house.

In the courtyard, Xi Wanqing was teaching Liu Nian to read, while Nangong Yao lay in a rocking chair, flipping through the latest space mineral reports. Lin Xiaoxiao, meanwhile, was practicing a new fighting technique, her movements as swift as the wind.

When they saw Liu Ming enter, they all stopped what they were doing. They knew that today, this man had once again made history.

"You're back?"

Xi Wanqing smiled gently.

"Um."

Liu Ming walked over and sat down under the old jujube tree. He took the hot tea that Nangong Yao handed him and looked at the night sky above, where stars were gradually beginning to appear.

There is a red star there, and now, his people and his flag are there.

Liu Ming looked up, her gaze piercing through the prosperity of the capital, through the thickness of the atmosphere, and settling on that vast and boundless depth.

This is a giant leap for humanity toward the interstellar age, and the Dragon Kingdom is not only at the forefront.

Liu Ming gripped the teacup in his hand, a wild yet profound smile curving his lips.

"We're not finished running this road yet."

He murmured to himself, as if issuing a challenge to the entire universe.