Traveling Back to the 1960s: The Entire Internet Teaches Me How to Build Missiles

Netizens were discussing it heatedly, but "Tool Person No. 1's" next response poured cold water on their enthusiasm.

Friends, as you have said, if we, living in the modern world, can help our ancestors from decades ago, we would be more than happy to do so.

[But here's the problem: aside from providing some theoretical and intelligence support, it's difficult for us to directly use modern industrial systems to help our predecessors replicate the 1960s Red Chess No. 1 design.]

Because... we can no longer recreate the industrial system of that time, and therefore we cannot recreate the research and development environment of that era.

[Let alone helping the streamer get a new Red Chess No. 1, even replicating our own Red Chess No. 1 requires a lot of effort!]

Upon hearing this, netizens were immediately in an uproar, all finding it unbelievable.

Some even believe that the Safety Committee deliberately stood by and shirked its responsibilities.

Seeing this, Zhou Yunxiao pondered for a moment and quickly stopped everyone from questioning him.

"Everyone... I think he might be right."

"Here's a simple question for everyone: why hasn't the United States landed on the moon since Apollo 17 in 1972?"

This statement immediately drew the attention of netizens, with many asserting with certainty:

"That must be because the Apollo program was a hoax. Armstrong's moon landing was just a videotape shot in a studio. Who would believe that?"

[Don't talk nonsense upstairs. Even Sullian has admitted to the moon landing. If it were fake, they'd be happy to jump out and refute it immediately!]

How do you explain the absence of stars in the moon photos? How do you explain the waving Stars and Stripes? How do you explain the astronauts' shadows not being parallel?

[Don't argue. I'll just point out one thing: the entire Apollo program involved 40 people, and decades have passed. Have you ever seen anyone publicly accuse it of being a hoax?]

Why would someone think they know more than Sultan's chief scientist? It's unbelievable...

Seeing that the floor was tilted, Zhou Yunxiao immediately interrupted:

"You can discuss the authenticity of the moon landing privately. What I want to say is that the original blueprints for the Apollo program, including the Saturn V, the lunar module, the command module, and other complete documents, are stored in the archives."

"Why did NASA abandon the readily available blueprints and data, and instead launch the entirely new 'Artemis Project'?"

"Because they can't replicate these blueprints and documents, and they can't recreate the industrial system of that time!"

Netizens finally calmed down and began to seriously consider the matter.

Zhou Yunxiao continued:

"I know that everyone in the live stream wants the East to become strong immediately in the 60s."

"But the blueprints you designed in modern times using MATLAB, CFD fluid simulation, 3D printing, supercomputers, as well as high-temperature alloys, electron beam welding, and CNC machining could not be replicated in the 60s."

"Unless you recreate the industrial system of the 60s and gather the collective wisdom of your people to create a set of blueprints that would have worked in the 60s."

"That's where the problem lies... To perfectly replicate the industrial system of an era, there are too many things to restore, including manufacturing standards, materials and processes, processing tolerances, testing procedures, supply chains, etc. It would take at least hundreds of thousands of people to get it done."

At this moment, "Tool Person No. 1," who had been silent until now, also commented in the live chat:

According to the Safety Committee's assessment, simply replicating the welding, casting, and forging processes of the missile production line from the 1960s, as well as the complete production line and supply chain, and training personnel and engineers for the relevant industrial system, would take at least 10 to 15 years, and at most, it could only achieve 80% replication.

The cost of this entire industrial system is estimated to be between 2 and 3 trillion yuan. If a large number of historical processes, materials, and equipment are to be strictly replicated instead of using modern equivalent substitutes, the cost could even approach 5 trillion yuan...

When netizens heard that it would cost so much money, they were quite surprised.

Finally, Tool Person #1 concluded:

If replicating this 60s industrial system can indeed bring considerable profits, then the Safety Committee will definitely give it strong support...

Unfortunately, Comrade Xiao Zhou lives in a parallel world's Eastern Kingdom... In other words, we don't need to spend so much money to support the development of another country; we can only provide assistance within our capabilities!

These words dampened the enthusiasm of many netizens, but some quickly became active again.

The Safety Committee is absolutely right! We really can't waste trillions of yuan on parallel universes. Wouldn't it be better to build more Hope Primary Schools or more Tianshan Victory Tunnels?

Although it's emotionally difficult to accept, there are KPIs from above, and parallel universes aren't our core territory, so we still need to maintain strategic focus...

Since we can't replicate the hardware, let's focus on pure software and theoretical 'backward compatibility'! The streamer will handle the practical aspects, and we'll be the cyber laborers, helping to 'grind' out Red Pawn Number One!

[That's right, it's better to teach someone how to fish than to give them a fish. We won't give the anchor the original blueprints for the Red Chess No. 1 missile; we'll teach him how to forge a real surface-to-air missile using scrap metal from the 1960s!]

Zhou Yunxiao, watching the viewers in the live stream alternate between being a disorganized mob and a united front, was somewhat amused and exasperated. He quickly asked:

"Then you cyber workers should first elect a reliable chief designer. With so many mouths chattering away, who am I supposed to listen to?"

After another round of noise, netizens nominated Professor Hou, who had just spoken, as the chief engineer.

Professor Hou did not hesitate and took up the post without hesitation.

At this moment, the argument between Engineer Li and Technician Shen in the conference room had reached a fever pitch.

Both sides argued fiercely, each sticking to their own opinions and constantly throwing out arguments, neither able to convince the other.

Just as Instructor Tian felt the argument should end, a voice suddenly rang out in the meeting room:

"Engineer Li, Technician Shen, I'd like to ask, does the accuracy of the radio proximity fuse of the Hongqi-1 meet the usage requirements? Can it detect threatening targets within an effective range of ten meters?"

Immediately afterwards, the arguing subsided, and everyone looked around, searching for the source of the sound.

Li Difeng and Shen Weidong also peered into the crowded throng.

All eyes were fixed on Zhou Yunxiao, and they automatically made way for him.

He calmly walked forward and stood between Engineer Li and Technician Shen, extending his hand with a smile.

"I am Zhou Yunxiao from the First Branch of the Fifth Research Institute of the Ministry of National Defense, currently assigned to the First Branch of the Dongfeng Base. I was ordered by my superiors to assist in the launch test of the Hongqi-1 satellite, and I just reported for duty today!"

Upon hearing this, Engineer Li responded with an "oh," and then said thoughtfully, "You're the young man who produced 99.5% pure liquid oxygen?"

Zhou Yunxiao nodded. "It's me."

On the other side, Shen Weidong said, "Developing liquid oxygen and developing missiles are two completely different things. Why did the First Division send such a young kid? Are they out of capable people?"

Zhou Yunxiao's response was neither humble nor arrogant:

"The First Division is responsible for completing the construction of the Dongfeng-2 test range and the deployment of the radar site. This is a major task listed by the Science and Technology Commission, and it's not that we don't value your work. Besides, young people aren't necessarily incapable of doing things. You are a scientist yourself; you can't judge people by their appearance, can you?"

Seeing his sharp tongue, Shen Weidong couldn't find a rebuttal for a moment, so he changed the subject:

"You just asked about the accuracy of radio proximity fuses. What, does that mean you have some insights into the design of the Red Chess-1 missile?"

Zhou Yunxiao laughed and said, "I wouldn't call it a brilliant insight. We need to figure out the specifics of the radio proximity fuse before we can draw any conclusions."

Engineer Li, who was standing nearby, replied:

"The warhead of the Hongqi-1 missile adopts a detonation method of 'primary proximity fuse, secondary contact fuse + self-destruct device,' and a small radio transmitter is installed inside the warhead."

"This device continuously emits radio waves into the surrounding area. Once it detects an echo below a certain distance, it can detonate a proximity fuse within milliseconds, releasing a large amount of fragmentation for destruction!"

"As for the distance... our current military technology can only achieve effective detonation within a 30-meter range; 10 meters would be somewhat difficult..."