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

The group quickly reached a consensus: the U-2 reconnaissance aircraft should be disclosed independently!

The discussion then focused on how to disclose the information, in what context, at what time, and to what extent.

Xun Hong beckoned to Zhou Yunxiao.

"Comrade Xiao Zhou, come here again and tell the comrades about your 'plan' so that everyone can judge it."

Seeing everyone listening intently with great interest, Zhou Yunxiao cleared his throat and began:

"My plan begins with a story. It is said that in 307 BC, during the Warring States period, there was a King Wu of Qin who possessed immense strength. In order to show off his abilities, he lifted the Nine Tripods of Zhou in Luoyang."

"Unfortunately, he misjudged the situation, breaking his shinbone and dying instantly. With King Wu of Qin dead, the Qin state was leaderless and plunged into fierce infighting among the various royal families vying for the throne..."

Everyone listened with great interest, while trying to figure out what he was up to.

"At that time, there were two candidates who were most likely to succeed to the throne: Prince Ying Ji, the half-brother of King Wu of Qin, and another prince, Ying Zhuang."

"Although Qin was in turmoil, King Wuling of Zhao believed that the conditions for 'taking advantage of the situation' were not met. Therefore, he chose to support Ying Ji, who was being held hostage in Yan, and win him over to become a 'pro-Zhao force'."

"King Wuling of Zhao dispatched his prime minister Zhao Gu to bring Ying Ji back from the State of Yan and send him back to Qin to be handed over to Wei Ran and the Queen Dowager Xuan. Then, he spared no effort in helping him ascend the throne in Xianyang, and Ying Ji eventually became the great ruler King Zhaoxiang of Qin!"

At this point, Zhou Yunxiao glanced at everyone and said with a smile:

"Although King Zhaoxiang of Qin was not a puppet of Zhao, he was emotionally pro-Zhao. During the lifetime of King Wuling of Zhao, he secured twenty years of peaceful coexistence on the western front, giving Zhao the opportunity to annex the state of Zhongshan and promote the adoption of nomadic-style clothing and cavalry archery..."

"That's the story. Now, imagine if Prince Ying Zhuang had succeeded to the throne, would the State of Zhao still have gained these benefits?"

The crowd whispered thoughtfully. Ye Ling turned to look at Political Commissar Sun and Staff Officer Xu. Seeing their bewildered expressions, he couldn't help but feel a little smug. He knew exactly what this kid was up to!

Xun Hong let everyone discuss for a few minutes before slapping the table and saying, "Alright, Comrade Zhou, stop keeping us in suspense and just tell us!"

"Okay. Last week I saw an international news item in the Reference News: our old rival is about to hold his 44th presidential election. The two candidates, Kenneth Kenny and Nixon, are evenly matched!"

Zhou Yunxiao said loudly, "Isn't this just a replay of the power struggle between Prince Ying Ji and Prince Ying Zhuang for the throne? So here's the question: if we were the State of Zhao, who would be Ying Ji and who would be Ying Zhuang? In other words, who should we support?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the comrades in the meeting erupted in a commotion.

There were various opinions discussed.

Some people were seriously analyzing Ying Ji's choice of successor, while others looked at Zhou Yunxiao as if he were a fool, giving him a look that seemed to ask, "Are you serious?"

After a long pause, Xu Qianxue, the chief of staff, broke the silence first, rambling on:

"Hmm... Comrade Zhou's idea is quite novel. However... the question of whether Kenny or Nixon is Ying Ji is not for us to decide, let alone support one of them."

"Let alone us, even Big Brother wouldn't interfere in someone else's election. That's just wishful thinking. If they had that kind of ability, why would they bother with Project 596?"

Staff Officer Xu's words were indeed reasonable, and many comrades expressed their agreement.

Zhou Yunxiao smiled slightly.

If you look at the issue from the other side's perspective, interfering in the election is indeed absurd.

But Zhou Yunxiao is looking at this election from the perspective of a modern person!

If netizens hadn't reminded him, he would have almost forgotten about this matter where he could "take initiative".

Its effectiveness is predicated on a theory—

A butterfly flapping its wings occasionally in the Amazon rainforest of South America can cause a tornado in Texas, USA, two weeks later!

This is the butterfly effect.

In other words, if there are one kilogram weights on both sides of the balance scale, then applying even the slightest force to either side will immediately break the balance!

Zhou Yunxiao obtained reliable information from netizens.

This election was the closest in history! Kennedy and Nixon were separated by only 0.17 percent of the vote—a negligible difference!

We don't need extraordinary means to interfere in elections; just the slightest influence can have a butterfly effect, impacting election results thousands of miles away!

[Young Master Ying Ji must be like Nixon; compared to Old Ken, whose mind is full of ideology, he is the adversary who can bring peace and development...]

[If the anchor can make this happen, that would be truly amazing, directly manipulating the leader across the ocean behind the scenes, haha!]

[What even the big brother wouldn't dare to dream of, we, the "Time-Traveling Deception Bureau," have taken on today!]

The difference in votes between the two sides is the source of Zhou Yunxiao's confidence to propose this matter to Ye Ling and even to President Xun.

It's not 17%, not 1.7%, but 0.17%!

It's safe to say that the chances of Nixon overtaking Kenny are extremely high.

Therefore, Zhou Yunxiao had to try to make this happen no matter what.

From a historical perspective, the former is undoubtedly closer to the pro-Zhao figure of "Ying Ji," only he hasn't shed his "Kong Yiji long gown" yet.

In order to persuade everyone, Zhou Yunxiao began by saying:

"It's indeed difficult for us to interfere in elections across the ocean, but we hold the U-2 reconnaissance aircraft as a valuable card, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that might just be the key to a brilliant move?"

"As the old saying goes, 'Whether there are dates or not, just shoot them down.' I think that's very true. Anyway, we don't lose anything; it's just a matter of waving a flag and beating a drum. It's like killing two birds with one stone. If we hit the bullseye, it's like making a free profit."

The crowd listened thoughtfully, finding some of the points reasonable, and then someone asked:

"Then tell me first, between Kenny and Nixon, who is Ying Ji and who is Ying Zhuang?"

Zhou Yunxiao said:

"Alright, I'll just have to dabble in this for once. When I was studying at the Moscow Aviation Institute, the library's international reading room would often update some of the 'Compilation of Western News Materials' and put them on the reference bookshelf."

"The professors at the time allowed us to borrow these books and analyze the development and trends of Western science and technology. They also included some policy pronouncements, such as public lectures and press conferences given by then-Vice President Nixon..."

To make it easier for everyone to understand, he specifically quoted some original words from the literature:

"Nixon once said in a public interview that the East is an emerging force that should not be underestimated. He regarded us as 'a giant that is faintly visible beyond the horizon, a brave collective of 4.75 million hardworking, high-spirited, and disciplined fighters.'"

"And he never viewed us as vassals, but always as an independent player in the game. He was also among the first in the West to acknowledge that our organizational, mobilization, and execution capabilities were superior, and that it was unrealistic to exclude such a group, which comprises a quarter of the world's population, from the General Assembly..."

"Therefore, I personally believe that Nixon is a more suitable candidate to be the 'Ying Ji' for King Wuling of Zhao."

After saying that, Zhou Yunxiao added with a hint of lingering interest, "Oh, by the way, he once had a heated argument with Sui Zong in the kitchen, arguing until they were both red in the face. In a way, we don't need to worry that he and Sui Zong will end up sharing the same pot in the future."

He stopped talking when he was hoarse and had nothing more to add.

Seeing this, General Manager Xun took over and expressed his own opinion.

"Nixon's thinking is indeed unconventional. Although he served as Eisen's deputy for eight years, he was never very obedient to Eisen's discipline and always did things his own way. As for the kitchen debate, I've heard a bit about it. I heard that the two of them almost got into a fight on live television, haha."

"As for the other Kenneth, a mere senator dares to interfere in many of our affairs, complaining that Eisen's 'fist isn't strong enough' and his 'determination isn't decisive enough,' calling him a woman's soft-heartedness. In my opinion, he's a warmonger; once he gains power, he'll definitely cause a huge mess!"