Chapter 130: Sky Arrow
Under the conditions at that time, Western Europe had only one country with trade relations with China.
That was France.
Under America’s restrictions, although France was a free world country, the De Gaulle Government still tried its best to circumvent these trade restrictions.
This kind of circumvention had long been a tradition. In 1958, China held the China Export Commodities Fair in Yangcheng, the predecessor of the Canton Fair, and France participated.
Therefore, on the last day of the Leipzig Trade Fair this time, French purchasers ordered five hundred units from the Chinese delegation.
Two of these five hundred units ended up in Shopkeeper Feng’s hands after twists and turns.
Listening to the Peking Opera singing on the radio, Shopkeeper Feng and Sun Youyu seemed to return to their homeland instantly, although neither was from Yanjing.
Additionally, the radio station that broadcasted Peking Opera year-round did not come from Mainland China, but from the Island.
Before Lin Ran proposed the Cultural China concept, they had been broadcasting programs to overseas Chinese via Central Broadcasting and Revival Radio Station on shortwave.
It was almost 24-hour all-weather broadcasting.
“This thing is really good, Shopkeeper Feng, name a price.” Sun Youyu said.
Shopkeeper Feng held up two fingers: “Two hundred marks.”
Sun Youyu’s face changed immediately: “You might as well rob me! Two hundred marks could buy the top-of-the-line American radio.”
West German marks and East German marks had an official exchange rate of one to one, but in reality, the true value of West German marks was far higher than East German marks.
Shopkeeper Feng took a deep breath: “No problem if you don’t buy, take a look at the others, do you need anything?
These are the only two latest model transistor radios from the Mainland homeland in the entire Hamburg.
You heard it just now, the quality of this thing is no worse than the American goods you mentioned.
Two hundred marks, I even think it’s cheap.”
Actually, Shopkeeper Feng wasn’t wrong either; his procurement price was 120 marks, selling for 200 marks wasn’t expensive at his place.
The exchange rate between West German marks and US dollars was 4 to 1, equivalent to a procurement price of 20 US dollars, or 80 West German marks; his procurement price was 120 marks.
Sun Youyu gritted his teeth, “You have to guarantee, only two units here?”
Shopkeeper Feng raised his hand with three fingers extended: “Only two!”
Sun Youyu tremblingly pulled out two hundred marks from his chest pocket and slapped them on the table: “Package them up for me!”
Back home, at two in the morning, Sun Youyu dug out an entrance from the corner of the home kitchen; there was another level underground.
He found an old radio station in the basement and began sending a telegraph:
“From: West Germany Station
To: Taipei Headquarters
Date: July 15, 1962
Discovered Mainland-made transistor radio in West Germany, technology comparable to the latest American level, extremely superior performance. This is a major breakthrough, related to technical intelligence, urgently need to purchase for research. Request funds of 500 marks, limited quantity, must approve quickly.”
The money was spent just like that.
The reason Sun Youyu gritted his teeth to buy that equipment was thinking someone would reimburse it.
Since it was related to the Mainland, he reported 500 marks.
After sending the telegraph, Sun Youyu regretted it; he should have reported 800 marks. He inwardly sighed that as an old hand, how could he still not know the precise amount for reimbursement.
If you don’t take it and I don’t take it, the funds would be wasted in vain; how could we not take it?
Besides, this was indeed advanced equipment from China, involving a major breakthrough; old Sun didn’t say anything wrong!
“Professor, congratulations. Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to attend the International Congress of Mathematicians and couldn’t witness your award in person.”
After Lin Ran, as a representative, finished reporting on NASA work to Congress, McNamara found Lin Ran afterward, his expression very regretful.
Lin Ran thought to himself, you as Secretary of Defense still want time to attend the International Congress of Mathematicians; this is the most tense period of the Cold War.
Moreover, the Cuban Missile Crisis was about to begin.
In 1959, America reached agreements with Turkey and Italy respectively to deploy Jupiter medium-range tactical nuclear missiles with ranges of 2400 to 3000 kilometers in those two places.
From last year to the first half of this year, America had completed the deployment; at this time, you should be busy putting all these missiles into operational status to pose further threats to the Russians; where do you have the time.
In August, the World Mathematicians Congress was held in Stockholm, Sweden. For this Congress’s Fields Medal, there was no controversy before the event.
Even on the selection committee, other mathematicians were just there to make up the numbers; Lin Ran received all the votes.
So before it started, academic journals closely collaborating with Lin Ran, like New Progress in Mathematics, had already begun reviewing Lin Ran’s academic achievements before the award, even publicly claiming that Lin Ran was the most accomplished winner in history.
Academia thought so, and it was only natural for McNamara to take Lin Ran’s award for granted.
However, before attending the International Congress of Mathematicians, Lin Ran needed to go to London first.
July, typical English late summer weather: humid air, pedestrians on London streets holding black umbrellas, mist enveloping the Thames River.
Jenny complained: “London’s weather is really terrible, Professor. Why does Downing Street insist on you coming personally to discuss aerospace affairs cooperation.”
Jenny, as a reporter responsible for tracking and reporting Lin Ran’s Fields Medal win, came to London with him.
Lin Ran looked at the rain threads falling outside the window, “I don’t know, maybe they think I can speak with authority?”
Jenny shook her head: “No, I guess Downing Street definitely has other purposes.
Otherwise, if it’s just expanding the aerospace tracking network, sharing Soviet aerospace intelligence and radar facility coordination, they wouldn’t need you at all; any NASA officer would suffice.”
The above information came from Downing Street’s public statements in accepting reporter interviews; they hoped to reach a new agreement with NASA.
But privately, they requested that White House Special Assistant for Aerospace Affairs Randolph Lin serve as the negotiator for this round.
Anyway, you have to come to Europe in August for the International Congress of Mathematicians to receive the award; why not come to London first.
“But Professor, we can go see the newly released Dr. No tonight.” Jenny said excitedly: “I heard the villain character in it is designed based on your image.”
Lin Ran agreed.
But after watching the movie, he regretted it.
The name Dr. No was very unfamiliar to Lin Ran; he thought it was some sci-fi film.
As soon as he entered the theater and saw the protagonist appear, he realized, damn, this is James Bond.
That’s right, not just James Bond, but the inaugural work of the 007 series.
It mainly tells the story of Agent 007 James Bond being sent to Jamaica to investigate the disappearance of a British intelligence officer, ultimately exposing and stopping the conspiracy of an evil scientist, Dr. No, to sabotage America’s aerospace program.
Among them, Dr. No, played by Joseph Wiseman, is a scientist of half German and half Chinese descent who lost his hands in a radiation accident and has metal prosthetics.
He is a member of SPECTRE, planning to use nuclear-powered radio waves to interfere with America’s aerospace program, specifically targeting the upcoming Mercury Program rocket launch.
In the movie, Dr. No is a cold, intelligent arch-villain.
The original movie plot was like that, but in the version they saw, Dr. No even said Lin Ran’s classic line: “I’m not saying who, I’m saying all of you here are trash.”
This statement was just short of directly saying Dr. No was Lin Ran.
“Jenny, from Fu Manchu to Dr. No, I’m fed up with the English people’s stereotypes of Chinese people, and they’re constantly reinforcing these stereotypes in this way.
I want to write an article to refute such views. Do you have a newspaper in England that can publish it?” Lin Ran asked.
Jenny nodded: “No problem, just hand it to me.”
“From Fu Manchu to Dr. No: The British Empire’s Yellow Peril Fantasy and Downing Street’s Pale Reality
Westerners’ imagination of Chinese people is limited to this. From rice-farming peasants to global threat demon kings, the upgrade speed is faster than the British Empire falling from sun-never-sets to a third-rate island nation.
First, Fu Manchu. When Sax Rohmer wrote this stuff, the British Empire was still grabbing territory globally. What happened? They couldn’t even hold onto India, the jewel in the Queen’s crown, yet still use the Yellow Peril to scare people? Once sun-never-sets, now even the sun ignores you; you can only gain a sense of existence by making such jokes.
Then look at Dr. No. This half-Chinese villain might be the English people’s last stubbornness. The director and screenwriter obviously felt that just having Soviets as villains wasn’t exciting enough; they had to pull out another freak from the East. But in reality, Chinese people are helping America achieve the moon landing program. English people, on their own, can’t even launch a satellite into space, let alone land on the moon.”
“Jenny, take a look.” Lin Ran handed the written article to Jenny.
In short, it hammered hard that the British Empire was a bunch of losers, from past sun-never-sets decline to now shrinking on the British Isles.
Mainly focusing on Fu Manchu and Dr. No, these two villain characters created by English people, saying this is England’s cultural revelry targeted at the Cold War.
Due to Dr. No’s setting as the evil doctor stopping NASA’s launch.
Lin Ran also mocked England along the way: you haven’t successfully launched a single satellite; what qualification do you have to mock Chinese people.
After reading it, Jenny reminded: “Professor, if you publish this article, it will definitely hit the English people’s sore spot.
But similarly, you will be besieged by English newspapers.
If you don’t mind such things happening, I can help you publish it.
Also, I remind you, with your identity, publishing such an article is actually giving them free publicity.”
This was indeed true, just like later movie bumpkin-style publicity.
Lin Ran thought about it and felt that verbal sparring was meaningless. Instead of arguing with these English people full of stereotypes, better to give them real damage; there were plenty of opportunities anyway.
Whether in Hong Kong or England proper, he had countless opportunities.
Being in the White House meant too many opportunities to contact the White House core and make trouble for the British Empire.
Plus, during the Cold War, America targeted not just the Russians but also Europe, always trying to weaken England’s influence. With Lin Ran’s status, adding fuel to the fire for Great Britain was too easy.
For Lin Ran, he didn’t even need to wait; the opportunity came the next day.
The negotiations with Downing Street were held in the meeting room on the second floor of 10 Downing Street.
The room wasn’t large but was decorated quite elegantly, with walls paneled in dark oak and a Victorian-era oil painting hanging.
A rectangular mahogany conference table occupied the center of the room, with England and America’s national flags placed on it.
Folders, teacups, and a pot of freshly brewed Earl Grey tea were on the table.
Outside the window, raindrops gently tapped the thick glass panes, with faint clamor from London streets in the distance.
The fireplace, though unlit, added a touch of warmth to the room.
In the meeting room, Alec Douglas-Home sat on one side of the table; this was England’s Foreign Secretary, who would become England’s Prime Minister next year.
Home was around 60, wearing a dark blue three-piece suit, with graying hair, appearing very amiable. Beside him was Margaret Jones, technical consultant from the Department of Defense, in a dark green suit, short hair neat and capable; she had served in the Royal Air Force and was familiar with England’s radar network.
Each side had one low-level assistant responsible for recording and providing documents, sitting silently on both sides of the conference table.
Lin Ran pushed the door open, water droplets from the umbrella falling on the carpet; he took off his damp jacket and hung it on the coat rack, shook hands with Home. Steam rose from the teapot in the room, and an assistant handed him a cup of tea.
Home smiled and said: “Sir, congratulations in advance on your Fields Medal, and welcome to London. The weather isn’t friendly, but I hope our discussion brings some warmth. Please sit.”
Lin Ran nodded and sat down, adjusting the position of the notebook on the table: “Thank you, Foreign Secretary. I bring greetings from Washington. The President has high hopes for cooperation between our two countries, especially at this critical moment.”
Home said: “Let’s get straight to the topic. First is aerospace cooperation.
NASA is expanding the tracking network to support the Apollo Program and satellite missions.”
Lin Ran nodded: “Correct, England’s geographical position is crucial to us. We hope to establish new ground stations on the British Isles or your overseas territories.”
Margaret Jones asked: “Specifically which facilities? Jodrell Bank is already at full capacity tracking Soviet spacecraft and missiles. We need more resources to support additional tasks.”
Lin Ran said: “NASA is willing to provide equipment and funds. The current preliminary plan is to build a small station in northern Scotland for receiving satellite signals and deep space communication. What do you think?”
Home replied: “In principle, no problem, but this needs parliamentary approval. After all, the Soviets won’t like us getting further involved in America’s aerospace program; they’re still resentful about the missiles in Turkey.”
This was because the Cuban Missile Crisis hadn’t started yet; after it began, England wouldn’t agree so easily.
Lin Ran smiled lightly: “We’ve seen plenty of Nikita’s dissatisfaction, but his dissatisfaction is just that—dissatisfaction; it won’t change our strategy.”
Home reminded: “Speaking of the Soviets, we have reason to believe they have big moves in the Caribbean. Early August intelligence shows cargo ships frequently entering and exiting Cuba, possibly related to missiles or aerospace facilities.
Margaret, what has our radar network discovered?”
Margaret Jones said: “Our listening stations captured some anomalous signals, but couldn’t confirm. The Soviet Orient 3 and 4 just launched the day before yesterday; it could be a cover operation. We can adjust the North Sea radars to focus on monitoring Atlantic routes.”
Home asked: “If it’s really missiles, we need more evidence. Does your side have plans for U-2 reconnaissance aircraft?”
Lin Ran shook his head: “I can help relay this information to the Department of Defense to increase flight frequency.
I never participate in military operations.
But I guess it might need intelligence support from England’s side, especially observing their launch activities from a European perspective.”
Margaret Jones glanced at Home, then said: “We can share Jodrell Bank data to piece together a more complete picture. But we hope America also shares U-2 photos. Intelligence is two-way.”
Lin Ran nodded: “No problem. I’ll report to the President and notify McNamara to arrange it as soon as possible.”
The rain outside intensified, and the meeting was nearing its end.
Only then did Home reveal his true intention: “Sir, today’s discussion has been fruitful. Additionally, we hope Washington can clarify the future of Sky Arrow soon, so we can rest easy.”
The reason Downing Street insisted on seeing Lin Ran was because of Sky Arrow.
This term was a bit unfamiliar; bluntly put, Sky Arrow was an air-launched ballistic missile, involving complex guidance and propulsion technology, with technical overlap with aerospace launch systems.
This system was mainly to counter the Soviet SA-2 surface-to-air missiles, hoping to give England’s bombers nuclear deterrence capability.
Currently, the Royal Air Force’s V-bombers (including “Victor,” “Vulcan,” “Valiant”) were the core of its nuclear deterrence, but these aircraft were aging and couldn’t penetrate the Soviet new air defense network.
Sky Arrow was born out of necessity.
But now America planned to abandon it, and Downing Street had multiple rounds of communication with America, from open to private.
Although America didn’t say it outright, the message they got was strong internal opposition in America, not wanting to waste resources enhancing England’s nuclear deterrence.
After all, America’s medium-range intercontinental missiles were already deployed in Turkey and Italy; England didn’t need it and could directly cancel the project.
This was a bolt from the blue for England.
America’s nuclear deterrence wasn’t weakened, but England’s was gone.
What if the Russians bomb us?
This concerned England’s strategic security.
Downing Street thought of Lin Ran, feeling that as England’s Sir and White House rising star, he might play an unexpected role.
Woo woo woo, two chapters totaling 10,000 words offered, begging for monthly tickets~
