Chapter 278: The Moon Landing Is Just The Beginning
A young man in his early twenties, after blooming in both mathematics and aerospace, first thing he does is to grandly talk about nuclear balance and nuclear deterrence.
This is just like a young man who, after getting rich quick, doesn’t think about how to spend or satisfy his material desires, but instead prepares every day for the end of the world, spending all his money to build a bunker—it’s just as strange.
Lin Ran said softly: “Sister Xiao Man, I know you can’t understand now, after all, our Earth has been maintained under the veil of peace and warmth for forty years.
The disintegration of the Soviet Union, America’s disguise, Europe’s fragmentation, and China’s biding one’s time and hiding one’s strength together created this forty years of peace.
But peace is just an illusion; beneath this veil is still a world of the survival of the fittest. The previous America president’s coming to power is a signal.
We can’t wait until that moment arrives to prepare; we need to prepare in advance.
Constructing new nuclear deterrence is for better peace.
Maybe you don’t understand now, but in the future, you will slowly come to understand.”
Lin Ran knew deeply that the Cold War had ended, but the essence contained in the Cold War, the essence of why humanity is human, would not change at all.
Fred’s son can become president, Buzz Aldrin would rather give up his posthumous fame to roar in anger, showing what state American society has reached now.
When America experiences turmoil, the world system he dominates or participates in constructing will teeter, inevitably bringing turmoil to the world.
In such a situation, Lin Ran was very clear that the more perverted he appeared, the greater the turmoil he would bring.
An innocent man with a jade gu carries guilt.
But when the innocent man harbors a sharp weapon that can splatter blood ten meters away, the situation is different.
“The nuclear balance constructed jointly by the Soviet Union and America in the 1960s no longer suits this era; we need to construct a new nuclear balance.”
Lin Ran concluded finally.
Li Xiaoman wanted to say more, but Lin Ran, with a weary look, waved his hand: “That’s it for today. With words alone, neither of us can change the other’s stance.
Only experience can change viewpoints. My idea about lunar nuclear deterrence is still just an idea; we have plenty of time to verify if my concept is correct.
That’s it for today, Sister Xiao Man.”
Li Xiaoman nodded heavily, her mood somber.
Lin Ran, staying at Tongji Wenchang Hospital, naturally wasn’t idle either.
Because their task this year included the reusable rocket Burning One Modified, and also redesigning the Saturn V.
From the rocket itself, to the navigation system, to the control system, and so on, all needed major optimization.
Simply put, except for continuing to use the engine, almost everything else had to change.
Then including constructing an electromagnetic launch device on the Moon; preliminary research had to start now.
Lin Ran had a lot of work to handle, the most important of which was recruiting people.
Recruiting on a large scale.
After the Apollo Moon Landing was completed, Apollo Technology became Shanghai’s absolute hot cake.
Any Shanghai local government’s year-end report had to mention Apollo Technology.
This is the moon landing feat accomplished by our Shanghai private enterprise! This is the great achievement of our urban innovative economy, the fruit borne from further strengthening the innovation source function of technological innovation after the internationalization of our factor market.
In the past, whether Shanghai government reports or development plans, the planned high-end industries were three:
Integrated circuit, biopharmaceuticals, and artificial intelligence.
Then the key industries to accelerate development were six: electronic information, automobiles, high-end equipment, advanced materials, life health, and fashion consumer goods.
Now all of these have added aerospace.
Originally relying on one COMAC couldn’t support the development of an entire industry. Now with Apollo Technology, relying on Apollo Technology and COMAC, Apollo Technology can absolutely support aviation, and COMAC can make do; with mutual complementation, shouting for vigorously developing the aerospace industry is no problem.
This also led to treatments from land to tax exemptions to bank credit, almost everything available.
A large state-owned bank in Shanghai gave Apollo Technology a 1 billion credit line.
Why a credit line instead of pulling investment? Because Lin Ran is still in Wenchang, still lying in the hospital.
Without him, Song Nanping couldn’t decide.
Besides, Apollo Technology definitely couldn’t accept foreign capital. Apart from not accepting foreign capital, what is the entry proportion for private capital? Like Tencent, which has foreign institutions behind it, can it invest?
Or have Chinese entrepreneurs invest in personal names?
These myriad details are all problems.
Even including that because Tencent invested in Apollo Technology, its stock price emerged from the trough, with consecutive rises totaling over twenty percent.
Market response was enthusiastic.
So now it’s just giving a credit line, allowing Apollo Technology to recruit soldiers and buy horses on a large scale in the market.
And Lin Ran also has sufficient appeal.
It could be said that his past experience in study abroad consulting could be fully utilized.
Apollo Technology was about to start recruiting on a large scale.
Outside the window was already pitch black, a wave of hunger came, and only then did Xia Nanfeng realize the passage of time.
Life in Göttingen was just this boring and dull.
Especially on a holiday like New Year’s Day, no need to go to school or lab, staying in his faculty apartment easily made one feel lonely.
Of course, recently due to the virus outbreak, normally there was no need to go to school anyway.
After reading another paper, Xia Nanfeng felt today’s task was done; next he could browse his phone and play some games.
He didn’t play Genshin, recently hooked on Slay the Spire, a tower-climbing game that was great for killing time.
“Apollo Technology causes world situation turmoil, China shows unprecedented technological ambition, China tries to reshape the world pattern through technological breakthroughs.”
Xia Nanfeng glanced at the media name of this report: Mirror, he curled his lip, no need to say, another boring China threat theory.
Everywhere discussing China’s moon landing, from Apollo Technology to Lin Ran to Buzz Aldrin; even far away in a foreign country, Xia Nanfeng kept seeing related news reports.
He opened the 2012 Shanghai Jiaotong University Chemistry Department group, sure enough, it was all talking about Lin Ran and Apollo Technology.
This group that had been silent for a long time recently became active again because SJTU alumnus Lin Ran successfully completed the moon landing in a year and a half, becoming China’s first person to land on the moon.
One day without checking and it would have 999+ messages.
Tons of Lin Ran sticker packs, the text paired with the stickers all uniformly Ran Shen.
Apart from sticker packs with little substantial information, the main discussion still revolved around Lin Ran and the moon landing.
“You guys didn’t see it, Old Lin was grinning so happily at this year’s New Year’s Day gala.” This was from a classmate still doing postdoc at SJTU.
At the same time paired with a photo of Lin Zhongqing grinning.
“Of course he’s happy, the debate between Shanghai Jiaotong University and Fudan over who is Shanghai No.1 is completely settled, something no previous president achieved.”
Then a flood of Lin Ran holding up his index finger, paired with Shanghai Jiaotong University No.1 sticker packs.
“Feels like Old Lin has some luck; after he came, the importance of science and engineering skyrocketed—not mentioning that, state-owned enterprises in manufacturing are successively ramping up, offering higher salaries and total packages—not mentioning that, damn, producing a genius like Ran Shen, that’s really dog luck to the max.”
“Yeah, it’s like achievements falling from the sky, coming right to the door. I estimate at this year’s education system meeting, Old Lin doesn’t need to say anything, just bring a banner saying Jiaotong Moon Landing, and when others ask him anything, he just holds up the banner.”
“Yeah, too perverted. If I were from Fudan, my mentality would collapse.”
“Honestly, besides the moon landing, did you forget there’s another big event this year?”
“What big event?”
“The International Congress of Mathematicians! Do they dare to go against the world and not award Ran Shen? Solving the Twin Prime Conjecture without getting Fields? Obviously impossible. This year SJTU has another first domestically self-cultivated Fields to boast about!”
“Ran Shen is really pie from the sky; not only Old Lin benefits, the whole SJTU will benefit. Not talking about SJTU students graduating naturally fitting Apollo Technology, just for job hunting, talking to the interviewer about our SJTU puts the moon landing on the table, others will naturally look at you highly.”
“Yeah, interview success rate at least up ten percent; for aerospace engineering major fitting China Aerospace or COMAC, that’s up fifty percent. I heard this year various China institutes recruiting at SJTU are unprecedentedly active.
Not just aerospace major wanted, mechanical, electronics, chemical, etc., almost come one take all.
Why didn’t we have this luck back then.”
“Sigh, born at the wrong time, if only went to SJTU a few years earlier, graduated a bit too early.”
Xia Nanfeng smiled, he sent a photo of himself and Lin Ran at the SJTU school gate; he dug for a long time to find it, inwardly a bit glad he kept this photo.
Otherwise, saying he knows Lin Ran, others wouldn’t believe.
“Lucky to have coffee with Ran Shen~” Xia Nanfeng sent another message after the photo.
“???”
“???”
Uniform question marks.
“No, Nanfeng, how do you know Ran Shen?”
“Holy crap, isn’t this a natural big leg to hug!”
“Didn’t expect a big shot knowing Ran Shen in the group. I said our class of 2012, Ran Shen class of 2015, we must have overlap!”
This is the benefit of knowing a big shot; even you get considered a big shot. Xia Nanfeng showed a slight smile.
Soon his smile disappeared, because he found a bunch of people adding him on WeChat via the big group.
Xia Nanfeng didn’t need to think to know what these people were adding him for.
Bluntly, wanting to get to know Lin Ran through him.
He sighed, sigh, he did have Lin Ran’s WeChat, he could still see Lin Ran’s Moments.
The latest one was before departing for the moon landing.
But he and Lin Ran weren’t close; he just added Lin Ran back then, troubling him to help with study abroad consulting once.
At that time Lin Ran was somewhat famous at SJTU, specializing in helping with study abroad consulting, including PhD applications.
Xia Nanfeng back then just admired his information gathering ability and intelligence analysis ability; who would have thought this was his weakest ability, he was purely a research big shot, big shot among big shots.
But he thought again, indeed needed top-level information gathering ability to collect Apollo Moon Landing materials sufficiently in two years in America, thereby returning to China and smoothly replicating the Apollo Moon Landing.
But Xia Nanfeng knew his relationship with Lin Ran was this thin layer; how to help others make introductions.
Taking advantage of still having his WeChat, after finishing postdoc, Xia Nanfeng was still thinking of directly asking Lin Ran boss for a job then.
He closed WeChat, opened Zhihu; as soon as he opened Zhihu, the first push in the information flow was: “How to evaluate Apollo Technology’s moon landing feat?”
“Invite declined, moon landing in a year and a half; even including preliminary research, from undergraduate enrollment, that’s just over six years. In just over six years, single-handedly pulled up a team, personally replicated Saturn V, replicated Columbia’s exterior, then personally served as astronaut and went to the Moon.
At the same time considering that in this process, he also published three top four math papers, including completely solving the Twin Prime Conjecture—what isn’t a god?
Absolute study god, top big god spanning engineering and theory fields, a big shot ranking in human history. From the perspective of influence on humanity, Ran Shen currently doesn’t surpass Newton and Einstein yet, temporarily can’t compare with Descartes.
After all, these influenced the progress of science; Ran Shen’s main work currently still at solving problems and replicating engineering.
But from IQ and ability, I think he’s solidly history’s number one, more perverted performance than Newton and Einstein.
Einstein certainly pioneered in quantum mechanics, but he himself didn’t do atomic bombs or hydrogen bombs; Newton came up with the three laws of nature, did well at the mint, but compared to moon landing, difficulty far off.
Ran Shen is extremely rare, top big shot spanning theory and engineering fields; evaluating academicians, both engineering academy and academy of sciences would give him one. More terrifying is young, and already fully proven himself.
We think building a launch tower on the Moon is hard; put it this way, if the one saying this isn’t Ran Shen but someone else, everyone would directly think impossible.
Ran Shen, we just think it’s hard; maybe he really can do it.
At the same time, whether capital market or country will give him full patience and resource support, let him do what he wants to do. Bluntly, funds will flow continuously.
I’m now looking forward to what level Apollo Technology can reach next; routine Earth-Moon round trips, then Ran Shen’s contribution bigger than Copernicus and Bruno; building electromagnetic launch tower on Moon, can rival Descartes; if really turning Moon into humanity’s outpost stepping to universe, then I think Ran Shen can rival Newton and Einstein.
Of course, if really ushering in human space era, footprints across Solar System, then solidly the first person of the era, no one to match.
So indeed as Ran Shen said on the Moon, moon landing is just the beginning, just a small step, the big step is still ahead.”
Xia Nanfeng looking at this answer, inwardly also generated expectation, wanting to see what level this junior’s miracle could reach.
“Online?”
WeChat popped a message again.
Xia Nanfeng thought it was his ex-girlfriend; since his PhD graduation in Germany, his ex who broke up over long-distance occasionally popped a “online?” message to him.
Xia Nanfeng felt himself cheap, always unable to resolve to delete her.
But he noticed the sender ID: Ran Shen.
This was the nickname he changed for him after Lin Ran’s moon landing success; before it was Lin Ran junior.
Xia Nanfeng immediately sat straight:
“Yes, Ran Shen, what’s up?”
No way not to call Ran Shen; SJTU alumni group joked that even Lin Ran’s parents have to call him Ran Shen.
“It’s like this, I remember you were doing chemistry PhD in Göttingen before, should have graduated by now?”
Xia Nanfeng inwardly excited, holy crap, Ran Shen actually pays attention to me:
“Yes, I’ve graduated now, currently doing postdoc at Max Planck Institute.”
Lin Ran continued: “Yeah, because back then I chose the PhD project for you, you felt it had development prospects and was interesting; I remember it was a comprehensive project on MEET and nanostructured materials. I checked your papers, I estimate you graduated.”
Xia Nanfeng: “Yes, I mainly did multidisciplinary and multiscale research on enhanced geothermal system exploration, development technology, and potential, mainly how nanostructured materials ensure combination with geothermal systems, maintaining temperature stability.
Last year-end I also did a seminar at Max Planck Institute on energy dissipation rate in isotropic turbulence and fluctuations of 1D dissipation surrogate, gave an hour speech there.
Including Quantum Monte Carlo Method and Dynamical Mean-Field Theory, I have some understanding.”
Lin Ran: “Nanfeng, looks like you guessed why I’m contacting you.”
Xia Nanfeng extremely agitated, his whole heart floating back to China: “Guessed it. You’re building electromagnetic launch tower on Moon, so thermal management is unavoidable.
Lunar vacuum environment no convection for cooling, temperature range -183°C to +118°C; plus electromagnetic launch inevitably causes heating; if traditional aluminum alloy payload, 100% melts directly at this temperature.
So whether launch tower itself, rocket or other spacecraft, all need thermal management; payload needs to withstand high acceleration and thermal load, launch tower needs to endure rapid temperature changes.”
Lin Ran nodded repeatedly; he indeed didn’t misjudge the person.
Though University of Göttingen’s global ranking and reputation aren’t prominent, not matching many England, Maple Leaf Country, Kangaroo Country universities, but those getting PhD from Göttingen all have some real skills.
What’s more, the other is doing postdoc at Max Planck Institute.
“It’s like this, are you convenient now? If convenient, let’s do an interview now; if no problem, I represent Apollo Technology inviting you to join.” Lin Ran typed.
“Absolutely convenient!”
