With the successful completion of the first phase of the project, the second phase of the space elevator project soon began in full swing.
As the main contractor of the entire super project, this part of the construction was also the most challenging part for East Asia Heavy Industries.
In this part of the construction, the construction team of East Asia Heavy Industries would lower the 36,000 kilometers of the elevator from the Nirvana section by section until it was connected to the central tower in Penglai City.
The construction of the Nirvana had large space stations such as the Lagrange Space Station as a reference, but the construction of the elevator section had no historical experience to follow at all.
Forget about East Asia Heavy Industries.
For the entire human civilization, building an elevator of such length was unprecedented …
"In the first phase of the project, we will temporarily put down one main rail and four auxiliary rails, and dock the rails section by section by section by the method of dislocation downward until the last section of the track is successfully docked with the central tower.
"If the safety of the elevator can be ensured, we will gradually expand this number to twelve in the follow-up, and finally complete all the designs on the blueprint."
After listening to the specific construction plan described by Chief Engineer Wang of East Asia Heavy Industries, Lu Zhou nodded after thinking for a moment.
"Good idea, we can try this idea for the time being."
This was the safest way.
Even after technical demonstration and computer simulation, the space elevator was still a risky attempt for them. Although any failure in scientific exploration was acceptable, a section of 36,000 kilometers of track was likely to have an unpredictable impact on the ecological environment.
It would be fine if it fell.
If the part of the wreckage between low-Earth orbit and geosynchronous orbit did not fall, but instead became space debris around the Earth, it would undoubtedly be a disaster …
After the meeting, Lu Zhou, who left the Pan-Asian Academy of Sciences, got into the maglev car parked at the door.
Wang Peng drove him to the maglev station.
Although he now had a new job, after all, they were from the same era and had been partners for many years. The relationship between the two had always been good. When he heard that Lu Zhou had come to Beijing, he immediately volunteered to serve as a temporary driver for his old friend.
"How have you been recently?"
"I've always been fine. How about you?"
"Me too." Wang Peng, who was sitting in the driver's seat, grinned and said, "Maybe it's because I survived a disaster, I feel like my luck is turning for the better."
"How so?"
"Didn't we set up an investigation team to deal with the foundation's case?"
Although Wang Peng did not specify which foundation it was, as soon as he heard these three words, Lu Zhou knew that he was referring to the "Xie Cult Organization" that tried to use the ALPHA virus to control the world and ended up hurting himself.
"Do you have any clues about them?"
"There's more than a clue," Wang Peng said with a hearty smile. "Some time ago, according to intelligence, we locked onto a hidden base in a neutral country. With the cooperation of the Specter Squad, we successfully uprooted this base without much effort and intercepted a large number of psychotropic drugs and important documents used to develop believers. Then guess what? "
The Specter Squad was a special marine force of the Pan-Asian First Fleet. Unlike the Third Orbital Airborne Brigade, which was responsible for the frontal battlefield, although they also undertook the task of airborne planetary operations, they were mainly engaged in some technical work.
For example, targeted elimination of traitors or performing some tasks outside the territory that were not convenient to disclose.
Lu Zhou had heard of this force before, but compared to the specific details of the operation, he was more interested in the final fate of The Spirit of The Universe Foundation.
"What happened then?"
"According to the information on those documents, we can be sure that the base we destroyed was their headquarters on Earth!"
Wang Peng, who rarely showed his unsteady side, proudly took out an electronic cigarette and put it in his mouth. However, just when he was about to light it, he suddenly remembered that Lu Zhou couldn't smell any smoke, so he took it off and stuffed it back into his pocket. He coughed and continued, "What happened next is very simple.
According to the documents collected from the headquarters, we put a large number of important members of The Spirit of The Universe Foundation on the wanted list. Now we have caught some people, and some others are expected to be caught soon. "
Hearing these words, a gratified smile appeared on Lu Zhou's face.
"It seems that this case will be over soon."
"Completely over … It's not as optimistic as I thought."
Lu Zhou glanced to the side unexpectedly.
"Wasn't the headquarters destroyed?"
Wang Peng sighed and spoke.
"That's true, but the documents stored in the headquarters only list the names of some marginal members, far from reaching the core of the entire foundation. For example, Song Yangwei's name is not on it. "
"Not a single core member was caught?" Lu Zhou was slightly taken aback. The expression on his face was a little strange. "Are you sure you destroyed their headquarters?"
Wang Peng shook his head and said, "I know what you want to say. In fact, I also suspected that the stronghold we destroyed was just a bait thrown out by the foundation, or something like a cicada escaping its shell to cover up the situation. But later, after our investigation, we found that the core members of The Spirit of The Universe Foundation were connected through the virtual reality network. They all played other identities in reality, and they had never even seen each other in reality. "
Lu Zhou: "This sounds like a guild in an online game."
"I do feel like this." Wang Peng continued, "Their cautious approach has brought a lot of difficulty to our investigation work. If we don't really capture their core management or destroy their source of funds, no matter how many of their strongholds are destroyed, it won't really hurt them."
Lu Zhou: "Do you need my help?"
It seemed that he didn't expect Lu Zhou to say this. After hearing these words, Wang Peng was stunned.
Noticing the expression on Wang Peng's face, Lu Zhou glanced at him with some confusion.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing … I'm just a little surprised." Wang Peng said with a smile, "President Xing, I knew it was difficult to invite you, but I didn't expect you to take the initiative to help."
Lu Zhou: "That depends on what and who I help."
"We appreciate your kindness, but we don't want to trouble you with such a small matter." Wang Peng smiled and continued, "It is our duty to maintain the order of society. It is irresponsible to involve you in this. Besides, there are more important things waiting for you to do now. "
After arriving at the maglev station, Wang Peng sent Lu Zhou to the train. After saying goodbye to him, they parted ways.
Lu Zhou sat on the maglev train back to Jinling. Along the way, he thought about what happened a year ago.
There was no doubt that David Lawrence was dead. Wang Peng saw it with his own eyes, and the body and DNA tests could provide evidence. However, many secrets were also brought to the grave because of the death of the mastermind behind the scenes.
After returning home, Lu Zhou rested for a day, then returned to his usual work. Every day, he would occasionally go to school to teach 22nd-century college students, or spend his time in the laboratory playing with the model of the interplanetary highway, or discuss academic problems with his favorite apprentice.
The days passed by, and soon it was the end of the month.
With the arrival of the summer vacation, there seemed to be fewer things that he needed to do.
However, just when Lu Zhou was thinking about this, he received a special email in his mailbox.
The reason why it was special was that the letter was sent from the Mars colony.
Not only that, but the signature of the mayor and the red seal of the Tiangong City authorities were also printed on the letter. Although he hadn't read the contents yet, all the signs seemed to indicate that this letter was unusual …
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