“5！”

“4！”

“……”

“0！”

"Ignition!"

Flames shoot out from the vent.

This time, it was the return capsule on the top of the lunar module that ignited the fire.

Dragging the brilliant arc of fire, the hemispherical vehicle separated from the huge base, easily broke free from the shackles of the moon's gravity, and slowly flew into space in an oblique upward direction.

At the same time, the Xiangrui, which was cruising in lunar orbit, began to slow down and change orbit, heading towards the return capsule that rose into the air.

380,000 kilometers away, on the big screen of the ground command center, our staff in the command room saw two white dots marking the spacecraft, under the 127-minute orbit, flying in parallel in the same direction for a period of time, and then slowly approaching, approaching, and finally merging......

Immediately afterward, the invigorating voice came from the communication screen.

“…… This is the Xiangrui, the return capsule has been successfully received, requesting instructions on the next step. ”

Hou Guang, who was standing in front of the command platform, looked solemn and immediately ordered: "This is the ground command center, after hearing the order, please return immediately." ”

Two seconds later, an answer came.

"Roger."

After receiving the order from the ground command, the blue light from the vents of the five engines gradually amplified, propelling the Xiangrui to begin to accelerate, changing from a 127-minute orbit to a 3.5-hour orbit, and then from a 3.5-hour orbit to a 12-hour orbit.

After several hours of slow acceleration, Xiangrui, which had returned to perigee, finally reached a lunar escape velocity of 2.4 kilometers per second and successfully cut into the Earth-Moon transfer orbit.

After entering orbit, he continued to fly for a short time, and Nie Yun, who was sitting in the cockpit, skillfully turned off the engine and switched to cruise mode. Pulled by the Earth's gravity, Xiangrui will gradually accelerate in the return stage before successfully entering a 48-hour orbit.

This is the optimal return route calculated according to the supercomputer of the ground command.

It is also the only safe way to use the remaining 9% to propel the working fluid back to the atmosphere safely!

The long flight lasted more than fifty hours.

Finally, on the morning of the sixth day of the Lunar New Year, the Xiangrui, which sailed from deep space, approached the edge of the atmosphere.

Until the curtain came down last night, the North American media seemed to be holding on to their last pride, using news headlines such as "A successful moon landing does not mean a successful return home" to accuse China of disregarding the lives of astronauts and using human lives to test immature technology.

However, now that Xiangrui has successfully appeared at the boundary of the atmosphere, many NASA experts and North American journalists are dumbfounded.

Not only in North America, but also in space centers and space enthusiasts all over the world, and even the people who eat melons who are usually indifferent to spaceflight, are paying attention to the Xiangrui cruising at the edge of the atmosphere.

Especially the Chinese people.

The heartstrings of countless Chinese people were pulled by that spaceship.

This is already the last 100 meters of the marathon.

The successful landing on the moon is something to be proud of, but whether or not you can successfully bring the fruits of victory back to the surface from the moon is the key to declaring the final victory!

“…… This is Xiangrui, we have successfully entered the return orbit," Nie Yun, who had already changed into a spacesuit in the cabin, said in a calm voice, "It will be in contact with the atmosphere in 5 minutes." ”

Without waiting long, the voice of the ground command came.

“…… Received, good luck to you. ”

Five minutes passed quickly, and the belly of the Xiangrui began to make contact with the atmosphere, and as the wing speed brakes opened, it was gradually pulled to the ground by the earth's gravity while decelerating, and then thrown outward.

After several turnarounds, the Xiangrui finally rushed into the dense part of the atmosphere.

50 km!

10 km!

5 km!

2 km!

Appeared!

The clouds are broken.

When the Xiangrui appeared in the blue sky, the ground staff standing on the runway of the Space Launch Center, the engineers and technicians in the ground command center, couldn't help but let out excited cheers and cheered for this hard-won victory.

The massive fuselage landed slowly, and the lowered landing gear smoothly crashed into the runway.

At the same time, the parachute erupted backwards, dragging the Xiangrui to a slow stop.

As the Xiangrui stopped, the mobile gangway, ground crew, and reporters carrying cameras rushed up.

After a soft sound of air leaking, the heavy alloy hatch slowly opened outward, and the three astronauts quickly appeared in people's sight.

In the cheers of the people, Liu Zhengwen, who walked down the Xiangrui with the handrail of the gangway, looked at all this in front of him, and only felt like he was in a dream.

I......

Is it a hero?

Blood boiled in the veins, and tears filled his eyes.

At that moment, he felt the responsibility and pressure he had endured for the past few days, and all the efforts he had put into it.

Everything is so worthwhile......

……

From the moment the plane successfully landed, the task of the ground command was over, and the engineers and technicians working there either ran to the runway outside the control tower or returned to the lounge for a nap.

Many people have been on the job for 24 hours.

Even if it's iron, it shouldn't be able to hold it at this moment.

In particular, Hou Guang, commander-in-chief of the ground command, has not closed his eyes since the aerospace plane entered the 24-hour orbit. After seeing the Xiangrui landing, the whole person seemed to be doping, and directly took the lead in throwing down the headphones and ran out of the command room.

It seems that he plans to go to the runway to take a look for himself before going back to rest.

Standing on the control tower, looking at the three astronauts on the runway from a distance, surrounded by ground staff and reporters, the stone hanging in Lu Zhou's heart was finally put down, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but hook up a smile.

Yan Yan, who was one step behind him, said jokingly.

"Why don't you go down and grab a camera?"

Originally, she had been worried about watching the plane come down, afraid that this guy would have intimate contact with the ground with the back of his head because of overexcitement, but this time what she was worried about did not happen, until the plane landed, Lu Zhou's mental state was fine.

Thinking of this, Yan Yan couldn't help but feel a little relieved in her heart.

It seems that he did listen to what he said.

After hearing Yan Yan's teasing, Lu Zhou, who looked at the lively crowd outside the floor-to-ceiling window, couldn't help but smile.

"No need."

"I received my reward just now."

Leaving this sentence of unknown meaning, under the gaze of Yan Yan, who was confused, Lu Zhou turned around and walked to the door of the command room.

Just two minutes ago, he had already received a reminder from the system that the side quest was complete.

Now that the side rewards have been recovered, he can't wait to find a place to lie down and see what the next stage of the mission is......