"The US side has made a statement: it is conducive to regional stability and is willing to provide convenient conditions."

"The aircraft carrier battle group withdrew from the Persian Gulf, and the IRAN people ran to celebrate."

"The U.S. side stated that appropriate military exchanges should become a common practice, and the U.S. is willing to take the first step."

"The spokesman said: The actions of all parties are normal exchanges, and there is no provocation as rumored."

After the joint exercise plan was confirmed, there was a wave of confusion in world public opinion, but soon, many countries preemptively expressed their positions, fundamentally determining the "justice" of the exercise.

These statements not only stunned some media outlets, but also the vast majority of the public.

Don't they know what this so-called "leapfrogging" exercise means?

Although the scale is not large, only half of the lightly armed synthetic battalion participated.

Although the direction is not clear, the objectives of the exercise are "counter-terrorism", "rescue" and "handling sudden natural disasters".

Although the forces of the participating parties are simple, there is no obvious alliance or alliance.

But the question is, will the world still be the same after this exercise?

Or is it less exaggerated, looking at it in the most conservative way, is the Middle East still the same Middle East? Is the Arabian Peninsula still that Arabian Peninsula?

In Lasracquela's base, will the teams that have completed the exercise still withdraw?

The question is self-defeating, and the answer is known to passers-by.

In the largest forum in China, the discussion of this "little thing" has been rising, and even vaguely surpassed the heat of the EAST project itself.

Because everybody understands that this is the first major impact that EAST has had on the world.

"So Lao Mei really admitted it this time, right? Completely abandon the Middle East, completely abandon the Arabian Peninsula, and completely give up competing for hegemony with China, and even vaguely suspect of being a dog? ”

"It's not enough to be a dog's leg, according to what we used to say, it should be called 'Taoguang Yanghui'."

"It's really Taoguang, EAST is too big a blow to Lao Mei, their national ignition device was still thinking about overtaking in corners, but Mao has not lit one yet, and we are already ready to connect to the grid for power generation."

"I have long said that Lao Mei's path in laser is wrong, engaging in incoherent synthesis? You pierce the sky with such a little power, and you are not as good as the current Shenguang No. 4. ”

"If it weren't for EAST's speed, Shenguang 4 would have been ignited successfully."

"That's not so exaggerated, it will take at least five or six years, and inertial constraints are not the same as magnetic constraints, and it is actually more difficult to achieve energy export."

"Anyway, we have nuclear fusion anyway, and now in this world, we should have the final say, right?"

As soon as this comment was posted, the following thread was immediately divided into two factions.

From the perspective of room temperature superconductivity and the subsequent development of nuclear fusion, conservatives try to argue that there is no doubt that China has the authority in the world.

Radicals, on the other hand, think conservatives aren't blowing hard enough.

In their view, according to the Fermi paradox, China is now not only the center of the world, but also the center of the universe.

After all, we haven't found any aliens yet.

If you don't find it, you don't have it, and if you don't have aliens, then we're the strongest.

"Seriously, a lot of people don't have a concept of room temperature superconductivity and nuclear fusion at all, do you know what that means?"

"It's not the Fourth Industrial Revolution, it's a group of apes finally discovering fire!"

"No, it can even be said that the combined impact of these two achievements is even more exaggerated than the discovery of fire by apes."

"After all, from the perspective of the universe, the discovery of fire can only allow human beings to master the earth, and the discovery of nuclear fusion and room temperature superconductors can allow human beings to cross farther into the sea of stars."

"So a new era is coming, right?"

"That's right, not only is a new era coming, but better days are also coming."

The atmosphere is becoming more and more enthusiastic, and at this moment, what is presented to everyone is an incomparably bright future.

These ordinary people, who cannot be said to have suffered a lot, but who have indeed endured too much and too much pressure, are deeply aware that their lives will change with the wheels of history rolling forward.

Does the rise or fall of a country matter?

Of course it's important.

But more important than that is what the people who make up this country will gain in the process.

The power engineer who trekked between the mountains and forests climbed the last mountain in front of him, and above his head was a high-voltage transmission cable that cut through the sky like a heavenly road, and he was one of the first pathfinders to plan a new power grid.

Looking back at the mountains he had already crossed, he saw the towers standing silently under the gradually dissipating mist.

Maybe it won't be long before his name will remain on those towers.

The researchers in the lab are carefully drawing the blueprint of the battery, from conductors to energy storage materials, he has a long way to go, but thanks to the complete technology, he feels that the road is not difficult.

On the table is the model of the flying car in the fifth element given to him by his son, and the flying car, which was originally supported by a thin wire, has been replaced by him with a metal hydrogen base, and now, this originally somewhat funny toy has become a real "flying car".

On the Indian Ocean, the captain turned the rudder calmly, his cabin full of gas that had once been so valuable from the desert, but he knew that the purpose of this thing had been completely changed.

In his heart, he silently calculated the benefits of this voyage and pondered the life of this industry.

Sooner or later, I will say goodbye to the sea, and at that time, maybe I should try to be a hovertrain driver? I heard that it will become easier and easier to get off the train driver's license.

Before the coal workers who had just risen to the surface from the mine, which was hundreds of meters deep, had no time to wipe the dust off their faces, they couldn't wait to pick up their mobile phones and report their safety to their families.

He told his family on the phone that a large number of new machinery is said to be entering the market in a few years, and this industry, which is already coming to an end, is probably going to be eliminated.

But he is not worried about this, and he sees a way out of his own way, in addition to the generous money from overseas promised by the government himself will be used to pay for the subsidies to which he deserves.

The moon hung high in the sky, and the slightly cool moonlight cast his shadow on the desolate ground.

He looked up at the moon, and his mind flashed back to what the young man had said to him.

Decade? Or five years? In short, the future self will not dig coal again, maybe themselves. It will go to the moon

For the vast majority of people, fusion and superconductivity are a big pie.

But it's not drawn.

Because everyone can see that there are people who are already meeting

AH。

Chen Nian never imagined that when he had witnessed the grand occasion of the ignition of EAST in a "hidden way" as always, participated in the ribbon-cutting ceremony of the superconductivity-fusion industrial complex, and was about to leave Hefei and return to Chengdu, he actually met an old man he hadn't seen for a long time on Science Island.

Buckwheat.

When he saw her for the first time, Chen Nian was almost unrecognizable.

Of course, this is not because of how much she has changed, in fact, she is the same as Wang Jiancheng, except that she is a little more mature than the last time they met, in fact, she has not changed much overall.

At the end of the day, I haven't seen it for too long, and my face has already grown.

——

On the contrary, all the guards who were in charge of protecting Chen Nian next to her recognized her, so that when she stepped forward and patted Chen Nian on the shoulder, Chen Nian was really startled.

After all, this hasn't happened in a long time

He didn't react at first, and it wasn't until Qiao Mai called his name that a surprised expression appeared on his face.

"Jo Mai? When did you get here? ”

"Aren't you working at the Heavy Machinery Institute now? Why are you here? ”

Hearing this, Qiao Mai pretended to be displeased and pursed his lips, and replied:

"You are too far behind in this news, don't you know about the complex project?"

"Hey, no, you're all here, you shouldn't know it."

Chen Nian smiled awkwardly and said:

"Harm, I've been busy flying lately, and I didn't bother to inquire about it, and you transferred it to work on an industrial hydraulic press?"

"Yes, the hydraulic system design of the new factory is with Mr. Zhang Wen."

Hearing this, Chen Nian finally remembered what Chen Guo told him some time ago.

Yes, the current Qiao Mai is indeed no longer the student who is still studying for a doctorate in his impression-—— after the application of metal and hydrogen industry has been rolled out, the talent gap in the field of hydraulics has reached an extremely astonishing level, and this group of newcomers represented by her has also gone to the front line.

"Awesome. You've started to take the lead now, right? ”

Qiao Mai shook his head and replied modestly:

"No, it's just participation – what about you? Also an industrial complex project? ”

"It's not."

Chen Nian thought for a moment, then replied:

"I'm a pure fusion project, and I've been involved in some of the plasma control aspects."

The information he said was part of the public identity that Starfire had created for him, and it didn't need to be kept secret.

And after hearing his answer, Qiao Mai didn't ask too much.

Anyway, in her eyes, Chen Nian has always been a mysterious image, let alone a plasma, even if the entire EAST project is his handiwork, she will not be surprised.

After a few simple greetings, the two walked to the coffee shop on the "commercial street" of Science Island together, and only after finally sitting down, chatting about their respective lives, and getting acquainted with each other again, did the two finally find a state where they could get along comfortably.

Chen Nian was half-leaning on the sofa, while Qiao Mai was supporting his head with his hands, looking him up and down curiously.

"You've changed a lot in the past two years, and your hair has turned a few grays. So tired from work? ”

"No, it's a genetic problem."

Chen Nian hurriedly waved his hand and said teasingly:

"I'm okay, didn't you see Wang Jiancheng, that kid is a serious young man-—— but I heard that people with long white hair are not easy to be bald, and he is probably a blessing in disguise."

Hearing this, Qiao Mai couldn't help but laugh.

"Aren't you bald? What is he doing now? ”

"He? Do a smart project, but I don't know much about it. ”

"Well, I'm not interested anyway - seriously, I'm more interested in you now."

Qiao Mai was stunned by this, and he subconsciously asked:

"Why? Because of EAST? ”

Qiao Mai shook his head.

"It has nothing to do with this."

"I actually have a question I've been asking you for more than five years now."

"I thought I'd just let it go over and forget it, but if I don't know the answer, it's nothing, and if I really know, there might be trouble."

"But I didn't expect it to be so coincidental today, so I thought. Why don't you just ask? ”

Looking at Qiao Mai's expression, Chen Nian felt a loud alarm in his heart.

For a moment, he even wondered if Qiao Mai was going to confess to him.

But as a result, Qiao Mai's question was far beyond his expectations.

"Chen Nian, can you see the future?"

Chen Nian's heart jumped suddenly, but the long-term training made him calm down immediately, he looked directly into Qiao Mai's eyes, and asked calmly:

"Why do you say that?"

"Because of mechatronic and hydraulic integration."

Hearing this keyword, Chen Nian finally breathed a sigh of relief, he was about to open his mouth to explain, but Qiao Mai continued.

"For a while, I thought that you recommended this direction to me because of Wang Jiancheng's mechanical exoskeleton project."

"But then I found out that the project was really just a foreshadowing-—— not even a foreshadowing."

"Its real future is tied to metallic hydrogen."

Speaking of this, Qiao Mai took a deep breath.

"There's a saying that's been popular lately."

"After the birth of nuclear fusion, the gears of destiny for all people began to turn."

"But actually, that doesn't apply to me."

"It should be said that the gears of my destiny began to turn many years ago, in the cafeteria of the Western University of Technology, when we first discussed the GLEEBLE1500 hydraulic system."

"You've been consciously guiding me in this direction, right?"

"If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have come to this point-—— Chen Nian, it's no exaggeration to say that when I recall these things, what I feel is a sense of fatalism - more precisely, a sense of epic."

"It feels like. I'm inside the board, and you're outside. ”

"So tell me now, what's the truth?"

Chen Nian shook his head helplessly and replied:

"It's just a coincidence. But that's not bad, right? ”

"It's very good."

Qiao Mai nodded slightly.

"There's a catch, though."

"You know this sense of fate, is there anything else I've felt before?"

"What is it?"

"Starfire."

Qiao Mai's words fell, and both of them fell silent.

Chen Nian's brows furrowed tightly, he didn't expect that today's chance encounter would develop into such a situation.

But soon, he was relieved again.

It's a matter of time.

It is impossible to hide your identity forever, and the first to discover the anomaly must be those around you.

How could she not be aware of the storm that surrounded her as the storm intensified?

Instead of "isolating" her, it is better to directly turn her into a comrade.

So, he simply spoke:

"Okay, now that it's all said and done, do you want to join?"

Qiao Mai's eyes lit up instantly.

"So, you're really a Spark?"

Chen Nian shook his head.

"Not really"

"The Starfire is mine."