Chapter 37: Electromagnetic Pulse

Xu Tian is a researcher at the National Institute of Electromagnetic Efficacy. Because China successfully completed a manned moon landing yesterday, the institute granted a rare day off. This allowed him to take a relaxing trip to a nearby scenic spot. However, when he left his home this morning and boarded public transportation, he finally understood what it meant for a whole nation to be in celebration.

The bus, which was slowly approaching, had actually been repainted in just a single day. This time, it featured an oil painting. The background of the painting was a vast expanse of starry sky, with three astronauts in spacesuits standing on a stark, pale landscape. They stood side by side, heads tilted upward to gaze at the stars, their expressions solemn and their eyes profound. Below the bus windows, a few large characters were printed: "Comrades, we shall walk toward the universe from here!"

Xu Tian was intimately familiar with this scene. These were the three astronauts who had landed on the moon yesterday! "Good heavens," he thought, "this bus is so trendy—they must have painted it overnight."

On the bus, people were discussing the same topic. As the bus passed by a large shopping mall, the giant screen there was also playing an edited, inspiring clip of that very same phrase. Xu Tian felt something inexplicable. He felt that the people walking outside had gained something invisible and intangible in their hearts. They seemed to possess a newfound sense of confidence. This spirit was something he had always felt was lacking. He had only ever seen this kind of aura in old video recordings. In the last century, when the older generation of scientists buried themselves in research, they possessed this kind of spirit—fearless of heaven and earth, trusting only in themselves.

This was true confidence! He had never expected that today, this spirit would actually infect everyone. "Heh, yes, we have landed on the moon. We are the most advanced nation on this planet. If we aren't confident, then who else has the right to be?" After thinking it through on the bus, Xu Tian smiled faintly.

Carrying this new realization and an unprecedentedly good mood, he arrived at the institute. However, as soon as he stepped into the elevator, he felt something was off. When the elevator reached the second floor, a female colleague who often took the same elevator with him suddenly rushed out. Her face was full of anxiety, and her pace was hurried. When he reached out to greet her, she didn't even look at him. Xu Tian lowered his hand, feeling a bit awkward. Meanwhile, he felt puzzled: What was going on? "It must be something urgent..."

Still full of questions, he walked to his floor, changed into his work uniform, and headed toward the research lab. But just as he reached the door, the director called out to him.

"Xiao Xu, come here quickly. There is something urgent; go to the conference room first!" After saying this, the director hurried away.

"Something urgent?" Xu Tian felt even more confused and immediately headed toward the conference room. When he entered, he was surprised to see that everyone from the institute was already there!

"Alright, everyone, please take your seats. The director has gone to pick up the military representative," the deputy director said, hurrying to organize the seating. Once everyone had sat down, filled with curiosity, the director returned with a man in military uniform. The two sat at the head of the table.

"Alright, everyone is here," the director began. "Let me introduce you. This is Professor Ma Weixing, an academician of electromagnetic applications at the Academy of Military Sciences!"

"Greetings, everyone!" The academician known as Ma Weixing did not put on airs. He smiled affably and gestured for the room to quiet down amidst the applause. "As you all know, I am from the Academy of Military Sciences, so I inevitably carry a bit of a military style. Without further ado, let’s get straight to the point. The reason I have summoned all members of the Electromagnetic Efficacy Institute today is for one single purpose!"

Ma Weixing stood up slowly. The projector behind him immediately adjusted to the interface, and the cursor flickered slowly. Seeing that everyone was ready, Ma Weixing scanned the room and declared in a loud voice: "It is for the research of electromagnetic pulse weapons!"

Under the shocked gaze of Xu Tian in the back row, three large English letters appeared on the big screen: "EMP." This was followed by a Chinese introduction: "EMP: Practical research model verification for electromagnetic pulse weapons!"

***

Deep underground at the Xishan Base, Fang Jing was undergoing load training.

"Not bad, you can now withstand 6Gs of overload. We can gradually increase it to 7Gs later," Yang Wei said, patting Fang Jing on the shoulder with satisfaction as he clicked his stopwatch.

"Uncle Yang, this load training is truly not something a human can endure!" As he climbed down from the machine, Fang Jing felt the world spinning before his eyes. This was due to insufficient blood flow to his brain. The more painful the experience, the more he admired the "uncle" standing beside him. Looking at Uncle Yang, who had an ordinary face but was recognized by almost every Chinese person, Fang Jing said with admiration, "I really don't know how you managed to keep going back then."

"Heh, little guy, the secret to success lies in having a firm belief," said Uncle Yang, who was wearing a dark blue astronaut training suit, as he smiled slightly at Fang Jing's question. "You need to keep working hard. 6Gs is still a bit of a struggle, and the road ahead is long!"

The man before him called him a "little guy," and Fang Jing didn't think he was wrong at all. In fact, he felt it made perfect sense and hoped he would always call him that. The reason was that Uncle Yang was the first person in China to go to space—a true space hero! He had once ridden the Shenzhou 5 spacecraft, becoming the first Chinese person to enter space.

"I know, Uncle Yang, I will work hard!" Fang Jing waved his hand confidently. In front of this man, who made people feel inexplicably at ease just by looking at him, he even showed a hint of a child's demeanor.

"Good, just keep working hard." Uncle Yang encouraged Fang Jing a few times, then looked at the television in the lounge. Watching his colleagues digging for soil on the moon on the internal network, a smile appeared on his face. Uncle Yang was likely feeling gratified. Once upon a time, China's space program was weak, not even comparable to Japan's. But now, they had even succeeded in a moon landing.

However, Fang Jing caught a flicker of loneliness in Uncle Yang's eyes. Perhaps because the first manned mission had immature procedures, Uncle Yang had been injured at the time. Perhaps it was to protect this space hero, but ever since that first mission, Uncle Yang had never been back to space. Fang Jing vaguely remembered the thrilling, life-and-death moments of Shenzhou 5. The 26 seconds of resonance had nearly taken his life. He had survived and overcome countless difficulties, but as a result, his internal organs were slightly damaged. Since then, Uncle Yang had remained on the ground, watching his colleagues soar into the universe.

"Uncle Yang, there will still be opportunities. Once the space elevator is built, you can go to space whenever you want!" Fang Jing felt a surge of excitement. He couldn't bear to see such a hero look lonely. A hero who had given so much for the country and its people should have no more worries!