You were told to build a tractor, but you're building a rocket? Chapter 369 - 361 Rumors1

"We’ve picked a good day, haven’t we? The ’ihua’ just passed."

"ihua has passed, but the teorological Bureau forecast that ’Miaobai’ is coming soon. For the next month, our launch schedule can only be taken as a reference, even a seven-day forecast might not be accurate."

At the Qiongzhou Launch Site, two staff mbers of the Launch Managent Bureau were preparing the launch procedures for the New Yuan No. 3 rocket, while discussing the bad news from the teorological Bureau.

Today was the day the second living module of the Forward Space Station was set to launch. The launch date had been set a month ago, but it wasn’t until last night’s final downpour had passed that the air still slled damp with the rain’s aftermath.

To avoid a typhoon’s surprise attack, the assembly building of the No. 3 rocket had opened in the middle of the night to push the rocket to the launch position. The refueling was not completed until six in the morning.

The Launch Center’s instruction was to imdiately launch the rocket as soon as its good status was confird, and the ignition was expected around 7 a.m.

The Launch Managent Bureau and the surrounding public are almost numb by now, as Qiongzhou has maintained a frequency of one launch for the No. 3 rocket and one H2 heavy space plane each month since entering 2017.

Each launch of the No. 3 rocket requires the addition of over 4,000 tons of kerosene. To supply such large consumption, a coastal petrochemical plant was prompted to introduce refining equipnt from the Karamay Oil Field to specially manufacture a blend of kerosene fuel.

The commonly used No. 2 and No. 4 positions at the Qiongzhou Launch Site have created a large wasteland area around the launch positions due to the scouring of the No. 3 rocket’s tail fla, and now not even trees can be planted...

But no one complained. Whenever the No. 3 rocket’s thrust of over 7,000 tons erupted, the endless stream of tourists could feel the land moving, a power signifying humanity’s most powerful space technology.

"...three, two, one, ignition!"

Fan Zun and a dozen mbers of the Annan Space Technology Exchange Group saw from the VIP observation seats closest to the launch pad the whole process of the 19 engines igniting sequentially from the outside to the inside, how the flas of the liquid oxygen kerosene rocket engine released a smoke that covered the sky through the diversion channel, and the stainless steel handrails that were severely shaking due to the vibration conducted through the air and the ground.

He rembered back in 1979, as an elite pilot of the Annan Air Force going to the Union for astronaut training, witnessing the sight of the Union rocket taking off, which also used a kerosene engine.

Yet, the once enviably powerful Union has dissolved, and the powerful neighbor to the north is far stronger than the Union was, with the No. 3 rocket being more than ten tis more powerful than the Union rocket.

Even Arica, which couldn’t build a super rocket, managed to launch one every month. What great power must that be?

Fan Zun struggled to look up, keeping the No. 3 rocket in the center of his vision, where the tail fla of 19 engines had rged into a blazing sun in his eyes.

It took him a while to reluctantly look away.

Those accompanying him from the Aerospace Developnt Committee exchanged glances, feeling an inexplicable satisfaction within themselves.

"Your rocket is the greatest in the world, even greater than those of Arica and the Union, while Annan can’t even send up a single satellite."

"Mr. Fan, each country’s situation is different. Moreover, according to the agreent we reached, an Annan astronaut will fly into space in two months and will enter the Tiangong Space Station. Congratulations to you on joining the world space family."

Fan Zun nodded. The country had made huge concessions internally to secure a seat on the Dawn No. 5 (to-and-from-near-Earth) mission in mid-July from the Aerospace Developnt Committee. If nothing went wrong, Tiangong Space Station would have Annan astronauts residing there long-term.

In his view, the conditions were relatively lenient. He had even managed to reach several agricultural trade export agreents, which could bring significant economic growth to Annan, at the re cost of territorial sea disputes concessions, which was incredibly generous.

The Aerospace Developnt Committee was actually quite happy with the deal. Apart from the funding from above, adding Annan would an Tiangong Space Station would have astronauts from three different countries, which could now be deed "international".

The Big Shot was preparing for another round of Tiangong Space Station expansions, with four more heavy modules added.

After all, if astronauts from various countries were to be accepted, wouldn’t it be appropriate to expand the station’s modules?

"By the way, Deputy Director Zhang, there have been recent rumors that the Island Country will also start manned space cooperation with you guys, is that true?"

"Sorry, no comnt. We don’t have any official information at the mont."

...

"The Annan Institute of Science And Technology and the National Defense Science and Technology Bureau have reached an agreent with the Aerospace Developnt Committee to send three Annan astronauts to the Tiangong Space Station within a year."

"After 37 years, Annan will venture into space again."

"The head of the Thai Air Force stated that the astronaut selection process is underway, and they plan to send their first astronaut into space within the year."

"..."

Before Labor Day, the Aerospace Developnt Committee officially announced the manned space cooperation plan with Annan, but did not disclose the specifics of the cooperation or the financial issues.

But it was closely followed by important personnel coming to the Capital for multiple contentious consultations, and the public was not fooled; it could be seen that relations between the two sides continued to be drawn closer through space cooperation.

The forr Union nad their third-generation spacecraft "Union" precisely to fulfill their pledge to "send an astronaut into space for every ally," apparently, this tactic was being used again decades later.

Fan Zun, once the first Asian in space, represented Annan in signing the cooperation agreent, and the official location for the signing ceremony was interestingly chosen to be the Qiongzhou Aerospace Launch Center.

By the ti of the announcent, there were already five pilots who had flown to China to undergo training, clearly demonstrating the importance the two sides attached to this cooperation.

Then Thailand also released news, which made it hard to not speculate: Asia was becoming intimately connected around the Tiangong Space Station—except India.

While India’s Gagan Yang spacecraft had successfully entered orbit, it was strange that in the following period, they didn’t release any space footage and inford sources revealed due to so technical failures the on-orbit testing might end prematurely, with an imminent return to Earth.

As the other half of the Star of Asia project, JAXA was aware of the failure to deploy the solar panels. Fortunately, after switching to the ergency power supply, there weren’t any severe issues inside the spacecraft, and the return was expected to be safe.

After all, astronauts from the Island Country might potentially be traveling to the Moon on this spacecraft, thankfully the service module part was being developed by the Island Country, which surely wouldn’t make such a rookie mistake.

Why might they? Because suddenly, so rumors had erged in their country.

The gist was that the Star of Asia project was pure fancy and bound to fail; the Artemis program wouldn’t include the Island Country, hence the only correct path was cooperation with the Aerospace Developnt Committee.

Kishimoto was funneling a vast amount of money into a project dood to fail, with most of the funds being siphoned off by Russia; thus, the H-X rocket was also a Russian plot.

Though these were only rumors, it seed they were being deliberately circulated, and legislators had already started using them to attack the Star of Asia project.