Chapter 669: For the Greater Good

Beijing.

A pale-skinned old man was sitting inside a rustic house. He meticulously read the newspaper in his hands. When he read to a certain point, he couldn’t help but frown. Suddenly, he heard footsteps.

He looked up and saw Director Li walking toward him, escorted by guards. The old man looked at Director Li and smiled.

“What’s up? It’s so early in the morning.”

“I just got here from Jinling.” Director Li took a deep breath and tried to restrain the excitement in his heart.

The old man could have guessed what this was about, but he still asked.

“What is going on in Jinling?”

“The miniaturization of the fusion experimental reactor… With Professor Lu’s help, it was successful!”

The old man wasn’t the only one who was surprised, even the guard escorting Director Li was astonished.

The old man smiled and put away his newspaper. He then stood up from his chair.

He walked next to Director Li and looked at the big willow tree in the courtyard. After a while, he began to speak emotionally.

“It’s an honor to have a scholar like Professor Lu in our country!”

“Yeah…” Director Li felt emotional too.

Director Li totally agreed with the president.

Fusion nuclear energy was now connected to the grid, strengthening the weak manufacturing industry. People’s lives were made better by this source of endless energy. Lu Zhou had made a great impact on this country.

This was enough to make him remembered in history.

The old man thought for a bit before he suddenly asked, “Who knows about this?”

Director Li replied in a serious tone, “Other than the researchers, only the China National Nuclear Corporation Chief Engineer Wang and two of his students know about this… I already told Professor Lu to keep this thing quiet.”

Everyone who knew about this used to be part of the STAR stellarator project, so they were all trustworthy people. Keeping a secret was no problem.

The old man nodded with approval.

“Good, keep this thing quiet.”

Fusion research by the countries around the world had always been stagnated, and the negotiations for controllable fusion had nearly come to an end.

Even though the experimental reactor in California was walking the same technical path as Pangu, they still had several major unsolved problems. Even though China had temporarily relaxed its SG-1 superconducting materials exports, California’s superconducting magnet test results didn’t meet its expectations.

As for ITER, they were still the same. It was all talk and no walk.

Western countries had gradually begun to lose confidence in their own researchers, and they were eagerly negotiating with China. China, on the other hand, was very happy to negotiate in exchange for technology and governance.

Letting other countries know about China’s sudden breakthrough in fusion miniaturization technology would undoubtedly have a negative impact on the on-going negotiations. The western countries would become greedier and start bargaining for the miniaturization technology… Also, the miniaturized fusion reactor was much more… dangerous.

When Director Li saw the old man’s look of approval, he relaxed a bit. He then sighed in relief before saying, “Then what about aerospace?”

Old man: “Aerospace?”

Director Li paused for a second and decided to express his concerns.

“Yeah… if we put a fusion battery on a spacecraft, I’m worried that the news will leak out. If an accident happens, our technology might even be taken.”

This was totally reasonable. After all, aerospace was a chaotic field. As long as something was in the sky, there was a chance it could fail. It would be fine if the battery were to land on China’s soil, but if it were to land in the sea or foreign soil, then it would be a lot of trouble.

The president smiled and replied, “It’s good to be careful, but we can’t be overly cautious. Besides, the miniaturization of controllable fusion was meant for aerospace implementation in the first place, do you really think it’s a good idea to pause the project because of this?”

“Uh… Yes, you’re right, I was being negligent.” Director Li looked down.

The old man looked at him.

“You don’t have to worry about Professor Lu, just make sure you tell the Navy Equipment Research Institute about the technology. It’s too early to implement the technology into aircraft carriers, but I think we can put it in a submarine!”

Director Li nodded and remembered every word spoken by the old man.

“Yes, sir!”

…

On the other hand, Lu Zhou was at the Institute for Advanced Study. He invited the researchers of the miniaturized fusion project to a conference room for a brief meeting.

“The State Administration for National Defense has contacted me. The miniaturization of controllable fusion technology is not suitable for public release. Let’s keep it a secret for the time being. We won’t have a big ceremony or anything, we’ll just have a celebratory dinner.”

Sheng Xianfu smiled and said, “We just had a big ceremony at the beginning of the year.”

Professor Li Changxia nodded.

“Yeah, we don’t need to celebrate. We’re doing this for the greater good.”

A few other researchers also nodded.

Even though it was a shame they couldn’t write this accomplishment on their CV, being able to participate in a historical project like this was honorable in and of itself.

Besides, most people sitting here were still on the younger side. The oldest was only in their forties. Most people could live to see the day this secret was released, which was usually thirty years away.

Even if they couldn’t see their results released to the world, it would be engraved on their tombstones.

Therefore, they had nothing to worry about…

“Also, regarding our next step.”

Lu Zhou looked at Sheng Xianfu.

“The miniaturization of controllable fusion project will gradually disappear. We’ll announce that the experiment was a failure and that we didn’t discover any results… You can go back to the Southwestern Institute of Physics or go to the East Asia Energy company. Tell me where you want to go, and I’ll write you a recommendation letter.”

Sheng Xianfu spoke without hesitation.

“I’ll go back to the Southwestern Institute of Physics. I was going to go back there after Pangu was completed.”

Professor Li Changxia patted Sheng Xianfu’s shoulder and said, “I understand, you want to show off to your old colleagues?”

Sheng Xianfu subconsciously rubbed his nose and said, “What do you mean to show off, am I that kind of person?”

“I’ll write you a letter on behalf of the China National Nuclear Corporation and the Ministry of Science and Technology. You’ll receive the letter within a week.” Lu Zhou smiled and looked at Li Changxia. He then asked, “What about you? Do you want to return to Yuhua, East Asia Energy, or some other research institute?”

Professor Li Changxia paused for a second.

“I want to stay here.”

Surprised, Lu Zhou looked at him and asked, “Stay here?”

“Yeah.” Professor Li Changxia nodded and said, “I’m not suitable for a corporation, and Yuhua… The research space is limited. I want to stay here.”

Lu Zhou said, “There are a lot of research institutes in China, so you don’t have to stay here.”

Li Changxia waved his hand and said, “What research institute in China is nuttier than you?”

“Okay then.” Lu Zhou thought for a while and said, “Jin Ling University wants to open a nuclear physics institute, which is to be separated from the Institute of Physics. This is to help train the new wave of Chinese nuclear physicists. Since you worked at the STAR Stellarator Research Institute before, you should be the director of the Institute of Nuclear Physics.”

Li Changxia had a sincere smile on his face.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” Lu Zhou smiled and said, “This is the least you deserve.”

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