161: Chapter 161 Construction Site

As everyone was talking, a report came from outside the door. Commander Wang responded, and then a man who looked like an officer walked in.

"Reporting to the Commander, the ceremony preparations are complete."

"Good, I understand. We'll head over immediately."

Chu Ge, Academician Chen, and the others stood up. Major General Jin led the way as everyone walked toward the ceremony grounds.

At the ceremony venue, national flags hung all around. The red cloth covering the rostrum and the surrounding red carpets all highlighted the festive atmosphere.

Several eye-catching large characters were embedded on the background wall.

"Warmly Congratulate the Commencement of Construction for Our Country's First aerospace carrier, kunpeng, Today!"

Below the rostrum stood dense ranks of people: soldiers, engineers in orange-red and white uniforms, and technical workers in blue uniforms, all in perfect alignment.

Looking closely, their faces were filled with excitement, and their hands were clenched into fists beneath their straight postures. As the military heavyweights and Chu Ge appeared at the ceremony site, the passionate atmosphere instantly reached its peak.

They knew what day it was and what the future of Huaxia would look like, so at this moment, they were all holding back a surge of energy.

Chu Ge and the others took their positions, and the ceremony officially began. First was the solemn flag-raising ceremony. At the master of ceremonies' command, the sentries quickly took their places, and the honor guards of the Army, Navy, and Air Force marched into the venue with synchronized steps.

The familiar melody rang in Chu Ge's ears. Chu Ge, the heavyweights around him, and the ranks below the rostrum were all singing loudly along with the melody!

The ceremony continued as several military heavyweights took turns delivering impassioned speeches. Tacitly, none of them had prepared scripts, performing entirely on the fly.

On such an occasion, there was no need for flowery words to embellish the moment.

The most authentic expressions of emotion were far more moving.

Finally, Chu Ge made his appearance as the finale in his capacity as Chief Engineer. He briefly explained the significance of the aerospace carrier, the responsibilities the base would shoulder in the future, the long-term plans for the Interstellar Fleet, and so on. At the end of his speech, he gave special instructions to all the engineers and technical workers to pay attention to construction safety.

The entire ceremony ended in an atmosphere that was serious, lively, united, and endearing.

Below the rostrum, the thunderous applause from the ranks lasted for a long time.

Chu Ge returned to the rostrum, and Commander Wang and the others walked over.

"Academician Chu, let's go take a look at our kunpeng."

"Mhm!" Chu Ge had the same intention. The group then followed Major General Jin to the kunpeng's construction site.

Looking at the massive keel not far ahead, even these military heavyweights, who were used to seeing aircraft carrier construction scenes, couldn't help but mutter.

"It's truly massive. Compared to this, the keel of an aircraft carrier seems a bit small."

"Haha, with a length of 2100 meters, this frame structure definitely has to be several sizes larger."

Chu Ge replied. Although he hadn't seen an aircraft carrier's keel laying site in person, he could roughly estimate its size based on the proportions.

"This section should be a component from the middle of the entire keel. Look, next to it is the hull's centerline longitudinal beam."

"The keel laying is also done in segments. In fact, the entire aerospace carrier, from the keel to completion, is built in modular segments strictly according to a certain order. That's why I said the construction time will be greatly reduced."

"However, this inevitably requires mobilizing a team of engineers and technical workers dozens of times larger."

Chu Ge pointed to a section of the keel that had already been laid, acting as an on-site commentator for the military heavyweights.

The keel segment in the field was currently wrapped in a very wide red silk ribbon, which was tied into a bow. From a distance, it looked like a gift waiting to be unwrapped by its owner.

Chu Ge didn't understand the symbolic meaning behind it, but he guessed it was meant to bring good luck.

Chu Ge and the others walked toward the construction site as they talked. The accompanying guards promptly handed each of them a hard hat.

The engineers had already dismissed and returned to their posts. Teams of guards were currently escorting relevant blueprints to the various construction groups.

These blueprints had been pre-allocated by specialized personnel in the security vault according to the drawing numbers corresponding to each process.

Then, the person in charge would verify an electronic password with the escort guard captain. Only after the password verification generated a new number could the security box be opened and the engineering blueprints inside be taken out.

Although this set of procedures was cumbersome, the scene was not messy at all. Everyone began working according to the pre-rehearsed workflow, leaving Chu Ge watching in a daze.

He hadn't expected the level of secrecy to have reached such an extent.

"The guards' mission is to protect the blueprints. These drawings must be escorted back to the main warehouse at the end of a day's work and brought back again the next day. The orders we gave them are absolute: they can lose their lives, but they must ensure the blueprints are within their sight at all times!"

Seeing Chu Ge's surprise, Major General Jin explained from the side.

Chu Ge nodded. He could understand. After all, these blueprints for building the aerospace carrier were the most cutting-edge technical blueprints in the domestic and international military industry. If they were leaked or destroyed, it would be an extremely serious matter. It was only right for the military to take it so seriously.

"Does it make you feel a bit uneasy to see these blueprints, which were like scrap paper in your hands, now become such precious treasures? Haha." Academician Chen's teasing from the side made several heavyweights laugh along.

Chu Ge scratched his head; he really was thinking that way. He thought to himself that he would have to be more 'friendly' to these 'precious treasures' in the future. He couldn't be like before, drawing for a while, saying 'fuck,' and then crumpling it into a ball and throwing it aside...

Although most blueprints were now created on computers and then printed out by large printers, some special components still required Chu Ge to draw them by hand. Chu Ge didn't know how many times he had cursed himself before finishing those initial hand-drawn blueprints...

It wasn't like now; now, Chu Ge could draw them with his eyes closed. Thinking of this, he laughed to himself.

Crossing this construction site, they walked up to a high ground.

Standing there, Chu Ge and the others looked out. The entire construction site was progressing methodically under these pre-set procedures, and this was only one of the construction sites in the entire base.

"Major General Jin, how many technical workers are in the entire base?"

Chu Ge suddenly thought of this question and asked it casually.

"Nearly 40,000, all veteran technical workers. For processes that don't require special lighting, we implement a three-shift system, basically maintaining 24-hour continuous construction!"

"This base has essentially drawn technical backbones from all over the country here, except for those technical workers left behind to ensure some industrial orders are met."

Chu Ge nodded after hearing this. These people were the true pillars of Huaxia's future.

"Be sure to guarantee their personal needs, such as accommodation and food." Chu Ge knew that once this project started, these people might have to stay here for quite a while, as leaving the base was not allowed.

"Yes! Chief Engineer Chu!"

In one morning, Chu Ge and the others only inspected one corner of the base. Chu Ge estimated that if they were to tour the entire base, even a cursory glance would take half a month.

At noon, the heavyweights, Chu Ge, and Academician Chen ate in the base canteen. This canteen was just like a university canteen, only on a larger scale. The factory-like hall was full of seats and dining tables, and all the equipment was brand new.

"The canteen has three floors, each floor can accommodate 1,000 people eating at the same time. There are 20 such canteens in the entire base."

They walked past several windows. Not bad; the ingredients were varied, with a mix of meat and vegetables, beverage machines, snacks, and everything else. Chu Ge instantly felt like he was eating in a university canteen.

"Everything in the canteen is completely free. There's no need to swipe cards or anything. You can eat whatever you want, as long as you're not afraid of getting stuffed."

"Any beverage available on the market is also available here, except for alcohol, haha. Unless it's a special occasion, alcohol is usually prohibited in the base."

Major General Jin introduced the facilities to Chu Ge, Commander Wang, and the others. Everyone nodded repeatedly; it seemed the country had put a lot of effort into this.