52: Chapter 52 Mass Production of Electromagnetic Pulse Rifles

"Are these two very difficult?"

Chu Ge's abrupt question was a killer, nearly making Zheng Jun, who was still in a state of shock, explode on the spot.

"What does the progress of civilization rely on? It's nothing more than the birth and breakthrough of new technologies. I've merely transitioned from the 'steam engine' to the 'internal combustion engine'."

...

[Are you sure? Is it you? Sorry, I really couldn't help myself.]

System Big Brother chimed in seamlessly.

"Isn't yours mine? Big Brother, we're like conjoined twins, did you forget?"

[Uh, that doesn't sound like a good description. Fine, keep on bragging!]

Chu Ge suddenly lost interest, waved his hand, and sent Zheng Jun away.

He checked the time; it was almost mealtime. He had to go to Academician Chen's place first to grab a good meal.

Five minutes later, in Academician Chen's office.

"Old Chen? I'm here! How have you been lately?"

Chu Ge was beaming like a flower.

"Xiao Chu, you're here. Just as well, I was actually planning to go look for you."

"Hmm?"

"It's like this: hasn't the design for the Electromagnetic Pulse Rifle already been finalized?"

"Several military leaders were very satisfied after seeing the experimental data and immediately joined forces to request equipment from the General Armaments Department. The General Armaments Department wants me to get a feel for the situation from you first. How much do you estimate the cost of this thing will be?"

"It's not expensive. I estimate one rifle can be kept within 1 million huaxia currency."

"..."

Academician Chen's old face twitched, and he said nothing.

Chu Ge casually picked up an apple from the coffee table and ate it with relish, all while blinking his large, bright eyes at Academician Chen.

"Then, for this first batch of verification-type units, what is the planned quantity?"

Old Chen took a breath and continued asking.

"Four combined arms brigades, I suppose. Counting a brigade at 7,000 people, that's 28,000 units. Let's round it up to a nice even 30,000?"

Just like that, another several tens of billions of huaxia currency from Academician Chen were gone.

Alright, finished eating, wiped his mouth, and finished work.

The two of them walked side by side toward the cafeteria.

"By the way, Old Chen, are you familiar with the Chinese Academy of Sciences?"

"Reasonably familiar. Why are you suddenly asking about them?"

"Oh, nothing much. It's just that I need to poach all the Quantum Computer experts from their academy and bring them here."

Chu Ge said casually, as if he were missing a green onion for cooking and just went into the yard to pull one out.

"Xiao Chu, why do I feel that before long, you're going to rule the whole world?"

"Haha, so Old Chen can joke too. Hahaha."

Chu Ge laughed lightheartedly, and Academician Chen chuckled along with him.

"Right, Old Chen, I want to develop the helmet for the Individual Soldier System first over the next few days. As for the Quantum Communication part, well, maybe tomorrow, I'll let Zheng Jun exercise his specialty first."

"Mhm, Xiao Chu, go ahead and do it. You have special permission for special cases. As for the Quantum Computer experts..."

"Fine, I'll give Director Wu a call tomorrow and have him arrange it."

Academician Chen replied to Chu Ge after a brief moment of thought.

"Thank you, Grandpa Chen!"

"You brat!"

After spending so much time together, Chu Ge truly started to treat Academician Chen like a grandfather. Chu Ge's biological grandfather was a martyr who died helping North Korea fight the Americans, so in his childhood, he lacked the love and care of a grandfather.

Academician Chen had, more or less, made him feel that.

It was a kind of warmth that spanned generations.

The two of them finally stopped talking about work and spent the dinner chatting about family matters.

For some reason, Chu Ge felt that tonight's dinner was exceptionally delicious.

After parting with Old Chen, Chu Ge returned to his dormitory, prepared some Red Bull, and started working like crazy.

He wanted to get the Quantum Communication part settled tonight. As for the Quantum Computer, he would wait until the experts arrived.

Chu Ge liked things he worked hard on to enter the process immediately the next day. This actually had benefits, as it reduced many security risks.

After all, since it was produced by the system, even a tiny leak would be a sin to him.

Just like that, after finishing his fourth can of Red Bull, he finally completed his work plan for the night.

The time ticked away until it was past 2:00 AM. Even the Red Bull couldn't keep his heavy eyelids open, and Chu Ge slumped over the table,

Snoring loudly.

The next day, Chu Ge punctually handed over several solutions for the difficult points of Quantum Communication to Zheng Jun.

This guy didn't resort to exaggerated body language this time; he just rushed off to the lab in a hurry.

For him, there was no time left for surprise. If these few problems that had troubled quantum research experts for so long were cracked this time, the temptation for someone in his profession was simply infinite.

Furthermore, Quantum Communication was also crucial to Chu Ge's space plan.

The space environment is harsh, with strong electromagnetic radiation, cosmic rays, and solar winds all placing high demands on communication. Among the prominent features of Quantum Communication, two are most important: high security and strong anti-interference capability.

This was exactly what Chu Ge needed.

High security meant it couldn't be intercepted or eavesdropped on, making it very suitable for large-scale application in the military.

Chu Ge planned to popularize it in the Huaxia military after the system was successfully developed. Although the military's current security level was already extremely high, at this critical moment, Chu Ge didn't want his development phase to be disturbed; he needed to set up wards and take precautions where necessary.

Naturally, once the fleet was formed, communication and contact between ships in space would also require it.

After breakfast, Chu Ge jogged a few laps around the artificial lake. After a month of high-intensity operation every day, he felt physically drained.

"After finishing the helmet system, I'll quickly head to the Prism Tower Base for a look and take the opportunity to rest and reorganize myself."

Chu Ge made up his mind.

After a few laps, Chu Ge felt much better and immediately headed for Li Gang's laboratory.

The remaining subsystems of the Multi-functional Helmet were the protective shield, Life Support System, and Night Vision System.

The Night Vision System wasn't complex; current technology was perfectly fine. It just needed to be integrated into the helmet according to the modules given by the system so it could pop out when needed. This involved craftsmanship issues, which were relatively simple.

The Life Support System had two directions: one was the necessary oxygen supply, and the other was vital signs monitoring.

The second was easy to handle, just a matter of integrating the data chain and coordinating with Quantum Communication to ensure the vital signs data of personnel on missions was transmitted in real-time to the mothership's monitoring department.

The first required major changes. Current astronaut oxygen systems were too bloated. Although a large part was derived from preventing space radiation, it was still too complex and needed a significant reduction in volume.

Then there was the issue of duration. Compared to what the system provided, the current astronaut systems were simply garbage.

Chu Ge felt that these were all incredibly simple.

So when he met with Li Gang and Chu Ge casually stated his upcoming work arrangements, Li Gang was no longer calm.

"You call these technological upgrades child's play? Any one of them taken at random would be national-level, okay? Is this... even human? Could he be an alien? Stop joking, a scientific worker believes in that the least, and then comes a deep sense of self-shame."

All the shock, doubt, and dissatisfaction with himself finally turned into the simplest and most powerful word.

"Yes!"