128: Students returning home

Inside the Eastern Federation Capital Academy of Sciences' conference hall, the Premier's teacup had already grown cold.

He stared at the complex three-dimensional molecular structure diagram in the holographic projection, his brows slightly furrowed.

Next to the projection, two incredible sets of numbers were displayed.

On the left was the energy density of the new fuel, “Alcohol-2”: 70.5 MJ/kg, 1.5 times that of traditional aviation fuel; on the right was the thermal efficiency of the “Heat Engine”: 99.1%, with combustion residues consisting only of pure water and a small amount of carbon dioxide.

“Dr. Chu, have both of these data points been verified?” The Premier's voice was soft, but everyone present could hear the shock in it.

Chu He pushed up his glasses, the lenses reflecting the blue light of the projection: “Premier, I conducted cross-verification at the Guixu Laboratory. The synthesis method for ‘Alcohol-2’ fuel was personally guided by a P32-level researcher, and the testing of the Heat Engine was supervised by Ms. Bronya, the Interstellar Peace Corporation’s super AI.”

He brought up a video, “This is the complete record of the last joint test.”

In the video, a metal device no larger than a car engine ran quietly, yet it powered a load test bench equivalent to ten aero-engines. Most astonishingly, when a staff member poured a cup of fuel into the fuel tank, the engine ran smoothly for a full thirty minutes.

“This…” Zheng Mingyuan, the director of the Academy of Sciences’ Energy Research Institute, suddenly stood up, his hands trembling slightly as they rested on the table, “This completely rewrites the basic principles of energy chemistry!”

“Not quite, it merely approaches the theoretical calorific value limit of hydrocarbons proposed by the Corporation’s Technology R&D Department,” Chu He calmly explained, “The essence of ‘Alcohol-2’ is highly similar to alcohol, but under specific conditions, its combustion can release all bond energy. The Heat Engine, on the other hand, infinitely approaches the limit of internal combustion engines, converting this energy into mechanical energy with almost no loss.”

“As for the raw materials for Alcohol-2, they are ethanol and methane.”

The conference room was silent. The Minister of Defense suddenly slammed his hand on the table: “Fossil fuels are making a comeback? What about nuclear fusion? Is time going backward?”

“Not at all.” Chu He brought up another set of data, “Based on the information I accessed within the Corporation, if we don’t consider electrical energy and focus on convenience and cost-effectiveness, internal combustion engines and chemical fuels are still the most suitable basic energy sources for widespread use at this stage. And…”

He paused, “According to calculations, using Alcohol-2 and Heat Engine technology can completely increase our existing orbital transport capacity by an order of magnitude.”

The conference room was silent; everyone understood the significance of this technology. It could not only solve the popularization problem caused by the miniaturization of fusion reactors but, more importantly, it made the construction of kilometer-class space stations a feasible engineering project rather than a fantasy.

Although it couldn't create a space city like the Corporation, building an office building in the Blue Star orbit was no longer an issue.

The Premier took a deep breath: “Dr. Chu, why would the Corporation allow you to bring this technology back?”

Chu He’s expression became complex: “Actually… well, strictly speaking, I developed this independently. Ms. Fuhuan, the director of the Technology R&D Department, said that since I could derive this result from the Corporation’s publicly available fundamental theories, it proves I have ‘understood’ it. According to the Corporation’s intellectual property regulations, I have the right to take my method of understanding with me.”

“What is this?” The Minister of Defense couldn't help but interject, “Is the Corporation not afraid of technology proliferation?”

“The Corporation seems… to encourage such proliferation,” Chu He chose his words carefully, “At Guixu, anyone who can master advanced technology through self-learning gains corresponding permissions. Ms. Fuhuan called this ‘screening potential seeds’.”

The Premier exchanged a look with Lin Mo, who was sitting in the corner, which again confirmed Lin Mo’s previous speculation.

“Director Zheng,” the Premier turned to the energy expert, “If we go all out, how long will it take us to achieve industrialized production?”

Zheng Mingyuan quickly calculated: “With our existing industrial base, we can modify existing petrochemical facilities for ‘Alcohol-2’ fuel. We can achieve a daily output of ten thousand tons within three months and one hundred thousand tons within six months. But the prerequisite is…” He hesitated, “It will require reorganizing parts of the existing energy industry system, which might cause significant upheaval.”

“Upheaval is better than regret.” The Premier made a decisive decision, “Immediately gather the nation’s top Engineers, Dr. Chu, you will lead the adaptation engineering of the technology.”

Just then, the Premier’s private terminal suddenly lit up with an emergency communication signal.

After he connected, the holographic projection in the center of the conference room automatically switched to the Interstellar Peace Corporation’s official channel. In the image, the silver-haired girl, “Silver Wolf,” the Interstellar Peace Corporation spokesperson, stood on the Space Garden’s observation deck.

“To all members of the Blue Star civilization,” her voice carried a peculiar, dead-fish-eye-like rhythm, “Based on civilization adaptability assessments, the first batch of space residency qualification lists has now been determined. The total quota is 80,000 people, distributed as follows…”

A shocking set of data appeared on the projection:

Eastern Federation: 40,000 people

Europa: 18,000 people

New Union: 11,000 people

North Steel: 11,000 people

Other regions: 0 people

“This…” The Minister of Commerce gasped, “They directly excluded over a hundred countries?”

Silver Wolf’s image continued: “This allocation plan is based on the following criteria: language unification degree (30%), proportion of research personnel (30%), industrial system completeness (15%), social stability (15%), and maturity of space-related industries (10%). Detailed assessment reports have been uploaded to the official terminals of each member state.”

The screen switched to a panoramic scan of the Space Garden’s interior. Countless ecological domes formed a giant silver ring in orbit, each dome corresponding to a different ecosystem. Most striking was the central area, where a massive module labeled “Technology Center” was under construction.

“It seems the news spread much faster than we expected.” Zhao Mingyuan smiled wryly, looking out the window; hundreds of reporters had already gathered in the Academy of Sciences plaza, their cameras and long lenses uniformly pointed towards the conference hall.

The Premier quickly issued instructions: “Immediately hold a press conference, relevant personnel prepare, others are temporarily adjourned.”

The meeting entered a brief recess, also allowing time for the speaking panel to deal with the reporters.

In the pantry, the Premier kept Chu He behind alone. Sunlight streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows, casting a golden hue over the office. In the distance, the Space Garden was tracing an arc across the sky, its silver shell still clearly visible during the day, like a miracle.

“Dr. Chu, after the list is announced, the international reaction will be very strong.” The Premier handed Chu He a cup of tea, “Why do you think the Corporation chose such obviously deliberate scoring criteria?”

“This virtually condemns all small and medium-sized countries to ‘death’.”

Chu He looked out at the “Sky Ring” outside the window: “Premier, I heard a metaphor at Guixu. The universe is like a strict mentor; it only issues passes to those who are prepared. Some lives are destined to spend their entire existence in the cradle.”

He took a sip of tea, “Among the assessment criteria announced by the Corporation, ‘language unification degree’ accounts for the highest proportion, which is very telling.”

“Interstellar civilization requires a unified vehicle for thought?”

“Yes.” Chu He’s voice was even lower, “In the laboratories at Guixu, I saw research records about the Space Garden’s central control system. It explicitly stated that all Corporation systems only accept Chinese commands. This is because the information density and logicality of Chinese make it the most suitable language to serve as an interstellar lingua franca among all current languages.”

The Premier’s finger tapped lightly on his teacup: “So, other civilizations wanting to enter space must first…”

“Either learn Chinese, or prove their language is superior.” Chu He gave a wry smile, “But the latter is almost impossible. The Corporation has already mathematically proven that the information density and learning efficiency of Chinese are second only to ‘consciousness intercommunication’ as a communication medium.”

“To carry the exponentially increasing new knowledge, a language tool whose structure does not become more complex with increasing knowledge is a necessary condition.”

This news sent the Premier into deep thought. If technological advantages could still be caught up with, a linguistic advantage at the fundamental level of civilization was an almost insurmountable barrier.

For other countries, this was a dilemma. Either fully sinicize, or cut themselves off from the future.

“Dr. Chu, this matter is classified as top secret.” The Premier sternly instructed, “The immediate priority is to ensure the mass production of the Heat Engine and Alcohol-2 fuel. As for the Space Garden…” He looked at the silver trajectory outside the window, “Since the Corporation gave the Eastern Federation forty thousand slots, we must ensure that these forty thousand people are the most excellent sparks of civilization.”

“We always have to forge our own path, so we need pioneers.”

“Understood. Rest assured, Premier, I will do my best.” Chu He understood the meaning in the Premier’s words and accepted this heavy responsibility without hesitation.

“Alright, then I’ll leave it to you to first explain to the others your ideas on how to apply this technology.” The Premier drank his tea in one gulp, then patted Chu He’s shoulder, “As for me…”

“I’ll go deal with those kids first.”