Chapter 114 Site Selection
Three days later, the expedition team planted the first permanent marker on this stretch of Gobi Desert.
A steel pipe as thick as a bowl was driven deep into the gravel layer, with a red cloth strip tied to the top, snapping in the wind. Beside it stood a simple wooden sign with a few words written in waterproof pen:
"tokamak-3 Site Selection Point"
Lin Mo stood beside the wooden sign, looking at the surrounding terrain.
This was a natural basin, surrounded by low, gentle hills like a giant bowl. The bottom of the basin was flat and open, enough to accommodate the future device with a diameter of three hundred meters. Even more rare, in the northeast corner of the basin, Zhao Gang and his team had used equipment to detect an underground water source—buried about eighty meters deep, with a considerable volume of water, enough to support the operation of a small city.
Chen Xueming squatted beside the water detection point, rubbing a handful of freshly dug wet soil in his hand and bringing it to his nose to sniff.
"Fresh water," he said, his voice carrying an irrepressible excitement. "The water quality should be good; it can be used after some filtration."
Li Xiao was recording data nearby, her fingers frozen red, but her eyes were bright.
"Teacher Chen, with water, we won't have to transport it from hundreds of kilometers away?"
Chen Xueming nodded.
"Not only will we not need to transport it, but the living quarters, laboratory buildings, and cooling systems will all rely on it in the future." He stood up and slapped the dirt off his hands. "This stuff is more valuable than gold."
Zhao Gang walked down from the hill, holding a tablet showing the topographic map surveyed over the past few days.
"Professor Lin, I've scouted the entire surrounding terrain." He handed over the tablet. "That canyon to the east is the only passage vehicles can enter through. I plan to set up the first checkpoint there."
Lin Mo took the tablet and looked at it carefully.
Zhao Gang pointed to several spots marked on the map.
"Here, here, and here—three high points. An observation post will be built on each, equipped with high-powered binoculars and infrared monitoring. Twenty-four-hour shifts."
He drew another line.
"The outer defense line has a radius of five kilometers. We'll use drones for regular patrols and bury ground sensors every five hundred meters. It will be impossible for anyone to try to sneak in."
Lin Mo looked up at him.
"Captain Zhao, you're trying to turn this place into a military forbidden zone."
Zhao Gang nodded seriously.
"Yes. Because what's here is more valuable than what's in a military forbidden zone."
Lin Mo was silent for a few seconds, then patted his shoulder.
"We'll do as you say."
Zhao Gang saluted and turned to find Captain Zhou to assign tasks.
Chen Xueming walked over, watching Zhao Gang's retreating back.
"This guy is reliable," he said.
Lin Mo nodded.
"Correct."
At dusk, the satellite phone rang.
Lin Mo picked up; it was Fang Lin.
"Lin Mo, I have some good news for you."
Lin Mo's heart stirred.
"The land use was approved?"
Fang Lin laughed.
"Approved. Three thousand seven hundred square kilometers, all allocated to you. From today on, that place is called the 'Nuclear Fusion National Laboratory Gobi Desert Base'."
Lin Mo held the phone, silent for a few seconds.
"Three thousand seven hundred square kilometers."
Larger than the area of a small county.
All given to them.
"Lin Mo?" Fang Lin called out over the phone.
"I'm here." Lin Mo snapped back to reality. "Director Fang, thank the higher-ups for us."
Fang Lin said, "No need for thanks. The higher-ups said you just focus on the work; the state will handle the rest."
Hanging up the phone, Lin Mo stood in place, looking at the desolate Gobi Desert all around.
The sunset was deep red, dyeing the basin in a warm color. The steel pipe with the red cloth strip stood tall in the wind, like a flag.
Chen Xueming walked over.
"Approved?"
Lin Mo nodded.
Chen Xueming took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled.
"Damn," he said those two words again.
But this time, it wasn't exclamation or shock.
It was a complex emotion—excitement, pressure, and the tangible sense that they were finally about to start something big.
Li Xiao ran over, her face full of anticipation.
"Teacher Lin? Teacher Chen? How is it?"
Lin Mo looked at her and smiled.
"The land use was approved. Three thousand seven hundred square kilometers."
Li Xiao was stunned for a moment, then jumped up.
"That's great!"
Her voice echoed across the vast Gobi Desert, startling several sand birds perched in the distance.
Although Zhang Zhe remained at Kunlun Base, his satellite phone was always on. Hearing the news, he let out a howl on the other end, startling the people next to him.
Zhao Gang came down from the hill, saw the excitement here, and walked over to ask.
"What's everyone so happy about?"
Lin Mo looked at him.
"The land use was approved."
Zhao Gang was stunned for a moment, then grinned.
"Good," he said. "Then I can build those defense lines with a free hand."
As night fell, the expedition team set up camp next to the site selection point.
The campfire was lit, the light reflecting on everyone's faces. Captain Zhou cooked a large pot of hot soup, and several people sat around it, holding bowls and looking at the distant starry sky.
In the Gobi Desert night, the stars were particularly bright. The Milky Way spanned across the horizon like a glowing ribbon of silk.
Chen Xueming took a sip of soup and suddenly asked, "Lin Mo, do you know how large three thousand seven hundred square kilometers is?"
Lin Mo thought for a moment.
"About... half of Shanghai?"
Chen Xueming nodded.
"Half of Shanghai. All desolate Gobi Desert. In the future, a city will be built upon it."
Li Xiao whispered from the side, "Will people come?"
Chen Xueming glanced at her.
"They will. Scientists, engineers, technicians, workers, soldiers—thousands, even tens of thousands of people. They will live here, work here, and stay here."
Li Xiao imagined that scene, her eyes sparkling.
"Then in the future, it won't be desolate here anymore."
Chen Xueming nodded.
"Yes. No longer desolate."
Lin Mo held his bowl, listening to them talk, his gaze falling on that steel pipe with the red cloth strip in the distance.
Under the moonlight, the red cloth strip was still fluttering.
Like a beckoning flag.
He remembered the question Chen Xueming asked when they first arrived three days ago: Can a Nuclear Fusion device really be built in a place like this?
Now, the answer was already there.
Yes.
And, it was about to begin very soon.