Chapter 256 36,000 kilometers

June 18, 2039.

3:14 PM, Equatorial Pacific Ocean, Space Elevator Platform.

Chen Xueming stood before the command console, staring motionlessly at the number on the screen.

Current Altitude: 36,000 km.

For three whole months, he had hardly had a full night's sleep. Every day he stared at the data, watched that rising cable, and prayed every day that nothing else would go wrong.

Now, it had arrived.

"General Manager Chen," the technician Xiao Zhou's voice trembled slightly, "The data is confirmed. 36,000 kilometers, Geostationary Orbit altitude. The tip of the cable has reached the designated position."

Chen Xueming did not answer. He just stared at that number for a long, long time.

Then he turned around and looked at Lin Mo standing beside him.

Lin Mo was also looking at him.

The two looked at each other for a few seconds, neither speaking.

Then Chen Xueming smiled. As he smiled, his eyes turned red.

"Old Lin," his voice was raspy, "We... we did it."

Lin Mo walked over and patted his shoulder. He didn't speak, but his grip was firm.

Cheers suddenly erupted in the command room.

"It's there! It's there!"

"36,000 kilometers!"

"Long live the Sky Ladder!"

The technicians jumped up from their seats and hugged each other; some cried, some laughed, and some raised their hands and shouted. Xiao Zhou ran to the window, pushed it open, and shouted to the outside: "It's there! The cable has arrived!"

On the platform, the workers heard the shouts and stopped their work one after another, tilting their heads to look at the sky. Although the hair-thin cable was invisible to the naked eye, they knew it was there, stretching from Earth into space for 36,000 kilometers.

Someone knelt down and kissed the steel plate beneath their feet.

Some hugged each other and wept aloud.

Someone took out their phone to call home, their voice choking: "Mom, we did it..."

Lin Mo walked out of the command room and stood at the edge of the platform.

He tilted his head back, looking at the azure sky above. Above the clouds, above the stratosphere, above the mesosphere, that silver-white cable was quietly extending, pointing straight toward the stars.

36,000 kilometers.

The longest object ever manufactured by mankind.

Extending from the equatorial sea surface all the way to Geostationary Orbit.

He remembered the shock he felt three years ago when he first saw that blueprint in the system. He remembered Wang Zhenguo saying, "Go see it for me." He remembered Chen Xueming almost being swept away by a wave on a typhoon night. He remembered the sleepless nights during the corrosion crisis. He remembered the spies who were caught, the malfunctions that were cleared, the nights endured, the sweat shed, and the tears cried.

Now, it was truly here.

"Senior Brother."

Li Xiao's voice came from behind him. Lin Mo turned back and saw her standing there, eyes red, but with a smile on her face.

"Senior Brother, we did it."

Lin Mo nodded: "Yeah, we did it."

Li Xiao walked to his side and also tilted her head to look at the sky: "36,000 kilometers. I calculated that by plane, it would take over forty hours. By walking, it would take seven or eight years. But our cable is already there."

Lin Mo smiled: "Yeah."

Li Xiao turned her head to look at him: "Senior Brother, what's next?"

Lin Mo looked at the sky above, remained silent for a few seconds, and then said:

"Next is the space station."

At 4:00 PM, calls from global media flooded the platform's communication center.

CNN, BBC, Reuters, AFP, Xinhua News Agency... all mainstream media were asking the same question: Has the sky ladder project's cable really been laid to 36,000 kilometers?

Chen Xueming was pushed out to accept interviews. He wasn't good at this and felt a bit awkward in front of the camera, but he still tried his best to answer the questions.

"Yes, the cable has reached the designated altitude."

"Yes, this is the longest object in human history."

"Yes, we are very happy."

"The next step? The next step is the space station. We need to build a large space station in orbit to serve as the top anchor point for the sky ladder."

The reporter pressed: "When can it be completed?"

Chen Xueming thought for a moment: "Five years. Maybe faster."

After the interview ended, he returned to the command room and found Lin Mo standing in front of the screen, staring at the number.

"Old Lin, why didn't you go for the interview?" Chen Xueming asked.

Lin Mo shook his head: "I don't like it."

Chen Xueming laughed: "I don't like it either. But they insisted I go."

Lin Mo turned his head to look at him: "You spoke quite well."

Chen Xueming was stunned for a moment: "Really?"

"Really." Lin Mo nodded, "'Next is the space station,' that sentence was very clear."

Chen Xueming smiled, looking a bit embarrassed.

At 7:00 PM, Master Liu set out a hundred tables for a banquet on the platform.

Calling it a banquet, it was actually just tables pushed together, piled high with braised pork, sweet and sour spare ribs, steamed fish, and stir-fried greens. There were no delicacies from land or sea, but every dish was a token of Master Liu's heart.

Over three hundred workers sat together, eating with great enthusiasm. Some opened beers and clinked glasses. Someone started singing, and it quickly turned into a mass chorus.

Chen Xueming held a wine glass and toasted table by table. When he reached Wang Lei's table, Wang Lei suddenly stood up, raised his glass, and said loudly: "General Manager Chen, I toast to you! Thank you for saving me that day!"

Chen Xueming was stunned for a moment, then smiled: "Alright, alright, don't mention that anymore."

Wang Lei refused to let it go: "No, I must toast! If it weren't for you, I'd have been fish food long ago!"

The people nearby joined in the clamor: "Toast! Toast! Toast!"

Chen Xueming had no choice but to clink glasses with him.

After drinking, he patted Wang Lei's shoulder: "Work hard. In the future when we go to space, I'll take you."

Wang Lei's eyes lit up: "Really?"

"Really."

Wang Lei jumped up in joy: "I'm going to space! I'm going to space!"

The people around them doubled over with laughter.

At 11:00 PM, the banquet broke up.

Lin Mo stood alone at the edge of the platform, looking at the starry sky above. The moonlight was bright and the stars were dense; that invisible cable quietly hung toward space.

Chen Xueming walked over and stood beside him. He had drunk quite a bit and his face was a little red, but his eyes were clear.

"Old Lin, why aren't you drinking?"

Lin Mo shook his head: "There's work tomorrow."

Chen Xueming nodded and didn't ask further. He knew Lin Mo's habit—never relax until the job is done.

The two stood in silence, looking at the stars.

After a long time, Chen Xueming suddenly said: "Old Lin, 36,000 kilometers. We really did it."

Lin Mo nodded: "Yeah."

"Next is the space station," Chen Xueming said. "And then?"

Lin Mo thought for a moment: "Then, it's the Moon."

Chen Xueming turned his head to look at him: "The Moon?"

"Mm." Lin Mo pointed at the starry sky above, "Once the space station is built, we can set off from there to the Moon, to Mars, and to even further places."

Chen Xueming was silent for a few seconds, then smiled.

"Old Lin, you're making me want to retire."

Lin Mo was stunned for a moment: "Retire?"

"Not really retire," Chen Xueming explained with a smile, "It's just that I feel if I can accomplish this one thing in this lifetime, it's worth it."

Lin Mo looked at him, was silent for a while, and then said:

"It's not over yet."

Chen Xueming nodded: "I know. There's the space station, the Moon, and Mars. But today, we can be happy for a bit."

Lin Mo smiled.

"Fine. Let's be happy today."

The two stood side by side at the edge of the platform, looking at the stars.

36,000 kilometers away, at the tip of that cable, it was waiting for them.