Chapter 437: Long Country Launched a Satellite?!

Korolyov nodded mechanically, but he already had a terrifying suspicion in his heart: someone must be targeting the Beijixiong Guo space project, and this opponent possessed electronic interference technology that exceeded their imagination.

"Who is it?" he muttered to himself, "Who has this capability?"

Long Country capital, Li Mingyuan's secret command room.

"Success!" Wang Gang reported excitedly, "The satellite launches of both countries have failed! Their rockets lost control at the critical moment, just as you predicted!"

Li Mingyuan nodded with satisfaction, looking at the real-time intelligence displayed on the screen. The "Electromagnetic Jammer" he designed had perfectly completed its mission, firing precise interference signals at the critical moment to cause the rockets of the two superpowers to lose control one after another.

"Too brilliant," Minister Zhang exclaimed, "They certainly wouldn't have guessed that right under their noses, Long Country had already mastered such advanced electronic interference technology."

Li Mingyuan smiled slightly: "The more brilliant part is yet to come." He turned to Colonel Lin, "Initiate the third phase of 'Mirror Operation', let the two superpowers suspect each other, thinking it is the other party playing tricks behind the scenes."

Colonel Lin smiled knowingly: "Understood, Chief Engineer Li. We have already prepared interference signals disguised with the technical characteristics of the Star-Spangled Country, ready to be used during the next Beijixiong Guo launch; likewise, we have also prepared signals disguised with the characteristics of Beijixiong Guo, used to interfere with the Star-Spangled Country's launch."

"Perfect," Li Mingyuan said with satisfaction, "Let them blame each other and shift their attention away from us. At the same time, accelerate the progress of our own satellite research and development. While they are busy suspecting each other, we must take the first step into space."

Minister Zhang suddenly frowned: "Chief Engineer Li, are you not worried they will discover the truth?"

Li Mingyuan was full of confidence: "Not in the short term. This kind of high-level electronic warfare technology requires systematic technical accumulation and cannot be cracked overnight. By the time they realize it is Long Country operating behind the scenes, we will have already established space superiority, and the hydroelectric station will also be more than half built."

He looked at the night sky outside the window, a confident glow flickering in his eyes: "The rules of the game in this world are about to be rewritten. And Long Country will become the setter of the new rules."

From a corner of the command room, Li Mingyuan calmly observed the latest intelligence coming in on the display screen. The experts of the Star-Spangled Country and Beijixiong Guo had finally begun to concentrate their efforts on analyzing the source of those "mysterious interferences."

"They've taken the bait," the corners of Li Mingyuan's mouth lifted slightly, "Just as I expected."

Minister Zhang frowned as he looked at the intelligence: "Chief Engineer Li, they are tracking the signal source, will they track it back to us?"

"Let them track," Li Mingyuan was full of confidence, "This is exactly what I want. The more they investigate, the more 'astonishing' truths they will discover."

"What do you mean?" Colonel Lin asked curiously.

Li Mingyuan stood up and walked to the giant orbital map: "When they track the orbital parameters of the signal source, they will discover a fact that shocks them—these interference signals come from an object in orbit."

Minister Zhang gasped: "You mean... they will discover our 'Dongfang No. 1' satellite?"

"Exactly so," Li Mingyuan smiled exceptionally brightly, "They will realize that Long Country has successfully sent a satellite into orbit, while they are still spinning in place on the launch pad."

Colonel Lin's face was filled with admiration: "Chief Engineer Li, this move is too brilliant! Not only did it interfere with their launch, but it also incidentally announced our technical achievement!"

"Killing two birds with one stone," Li Mingyuan said nonchalantly, though he felt secretly thrilled inside. In his past life, he was just a military enthusiast, but in this life, he had the chance to change the world landscape with his own hands. This feeling was simply as good as it could get.

Star-Spangled Country, Pentagon classified conference room.

"Gentlemen, we may be facing the most serious technical crisis since the founding of our country," Senior Technical Consultant Robert Stein pushed up his glasses, his voice exceptionally serious.

The room was filled with high-ranking military officials and heads of intelligence departments, the atmosphere suffocatingly heavy.

"Get to the point, Doctor Stein," the Secretary of Defense urged impatiently, "Have you tracked the source of the interference signal?"

Stein took a deep breath and turned on the projector: "Yes, we have tracked it. The result... is very disturbing."

The screen displayed a set of complex data and orbital maps.

"These are the orbital parameters of the interference signal source we analyzed," Stein pointed at the chart and said, "After three days and three nights of analysis and verification, the conclusion is irrefutable—these interference signals come from an orbit circling the Earth."

There was silence in the conference room, and everyone held their breath.

"You mean... a satellite?" The Deputy Director of Intelligence finally broke the silence, his voice trembling slightly.

"Exactly," Stein nodded, "These orbital parameters can only belong to an artificial satellite. And as far as we know, there is currently no country in the world that has successfully sent a satellite into orbit."

"This is impossible!" The Secretary of Defense slammed the table and stood up, "Your analysis must be wrong! Check it again!"

Stein shook his head: "We have already checked seven times and used three different calculation methods. The conclusion is the same—there is an unidentified object orbiting the Earth, and it is capable of emitting electromagnetic signals that interfere with our rockets."

A burst of chaotic discussion erupted in the conference room. Some guessed it was a secret satellite of Beijixiong Guo, and some even raised the absurd conjecture of an "alien spacecraft."

"Quiet!" The Secretary of Defense shouted, then turned to the intelligence department, "What do you think?"

The Deputy Director of Intelligence had a gloomy face: "According to our analysis, this unidentified object is most likely... a Long Country satellite."

"Long Country?" The Secretary of Defense repeated in disbelief, "That agricultural country? That country that just went through a civil war? How could they master satellite technology before us?"

"Don't forget Li Mingyuan," the Deputy Director of Intelligence reminded, "This person's recent rise in Long Country is too unusual. The talent he has shown in electronic technology and the aerospace field far exceeds our expectations."

The Secretary of Defense fell into deep thought: "If it really is Long Country... what does this mean?"

"It means we have severely underestimated them," the Deputy Director of Intelligence said seriously, "It also means the space race has begun, and we are already behind."

The conference room fell into a deathly silence, and everyone was immersed in shock and unease. The Star-Spangled Country, this superpower that prided itself on being the world leader, had actually lost to a "backward country" in the space race? This was simply a huge blow to national dignity.

"I must report to the leader immediately," the Secretary of Defense finally said, his voice filled with exhaustion and worry, "At the same time, strengthen the surveillance of Long Country's aerospace activities, especially every move of Li Mingyuan. We must find out how they achieved this breakthrough."

Beijixiong Guo, Kremlin underground command center.

"Comrades, the situation is very grave," Academy of Sciences President Gromov said with a grave expression to the high-level leaders in front of the conference table, "Our technical experts have determined that the signal interfering with our rockets comes from an object in orbit."

The First Secretary narrowed his eyes: "What do you mean? Explain specifically."

Gromov pulled up a set of orbital data: "These are the orbital parameters we analyzed. Anyone who understands aerospace mechanics can see that these parameters belong to an artificial object orbiting the Earth."

"An artificial satellite?" The Minister of Defense asked in surprise, "But no country in the world has successfully launched a satellite yet!"

"Clearly, someone has done it," Gromov said seriously, "And they also used this satellite to interfere with our rocket launch."

The First Secretary's gaze became sharp: "Star-Spangled Country?"

The Minister of Intelligence shook his head: "Not very likely. According to our intelligence, the Star-Spangled Country's satellite project has also encountered continuous failures; their 'Explorer' rocket just exploded during the launch process yesterday."

The conference room fell into a brief silence, and then the Vice President of the Academy of Sciences said that unbelievable name with a tremble: "Long Country?"

Everyone's eyes turned to him.

"Analyzing the orbital characteristics and signal properties," the Vice President explained, "The orbital inclination and perigee altitude of this satellite are very consistent with the Long Country 'Dongfang No. 1' satellite project that our intelligence department previously intercepted."

"Impossible!" The Military Representative slammed the table and stood up, "How could Long Country master satellite technology before us and the Star-Spangled Country? They don't even have a complete industrial base!"

The First Secretary raised his hand to signal everyone to be quiet: "What is the assessment of the intelligence department?"

The Minister of Intelligence pondered for a moment: "Recently, Long Country has indeed shown unusual progress in the field of science and technology. Especially since Li Mingyuan served as Chief Engineer, they have achieved remarkable accomplishments in electronic technology, hydroelectric engineering, and the aviation field. We may have previously... severely underestimated their capabilities."

The First Secretary's expression became exceptionally serious: "If it is indeed Long Country that successfully launched a satellite, this will completely change the global strategic landscape. Space superiority means military superiority, means technical superiority, means international discourse power. We cannot accept any country leading us in the space field, especially an emerging country like Long Country."

He looked around at the high-ranking officials in the conference room: "From now on, the space project is upgraded to a national priority. At all costs, we must successfully launch a satellite in the shortest possible time and regain the technical lead. At the same time, strengthen intelligence collection on Long Country's aerospace activities, especially this Li Mingyuan; I want to know everything about him, every detail from his birth to the present."

The atmosphere in the conference room was tense and heavy, and everyone realized that an unprecedented space race had begun, and Beijixiong Guo, this superpower that prided itself on being a technological powerhouse, had actually fallen behind at the starting line.

The capital of Long Country, the conference room of the Central Building.

Li Mingyuan looked at the latest intelligence summary and nodded with satisfaction: "They have already discovered it."

The Advanced officials present exchanged surprised glances.

"The intelligence agencies of Star-Spangled Country and Beijixiong Guo have analyzed the source of the interference signal and confirmed it comes from an object in orbit," Li Mingyuan explained, "They have reached a conclusion—Long Country has successfully launched a satellite."

"But they do not yet have conclusive evidence," the Vice Commander pointed out cautiously, "It is only speculation."

Li Mingyuan smiled confidently: "This is the best time for us to take the initiative. I suggest we immediately hold an international press conference to officially announce the news of the successful launch of the 'Dongfang No. 1' satellite."