Chapter 563: Complete Surrender

"In other words," Thompson said bluntly, "what we are facing is not just a technological generation gap, but an almost insurmountable cultural chasm. The people of Long Country have created a technological world that we cannot even begin to understand."

The Deputy Minister of National Defense's face turned ashen: "This... this is unacceptable. There must be a way."

"We are trying to build a Chinese-English technical vocabulary reference database," Robbins said, "but this is a massive project that may take years. At the same time, we are also developing specialized Chinese character recognition and analysis tools, but progress is extremely slow."

"The most direct method," Thompson suggested, "is to strive to establish some kind of technical cooperation relationship with Long Country, or to defect their core technical personnel. But considering the current international situation and Long Country's tight defenses, this path is also exceptionally difficult."

The atmosphere in the conference room grew increasingly heavy, a sense of unprecedented powerlessness enveloping these figures of power who were usually high above others. They suddenly realized that in the face of Long Country's technological breakthrough, they were not just trailing by a few steps, but standing on an entirely different evolutionary path—and one that appeared more advanced and more efficient.

"We need to re-evaluate the entire nation's scientific and technological strategy," the Deputy Minister of National Defense finally said, his voice carrying a rare exhaustion, "at the same time, strengthen the monitoring of Long Country's technological movements. If we cannot catch up in the short term, we must at least ensure we are not left further behind."

Beijixiong Guo, Moscow, the Kremlin.

The First Secretary Koriakin listened to the latest report on "Fire Phoenix Operation" with a gloomy expression; the temperature in the room seemed to drop to freezing.

"So," Koriakin spoke slowly, each word seeming to be squeezed out from between his teeth, "you are telling me that our best scientists, engineers, and cryptographers have been collectively defeated by a bunch of Chinese square characters?"

KGB Colonel Petrov stood straight, but cold sweat kept streaming down: "Comrade First Secretary, that is indeed the case. The people of Long Country have built their entire computer system on a Chinese foundation, which has created an obstacle we find difficult to overcome."

"Then find people who understand Chinese!" Koriakin roared.

"We have already mobilized all experts who know Chinese," the President of the Academy of Sciences, Kravchenko, explained, "but most of them only understand basic Chinese; when faced with highly specialized technical terminology and computer concepts, they are equally helpless. Furthermore, the people of Long Country seem to have created entirely new technical vocabulary and programming paradigms, and even those proficient in Chinese need to relearn them."

Koriakin was silent for a moment, then suddenly asked: "What about Star-Spangled Country? Do they have any progress?"

"According to our intelligence," Petrov replied, "they have encountered the same predicament, and may even be more desperate than us. Their computer systems rely more on English thinking, and this cultural conversion is even more difficult for them."

Koriakin stood up, walked to the window, and looked at the square outside the Kremlin: "The people of Long Country are much smarter than we imagined. They didn't just create advanced technology; they also cleverly used cultural barriers as a natural defense." He turned around, his eyes sharp: "We need to change our strategy. If we cannot crack their technology in the short term, then strive for cooperation. Prepare a formal proposal, suggesting the possibility of establishing a technical exchange mechanism with Long Country."

Petrov asked in surprise: "Comrade First Secretary, does this mean admitting their technological superiority?"

"This means a strategic adjustment," Koriakin said coldly, "sometimes, to win a war, one must first recognize reality. The people of Long Country are ahead of us; that is a fact. The problem now is how we narrow this gap, rather than stubbornly denying its existence."

The President of the Academy of Sciences was thoughtful: "Perhaps we should reconsider our path of technological development. If we cannot crack the Longxin-III, then we should focus on developing our own areas of strength."

Koriakin nodded: "Do both simultaneously. On one hand, seek the possibility of cooperation with Long Country; on the other, accelerate our own research and development process. I want to see a Beijixiong Guo version of a personal computer prototype within the next year, no matter the cost."

In the weeks that followed, research institutions in countries around the world fell into similar technological predicaments. The once high-and-mighty Western technological powers felt true powerlessness and despair for the first time.

At the Royal Society in London, at the National Research Center in Paris, at the Max Planck Institute in Berlin, the same scenes played out repeatedly—scientists sat surrounded by printouts full of Chinese code, their expressions shifting from confusion to frustration, and finally to complete surrender.

Those square characters were like an insurmountable natural chasm, isolating the Western world from Long Country's technological revolution. What was even more terrifying was that as time passed, this chasm would only grow wider.

Penglai Base, Li Mingyuan's office.

"Latest intelligence," Minister Zhang walked in with a triumphant smile on his face, "the decryption efforts of Star-Spangled Country and Beijixiong Guo have completely reached a stalemate. They have been tripped up by the Chinese programming system."

Li Mingyuan put down the blueprints in his hand and chuckled: "As expected. This is why I insisted on using Chinese to build the entire system from the beginning. In this era, this is more effective than any encryption."

"Simply genius," Minister Zhang exclaimed, "however, they will find a way to break through this obstacle sooner or later."

"Of course," Li Mingyuan nodded, "but that will take time, a lot of time. And time is the resource we need most." He stood up, walked to the window, and looked at the busy staff inside the base, "Taking advantage of this time, we must accelerate the construction of 'Pangu Net'. When the major cities across the country are connected to the network, and when millions of people start using the Longxin Computer, everything will become irreversible."

Minister Zhang was thoughtful: "You mean, even if they eventually crack the technology, they won't be able to stop our development?"

"Exactly," Li Mingyuan smiled, "once technological diffusion begins, it is as unstoppable as the tide. By the time that happens, we will have already set the rules of the game and grasped the power of discourse. They will only be able to choose to join, or be left behind in the dust of history."

……

Penglai Base, early morning.

Li Mingyuan stood in front of his office window, holding a steaming cup of tea in his hand, quietly gazing at the busy staff in the distance. A few months ago, this was just an ordinary military research base, but now, it had become the focus of global attention, the infiltration target that countless national intelligence agencies dreamed of.

"Chief Engineer Li, look at this." Secretary Zhang walked in hurriedly, handing over a stack of organized international telegram summaries.