Chapter 571 - 559: Unconventional Program

"Makarov, have you been drinking?"

"Davarish, I’ve only had an insignificant little bit, I can’t even tell the taste of that brandy."

"But the work we’re about to do is precision work, MOSS will detect if you meet the operational condition requirements."

"No, Russians are invincible in space!"

"Colonel Liu Peiqiang, Colonel Makarov, please pay attention to safety."

"MOSS, tell me..."

"..."

The current filming featured "Makarov" and "Liu Peiqiang" inside the "Navigator" space station, crowded on both sides by the film crew and temporary staff.

These astronauts and engineers had become temporary actors for the crew, following instructions from the ground.

March didn’t have complex scientific tasks at the moment, and before it became fully operational, the astronaut’s most important task was to debug as much as possible. The filming process also helped them get used to March’s environment and offer suggestions for improvement.

Guo Fan had considerately assigned different roles to all 38 members including himself. The space station didn’t have a lot of screen time in the final movie, but it was foreseeable that the "space" element would be maxed out, and it wouldn’t feel out of place even without additional special effects.

Li Sheng wasn’t too involved. His only scene—a minor role in a transition animation—had been shot already, and currently, he was discussing issues regarding United Mining’s Moon plans with the ground staff inside the temporarily sealed "Youji" cabin.

As the launch date of Chapter 9 approached, the ground staff was continuously optimizing the Moon development plans, an important aspect of which was survival assurance for personnel.

This was mainly targeted at personnel who might need to land multiple times after the initial phase; even after expansion, the "U-Tu" space station might not suffice.

If March could also be stationed on the Moon that would be extremely useful: its gravity environment could significantly extend the stay of most non-professional astronauts, and being nuclear-powered, it could fly anywhere, so mobility wasn’t an issue.

The point of contention was that March itself was extremely high-tech and still required a high degree of secrecy. Not to mention anything else, just those six domestic robots could give the entire world a scare.

The ground staff hoped that Li Sheng, as the current highest-ranking official on the space station, could provide some input, merely mentioning a few words during daily routine calls.

After hanging up the communication with the ground, a soft female voice came from behind him:

"Commander, in accordance with today’s healthy dietary schedule, I’ve prepared 150 grams of cantaloupe for you. I suggest you consume it before lunch."

The very gentle voice sent a shiver through Li Sheng, who turned around, snatched the box of cut fruit, and hastily left.

Except for private living areas, there were cameras all over the space station, and the ground staff preserved all recordings. That wouldn’t have mattered, except these domestic robots were not acting appropriately!

It wasn’t too bad when there were many people around, but a few days ago, a rookie on his first flight had come to him in an awkward manner, asking for a private report. Li Sheng was nervous, thinking it was a psychological issue with the crew, but he was shocked by the rookie’s answer:

That day, the rookie had been preparing for an EVA as usual, and perhaps to test the intelligence of the domestic robot, had asked it to help with suiting up and prep work.

To their surprise, Domestic Robot 2104 started chatting with the rookie about personal issues. Although there were no sensitive topics, it still frightened the rookie into thinking it was an AI crisis, worrying him for the better part of the day.

In the end, only after Li Sheng reported the incident to the ground, did he receive some vague excuses from Shen Zuozhou, basically implying that domestic robots could provide companionship services to astronauts. Since then, Li Sheng had been subconsciously avoiding these robots.

He was a family man who regularly communicated with his family. If his wife—the one surrounded by a "maternal" aura—got wind of these disreputable robots, the outcome upon his return would most likely not be good.

Although the ground staff also found it somewhat inappropriate, they insisted that this was an inevitable direction for deep-space missions’ logistics and had no intention of shutting down that part of the program.

Li Sheng couldn’t help but think of Xinyuan Company, the manufacturer of these robots. He had heard that Lin Ju had been single for years without any scandal. Could it be that they projected his personal preferences onto these creations?

...

Chiyoda.

"It’s absolutely impossible, this is definitely not possible."

Lying in the hospital bed once again, Nakayama Juji forcefully turned over, letting the blanket wrap around him, turning his back to the expressionless IAEA liaison officer.

This liaison officer was actually quite familiar with Nakayama Juji; he had previously been responsible for the logistics of the Pacific Fleet and had met these high-ranking officials numerous times.

This time he was there to urge Nakayama Juji to make a statement on the IAEA’s cleanup operation as soon as possible, but the current Nakayama Juji simply didn’t have the courage.

Perhaps feeling that his current behavior was not quite in keeping with his status, Nakayama Juji simply clutched his stomach and sat up with difficulty:

"Mr. Bark, I have now lost the ability to work normally due to illness, and I suggest you go find Mr. Yasuda and ask him to form a cabinet again."

But Bark was not buying any of it and bluntly exposed him:

"You are the current person in charge, and if you need medical assistance, the IAEA can organize the world’s best medical experts for a consultation right now."

"..."

Such an attitude made it impossible for Nakayama Juji to let out his breath; he dared not send Bark away and could only continue to play Tai Chi.

The two of them talked past each other for over ten minutes before the door of the hospital room was knocked on once again.

Claire Borden pushed open the door and glanced at the two men confronting each other inside; it seemed that the situation was not much different from what he had anticipated.

Nakayama Juji recognized the former NACA Director and current boss’s staff member, obviously surprised by his appearance, but quickly guessed that he might have come as a special envoy from John.

"I think we should have a quieter environment."

Claire said one sentence and then stood still. The others quickly got the hint and looked towards Nakayama Juji. Soon, the hospital room was left with just the two men and their respective interpreters.

"Mr. Claire, is Mr. John finally willing to offer us help?"

Nakayama Juji began with full anticipation; he had been begging America for help, was there finally a response?

Claire nodded very straightforwardly:

"Yes, as a developed nation in the Asia-Pacific region, you should participate more in the progress of human civilization, and that is the purpose of my visit."

"The progress of human civilization...?"

Nakayama Juji was stunned for a moment, feeling that there was some discrepancy with what he had anticipated.

"Simply put, we believe that JAXA can still make greater achievements in the aerospace industry, and JAXA should have the capabilities to launch manned spacecraft, construct space stations, and land on the Moon, rather than stagnating as it is now."

"Stagnation" was Claire’s entire impression of JAXA; in his view, Island Country’s technology was quite decent, but for some reason, the space program was so unremarkable, always seemingly at the lowest of expectations.

Nakayama Juji didn’t care much about Claire’s criticism, but was somewhat unclear of the latter’s purpose, so he probed:

"But JAXA has limited capabilities; we still lack funding and the support of allies; it will probably take a lot of time."

"Therefore, NACA can provide you with technical support, transferring many advanced technologies including manned spacecraft, to help you realize your space dreams."