The Grandmother in the Siheyuan

Chapter 484 Aircraft Carrier
After the groundbreaking ceremony, a lavish banquet was naturally served. That evening, the CEO of Volkswagen tried to get closer to Liu Hua with a wine glass in hand.

"Academician Liu, you are now one of us, the general public."

Liu Hua nodded: "That's right. Judging from the tone of your voice, I have a feeling that I've been tricked. Now, you'll probably reveal your true intentions, won't you?"

"Haha," the Volkswagen CEO said with a hearty laugh, "Your intuition is absolutely spot on. I'd like to discuss a deal with you, and I hope you can give me a discount."

"With your large and powerful company, do you really care about a small discount?"

The CEO of Volkswagen shook his head: "Look at what you're saying, you're wrong. What do you mean by 'you Volkswagen'? You're clearly one of us, and you're one of us too."

"Don't try to get close to me, it'll cost you money." Liu Hua smiled and said, "Just tell me what's wrong. I'll try to help if I can, and there's nothing I can do about it if I can't."

“We want to build high-end cars, which requires high-end materials. The best carbon fiber in the world is produced by your company, and we use a lot of it every year. Could you give us a discount?”

Liu Hua shook his head: "Aren't you satisfied? My prices are different in China and abroad. I've already gotten a great deal in China. If you still want me to give you a discount, I might as well just give it to you."

"Isn't it human nature to be greedy? Once you've got something, you want more."

"Don't even think about it. If it's any cheaper, I'll have to earn the money overseas and make up the difference domestically." Liu Hua said unhappily, "Don't you feel guilty selling cars at such high prices in China?"

"I really need to explain this to you. It's not that we have to sell them at such a high price, but rather that we want to control the number of cars on the road."

"Our country has over a billion people. We can't follow foreign countries. The Americans are almost one car per person. Can we follow that? If we do, let alone one car per person, even one car for every two people, how much pressure would that put on our country's oil reserves? We're not a Middle Eastern country, we don't naturally have so many oil fields."

"Furthermore, with so many cars burning oil, the amount of exhaust fumes they emit is unimaginable."

"So you've really lost your conscience." Liu Hua shook his head: "You're just unambitious. Since you can't have so many gasoline cars, why don't you develop new energy vehicles, whether it's electric or hydrogen-powered?"

"New energy vehicles?"

Liu Hua nodded: "That's right. Our country's automobile industry is already lagging behind the West. If we keep trying to catch up in the gasoline car industry, we'll only be consuming their exhaust fumes. We might as well switch to a new track and put more effort into new energy vehicles."

"Are new energy vehicles reliable?" the Volkswagen CEO asked suspiciously. "Western countries are also researching new energy vehicles, but I've heard that they haven't achieved any results."

"Nonsense, once they figure it out, we'll be left trailing behind again." Liu Hua gestured as he said, "Right now, we're on the same starting line in the new energy race, not lagging behind them at all. And look at the streets now, there are already many electric two-wheelers everywhere. At least in this respect, we are leading the world."

"You're really that optimistic about new energy vehicles."

Liu Hua nodded firmly: "Without a doubt, new energy vehicles are the future, especially since our country's power generation and supply technology is developing rapidly. This is a great opportunity, and by taking advantage of this opportunity, future electric vehicles will be able to fly."

"You are a nationally renowned professor and an academician, and I trust you." The Volkswagen CEO sniffed and said, "Since you say that new energy vehicles are the future, then I will set about promoting all of this, hoping that Volkswagen will have a place in the new energy market in the future."

"As long as you don't act so heartlessly as you are now, selling cars at such high prices," Liu Hua said with a smile. "Electric cars, to put it bluntly, are just a means of transportation. Since they are a means of transportation, they can't be too expensive. They need to be affordable for all the people in the country." Volkswagen officially launched its new energy strategy, and this strategy wasn't something Liu Hua just casually mentioned.

The government had previously proposed a new energy strategy, but the public was in a wait-and-see phase and did not invest on a large scale.

They have now conducted extensive research, interviewing various research institutes under the Ministry of Industry and even power supply departments, before finally concluding that new energy has great potential.

Volkswagen is considered a bellwether in the domestic automotive industry. When Volkswagen began to venture into the new energy vehicle sector, other car companies immediately started research and quickly followed suit.

The new energy vehicle plan will take root and sprout earlier in this life than in Liu Hua's previous life, and the results will surely be more fruitful than in the previous life.

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the victory in the War of Resistance against Japan, and the country will hold large-scale celebrations, such as a military parade. Liu Hua will naturally be one of the attendees, as he was notified in advance.

The military parade was naturally exhilarating. The country showcased its latest national treasure, the Dongfeng missile, and its majestic appearance made people believe that it would definitely accomplish its mission.

During the banquet, Liu Hua ran into a leader from the Navy, and the two started chatting.

"We are still not up to the task in the South China Sea. Although the J-10 can now conduct routine patrols, it is still not quite there. When we have an aircraft carrier, things will be different."

Liu Hua said with a smile, "I heard that someone bought the half-finished Varyag from the Er Mao family, but in the end, it's still going to benefit you guys."

The naval leader smiled, but didn't respond: "It's a long way off."

“Actually, we can reclaim land from the sea and build islands,” Liu Hua said with a smile. “If we fill in a few large islands in the South China Sea and build airports on them, wouldn’t that be an unsinkable aircraft carrier?”

“Reclaiming land from the sea and building islands is not so easy.” The naval leader smiled and said, “The Japanese started reclaiming land from the sea a long time ago, but it still didn’t amount to anything.”

"That's because their country has a flawed approach. They plant coral reefs first, and then build islands on top of those reefs. But planting coral reefs is so slow."

"You have a new idea."

Liu Hua nodded: "Let's find those with a foundation below the water level. First, we can use sandbags to surround it, then pump out silt and water from the seabed and spray it into the cofferdam under high pressure. The water will overflow, leaving silt to deposit. Once enough silt has accumulated, wouldn't that be an island?"

The naval leader's eyes lit up: "That's interesting. Do we have the technological foundation for this?"

“Don’t we have self-propelled cutter suction dredgers inland? Isn’t that the technological basis?” Liu Hua smiled. “It’s just about increasing the power to extract sediment from the seabed. It would be best to add a winch to break up the seabed rocks and add some pressure when it’s ejected so that the sediment can be deposited more solidly.”

"I can handle it."

(End of this chapter)