Technology invades the modern world

Chapter 397 The Steel Dragon on the Moon
Lin Ran has always been pursuing time.

As for 4V, it was nothing more than a manipulation under the Cold War mentality.

With masterful planning, they treated the region's economy, industries, and population as pawns, plunging the entire region into unprecedented turmoil.

America has achieved financial success and is gradually eroding TSMC's resources. TSMC's Arizona plant is expanding its investment, and there are collaborations between TSMC, Samsung, and Intel.

From an outsider's perspective, America has made a fortune, but its ruthlessness in treating its "allies" has shocked Japan and Korea.

In the past six months, these two places have clearly stopped daring to speak ill of China.

Secondly, with the deterioration of the 4V environment, the number of Taiwanese companies building factories and working in China has increased significantly, especially in the southeast coastal areas, where Taiwanese investment has increased by more than 50% year-on-year in the first half of last year.

China gained population and low- to mid-end industries.

Song Nanping felt that this move was like a divine intervention from heaven. Judging from the reaction in Taipei, it had achieved excellent results, something that the General Office had not been able to do for decades.

A large number of voices claiming to be Chinese began to emerge.

According to various polls, Chinese identity has increased significantly, and in some polls conducted by pro-KMT organizations, Chinese identity has even gained an overwhelming advantage.

Five years? Song Nanping felt that Lin Ran was being pessimistic. Given China's current development speed and level of activity, this should save at least ten years.

"Professor, I'm very curious, how did you persuade John Morgan to cooperate with you? From the perspective of the Beijing side, this technology transfer was almost at the upper limit of the conditions they agreed to."

Song Nanping and Lin Ran had been working together for almost five years, and he knew Lin Ran's style very well. He would have been very direct and straightforward. In the past, he would not have dared to ask such a question, but now that they had a certain level of mutual trust, he could not hide his curiosity.

Negotiations have a scope, a range, and the difference between the upper and lower limits of this range can be very large.

For example, in a corporate bidding process, if a project is worth 100 million, the company will definitely hope that the winning bidder will offer the lowest possible price for the same quality. The bid might be 100 million, but when the contract is actually signed, only 10 will be left.

This is what's called a range; the 100 million is just for show, but the 10 is what you can actually get.

The negotiations with America were similar. Yanjing's attitude towards acquiring semiconductor technology was one of taking whatever amount they could get. What they cared more about was eliminating future governance costs and destroying regional expectations.

"Yanjing never expected that Japan would be willing to export so much technology."

It's one thing to deal with lithography equipment, after all, China is almost at the 28nm mark, just one step away. Exporting technology to you right before you reach that milestone is a common tactic used by developed countries.

However, the bundled sale of a large number of secondary material-related technologies is quite a pleasant surprise.

Neon lights play a unique role in the semiconductor industry chain.

It doesn't dominate chip design and high-end equipment like America, nor does it have a huge advantage in memory chips and panels like Korea.

The backbone of Japan's semiconductor industry lies in upstream materials and equipment, especially in the mature 28nm process.

Of the 19 key materials required for semiconductor manufacturing, Japanese companies hold more than 50% of the global market share in 14 of them.

This includes high-purity silicon wafers, photoresists, high-purity chemicals, and various specialty gases.

Once China achieves full self-sufficiency in the 28nm industry chain, domestic companies will prioritize the use of domestically produced materials, which will directly impact the profits and market share of neon material suppliers.

For these Japanese companies, China is a huge market.

Losing this market would be a devastating blow.

In Yanjing's view, this time the Japanese were somewhat frightened by our alliance with Washington, and they began to offer themselves up to the tiger.

"It's really a bit much that America would agree."

Song Nanping was at a loss for words. He had thought they would gradually break things down and talk things out, but who would have thought they would be presented with such a useless meal?

While China's gains may not be as immediate as America's on paper, in the long run, the savings of several hundred million US dollars in foreign exchange reserves each year are still considerable.

"Haha, because I know exactly how to deal with old John Morgan, and I know exactly what he wants."

Wall Street doesn't have the concept of selling out the country; they only play numbers games, and numbers are all they think about.

"They'd even be willing to rename the White House the Black House if we offered the right price." Lin Ran didn't elaborate, it was just a joke.

Song Nanping wondered: The Black Palace? Why is it the Black Palace?

He found the analogy utterly absurd.

Yanjing
"The Black Palace? Interesting."

What are Wall Street capitalists most afraid of?

"Of course it's a loss; it's an uncontrollable risk."

"No, these are all superficial. What they truly fear is losing absolute control."

Whether it's fluctuations in the financial markets or government regulation, as long as they can be controlled, it's not something to fear.

"Washington, whether it's the White House or Congress, is just a tool for Wall Street. They can use this tool to plunder global wealth and to create rules that benefit them."

However, they become fearful when this tool begins to show uncertainty, or even becomes uncontrollable.

"I think what Lin Ran meant by 'Black House' is Wall Street becoming the White House itself."

John Adams Morgan's return to the helm at this age wasn't just about reaping the benefits of the 4V economy; he was thinking about how to completely supersede the will of Wall Street over the US government.

He wanted the White House to become a puppet of Wall Street, an institution solely serving capital, just as it had in the past, to institutionally prevent the emergence of another "Big T."

"Therefore, this deal with us is a pledge of allegiance for him."

He showed us that Wall Street has the ability to reach such a significant strategic partnership with us without the official approval of the White House.

He was demonstrating to us his ability to bypass America's government system and conduct transactions directly with us. This ability is his trump card for future control of the American government.

"So Lin Ran didn't simply engage in a trade-off with Morgan, but rather, by leveraging Wall Street's thirst for power between the two superpowers, he bought us valuable time and technology?"

"In the future, we and Wall Street will be a special pair of partners."

They will continue to use us to counterbalance the White House, and we will use them to develop ourselves.

It's like a game with no end; whoever has the last laugh will be the wisest.

Lin Ran wondered if Yanjing was overthinking things. Could a playboy like John Morgan have such ambitions? I said the Black Palace was just something I'd thought of, an idea I'd given Martin Luther King Jr.

Chen Minghui is a veteran who has worked in the semiconductor industry for 20 years and is now the founder and chairman of Minghui Precision Chemicals.

Although his company is not large, it is well-known in the field of semiconductor packaging materials, providing high-quality specialty chemicals to major manufacturers such as TSMC and UMC.

The company mainly focuses on two key products: high-purity epoxy resin and special solder paste. These two materials are crucial for the connection between the chip and the substrate, as even a part-in-a-million impurity can cause the chip to fail.

His company is a microcosm of the thousands of small and medium-sized enterprises in the entire 4V semiconductor industry ecosystem, and a member of the capillaries of the entire industry.

It is these semiconductor companies, large and small, that have built the 4V semiconductor industry.

Capillaries are easily overlooked, but when they start to become blocked, even the strongest heart will stop beating.

The initial panic began in April of this year.

The stock market crashed without warning, but Chen Minghui didn't pay much attention, assuming it was normal market fluctuation. Then, in May, a series of analysis reports from Wall Street began circulating wildly within the industry, directly targeting upstream and downstream companies in the semiconductor supply chain.

The report states that as America and Japan loosen restrictions on semiconductor technology in China, China's independent research and development process will accelerate, and domestic Chinese companies will rapidly rise to replace 4V's component suppliers.

"Are they crazy?" Chen Minghui roared angrily at his shareholders over the phone. "Do they know what we're doing? We've been working with TSMC for decades. Can those mainland companies compare to the quality of our products?"

However, market panic spread as quickly as a virus.

The stock prices of component manufacturers that rely on the Chinese mainland market collapsed like dominoes.

Although Chen Minghui's company is not publicly listed, it has also been affected.

Banks began to tighten lending, customers started to hesitate about placing orders, and he even heard rumors of layoffs.

"Dad, shouldn't we reconsider?" His son, a young engineer who had just returned from studying in America, said worriedly as he looked at the company's financial statements for the past month.

Chen Minghui fell silent.

He knew this was no accident.

To make matters worse, Yanjing suddenly announced that it would suspend certain promotional offers for products from the 4V region.

This product segment was targeted very cleverly, specifically targeting 28nm products. This made everyone in the semiconductor industry at 4V feel as if they had been doused with a bucket of cold water, feeling chilled to the bone.

What does this mean? It not only means that after China obtains the technology transfer from Japan, it will leave the entire pie to mainland companies, but it also means the disappearance of the window of opportunity, which is an even more desperate situation.

America's suppression and exploitation show no end in sight, and China has even closed the window of opportunity for profit.

Just when Chen Minghui was in despair, a phone call from the mainland gave him hope.

“Chairman Chen, this is Wang Ping from the Economic Development Bureau of Xiamen City.” On the other end of the phone, “We understand your company’s current difficulties. We believe that technology and talent are the core of the semiconductor industry. The mainland welcomes small and medium-sized enterprises like yours. We offer you a number of preferential policies, including land, tax and talent subsidies. We hope you can come to the mainland to develop and work together to make the semiconductor industry bigger and stronger.”

Chen Minghui felt a mix of emotions.

He knew that this phone call was an olive branch extended to them, the business owners, by the mainland authorities.

After considering it for a few days, he finally decided to fly to Xiamen.

In a semiconductor industrial park in Xiamen, Chen Minghui met Wang Ping, a Chinese technocrat. Wang Ping was very professional when talking about technology and worked very hard. Chen Minghui waited for Wang Ping's arrival in the industrial park early during his break.

This reminded Chen Minghui of decades ago when 4V's technocrats were just as diligent and hardworking.

"What? You graduated from Tsinghua University? And you have a PhD?" During the casual conversation, Chen Minghui was shocked because the other party introduced himself as a clerk, without any official position.

Of course he knew the prestige of Tsinghua University and Yenching University, both of which were top-tier universities. He was a PhD in chemistry, which explained his expertise and understanding of the pain points of relocating companies like his.

Wang Ping is a PhD, and with such a background and resume, he can only work as a lowly clerk in a local government in mainland China.
“Yes, for PhDs from the mainland, being able to become a civil servant in a near-first-tier city like Xiamen is already considered a pretty good job. The mainland is very large, and the work is equally demanding; everyone has to work hard,” Wang Ping said with a wry smile.

He understood the unspoken meaning behind the other party's words, something he had to explain when dealing with many entrepreneurs who came to the mainland from 4V for the first time.

In mainland China, it's not uncommon for PhDs to work as labor dispatch workers in local street offices; it's no longer news.

Chen Minghui secretly made up his mind that he still had to let his son immigrate to America. The mainland was too terrifying. Given his son's nature, he definitely couldn't compete with those mainland "shrewd" people.

He also met a colleague from mainland China, an engineer named Li Jianguo.

“Chairman Chen, I have always admired your exquisite craftsmanship in semiconductor packaging materials.” Li Jianguo said warmly, shaking Chen Minghui’s hand. “Although we also have research and development, we still have a considerable gap with you in terms of material stability, purity and yield. We have always wanted to learn your know-how.”

Chen Minghui felt a surge of pride, but even more so, sorrow.

Through his conversation with Li Jianguo, Chen Minghui sensed from these mainland counterparts an almost fanatical pursuit of technology. They knew that Japan and America were just gimmicks for them, but they believed that with these gimmicks, they could break through technological bottlenecks more quickly.

Chen Minghui was shocked after visiting the factories in mainland China.

Although they are not as advanced as 4V in core technologies, they have shown amazing speed in infrastructure, automation and talent reserves. As for the intensity of their work, just as Taiwanese businessmen who have built factories in mainland China in the past said, the mainland is indeed very hardworking.

A glimpse into the whole picture reveals a lot. During his week in China, Chen Minghui gained a more direct understanding of the country. In the context of the entire Chinese landscape, Xiamen is not considered a major center for the semiconductor industry. The real centers are in Shanghai, Shenzhen, Beijing, Wuxi, and Suzhou.

Xiamen is not exactly a scrap, but it does have a bit of a scrap feel to it.

If this is the case in Xiamen, what about other cities? And what about the entire map of China?

At least in the semiconductor industry chain surrounding mature processes, 4V local companies have no place to stand, Chen Minghui thought.

When Chen Minghui returned to 4V to prepare for the company's relocation, he planned to move part of the company's business to Xiamen Island, intending for a slow relocation.

“We can’t put all our eggs in one basket,” Chen Minghui said, pointing to the global supply chain map on the projection screen. “On the 4V side, we are a core supplier to major manufacturers such as TSMC and UMC. This relationship cannot be easily broken. Therefore, we continue to maintain our R&D center and some production lines in Taiwan, mainly for the most advanced high-end products, such as ultra-high purity epoxy resin and solder used in 3-nanometer chips.”

“On the mainland, we mainly set up mid-to-low-end product lines,” he continued. “We leverage their land, talent, and supply chain advantages to produce materials for mature processes at 28 nanometers and below.”

In this way, we can both seize the huge market in mainland China and avoid the current storm in 4V.

At the same time, this is also an explanation to the authorities: we have not abandoned 4V; we are simply pursuing a global expansion strategy.

As a veteran who has been through thick and thin for more than 20 years, Chen Minghui is well aware of the risks of going "all in".

He knew in his heart that setting up a factory in mainland China was a necessary choice, but that did not mean he had to give up everything he had now.

After he made this decision, he received a call from officials in Hsinchu City.

“Brother Minghui, please think it over!” The official’s voice on the other end of the phone was full of anxiety. “We know you are wronged, but now is not the time to leave. The municipal government is working hard to stabilize the market. We cannot let the mainland succeed and we cannot let them devour our industry.”

Chen Minghui gave a wry smile: "Sir, it's not that we want to go, it's that we're forced to by the situation."

I'm a small business owner; I need to survive, I need to support my employees.

Hsinchu? Hsinchu City doesn't even deserve to talk about stabilizing the market.
If even the authorities can't do it, how can Hsinchu, a small county and city, which isn't even a green county and city, talk about stabilizing the market?

"We are trying to talk to the authorities in Beijing, hoping they will make an exception for the blue-listed counties and cities. Brother Minghui, could you postpone your decision?"

Blue is always so confident, thinking that if it could deceive in the past, it can deceive now.

Chen Minghui said, "Okay, one month. After one month, I won't see any changes."

"We will not stand in the way until we see any change!" the official on the other end of the phone said.

2025年8月29日，燕京时间上午11:52。

Throughout China, countless eyes are focused on the lunar south pole, hundreds of thousands of kilometers away.

Today marks the successful opening of the lunar electromagnetic orbit.

Between Shackleton Crater and Degellach Crater, a five-kilometer-long silver-gray track resembles a sharp sword piercing the darkness.

This is the limit of human technology, and also the latest masterpiece of Apollo technology: the Lunar Electromagnetic Orbiter Launch System.

Over the past year, there has been a variety of debates surrounding the lunar electromagnetic orbit launch system.

From the Simplified Chinese internet to the external internet, there are various opinions about this massive project, some approving and some questioning it.

Space Gate is a well-known space-related blogger on YouTube. The channel owner, Alex, previously worked at the European Space Agency and has always focused on in-depth analysis of global space projects, cutting-edge technologies, and the future of space exploration.

Alex even made a special program called "Steel Dragon on the Moon" to introduce this project.

The program opens with the camera slowly panning across a vast cosmic backdrop, accompanied by grand and mysterious background music. Blogger Alex appears in the center of the frame, wearing a T-shirt with a Burning One modified design—the T-shirt is from Yiwu and doesn't have Apollo Technology's IP license—but his eyes are filled with a passion for exploration.

"Hello, space explorers."

Today, we will turn our attention to a project that has shocked the world.

This is also the lunar electromagnetic orbit project claimed by Professor Randolph Lin. China is currently building the first lunar electromagnetic orbit in human history at the lunar south pole.

From the media to the industry, everyone believes that this is not a simple technological breakthrough, but a rewriting of the rules of space.

China's infrastructure development on the moon has shocked the world in the past three years, significantly increasing the moon's importance. Since Elon Musk became NASA administrator, his rhetoric about the moon has changed, no longer saying that the moon is unimportant and that Mars is the most important.

NASA's statements also show that they have elevated the importance of the Moon to the same level as that of Mars.

These are changes brought about by the lunar electromagnetic orbit and the lunar cryogenic laboratory.

Besides NASA, space agencies around the world have unveiled their own lunar base plans over the past year, with varying completion dates, ranging from 2035 to 2050 and even into this century.

At the UN Committee on Outer Space Affairs, accusations against China are becoming increasingly fierce and serious. So let's re-examine this rule-changing project: the steel dragon on the moon!

"Look everyone, this is an official engineering construction video and live recording released by Apollo Technologies." Alex switched the screen to real-time footage from the moon, adding his own in-depth narration. "This orbit isn't built on flat ground; it connects the two massive craters of Shackleton and Degellach."

Like China's past breathtaking infrastructure projects on Earth, this is backed by ingenious engineering design.

They utilized the permanently shadowed areas of the two meteorite craters, where temperatures drop to -170 degrees Celsius, providing a natural cooling environment for the superconducting coils.

This eliminates the need for a large number of complex and energy-consuming refrigeration systems; it's truly a miraculous transformation.

He paused for a moment, and the scene switched to the construction robot.

"Moreover, most of the construction work is done by these intelligent robots."

They use lunar soil for 3D printing to build foundations directly on the lunar surface, which are known as lunar bricks.

This solved the biggest problem: transporting building materials from Earth.

It's important to know that transporting just one kilogram of supplies to the moon costs tens of thousands of dollars.

Apollo Technologies used this method to significantly reduce construction costs.

Chinese officials claim that the lunar electromagnetic orbit will further reduce the cost of transportation between the moon and Earth, and will also serve as a transportation track connecting Shackleton Crater and Degellach Crater.

But the true purpose behind the project remains unknown. "Alex said to the camera, his expression complex. "Apollo Technologies says it's for future lunar exploration and resource utilization, but officials in Washington are clearly more inclined to believe there are deeper strategic considerations behind it."

This is a sharp sword; it can be used to launch spaceships and probes, but it can also be used to launch weapons.

Even more critically, if one day this sword is used to threaten the Earth, who can stop it?
If China transports weapons to the moon, will anyone be able to detect it?

Don't say it's impossible; first of all, there's its core technology.

An electromagnetic track is essentially a giant linear accelerator.

It can accelerate payloads to lunar escape velocities, or even higher.

This means that it can launch any object with mass.

If weapon systems, or even kinetic weapons, were mounted on this orbit, it would become a powerful space cannon.

“Secondly, there’s stealth.” Alex’s voice grew even lower. “On Earth, every missile launch is monitored by satellite and radar networks.”

But the moon is a completely different world.

It has no atmosphere, no radar network, and no global infrastructure to effectively monitor launch activities.

China can secretly transport and assemble weapons on the moon, which we cannot detect in real time from Earth.

If they transport weapons to the moon, how would we know? We simply have no way of knowing.

“What’s even more critical is the difficulty of defense.” He looked at the camera, his expression complex. “Weapons launched from the moon have trajectories and speeds completely different from traditional intercontinental ballistic missiles.”

They can approach Earth from any direction at extremely high speeds.

Our existing missile defense system is designed to intercept intercontinental ballistic missiles coming from specific directions.

Whether our defense systems can effectively counter an attack from the moon is a huge unknown.

Alex sighed and shook his head. "I'm not saying China will definitely do that."

I just want everyone to realize the enormous strategic risks this technology poses.

This is no longer a simple scientific exploration, but a high-stakes gamble concerning the future geopolitical balance.

We cannot simply stand on Earth, applauding and cheering; we must begin to think: How can we ensure the peaceful use of the moon? How can we establish a transparent and credible international agreement on space?

He switched the camera back to lunar orbit: "Apollo technology gave us a wonderful vision of the future, but we can't be naive enough to believe it."

We need to be more cautious and more clear-headed in our view of this technology.

Because this sword, in the future, could both benefit humanity and threaten each and every one of us.

Essentially, Americans would do this because they'd be carrying a hammer around the world and smashing nails wherever they saw them. So they'd think that others would do the same and would also try to find a hammer to smash things.

When it comes to electromagnetic orbits on the moon, Chinese people will only think that we've built infrastructure all the way to the moon, which is incredibly impressive.

The first reaction from foreigners is, "Are you trying to weaponize the moon? How can we monitor you?" They have no way to monitor you.

However, they were right this time. Lin Ran's mindset, cultivated during the Cold War, was indeed not so Chinese.

"This is why major countries around the world have put forward their own lunar strategies, hoping to have new deterrent weapons like China."

"This is the real Star Wars program!" Alex said.

“However,” Alex said, his tone turning serious, “this also raises huge questions.”

The first issue is energy.

The orbit requires enormous energy, the construction and operation of the nuclear reactor are extremely complex, and the solar arrays cannot function during the lunar night.

China's small nuclear reactors not only demonstrate its technological prowess, but their technology has also matured to the point where it can provide stable power on the moon. The densely packed photos of small columnar reactors published on the Apollo Technology website evoke a sense of trypophobia.

Furthermore, they proved the maturity of their lunar landing technology, so mature that they could not only achieve a 100% success rate but also make the lunar landing as light as a feather, with no abnormalities in the nuclear reactor.

Can other countries do these two things? Even America, Europe faces an even bigger problem.

As for India, well, I know I have a lot of Indian viewers who are very concerned about China's lunar progress and are also the main proponents of the Chinese lunar threat theory.

I'd love to say India has a chance, but the reality is, India's hopes are even slimmer.

Alex has already been considerate of the Indian audience; he hasn't said there's no hope.

"In any case, this project will be recorded in human history."

China has proven its ability to build large-scale infrastructure on the moon.

This means that future lunar exploration will no longer be a competition between single nations, but a completely new era—an era of lunar industrialization.

He raised his coffee cup: "Cheers, to the future of space, which is approaching us at an unprecedented speed. We will continue to follow the latest developments of the project over the next few days, including the first launch test. Stay tuned."

(End of this chapter)