Back in 1978, I was admitted to Northwestern Polytechnical University.

Chapter 356 also includes a compromise condition: cease support for Vietnam!

In early 1982, Blaise visited Central Asia and delivered a speech in Tashkent that shocked the world.

In a standoff that lasted for fifteen years, the Soviet Union was the first to back down and try to ease relations with the East!
The East also quickly convened a meeting, and after some discussion, they concluded that since Great Mao had extended an olive branch, they should of course accept it, but they absolutely must not act impulsively!
Therefore, the Eastern European Department held a press conference and formally put forward three demands.

Withdraw the million-strong army from the border, let the Vietnamese leave Cambodia, and the Soviet army completely withdraw from Afghanistan.

Russia sent a delegation to talk with the East. Once the window for negotiation is opened, everything will be negotiable. Now, Russia clearly wants to use military-industrial cooperation to improve relations with the East, thereby reaching some agreements while avoiding the previous three issues.

Now, Qin Liang's demands are to first meet these three requirements, which creates a vicious cycle.

Honjing took a deep breath: "Alright, let's talk about the S-300 upgrade first. One hundred million US dollars is a bit too much. We... hope to export some products to your side to offset part of the cost. Of course, all of them would be even better."

Does Russia not have money? Actually, that's not entirely true. It depends on what they want to buy. When buying machine tools from Toshiba, they didn't even have much room for negotiation... So, it really depends on whether the Russians need them.

Wait a minute, this Toshiba machine tool scandal is probably coming soon, right? Should we do something about it? Instead of buying from the Japanese, why not buy from Northwestern Polytechnical University?

But if I do this, won't people think I'm a traitor?
Qin Liang's mind was racing. In Da Mao's eyes, it seemed that Qin Liang wasn't even going to agree to this condition? If that was the case, the S-300 modification cooperation might fall through!
Benjing's face showed a complex expression, and his eyes were full of anticipation.

Standing to the side, Qin Baomin noticed that his son was lost in thought. "We're discussing cooperation now, what are you thinking about? Thinking about your wife? Yang Duo'er hasn't been back much lately, and why isn't her belly showing yet? The next generation of the Qin family…"

As a result, Qin Baomin also lost focus.

"Mr. Qin, our country has many resources, such as steel and cotton..."

Military products are definitely not something that people from the East would look down on. The East's products are more advanced than Russia's. Currently, Russia's main exports are petroleum products, which the East has no shortage of. The East is also an oil exporting country now!
What can be exported are just some resources.

Qin Liang's eyes lit up immediately.

"Well, since you're having difficulties, we can certainly support you. How about we exchange them using metal resources, such as titanium and nickel?"

These are all essential raw materials for the aviation industry. The former is used in the load-bearing components of the fuselage to reduce weight, while the latter is a high-temperature alloy used in engines. With the East exporting a large number of fighter jets, these resources have become scarce. Fortunately, Russia can fill the gap.

Both sides got what they wanted.

"Really? That's wonderful!" Benjing exclaimed excitedly. "Don't worry, we have plenty of these metals in our country! We'll provide you with as much as you need!"

The collaboration with the Diamond Design Bureau is now secure!

Atukin's face was complicated. If the S-300P could really be improved to have anti-missile capabilities, wouldn't the S-300V project be doomed?

No, we have to find a way to sabotage this cooperation!
"Everyone, it's getting late. I'll take you to the faculty cafeteria so we can grab something to eat and have a few drinks together!"

When it comes to food, nobody is interested, but when it comes to drinking, many people's eyes light up.

Starting in 78, Ukraine suffered from poor harvests, forcing Russia to use large amounts of foreign exchange to purchase grain. As a result, domestic liquor prices continued to rise. Although these people were not short of money for liquor, it was even more enjoyable to drink other people's liquor!

In recent years, Northwestern Polytechnical University has undergone tremendous changes in campus construction. The student canteen has long been built into a four-story building. The food is cooked on the first floor and transported to the second, third and fourth floors via freight elevators. The canteen is fully equipped with tables and chairs, and each floor can accommodate hundreds of people for dining.

There are several such student cafeterias.

A staff canteen has also been built; it's just a two-story building that can accommodate several hundred teachers at the same time.

Future keyboard warriors will surely say things like, "Why should we treat them differently? Teachers should enjoy special privileges."

In fact, any keyboard warrior who has been to university should know that the number of university teachers is quite large. Northwestern Polytechnical University now has more than 500 faculty and staff members, and in later years, this number reached more than 4,000! That's right, more than 4,000 faculty and staff members!
If they aren't separated, then teachers will have to line up for meals with students. When students see a teacher, should they give up their seat and let the teacher get their food first? This makes both students and teachers uncomfortable.

Teachers can go to the student cafeteria and mingle with the students, but teachers also need their own cafeteria for convenience.

Many schools even have separate canteens for graduate students.

The faculty canteen has a main hall and private rooms. Qin Liang led a group of Mao Zedongs into a private room. They were told to bring whatever dishes they wanted, but two cases of liquor had to be served first. The bottles were opened, and each person received a bottle.

"Everyone, it's fate that we're all gathered here today. Cheers to that fate!"

"cheers!"

The Russians put the bottles to their lips and gulped it down...

Daming Palace Liquor, a famous baijiu from the ancient capital of Chang'an, is clear and transparent, like amber. It has a rich aroma, and with just one sip, you can taste many different flavors: phoenix aroma, sauce aroma, and strong aroma. The aroma is long-lasting and the taste is smooth.

The men took a few big gulps, put down their bottles, smacked their lips, and gave each other a thumbs up.

"Good, good, really good!"

"This wine is absolutely amazing!"

"Come on, everyone, drink to your heart's content! Let's drink until we're drunk!"

After a few rounds of drinks, Polyachenko approached with a bottle of liquor: "Mr. Qin, our Innovator Design Bureau truly hopes to cooperate with you and adopt your advanced technology to improve our anti-missile system!"

"Yes, our Northwestern Polytechnical University also hopes to explore this project. After all, although Northwestern Polytechnical University earns a lot of money, we also have a lot of research and development. If we have your funding, we can also make this project a reality, unlike now, when it's just preliminary research. But... sigh!"

"Mr. Qin, I've heard that you're very powerful in the East, and there's nothing you can't do. Those three conditions are simply impossible for the Soviet Union to agree to. Is there really no room for negotiation?"

"Yes! As long as Northwestern Polytechnical University intervenes, there are other solutions."

"Please speak!" Polyachenko said expectantly, and the other Russians also opened their eyes wide.

"Everyone, you should all know about the situation in the south, right?"

"You mean, the border conflict with the Vietnamese monkeys?"

"That's right! It's the Vietnamese monkeys. These damned monkeys have gone too far. They actually have designs on our country's territory. The main reason we're at a stalemate on the border is that we don't want to escalate the conflict. We haven't deployed air power or used high-powered weapons."

Qin Liang's eyes were glazed over, clearly indicating he was about 80% drunk. "As long as you stop supporting Vietnam and let us use that place as a testing ground for our advanced weapons, we can teach Vietnam a lesson. We'll be so happy then, we'll definitely agree! I heard you give Vietnam two billion US dollars every year? Just think about it, with that much money, how many projects could we undertake!"

The battle in the south lasted for ten years, for many reasons.

If one side deploys its own fighter jets, the other side will also deploy its own fighter jets, and a border conflict could easily escalate and become uncontrollable.

In previous years, the army's combat effectiveness was very poor, so various units took turns going up to the front lines, thus achieving the purpose of training the troops.

Vietnam's constant warfare has hampered its economic development, ultimately forcing it to return to the negotiating table.

Because the Soviet Union was bogged down in Afghanistan, it was able to provide less and less aid to Vietnam, and Vietnam's fate was predictable. Now, Qin Liang wanted to push for the aid to be cut off right now in order to secure our cooperation!
Polyachenko was taken aback.

These conditions... are not something they can agree to on their own! But... giving Vietnam two billion US dollars every year is really outrageous. They would be better off using that money for military industry!
If this money could be saved, it would provide financial support for many subsequent collaborations with the East! What help could Vietnam offer the Soviet Union? During the Cold War, the Soviet Union's biggest adversary was the United States!
"To be honest, your rubber sleeves are utter garbage!" Qin Liang continued, half-drunk and half-awake, while also wary of the other person smashing a bottle over his head.

The Russians opposite him were stunned for a moment, then became somewhat angry. Fortunately, they didn't raise their bottles, so Qin Liang continued his rant.

"Using a nuclear bomb to intercept another nuclear bomb, even if the interception is successful, the loss will be borne by ourselves! To intercept a ballistic missile, you need to make a precise impact. Of course, I know this is not your fault; it's because your colleagues in the electronics field are too incompetent! They cling to vacuum tubes and haven't fully committed themselves to chip development!"

Under the planned economy system, research and development projects were unrelated to the market and were entirely based on personal preferences and the preferences of certain people in power.

The main reason why Russia pursued the miniaturization of vacuum tubes was because of an academician named Valentin Avdeif, who developed miniaturized vacuum tubes that were similar to transistors at the time. Vacuum tubes were also resistant to electromagnetic pulses, making them naturally suitable for nuclear warfare. Therefore, Khrushchev, who advocated nuclear war, decided to develop vacuum tubes!

It's not accurate to say that they focused entirely on vacuum tubes. Russia also had transistors and integrated circuits, but pursuing both paths simultaneously was definitely less likely to yield results than focusing on just one.

“That’s right, that damned Valentine, he’s ruined us!” Polyachenko gritted his teeth.

Okay, the anger has finally been diverted!
"Actually, you people are all very skilled. Under such backward electronic technology conditions, you were still able to develop the S-300 missile and the rubber sleeve. However, if you want to upgrade it, you still have to rely on us. We already have a mature design concept for kinetic energy interceptor missiles..."

"Speaking!"

"First of all, optical methods are more precise than radar. If you want to intercept a target by impact, you must use optical detection devices, which mainly capture and track the target's mid- and long-wave infrared radiation. Even in outer space, there is still a thin atmosphere, and in the absolute zero environment of space, frictional heat is easily observed."

Polyachenko nodded.

"However, once the target is detected optically, how to switch to tracking and maneuvering towards the target simultaneously is a major problem. This requires complex algorithms and a sufficiently tall array in the infrared imaging seeker. We estimate that a 256x256 array would be sufficient. Although we cannot achieve that level now, we can do it within ten years, no, five years!"

Five years is not a long time to develop a modern weapon. Within five years, we can first use outdated models to conduct experiments. For example, we can combine the existing arrays we have to make a large one and send it into space for testing. Once we successfully miniaturize it, we can fit it into the missile warhead.

"Trajectory change and attitude control require six engines, four for pitch and roll and two for yaw. The specific nozzle arrangement..."

As Qin Liang spoke, he dipped his finger into the dish, dabbed it in some tomato sauce, and began to draw crookedly on the table.

The Russians should open their eyes wide. Northwestern Polytechnical University's space interception system is already so advanced? We must import it. We must do our work with the relevant leaders and let them know that Vietnam is no longer important to us. It doesn't matter if we stand Vietnam up once. Let the Easterners teach Vietnam a lesson and vent our anger. This will also show Russia's sincerity!
"To be honest, the best way to deal with missile defense is to deploy it in space. If you deploy laser weapons in space, you can destroy any missiles that are launched from enemy territory as soon as they are detected. This way, nuclear radiation will also spread over enemy territory."

Qin Liang continued to talk incessantly, focusing on what Da Mao was about to do or was already doing!
This heavy satellite, developed by the Salute Design Bureau, could even be called a combat laser space station!
It is 37 meters long, has a maximum diameter of 4.1 meters, and a total mass of about 80 tons. It carries a 1-megawatt carbon dioxide laser cannon, which is something that only exists in science fiction novels.

It's worth noting that the Eastern Space Station is only a 66-ton platform.

To launch this thing, Russia used the Energia rocket, which has a low Earth orbit carrying capacity of over 100 tons. If Russia had had this rocket back then, it could have easily landed on the moon instead of that terrible thing that exploded every time it was launched.

Of course, there is a reason for such a large size. The carbon dioxide laser will emit a lot of heat during operation, and the recoil will cause the attitude of the entire heavy satellite to shift.

The weight of eighty tons serves two purposes: firstly, to increase inertia and reduce recoil; secondly, to carry a large amount of fuel for attitude correction and maneuvering. It is said that to avoid being captured or destroyed by the space shuttle, this thing is also equipped with machine guns, the kind that shoot down anyone who gets too close.

Qin Liang couldn't say these things, but the Polar Satellite, such a large platform, was being wasted on space applications; it was being used directly for missiles in their ascent phase! The detection systems, computer systems… all of which needed to be provided by Northwestern Polytechnical University!
If you can fool them, all the better; if you can't, just consider it bragging. The more of these monstrous creatures the big boss does, the faster he'll die.

"Below the troposphere, the weather conditions are complex, which is unfavorable for the use of laser cannons. However, once outside the troposphere, the laser cannons can easily destroy them. Of course, this requires an advanced computer system, and the refraction of the laser as it enters the atmosphere must also be taken into account. But don't worry, the processors produced by Northwestern Polytechnical University are more than enough!"

Qin Liang puffed out his chest: "The Americans' Star Wars program actually needs our help, but those guys are too embarrassed to come over. Northwestern Polytechnical University will only choose one partner. Once we cooperate with you, we won't consider the US. By the way, you have to keep this a secret, don't let it get to the Americans..."

Artukin's eyes suddenly lit up; how come he hadn't thought of that!
If the inside story of this cooperation is leaked to the West, the West will definitely put pressure on the East, and the cooperation will fall through. After all, the East's economic development still depends on the Western world!
But...wouldn't doing this harm the interests of the Soviet Union?

"Mr. Qin, could you tell us how we should do anti-satellite work?" Allemans also became excited.

"Don't you have MiG-25s? You should have upgraded versions by now, right? At an altitude of 30,000 meters, flying at Mach 3, and launching interceptor missiles, these missiles can easily fly into space and become artificial Earth satellites."

This is actually the design concept of a spaceplane. Achieving single-stage orbit insertion is very difficult, so some people have wondered if it's possible to use a mothership to carry the spaceplane during takeoff, allowing it to pass through the dense atmosphere and gain a certain altitude and initial velocity, thus making orbit insertion much easier.

The technology has not been developed yet, but Russia has been trying to use the MiG-31 to launch anti-satellite weapons.

Allemans was even more excited: "That's right, that's exactly what we were thinking, but there are many problems, most of which are related to the electronic system. If we can use your Northwestern Polytechnical University's advanced electronic technology to upgrade our system, it will be much easier!"

"No problem, leave it to Northwestern Polytechnical University. As long as we teach those Vietnamese a lesson, the higher-ups will be satisfied, and everything else will be negotiable!"

"Yes, once we get back, we'll report to our superiors. Our Almaz National Design Bureau still has a lot of connections..."

Glug glug... Atujin chugs the bottle down in one go, his attempt to drown his sorrows in alcohol is obvious to everyone.

Qin Liang raised the bottle: "Come on, everyone, let's drink to that!"

The bottle in Qin Liang's hand contained only boiled water; after drinking it, he would only feel bloated. Da Mao, on the other hand, drank only baijiu (Chinese liquor), and after one bottle, many people couldn't hold on and would stagger.

Wow!

Artukin's bottle fell to the ground, and he slumped onto the table, snoring.

At the entrance, the cooks from the faculty restaurant brought up plates of food. Looking at the scene, they widened their eyes. If only they had served a plate of peanuts first, it wouldn't be like this.

　PS: The image on the left shows a transistor, and the image on the right shows a miniaturized vacuum tube; their sizes are now roughly the same. The image below shows the Energia rocket, with that black thing attached—that's the Polar laser satellite.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)