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

Chapter 451 Star Wars: Who's fooling whom?
Pentagon.

In his previous life, Qin Liang had only ever walked around the area, but this time, he was finally able to walk in with his head held high!

But... the way people around me were looking at me seemed hostile... What's wrong? I just made a splash, you Americans are not gentlemen at all.

In the conference room.

The initial conversation was destined to be tedious; talking about friendship was pure nonsense, as many of the people present had actually been opponents on the battlefield.

Half an hour later.

"Your BeiDou navigation system is indeed an innovation," Kasper Weinberger said, getting to the point. "We in the United States have also seen your strength in the aerospace field, so... I wonder if you would be interested in joining our Star Wars program?"

Those Americans are really wicked!

Star Wars is clearly a hoax, yet they want to drag us into it. This is obviously an attempt to use the project to cripple the economy of the East!

Old Zhang didn't answer directly, but turned his head to look at Qin Liang.

"Liangzi, what do you think of the Star Wars program?"

"This plan is very sci-fi," Qin Liang said. "Turning space into a battlefield, this is something you only see in Hollywood blockbusters."

Qin Liang wasn't making things up; many people in the United States also share this opinion.

“Yes, this plan will require a considerable amount of funding. If you are willing to entrust some of the research projects to us at Dongfang for development, we can help. We only need half of your planned budget to develop the project,” said Elder Zhang.

"No, no, we are inviting you to join us. You will need to invest in research and development, and you will be responsible for the development of some subsystems. Then... all these projects will be integrated to establish a comprehensive anti-missile network. Your East is the only country in the world that has pledged not to be the first to use nuclear weapons, so shouldn't you have this capability to protect your own security?"

The Americans certainly don't want to be the client; after all, they weren't planning to spend any money themselves.

"Yes, we have pledged not to be the first to use nuclear weapons, but we don't necessarily need anti-missile capabilities. Absolute security is impossible; these are all just wishful thinking," said Old Zhang.

"So, isn't your BeiDou navigation system just part of Star Wars?"

"Of course not, we serve all of humanity!" Qin Liang replied.

Regardless of whether they performed mediocrely or exceptionally well, in the eyes of the Americans, Northwestern Polytechnical University had long been associated with national defense.

Right now, we're still good friends, and the Americans won't turn against us. But when they do, it'll be Northwestern Polytechnical University's turn to sanction those American companies. So... even if Qin Liang performs exceptionally well now, it's nothing.

Now that we're here, we should make the most of our opportunities.

"Hmph, what bullshit about serving all mankind! Only Professor O'Neill from Princeton University would be foolish enough to believe that your BeiDou navigation system is for the benefit of humanity!"

This sound is extremely unfriendly!

It seems those guys behind the scenes can't hold back any longer!
Qin Liang smiled and said, "Sir, you must be Alward? Your words are quite aboveboard. Would you mind if I relayed them to my journalist friends?"

"Hmph, meetings of our level discuss classified information. You have no right to leak the contents of the meeting. Besides, even if you did leak it, how many people would believe you?"

"is it?"

Qin Liang smiled and pressed a button on his pen.

Suddenly, this seemingly ordinary fountain pen made a sound.

"Hmph, what a load of bullshit about serving all of humanity..."

Everyone was stunned.

"Qin, what kind of high technology is this?" Steiner, who was attending the meeting, couldn't help but ask.

"A voice recorder."

In this era, there were only cassette recorders, and they were all quite large. Who has ever seen a voice recorder from the 1990s?
Current electronic technology cannot make the chips for microphones, audio amplifiers, encoders, and storage very small and fit them into a pen, but Northwestern Polytechnical University can!

Qin Liang knew these guys were up to something when he came here, and since these meetings are usually recorded on paper and not recorded, he simply brought a voice recorder.

just now……

The Americans were dumbfounded.

“Mr. Zhang, what do you mean by this? We agreed before the negotiations that we wouldn’t bring any recording equipment.” Kasper Weinberg’s face darkened.

"Really? I've seen the contents of our previous meeting. It says that magnetic tape recorders are not allowed, that is, devices based on magnetic tape recording are not allowed. It doesn't say that voice recorders are not allowed. I don't have any magnetic tapes here, they're all chips."

Teng!
Alward stood up: "I told you, the Easterners won't come with sincerity. After all, they interfered with our affairs in the Far East decades ago..."

“Alward, shut up!” Weinberg yelled.

They even recorded it!

The other party cut out the details and spread the news, and the reporters thought it was our fault!
Besides, while you can criticize the idea of ​​serving all of humanity behind people's backs, you still need to maintain a proper public image!
Since the Vietnam War, the American public has had a poor impression of the military, and now, their open propaganda will only further damage their reputation!

Unless they seize Qin Liang's recording pen on the spot, things will definitely get ugly!

Besides, if they can put a chip in a voice recorder, why can't they put it in other items? Are we supposed to strip them naked to check?

This is a loss we can only swallow, and from now on, we can't say a single unpleasant word!
“Mr. Zhang, our negotiations are all top secret. Isn’t it inappropriate for you to use recording methods here?” Weinberg said.

“Of course it’s top secret, but there are people keeping records, both paper and audio recordings. There’s nothing wrong with that,” Old Zhang said. “However, since you’re against it, then forget it, Liangzi!”

"Hey!"

Qin Liang nodded and casually grabbed the ashtray next to him.

Bang, bang, bang!
In front of the Americans, the recording pen was smashed to pieces.

This is like when you discover paparazzi taking photos, you take out their film and destroy it. Now, the voice recorder is smashed on the spot. You... can you be relieved now?

The thin, long circuit board inside was also smashed. The integrated circuit used the most primitive COB packaging method, which means that the chip is directly fixed on the circuit board and protected with materials such as epoxy resin.

Electronic watches and calculators often use this type of packaging, and protection against brute-force attacks mainly relies on the outer casing.

Now that the epoxy resin has been smashed and the chips have been destroyed, even if the Americans wanted to copy it, they wouldn't know where to start!

Inside the silicon wafer, at a process depth of a few tenths of a micrometer, this impact caused many CMOS transistors to overlap.

Qin Liang generously tossed the fragments of the voice recorder into the trash can. "Americans, you want high technology? Then rummage through the trash!"
The Americans' expressions were extremely unpleasant.

"Everyone, please continue."

The voice recorder is smashed, but... does anyone know if there are any other recording devices left?
Alward had prepared to question the visitor from the East on the spot, but now... he chickened out.

There's no point in being quick-witted; you'll only be used by Easterners, and once you're abroad, who knows how they'll smear your side!
“Let’s continue with Star Wars…” Weinberg suddenly realized that he had forgotten what he was going to say, and he had to pick up his notebook, open it, and look at the contents before he remembered.

"Your Eastern microelectronics technology is very advanced, so we want to entrust you with the development of the terminal kinetic energy interception mission. You need to ensure that the interceptor missile's warhead flies precisely to the front of the target and then collides precisely... Considering that you lack relevant interception technology reserves, we will send some technical personnel to assist you..." Star Wars is mostly a hoax, but some technologies have been developed, and this kinetic energy interception collision is one of them. Both TMD and NMD rely on this!

With the current level of American technology, they simply can't handle it; they have to turn to the East for help!
They want the East to fund the research and development, and they also want to share the technology. What a clever plan!
Old Zhang looked at Qin Liang again.

"Comrade Qin Liang, does Northwestern Polytechnical University have this technology?"

"No." Qin Liang shook his head directly.

Are you kidding me? You think the US can gain unilateral security?
"Mr. Qin, if our intelligence is correct, you are helping the Soviets develop a similar system, aren't you?"

Weinberg's words made the atmosphere in the meeting room turn cold again.

Northwestern Polytechnical University is indeed developing something for the Russians. This is an important collaborative project after they were tricked into helping the Russians upgrade their S-300 system, and it is highly confidential.

But... it turns out that the Russians have been thoroughly infiltrated!
The Americans actually found out about this secret!

This kind of two-timing behavior is very unfriendly!

A mocking smile returned to Alward's face.

Hmph, why don't you deny it?
Old Zhang's heart skipped a beat. Was it inappropriate to bring Qin Liang along this time?
However... if Qin Liang isn't there, things will be even harder to explain. With Qin Liang there, what else could he possibly do...?

"You mean we in the East are helping the Soviets develop their Star Wars system?" Qin Liang looked at the person opposite him. "Mr. Weinberger, do you think that's possible? We haven't even restored normal diplomatic relations with the Russians yet, and they're already handing over this national security project to us?"

Qin Liang's answer was simple: he denied it!
Even if you obtain solid evidence from the Soviets, it would be fabricated by the Soviets. Unless you obtain evidence from Northwestern Polytechnical University, but... what right do you have to search our Northwestern Polytechnical University?
The expressions on the Americans' faces were truly fascinating.

"Today you've asked us to help develop a similar system. How sincere are you? What are your ulterior motives? Ask yourselves honestly. We already have multiple collaborative projects with the United States, and it's still the same. What about the Russians? Are they any less suspicious than you? Would they entrust us with developing such a system? Gentlemen, a brain is a good thing!"

It's a pity you didn't have that!

The Americans' faces darkened further.

"Mr. Qin, you mean...you didn't develop a similar system for the Soviets?"

“Alright, Mr. Weinberg, let me put it another way. If we are developing a similar system for the Soviets and have readily available technology, wouldn’t it be a win-win situation to sell it to you? Why should we refuse? Wouldn’t it be more appealing to get five or ten hundred million in R&D funding from you?”

This is a test by the Americans to see if the Easterners are really willing to cooperate with them in this field!

If Northwestern Polytechnical University had agreed to help with the development, it could have been a win-win situation, but now, Northwestern Polytechnical University has not agreed!

“Okay, then perhaps our intelligence was incorrect,” Weinberg said. “Your Northwestern Polytechnical University really doesn’t want to develop this kind of system?”

"Excuse my bluntness," Qin Liang said, "terminal interception is meaningless. It's too easy for the enemy to penetrate our defenses. For example, they could perform a trajectory change during the descent phase, or they could use MIRV technology to release ten warheads. How could you intercept that?"

The Americans did successfully develop the TMD and NMD in later generations and completed interception experiments, but... those were just carefully designed collisions, and the actual interception effect was less than satisfactory.

For example, in the East, they can't intercept those missiles that can skip across water!

If it takes ten billion dollars to develop interception technology, then only one billion dollars is needed to break through the opponent's interception!

Therefore, for a long time, we did not develop any interception systems because, from a cost-effectiveness perspective, it was simply not worthwhile.

Now, Qin Liang is saying this to explain from a third perspective why it is impossible for our side to cooperate with the Soviets, because we don't even look at this technological route!

"So, what does Northwestern Polytechnical University want to do..."

"We at Northwestern Polytechnical University are just a university, of course we wouldn't do these things, but... your intelligence system is really idiotic, can't you find out the Russians' real research direction?"

"What direction?"

"Of course it's space laser weapons!" Qin Liang said. "Whether your proposed Star Wars program is a lie or not, we don't know, but the Russians are taking it very seriously. They are developing a new generation of Energia launch vehicles with a payload capacity of over one hundred tons to low Earth orbit."

Qin Liang really enjoyed watching the Americans' expressions now; they had overreached and dug their own hole!

"At the same time, they are also developing a carbon dioxide laser weapon with a power of two megawatts and a weight of eighty tons. It is expected to be launched into space within five years. So... gentlemen, if your Star Wars program is a hoax, but the Russians have actually developed a real space laser weapon, then you will..."

Ground-launched anti-missile missiles are already in the terminal phase of interception. Even if the interception is successful, the radioactive dust will still fall to the ground!
Space-based laser weapons are different; they can intercept missiles in mid-course and even destroy them immediately after launch. That's the real deal!
However, this is also quite difficult!

The Americans never intended to do it; they just wanted to drag the Soviets into a space race and wear them down.

The Soviets are working on it now, and if they actually succeed, the United States will be in danger!
Everyone's expressions changed.

"Is this intelligence true?" Weinberg's voice trembled slightly.

Ronald, aren't you just setting people up for disaster? We were just bragging, and the Soviets actually made it happen! Now we'll have laser cannons flying over our heads all the time—how are we supposed to live like that?!

Qin Liang smiled and said, "You believe some false intelligence and come to question us, but you know nothing about the real intelligence! Well, let me tell you, the Soviets have already come up with a name for this space laser cannon: Polar!"

Actually, the laser power is incorrect; it's only one megawatt, but all other data is accurate.

Exaggerate the laser power to make the Americans nervous, so they'll have to follow suit and spend huge sums of money!
In this way, the Soviet Union will be dragged down, the Americans will be severely weakened, and we in the East can take this opportunity to rise peacefully!
“That’s impossible. How did you know?” Alward asked again.

"Believe it or not, it's up to you," Qin Liang said. "Anyway, I've said enough. You can continue!"

Weinberg glared at Alward again.

There was definitely cooperation between the East and the Soviets, but it was certainly not close enough for them to help each other research anti-missile systems. According to current information, the airborne radar on the Su-27 was probably provided by the East.

Therefore, the reason why Easterners were able to obtain more intelligence from the Soviet Union was because of this foolish Alward, who repeatedly pushed out useful intelligence!
What should we do now?
"Qin, can you tell us again?"

"I'm not going to say anymore. I've risked being assassinated by the KGB to say all this, and there are still people who don't believe me." Qin Liang rolled his eyes at Alward, thinking, "I'll have to give you a good talking to!"
“Mr. Weinberger, let’s continue,” Mr. Zhang began. “We can actually collaborate in many areas…”

What the Americans want most is intelligence from the Russians!
Weinberg suppressed his anger towards Alward and continued his conversation with Zhang.

The meeting ended, and everyone left the conference room. At that moment, several veterans walked in, approached Old Zhang, and then…

"My savior, do you remember me?"

Old Zhang was momentarily stunned, and looked carefully at the person in front of him: "Are you... Savoe?"

"Yes, I am Savoie, the B-29 pilot you rescued back then. I never expected that you would still remember me!"

Old Zhang then looked at the other people, all of whom were pilots of the B-29 back then!

“Obries, Telmark, Lutz, Brundic… I never expected to see you all here.”

"Yes, forty years have passed, and we have always remembered our benefactor!"

After that, Qin Liang didn't say anything. The Americans were trying to play the emotional card, probably hoping to get him to reveal more Soviet secrets!

I definitely have to say it, since it can provoke the Americans and get them to invest in research and development. However, I can't just say it like that. I have to make some demands, like... going to see the American aircraft carrier or something!

(End of this chapter)