I ask you to build tractors, but you build rockets?

Moscow, Pushkin International Airport.

A Y-20 gradually approached from a distance, and the warm air stirred up dispersed the condensed snowflakes on the runway. After taxiing to the end, it turned to the apron prepared for it.

When its tailgate opened, Yevgeny Miklin, who had been impatient for a long time, followed the forklift into the cabin and saw two huge wooden boxes that were tightly wrapped.

He opened the easily removable side cover and immediately saw the metal product wrapped in foam paper, and couldn't help but let out an exclamation:

"Master Hala."

"Chief Engineer Miklin, please accept these two engines. If you have any questions, you can contact us at any time."

The crew member who came with the transport plane handed over the list, and Miklin signed his name without even looking at it.

In the column of material name, the words written are: "H240".

Two high-performance hydrogen-oxygen engines of the same type as the Long March 18 have a maximum sea level thrust of 280 tons and a vacuum thrust of more than 330 tons. They are currently the world's leading liquid rocket engines.

There is no doubt that these are the two engines sold to RKA, and Lucia purchased two rocket engines from Xinyuan!

Just as Micklin was admiring this handicraft-like masterpiece, a figure also appeared at the tail hatch and said unhurriedly:

"Commander Yevgeny, the president has approved the request for imported engines. I hope you will go faster. The progress of the 'Hurricane' is too slow."

"Avzharov, if OKB154 can give me RD0120, the Hurricane is already preparing for launch!"

The man was wearing a military uniform. His name was Viktor Avzharov. He was the deputy commander-in-chief of the Aerospace Forces and chief of general staff. His shiny bald head stood out.

Avzharov: "OKB154 has existed in name only. It is difficult for us to replace it in terms of machines and personnel. I apologize to you."

Since the development of the "Hurricane", the Zenith booster has made the fastest progress. The core-stage 8-meter-diameter reusable rocket body, wings and other parts are also advancing in an orderly manner. Only the core RD0120 engine is a disaster.

The re-established OKB154 has done nothing for a year. Several prototypes it built were completely unqualified. The longest test time did not exceed 30 seconds before they exploded. A large number of processes could not meet the requirements and simply entered a state of ruin.

Lucia has also been unable to achieve a breakthrough in vertical recovery technology. Stimulated by the Dawn Project, she finally followed the advice of chief designer Micklin and replaced the original four RD0120s with two H240 engines. Purchasing intention.

The other party didn't have any embarrassment at all. After making the payment, they picked up two units from the warehouse, packed them, and sent them to Moscow in less than a week.

For Xinyuan, these two engines only sold for tens of millions of dollars, but RKA was bleeding money, all thanks to the president's additional subsidies.

"Don't worry, with these two engines, I will try my best to assemble the first 'Hurricane' within 6 months."

Miklin is still delighted with the arrival of the H240. These two engines have even made him pay more attention to the reliability of the Hurricane. Otherwise, it would be a pity to destroy these two engines.

He stayed around the two wooden boxes for a while, and it wasn't until the forklift started moving that he realized that Afzalov was still parked where he was, and finally asked:

"General, what else do you need me to do?"

"Dear Yevgeny, I have something to ask you."

Afzalov led him to his car and signaled. Miklin was a little surprised when he saw the car door he slowly opened and the luxurious interior inside. From the Chinese characters on the door frame, he found that it was a Chinese car. The car seems to be an electric car.

He climbed into the airline seat in the back seat of the commercial vehicle. The leg rests and seat back immediately adjusted automatically to the most comfortable position.

Sitting next to him, Afzalov sat in the same posture and asked the driver to drive to the hotel. He also slightly adjusted the direction of the seat so that the two of them could see each other without turning their heads.

"Xin'an's customized commercial vehicles are specially designed for the cold climate in northern Europe. Recently, we have purchased a batch of them. Mr. Miklin, I will give you one as well."

Miklin wanted to refuse, but the unprecedented comfort made him acquiesce and said with a straight face:

"General, as an old man, I can't help you. You also know that RKA has nothing to gain from."

"Hahaha, I just want to ask you some questions, and it's official business, something related to the country. Do you know that the Chinese have formed a space force?"

"Some impressions."

"Then you should know that they incorporated the Advance and a spacecraft called Enterprise into the Space Force. They established the first independent branch of the Space Force!"

Miklin nodded, but in fact he didn't know much about it, so he could only think about it and said:

"If you're asking me about their threats, I don't think they're actually offensive in any way."

"Why?"

“Their structure is not suitable for use as combat weapons at all, and the additions are nothing more than nuclear weapons, kinetic energy weapons, and laser weapons, but this is not necessary at all, and the cost-efficiency ratio is extremely low.

If you're worried about this affecting the balance of power, I'd say it's unnecessary. "

Miklin's attitude did not solve Avzarov's doubts:

"But I know the Chinese. They never act without aim. It must be for some purpose that we don't know. We and Aramco both let the Air Force manage space. They must have a reason for doing so."

"General, even if there is, it will be a long time later. We will definitely have time to understand at that time. There is no need to worry about it in a few years now. Also, is the function of this button a massage? Why does it not respond when I press it?"

"Oh, you have to press here first...wait a minute, if Lucia also wants to form a space combat force, what suggestions do you have?"

Micklin: "That must be Stecki-DM. The loss of the Aurora is such a pity. I don't know if it still has a backup, but I think someone will keep those precious technologies properly.

Of course I'm no laser expert, but only the Hurricane can fire it, and I'd love it if you guys were willing to resurrect Styky-DM. "

Avzharov is not surprised. Steki-DM is indeed the pinnacle of Lucia's preface to the application of physics. However, although it has been silent for almost thirty years, it is still top secret. Even he needs to apply to access it. .

After so many years, Lucia once considered betraying the nuclear submarine during the most difficult time, but she has never heard of anyone planning to take advantage of Stiki-DM. This is the last trump card that Lucia may have. Decades later, it still remains Leading the world.

Lucia's senior officials have felt something strange recently. The Chinese suddenly established a space force with great fanfare and had contact with Ami. It is easy for people to think of something.

Crucially, Aramco also cooperates with United Mining, which is even more disturbing.

However, Afzalov doesn’t think it’s a big deal. The international situation has always had causes and effects. Under the current situation, he can’t think of anything in the world that will lead to any big changes.