Ming Dynasty, New Rome, and Infinite Divine Machine

"So that's what happened. So you started by clacking the abacus, putting it together first, and then asked others to take charge, right?"

"At that time, it's not that I didn't know your character, Big Brother. I only knew your auspiciousness. Let me tell you, this car has some evil fire, and only auspiciousness can suppress it."

“So it existed before?”

"Hmm," Han Xingzhi said, his voice low. "I heard that happened 30 years ago. The Longjiang team at the time showed off their impressive aerodynamic design in the preliminaries, but in the finals, the Beizhili team's car was built by the Shenyang Manufacturing Plant. Ah, it was terrifying. It's still scary thinking about it now."

"Wait, is Shenyang in Northern Zhili?"

"From Southern Zhili all the way north to the Greater Khingan Range is Northern Zhili. Economically, they were integrated, and the provinces remained the same. Just like the areas governed by the Six Departments of Yingtian were Southern Zhili, the areas governed by the Six Departments of Shuntian were Northern Zhili. Southern Zhili was the world's capital, and Northern Zhili was the world's industrial heartland. The divisions of labor were different, so there were two sets of six departments, one governing each side. The landscape of Northern Zhili is very different from that of Southern Zhili. The technological level there seems to be much higher than ours, with more buildings and better greenery, but fewer people."

"I'm starting to have a bad feeling. What did they do?"

"They directly used high-pressure oil injection technology, which reduced the refueling time from an average of 35 seconds to 10 seconds. This was an unimaginable high-tech technology at the time, because it was a fuel turbopump group used for early rocket verification."

"Ah, this." This is completely unnecessary. According to the racing system, Formula One races require endless laps without refueling, and endurance is a crucial element. During a race, you typically have to stop for refueling two or three times. If you slow down each time you refuel, you'll be 25 seconds slower for one refueling stop, 50 seconds for two, and 75 seconds for three.

This is an outrageous number, because the gap between the two cars in the race may be only within 1 second. Here, it suddenly increased by 75 seconds. This is almost enough to cover a lap.

"Such an outrageous thing, has no one noticed it before?"

"No. The Formula One format is very special. First, everyone's service period is limited to three years of high school, and resources are limited to what the high school itself can obtain. With time and resources limited, everyone's starting level is very similar. Therefore, the Formula One format encourages breakthrough innovation in technology - in other words, it encourages everyone to use their ultimate skills. After using a ultimate skill, everyone will know it. For example..."

Han Xingzhi pointed at the refueling port. "Within a year after that, every team in the country switched to high-pressure fuel pumps. After decades of development, our refueling time has been reduced from 10 seconds to around 5-6 seconds, even faster than the original experimental equipment. But now I think they're calculating. This fuel pump is very expensive. How much is it, Manager Qi?"

Qi Yuan offered a quote: "The average cost of a refueling is 7800 wen, which comes to around 20 wen for a year of racing and training. This is just for our team's stationing in Yujing. Other teams have to train all over the place, carrying their fuel pumps and other equipment everywhere, which is even more expensive. The Wuhu team is right next door, only a two-hour drive away, and their annual relocation costs add around 6%. Furthermore, our fuel pumps are still sourced from Shenyang, so the calculations are quite costly. And the costs are rising every year. If we don't integrate and adapt new technologies quickly, we'll be left behind by the next year."

"My goodness, how much money do we spend in total every year?" Shangluo asked.

Qi Yuan pulled out his notebook and glanced at it. "I advise you not to ask unless you're mentally prepared, so you don't feel bad. Anyway, even if you don't burn through money this fast, racing is all about burning money. Speaking of burning money, now is the most cost-effective time to do so, because high school is when your innate physique is most solidified. From now on, you'll only gain experience, and your reactions and acumen won't be as good as they are now."

"By the way, what about college? Will there still be programs like this after you go to college?"

"Almost all national universities have Formula One racing clubs and university leagues, but they're not taken seriously. High school Formula One is like the imperial examination. There's nothing bigger than the imperial examination. It's bigger than heaven. After all, even the emperor has to take exams to get into university."

"I understand. The exam is the most important thing here, peach pastry is second, and the emperor has to be ranked a few places behind."

“.” It seems to be true.

"Why, do you still want to participate in the professional league?" Qi Yuan asked him. "If it's just for the imperial examination, then practicing here is enough. If you're interested and can persist in college, maybe you can join the professional league. Real professional Formula One cars are much bigger than ours, much faster, and more complicated to operate - but they have a lot of rules there, which can be quite troublesome. After all, what a middle school student can do is only a middle school student's limit. If adults continue to do so, there will be no limit. The adult world is about efficiency."

"That's true." Shangluo had seen people burning money, but getting middle school students to tinker with such a huge toy, with the whole society playing along, could only be done in the name of the imperial examination.

When the race actually begins, the track isn't just inside the circuit. Wutaishan Stadium is actually just the pit area and starting point, with only a small half-circle of track there, and the majority of the track is outside Nanjing city. On race day, the road is blocked by barriers, so the races are usually held on holidays to facilitate spectators. Weekends are the only time to schedule a race.

"Are you having practice today? I remember we need to go for a run down the road?"

Chapter 235 Equation

Shangluo remembers this step. Because, aside from locals like them, all other schools had to practice on the highway. The road wasn't closed during practice, but there were guide cars leading the way. Each team's vehicles would run a lap about a week in advance, stopping at traffic lights as usual.

"We've practiced last time. The next practice is the day after tomorrow, Sunday, and that will be the last practice. Next Sunday is the end of the Nanzhili preliminaries, and then the Sunday after that is the national team's intensive practice. The week after that will probably be the finals, which will be around the end of August or early September. The specific date depends on the weather. How's it going? Are you confident?"

"It's easy. But we've all used Zentraedi-level skills. Do the other teams still have the will to fight?"

"Tsk, let me tell you, the other teams are no pushovers either." She glanced down at her watch and said, "Yes, it's almost time to start."

"What's about to start?"

Before he could finish his words, Shangluo heard a buzzing sound that sent a chill down his spine. It was the sound of the two ramjet engines on the Ninghe. Although not that loud, it was close at hand, practically right next door.

The low roar shook his eardrums. If he didn't have a celestial physique, he would probably want to vomit.

A Formula One car slowly drove out of the garage next door. The engine wasn't running, but a short flame shot out from the rocket nozzle on its back.

“What’s going on???”

"Rocket. The Wuhu Rockets' Rocket, the crew that represents South Zhili year-round, sponsored by the Army Aviation. The cockpit is the same as ours, and the ramjet on its back is a legitimate rocket engine."

"Is that the rocket car you mentioned earlier? It's really coming over here!"

"You can see it every year, and it's different every year. Did you notice that the air intake is trumpet-shaped, with a convergent tail, and it's equipped with a turbine fuel pump. Once ignition starts, it will drive the fuel pump to continuously spray out kerosene for ignition. That rocket uses aviation kerosene, just like their engines. So their fuel injection pump is specially made, and the injection speed is faster than ours."

As they spoke, the car had already arrived at the starting line, shut down, and remained silent, ready to start. However, the crew next to them did not move away, but instead took larger equipment. As they shut down at the starting line, someone started counting the time: "Ready, three, two, one!"

At a whistle, the crew carrying the equipment rushed to the side of the vehicle, splitting into two teams. The front team, a large man nearly two meters tall, held a huge turbine blower and aimed it at the silent air intake, injecting high-pressure gas into it, while the back team aimed a spray gun at the rear, preparing to ignite.

"They're igniting it," Qi Yuan explained. "That ramjet has been lightened to the extreme. It's just a double-layered stainless steel nozzle, lighter than the tail fin, so as not to affect the normal operation of the vehicle. It's so light that it can't start on its own, so it needs an additional starting group - air is injected into it from the front, and the rear ignition is started, at least to start the fuel pump turbine."

As he spoke, the rocket resumed its "buzzing" roar.

"7 seconds." After the timing ended, the driver turned off the engine again and drove the car back.

"Have they been practicing this?" Shangluo asked.

Qi Yuan nodded. "Because this is an extra step, it requires extra practice. Since the total number of people on the team is limited, they need to pull people from other places to ignite this rocket. 7.5 seconds is not slow, as the average time is around 6 seconds. They are very impressive to have practiced this time, but it is easy to fail to ignite the rocket in the actual competition."

"Is this still the case?"

"That's what happened last year. It misfired during the finals. This rocket can't ignite on its own, so it had to go back to the repair station. Then it ignited and misfired again. It was so tragic. I almost thought it was under a spell. Why did it run like a rocket when it was against us, but it fell apart in the finals?"

"Does anyone else use rockets?"

"Some have used it before, but the Rockets are the only ones who stick with it—it's perfectly suited to the track. It's a kind of 'ultimate move,' and the format leaves plenty of room for these unusual playstyles. Let me give you a brief overview of the track: the Yujing Circuit has a super-long straightaway, the road that leads through the racetrack. During the race, you'll see them rumbling in from the distance like a rocket, then disappearing in the blink of an eye. The remaining curves are very narrow, making overtaking difficult."

"Ah, so as long as they get ahead at the start, they won't have to worry about being overtaken even if their performance is a little worse during the bends?"

"Yes, and they burn a lot of fuel after running a straight line. However, since they are lighter, their speed will not drop much. After they pass us on the straight, they can easily get stuck in the corners. But their biggest problem has always been refueling. After our car uses a continuously variable transmission, its most amazing feature is fuel efficiency. The last time Wen Yuan tested the car, she only needed two stops to complete the race. The second stop only required half a tank of fuel, which can reduce the weight by dozens of kilograms. This rocket car starts with four stops, and in intense competition, it may even take five stops to complete the race."

"But can you win?"

"Yes, although five stops are very troublesome. But after precise calculations and practice, they have a good chance of winning - this is Formula One racing, it's essentially solving a problem, we are all looking for the optimal solution to the same problem. Although the Rocket is difficult to run on other tracks, it is a special solution designed for the characteristics of the Yujing Circuit. Of course, they probably don't have a chance this year, because the Tiandao Shadow Puppet has achieved a comprehensive performance surpass. Because fast in corners, it is really fast! The Tiandao Shadow Puppet is not slow on the straights, and with the help of active suspension and continuously variable transmission, it is ridiculously fast in corners. The little gap they opened on the straights was passed by Wen Yuan after just a few corners."

"Oh~~ Now that you put it that way, I'm quite confident."

"But it's not over yet." Lu Liang shook his head. "There will be additional questions during the competition."

"There are additional questions? What are they?"

"After all, it's called Formula One, so it's all about solving equations. Solve the problems, but how can you know the test questions before they start? The Yujing Circuit only gives a range of questions, and the questions won't be announced until six hours before the start. Sometimes the race is extended or shortened, sometimes refueling is prohibited, and sometimes a safety car is added after the start to slow all cars down. The Rocket was instantly crushed when it encountered the safety car, because even at idle, the Rocket burns fuel to keep the fuel pump running. And we, on the other hand, rely on adaptability. The Tiandao Shadow Puppet's adaptability is impeccable, and we can handle any problem with ease. Universal solution, that's our way of solving problems."

Chapter 236 Watching the Game

Shang Luo sat in the pits, watching the Rocket do laps outside. Wen Yuan and the others sat beside him—because a paper bag of snacks lay on his lap. They stared out the window, and every now and then, a hand would reach over and casually take a piece of peach pastry from the bag he was holding.

"Hey." Shangluo grabbed Han Xingzhi's hand. "It's fine if you eat it, but why are you only eating the peach cakes? If you eat them all, what will everyone else eat?"

"Because peach cakes are delicious. The peach cakes from the imperial kitchen are the best."

"How could you tell it was from the imperial kitchen? Why didn't you think I bought it on the street?"

"Because we all visited it when we were kids, and we all took the same paper bags. Right? We've all been there, right?"

"Indeed." Wen Yuan nodded. "It's quite nostalgic. It's so fun in there, especially the canning production line. Wow, rows and rows of pork elbows emerge from the steam, and are canned one by one. The aroma of meat is everywhere. It's simply heaven."

When he heard the word canned food, Lu Liang shuddered reflexively.

"Don't you like canned food?" Shangluo asked him.

"Oh, nothing, just a little nauseous." She took a peach cake from the paper bag and answered, "The snacks in the imperial kitchen are delicious. But canned food..."

She shook her head:

"Delicious. Oh, incredibly delicious. Do you know when canned food is the best? The answer is spring, because tributes from various countries arrive in spring, and the imperial kitchen uses Ryukyu pig trotters to make special canned food. The canned food at that time is fragrant and tender. The food before the New Year is the worst to eat, because that's when everyone clears out frozen meat to make room for the New Year pig, so all the canned food is frozen."

"Ah, this. Have you gained so much experience from eating?"

Lu Liang looked at Shangluo: "Do you remember what we ate last time you came to my house? Did you see my dad bring out braised pork and braised spareribs from the kitchen?"

"Wait. That's a can?!"

"I've rarely eaten anything other than canned food."

"Didn't you tell me that Captain Lu often helps out in the kitchen at Bao'en Temple? He can even fry 800 servings of shredded potatoes in half an hour?"

"Yes, canned shredded potatoes. And the kitchen helpers, all canned food. The Imperial Kitchen is only responsible for canning, but the whole process from canning to serving is not the responsibility of the Imperial Kitchen. So every time the Guanglu Temple needs to cook for the New Year's state banquet, they ask the Jinyiwei to open the cans - unexpected, right? Haha, my dad only knows how to cook canned food."

“I thought the braised pork was a classic.”

"I was just giving my dad face, so I didn't say much. He just poured the canned food into the pot and heated it up. All the dishes we eat at home are like that. Very classic, very standard, right? Nonsense, of course the canned food is standard. Every can tastes the same. Different tastes mean there's something wrong. Didn't you see that they were all braised? That's because the garrison only distributes canned braised food, because braised flavor is the most convenient to can."

Shangluo was silent for a long time: "I was actually deceived. But, it's not bad."

"Of course, it's not that bad. And the carrot soup is his, not canned. Well, I've gotten used to it. I'll probably be too lazy to cook in the future, so I'll probably buy some canned food. I've decided not to wash the dishes. I'll buy canned rice and vegetables, eat them directly from the cans, and then throw the cans away. Haha, if I'm going to mess around, I might as well do it to the end."

She bit into the peach pastry and chewed it with a crunching sound.

Training is still ongoing.

With a whoosh, the Rocket, at full speed, rushed past him. It was truly lightning-fast, its straight-line acceleration easily exceeding 220 kilometers per hour thanks to the rocket's power. This was due to the limited runway. On the road course, with its longer straight-line acceleration section, the Rocket could reach speeds of over 260 kilometers per hour, or even higher.

"It feels good." Shangluo took off his sunglasses and asked Qi Yuan beside him, "How fast can our car go?"

"Actually, it's about the same. Almost all racing cars use 220 kilometers per hour as their track speed limit, and our mechanical limit is around 260 kilometers per hour. However, it's almost impossible to reach that limit in daily life. 200 to 220 kilometers per hour is a more common track speed. Only the Rocket can reach that limit with the help of rockets, but it doesn't exceed the mechanical limit. Our track speed is much faster than other cars."

"What about other aspects? Are there any weaknesses?"

"No. Take the character card from Heroes Tour for example. All of its attributes are S-rated. Speed, endurance, agility, and adaptability—all are top-tier. Other vehicles often have to sacrifice some performance to achieve S-level status in one or more areas, but we lead across the board. To be honest, we're actually developing the next generation of Formula One racing. If we win, the Tiandao Shadow Puppet will become the standard for the next generation of racing cars, as revolutionary as the White Star, created by Imperial Academy High School ten years ago."

"Did they have this kind of technology before?"

"Don't underestimate the Imperial College High School now. Back then, when everyone's average level wasn't very high, Imperial College, with its relatively high 'baseline', was a favorite to win. Their engineering team integrated all the mature designs of the time, and in one fell swoop, they produced the White Star, the first of the second-generation Formula One cars. Of course, they were eventually surpassed by more professional teams like us, but their technology is worthy of recognition."

Shangluo looked back - Zhu Ling was still touching the car, she was still touching the car.

"So the Imperial College Affiliated High School will withdraw from the competition this year," Qi Yuan explained.

"Huh? You're withdrawing from the competition? Why?"

"Because we can't win. They just wanted to get a sneak peek at the championship car this time. They're sure we can win. According to the data they've collected, we're the top seed nationwide. But each team has quite a few hidden tricks up their sleeves this year. Next year, they're planning to use our car as a model to create a 'Fourth Generation Formula Car,' emulating the White Star's legendary status as a second-generation race car. Yeah, I'm pretty optimistic about them. It's next year anyway."

"Won't it cause a talent gap if they do this?"

"Actually, no. The school system at the Imperial College Affiliated High School is completely different from other schools. It's a four-year system instead of a three-year system—the Imperial College's school systems are all very strange. So even though she's a year older than you, she's a senior, and they have more time to prepare for the race. While this also means the senior class voluntarily gave up, they already have a sufficient reserve of talent on the team. I have a feeling they'll be a very strong opponent next year. Perhaps they planned to withdraw from this year's competition from the beginning and prepare directly for next year's."

"You're really courageous."

Shangluo glanced at his watch.

In fact, it had been more than 10 minutes, but she was still touching the car. There was a strange sense of pleasure in the air, and only Shangluo could feel it, because the pleasure was wafting from the car.

Chapter 237: Golden Rooster Mouth

[Tsk, the machine spirit is delighted.]

"Why? Because Zhu Ling is beautiful? But they feel about the same. I think Qi Yuan is prettier."

"The Machine Spirit isn't judged by appearances. Your team has been tearing this car apart and putting it back together, and in recent years, it's been completely overhauled, keeping it constantly on the brink of the Ship of Theseus's destruction. It's a brave thing if it doesn't go mad with fear. This person is viewing it with admiration, so the Machine Spirit is delighted."

"Ah, this. Does it have any effect on me?"

Things in the symbolic world only affect the symbolic world. If you actually drive it, it won't have any impact. But Wen Yuan aside, do you really know how to drive? Do you have a driver's license?

"I can."

So I said, huh? What did you say? You can drive?

"Hey, are you okay?" Qi Yuan handed the steering wheel to Shang Luo who was sitting in the cockpit.

"Don't worry." Shangluo pointed at his hair, "You know what this means, right?"

"You spent a month dyeing your hair?"

"Well, you didn't know. It doesn't matter, you will know soon."

Before getting in the car, he had only vaguely sensed it. Once inside and behind the steering wheel, he realized something was different—the entity inside, what could be called a "machine spirit," expressed only one emotion: "You are my big brother."

"Speaking of which, no wonder it was made by Xiao Han. His temper is exactly like his, a carbon copy. Sure enough, the craftsman's influence lingers in his creations. Why is that? Even I couldn't control him last time."

“Because, I probably can.”

"Because I can drive this car." His hands rested on the steering wheel, his eyes cast on the production date on the label of a bottle of mineral water on the guardrail at the end of the lane in front of him. He could hear the big red flower tied to the Huangen tractor on the flatbed trailer outside the stadium swaying in the 29-degree autumn wind.

Everything was clearer than ever before; even the speaker could tell whether it was powered by thermal or hydroelectric power. Because all aspects of the world were encompassed by the five senses, everything was under control.

He could even hear more. For example, the surging power from the aircraft engine still had some lags to break in, but the car was eager to try and run out.