George Bush’S Great America [EN]: Chapter 154

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As the world was heating up with the World Cup, China was growing colder. The quality of life was steadily declining, and the disappearing welfare programs were now infringing upon basic human rights. Li Keqiang was working hard to address the situation, but if solutions were easy, China would already be a paradise, not a living hell.

Around this time, criticism against Russia began to surface. European nations were supporting volunteer organizations, citing human rights concerns, and even the United States was researching vaccines for the new virus originating from China while providing substantial medical assistance. However, Russia remained conspicuously absent. The sentiment could be summarized as:

“What is our ally doing?”

Could there be a clearer expression of dissatisfaction and questioning? Even former adversaries were providing significant support during this crisis, yet Russia, China’s closest ally, had sealed its borders and seemingly abandoned the situation.

To be precise, they had issued a statement expressing, ‘We are very sorry for the series of events happening in China.’ The public struggled to understand this sudden coldness from a nation that had seemed like a friend, a sentiment shared by both Chinese and Russian citizens.

Of course, the Chinese government was aware of the underlying reasons, even if the general public was not.

“It wasn’t us!”

The United States’ intelligence-gathering operations in Russia extended beyond its borders. The CIA’s network was actively working abroad. Although China’s intelligence network had suffered setbacks, it had been rapidly rebuilt using operatives in Hong Kong and Macau, as well as individuals desperate for income in the increasingly harsh economic climate.

Where could one find more information about Russia than within Russia itself? The answer was obvious: China. Information related to Russia was being leaked from China in such volume that the source was quickly traced.

This alone wouldn’t have been a critical issue, but the ‘status’ of the individuals leaking the information was. The sources included a significant number of high-ranking officials, leading to suspicions that China was directly selling Russian intelligence. This was further complicated by the timing of the ‘US-China Qing Dynasty Bond Repayment Extension Agreement.’ The confluence of these events created a situation ripe for misinterpretation, and Russia concluded that China had sold its information to alleviate its debt.

This was an unforeseen consequence. Even the United States, which had orchestrated the intelligence operation, had not anticipated this outcome. It was an absurd situation born from a series of coincidences.

The fact that information crucial to Russia’s security had fallen into the hands of the United States remained hidden from the public. Russia, eager to retaliate, had to suppress this information due to its potentially significant repercussions. Publicly acknowledging it would only allow them to criticize the United States and impose sanctions – a hollow threat, considering the circumstances.

In any case, revealing this information would trigger a massive reshuffling of personnel, from the Russian president down to the lowest-ranking civil servant. The established power structures would never willingly dismantle themselves, would they?

So, they covered it up. What other choice did they have? A tacit agreement within the Russian government ensured that the intelligence incident disappeared into the shadows. Even if the matter were to be revealed by external sources, it would not be officially acknowledged as long as Putin remained in power.

“How could they do this to us?”

Unaware of the intelligence leak, this was China’s reaction. However, China also had no intention of revealing the extensive information leak from within its own ranks. To those unaware of these events, it appeared as though Russia had unilaterally severed relations as soon as China began to falter.

“That’s not the immediate problem.”

The country was grappling with numerous crises and teetering on the edge of collapse. Russia’s actions were a secondary concern. Numerous national projects had been canceled, creating a domino effect that destabilized the infrastructure of China’s major cities and eroded public trust in the Communist Party.

However, one major national project remained untouched: the ‘Shenzhou Program,’ China’s manned spacecraft program under the CNSA [China National Space Administration], involving hundreds of thousands of people and a massive investment.

Due to the Communist Party’s significant budget cuts, most future projects, including the space station, faced uncertainty, except for the Shenzhou Program. It represented the last vestige of pride for the Chinese people.

Moreover, the Shenzhou Program was nearing completion. With a final push, they could conduct the manned launch. This long-term project had begun in 1992. Nothing could be more devastating than to see it collapse so close to the finish line.

Originally, the manned spacecraft launch was projected to be at least a year away. However, the urgency to utilize the remaining budget and the elimination of certain non-essential components ironically accelerated the timeline. The manned mission, initially planned for Shenzhou-5, was moved to Shenzhou-4, skipping the test run with a mannequin.

Of course, this was irrelevant to those who were hungry and starving, but who cared? This was the manned spacecraft project that over two hundred thousand CNSA employees had dedicated themselves to, working tirelessly for a decade.

While the common people of China were engrossed in the World Cup, the Communist Party was focused on the manned spacecraft.

And today was the day of the launch.

“Can we succeed?”

Li Keqiang asked, removing his glasses and rubbing his tired face. His expression was a mixture of worry and apprehension.

The fate of China was a burden too heavy for one man to bear. But what choice did he have? If he was the only one who could protect his beloved homeland, he would do it willingly.

The person in charge of the Shenzhou Program, seemingly oblivious to the weight of the moment, presented the facts without embellishment.

“Due to budget constraints, numerous safety inspections were omitted. We had a successful unmanned launch of the Chang Zheng-2F [Long March-2F] rocket last year. Now, we must rely on that record and await the outcome.”

China was a relative newcomer to space exploration, allowing them to learn from the mistakes of the United States and the Soviet Union, and to acquire space-related technologies, including rocket technology, more efficiently. As a result, China’s unmanned rocket launch record was impressive.

In particular, the Chang Zheng-2, the successor to the Chang Zheng-1, was a reliable and stable rocket with only one unavoidable incident in its history. The Chang Zheng-2F was an improved version with increased cargo capacity.

“Whether this launch succeeds or fails, I believe you understand the implications for the CNSA.”

Even if it didn’t lead to the organization’s dissolution, they planned to downsize it significantly, reducing expenditures to a level that would barely maintain the existing knowledge and expertise.

“It can’t be helped.”

He accepted it calmly. It was beyond anyone’s control. He would be lying if he said he wasn’t frustrated. If he could, he would beg for a budget.

However, seeing the starving people, he couldn’t help but question, ‘Is it right to pursue space exploration while neglecting the people?’ The foundation of science is to benefit humanity, and he couldn’t deny that.

So he endured it. Although his generation’s ambitions were being thwarted, he envisioned the next generation unlocking the secrets of the universe in China’s own space station, suppressing his resentment.

「10, 9, 8···.」

The launch of Shenzhou-4 was broadcast on the TV screen in the presidential office. Originally, President Li Keqiang should have been at the launch site, but he couldn’t afford to leave his post. Even a brief absence could lead to a crisis elsewhere in China.

For example, Beijing, the capital, was experiencing another epidemic. Fortunately, it was not a new pathogen and could be treated with existing drugs, but there was a severe shortage of medicine.

Due to the nature of large cities, which become concrete deserts when infrastructure collapses, the Communist Party had to maintain functionality in Beijing, but it was a difficult task. People were hoarding the limited supplies and were reluctant to leave their homes.

「7, 6, 5, 4···.」

‘Please. Please, fly. You are the embodiment of our hopes, created over 10 years, or even 50 years, and the child we have brought into the world.’

「3, 2, 1, 0. Launch!」

‘Fly!’

The fuel ignited, and Shenzhou-4 ascended into the blue sky with the characteristic roar of a rocket launch. An accident was unlikely at this stage. The critical phase was the ascent into orbit.

Was it his unwavering determination that finally reached Shenzhou-4? The rocket’s thrust remained within normal parameters, and all other readings were within the expected range. Shenzhou-4 ascended steadily, eventually becoming a small dot in the sky, disappearing from view of ordinary cameras.

China’s first manned spacecraft project had finally succeeded.

“Your efforts have finally paid off. Congratulations.”

Li Keqiang leaned back in his chair, relieved that the budget investment had not been in vain. His grim expression softened slightly. The fruits of this effort would not be replicated for at least 30 years, but success was success, wasn’t it? This was a moment to celebrate.

After its launch, Shenzhou-4 orbited the Earth 14 times for 21 hours without incident and returned safely to its homeland.

“Why are you launching a special move when I told you to launch a spaceship?”

Around the same time, the United States lost another spaceship due to that damn imperial [yard-pound] system of measurement.