Super technology leader

"That's the situation. What do you all think?"

In the conference room, Tang Chao showed the information to Chen Jing, Zhang Qin, and Zhang Liyan and asked for their opinions.

The three of them frowned after reading the information.

The notice seemed normal enough, just a conference announcement, but it definitely had a screening effect.

This was because the participants had to pay for their own plane tickets, which the competition committee wouldn't reimburse.

When it comes to investment, especially upfront investment that isn't reimbursed, many people will back down.

This isn't about being cowardly; it's about having a clearer understanding of one's own capabilities.

Yes, that's right.

This time is no different. Despite the competition committee sending out conference invitations to so many people, claiming they were selected for the formal competition phase, only a small portion will actually go.

First, there's registration, then preliminary review, followed by the requirement of a detailed lunar landing plan and partial technical verification to prove you're serious about competing and not just joining in for fun. This process has already weeded out batch after batch of people.

Then there's the issue of paying money, which will further reduce the number of participants.

Although this event is larger and offers higher prize money than the last one, the difficulty is also greater. This round will probably leave fewer than a hundred teams.

After all, there are only a few national teams with the capability to engage in aerospace. Although technology is more advanced now, not many more have emerged with significant achievements.

Lowering the standards to include private teams will increase the numbers, but not by much.

No matter how much the lunar landing standards are lowered, it's still like going from Mount Everest to K2, from the world's highest peak at 8844 meters to the world's second-highest peak at 8611 meters.

Large numbers of people feel unwell just going on a trip to the plateau, so climbing the world's highest or second-highest peak makes no difference to them; they can't climb either.

To make things happen, you still need professional teams.

For Tang Chao's team, money definitely wasn't an issue, nor was technology; the only problem was that the location was too dangerous.

Going to America at this time was, in some ways, like going to the battlefield, and going to the front lines at that.

"Maybe we shouldn't go."

Chen Jing said, crossing her arms, "It's just a competition; there's no need to take such a risk. America might not take this seriously, but we know how dangerous this thing is."

"Anyway, our National Amateur Rocket Competition has been very successful domestically, and there's no need to rush to make a name for ourselves internationally since Tian Xia's aerospace has always been a passive, stand-alone model. We should focus on building our internal strength and become famous when our first spacecraft takes off."

Chen Jing had the authority to say this. The company was supposedly Tang Chao's—and it was, technically—but Chen Jing handled the daily operations and basic future planning.

Whether the company should become famous quickly, and whether that fame should be domestic or international, was all part of the plan.

The company didn't have any actual products yet, so it was enough to gain some domestic recognition. Launching directly onto the international stage was a bit premature. Therefore, Tang Chao mainly advocated for this Lunar Grand Prix, while Chen Jing simply supported it.

For her, it would be a bonus to seize the opportunity to advertise internationally. If it didn't work out, it wouldn't be a loss either.

With a superior in a management position present, Zhang Qin didn't need to say anything. After hearing Chen Jing's words, she nodded vigorously in agreement.

As for Zhang Liyan, he felt he had the right to speak on technical issues, but on matters like this, he'd rather let the boss decide.

He already knew about Tang Chao's SSTO aircraft plan, and he was very interested in it.

Frankly, lunar exploration wasn't anything new, even sample returns.

Although no private team had done it before, two countries had done it decades ago, and Tian Xia would be conducting this project in a few months, launching to bring back several kilograms of lunar soil and rock each time.

The SSTO aircraft plan, on the other hand, was novel. Even the world's aerospace national teams hadn't succeeded, let alone private teams.

If they could build this thing, the benefits would be much greater than winning the Lunar Grand Prix.

Even if a private aerospace team could send a probe to the moon and safely return with samples, it would still be a project that only a small group of people could participate in.

And most private aerospace teams didn't have this need at all. To make money, they still had to wait for orders from the national teams.

The SSTO aircraft was different. As soon as it came out, it would directly represent the entry of manned spaceflight into the era of civilianization.

It's just that this "civilian" would be relatively wealthy.

In the past, manned spaceflight activities, apart from the national teams' research missions, were only open to billionaires.

To date, only a few hundred people have been to space.

If the SSTO aircraft was successfully launched, it could rapidly expand this number to thousands, tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands.

The cost could even be low enough to hold a lottery, offering free space travel to lucky winners.

This cost would be cheaper than advertising globally.

So the decision-making process came back to Tang Chao again and again.

Tang Chao looked unhappy. What's the point of having you guys? You're not even as useful as Yuanfang.

After thinking about it, he was still unwilling to give up if he didn't go.

He had opened an aerospace company with high aspirations and was about to make a big splash when America gave him a blow to the head.

Although he might have been tilting at windmills, and America wasn't necessarily targeting him, it was more like... firing a map cannon.

Meaning: All of you here are trash!

But he had obtained a cheat, and it was impossible for his ambition not to have changed. Otherwise, he wouldn't have opened an aerospace company.

His first major undertaking was swept into the trash can as garbage, so he naturally couldn't stand it.

This wasn't just a matter of being annoyed; it was related to his spirit, his will, and his drive.

With such a powerful cheat, if he couldn't even handle this matter, he wouldn't have the face to return to Can Xing.

He even suspected that if he lost his confidence, he might not even be able to open the Twin Star Gate.

Although this was a bit "spiritual," the cheat was really hard to say.

So he couldn't just give up, or rather, he had to make this happen to clear his mind.

Thinking of this, he firmly said, "Since we've already obtained a formal competition spot, it's a pity not to go."

"I'm not just talking big. If I don't participate, then the other small teams will really just be tools. And this kind of international competition should have a Tian Xia person on the podium in the finals, or even on the first-place podium."

"This way, since we small teams won't have a chance to speak at that time, and we'll just be sitting in the audience clapping and creating an atmosphere, I'll just go myself. As long as I pay more attention to safety and take precautions, it should be fine."

As soon as Tang Chao said this, Chen Jing, who had been speaking casually with her arms crossed, sat up straight, put her hands on the table, and stared at him, saying, "That won't do. You're the company boss, and you're the last person who should go."

Tang Chao also sat up straight and met Chen Jing's gaze: "Precisely because I'm the boss, I have to go."

"And I've been thinking, it's actually not that dangerous over there. It's just a matter of whether we take it seriously. As long as we take precautions, it's not a big problem."

"We have even bigger things to do in the future. If we're scared by this little storm, how can we do great things? That's it."

Seeing that Chen Jing still wanted to say something, he knew what she wanted to say, but he made a decisive statement: "I'm the boss, listen to me!"