“Mars Harbor, where the Galaxy Dream begins… This slogan is quite interesting.”
Looking at the holographic screen hanging on the ceiling of the waiting room and the scrolling promotional slogan, Lu Zhou raised his eyebrows with an expression of interest. He couldn’t help but glance at the advertisement twice.
Wang Peng, who was sitting next to him, seemed to have noticed the expression on his face. He looked at Lu Zhou and said in a chatty tone, “Apparently, since the new mayor took office, this is his promise.”
Lu Zhou withdrew his gaze from the holographic advertisement. He looked at Wang Peng and asked curiously, “When did he take office?”
“Beginning this year.”
“No wonder…” Lu Zhou shrugged his shoulders and explained, “At the beginning of last year, I was here.”
This time he came to Mars for two main purposes.
One was to go back to visit General Reinhardt and the scientific research ship belonging to the advanced civilization, as well as to ask some technical questions about the “stargates”.
There was only one other reason, which was the invitation of Mr. Xiao Hong, the mayor of Mars.
Xiao Hong mentioned in a letter that the emergence of faster than light engines would make Mars an outpost for human civilization to explore the further world.
And for the future of the Mars colony, he hoped that Lu Zhou, as one of the founders of space colonization and exploration, could attend a seminar held in Tiangong City to discuss the technical feasibility of colonizing Europa.
As everyone knew, freshwater had always been one of the most expensive resources in aerospace activities.
As Jupiter’s fourth-largest moon, Europa was a marine world completely covered by glaciers. It went without saying how important such a planet was to Mars.
As for Wang Peng, the reason for coming to Mars was also very simple.
One reason was to protect Lu Zhou, and the other was to collect clues about The Spirit of The Universe Foundation.
Although it was only a vague clue, they had reason to believe that people from the foundation might have penetrated here.
After the base on Earth was removed, their core layer was likely to have been transferred to this area.
“You should be more careful when attending academic events. Although there is no direct intelligence to show that the people of the foundation still regard you as the target of the attack… It cannot be ruled out that they are planning something against you.”
“You can rest assured that my robot bodyguard will protect my safety.”
When Lu Zhou said this, he grinned and looked at Ling, who was sitting next to him.
When Wang Peng glanced at the robot sitting there like a wooden figure, the expression on his face was a little weird.
Even though this guy didn’t look very reliable, in the end, Wang Peng still chose to believe in Lu Zhou. He nodded and didn’t say much else.
Soon after, it was boarding time.
After taking a shuttle, two people and a robot arrived at the terminal building at the landing site outside Tiangong City.
After passing through the security checkpoint, Lu Zhou quickly saw Mayor Xiao, who had personally sent an email to invite him to Mars.
The mayor was slightly chubby, and he was wearing a formal attire that was popular in the upper-class Martian society.
“Academician Lu, it’s nice to meet you! I heard that when you awoke from The Gates of Hell ruins, you passed by Tiangong City. It was a shame that I couldn’t meet you at that time!”
Lu Zhou just smiled slightly and shook his hand.
There was something Lu Zhou didn’t say.
Back then, he couldn’t prove his identity. Even if he had gone to Mayor Xiao, he would have been branded a psychotic individual and taken out of the city hall.
Obviously, he wouldn’t say this now…
“I heard that the first phase of the space elevator project you led has been completed?”
After letting go of Mayor Xiao’s right hand, Lu Zhou nodded and said, “Yes… Has the news reached Mars?”
Mayor Xiao smiled heartily and said in a joking tone, “Of course! Mars is not a place disconnected from news. What’s more, this is a huge event. Even the space station on the distant asteroid belt is talking about you and the space elevator, as well as the faster than light engine.”
Accepting this compliment happily, Lu Zhou also smiled and said, “It is my honor to receive your attention.”
“It should be our honor to be able to witness the birth of faster than light technology in our lifetime!” Xiao Hong continued with a bright smile on his face, “Speaking of which, I have always wanted to ask your opinion. Is it feasible to build a similar space elevator on Mars?”
“There is no problem in terms of feasibility. Theoretically speaking, the gravity environment on Mars is lower, so the construction difficulty will be lower too.” Lu Zhou glanced at Mayor Xiao in a strange way as he asked casually, “Why do you ask? Does Tiangong City plan to build a space elevator?”
“Haha, I can’t hide anything from you! We do have this plan.” Mayor Xiao continued with a smile, “According to my judgment, the next ten or twenty years will be the golden age of the booming aerospace industry! Not just a space elevator, we also plan to build a Mars Harbor in the orbit of Mars that integrates commercial, industrial, and people’s livelihoods. It will be a lighthouse for the solar system! A safe haven that can provide supplies and rest for starships!
“Of course, I have to take it one step at a time. Mars Harbor is a long-term plan. In order to achieve this ambitious goal, we still have a lot of short-term work to do, such as finding ways to obtain Europa’s abundant water resources.
“Thank you in advance for tomorrow’s meeting!”
Looking at the bright smile on Mayor Xiao’s face, Lu Zhou didn’t know whether he was joking or was serious.
Hm?
I feel like this guy’s promise feels familiar?
After hesitating for a moment, Lu Zhou nodded politely.
“I’ll do my best.”
After the reception of Tiangong City authorities, Lu Zhou and Ling came to the hotel where they would be staying.
Wang Peng had other work to do, so after sending the two to the hotel, he left by himself.
Seeing that it was getting late, Lu Zhou simply took a bath before lying down on the bed and opening his personal terminal.
Lu Zhou saw the little red dot on the mailbox and wondered who would send an email. He reached out his finger and clicked on it.
Soon after, the mailbox opened, and a handwritten letter with beautiful handwriting was projected in front of him.
[Remember to take care of your body on Mars. I heard that you have done dangerous things on Mars before, so please don’t mess around this time.
[— Love, Vera Pulyuy.]
Even though Lu Zhou was a bit cold at times, he couldn’t help but feel his cheeks getting warm.
Is this a cultural difference?
Why does it make me feel so embarrassed?
“Sigh, what should I do…”
Lu Zhou lay down and was ready to go to sleep. However, after a long time, he still couldn’t fall asleep.
He closed his eyes and went silent. After a while, he sat up from the bed, tapped a few times on the holographic keyboard with his index finger, and wrote a reply.
[I will take care of myself. Don’t worry about me.
[—Lu Zhou]
