After the demonstration reactor project was approved, Lü Yongchang, its Chief Engineer, once again felt a sense of busyness he had not experienced in a long time.
The first issue to resolve was where to build the demonstration reactor.
Like nuclear fission reactors, nuclear fusion reactors required careful consideration of their construction environment.
The first point was also the most important.
There had to be abundant water resources nearby.
Fresh water or seawater would both do.
After all, nuclear fusion reactors generated enormous amounts of heat while producing electricity. The most economical and practical cooling method available was to use nearby water resources.
The second point was flat terrain.
A nuclear fusion reactor required a large number of supporting facilities!
Surely they could not build all those facilities in mountain gullies?
The third point was also the most troublesome part of choosing a site.
Stable geological conditions!
Nuclear fusion reactors were not as dangerous as nuclear fission reactors. However, because they used deuterium-tritium fusion, a leak would still pose a minor radiation hazard.
For safety reasons, a controlled nuclear fusion reactor was best built somewhere geologically stable.
In other words, nuclear fusion reactors absolutely could not be built near earthquake zones!
After repeated rounds of screening, Lü Yongchang set his sights on an ideal location.
Canghai Bay!
The main reason no nuclear fission power station had previously been built at Canghai Bay was its geographical location.
If an accident occurred at a nuclear fission power station there, radioactive wastewater would accumulate in Canghai Bay for a long time!
That would pose an enormous safety risk to Xia Country!
But a nuclear fusion power station was essentially free of that risk.
If an accident occurred and the stellarator's magnetic confinement system stopped operating, the nuclear fusion reaction inside would quickly stop as well.
As for radiation hazards...
That was the biggest difference between nuclear fusion and nuclear fission!
In nuclear fission, both the fuel and the fission products were highly radioactive.
Even the nuclear wastewater contained large quantities of radioactive substances.
Nuclear fusion was different.
Even with the deuterium-tritium fusion method currently in use, tritium atoms were the only slightly radioactive component among the fusion fuel and products.
That was entirely controllable!
Besides... in Lü Yongchang's plans, deuterium-tritium fusion was only temporary. The ultimate goal remained helium-3 fusion, hailed as a clean energy source!
Once the reactor site was selected, the detailed construction plan for the controlled nuclear fusion demonstration reactor was released as well.
"Construction Plan for the Controlled Nuclear Fusion Demonstration Reactor"
A document quietly appeared online.
The biggest highlight of the document was the total construction time the plan required.
Three months!
From completing site selection to finishing the reactor, everything in Xia Country's plan would take just three months!
When some sharp-eyed people dug up the document, all of Xia Country erupted!
On Weibo's trending list, Wang Feng, who was preparing to hold sixteen concerts in a row, had barely settled into the top spot before he was forcibly knocked off it.
"Total construction time: three months!"
"The infrastructure juggernaut returns!"
"Xia Country speed!"
This string of trending topics startled not only Wang Feng, but also the netizens engrossed in watching the drama unfold on Weibo!
"Huh? Three months? Is that a typo? It took three months just to lay the foundation for my house!"
"[Insert smirking emoji], person above, do you really think the government would make a mistake in a document this important?"
"Hahaha! You can tell the person above doesn't know Xia Country's international nickname! Ever heard of the infrastructure juggernaut.jpg?"
"United States: Don't believe rumors, don't spread rumors..."
Thanks to some enthusiastic netizens reposting the news, a few hours later, Twitter was swept by a storm as well!
"WTF??? Three months?"
"Jesus! Xia Country is insane!"
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"
"Can a project this massive really be finished in three months? In our country, three months wouldn't even be enough for the workers to mix the cement!"
One glance at that comment made it clear it had been posted by a Western European netizen who was happy to stir the pot.
After all, to Western Europe, where building a road could take ten years, Xia Country's construction speed was practically mythical!
Naturally, those Twitter comments were copied straight back onto Xia Country's Weibo.
For a while, Weibo was filled with laughter and cheer.
Of course, while countless citizens of Xia Country marveled and celebrated, there were always a few walking 500,000-yuan spy bounties looking to pick holes.
"Impossible! I don't believe it!"
"Seeing is believing. Are we supposed to take everything a document says as gospel?"
"When the three months are up, they'll just snap some random photo to fool everyone online, then carry on building at their own pace. It's not like that hasn't happened before!"
"..."
It had to be said: this generation of official accounts really delivered!
To respond to these netizens' doubts, the official Xia Country News account posted on Weibo that very day.
"Starting tomorrow, the official Xia Country News Douyin account will enable livestreaming."
"The construction site of the Canghai Bay controlled nuclear fusion demonstration reactor will be broadcast live!"
"All netizens are welcome to supervise the work."
The moment the Weibo post went up, the number of comments exploded!
"Awesome!"
"This official account's a keeper. When haters show up, it actually hits back!"
"Say no more, everyone. I'm setting my alarm for tomorrow right now. At the very least, I'll have to send a Carnival gift to celebrate!"
"Holy shit, big spender! Respect!"
"Big spender, send me fifty. I haven't eaten in three days!"
At eight sharp the next morning.
Countless netizens gathered in the official Xia Country News livestream on Douyin.
Comments flew across the black screen.
"Where is everyone? Open up! You've got the nerve to livestream, but not to open the door?!"
"It's eight! Open up, open up!"
The next moment, the pitch-black screen suddenly lit up!
As the camera's exposure gradually adjusted, the construction site of the Canghai Bay fusion reactor came into view!
Over a thousand excavators stood in neat rows on the left side of the frame!
On the right were over a thousand construction vehicles assigned to various building tasks!
At the very center of the frame stood several enormous dynamic compaction machines!
After a brief lull, the number of scrolling comments in the livestream rose exponentially!
"Holy shit! Holy shit! Holy shit!"
"So this is a great nation's heavy industry? Love it!"
The next moment, a voice spoke off camera. It was a woman's voice, with a slightly sweet tone.
"Hello, viewers. This is the construction site of the Canghai Bay Fusion Demonstration Reactor."
"Today is the first day of construction. What you see before you is the first construction crew."
"To ensure construction proceeds quickly, a total of three construction crews will be working on this demonstration reactor."
"Over the next three months, the three crews will take turns building the Canghai Bay Fusion Demonstration Reactor twenty-four hours a day!"
As her voice faded, the number of scrolling comments in the livestream surged once again!
"Three construction crews!"
"Miss, show your face! Don't just talk!"
"..."
Under the "supervision" of the assembled netizens, a dynamic compaction machine on the Fusion Demonstration Reactor project delivered its first blow!
Before you continue