Chapter 119

The Fengshan Base was located in the Uninhabited Zone, a hundred kilometers south of Lushui Town. Ever since the farm had entered into a public partnership with Longxia, the Fengshan Base had become an impenetrable fortress.

In the early hours of May 20th, the farm’s delegation arrived in Jiangcheng City, Gan Province. After a good rest, fifteen brand-new buses were parked outside the hotel at 8 a.m. the next morning. The delegation members boarded according to their pre-assigned numbers.

“President Zhou?”

“President Wu, you’re here!”

…

As soon as Zhou Changsheng and Gao Dong got on the bus, a lean man greeted them with a beaming smile. He was the manager of Fengmai Company. Despite the “mai” (wheat) in its name, Fengmai primarily manufactured smartphones. Due to business competition, Dongshan and Fengmai didn’t get along. The two exchanged a few pleasantries before the Fengmai manager turned to Gao Dong and another engineer.

“Ah, Engineer Gao and Engineer Li are here. We should grab tea sometime when things settle down…”

Zhou Changsheng immediately cut in. “Dongshan’s Da Hong Pao is excellent. No need to trouble President Wu.”

Though the Fengmai manager was clearly trying to poach talent right in front of him, Zhou Changsheng knew Fengmai didn’t have the pull to succeed, so he just played along.

After a few more words, Zhou Changsheng glanced past the manager. “Engineer Zhang and Engineer Wang came too?” The Fengmai manager had also brought along some technical staff.

“President Zhou, President Wu!”

“President Wu!”

…

More and more people began boarding the buses.

At 8:30, the buses set off.

Once seated, Zhou Changsheng glanced around. Their bus carried representatives from eight tech companies. The Longxia tech circle wasn’t that big, and as he scanned the bus, he noticed that aside from the company heads, most had brought technical personnel. Visiting the Fengshan Base was a rare opportunity—far better to bring people who could actually learn something than those just along for the ride.

“Once we get there, just relax…” Zhou Changsheng said to Gao Dong and the others, explaining a few things casually.

As they chatted, the bus exited Jiangcheng City.

Gan Province was dry with little rainfall. Now, with global temperatures rising, the region had become even more stifling and arid. Looking out the window, they saw cracked earth stretching into the distance. The sun hung high overhead, and villagers could be seen riding camels along the land outside the highway. Wearing straw hats and vests, they had to stop every few steps to rest and drink water under the scorching heat.

“It’s way too hot,” the Fengmai manager in the front row muttered. With the abnormal temperatures across the country, people could still manage indoors with air conditioning, but those in less developed areas had to rely on underground cellars and dousing themselves repeatedly with water to stay cool.

After some small talk, the Fengmai manager turned to a middle-aged man sitting toward the front. “Qinghong signed off on fifty thousand units of air conditioning subsidies? How’s that going?”

“They’ve already been delivered. We’re currently registering for the subsidies,” the man replied.

…

The middle-aged man was the head of Qinghong. Qinghong specialized in producing air conditioners, air fryers, and induction cookers—an established name in Longxia’s appliance industry.

A month ago, the Yu Province government contacted Qinghong to custom-order a large batch of high-capacity air conditioners, mainly for rural theaters and indoor village performance halls. The idea was that when summer hit, villagers without proper cooling could go there to escape the heat. The government also provided electricity subsidies to these venues.

These air conditioners were government-procured and produced by designated companies. Though Qinghong was a for-profit enterprise, given the recent years of crop failures and locust plagues, they only charged the government at cost.

While Qinghong didn’t make much profit, their workers had jobs and food on the table—at least they wouldn’t starve during hard times.

“We’ve already shut down two production lines. Planning to take on more government-subsidized orders.”

“We’re not chasing profits anymore. Right now, survival is the priority.”

…

Others chimed in as well. They were all for-profit companies, with tens of thousands of employees to support. Voluntarily producing appliances without compensation wasn’t realistic, but with the global situation deteriorating and companies collapsing left and right, their primary goal had become simple: stay afloat.

“Let’s hope this all ends soon.” One company head sighed. They had once been fixated on maximizing profits, but after the past two years, they finally understood: only a stable environment fosters consumer confidence and demand for electronics. Only then could limitless growth be possible…

Without stability, everything else was just empty talk—chaos waiting to happen.

At 10 a.m., the buses rolled into Lushui Town. Due to the Gobi’s sandy terrain, everyone disembarked and transferred to specialized desert buses.

“This is the Fengshan Base?”

“That’s right…”

…

At 11:50, the group stepped off the buses. Before them stretched an endless expanse of Gobi desert. A ring of barbed wire fenced off the area, and since they were quite far from the farm’s main activity zone, all they could see was sand—miles and miles of yellow sand.

Everyone paused, slightly stunned. Just then, another bus pulled up, and a man and woman stepped off carrying a microphone and camera.

“Sorry we’re a bit late,” the female reporter said apologetically.

“We just got here too,” Zhou Changsheng replied. Through a quick exchange, they learned the two were reporters from Longxia Television Station. They had just finished covering a watermelon cultivation story in Longnan, so they hadn’t traveled with the main group.

After a few minutes of small talk, several base staff emerged from the farm. They coordinated with the bus drivers and then signaled for the visitors to undergo inspection.

Everyone followed the base’s instructions for the check-in process.

Half an hour later, a base staff member stepped forward and extended a hand. “Welcome to the Fengshan Base. I’m Zhang Hu, your reception guide.”

“Nice to meet you!” the group responded warmly.

At 12:10, just after introductions were made, a rumbling noise echoed from the farm. Moments later, eighty massive machines—each three meters tall and five meters wide—rolled out. Sleek and imposing, they looked like mechanical beasts.

“Irrigation machines for the farm. Also used as transport vehicles,” Zhang Hu explained as the group stared in awe.

The delegation: ???

Ten minutes later, they boarded the irrigation machines and headed toward the farm’s main area.

The farm currently covered 100,000 mu of farmland, all protected by a specialized shielding system. These shields automatically adjusted their opacity based on temperature, which was why no one had noticed them earlier. As the irrigation machines moved deeper into the farm, the group finally saw the vast, seamless expanse of protective domes. Beyond that, they spotted countless workers also riding irrigation machines, harvesters, and other transport equipment.

The fields around the farm were filled with forage grass, interspersed with oilseed lettuce and tomatoes. The lettuce here was noticeably more lush than what grew outside, and the tomatoes were plumper and more vibrant.

The group continued forward and soon came upon a massive tulou standing ten meters tall. Surrounding the tulou were a number of sleek, high-tech modern buildings, exuding a strong sense of futuristic design. Signs hung prominently on the buildings: Fengshan Wheat Factory, Fengshan Seed Laboratory, Fengshan Technology Laboratory…

Before they could take a closer look, their eyes were drawn to a vast blue lake stretching across hundreds of acres. The water was crystal clear, and a majestic eagle soared gracefully above its surface. It was exactly noon, and with the surrounding scenery as a backdrop, only one phrase came to everyone’s mind: a paradise untouched by the world.

Click-click—

The accompanying journalist instinctively snapped two photos. As previously agreed, the media team was allowed to freely photograph the farm. However, due to confidentiality protocols, all footage would be reviewed before leaving the premises. If no sensitive content was found, the material could be published through standard channels.

“It’s breathtaking!” the female journalist exclaimed, unable to resist taking another shot after the first.

According to official data, the Fengshan Base spans 700,000 mu, with 500,000 mu dedicated to research fields and 200,000 mu to technological R&D facilities. Looking out now, the modern architecture and lush green pastures complemented each other perfectly, forming a harmonious and stunning vista.