Rebirth of Hong Kong Island, leading the technology war

Chapter 571 4 AM, Live Broadcast of Rocket Launch

Time passed by, and before we knew it, it was four o'clock in the morning.

At this time, it was still dark in Hong Kong, the so-called darkness before dawn.

That night was destined to be extraordinary, at least on Hong Kong Island.

Many people suffer from insomnia.

There are a lot of people who don't sleep on Tenglong Island; almost everyone on the island, including tourists, doesn't sleep.

If you actually fall asleep, you'll definitely slap your thigh in regret when you wake up the next morning, wishing you hadn't persevered a little longer and missed an important event.

It's worth noting that a rocket will be launched from Tenglong Island early this morning.

In modern society, launching rockets from Earth is a common occurrence.

Almost every month, several or even a dozen rockets are launched into space. Whether the rocket launch is successful or not, it doesn't cause much of a stir.

Only high-tech rockets launched by star companies are likely to make headlines in various countries.

For example, the launch of SpaceX's Bald Eagle 9 and Starship are very eye-catching and represent top-tier popularity on Earth.

Of course, most ordinary rocket launches do not receive such treatment.

This rocket launch is different; it's the first rocket officially launched from Hong Kong Island, so naturally it's attracting a lot of attention.

Strangely enough, not long ago, when the Tenglong Island launch site was preparing for the rocket launch project, Hong Kong Island remained calm and quiet. It seemed that no one had any expectations for the rocket or paid any special attention to it. At most, they would just mention it briefly and that was it.

Most people are more interested in Tenglong Island Resort, finding it scenic, upscale, and comfortable, resulting in a situation where even those willing to spend a fortune cannot find a room.

This gives the impression that people on Hong Kong Island don't seem to have any interest in technology; their true passion is making money, and they seem to have no technological DNA whatsoever.

Surprisingly, the closer the rocket launch from Tenglong Island got, the more attention people in Hong Kong paid to it.

Until the day before, the enthusiasm for the rocket finally reached its peak, with almost all the Hong Kong media vying to report on the situation at the Teng Lung Island rocket launch site and various predictions.

A few major media outlets were granted access to Tenglong Island to conduct live reporting, obtain firsthand information, and even shoot videos and photos to upload online. There were also live commentators on site.

Most small and medium-sized media outlets did not obtain permission to visit Tenglong Island and could only report from outside the island.

At most, they might rent a boat and cruise around Tenglong Island, taking photos and videos of the rocket launch site from afar to ride the wave of popularity.

Even under such difficult conditions, these media outlets did not give up and worked very diligently.

Sensitive people may wonder why this happens.
The general public may not understand the situation and think that the hype is a natural result of the upcoming rocket launch. However, those who understand media know that this is not normal and is likely an effect created by someone.

When all the media outlets start vying to report on a particular event, even if that event wasn't initially attracting much attention, it will immediately gain popularity, become extremely eye-catching, and spread from person to person.

Gradually, everyone will go crazy; this is what is known as media resonance.

Of course, the rocket launch itself is also very important. If the launch is successful, it will mean that the aerospace industry on Hong Kong Island will have a very good start.

If the rocket fails, the Tenglong Island Space Launch Site will undoubtedly face immense criticism and pressure, given the high level of media attention it receives.

At that time, all those involved will probably be overwhelmed, not only being ridiculed and insulted, but possibly even subjected to personal attacks.

This is the backlash from high popularity and high traffic.

As mentioned earlier, the high level of media attention they are receiving is likely due to some powerful force behind the scenes.

In fact, this was orchestrated by Guo Pingjiang, and behind him was another big figure, Li Ziji.

Neither the Li family nor the Guo family can move out; both can wield considerable influence in Hong Kong Island.

The two families joined forces, wanting to crush Tenglong Island, Jiangshan Group, and Hu Jiangshan, just like the Buddha once held Sun Wukong in his palm and pressed him under the Five Finger Mountain.

The goal was to stop Hu Jiangshan from causing trouble and flying off to make a scene.

Hu Jiangshan's influence is growing rapidly, and this is no joke; it demands serious attention.

Hu Jiangshan represents the Hu family of Hong Kong Island.

Even if Hu Jiangshan and the Hu family are not a threat now, who can say for sure what will happen in the future?

Whenever there is a risk that could affect the status of the Li and Guo families, timely intervention is necessary to suppress it and eliminate the risk.

Of course, the most important question is whether Tenglong Island will be able to successfully launch this rocket?

It's still early morning, and most people are still fast asleep, but Hong Kong Island TV on YouTube has started a live stream.

This live broadcast invited a heavyweight figure, namely one of the top aerospace experts on Earth, Damite Lake, a big name in the aerospace industry.

Just a few dozen hours ago, Damite had already done a live stream, but it was very short, at most half an hour.

The host gave a brief introduction to this important figure, Dammit, and then Dammit also said a few words, first introducing himself and then explaining some basic aerospace knowledge.

This live stream is the real highlight, and it will last for a long time.

In addition to Damite, two other special guests accompanied him.

One was named Lü Jialiang, and the other was named Pan Lu.

Both of them were recruited from Hong Kong Island; they are both university professors, and of course, both are in the science and engineering fields.

They have some understanding of aerospace technology. Having them work with Damite will make the show more engaging and less tiring for Damite.

Damit is an old man after all. He has come from a long way and is already under a lot of physical stress. If he gets too tired or even sick, it will cause a lot of trouble.

More importantly, in order to increase the conflict and improve the show's effect, Lü Jialiang and Pan Lu had different opinions.

For example, Lü Jialiang felt that the Tenglong Island Space Launch Site was nothing special; it was just a project to scam money, investment, and attention.

Lü Jialiang believes that the rocket launch from Tenglong Island will definitely fail.

Pan Lu, however, held a completely opposite view to Lü Jialiang.

Pan Lu believes that the Tenglong Island space launch site has the necessary technology.

Pan Lu's confidence wasn't unfounded; several of his students were currently interning at the Tenglong Island Space Launch Site, and their feedback indicated that it was a good place.

Pan Lu believes that this rocket launch has a very good chance of success.

The three people sat side by side, with Damite in the middle and Lü Jialiang and Pan Lu on either side. Of course, there was also a host sitting on the side, which looked quite well-matched.

The pretty female streamer looked at the data in the live stream room and showed a surprised expression.

"Wow! Gu De, the number of viewers in the live stream today is really high! It's 4 a.m. and the number of viewers has already exceeded 5000. To be honest, I'm really surprised. I wonder if everyone is still awake or just woken up?"

The viewers in the live stream were indeed very active, with many people starting to speak in the real-time chat box.

It contains traditional Chinese characters, as well as many simplified Chinese characters, and some are directly in British English.

This platform is a mixed bag, with netizens from all over the country and from all walks of life, including some from mainland China.

"I didn't sleep all night, I just waited."

“Exactly! How can we sleep at such an important moment? If we sleep, we’ll be late.” “Are you cavemen? What would you be late for? Just set an alarm clock, it won’t hurt.”

"You don't understand, upstairs. Some people are heavy sleepers, so alarm clocks are useless for them."

"That's right, setting an alarm clock is useless to me. It's the same as if the alarm doesn't go off at all, and I still go to sleep."

"Anyway, I didn't sleep. I usually play games all night. I waited while playing games, and it didn't affect me at all."

"Haha, I'm overseas, it's still daytime, I have an advantage over you guys."

"I'm adding one more child studying overseas. It's evening now, so I'll watch the rocket launch before having dinner."

"Let's get started! I can't wait!"

"What kind of talk is that? Do you think the media can direct the launch site?"

The live stream on Hong Kong Island TV's online channel is very popular.

Within minutes, the number of online users had risen to over 8000, and it was just around the corner to reach 10,000.

A typical live stream is considered successful if it attracts over 10,000 viewers; a live stream with tens or hundreds of thousands of viewers is considered top-tier.

The beautiful anchorwoman breathed a sigh of relief.

She originally thought that everyone was asleep at this time and that hardly anyone was watching the live stream, but she was wrong.

Quite a few people watched it, and some even set alarms to force themselves to get up.

The beautiful anchorwoman said, "Alright, now we can take a look at the situation at the space launch site."

A window then appeared, pointing to a live feed of the Tenglong Island space launch site.

In the very center of the image is a huge launch pad, and a rocket is launching from next to it.

The rocket's body was decorated with the national flag and other company logos.

This includes Starry Sky Glory and the logo of Maien Technology.

Of course, the Jiangshan Group logo is also on it.

This is a characteristic of commercial rockets: they must advertise wherever advertising is needed.

Once the path to commercial operation of the Tenglong Island Space Launch Site is successfully established, it will receive all sorts of advertisements.

Printing a company logo on a rocket can generate a significant amount of revenue, given the high level of attention it attracts.

You can vaguely see hot air coming out of the rocket's tail in the footage.

Now, even those who are knowledgeable and those who aren't know the facts understand that the preliminary preparations for rocket ignition are complete.

We're just waiting for the order to ignite, launch, and ascend.

In the live stream, the beautiful host said, "Now let's start a poll to see if you all think this rocket launch will be a success."

As they were talking, two options appeared in the live stream.

[First option: The rocket launch will be successful]

[Second option: The rocket launch will fail]

Anyone with a discerning eye would be stunned by these two options. It's rather strange that this media outlet arranged such a multiple-choice question in its live broadcast.

Logically speaking, how could there be an option for "the rocket launch will not succeed" before a rocket launch?

Isn't that a blatant curse?
It is neither polite nor reasonable.

Unless the person behind the live stream is an idiot or a moron, designing such an option is definitely malicious and has ulterior motives to manipulate public opinion.

Damite Lake clearly doesn't understand Chinese, or he simply doesn't pay attention to what's happening in the live stream.

Seeing all this, Lü Jialiang didn't show much expression on his face, just a smile, and occasionally chatted with Damite, expressing some friendliness.

Pan Lu was clearly unhappy, or at least didn't like the media doing this, but since he was a guest and had been paid for the appearance, it wasn't convenient for him to raise any questions on the spot.

Pan Lu couldn't help but sigh, silently expressing his dissatisfaction.

Such questions were also raised in the live chat area of ​​the live stream.

"How strange, why include such an option?"

"Yes, there should at least be a third option, such as 'I'm not sure,' or 'I don't know.'"

"I understand, your live stream this time is meant to stir up trouble."

However, relatively few people asked questions, and the questions were quickly overwhelmed by the constant barrage of comments.

The voting results came out quickly.

The result is option one, meaning 45% are optimistic about this launch.

The second option, which is that 55% are not optimistic about this rocket launch.

The difference may seem small, but those five percentage points are actually quite telling.

Most people are not optimistic that this rocket launch will be successful.

Pan Lu frowned slightly upon seeing this result, sensing a hint of conspiracy.

Logically speaking, at this point in time, those launching rockets are mostly aerospace enthusiasts and military fans.

It's clearly abnormal that the majority of people voted against this launch.

Could it be that someone is manipulating the outcome of the options behind the scenes?
This is very possible.

Pan Lu came from the mainland and used to teach at a university there, so he has a certain understanding of the mainland's aerospace technology.

Pan Lu felt that the Tenglong Island space launch site was up to par, at least not too far behind the technology of official launch sites on the mainland.

The only uncertainty is whether Star Glory's rocket is reliable.

However, Pan Lu also learned that Starry Sky Glory's core technology team and core management team all came from China's aerospace system.

They have all been in charge of large-scale aerospace projects and have excellent technical capabilities. Moreover, the country strongly supports the development of commercial aerospace, so in theory, the rocket built by Starry Sky Glory should not have any problems.

Pan Lu is very optimistic about this launch.

The beautiful anchorwoman said, "It seems that everyone's views are still somewhat conservative, so let's ask our guests to share their thoughts."

"Then let's have Mr. Lake speak first. Mr. Lake is a top aerospace expert on Earth, and we are very honored that he has come all this way to be our guest."

Damien nodded and said, "Space engineering is very complex, and I don't think there's a 100% chance of success."

(End of this chapter)