The Wolf of Los Angeles.

With Oliver under investigation by MI5 and Indians exploring the gut mysteries of marine fish, the biggest obstacle for the West Coast Investment Fund has temporarily disappeared.

After two more rounds of negotiations, Jones and Benjamin's negotiating team reached an agreement with the University of Surrey's board of directors to acquire a total of 35% of the satellite company's shares from the University of Surrey for £6500 million.

The West Coast Investment Fund thus acquired more than 90% of the shares in Surrey Satellite.

The remaining shares are held by several investment institutions.

According to the rules of the Kingdom of Britain, the West Coast can launch a forced takeover against the remaining minority shareholders.

Following the acquisition, Jones temporarily served as the CEO of the satellite company, while Professor Benjamin's team from Caltech resigned from their previous positions and were hired by the satellite company as its chief technology officer with a high salary.

Jones' first act upon taking office was to dismiss all of the satellite company's Indian employees.

Those who deserve compensation should be given, and those who should leave should pack their bags and get out.

Surrey Satellite has a relatively complete range of patented technologies and has retained a professional design and engineering team. The West Coast Investment Fund has injected funds to solve the company's current financial problems.

A West Coast environmental technology company from California, USA, placed an order for nine communication satellites with Surrey Satellite.

With money, manpower, technology, and orders, Surrey Satellite Company will soon be on the right track.

…………

At Los Angeles International Airport, after the AI ​​Manhattan 2 landed, a bulletproof van with a completely enclosed rear compartment drove directly onto the tarmac.

Isco and his companion, carrying the made-up Wenner, shoved her directly into the back of the car.

The convoy drove out of the airport and headed straight for the Flower Butterfly Company.

The rear compartment was completely sealed off, and Wenner couldn't see outside at all.

He looked at Isco and said, "I want to see Hawke Osment!"

"Just wait." Isco's order was to send Wenner to Butterfly Security Company: "Someone will report back to the higher-ups."

Wenner knew very well that only Hawke could truly decide his fate: "Please make arrangements as soon as possible."

To put his mind at ease, he made up a story: "I have important information to report."

Isco pretended not to hear and reminded him, "If you keep talking nonsense, I'll shut you up."

Wenner obediently shut his mouth.

Less than half an hour later, the convoy drove into the Flower Butterfly Security Company.

Wenner was immediately hooded and taken to the basement.

Campos met with Wenner and asked Carlos to select reliable people to form a special team to take turns guarding the area.

This person is very important.

Campos also contacted Hawke, but Hawke is not in Los Angeles right now and they have to wait for him to return before they can deal with it.

…………

Boca Chica, Texas.

A business jet painted with the AI ​​Manhattan Project landed at the airport, and Hawke and Erica disembarked.

Musk greeted the two men with a handshake and said warmly, "Welcome to our Space Forward Base, which will be the starting point for our Mars travel program."

Hawke was more practical: "Let's go watch the Rockets first."

Erica added politely, "Throughout the journey, Hawke has been praising your space program, and I can't wait to visit it."

"This way, please." Maskel opened the car door and accompanied the two into a minivan.

After leaving the airport, the convoy did not enter the city of Boca Chica, but instead headed towards a place far from the city.

More than half an hour later, a towering launch tower appeared on the horizon.

Next to it stood a small rocket.

The convoy entered the base, and Musk, eager to secure investment, took Hawke and Erica directly to the launch tower.

Erica glanced around and, relying on her professional skills, whispered, "It looks like there was a big explosion here."

"More than six months ago, the Falcon 2 that was launched from here exploded on the spot before it even took off." Musk smiled somewhat awkwardly. "This one is an experimental rocket that uses NASA technology."

Despite being described as small, Hawke looked up and estimated it to be over 20 meters tall.

He said, "When will you be able to get the launch vehicle sorted out? In the UK, my investment fund has completed the full acquisition of Surrey Satellite."

The two companies are currently in investment negotiations. Although there are some differences, they have reached a consensus on the main points, and cooperation is inevitable.

The Starlink project, with its more than 1000 satellites, is also a business that Musk has been longing for: "When will the first batch of satellites be completed?"

Hawke, who had just had a video conference with Jones and Professor Benjamin, said, "The technology is readily available. Although it is not as good as the version used by the five permanent members of the UN Security Council, it is sufficient for commercial use for the time being. The first batch of five satellites is expected to arrive in the United States by the middle of next year."

Technological progress takes time, and each subsequent generation of satellites will bring improvements.

“There’s plenty of time, the timing is perfect.” Musk pointed to the small rocket and said, “Including this one, we will have three test launches by next April. If all goes well, we can officially launch the satellite by the middle of next year.”

Hawke nodded. If they were to choose a civilian rocket company, space exploration would be the only option at the moment.

Moreover, his foundation will soon be making investments.

After the two finished discussing business, Erica asked, "Is the launch of this experiment imminent?"

“It will take a while longer,” Musk said, leading the two into the launch tower. “The fuel hasn’t arrived yet; it should be here in about two days. The launch is scheduled for next week.”

He invited, "If you have the time, you can watch the rocket launch here before you leave."

Hawke nodded slightly: "I'll try. I haven't seen a rocket launch in person yet."

Erica looked at the rocket outside with curiosity: "I've never seen one with my own eyes either."

After observing the launch tower, Musk invited the two to the command center and research and development center.

SpaceX has not yet passed the most difficult stage of its startup phase, and these facilities are relatively rudimentary, incomparable to NASA's grand scale.

They even have to rent space tracking and control radar from NASA.

In this regard, it is not a problem for fully American-owned space exploration companies to purchase and install them, and the Pentagon and NASA will not impose any restrictions.

The problem is that Musk's cash flow is tight.

Tesla and space exploration are currently spending a lot of money, with Musk raising funds and taking out loans from various sources. There is only investment and no output, and the return of funds seems to be a long way off.

Money may not solve all of SpaceX's problems, but it can solve 99% of them.

In the following days, Hawke and Erica took a break from work and enjoyed themselves to the fullest in Texas.

Both men are fond of firearms, and Texas is one of the most rugged places in the world, with a great many gunfights.

A security vice president at SpaceX, a Texas native, introduced him to Bob Monton, a legendary Texas speed shooting master.

This person holds multiple Guinness World Records for rapid-fire.

He was not only a gunman, but also a gun performer.

Unfortunately, Hawke was met with an old man who was very old. His rapid-fire shooting was still impressive, but he was no longer as good as he had been in his prime.

The two sides only had a brief exchange of skills.

Erica really liked the atmosphere in Texas where people generally enjoyed guns. Although there were laws against it, many Texas gunmen carried guns in the streets without permission.

Erica signed up for the local cowboy speed shooting competition in Boca Chica.

The competition used traditional revolvers and lever-action rifles.

Erica made it to the finals of that round and came back with a third-place finish.

She was still very happy and had a lot of fun even though she didn't win the championship.

“I use these two types of guns relatively infrequently.” Erica pinned a commemorative medal to the collar of her denim jacket and said to Hawke, “I’ll familiarize myself with them a bit more, and I’ll win the championship in the next competition.”

Hawke had Raul take the camera and took a picture of the two of them together, saying, "I'll participate in the next round, and you'll only be the runner-up."

Erica nodded: "Men have a natural advantage in this area."

Hawke said, "I don't have time for the next one. After watching tomorrow's rocket launch, I'm going to Washington."

“I’ll go with you.” Erica took Raul’s camera, glanced at the photo of the two of them, and said to Raul, “Your photography skills have improved a lot.”

Raul smiled but didn't say anything.

The following morning, a signing ceremony was held at the Space Exploration Research and Development Command Center, witnessed by numerous media outlets.

Roger Keane, representing the West Coast Investment Fund, and Shotwell, representing SpaceX, the Chief Operating Officer, officially signed the financing agreement.

There were hundreds of reporters present, most of whom were invited by Elon Musk.

After the signing ceremony, on the second floor, Elon Musk turned around and gave Hawke a tight hug: "We have taken the most solid step toward space."

Hawke joked with a straight face, "I'm waiting for your starship to take you and me to Mars."

Musk, now brimming with confidence after securing funding from the West Coast, declared: "Believe me, at most twenty years."

Hawke smiled and said, "Let's first build a complete space communication and detection system."

“You’re right. To get into space, you first need to understand space.” Musk glanced at the cameras and microphones in the hands of the media reporters on the first floor and said, “I’m going down now.”

Hawke nodded: "Go, that's your battlefield."

As a master of self-marketing, Musk certainly wouldn't miss such an opportunity to gain public attention, especially with the experimental rocket launch scheduled for the afternoon.

Erica watched the people go down and asked Hawke, "Is it really possible to land on Mars in twenty years?"

“I don’t know, it’s extremely difficult,” Hawke said. “My primary goal in investing is to build our own satellite system.”

At this stage, what he needs is a launch vehicle capable of independently launching satellites.

The morning press conference went smoothly, and shortly after noon, the experimental rocket was ready for launch.

Because Falcon 2 exploded on the ground, everyone was on edge about Falcon 3.

Especially Musk, he just had investors arrive and then made a huge blunder on the spot, who knows what might happen next.

Hawke and Erica went up to the observation deck, which was far from the launch tower.

Musk was with the two of them the whole time.

Media reporters have dedicated filming platforms.

Musk's confidence is not as high as before, and he deliberately gave a heads-up in advance: "There are no shortcuts in the research and development and manufacturing of launch vehicles. We need to learn from each failure. Even if we buy NASA's technology, we still need to digest and absorb it through practice."

Hawke did not get discouraged at this moment, but instead encouraged him: "This is an experiment. Whether it succeeds or fails, our cooperation will not be affected."

Outside the thick glass curtain wall, personnel evacuated from the launch tower, and preparations for the rocket launch began.

A sound transmission system has been set up on this enclosed viewing platform, and various sounds from the command center are constantly being transmitted over.

Erica stood next to Hawke, one arm around his, and said, "It's about to begin."

Musk chimed in, "Soon."

Not long after, the countdown began, the experimental rocket ignited, and a shockwave carrying huge plumes of smoke and dust spread outwards.

Hawke could feel the thick glass curtain wall vibrating slightly.

Musk looked somewhat apprehensive.

The experimental rocket did not explode on the ground. It began to rise, its speed increasing rapidly. Soon it broke through the height of the launch tower and flew towards Earth orbit.

In a short time, the naked eye could only detect the traces left by the rocket's exhaust flame.

Erica moved closer to the astronomical telescope to continue tracking the rocket's trail.

The experimental rocket broke out of the atmosphere and began to fall, eventually crashing into the Gulf of Mexico.

Musk let out a long sigh of relief, looked at Hawke, and said, "It's a success! The experiment was a success!"

Hawke bumped fists with him: "Well done, buddy!"

Musk burst into laughter, his chubby face jiggling with every movement: "Finally, we succeeded!"

This marks the first time a Falcon rocket has broken through the atmosphere since the founding of SpaceX.

Hawke laughed, "It looks like our satellite will be in orbit soon."

After the initial excitement subsided, Musk cautioned, "We need to launch more to secure our orbits ahead of time."

Hawke wasn't particularly knowledgeable in this area, but he understood: "Good idea."

Musk said, "I heard from NASA that low Earth orbit can only hold about 6 satellites, so you have to be quick to grab a spot."

Hawke understood: "Those launch methods that send a dozen satellites at once are probably like staking out parking spots in advance."

“That’s right, many people use this method to grab tracks.” Musk knows more about this than Hawke: “Especially countries that can launch launch vehicles independently, they control a large number of tracks.”

Hawke nodded. He knew without guessing that the three senior executives were probably the ones who had secured the most parking spaces in advance.

The launch was successful, and the scene erupted in jubilation.

A press conference has been prepared here, followed by a celebration banquet.

Hawke was having a drink with several senior executives of space exploration and chatting when Raul approached him.

He ended the conversation, found Raul, and asked, "What is it?"

Raul lowered his voice and covered his mouth: "We've received news from Los Angeles that Wenner is insisting on seeing you, saying he has important information to report."

“I’ll talk about it when I get back to Los Angeles.” Hawke thought for a moment and said, “Tell Campos to keep a close eye on him. If he talks nonsense, gag him. As long as he’s alive, that’s fine.”

Raul replied, "Yes."

With things settled in Boca Chica, Hawke is going to Washington, D.C., and then back to Los Angeles.

The signing ceremony was completed this morning, and Roger Keane has already left Texas to make preparations in Washington.

Musk then walked over with a glass of champagne: "Hawk, my brother, I have to have a drink with you."

Hawke took a glass of wine and clinked glasses with him: "Are you planning to get me drunk?"

Musk laughed and said, "If you'd double the number of satellites you launch, I'll get myself drunk today." (End of Chapter)