Dragon Raja 5; Chapter 271: For Your Majesty (86)

Dragon Raja 5

Bunin’s advance team had already made a simple preparation to welcome the distinguished guests—though there wasn’t a single attendant anywhere to be seen, Lu Mingfei knew they could appear with a snap of his fingers, just like the maids at Zero’s house—and the streets were festooned with colorful lights and flags. The icy streets had been swept clean until they were as bright as a mirror, reflecting the shadows of people. Thick white steam rose from the manholes along the street. It felt like a museum, a sealed time capsule, but most of all, it resembled Sleeping Beauty’s castle in the fairy tale, awakened only by a clear knock on the door.

Christina should have been more reserved, but before she’d even walked halfway down the street she was slumped against the window of the store, her eyes wide as bells, like a child in Disneyland.

Bunin actually snapped his fingers, and someone immediately came out from the corner. It was a well-dressed waiter, holding a tray with glasses of vodka. He wandered among the crowd, letting the guests take away their glasses.

Bunin, also sipping a glass of vodka, walked ahead, with a comfortable smile on his face, and took Zero’s arm. Zero didn’t refuse, but the indifference on his face was too much like a master to a servant.

In the center of the city is a huge circular building with a statue of Lenin standing in front of it, reaching into the sky. It looks like an auditorium or concert hall, but for some reason it was built in a circular shape.

The red carpet extended all the way to the foot of the Lenin statue. They ascended the stairs, where a series of fine steel doors opened before them. Inside, they discovered a factory-like structure, with winding pipes, valves of all sizes, and “Danger” signs everywhere. The original lighting system was probably broken, but Bunin’s service team had installed numerous emergency lights to illuminate the path for the guests. The heating system was working, and as they walked, everyone spontaneously took off their coats, their steps becoming lighter.

“Welcome everyone to Novosibirsk City 023, my hometown.” Bunin stopped in front of a door, turned around, and opened his arms. “For some of you, this isn’t your first time here, but for others, it’s your first time. Safe areas have been prepared for everyone. Please feel free to explore. If you need anything, just snap your fingers and the service you need will be immediately at your service.”

He turned around and gestured to Zero and Lu Mingfei, “If you don’t mind, Your Highness the Princess and Mr. Lu, please follow me.”

Christina in the crowd immediately looked over, but Bunin was obviously not prepared to invite anyone else. The automatic door opened and closed, blocking everyone else out.

Bunin led them through the corridor and opened the door at the end of the corridor. Behind the door was a Soviet-style office. The furniture was still the same as it was back then, a little shabby, but tidy and even comfortable.

Bunin gestured for them to sit on the leather sofa beneath the curtains and poured them strong drinks. Despite confessing to Lu Mingfei on the train that what truly mattered to him was Lu Mingfei’s gaze, not the Romanovs’ influence, Bunin still faced Zero during the negotiation. Lu Mingfei played the humble secretary, while Zero, holding his glass, looked Bunin straight in the eye. Bunin smiled and looked away, avoiding a confrontational stance.

“I was born here. Before I snuck onto a train and left, the world I knew was this big. There was only one school, one hospital, and one children’s playground. There were plenty of small shops selling cigarettes and alcohol, but the only cigarettes were Moskvich and the only alcohol was Red Star vodka. I knew Moscow existed, but I didn’t know what it was. There was a movie theater in the city, but children weren’t allowed in. They were worried that seeing the outside world would pique their curiosity and make them unwilling to stay in City 023.” Bunin puffed on his pipe. “My parents weren’t great people, just skilled workers, but they were very proud of their work. They always told me that our family would live here for a hundred years and build the most prosperous Novosibirsk in the world. We would build spacecraft to fly to Mars and aerospace carriers to destroy American imperialism.”

“But you still managed to sneak onto a train,” Zero said.

“Because one day I sneaked into the cinema and watched a movie about Moscow with the adults. There was a beautiful girl in a plaid skirt in the movie, who was prettier than any girl in City 023. I suddenly realized that the world is actually very big. Even if the aerospace carrier I built destroyed imperialism a hundred years later, I would be old, and the girl in the movie would be old too. Besides, why should I destroy imperialism? I have never even seen what imperialism is.” Bunin smiled.

“You say it’s a city, but it’s more like a research base, or a super factory,” Zero said.

“Your observation is accurate. Thirty thousand people lived here back then: soldiers, workers, scientists. Their responsibility was to build a fusion nuclear reactor capable of supplying electricity to the entire Soviet Union.”

“A fusion reactor?” Lu Mingfei was surprised. “Didn’t they say humans haven’t yet created a usable version?”

“No, they’ve already built it.” Bunin smiled. “Are you curious why this building is round?”

Lu Mingfei nodded.

“Right beneath us, buried was the largest electromagnet in the world at the time,” Bunin said. “Nuclear fusion takes place in the magnetic confinement field it generates, and fusion is controllable. You missed the scene when this magnet was energized. All metal objects would move toward the center of the city. If you had a nail in your pocket, it might fly up and become a weapon. I once saw with my own eyes a doorknob fall off and fly up. Everyone wore copper wire under their clothes to help shield the magnetic field. Otherwise, people would have palpitations in such a strong magnetic field and would not live long.”

“But this technology has never really been used, right?” Zero said.

“Yes, the output energy was astonishing, but it was not stable enough. Once the magnetic confinement field fails, this thing would become a hydrogen bomb. However, they once used the electricity generated by nuclear fusion to power a super laser generator and shot down an American satellite. To this day, the Americans still don’t know how they lost that satellite.”

“It’s called City 023, which means there are similar cities, right?” Lu Mingfei said.