Reading Untranslated Chinese SF Novels: Jiang Bo's "Gate of Machines" (1)

Before we begin

Starting with this installment, I would like to introduce the novel "Gate of Machines" by the popular author Jiang Bo, whose work "Galaxy Heart" is also currently being published in Japanese translation.
I have mentioned Jiang Bo several times on this note, but I would like to reintroduce his profile here.

Jiang Bo boasts a brilliant award-winning career. You could say he is an author on a roll!
By the way, the February 2025 issue of the magazine "Listen to Chinese," which Chinese learners have likely picked up at least once, featured a Chinese SF special, and Jiang Bo's name appeared there as well. He has a large body of work, and in addition to "Galaxy Heart," you can read several of his short stories in Japanese.

Synopsis

In the near future, a world government has been established. The world is divided between those who have cybernetically enhanced their bodies and those who prioritize remaining in their original bodies—the Human Supremacists. The "Human Day" movement, in particular, which is promoted by the latter, has become a major wave advocating against cybernetic enhancement. However, in the midst of this, the movement's founder, Hu Ankang, goes missing.
Meanwhile, a young Indian man named Sandeep visits "Mingyue Technology," a company known for its nanomachine technology, and has his entire body cybernetically enhanced. Fifteen years ago, Sandeep's entire family was killed by robots. He underwent the surgery for the sake of revenge.
Around that time, at Phoenix TV in Beijing, terrorists storm a live studio and kill a guest. The victim was a person with strong ties to the political and business worlds. He appeared to have a flesh-and-blood body, but when the terrorists cut open his face, the inside was made of steel. The terrorist group was "The Hand of the Occult," which advocates for human supremacy and anti-cybernetic enhancement. Chu Nantian and his girlfriend Xiaohua, who happened to be at the scene, are unluckily taken hostage and kidnapped.
Shortly after the incident caused by "The Hand of the Occult," Major Feng Dagang of the Chinese military, who was on vacation, is summoned by his superiors and ordered to carry out a rescue mission for the hostages, including Nantian. It is a critical mission that requires him to erase his entire identity.
With the motives of these three parties swirling together, a story of an epic battle begins...

Impressions

The scene of the cybernetic surgery is described in detail over the course of the first chapter, and you are immediately drawn into the world of the story. When I first read this, I was listening to the audiobook on WeChat Reading, which I introduced previously, while looking at the original text. The audiobook included not only background music but also sound effects that sounded like they were from the surgery, and I was surprised by how well-crafted it was. This is what you call a perfect hook.
Following this prologue, Nantian's kidnapping and Dagang's mission launch unfold at a good pace. Since different parts progress from different perspectives in each chapter, I thought it might be a bit difficult at first if you are not used to this format, but perhaps because each chapter is short, I was able to read through it without much concern.
The main perspective characters are all introduced in these three chapters. All that remains is to follow where and how these three parts intersect. However, the most important character is actually kept hidden for a while after this, and the story develops with mystery upon mystery as it heads toward the middle.

Bonus: China's New Year programs are also SF

In China, where the first half of this month was just the New Year mood of the Spring Festival, a special program called "SF Dream Night" (tentative translation) was broadcast (as of February 17, 2025, it can also be viewed online). Currently, in China, fostering people's interest in science is considered important to increase the number of talented people who will lead the development of science and technology, and there are many programs that introduce SF in connection with advanced science and technology. SF writers, scientists, and teachers from schools that provide science education to children (the elementary school students spoke surprisingly clearly; I wonder if they had a script...) appeared as guests on this program.
In the midst of this, what caught my eye in relation to "Gate of Machines" was the dance of the robot dogs. At first, I thought it was CG, but in China, robot dogs are actually working in industries like cleaning, and it was a flawless performance by those dogs. These robot dogs appeared in the studio and performed somersaults, bridge walks, and climbing up and down stairs. Such high-performance robot dogs also play a major role in the battle scenes in "Gate of Machines." However, as enemies of Dagang and his team... I will introduce that scene at a later date.