How did I become an F1 driver?

The two first walked into the building on the right side of the Meiben factory that Qin Miao thought was the administrative building.

Toto said:
"This building is a collection building of the reception room and the exhibition hall. The upstairs is a huge reception room, and the downstairs is the display area of ​​some racing cars and some replicas of the racing cars. Generally, all guests are here. Settle down."

While talking, the two entered the building one after the other.

As soon as he came in, Qin Miao was shocked by the scene in front of him.

After entering from the main entrance, I didn't see the front desk, and even facing the entrance, there was just a white wall without any decorations, which was really ordinary.

But when you look up, you can see a Mercedes W07 suspended in mid-air by steel cables.

And the front of the racing car was facing the entrance. Qin Miao, who had just entered the door, could see the front of the racing car when he looked up.

Ordinary people who don't know that Mei Ben has put a racing car in this place will probably be amazed when they suddenly see this car, and Qin Miao is one of them.

After Toto entered the door, he deliberately turned around and waited at the door for a while, just to see Qin Miao's expression when he suddenly saw the car.

After confirming that Qin Miao was also slightly amazed, Toto said with a smile:

"This is not a real car, it's just a 07:1 replica of the W1 Hybrid. The weight of the car is less than half of the real car, so you don't have to worry about it falling off."

After being amazed for a short time, Qin Miao got used to the existence of this car, and became a little curious instead:

"Then why don't you actually put it on?"

Toto shrugged:

"Both cars were sold, but after the car was sold, the team returned all the funds invested in the research and development of this car..."

Qin Miao: 6.

Under the leadership of Toto, the two walked up the stairs surrounding the racing car.

In fact, there is an elevator to go upstairs, but the stairs are built around this racing car that is suspended in the air. Every time you go up a step, you can see different parts of the car body. When you get to the third floor, you can just Observe this car 3 degrees without dead ends.

No one who likes racing can refuse this experience.

Coming to the second floor, Qin Miao was once again amazed by the scene in front of him as soon as he entered the door.

Because in the open space of the living room, there is another Mercedes F1 racing car parked there quietly, and the 44 on the shark fin means that this is the car of the newly crowned seven-time champion Hamilton.

The most striking thing about this car is the three-pointed star on his back and the red color on the upper air intake.

But Qin Miao frowned when he saw the paintwork of this car, because in his memory, the Mercedes cars in the paddock this year were overall black, not this gradient color of silver at the front and black at the back.

Although the overall layout is very similar to this year's Mercedes W11, there are still some differences in the details. In addition, W11 is the champion car of this year, and the F1 competition has only ended for a month, so it is unlikely that the car will It was put here directly, no matter what, I have to take the car as a reference to study next year's car, right?

So Qin Miao felt that this might be another replica car, but with a set of paint that had not been used on the field.

But Toto seemed to have seen through Qin Miao's thoughts, and said bluntly:
"It's actually a bootable W11."

Qin Miao was taken aback for a moment, and then asked with a face full of surprise:
"Isn't it? I remember that this year's W11 is all black."

Toto explained:

"W11 was indeed painted with a gradient from silver to black in the initial testing stage, but because of some things, we changed the paint to black as a whole. This car is the original version of W11, but we changed the internal engine and The electrical control system was dismantled”

"If you put those things back together, the car can move."

Qin Miao nodded thoughtfully, and then asked curiously:
"Then can I go up and try?"

Toto looked at Qin Miao, and then said: "Lewis' body shape is about the same as yours. The monocoque seat of this car is made according to his body data. You should be able to sit in it, but it may not be too comfortable. .”

It didn't matter to Qin Miao, after all, it was the first time he had the opportunity to sit in a real F1 car, and Qin Miao didn't really want to miss this opportunity.

"Then I'll try."

After speaking, Qin Miao took off her shoes, crossed the flip-flops a little strangely, and then got into the racing car.

To be honest, the car is really crowded, except for the head and my own hands, other parts of the body have very limited room to move, and the legs are wrapped in some unknown materials, except for stepping on the accelerator, basically There is no extra room for Qin Miao's legs to move.

"How do you feel?" Toto asked with a smile.

Qin Miao closed her eyes to feel the feeling of being wrapped in the racing car, and then held the steering wheel model with both hands, simulating the feeling of driving this racing car in her mind.

After a long time, Qin Miao said:
"Very eager, the kind that can't wait."

Toto smiled.

"Okay, come out, you have plenty of time to drive F1 in the future, we still have a lot of places we haven't visited yet."

Qin Miao got out of the racing car honestly, put on his shoes, and followed Toto's pace. The two began to visit the team headquarters that had won the team championship for six consecutive years.

In addition to the reception room, there is a large space downstairs filled with Mercedes F1 cars over the years, most of which are replicas, and some of them are real, and even add points to the cars for racing. Fuel, the kind that can be started directly after warming up.

Of course, such a large factory building cannot be filled with racing cars in recent years, so at least there is still a large area vacant.

And when the two of them finished visiting here and came to the door to leave, Toto suddenly said:

"Qin Miao, do you know? I hope, in the future, I can see a car with your driver number on it here."

Qin Miao was stunned, and then looked back at the empty seats.

"There will be a day, Boss."

"I hope so……"

After leaving here, Toto took Qin Miao to the building that Qin Miao mistook for a factory.

After getting closer, Qin Miao realized that this is actually a large parking lot, just like those high-rise parking lots in GTA5.

I didn't go up to look, after all, there is nothing to see in a parking lot, Toto just said:
"When you leave, go to the guard room at the door and register your license plate number. When you come again, you don't need to register. You can come in directly."

Having said that, Toto paused for a moment, then asked:

"Do You have a Car?"

Qin Miao nodded:

"Ferrari sent me a 488, but I usually ride an electric bike to and from get off work at Ferrari."

Toto nodded on the surface, but he was already thinking about what kind of car would be better to give Qin Miao. If there is no accident, it should be an AMG GT.

Then Toto took Qin Miao to see Meiben's factory, the design department in the factory, the CNC workshop, the engineering workshop, and even Qin Miao personally entered a series of instructions on the CNC machine tool under the guidance of the engineer, and then the CNC According to the instructions entered by Qin Miao, the machine tool produced a fingernail-sized part for him.

Then there is the testing department, which mainly tests the durability of the racing car. The main test items are the chassis and suspension strength of the racing car.

Then there is the information technology department, the paint studio department, the data analysis department, the engine department, and finally the simulator department.

At the invitation of Toto, Qin Miao climbed onto Mercedes' simulator and tried it out.

In fact, the general structure of the Mercedes-Benz simulator and Ferrari are the same. They are both a monocoque as the simulator cockpit to increase the driver's sense of substitution, plus a huge projection screen.

However, since the simulators are all developed by the team itself, even if it is a standard car, there will be some differences in driving on the simulators of different teams.

The Mercedes-Benz simulator looks like this from the outside, and even Qin Miao feels that the graphics and lighting of the Mercedes-Benz simulator are not even as good as the game "F1 2020", but the driving feel is very close to reality. The feedback given to Qin Miao by the single shell of the device is also similar to the real feeling.

Qin Miao didn't stay on the simulator for too long. After all, he came to visit today, not to work. After trying the hand feel, he left the factory and went to the administrative building of the Meiben factory.

"I'll show you to your office."

As he was walking towards the administration building, Toto said so.

Qin Miao was taken aback:
"Do I still have an office?"

"Of course, everyone at Mercedes has an office, it's just not all in the administration building."

Qin Miao nodded, and then became curious and looking forward to her office.

Then the two walked into Mei Ben's administrative building one after the other.

Once entering the reception area, another Mercedes F1 racing car appeared in front of Qin Miao.

Before Qin Miao took a closer look, Toto explained it to Qin Miao in a very understanding manner.

"The W19 in 10 years, this is the real car. Lewis drove this car when he finally crossed the finish line in 19. We drained the internal oil and fuel and put it in the original here."

Qin Miao nodded clearly, no matter if it is Ferrari or Mercedes, they all like to show their achievements in the open.

Then Qin Miao followed Toto into the administration building.

It is worth mentioning that because of Qin Miao's arrival, many Mei Ben staff who are still working have cast curious eyes on Qin Miao.

It's no secret that Qin Miao joined Meiben, so these staff members knew that Qin Miao would come, but they didn't expect Qin Miao to come so early. In their expectation, Qin Miao had to be After the winter break, I came to the team to report.

At the same time, they were also a little curious about whether Qin Miao, the newly promoted F2 champion, would really be a self-important megalomaniac as rumored in the paddock.

It's just that from their observation from a distance, Qin Miao is more like a young man who is full of curiosity and is very curious about everything new.

Soon, Qin Miao followed Toto to the second floor of the administrative building, an area near the window.

There are many rooms separated by frosted glass in this area. Qin Miao saw the pinyin of his name, Qin miao, pasted on the door of one room at a glance, and even his Chinese name Qin Miao under the string of pinyin.

I walked in and took a look. The office is not too big, only about 40 square meters, but there is nothing missing inside, such as desks, computers, water dispensers, refrigerators, some hanging pictures, reception sofas, and even the scenery outside the window.

"How do you feel?" Toto asked with a smile.

Qin Miao swallowed. This is the first office in his life. To be honest, he didn't expect Mei Ben to prepare it for himself:

"It couldn't be better."

"As long as you are satisfied, our company's pursuit of the office is to do our best to make the people who use this office feel comfortable. If you have anything you want to join here, you can tell us."

After visiting other places in the administrative department, Qin Miao finally ended his visit to the Mercedes-Benz headquarters in Toto's office.

"Where is the exact location where you live now?" Toto asked Qin Miao in a chatty tone after taking a bottle of mineral water from the refrigerator:
"Meiben has housing subsidies. If you want, we can reimburse your daily rent, water, electricity and natural gas expenses."

After hearing what Toto said, Qin Miao's eyes lit up, and there is such a good thing!
So Qin Miao told Toto her address without any precautions, and Toto also wrote down Qin Miao's address very seriously, and earnestly asked: "Remember to issue an invoice when paying the rent and utilities, otherwise we will It will be a little troublesome to help you pay the bill, and the reimbursement may take up to half a year."

Qin Miao nodded clearly.

After recording all these things, Toto asked:

"What was your first impression of our place?"

Qin Miao unscrewed the mineral water bottle and took a sip before replying:
"To be honest, the exterior may not look as grand as a Ferrari, but the interior does meet all the fantasies I have for a top F1 team factory, if not worse."

Toto smiled sincerely: "As long as you like it, after all, this may be your work place for the next three years or even longer."

Qin Miao nodded.

But Qin Miao turned to ask a question that he was very puzzled: "Boss, can I ask you a question?"

"of course."

"Will I be able to drive a Mercedes F1 car next season?"

"To be honest, I don't think I can sit in the cockpit of the Mercedes-Benz with Bottas and Russell around." Qin Miao said with hesitation on her face.

Toto didn't hide it either, and told the truth:

"Actually, there is no shortage of voices against my doing so. No matter how amazing your performance in F2 is, F2 and F1 are always two events of different dimensions. No one can guarantee that you will be able to compete in F2. Bring the talent from the world to F1."

"So at the beginning I tried my best to sign you, and there was a certain risk."

"But since you asked, I can tell you right now that you can indeed sit in the cockpit of a Mercedes-Benz F2021 team in 1."

"However, there are a lot of strings attached."

"First of all, you have to recognize your identity, you are the No. 2 driver of Mercedes, this is the most important point.

"Secondly, we will only give you three races to adapt. If after three races you have not realized your talent in F2 in F1, then we will replace you after three races."

"I'm not putting pressure on you, but I'm stating a fact to you, this is the paddock, natural selection, survival of the fittest is the main theme here."

"As for Bottas and Russell you mentioned..."

"Bottas already has the idea that he doesn't want to continue to be the second driver, but I helped him make the decision a year in advance, and Russell... just like I just said to you, natural selection, Survival of the fittest."

"In the opinion of our assessment team, you are stronger than Russell now, and cheaper than him. The only shortcoming is the household registration problem"

"And if you're disappointing this season, we'll put Bottas in your place for the rest of the season, and next year it's Russell."

Although Toto's words were full of coldness and cruelty, Qin Miao's heart became hot.

Because from Toto's words, Qin Miao got an exact guarantee from Toto: he can drive a Mercedes car next season.

Even if I don't adapt to the Mercedes car, I can drive at least three grand prix, right?
This guarantee is another purpose for Qin Miao to come here to visit the Meiben factory.

As for not adapting to the rhythm of the F1 game and being kicked out after only three races?
Just kidding, Qin Miao originally just wanted to experience the feeling of driving an F1 car, and was not very interested in the business activities and political struggles in the paddock.

Although it is indeed a bit small to only open three grand prix, but after this addiction, Qin Miao has fulfilled one of his more difficult wishes, and after experiencing it, it is enough for Qin Miao .

So although Qin Miao was under a certain amount of pressure from Toto's words, the pressure was not too great.

"Thank you very much for your recognition. I will try my best to show a qualified performance on the field and try not to let you down."

After confirming that his position was stable, Qin Miao sincerely thanked Toto. After all, without his strong support, Qin Miao should still be struggling in the quagmire of Ferrari. It is still unknown whether he can drive F21 in 1 years.

The two chatted for a few more words, and then the topic turned to family.

After all, Qin Miao's age is only a few years older than Toto's child. If Toto had a child earlier, he would actually be at Qin Miao's age.

After asking about Qin Miao's growth environment, and about Qin Miao's family situation, this meeting is almost over here.

Then Toto personally sent Qin Miao out of the house, took Qin Miao to register the license plate number of Qin Miao's Ferrari at the gate guard, and gave Qin Miao a badge. This meeting is over here .

After Qin Miao left, Toto sent Qin Miao a text message, which reminded Qin Miao to come to hold the signing ceremony and press conference at the end of the month, as well as the FIA ​​awards ceremony to be held on December 12.

Qin Miao briefly glanced at this, and then forwarded the entire text message to Qiu Meng.

This girl is now familiar with all the work of a manager, and has officially become Qin Miao's manager. Qin Miao usually leaves these arrangements to her.

And Qin Miao also discovered that she has recently been learning about physical exercise, and even enrolled in an adult class, and she will take the exam next summer.

……

After leaving Mercedes, Qin Miao was still recalling the scenes he saw inside the Mercedes factory, but what impressed Qin Miao the most was the feeling after sitting in the Hamilton racing car.

At that time, Qin Miao had a feeling, an impulse, an urge to step on the accelerator, listen to the roar of the engine, and be thrown out by the racing car with an acceleration exceeding 2G.

With these things in mind, Qin Miao walked back home slowly.

In recent days, Qin Miao's training volume has been greatly reduced. Although she keeps training every day, it basically consists of one hour of physical training in the morning and another hour of car training.

In the afternoon, stay at home with Qiumeng, or play games together.

This year Qin Miao has been busy for a year, and in the last few days of 2020, Qin Miao also wants to take a break.

Qin Miao and Qiu Meng are not planning to go back during the Chinese New Year. After all, the international situation has not shown any signs of improvement. On the one hand, they need to go out less, and on the other hand, it is quite troublesome to go back to China for various inspections. It is difficult to come back.

And Zhou Guanyu also had the same idea as the two of them.

Originally, Zhou Guanyu's parents planned to come to England to accompany him to celebrate the New Year. After all, no parent could bear to see their child spend the New Year alone abroad.

But when they contacted Zhou Guanyu, they heard that Zhou Guanyu was planning to find Qin Miao directly for the new year. After all, Qin Miao was Zhou Guanyu's best friend in the paddock, and Qin Miao was living in the UK now, although it was a bit far from Zhou Guanyu's home. , but it's only an hour's drive away.

Although I have never met Qin Miao in person, Zhou Guanyu's parents are still at ease with Qin Miao from Zhou Guanyu's few words to Qin Miao, and the photos of Qin Miao and Zhou Guanyu who often eat and play games together. After saying a few words, he gave up the idea of ​​coming to England.

So after Zhou Guanyu hung up the phone with his family, he drove downstairs to Qin Miao's house alone with his luggage.

Qin Miao and Qiu Meng had long thought that there might be friends coming to live at home, so the flat floor they rented has three bedrooms, and each bedroom is equipped with a toilet, so there is no need to worry about several people appearing together Grab a toilet situation.

And knowing that Zhou Guanyu is going to spend the New Year with him this year, Qin Miao and Qiu Meng are naturally very welcome.

Although the young couple will not feel too deserted during the New Year together, but with Zhou Guanyu around, this year will undoubtedly be more joyful and lively.

As for whether Zhou Guanyu's visit will disturb the two of them?There is no need to worry at all, because Zhou Guanyu is used to Qin Miao and Qiu Meng's usual greasy way of getting along.

Helping Zhou Guanyu, moving his things into the room prepared for Zhou Guanyu, and helping him tidy up the sheets and quilt covers, the whole afternoon passed like this.

The three of them didn't go out for the next few days, and they all stayed at home.

Until the 20th, Qin Miao and Qiu Meng were invited to the Mercedes-Benz team, and Zhou Guanyu was also pulled by Qin Miao. (end of this chapter)