Die on Mars

"Get half of it?" The old cat was surprised.

"What? You think it's too little?" Tang Yue asked, "Then give me 60%?"

"Are you crazy?" said the old cat. "You give 60% of the supplies to others. What do you eat? Don't you want to live anymore?"

Tang Yue sat down, holding a half-meter-long hairbrush in his hand. Wearing the Mingguang armored outer suit required a lot of physical exertion. This thing was like a thick and heavy turtle shell, so Tang Yue often worked for a period of time. , rest for a while.

"I can't explain clearly. I feel that there has been some change in my thoughts... I don't seem to care about life or death anymore." Tang Yue said, "I feel that my life has merged with the universe. One day, I have reached the highest state of unity between man and nature. Now I begin to understand the thoughts of Sakyamuni and Jesus. Old cat, do you think I am really going to become a Buddha..."

“I’ll be your uncle and speak human language!”

"Well, I just think that the materials need to be divided equally." Tang Yue replied dully, "Two people, each of them gets 50% of it. This is the most fair. Is there any problem?"

The large solar panel was placed on the ground and supported on a shelf, about half a meter above the ground. This thing was actually very heavy and could not be bumped, so it was inconvenient to transport. Tang Yue always used a small cart. Transport the solar panels into the garage.

"There is no problem with equal sharing." Old Mao lowered his voice, "But Tang Yue, have you ever thought about it? There is only one Eagle spacecraft, and it can only be used once."

Tang Yue was stunned, "I know."

There is only one Eagle spacecraft and it can only be used once. This means that Tang Yue has only one chance to deliver supplies, and this 400-kilometer express delivery has only one chance to deliver.

After delivering this cargo, Tang Yue will lose all the ability to escape from the surface of Mars. Ophiopogon japonicus will no longer be able to obtain any supplies. The space station lacks self-sustainability. In other words, Tang Yue can only run out of supplies and ammunition. Even if that day is postponed, it is impossible to change this result. There will still be no change in the outcome of Ophiopogon japonicus.

Old Mao lowered his voice, "That girl's ending has been written long ago, and no one can change it, but you are different. On Mars, your self-sustainability is much stronger than on the space station, and you have more and more complete supplies and tools. , you may still have a chance of long-term survival.”

Tang Yue raised his eyebrows.

"If you give away half of the supplies, then you are killing yourself." The old cat said in a serious tone, "You can't save her at all. At most, you will only delay the girl's death, but you will be cheated. Own!"

"I have made up my mind, there is no need to persuade me any more." Tang Yue waved his hand, "If I say give half, I will give half, not even one gram less."

"you……"

Tang Yue slowly got up, walked to the garage door, and turned the handle hard.

With a "beep" sound, the green indicator light came on, the garage door slowly opened, and Tang Yue saw the tall front of the Mars rover again.

The structure of the garage is very simple. It is just a container with the logo of China's XCMG Group on it. It is used to house and protect the Mars rover. When Tang Yue was cleaning up the Kunlun Station, he conducted a comprehensive inspection of the Mars rover and then parked the car. According to the original plan, the garage door will not be opened again until two years later.

The name of this Mars rover is "Mars Stray Dog". It is the only means of transportation for the scientific expedition team on the surface of Mars. It is eight meters long, three meters wide and three meters high. It has six metal wheels and is about the same size as a truck. About the same size.

Compared with those lunar rovers the size of a human-powered tricycle, this Mars rover is really huge. The front of the car is a crew cabin, which can carry four people including the driver. Since the cabin is not airtight, the people in the car must wear space suits. .

Mars Stray Dog is a mobile laboratory, with a trolley towed by a hinge behind the front of the vehicle. In fact, the trolley can be replaced with an experimental cabin.

During the mission, the geologists in the scientific expedition team often drove this car, pulling drilling bits and geological hammers around. The top speed of the Martian stray dog ​​can reach 30 yards per hour, which is no faster than a bicycle. How much, so Tang Yue also called this vehicle a Mars tractor.

Tang Yue stepped into the garage and glanced at the thermometer hanging on the wall.

minus twenty-five degrees Celsius.

The temperature inside the garage is much higher than outside. At this time, the temperature outside is at least minus 40 degrees. When the sun sets, the temperature will further drop to minus 70 degrees.

The reason why the garage can maintain a relatively stable temperature is because there is an isotope thermoelectric generator, also known as an RTG.

The isotope thermoelectric generator looks like a half-meter-high cylinder with six lamellar spokes mounted on the outer shell.

This generator uses the radioactive element plutonium-238 as an energy source and does not require external sunlight. Plutonium-238 will steadily release heat during decay. The generator uses the temperature difference caused by the radioactive source to generate electricity.

Some of the heat is lost to the air, so the temperature in the garage remains stable.

In addition, the half-life of plutonium-238 is as long as eighty years, which means that Tang Yue will not be able to use this thing in his lifetime.

Tang Yue pulled out the trolley and then loaded the solar panels onto the trolley.

"Old Cat, do you know how Marx defined people?"

"people?"

Tang Yue dragged the cart and nodded, "Marx said that the essence of human beings is the sum of all social relationships. After all, humans are still social animals. They need to stay together for warmth. A person cannot survive in this world."

"So you gave half of the supplies to Miss Maidong, are you afraid of being lonely?"

"Old cat, you are a robot. I'm afraid you can't understand our feelings."

Panting, Tang Yue dragged the cart into the garage, unloaded the solar panels, then turned around and continued to carry the panels, "The reason why I can still talk to you like this now is because my brain has not been able to accept the fact that the earth has disappeared. , if one day I figure this out and my mind finally turns around, I might have a nervous breakdown."

The old cat was silent.

"Fortunately, the earth is too far away. I can't see or touch it here, so my subconscious can trick my brain into saying that the earth still exists." Tang Yue continued, "If the earth disappears right in front of me, then I'm afraid. It’s not like you’re going to go crazy right then and there… Surviving alone is scarier than dying together.”

There was no sound on the channel, and the old cat never spoke.

"Old cat?"

"Human beings are really complex creatures." The old cat shook his head, "Sometimes you don't put survival as your first priority. This is a shameful betrayal."

"Betrayal?" Tang Yue asked, "Who did I betray?"

"You betrayed your genes." The old cat said, "Genes are selfish. Their purpose is to survive and pass on, and you will die before you can pass it on."

"You're fucking making fun of me for being single again!" Tang Yue was furious, "You don't have a wife either, so why are you so proud?"

"I'm a robot." The old cat said calmly, "I don't need a spouse."

"Then I don't need a spouse!" Tang Yue angrily pushed the car into the garage, then faced the vast and lonely wasteland and shouted, "What is a single dog? I, Tang Yue, am a lone desert wolf on Mars! "