I live in the Martian wilderness!

"Captain, with external power support, the Zhurong's active thermal control system can maintain the core compartment temperature stably at a maximum of..."

"It's exactly 18 degrees Celsius."

Gu Yu took a deep breath, his eyes sharpening again, filled with the excitement of witnessing history.

"Mysterious, exactly 18 degrees! This means it can not only survive, but also reclaim its home planet Mars?"

"Yes, Captain. With a sufficient energy supply, all its drive and operating systems are ready to be reactivated."

"Since that's the case, let's give it a true new life! Force power to the Zhurong's motherboard!"

"Its battery is definitely faulty. Ignore the BMS (Battery Management System) alarms. Go straight to factory repair mode, force bypass, and supply 28V directly to the CPU!"

"Understood. Power countdown... 3... 2... 1... On!"

As the command was given, the powerful nuclear-powered engine of the Tissot began to output a trickle of water.

"Sizzle—"

The current flowed smoothly into the warm circuit board without any obstruction or alarm.

The next second, the waveform in the upper right corner of Gu Yu's goggles suddenly jerked. From a lifeless straight line, it instantly transformed into a powerful and stable spike!

[Bus handshake signal detected... Decoding in progress...]

【Bootloader Ver 2.1... Loaded.】

[Identification Code: CNSA-ZR-2020]

[Factory Repair Mode: Activated]

[System clock restored: May 18, 2022...]

Then, the scene that Gu Yu had been looking forward to finally appeared.

Under the soft fill light of the silver tent, the forward obstacle avoidance camera below the mast of the Zhurong suddenly flashed red.

Then, its iconic butterfly-shaped solar panels trembled slightly, as if trying to stretch, but were held in place by the locking mechanism.

The navigation camera on the mast slowly rotated, emitting a soft hum of its motor.

After a moment of confusion as it tried to focus, the mechanical eyes that had been dormant for twenty years finally locked onto the human in front of them, who was wearing strange armor.

Its processor was probably filled with confusion: Why was there a sandstorm yesterday, but when I woke up I was in a silver house? Who is this creature with a human-like outline in front of me?

Gu Yu looked at the system time, which was still stuck twenty years ago—May 18, 2022.

That was the last day it lost contact. For this machine, the past twenty years of wind, rain, snow, sunrise, and sunset were nothing more than a long afternoon nap.

It thought it was still that boy on patrol duty, and that it could continue heading south as soon as it woke up.

Little did they know, upon waking, everything had changed. The earth had changed, the times had changed, even the starry sky above them had changed.

But at least, it hasn't been forgotten.

"Welcome back, Zhurong!"

"Xuan, take over its highest authority."

"clear."

[Injecting overlay protocol via hardwired interface... Root privileges acquired.]

Ten minutes later, Xuanjian had taken over the body of the Zhurong.

"Captain, Zhurong is online. The onboard computer is in good condition, and all scientific payloads are in hibernation standby mode."

"But I must remind you, the real challenge has only just begun."

"Rescuing the Zhurong is only the first step. Now, we need to try to contact the long-lost Tianwen-1."

"Based on orbital model calculations, Tianwen-1 entered an uncontrollable free-tumbling state after losing contact."

"Its high-gain antenna is like a runaway searchlight, scattering wildly across space. We can't predict the exact moment its antenna will point."

Xuanjian projected an irregular periodic curve onto the screen, with a huge number displayed above it: "33 hours".

"On average, we will have a window of opportunity every 33 hours, theoretically lasting about 14 minutes. We must seize it as soon as it appears."

"33 hours..." Gu Yu looked up at the silver tent.

"Mysteriously, the core of the Zhurong can only maintain low-temperature operation for a maximum of one hour after the external power supply is disconnected, relying on its own thermal inertia."

"We must ensure that it is fully alert when the window of opportunity arrives."

"Xuan, cut off the external heat circulation and close the tent."

"Understood. Executing."

As soon as the command was given, the thick flexible tube retracted instantly. The air pressure inside the silver dome dropped sharply, and the membrane quickly collapsed.

The shape memory alloy frame also made a slight clicking sound, like a folding umbrella, shrinking back into a silver metal box.

The Zhurong spacecraft is once again facing Mars. Xuan has activated its electric heater, which, with the continuous power supply from the Tiansuo, is stubbornly maintaining its body temperature.

"Xuan, try to calculate the current coordinates of Tianwen-1!" Gu Yu's voice was absolutely calm.

"Coordinates locked. Azimuth 127°, Altitude 45°. Estimated distance: 402 million kilometers."

"Zhurong, deploy the X-band directional antenna! Monitor around the clock, and report immediately upon detecting Tianwen-1's signal!"

The phased array antenna on the back of the Zhurong vehicle, which resembled a square box, slowly rose, its mechanical joints emitting a dry, grinding sound, and finally pointed firmly to the southeastern sky.

That direction was empty. Only deep blackness and a few dim stars.

But in the world of mathematics, there is a tumbling, forgotten satellite whose antenna is slowly sweeping across this wasteland at a speed of a fraction of a degree per second.

The long wait has begun.

……

[Mars Day Sol 4, 20:33 PM]

The Martian night is pitch black, with no moon, only countless cold stars twinkling overhead.

The Zhurong was like a lonely guardian, radiating a faint heat under the power of the Tiansuo.

Gu Yu sat in the warm cockpit of the Tissot, his eyes fixed on the main screen. On the screen was a countdown representing the communication window.

He had been guarding this place for a full fifteen hours, and apart from checking the thermal control data of the Zhurong ship from time to time, he had done almost nothing.

During those fifteen hours, he imagined countless times what he wanted to say to the Earth.

To say he's alive?

Did they say he found the Zhurong ship?

He said he needed rescue?

He said he misses Earth's food?

No.

The window of opportunity is only 14 minutes long, and it takes 26.8 seconds for the signal to travel 400 million kilometers round trip.

Each launch means precious time and energy consumption. He can only send the simplest, most effective, and most hopeful message.

drop!"

A crisp, faint yet thunderous electronic notification sound exploded in his helmet!

Gu Yu suddenly looked up, as if struck by an electric current!

On the main screen, the previously dormant signal strength line suddenly shot upwards!

A green, vibrant wave surged upwards, breaking through the warning line!

Downlink lock signal detected!

Phase lock complete!

[Signal Source Identification: CNSA-Tianwen-1 Orbiter]

[High-gain link: Established!]

"Connected!!"

Gu Yu practically jumped up from his chair and slammed his fist into the control panel, making a dull thud.

"Captain! We've caught it!" Xuan Jian's usually calm and even girlish voice was now tinged with excitement!

"Tianwen-1's high-gain antenna has turned around! It has locked onto us! The high-rate link has been established!"