The screen was lit up, and the words "Authentication established via temporary connection" were still displayed.
Nana lifted her finger from the Enter key without saying a word.
Chen Hao stared at the line of text, then suddenly grinned: "It's done? It really is done?"
He jumped up, grabbed the welding torch from the table, and pulled his finger back just as it touched the switch. "Wait, don't get excited, what if it breaks again?"
Carl took off his glasses, wiped the lenses, and put them back on. He glanced at the green light deep inside the control panel; the light was still flashing, steadily, one blink at a time.
“It’s not broken,” he said.
Susan stood in the doorway, the testing device still in her hand, the pointer hovering at 3.2. She breathed a sigh of relief, walked in, and placed the device on the table. "The water purification system is powered on now."
Nana had already started using the tablet, saving the handshake sequence as a template. With a few swipes of her finger, five more green markers appeared on the research area's equipment list.
“We can continue,” she said.
Chen Hao spun around on the spot, his arm bumping into a parts box against the wall with a dull thud. He ignored it, instead laughing even louder: "I'm the second Thor now!"
No one responded, but the atmosphere relaxed.
Carl looked down at the blueprints, scribbling a couple of lines with his pen to add the new certification process to the design. Susan began organizing her toolkit, sorting the used chips neatly. Nana brought up the holographic projector, preparing to replicate the simulator.
Seeing them busy, Chen Hao suddenly said, "Let's not just sit here looking at the computer."
He plopped down on the edge of the table: "Let's go for a walk and see what this place has become."
Nana looked up at him and nodded.
The four men got up and left the control room.
The corridor lights were on, no longer flickering on and off, but emitting a steady white glow. Chen Hao reached out and touched the wall; the cement was smooth and free of loose dust. He tapped it twice, the sound solid.
“This wall can withstand me hitting it,” he said.
Carl walked ahead, holding a testing form, stopping occasionally to check the wiring connections. Susan followed beside him, flipping through her notebook to verify the location of the ventilation vents. Nana carried a tablet, updating data as they walked.
The first room in the living area was already built; the door frame was installed, but the door itself hadn't been put on yet. Chen Hao pushed open the door and peeked inside. The kitchen was in the corner, with a cement stove covered by a metal plate. He patted it down: "Much better than my university dorm."
"What was your college dorm like?" Susan asked.
"Leaky roof, power outage, more rats than people."
"That's definitely not as good as here."
The next room was a storage room. The shelves were welded from sheet metal and stood neatly against the wall. Karl squatted down to check the anchor bolts, tightened them, and nodded: "Stable."
Further ahead was the rest area. Three beds were placed side by side, the mattresses made of recycled materials, looking neither too soft nor too firm. Chen Hao plopped down on one, bouncing it a couple of times: "Still sleepable."
“Your weight is not representative of the general experience,” Carl said.
"Why don't you give it a try?"
Carl ignored him and continued walking.
Passing through the main passage, they arrived at the outer edge of the research area. The walls here were twice as thick, the windows were small, and metal mesh had been added. Nana brought up the projector, compared it with the design drawings, and confirmed the dimensions were correct.
"The waterproof layer is double-layered," she said. "Rainwater won't seep in."
"Remember the roof leaking last time?" Chen Hao turned around. "Now at least we don't have to use basins to catch the water."
Susan glanced at him: "You actually remember that?"
"Of course, that night my pillow was full of water, and I slept like I was in a hot spring."
No one laughed, but the atmosphere became a little more relaxed.
At the end of the path lies a newly built public space. There are no walls here, only a foundation, and a few lights hang from the ceiling. The center is open, and the floor is covered with a non-slip coating.
Chen Hao stood in the middle and walked around: "Will we be holding meetings here from now on?"
“For now,” Nana said. “Once the signal interference problem is resolved, we can install a sound system.”
"As long as there's a place to sit, that's fine."
Susan took a small oil lamp from her bag, made from a discarded can, and poured some recycled oil into it. She lit it and placed it on the ground. The flame flickered a couple of times, then settled, illuminating the surrounding area.
The four of them sat down in a circle.
“We used to rely on the weather for even our drinking water,” Susan said, looking at the firelight. “We’d collect water when it rained, and conserve it when it didn’t. Now we even have a water purification system.”
Carl leaned against the wall, twirling his pen twice: "This is not the end, it's the beginning. If we can fix a welding torch today, we can build the entire production line tomorrow."
Nana added, "There are still 76% of the technical documents in the database that haven't been fully parsed; that's enough to study for ten years."
Chen Hao grinned: "Then I'll try to live to eighty."
The three of them glanced at him.
He shrugged. "What, you don't believe I can live that long?"
“I believe you,” Susan said, “as long as you don’t slack off.”
"When have I ever slacked off?"
“Last time you moved stones, you had to rest three times.”
"That was a tactical adjustment of breathing."
Karl shook his head without speaking, but the corner of his mouth twitched slightly.
Nana opened her tablet and brought up the holographic projection. The 3D model of the base floated in the air, and the green area was slowly expanding. Most of the residential area was lit up, and several points in the research area also turned green.
“This is the current situation,” she said.
Chen Hao reached out and poked the projector: "Can vegetables be grown on this plot of land?"
"The soil samples have not yet been analyzed."
"Then let's try one first."
“A greenhouse could also be considered,” Susan said. “If there is a stable power supply and the temperature can be controlled.”
"What about the communication array?" Chen Hao asked. "Can we try sending a signal out?"
“It’s risky,” Carl said. “Insufficient power could attract attention.”
"Let's leave it for now and talk about it later."
Nana changed the direction of the model: "The next step is to expand the power grid to cover all functional areas."
"Are there enough materials?"
"Enough is enough, but we must be frugal."
"I know," Chen Hao nodded, "We can't spend it recklessly."
The flame flickered and reflected on the faces of the four people.
No one was in a hurry to get up.
They've been so busy lately, constantly solving problems, fixing equipment, building structures, and rushing to meet deadlines. Now, for the first time, they've stopped to look at what they've built, and they feel a little different.
I wasn't excited, nor was I tired.
It's a feeling of security.
This place is no longer a ruin, no longer a temporary shelter.
It started to feel like a home.
Chen Hao suddenly said, "No matter how many people come in the future, or what big things happen, this is our home."
No one objected.
Susan nodded slightly. Carl glanced at the surrounding walls, said nothing, but his expression changed. Nana stared at the projection, her finger swiping across the screen to mark the newly planned area.
“We can build a warehouse,” she said, “and dig a drainage ditch.”
“Weld the kitchen stove in place first,” Carl said. “It’s still movable, which is unsafe.”
"I'll do it tomorrow," Chen Hao said, raising his hand.
"You have heatstroke today," Susan reminded her.
"That was an accident."
"The next accident could be even more serious."
I will be careful.
Nana closed the tablet, and the projection disappeared. The flames were still burning, the light not large, but enough to illuminate the room.
The four remained seated, and no one mentioned leaving.
It was getting dark outside, and a cool breeze was blowing in through the window that wasn't completely sealed.
Chen Hao rubbed his arms: "We need to install heating."
“Not a high priority,” Carl said. “Let’s wait until the main structure is fully powered up.”
"Too."
Susan stood up, put away the oil lamp, and the fire went out. Darkness rushed in for a second, then the lamp above her head came on.
“The circuit is stable,” she said.
Everyone got up and walked towards the control room.
On the way, Nana suddenly stopped and looked at the electrical distribution box at the end of the corridor.
The red light was originally off, then it flashed briefly and then went off again.
She frowned.
"What's wrong?" Chen Hao asked.
She didn't answer, but quickly walked over, opened the box, and checked the internal wiring.
The ammeter reading is normal, and the voltage is stable.
But she noticed that the color of one of the wires had changed, from blue to light gray.
She reached out and touched it; the outer layer of the thread was a little warm.
“There’s a problem,” she said.
Carl came over, glanced at it, and said, "This wire shouldn't be here."
“It switches automatically,” Nana said. “The system detects load changes and activates the backup circuit.”
When did this happen?
"Right while we were in a meeting."
Chen Hao scratched his head: "You mean... the system makes the decision itself?"
Nana stared at the circuit, her voice lowering: "It's starting to learn."
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