Dead on Mars

Tang Yue kept a note of the time. Once the twenty minutes were up, he and Tomcat scooped the soaking tomato seeds from the beaker.

“The sterilization is complete. Next up would be vernalization. It’s done similarly by soaking,” Mai Dong said. “However, the soaking will take a little longer. You need to soak the seeds in water for eight hours, so you can soak them tonight and scoop them out tomorrow morning.”

Tang Yue unplugged the heater and removed the beaker from the tripod. The precious water could still be used, and Tang Yue didn’t wish to waste a single milliliter.

They soaked the seeds in water again. Soaking them for an entire night was to allow them to absorb sufficient water.

Sufficient water allowed the hibernating seeds to awaken and regain their vitality. This was the result of plants adapting to their environment over millions of years. Sufficient water often meant that the rainy and warm season was at hand—the best season for plants to grow. Sprouts would seize this precious opportunity to tear out of the ground and grow tall. The intelligence of life was often that subtle but infinite.

“How do you plan on growing them?” Tomcat circled Kunlun Station’s interior. “This place is only so big. You aren’t going to just pile soil on the ground, right?”

Kunlun Station was structured like a Mongolian tent. It had a lattice structure and a circular base plate with a diameter of about ten meters. The tiny space was already filled with accommodation, gym, medical, and research facilities. The one that occupied the most space was the desktop computer, the bathroom, and the life support system. If they had to pile soil on the ground to grow tomatoes, life would only become more miserable.

“We can’t plant them in the ground. We won’t have space to walk, and we can’t control the water and fertilizer provided. Furthermore, it could contaminate the environment.” Tang Yue shook his head and surveyed his surroundings. He pointed at a shelf along the wall. “We can plant the tomatoes on the shelf like planting flowers.”

The Hab had cabinets and shelves along its inner wall. The rack had four levels that were separated by plastic shelves. They were typically used for food, clothes, samples, and miscellaneous objects. Now, the rack was covered with food.

They put words into action as Tomcat and Tang Yue began moving the boxes from the rack, stuffing them into empty accommodation cabins, emptying out two racks.

“Tomcat, are there any suitable containers? Ones that don’t leak water or soil, and are relatively sealed.”

Tomcat rummaged around and pulled out a pile of bottles and containers. “There are another two plexiglass water troughs, which were likely left behind by Old Zheng.”

Tang Yue received the rectangular water trough, narrowed his eyes as he inspected it against the light. It was light and solid without any cracks. It was perfect for a container to plant tomatoes.

He placed the water trough on the rack, took a step back, and scrutinized it. “Let’s plant them here. Tomcat, Mai Dong, what do you think? The soil, fertilizer, and water will all be in the water trough, so it won’t make a mess.”

“A water trough can have five tomato plants?” Tomcat measured the length of the water trough. “Will it be a little too much of a squeeze?”

“That can’t be helped. We can only get our dear tomatoes to make do with it. We are sleeping in kennels ourselves, so there’s really no way to get them a villa to stay in.” Tang Yue clapped his hands. “The landlord doesn’t have any spare food either.”

“Would it be fine planting them like that?” Tomcat asked the camera behind it.

“No problem,” Mai Dong said. “Your conditions are restricted after all. The sprouts shall be planted here first. When they are bigger, we can think of ways to make space for them. Tomatoes aren’t fragile plants. They are very tenacious.”

Due to the restricted conditions of Kunlun Station, Tang Yue wasn’t able to find a better way to plant these tomatoes. There were only two water troughs left, and if they were to scale their farming, Tang Yue would have to personally build containers.

Tang Yue had previously imagined planting the plants outdoors in an experimental field. He came up with a rather complicated design—circle out a small area in front of Kunlun Station, line it with plastic sheets, then cover it with soil before scattering the seeds. Then, he could use another plastic sheet to create a sealed greenhouse… But this idea died a death. Tang Yue could tell that the plan faced great difficulties and was impractical. Not only did he lack the materials, but he couldn’t ensure the right temperature or pressure.

Right on the heels of that, he had another idea. It was to dig out a squarish pit around Kunlun Station’s periphery. He would fill the pit with plastic sheets and soil before scattering the seeds. He would then seal the pit with plastic sheets in a bid to try an underground, experimental field… Of course, this idea similarly died a death. Tang Yue was still unable to ensure a stable temperature and pressure.

Tang Yue’s third idea was to drive the Mars Wanderer over, empty the garage, and use it to plant tomatoes. However, this was still unfeasible. Even though the temperature in the garage was stable, its highest temperature was around zero degrees Celsius. Tomatoes were plants that preferred high temperatures, so it was unlikely that they could survive in such low temperatures.

Tang Yue’s fourth idea was to dig up Kunlun Station’s floor tiles, planting tomatoes in the pit he dug up. But considering how this might end up killing him, he abandoned this dangerous plan.

Tang Yue racked his brains and discussed all the possible ideas, but ultimately discovered that any method employed was blocked by two unresolvable problems. The first was pressure. The atmospheric pressure outside was too low, and the tomatoes that were exposed to it had no way of living. Second, it was the temperature. Temperatures at –50°C made the tomatoes brittle from frost. To resolve these two problems, Kunlun Station used complicated heat insulation material and an OGS, but Tang Yue had no means to create an OGS himself.

After all, he wasn’t Tony Stark.

If Iron Man were here, he would probably have dismantled Kunlun Station and built a spacecraft capable of flying through the cosmos. He would then use some baffling element as its driving force to leave Mars to seek revenge on Thanos.

And clearly, Earth had been snapped away by Thanos.

Don’t ask how Kunlun Station could be rebuilt into a spacecraft for everyone knows that the Marvel Cinematic Universe doesn’t obey the conservation of mass.

Finally, Tang Yue could only plant the precious seeds in pots.

Tang Yue was depressed to realize that regardless of what he wanted to do, he was limited by the tiny space offered by Kunlun Station. He wasn’t able to expand his living environment by even a small step.

In the harsh environment of Mars, every tiny step he took outside was a result of a quantum leap in basic science and engineering.

“That’s it for today,” Mai Dong said. “Tang Yue, Mr. Cat, the tomato seeds have already been soaked, right? Remember to scoop them out in eight hours to dry them.”

“OK! OK! Agriculture expert, Miss Mai Dong, thank you for your guidance!” Tang Yue turned to face Mai Dong as he gestured. “Miss Mai Dong, are you going to sleep? If you aren’t, shall we play FreeCell?”

“What do you mean play!? Look at the time! How can you have thoughts of playing games!?” Tomcat kicked Tang Yue in the ass. “Go take in the solar panels!”

Tang Yue donned the Radiant Armor as he angrily left the Hab.

Tomcat clapped its paws and looked up.

“Mai Dong, are you planning on sleeping?”

“Uh… I’m not in a hurry to.”

Tomcat’s eyes lit up.

“Then shall we play FreeCell together?”