The Great Basin Desert was the largest desert in North America.
With a total area of more than 500,000 square kilometers, it included most of Nevada, more than half of Utah, and a small part of Idaho, Oregon, California, and Wyoming.
Speaking of this desert, the first place that most people thought of was Las Vegas.
In 1888, Las Vegas was just a small town. In 1905, due to the discovery of a gold mine, a large number of gold miners poured in. However, like other gold-rush towns, after a short period of excitement, the gold mine was emptied, and Las Vegas soon returned to its previous depression. Its real rise was during the Great Depression in the United States. The state legislature passed a bill to legalize gambling, turning this city built on the desert into a city of nightclubs, hotels, and casinos.
Unfortunately, Zhang Heng and the others did not come to Las Vegas for a vacation this time.
The plane landed at the Area 51 Air Force Base, which was newly built more than a decade ago. It was located on a dry bed of sand in Nevada, only 130 kilometers away from the bustling Las Vegas.
For decades after its establishment, the United States had denied its existence. At the same time, in order to prevent curious people from approaching, the Air Force bought 9,000 acres of land around the base and set it up as an air traffic control area and a restricted armed zone.
Area 51 was originally used to develop the U-2 reconnaissance aircraft. After the development of the U-2 reconnaissance aircraft, other "black" projects began to be implemented at this base. It was not until 2013 that the United States acknowledged the existence of Area 51.
This also shrouded Area 51 in a layer of mystery. Many people believed that the so-called "green room" (where the frozen corpse of an alien was stored, and every US president would visit it. Some people even swore that they had seen a short, gray creature with a huge head nearby) was also here.
However, the three of them did not have such a good time. The person who greeted them was not a grotesque alien, but an ordinary-looking person in charge of the air force base. After shaking hands with Zhang Heng and the others, he said that the simulation environment had been set up, and they could start training at any time.
It was rare for the captain to show his humane side. Considering that the sun had already set, he finally put the training time to tomorrow morning.
After dinner, the three of them were given the opportunity to move around freely. Although it was called freedom, the places they could go were actually very limited. Basically, no matter where they went, there were eyes watching them.
The person in charge of reception even apologized for this, reiterating that this action was not targeted at them. It was just a basic security precaution.
Zhang Heng expressed his understanding, but this meant that it was impossible to do anything in the base. At least they would be safe until tomorrow morning.
This result was not unacceptable. For the three of them, this might be their last peaceful sleep. After eating, Jia Lai looked at Zhang Heng, nodded at him, and said, "See you tomorrow." After that, he was not in the mood to take a stroll under the surveillance, and returned to his room first.
Seeing that Jia Lai had left, Bruno quickly got up and followed the fat man to his room. However, he could only watch as the door closed in front of him, almost hitting his nose.
Bruno looked a little embarrassed. The fat man made it clear that he didn't trust him and had no intention of discussing tomorrow's plan with him. It seemed that he was just going to use him as a tool, but Bruno had to admit that his judgment was indeed accurate.
Bruno wanted to find out Jia Lai's plan in advance to see if there was anything he could use to his advantage. It would be best if he could kill both of them. Now that the door was shut in his face, he had no choice but to return to his room dejectedly.
Zhang Heng was the only one left in the cafeteria. He silently finished the last spoonful of baked beans in front of him. At this time, the sky outside the window had darkened. The wind rolled up the yellow sand, and the blood-red sunset fell under the sand dunes. Even if his life was threatened and he was about to face the final battle of life and death, it was difficult for him to ignore the magnificent scene in front of him.
"Magnificent desolation, isn't it?" a strange voice said.
"Sorry?" Zhang Heng turned around and saw a middle-aged man dressed like an engineer. He looked like a researcher from Area 51. He smiled and did not continue the previous topic. "You are a NASA astronaut, aren't you? I heard you are going to the moon."
"David." Zhang Heng introduced himself, put down the knife and fork in his hand, and held out his hand. "We are members of Apollo 11, but strictly speaking, we are just candidates."
"Einstein." The middle-aged man shook Zhang Heng's hand, and the latter raised his eyebrows. Zhang Heng had never seen a picture of Einstein when he was young, but after hearing the middle-aged man's words, Zhang Heng did notice that the two looked somewhat similar.
The latter then let go of his hand and smiled. "Just kidding. You know the nature of our work. We signed a confidentiality agreement before coming here. We can't reveal our real names to outsiders. How about it, Mr. David? Are you satisfied with our work here?"
"You guys seem to be doing a good job."
"You too. As early as sixty years ago, no one thought that humans could fly in the sky on big iron birds. Ten years ago, no one believed that humans could leave Earth and go to outer space. Even today, most people still don't think that humans can set foot on another celestial body."
Einstein paused. "But all of this has happened. With the help of mathematical formulas, mechanical principles, and repeated experiments … humans have accomplished the seemingly impossible again and again. Isn't this the miracle of modern society? I don't want to be disrespectful to the man who led the Israelites to establish their country, but I have to say — technology is the greatest power in this world."
It was a typical statement from an engineering student, but in a sense, it was hard to refute.
"I'm sorry to interrupt your meal. I just heard that NASA astronauts are here, so I couldn't help but come over to take a look. You know," the middle-aged man shrugged. "No one usually comes here. Anyway, it's nice to meet you, Mr. David."
"It's nice to meet you too, Mr. Einstein."
"Well, I won't take up any more of your rest time. I wish you a smooth training and a successful landing on Apollo 11 in advance. I'll be listening to your landing broadcast."
The middle-aged man ended the short conversation. Holding the mug in his hand, he turned around and walked out the door. By then, the sun had completely sunk below the horizon.
But when he walked to the door, he stopped again, looked back, and said, "Oh, by the way, I almost forgot to mention that I have a small gift for you. Treat it as a greeting gift for our first meeting. I'll leave it in your room. I hope you like it."
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