Please provide the text you would like me to translate. The number "23" does not contain any content to translate.

23. The Return

Packing up always brings a sense of reluctance. This home now held so many memories of him and Yuchi Ankang—not the way it had been a thousand years ago before their flight, but a place where the two had lived together for two years, filled with sweetness at every turn. Lying on the bed, Zhu Anfu rolled over. “What do you think those people from the Zhou Hu family meant by their words?”

“Maybe they know something but can’t say too much, afraid to alter history,” Yuchi Ankang replied, patting Zhu Anfu on the head. “Don’t dwell on it. Get up. Weren’t you going to say goodbye to your readers online? I’ll dismantle the equipment for charging Prince, set it up in your space, and put Prince inside. And the laptop—it holds a lot of important records.” Yuchi Ankang pulled Zhu Anfu upright, looking at him with uncharacteristic seriousness. “If we really make it back, remember, even if Wang Fei and Zhao Long ask if you brought anything back, never admit to it.”

Zhu Anfu and Yuchi Ankang exchanged a long, silent look and nodded. Once back, Wang Fei and Zhao Long would have their duties, but they themselves did not—they only wished to survive. Only once their own survival was assured could they help others. “Do you think the powers we have now will disappear when we return? Will the mutated plants in the space mutate again, or revert to their old forms?”

“If it’s a result of the space journey, I think a second mutation is more likely. If our powers vanish, then we’ll just have to rely on telling history and talking about mechs to become people the state needs to protect.” Yuchi Ankang had already considered the worst-case scenario. Bringing Prince and the laptop was part of that preparation. They would never give those away—Prince, after over two years together, was a companion they couldn’t bear to part with. And the laptop was their last insurance for survival.

They nodded to each other in silence and calmly spent their last night. At dawn, Zhu Anfu and Yuchi Ankang threw the laptop into their storage space, changed into clean clothes, and with one last regretful glance at everything in the room, prepared to leave. Zhu Anfu gripped Yuchi Ankang’s hand tightly. “I feel like we’ll come back someday.”

Outside, the Aerospace City vehicle had been waiting for a long time. Yuchi Ankang smiled; in fact, the car had been parked there since the previous night. Partly, they were afraid the two would try to escape, or deliberately miss the deadline. How badly did these people want them gone?

“At least my readers will miss me,” Zhu Anfu said, taking in the seriousness of the scene. “I’m surprised, though—my editor isn’t even anxious.”

“Maybe he knows something too. Let’s not think about it. Get in. If we’re any later, they’ll probably just force us aboard,” Yuchi Ankang said, tugging Zhu Anfu forward. Zhu Anfu pouted, “What difference would another two minutes make?” Though he grumbled, he quickened his pace. It had to happen sooner or later; there was no need to make things difficult for the enforcers.

The people sent to return them were relieved when the two complied and got into the car without resistance—no need for force. They’d heard that one of them had passed level ten, and the other’s potential was over level ten. If it ever came to a fight, useless weapons wouldn’t help.

By the time they reached Aerospace City, Wang Fei and Zhao Long were already there, dressed in their spacesuits. They waved when they saw Yuchi Ankang and Zhu Anfu. “This reminds me of when we were preparing to immigrate to Mars.”

“Not quite the same feeling, is it? Back then, at least there was hope for survival. Now, doesn’t it almost feel like a death sentence?” Yuchi Ankang clapped Zhao Long on the shoulder. “Let’s go suit up. See you in the cabin.”

“After we return, who knows if we’ll ever meet again,” Zhao Long said as the two walked away. To be honest, after two years here, the sense of duty from back then had faded. The way things were governed here would never have been accepted a thousand years ago. And who knew if those in power would heed their advice? Research mechs? Those bigwigs would probably be more afraid that mechs would lead to rebellion and topple them. Thinking back, politics a thousand years ago had nothing much wrong with it, except for excessive bureaucracy and privilege.

The group filed into the flight cabin. If Zhao Long and Wang Fei hadn’t been standing with the scientists, troublemakers might have started something, giving these trouble-seeking scientists a beating. The scientists’ excitement made Yuchi Ankang and Zhu Anfu shake their heads. “So all these so-called experts really are a bit unhinged.”

“Zhao Long and Wang Fei really draw the ire,” Zhu Anfu muttered.

“If this fails and we end up somewhere else, those two will probably deal with the scientists themselves—maybe even lead the charge in giving them a beating,” Yuchi Ankang said with a hint of schadenfreude.

“That won’t happen. They’re not stupid. If we end up somewhere else, we’ll still need these foolish scientists to send us on our way again,” Zhu Anfu countered. “I think we’ll succeed.”

“If we make it back, these scientists will be treated as national treasures. But in the future, it seems all they did was study how to return; nothing else.” The two chatted idly, unable to guess what the future would hold. They could only wait...

It had to be said, future technology was far beyond what anyone a thousand years ago could have imagined. While they were chatting, the launch had already started—there wasn’t the slightest tremor in the cabin. The ground crew was vigilant in their observations. If they really succeeded, would it mean a bridge could be built between the future and the past? In truth, no one could guarantee that entering that orbit would return them to their own time. This time, their trajectory was different from a thousand years ago. But at the very moment of landing, they disappeared.

~~~

“Engineer Zhao, the rocket that just vanished has reappeared!” The space capsule that had been missing for twenty minutes was back. “It’s expected to land in the XX Desert.”

“Send a team immediately to recover them—hurry, we can’t let the Americans get there first.” The Americans’ experts had already detected the anomaly and would have received the news by now. “Move!” The research team leader slammed the table, and the messenger ran out.

Inside the capsule, the intense shaking made everyone huddle together. Yuchi Ankang clutched Zhu Anfu tightly; Zhu Anfu bit Yuchi Ankang’s arm. He wasn’t a weakling, and though touched by Yuchi Ankang’s actions, he still thought, Hell, I’m a man too. No matter his frustration, after several spins, the capsule finally came to a stop. After waiting a moment, the people inside slowly stood up. Zhao Long and Wang Fei took the lead, hesitating before opening the hatch. Where had they landed? Who was outside? All unknowns.

Gripping the handle, the two tried together but couldn’t open the door. Panic set in—the capsule wasn’t big, and if they couldn’t open the hatch soon, they might suffocate. After helping Zhu Anfu up, Yuchi Ankang joined Zhao Long and Wang Fei to force the door, and the others soon followed. At that point, safety outside mattered less than getting out at all.

As the saying goes, many hands make light work. Their combined effort succeeded in opening the hatch—only to be greeted by a wall of guns. While everyone was dazed, the gunmen themselves were surrounded by another group; the guns turned away. Zhao Long and Wang Fei scrambled out, quickly analyzing the situation. It was the Americans who’d been aiming at them, but now Chinese troops had surrounded the Americans. Seeing the familiar uniforms, Zhao Long and Wang Fei exchanged a look—they were really home.

Wang Fei quickly explained to the others in the capsule. Silence fell; those still inside cracked their knuckles, itching for a fight. Yuchi Ankang and Zhu Anfu, though annoyed with the scientists, didn’t want to lash out and followed the others out of the capsule.

After some negotiation, the Chinese side took custody of the group. The four of them boarded a vehicle together, not caring what happened to the capsule or the scientists. Anyone claiming not to be angry at those troublemaking scientists was lying.

On the ride back, the four sat in silence. No one mentioned the scientists; they barely looked at them for fear of losing their temper. The driver kept things light, but the atmosphere in the car remained heavy. What now, after returning? Where would they go from here? Zhu Anfu had said the Mars immigration plan was doomed, that disaster was man-made. If people didn’t learn from this, would things just repeat? Could they really become saviors?

“Once we get back, I’m applying for retirement,” Zhao Long said after a long silence.

“That’s probably not going to happen…” Zhu Anfu and Wang Fei replied in unison, pouring cold water on the idea. If they hadn’t spent two years in the future, maybe it would be possible—but with the scientists’ loose tongues, there was no hope of keeping quiet.

Zhao Long fell silent. He deeply regretted not silencing those scientists when he had the chance. Would’ve saved him a lot of trouble—he’d rather hide out somewhere for a few years, even as a caveman, and let responsibility go to hell.

Yuchi Ankang patted Zhao Long’s shoulder. “Don’t be stupid. Don’t overthink it. Let’s take things one step at a time. At least we’re all still here.”