On March 1, the British Antarctic Territory, the British "Carmelott" Antarctic Research Station

It was the end of the Antarctic summer, and although the sun was still hanging in the sky, the bright sunlight was particularly dazzling in the pristine sky without industrial pollution. However, on the Antarctic continent, which is covered with ice and snow all year round, the temperature still remains at minus 12 degrees, and people shiver with cold.

Black-haired, green-eyed newcomer to the scientific research station Merlin. Alone, Bannard stood on a snow-covered boulder, looking out over the empty snow-capped ice field, the blue ocean with layers of countless ice floes, and the gravel beach with a few seals and penguins scattered around.

This is Antarctica, where he has been here for three months and is about to live and work here for three years.

Indeed, in a sense, Antarctica is an extremely magnificent continent, but for humanity, it is first and foremost a cruel land.

Viewed from space, the Antarctic continent is about two-thirds the size of the North American continent, but 98 percent of the land is covered in snow and ice, and the remaining 2 percent is called "wadi valley", which is just as barren and unstoppable as lichens and insects, with even the most tenacious weeds unable to grow.

If all this snow melts, Antarctica will probably become an archipelago, because a large part of the continent lies below sea level. However, the thick layer of ice has brought Antarctica to an average elevation of 2,160 meters, making it the highest continent in Shijie.

Antarctica is also of course the coldest continent, with a low temperature of minus 89.2 degrees Celsius recorded. Due to the scarcity of evaporation. The average annual precipitation/snow in the Antarctic Plateau is less than 5 cm, and it is the driest desert in Shijie with the Sahara Desert (someone found a match left by an expedition member more than 20 years ago in Antarctica, and it was actually lit with a stroke). But due to the extremely low temperatures throughout the year. It can lock in any amount of water, so the driest continent in the whole of Shijie stores three-quarters of the world's fresh water – about 90 percent of which is in the form of ice.

Antarctica is also the place with the highest wind speed on Shijie, with a wind speed of more than 300 kilometers per hour, which is twice the speed of a typical hurricane!

Such a tragic natural environment, except for lichens and insects that have survived in the wadi for hundreds of millions of years. The interior of Antarctica seems to be dead silent.

Even sailing in the Antarctic waters is a life hanging by a thread. Here, rain, snow, wind and fog rage all year round. The endless ice floes are like iron tongs, which can easily clamp and crush a large ship. In the era of wooden ships without icebreakers and radio communications, not to mention reaching the South Pole, the discovery of the Antarctic continent alone was a pure miracle.

Despite such harsh natural conditions in Antarctica. But there are still waves of explorers and researchers coming here one after another. Most people are just here for scientific expeditions and adventures that push the limits. But there are also people who plant national flags here, so much so that they spark global protests.

And the British happen to be one of the latter.

At this moment, the blinding sunlight that lacked heat spread out directly in front of Merlin, stung his eyes, but also illuminated the magnificent scenery in front of him.

Although it is blocked by heavy thermal clothing, the bitter cold of the polar region is still refreshing. But Merlin still greedily admired this magnificent Antarctic seascape, and wanted to engrave it deeply in his mind, as if he was afraid that it would be a few days later. I can't see it myself.

Because, it's already March.

-- The short Antarctic summer is coming to an end. The long polar night of darkness and terror is about to descend quietly.

In order to escape the dark, boring and lonely polar night and return to the high-paced urban life, a group of tourists from Zuihou who visited the "Camelot" Antarctic research station this summer have boarded the "Avalon" icebreaker and sounded the whistle to embark on the return journey.

The other continents on Shijie are usually full of freely navigable oceans, but in Antarctica, the oceans are frozen in ice by the relentless cold, and the humans who stay in Antarctica have to work hard to break these shackles in order to keep themselves from being separated from Shijie.

For example, at this moment, because the summer is coming to an end, there is already a lot of ice floe on the sea, and the icebreaker "Avalon" has to transform into an amphibian, repeatedly rushing up to the ice and sliding into the sea, all the way to break the ice - from Merlin's position at this time, looking in the direction of the harbor, you can see that the hull of the "Avalon" is surrounded by a piece of blue ice water that has been stirred up, ice floes and huge icebergs, and at the same time feel the pain in your eyes because of the white ice field that has not been touched by anyone nearby.

In order to pass through this frozen sea, the icebreaker "Avalon" had to first climb onto the ice with its heavy bow, crush the ice, and fall with a bang, then climb up and down again. The ice slammed against the ship's side, creaking and rubbing, cracking with a cannonballing sound and shattering. Every time it crosses the ice, it is as difficult as passing through the enemy's trenches, and it requires constant and brave fighting......

In fact, this is a real war, a war in which humanity struggles to fight against the harshness of nature!

A few hours later, despite all the hardships and dangers, the sturdy icebreaker Avalon finally overcame the ice fields that squeezed it from all sides, entered the sunny blue ice-free sea, and sounded its whistle again to say goodbye to the snow-capped Antarctica.

And Merlin, who has been standing on the boulder on the shore. Seeing this, Bannard also stood on tiptoe and waved his arms a few times at the "Avalon" icebreaker in the distance, and then stepped on the creaking snow and turned around and walked back to the "Carmellot" Antarctic research station where he currently works.

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The Camelot Antarctic research station, which has only been built for four years, is located on a flat, solid ice field.

It is currently the largest human settlement in the British Antarctic Territory by the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and legally the administrative capital of the "Antarctic Colony".

The Camelot Antarctic research station is designed as a whole, consisting of a circular central main cabin and eight rectangular cabins connected to it. From afar, it looks like an octopus lying on the ground. Every building is built to withstand the harshest weather in Antarctica.

Eight small rectangular cabins surround the perimeter, including laboratories, offices, greenhouses, warehouses, kitchens, power stations, guest rooms for visitors, and much more. There is also a kennel for Husky Malamutes – a ride on a sled drawn by an Eskimo Malamute on the uninhabited Antarctic ice field, just like seeing penguins and seals up close, is one of the most important traditions at the Camelot research station.

As for the circular red main cabin in the center, it is a place for tourists to socialize, which is basically equivalent to a hotel lobby, with a rock climbing field, bathroom, library, video hall and other living and leisure facilities. On the second floor, there is also a beautiful restaurant and bar with a view - unlike the scientific research stations in the Antarctic region, the "Carmellot" Antarctic research station has been designed from the beginning to receive tourists and seek profits. The so-called scientific research mission is just an addition, which is quite suspected of selling dog meat on the head of a sheep, so it is nicknamed "Antarctic Hotel" by those real Antarctic scientific expedition teams.

Mr. Merlin's main job at the "Carmelot" Antarctic research station is to take care of the small greenhouse where vegetables and fruits are grown.

-- As the saying goes: The people live on food. The poles of the earth. Especially Antarctica. It is the most harsh environment on the planet, although there is no problem of weightlessness and small space in Antarctica, but the extreme low temperature, dryness, strong ultraviolet radiation (ozone layer hole), isolated and lonely life, and lack of medical care and medicine make the daily physical exertion of "Antarctic settlers" is not much different from that of astronauts.

However, due to the harsh natural environment and poor living conditions, even if you "Antarctic people" want to make some food to supplement their nutrition. It is also often difficult to suffer from a lack of raw materials - as we all know, in Antarctica there is snow except ice. If the wind blows without hail, it can really be described as an area where "there are no birds in the sky, no grass on the ground, and snowballs run in the wind". All daily necessities had to be transported to Antarctica by ship and plane, and as a result, like sailors on ocean-going ships, they ate mainly canned food, frozen food, and dry goods, and there was a considerable shortage of fresh vegetables and fruits.

In order to eat fresh fruits and vegetables in Antarctica, generations of Antarctic expedition members have come up with various methods: first, they stock up on fresh vegetables and fruits such as potatoes, onions, carrots, cabbage, and apples, which are relatively easy to preserve; The second is to use Antarctica, a natural freezer, to store a large number of quick-frozen vegetables; Then there's the dehydrated canned vegetables and fruits...... However, potatoes and onions can be tired if you eat too much, while dehydrated vegetables and quick-frozen vegetables are good for soup or stir-fry, and if you want to make a vegetable salad that Westerners love, this taste is very problematic.

Therefore, in order to provide tourists with a more high-grade catering service and eat fresh vegetable salad in Antarctica, an automated greenhouse was specially built to grow vegetables and fruits at the "Camelot" Antarctic Research Station, an "Antarctic Hotel" with the theme of exotic tourism.

So, Merlin, who had just been transferred here. Bannard found himself as a gardener who grew vegetables in the coldest place in the whole Shijie.

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Dragging his body that was about to freeze, he pushed open the thick sealed door, and stepped into the greenhouse cabin with his hands and feet stiffly. Bennard felt refreshed, and when he looked up at the vibrant greenery, he immediately felt a sense of pleasure in his heart.

Only after staying in the barren and white Antarctic continent for a long time will you understand how precious this inconspicuous verdant green is.

In addition to Merlin, who is a gardener, the rest of the "Camelot" research station always likes to come to the greenhouse to take a look at these lovely green plants when they are not working, so as to "heal" their eyes that have been poisoned by the boundless ice and snow for a long time.

-- Even without taking into account the cold and dryness of Antarctica, the long polar nights that go without sunlight for several months alone are enough to make any plant die in the dark. In order to grow these precious fruits and vegetables, in addition to providing heating to keep them warm, the research station also needs to install many energy-intensive solar lamps to keep these plants alive during the long nights.

Therefore, the survival of every green blade of grass in the greenhouse consumes a staggering amount of electricity and fuel. Because the cost of relying on solar lamps to grow vegetables is too high, mushrooms and sprouts must be grown to supplement the lack of vegetables during the long dark polar nights.

Just as Merlin was holding a delicate aluminum hoe. In the greenhouse, there are miniature tomatoes called cherry tomatoes, miniature white radishes the size of ping-pong balls, and small green cucumbers that are not yet ripe. When there was a cute little strawberry, a clear voice suddenly sounded in my ears.

“…… Good afternoon! Merlin, excuse me...... How's today's harvest? Is there anything I can use to add to my meal in the evening? ”

A blonde young man in a suit and dress walked through another small door, knocked politely, and asked in a low voice.

He was a rather handsome young man, with soft blonde hair covering his fair forehead, and bright eyes always shining with water. The overly delicate look, the seductive green eyes, and the flickering thick and curly eyelashes. There is also blonde hair tied into a ponytail at the back of her head, even if she wears a dress, she doesn't look very handsome, but it is easy for people to mistake her for a little girl dressed as a man.

In the eyes of Mr. Merlin, who is over forty years old, he is like a smart long-haired sheepdog. But it's always a little timid. At a glance, you can see that he is a very shy and good child.,Even if you're acquainted, you're still very polite.,It's very impressive.。

-- In today's Britain, you can see bear children with tattoos, drinking and smoking marijuana, and robbing houses almost all over the streets, but such a quiet and polite child has been reduced to a rare and rare animal.

“…… Yo! Arthur, you pretty little one! Alas, I'm afraid you're going to be disappointed this time. Camelot's tourist season has just ended. A batch of strawberries, radishes, and cucumbers scheduled to be picked in Zuihou were also almost used at last night's farewell banquet! ”

Merlin put down his hoe. He smiled wryly and sighed, "...... I'm afraid I'll only have to eat a canned meal tonight! ”

“…… Huh? How can this be?! It's my dad's birthday party tonight! ”

Arthur became anxious when he heard this, "...... I see some leftover tomatoes and strawberries here! Weishenme can't be picked up today? ”

Merlin pouted, "...... That's a week's worth of fresh fruit and vegetables for the entire Camelot station, and you have to eat it carefully. If we eat it all by tonight, then we don't even have a little after-dinner fruit, how do you think people will complain to me? ”

“…… If you eat it all, you can plant it again! I remember those fast-growing vegetables growing pretty fast! Arthur said disapprovingly.

“…… How can it be so simple! After this batch of vegetables and fruits is picked, Camelot is about to enter the polar night. In order to save the station's limited reserve of energy, at least four-fifths of the cultivation tanks in the greenhouse had to be idle – of course, even one-fifth of the production would have been enough for every left-behind staff to eat vegetable salad every day. But the problem is, now your father has suddenly brought so many ...... to serve as soldiers."

Merlin squinted at Arthur, "...... I'm afraid that even fresh vegetable soup can't be drunk every day! ”

-- As an "Antarctic Hotel" with the theme of tourism, whenever the summer in Antarctica ends and a group of tourists leave Zuihou, most of the service staff and staff at Camelot Station will also board an icebreaker or plane to leave, so as to save the huge cost of spending the winter in Antarctica -- the cost of living in this place is not ordinarily high -- usually only three or four people are left to be in charge of "housekeeping" during the long polar nights.

However, at the beginning of February of that year, a series of sharp conflicts suddenly broke out between Britain and Argentina over the ownership of the Malvinas Islands and the British Antarctic Territory, and for various reasons, the contradictions escalated rapidly.

Although Argentina's economy has been weak in recent years, its national strength is too weak, and it has no courage to fight another Falklands war, it is very good at putting on a show, and it actually sent an army to its Antarctic research station with great fanfare, and is full of nonsense to attack an "Antarctic war"!

In this way, the British also had to respond, although they knew that there was no way to fight in a ghost place like Antarctica, and the Argentines were putting on a show, but in order to deal with public opinion, they still pinched their noses and also sent an army unit to Antarctica for "armed defense of the Antarctic territory".

However, the Antarctic continent is really not a suitable place to live, and this British Army unit, which has come from thousands of miles, can only stay in the "Antarctic Hotel" of the "Camelot" Antarctic Research Station. For this reason, not only did they fail to serve the country, but also squeezed out some of the daily necessities of the people left behind at Camelot, especially precious fresh fruits and vegetables, so it is no wonder that Merlin is full of complaints about this.

Still, Arthur has a way to achieve his goal, because Mr. Gardener's own ass is really unclean.

“…… Mr. Merlin, I'm not very good at threatening people, but ......"

Arthur suddenly reached out and pulled open a freezer-shaped soilless incubator, revealing the pungent smell of greenery inside, "...... For a guy who uses public sun lamps and cultivation equipment to grow marijuana in the coldest place in the whole shijie to make extra money...... Oh, the purest Antarctic cannabis, bringing you the unique comfort of the Antarctic iceberg...... What do you think would happen if I leaked this to the media? ”

- A moment later, Arthur left contentedly with a large basket of fresh fruits and vegetables, leaving Merlin stunned as he stared at the emptied greenhouse.

“…… Alas, another innocent and kind good lad has unfortunately degenerated into a little villain! After a moment of silence, Merlin finally scratched his head with a wry smile, "...... Well, the purest Antarctic cannabis that gives you the unique comfort of an Antarctic iceberg? This advertising slogan seems to feel good, and next time you can print it directly on the bag with a color printer, and sell it when the tourists come again......" (To be continued......