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The spacecraft flew lonely through the vast universe, and Bai Tang's initial excitement turned into boredom. She yawned and asked Kate, "How much longer do we have to fly?"
"Still a long way to go!" Kate shifted his gaze from the virtual screen to Bai Tang. "We haven't even left the solar system yet. We need to reach the first space jump point after exiting the solar system, which requires three space jumps before we can reach the edge planet of the Alliance, Gait Star."
"Damn!" Bai Tang swore directly. Isn't future technology supposed to be highly developed? Why is the spacecraft's speed still so slow? Shouldn't it be able to accelerate out of the solar system in one go?
"I want to stretch my legs!" Bai Tang complained as she shrank into her seat. The pilot seat was ergonomically designed, making it very comfortable to sit in. Her gaze swept across the interior of the spacecraft, and she pouted. Since it was a single-person spacecraft, the interior space was very cramped; apart from two seats, there were only twenty square meters left, most of which were filled with "special products" from Earth—several types of vegetables and fruits that Bai Tang had transplanted from space to Earth. Kate had packed them all onto the spacecraft, some for food along the way and the rest to be submitted to the research center upon returning to the Alliance. Kate told Bai Tang that the research center would reward a large sum of money to whoever discovered new edible plant species, and he wouldn't take a single cent of that reward; it would all go to Bai Tang.
"Just wait a bit longer; in half an hour, the spacecraft will pass by Pluto, and we can take a short break there," Kate comforted Bai Tang.
"Pluto?" Bai Tang thought for a moment. "Is that Ming Wang Xing?"
"Ming Wang Xing? That's a nice name!" Kate praised. "This planet is covered with thick ice layers, quite similar to what is described in legends about the underworld."
"Pluto is actually named after the Roman god of the underworld in Ancient Earth mythology; he is the ruler of the underworld, King of the Underworld, governing the realm of souls after people die. Besides Ming Wang Xing, there are also Wang Xing and Neptune in the solar system. The nine planets in our solar system are all named after deities from Ancient Earth: for example, Wang Xing, also known as Uranus, is the god of the sky in Greek mythology; Neptune, also known as Neptunus, is the god of the sea in Roman mythology; Venus is named after Venus, the goddess of love in Roman mythology; Earth is also known as Eris, which is both the name of the goddess of dawn and an ancient Greek primordial deity..."
"You seem to know quite a bit about Earth," Kate casually remarked.
Bai Tang chuckled softly. "I heard all this from there."
Fortunately, she had an ancient artifact from Earth as a shield. Bai Tang squinted her eyes contentedly while watching the robot beside her making watermelon juice. It was indeed one of the most advanced household robots from three thousand years ago; its motherboard was programmed with many recipes for cooking and making juices. During this time, Bai Tang had been too lazy to cook herself; they had been eating prepared food. This led Kate to be extremely tempted and propose buying it at a high price. Naturally, Bai Tang refused, so Kate kept pestering her until she finally agreed to send some recipes to Kate's personal butler robot once they returned to Blue Star, thus freeing herself from his entanglement. Despite Kate appearing as a cool and serious handsome guy on the surface, that was just for show; once familiarized with him, one would realize he was quite a rogue.
Upon hearing Bai Tang mention its name, two bulbous eyes squinted into "＾＾", placing two cups of watermelon juice on a tray before retreating.
"Thank you!" Bai Tang picked up one cup while patting the robot's head with her other hand. She felt even happier.
Kate took a sip from another cup of watermelon juice and said to Bai Tang, "I now think that a robot's appearance isn't important; what's important is its inner qualities!"
Bai Tang responded with a chuckle; she had seen photos of Kate's butler robot, which was an incredibly beautiful figure.
Half an hour later, the spacecraft landed on Ming Wang Xing. Bai Tang stepped out wearing a specially made spacesuit that Kate had given her. Future spacesuits were not bulky like those from the twenty-first century; they were fitted and comfortable for easy movement while providing protection against heat, cold, and radiation and generating breathable oxygen—extremely convenient.
"This place is even more desolate than Earth!" Kate scanned the environment of the planet and said to Bai Tang, "Let's rest for an hour and then set off."
Bai Tang nodded and began to stroll on the ice. She recalled a comic she had read before, "Galaxy Express 999," where the final destination was Pluto. Back then, Pluto was still considered one of the nine planets of the solar system. It was in 2006 that Pluto was reclassified and removed from the list of planets.
"How could Pluto be called one of the nine planets of the solar system?" After wandering around, Kate returned to Bai Tang with a puzzled expression.
"This is related to the technological backwardness of Ancient Earthlings," Bai Tang waved her hand, summoning a figure to her side. "Let me educate Mr. Kate about the history of Pluto."
"Yes, Master!" Excited to accept her master's task, the figure slid over to Kate and began reciting information: "Pluto was discovered on February 18, 1930, by Clyde Tombaugh based on calculations by American astronomer Percival Lowell. It is located an average distance of 5.9 billion kilometers from the Sun, has an orbital period of about 248 years, and a rotation period of 687 days. The surface temperature is below -0 degrees Celsius, and there may be a layer of solid methane ice on its surface. Due to its great distance, people knew almost nothing about Pluto at the time of its discovery. Even in the largest telescopes, it appeared merely as a point of light, leading to an overestimation of its mass; it was thought to be larger than Earth, hence it was classified as a major planet."
"After nearly thirty years of further observation, scientists discovered that Pluto's diameter is only about 2,377 kilometers, smaller than that of Earth's Moon. In 1978, American astronomers discovered that Pluto has a moon. This finding led scientists to believe that Pluto's actual size is much smaller than previously estimated; it is even smaller than the Moon. Due to its low mass, Pluto does not attract its moon to orbit around itself; instead, both Pluto and its moon orbit around a common center point between them. However, 'Pluto is a major planet' had already been written into textbooks, and Ancient Earthlings continued to hold onto this misconception."
"In 2006, the International Astronomical Union established a new definition for planets: A celestial body must first be in orbit around the Sun (definition one), have sufficient mass to overcome rigid body forces and achieve hydrostatic equilibrium (nearly spherical shape) (definition two), and clear other bodies in its orbital path (definition three). According to this new definition, Pluto does not meet definition two since its mass is not sufficient; it also does not meet definition three because Pluto's orbit intersects with Neptune's orbit. If Pluto were considered a planet, then Neptune could not be classified as one either. Therefore, the International Astronomical Union decided to classify Pluto as a dwarf planet and downgrade it from major planet status..."
Kate sighed at Bai Tang: "Once we reach Blue Star, you must keep your knowledge secure; what you possess will be a treasure for Blue Star's historians who will surely compete with you for it."
Bai Tang replied: "As long as you don't leak anything out, no one will compete with me."
"No way. The knowledge you possess is extremely useful for understanding Ancient Earth; it belongs to all of Blue Star."
Bai Tang pouted: "I can make a copy of the information for you; you can claim it was discovered on Ancient Earth."
"..." Kate hesitated for half a second. "This..."
"If you don't agree, I won't let you have the recipe for your household robot butler!" Bai Tang threatened lightly.
"I absolutely won't leak anything!" Kate immediately assured her; after tasting her cooking, Kate definitely didn't want to go back to nutrient supplements and food.
Bai Tang squinted her eyes in satisfaction and said: "Tonight's dinner will be fried potato strips and sweet potatoes in syrup!"
Kate's saliva dripped down as she said, "Is there ketchup? French fries with ketchup are the best! Ah, what is candied sweet potato? Is it good?"
"You'll know if it's good once it's done," Bai Tang replied with a smile as he returned to the spacecraft, and Kate hurriedly followed him.
The spacecraft took off, instantly flying past Pluto and its moon. Pluto's moon orbits around a common point with Pluto, forming a unique angle with the planet.
"Pluto's moon has a name too; it's called Charon, the ferryman of the dead in Greek mythology, responsible for transporting souls across the river Styx," Bai Tang explained while looking at the moon.
"Charon?" Kate asked curiously.
"It's not Charon; it's Charon. Don't get them mixed up."
"Why? I don't think there's much difference!" Kate felt that the two pronunciations were only slightly different and questioned the need for such precise distinction.
"The difference is significant. Charon and Charon are both figures from Greek mythology," Bai Tang said disdainfully at Kate's ignorance. "Charon is a centaur, known for his kindness and wisdom. He excels in various arts and skills—music, chess, literature, archery, martial arts—he is almost omnipotent and omniscient. He lives in the cave of Mount Pelion, teaching unparalleled martial arts. Anyone who becomes his student, even if they only learn one skill, can dominate their realm. Legendary figures like King Theseus of Athens, Achilles—the greatest warrior of the Greek coalition in the Trojan War—and Hercules, the hero from ancient Greek and Roman mythology, all came from his tutelage. Charon can truly be considered the master of Greek heroes; his disciples are collectively known as 'the heroes of Pelion.'"
"Charon is the ferryman of the Styx and the son of Erebus, the dark god among the five primordial gods, and Nyx, the goddess of night. He is a loyal subordinate of Hades, also known as Pluto. Naturally, Pluto's moon is Charon, not Charon!"
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