She heard a male voice softly calling her name.
她听到有个男声在轻轻叫自己的名字。
Ye felt weak. She fell back to sleep. As she dozed, the roar kept her company. Before long, she woke again. Now the numbness had disappeared and the pain reasserted itself: Her head and the joints of her limbs ached, and the breath coming out of her mouth felt scalding hot. Her throat hurt so much that swallowing spittle felt like it was a piece of burning coal.
叶文洁感到一阵虚弱，又昏睡过去，朦胧中轰鸣声一直伴随着她。时间不长，她再次清醒过来，这时麻木消失，痛苦的感觉出现了：头和四肢的关节都很痛，嘴里呼出的气是发烫的，喉咙也痛，咽下一口唾沫感觉像咽下一块火炭。
“You have a high fever,” the man said.
“你在发高烧。”那人说。
Ye Wenjie heard a loud, continuous roar. She didn’t know how much time had passed. The noise came from all around her. In her vague state of consciousness, it seemed as though some gigantic machine was drilling into or sawing through the block of ice that held her. The world was still only darkness, but the noise grew more and more real. Finally, she was certain that the source of the noise was neither heaven nor hell, and she remained in the land of the living. She realized that her eyes were still closed. With an effort, she lifted her eyelids. The first thing she saw was a light embedded deeply in the ceiling. Covered by a wire mesh that seemed designed to protect it, it emitted a dim glow. The ceiling appeared to be made of metal.
不知过了多长时间，叶文洁听到了沉重的轰鸣声。这声音来自所有的方向，在她那模糊的意识中，似乎有某种巨大的机械在钻开或锯开她置身于其中的大冰块。世界仍是一片黑暗，但轰鸣声却变得越来越真实，她终于能够确定这声音的来源既不是天堂也不是地狱。她意识到自己仍闭着眼睛，便努力地睁开沉重的眼皮——首先看到了一盏灯，灯深嵌在天花板内部，被罩在一层似乎是用于防撞击的铁丝网后面，发出昏暗的光，天花板似乎是金属的。
“Where am I?” Wenjie’s voice was so weak that she couldn’t be sure it was her own.
“这是哪儿？”叶文洁无力地问，感觉声音不是自己发出的。
“On a helicopter.”
“在飞机上。”
“You’d better lie back down,” the man with the glasses said. He helped her down and covered her with the coat again.
“还是躺下吧。”戴眼镜的军人说，扶她重新躺下，把大衣盖好。
She turned her head and saw two men wearing the same kind of military coat that Representative Cheng had worn. But unlike her, both of these men had on the cotton cap of the PLA, a red star sewn onto the front. Their coats were unbuttoned, and she could see the red-collar insignia on their army uniforms. One of the men wore glasses.
叶文洁转过头，看到旁边有两个穿着和程代表一样的军大衣的人，不同的是他们都戴着有红五星的军绵帽，敞开的大衣露出了里面军服上的红领章，其中一名军人戴着眼镜。
Ye discovered that she was covered by a military coat as well. The clothes she was wearing were dry and warm.
叶文洁发现自己也盖着一件军大衣，身上的衣服是干的，很暖和。
She struggled to sit up, and to her surprise, succeeded. She looked out the porthole on the other side. Rolling clouds slowly drifted by, reflecting the dazzling sunlight. She pulled her gaze back. The narrow cabin was filled with iron trunks painted military green. From another porthole she could see flickering shadows cast by the rotors. She was indeed on a helicopter.
她吃力地想支起身，居然成功了。她看到了另一边的舷窗，窗外是缓缓移去的滚滚云海，被阳光照得很刺眼；她赶紧收回目光，看到狭窄的机舱中堆满了军绿色的铁箱子，从另一个舷窗中可以看到上方旋翼的影子。她猜自己可能是在一架直升机上。
“Ye Wenjie, did you write this paper?” The other man extended an open English journal before her eyes. The title of the paper was “The Possible Existence of Phase Boundaries Within the Solar Radiation Zone and Their Reflective Characteristics.” He showed her the cover of the journal: an issue of The Journal of Astrophysics from 1966.
“叶文洁，这篇论文是你写的吗？”另一名军人把一本翻开的英文杂志伸到她眼前，她看到那文章的题目是《太阳辐射层内可能存在的能量界面和其反射特性》，他把杂志的封面让她看，那是1966年的一期《天体物理学杂志》。
You’re Yang Weining? Ye didn’t say anything, but she was stunned. She saw that he kept his expression calm, apparently not wishing to let anyone else know that they knew each other. Yang had been one of Ye Zhetai’s graduate students. By the time he had obtained his degree, Wenjie was still a first-year in college. She could clearly remember the first time Yang came to her home. He had just begun his graduate studies and needed to discuss the direction of his research with Professor Ye. Yang said that he wanted to focus on experimental and applied problems, staying away from theory.
你是杨卫宁？叶文洁没有说出口，只是吃惊地看着他，发现他的表情很平静，显然不想让旁人知道他们认识。杨卫宁曾是叶哲泰的一名研究生，他毕业时叶文洁刚上大一。叶文洁现在还清楚地记得杨卫宁第一次到家里来的情形，那时他刚考上研究生，与导师谈课题方向。杨卫宁说他想搞倾向于实验和应用的课题，尽可能离基础理论远些。
“Of course she did. Why does that even need to be confirmed?” The man wearing glasses took the journal away and then made introductions. “This is Political Commissar Lei Zhicheng of Red Coast Base. I’m Yang Weining, base chief engineer. It will be an hour before we land. You might as well get some rest.”
“肯定是的，这还用证实吗？”戴眼镜的军人拿走了杂志，然后介绍说，“这位是红岸基地的雷志成政委。我是杨卫宁，基地的总工程师。离降落还有一个小时，你休息吧。”
Ye Wenjie recalled her father saying, “I’m not opposed to your idea. But we are, after all, the department of theoretical physics. Why do you want to avoid theory?” Yang replied, “I want to devote myself to the times, to make some real-world contributions.”
叶文洁记得父亲当时是这样说：我不反对，但我们毕竟是理论物理专业，你这样要求的理由呢？杨卫宁回答：我想投身于时代，做一些实际的贡献。
Yang hesitated and finally revealed his real concern: “It’s easy to make ideological mistakes in theory.”
杨卫宁犹豫了一下，终于说出了真话：搞理论研究，容易在思想上犯错误。
Her father had nothing to say to that.
这话让父亲沉默了。
Yang was very talented, with a good mathematical foundation and a quick mind. But during his brief time as a graduate student, he always kept a respectable distance from his thesis advisor. Ye Wenjie had seen Yang several times, but, perhaps due to the influence of her father, she hadn’t noticed him much. As for whether he had paid much attention to her, she had no idea. After Yang got his degree, he soon ceased all contact with her father.
杨卫宁是个很有才华的人，数学功底扎实，思维敏捷，但在不长的研究生生涯中，他与导师的关系若即若离，他们相互之间保持着敬而远之的距离。那时叶文洁与杨卫宁经常见面，也许是受父亲影响，叶文洁没有过多地注意他，至于他是否注意过自己，叶文洁就不知道了。后来杨卫宁顺利毕业，不久就与导师中断了联系。
“I still think this isn’t a good idea,” Commissar Lei said.
“我还是觉得这事儿不太稳妥。”这是雷志成的声音。
Her father said, “Theory is the foundation of application. Isn’t discovering fundamental laws the biggest contribution to our time?”
父亲说：理论是应用的基础，发现自然规律，难道不是对时代最大的贡献？
Again feeling weak, Ye closed her eyes. The two men left her and crouched behind a row of trunks to converse in lowered voices. But the cabin was so cramped that Ye could hear them even over the roar of the engine.
叶文洁再次虚弱地闭上眼睛后，两名军人离开了她，到一排箱子后面低声交谈。机舱很狭窄，叶文洁在引擎的轰鸣声中还是听到了他们的话——
“Can you find the personnel I need through normal channels?” Yang asked.
杨卫宁反问：“那你能从正常渠道给我需要的人吗？”
“Eh. I’ve done all I can. There’s no one in the military with this specialization, and going outside the army raises many questions. You know very well that the security clearance needed for this project requires someone willing to join the army. But the bigger issue is the requirement in the security regulations that they be sequestered at the base for extended periods. What’s to be done if they have families? Sequester them at the base too? No one would agree to that. I did find two possible candidates, but both would rather stay at the May Seventh Cadre Schools rather than come here Of course we could forcefully move them. But given the nature of this work, we can’t have someone who doesn’t want to be here.”
“唉，我也费了很大劲。这种专业从军内找不到，从地方上找，问题就更多了，你知道这项目的保密级别，首先得参军，更大的问题还是保密条例要求的在基地的隔离工作周期。那么长时间，家属随军怎么办？也得到基地里，这谁都不愿意。找到的两个合适的候选人宁肯待在五七干校也不来。当然可以硬调，但这种工作的性质，要是不安心什么都干不出来的。”
“Then there’s no choice but to use her.”
“所以只能这么办。”
“This entire project is unconventional. If something goes wrong, I’ll accept the responsibility.”
“这个项目本来就违反常规，出了事儿我负责就是了。”
“But it’s so unconventional.”
“可这也太违反常规了。”
“Chief Yang, do you really think you can take responsibility for this? You are a technical person, but Red Coast is not like other national defense projects. Its complexity goes far beyond the technical issues.”
“我的杨总啊，这责你负得了吗？你一头钻在技术里，‘红岸’可是与其他国防重点项目不同，它的复杂，是复杂在技术之外的。”
By the time they landed, it was dusk. Ye refused to be helped by Yang and Lei, and struggled out of the helicopter by herself. A strong gust of wind almost blew her over. The still-gyrating rotors sliced through the wind, making a loud whistling noise. The scent of the woods on the wind was familiar to her, and she was familiar to the wind. It was the wind of the Greater Khingan Mountains.
降落时已是傍晚，叶文洁谢绝了杨卫宁和雷志成的挽扶，自己艰难地走下飞机，一阵强风差点把她吹倒，风吹在仍转动的旋翼上，发出尖利的啸声。风中的森林气息文洁很熟悉，她认识这风，这风也认识她，这是大兴安岭的风。
She soon heard another sound, a kind of low, forceful, bass howl that seemed to form the background of the world: the parabolic antenna dish in the wind. Only now, when she was so close to it, did she finally feel its immensity. Ye’s life had made a big circle this month: She was now on top of Radar Peak. She couldn’t help but look in the direction of her Construction Corps company. But all she could see was a misty sea of trees in the twilight.
她很快听到了另一种声音，一个低沉浑厚的嗡嗡声，浑厚而有力，似乎构成了整个世界的背景，这是不远处抛物面天线在风中的声音，只有到了跟前，才能真正感受到这张天网的巨大。叶文洁的人生在这一个月里转了一个大圈又回来了——她现在是在雷达峰上。叶文洁不由得转头朝她的建设兵团连队所在的方向望去，只看到暮色中一片迷蒙的林海。
“You’re right, but I only know how to solve the technical issues.”
“你这倒是实话。”
The helicopter was carrying more than just Ye. Several soldiers came over and began to unload military-green cargo trunks from the cabin. They walked by without glancing at her. As she followed Yang and Lei, Ye noticed that the top of Radar Peak was spacious. A cluster of white buildings, like delicate toy blocks, nestled under the giant antenna. The trio headed toward the base gate, flanked by two guards, and stopped in front of it.
直升机显然不是专为接她的，几名士兵走过来，从机舱里卸下那些军绿色的货箱，他们从她身边走过，没人看她一眼。她和雷志成、杨卫宁一行三人继续向前走去，叶文洁发现雷达峰的峰顶是这样的宽阔，在天线的下面有一小群白色建筑物，与天线相比，它们像几块精致的积木。他们正朝有两名哨兵站岗的基地大门走去，走到门前，他们停了下来。
Yang waited until the others were gone and indicated that Ye should follow him a little distance away from the gate, clearly trying to avoid the sentries listening in. He no longer pretended that he didn’t know her. “Wenjie, let me be clear. This is not some great opportunity. I learned from the military control commission at the court that although Cheng Lihua advocates sentencing you severely, the most that you’ll get is ten years. Considering mitigating circumstances, you’ll serve maybe six or seven years. But here”– he nodded in the direction of the base –“is a research project under the highest security classification. Given your status, if you enter the gate, it’s possible –” He paused, as though wanting to let the bass howl of the antenna add to the weight of his words. “– you’ll never leave for the rest of your life.”
杨卫宁等别人走远了，向叶文洁示意了一一下，带她走远些，显然是怕哨兵听到下面的谈话。这时，他不再隐藏自己与她的相识：“叶文洁，我可向你说清楚，这不是什么机会。我向法院军管会了解过，虽然程丽华力主重判，但具体到你的情节，刑期最多也就是十年，考虑到可能的减刑，也就是六七年的样子。而这里——”他向基地方向偏了一下头， “是最高密级的研究项目，以你的身份，走进这道门，可能……”他停了好一会儿，似乎想让天线在风中的轰鸣声加重自己的语气，“一辈子都出不来了。”
Lei turned to her and spoke solemnly. “Ye Wenjie, the evidence of your counter-revolutionary crime is incontrovertible, and the court would have punished you as you deserve. But now you have an opportunity to redeem yourself through hard work. You can accept it or refuse it.” He pointed at the antenna. “This is a defense research facility. The research conducted here needs your specialized scientific knowledge. Chief Engineer Yang can give you the details, which you should consider carefully.” He nodded at Yang and then entered the gate after the soldiers carrying the trunks.
雷志成转向叶文洁，郑重地说：“叶文洁，你的反革命罪行证据确凿，将要面临的审判也是罪有应得；现在，你面前有一个立功赎罪的机会，你可以接受，也可以拒绝。”他向天线方向指了指，“这是一个国防科研基地，其中正在进行的研究项目需要你掌握的专业知识，更具体的，请杨总工程师为你介绍，你要慎重考虑。”说完他对杨卫宁点了点头，尾随搬运物资的士兵一起走进了基地。
“I can stay here for the rest of my life.”
“我可以在这里待一辈子。”
Yang was surprised by her quick answer. “Don’t be hasty. Get back onto the helicopter. It will take off in three hours, and if you refuse our offer, it will take you back.”
杨卫宁对她这么快的回答很吃惊。“你不必这么匆忙做决定，可以先回到飞机上去，它三小时后才起飞，你要是拒绝，我送你回去。”
“I want to go in.”
“我进去。”叶文沽轻声说。
“You should be cautious. Think through what this decision means.”
“还是慎重些吧，你想清楚这意味着什么。”
“I don’t want to go back. Let’s go in.” Ye’s voice remained soft, but there was a determination in her tone that was harder than steel. Other than the undiscovered country beyond death from which no one has ever returned, the place she wanted to be the most was this peak, separated from the rest of the world. Here, she felt a sense of security that had long eluded her.
“我不回去，我们进去吧。”叶文洁的声音仍很轻，但其中有一种斩钉截铁的坚定。现在除了死后不知是否存在的另一个世界，她最想去的地方就是这样与世隔绝的峰顶了，在这里，她有一种久违的安全感。
Yang lowered his head and said nothing. He stared into the distance, as though forcing Ye to sort through her thoughts. Ye stayed silent as well. She pulled her coat tightly around herself and gazed into the distance. There, the Greater Khingan Mountains were fading into the darkening night. It was impossible to stay out here much longer in the cold. Yang began to walk toward the gate. He moved fast, as though trying to leave Ye behind. But Ye stayed close. After they entered the gate of Red Coast Base, the two sentries shut the heavy iron doors.
杨卫宁低头沉默了，他看着远方，似乎强行给叶文洁一些思考权衡的时间，叶文洁也沉默着，在风中裹紧军大衣看着远方，那里，大兴安岭已消失在浓浓的夜色中。在严寒下不可能有很多时间，杨卫宁下决心起步走向大门，走得很快，像要把叶文洁甩掉似的，但叶文洁紧跟着他，走进了红岸基地的大门。两名哨兵在他们通过后关上了两扇沉重的铁门。
“It’s warmer in here,” Yang said. “Wait here a bit. I’ll take care of your living arrangements and return for you.” He pointed at a chair and desk next to the door.
“这里暖和些，你先等一会儿，我去安排好你的住处就来。”杨卫宁对叶文洁说，并指指门旁边一张桌子旁的椅子让她坐。
A little ways on, Yang stopped and pointed at the antenna. “This is a large-scale weapons research project. If it succeeds, the result will be even more important than the atomic bomb and the hydrogen bomb.”
走了一段后，杨卫宁站住，指着天线对文洁说：“这是一个大型武器研究项目，如果成功，其意义可能比原子弹和氢弹都大。”
Ye saw that someone was already sitting at the desk: a guard carrying a handgun.
叶文洁看到，那张桌前已经坐了一个人，那是一位带手枪的卫兵。
They came to the largest building in the base, and Yang pushed the door open. Ye saw the words TRANSMISSION MAIN CONTROL ROOM over the door. Inside, warm air tinged with the smell of engine oil enveloped her. She saw that the spacious room was filled with all kinds of instruments and equipment. Signal lights and oscilloscope displays flickered together. A dozen or so operators dressed in military uniform were almost entombed by the rows of instruments, as though they were crouching inside battlefield trenches. The unceasing stream of operational orders and responses gave the whole scene a tense, confusing feel.
在路过基地内最大的一幢建筑时，杨卫宁径直过去推开了门，叶文洁在门口看到了“发射主控室”的字样，迈进门，一股带着机油味的热气迎面扑来，她看到宽敞的大厅中，密集地摆放着各类仪器设备，信号灯和示波仪上的发光图形闪成一片，十多名穿军装的操作人员坐在几乎将他们埋没的一排排仪器前，仿佛是蹲守在深深的战壕中。操作口令此起彼伏，显得紧张而混乱。
Ye stood next to the main control room door. The huge antenna was directly behind her and it blotted out half the sky. From here, she could clearly hear the sounds inside the main control room. Suddenly, the chaotic orders and responses ceased, and the room became completely quiet. All she could hear was the occasional low buzzing noise from some instrument.
叶文洁站在主控室的门边，巨大的天线就竖立在她身后，整整占据了半个夜空。在这里，她能够清楚地听到里面传出的声音。突然，那纷乱的操作口令声消失了，主控室里一片寂静，只能隐约听到仪器设备偶尔发出的蜂鸣声。
“I’d rather wait outside,” Ye said.
“我还是在外面等吧。”叶文洁停住脚步说。
“I prefer to wait outside,” Ye insisted.
“我还是去外面吧。”叶文洁坚持说。
Yang smiled at her kindly. “From now on, you’ll be a member of the base staff. Other than a few sensitive areas, you can go anywhere you want.” His face suddenly looked uncomfortable as he realized another layer of meaning to his words: You can never leave here again.
杨卫宁和善地笑笑， “你以后就是基地的工作人员了，除了少数地方，你哪里都可以去。”说完，他脸上有一种不安的表情，显然意识到了这话另一层的意思：你再也不能离开这里了。
“All right.” Yang glanced at the guard at the desk, who paid no attention to them. He seemed to understand Ye’s concern and brought her back out of the main control room. “Stand somewhere out of the wind, and I’ll be back in a few minutes. I just need to get someone to start a fire in your room — conditions at the base are a bit rough, and we have no heating system.”
“那……好吧。”杨卫宁看看那位并没有注意他们的卫兵，似乎理解了叶文洁，带她走出主控室， “你到这个避风的地方，我几分钟就回来，主要是找人给那个房间生上火，基地的条件现在还不太好，没有暖气。”说完快步走去。
Everything became quiet again. Fifteen seconds later, as a klaxon started to blare, a red light on top of the antenna began to blink rapidly.
一切又安静下来，十几秒钟后，随着一个警铃声响起，天线上的一盏红灯急剧闪烁起来。
“Amplifier Unit reporting: all systems go.”
“功放单元报告：正常！”
“Transmission file number: twenty-two. Additions: none. Continuations: none. Transmission file final check completed. Twenty seconds.”
“发射文档号：22；附加：无；续传：无；文档最后校核完毕，20秒倒数！”
“Interference Monitoring Unit reporting: within acceptable range.”
“干扰监测报告：在许可范围！”
“We have reached the point of no return. Fifteen seconds.”
“程序不可逆，l5秒倒数！”
Ye felt a light itch on her face. She knew that an enormous electric field had appeared. She lifted her face and gazed in the direction the antenna was pointing and saw a cloud in the night sky glow with a dim blue light, so dim that at first she thought it an illusion. But as the cloud drifted away, the glow disappeared. Another cloud that drifted into position began to give off the same glow.
叶文洁感到脸上有轻微的瘙痒感，她知道一个巨大的电场出现了。她仰头顺着天线所指的方向望去，看到夜空中的一缕薄云发出幽幽蓝光，那光很微弱，最初她以为是自己的幻觉，但当那缕云飘离那片空域后，云的微光就消失了，另外一缕飘人的云也同样发出光来。
Then a loud male voice broke the silence. “The People’s Liberation Army, Second Artillery Corps, Red Coast Project, one hundred and forty-seventh transmission. Authorization confirmed. Begin thirty-second countdown.”
接着出现了一个压倒一切的男音：“中国人民解放军第二炮兵，红岸工程第147次常规发射，授权确认完毕，30秒倒数！”
“Target Classification: A-three. Coordinates’ serial number: BN20197F. Position checked and confirmed. Twenty-five seconds.”
“目标类别：甲三；坐标序号：BN20l97F；定位校核完毕，25秒倒数！”
“Energy Unit reporting: all systems go.”
“能源单元报告，正常！”
“Coding Unit reporting: all systems go.”
“编码单元报告：正常！”
“Begin transmission! All units continue to monitor!”
“发射启动！各单元注意监测！”
“Malfunction with Energy Unit. Magnetron number three has burnt out.”
“功放单元故障，3号磁控电子管烧毁！”
Ye heard a fluttering noise. Through the mist, she could see shadows lift out of the woods below the peak and spiral into the dark sky. She hadn’t realized so many birds could be roused from the woods in deep winter. Then she saw a terrifying scene: One flock of birds flew into the region of air the antenna pointed at, and against the background of the faintly glowing cloud, the birds dropped out of the sky.
叶文洁听到另外一种“呼啦啦”的声音，朦胧中，看到一片片黑影从山下的密林中出现，盘旋着升上夜空，她没想到严冬的森林中还有这么多的鸟儿被惊起。接着她目睹了恐怖的一幕：一个鸟群飞进了天线指向的范围，以发出幽光的那缕云为背景，她清楚地看到了群鸟纷纷从空中坠落。
From the main control room, she heard more shouts.
在主控室中，口令声又响成一片，她只能隐约听出其中的几句：
“Backup Unit is in operation: all systems go.”
“冗余单元投入正常！”
“Checkpoint one reached. Resuming transmission.”
“断点l，续传正常！”
The process continued for about fifteen minutes. Then the red light on the antenna went out, and the itch on her skin disappeared. From the main control room, the confusing murmur of orders and responses resumed even as the loud male voice continued.
这一过程大约持续了十五分钟，天线上的红灯熄灭了，叶文洁皮肤上的瘙痒感也消失了，主控室中，纷乱的口令声依旧，即使在那个洪亮的男音响起后也没有停止。
“Transmission one hundred forty-seven of Red Coast completed. Transmission systems shutting down. Red Coast now entering monitoring state. System control is hereby transferred to the Monitoring Department. Please upload checkpoint data.”
“红岸工程第147次发射进行完毕，发射系统关闭，红岸进入监测状态，请监测部接过系统控制权，并上传断点数据。”
“All units should fill out transmission diaries. All unit heads should attend the post-transmission meeting in the debriefing room. We’re done.”
“请各单元组认真填写发射日志，各组长到会议室参加发射例会，完毕。”
All was silent except for the howl of the wind against the antenna. Ye watched as the remaining birds in the flock gradually settled back into the forest. She stared at the antenna and thought it looked like an enormous hand stretched open toward the sky, possessing an ethereal strength. As she surveyed the night sky, she did not see any target that she thought might be serial number BN20197F. Beyond the wisps of clouds, all she could see were the stars of a cold night in 1969.
一切都沉寂下来，只有天线在风中发出的混响依旧。叶文洁看着夜空中的鸟群纷纷落回森林中。她再次仰望天线，感觉它像一只向苍穹张开的巨大手掌，拥有一种超凡脱俗的力量。她向“手掌”对着的夜空看去，并没有看到已被它打击的BN20197F号目标，在稀疏的云缕后面，只有1969年寒冷的星空。
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