The satellite television was covered in dust. Clearly, it had been broken for a long time.
They connected the power and pressed the buttons a few times, but it would not turn on.
Zhang Ming studied it for a while and concluded that a capacitor had failed and would be difficult to repair.
"Oh, that thing? I used it when I was little... Back then, you could watch it just by plugging it in. Its chips contain programs recorded in the ultra-ancient era, for educating children." The old village chief shook his head as he spoke. "You know about the satellites in the sky, right? Long ago, the Ultra-Ancient Civilization could launch satellites, but now nothing is allowed to fly into the sky."
"Why?"
"Because once they fly up there, all the machines break down." The old man pointed at the two suns in the sky. "The other sun is getting closer and closer to us."
Zhang Ming raised his head as well, vaguely sensing a faint pressure. That other sun was no good thing.
"You can buy televisions like this in the city, and they aren't expensive. If you want to go there, follow this dirt road for a very, very long way. Three to five hundred li, perhaps."
"Ah, who knows whether those big cities still exist?"
A world suppressed by a terrifying existence had once developed a splendid culture, yet each generation now fell short of the last. They could no longer even repair a transistor television.
It was a fact that truly left one sighing.
Naturally, simple electronic products such as radios existed too. They had worked in the past, but no longer did...
Doctor Little White had, of course, studied the principles of radio construction. With great interest, Doctor Little White dismantled the radios and