Chapter 82: Lecturing to Numerous Mathematical Giants in the Capital! (Part 1/2)

Lu Tao and Zhang Wei arrived back at Jingcheng University at 3 a.m.

They didn’t go home but directly went to Lu Tao’s office.

Lu Tao often worked overtime until late at night and then wouldn’t go home, making do with a night’s sleep in the office.

“Professor Zhang, let’s catch some sleep now. We’ll start calling our colleagues at 7 a.m. to get them involved,” Lu Tao said as he lay down on the sofa.

Zhang Wei nodded. To ensure they would wake up, he specifically set an alarm.

Then, the two of them slept for three to four hours.

Before 7 a.m., both of them woke up simultaneously.

“Professor Lu, you drove for so long, sleep a bit more. I’ll call our colleagues,” Zhang Wei offered.

“I can’t sleep. To be honest, I’m just too excited at the moment. If Tang Feng’s proof of the Riemann hypothesis is successfully verified, it will undoubtedly cause a worldwide sensation. We would be witnesses to this historical moment,” Lu Tao said, his eyes twinkling with anticipation.

“Indeed. The Riemann hypothesis is the dream of many mathematicians to conquer. If Tang Feng’s proof is correct, he will become one of the top mathematicians in China and even the world. Jingcheng University might very well promote him to professor out of the ordinary,” Zhang Wei was also quite excited.

“Proving the Riemann hypothesis and becoming a professor is quite normal. However, I’m somewhat worried…” Lu Tao’s expression became serious.

“Are you worried he might accept invitations from those top foreign universities?” Zhang Wei guessed.

“Yes,” Lu Tao nodded, “He is fully qualified to become a lifetime professor at those top universities.”

“Getting a lifetime professorship is not easy. Moreover, those top universities might not necessarily be willing to do so,” Zhang Wei said.

“Who knows? The competition for top talent is still very fierce. Whether it’s our Jingcheng University or Tsinghua University, a large number of graduates go abroad each year. A significant portion of these people choose to stay abroad and don’t come back,” Lu Tao said with a sigh.

He was indeed very heartbroken.

After all, so many outstanding talents were going abroad!

Zhang Wei didn’t speak.

Lu Tao’s words made a lot of sense.

If those top foreign universities really extended an offer to Tang Feng, things could become quite complicated.

With the current strength of Jingcheng University, it was far behind those top foreign universities!

After all, it was 2003. Maybe in another thirty to fifty years, it could compete with those top foreign universities!

“Let’s hurry up and call our colleagues over! First, we need to verify Tang Feng’s proof process! If the verification fails, then we temporarily don’t have to worry about Tang Feng being poached by top foreign universities. If it really succeeds, we’ll deal with it then,” Zhang Wei said.

“Okay,” Lu Tao nodded.

They began making calls.

Soon, eighteen professors from the Mathematics Department arrived.

Among them were two academicians.

“Academician Gao! Academician Lin!” Lu Tao greeted the two titans of the mathematical world.

“Professor Lu, you mentioned over the phone that someone has proven the Riemann hypothesis. Is that true?” Academician Gao asked eagerly.

“Yes,” Lu Tao nodded, “But it hasn’t been verified yet. I called everyone here to leverage your expertise for the verification.”

“Where is the proof process?” Academician Gao asked next.

Lu Tao took out the manuscript written by Tang Feng.

Academician Gao was very surprised to see so many manuscripts.

Especially when he saw Tang Feng’s handwriting, he was even more astonished.

After all, his calligraphy was also quite good, and he was a member of the Chinese Calligraphers Association.

“Professor Lu, what does this person do? His handwriting is quite extraordinary!” Academician Gao exclaimed.

“He’s still a student,” Lu Tao answered truthfully.

“What?” Academician Gao’s face changed dramatically.

He really couldn’t believe that these characters were written by a student!

“Could it be that the Riemann hypothesis was also proven by this student?” Academician Gao couldn’t help but speculate.

“Yes,” Lu Tao nodded.

Academician Gao was silent for a long time.

“Academician Lin, can you believe these are a student’s handwriting?” Academician Gao asked, passing the manuscript over.

Academician Lin took a look and also showed an incredulous expression.

Then, the other professors looked at the manuscript.

Everyone was clearly deeply shocked.

“Professor Lu, where is this student now?” Academician Lin asked.

“He’s in Binjiang District,” Lu Tao answered.

“Binjiang District? How did you come to know this student?” Academician Gao was very curious.

“Academician Gao, do you know about this year’s top scorer in Dongshan Province, who scored full marks? Lu Tao asked.

“I didn’t know about that. But a perfect score in the college entrance examination, this is the first time I’ve heard of it. Did this student have extra points?” Academician Gao continued to ask.

“No,” Lu Tao shook his head, “It was a pure score.”

Not only Academician Gao, but the other professors were also incredibly surprised!

After all, even with extra points, achieving a perfect score in the college entrance examination was almost impossible.

But the student Lu Tao mentioned not only scored full marks but did so without any extra points!

This was a true genius!

“Professor Lu, is it this student who proved the Riemann hypothesis?” Academician Lin asked.

“Yes,” Lu Tao nodded, “His name is Tang Feng, a senior high school student from Binjiang No.1 Middle School.”

“I really didn’t expect there to be such an amazing student in the world! It’s truly a blessing for China! It seems we are about to witness the rise of another mathematical genius in our country!” Academician Gao couldn’t help but express his admiration.

“Academician Gao, shall we start verifying these manuscripts?” Lu Tao suggested.

“Although these manuscripts are only over two hundred pages, they involve numerous formulas. Some of these formulas also need to be verified. With just us, it might take a week. I’ll make a call and gather some colleagues from other universities to join us,” Academician Gao offered.

“Okay,” Lu Tao nodded.

“No matter the outcome of the verification, you must try to convince this student to apply for our Mathematics Department. If he’s willing, I can personally mentor him,” Academician Gao instructed Lu Tao.

“He has already applied for our Mathematics Department,” Lu Tao responded.

“Oh? Is that so? That’s really great! I was worried that once colleagues from Tsinghua University heard this news, it might negatively impact us. It seems I was overthinking,” Academician Gao breathed a sigh of relief.

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