A genius? I just love studying.

Chapter 146 To hell with the IMO rules
Saclay University, marking room
The professors sat in front of their computers, grading the IMO papers.

"The windmill is spinning?"

"My God, is the competition organizers not planning to let anyone get a perfect score this year?"

One professor almost burst out laughing when he saw the last question.

"There are quite a few prodigies among these kids. In previous years, there were many sessions with extremely difficult questions, yet there were still full-mark contestants."

The professors chatted as they graded the papers.

"Oh! Who says otherwise!"

Suddenly, a professor exclaimed in surprise, "Look at this perfect score!"

"I have one here too!"

Another professor added, "Take a look at this question. I think it might deserve a special award!"

Upon hearing this, the other professors immediately put down what they were doing and gathered around.

"The first question?"

People were puzzled when they saw the solution interface released by the professor.

"Huh, the pigeonhole principle!"

"Wonderful!"

Soon, the professors who had seen the solution discovered the secret.

The question itself is not difficult; 89% of the participants solved it. However, the other participants all used proof by contradiction to deduce a contradiction based on the two conditions given in the question, which was quite conventional.

This answer sheet directly utilizes the pigeonhole principle, and the solution process is very concise, making it easy for anyone to understand at a glance.

Solving complex problems using simple principles is an important skill for mathematicians. The problem itself is not difficult, but this solution certainly deserves a special prize.

The professors present unanimously agreed to the proposal.

In this joyful atmosphere, the marking of papers came to an end.

The professors didn't leave; instead, they excitedly gathered behind the head of the grading team.

To ensure fairness, the papers are graded anonymously, so no one knows whose paper they are grading. However, once the grading is complete, they will naturally know who owns the papers.

The first one to be picked out was naturally the exam paper that won the special prize.

"Hui Chen, China!"

Upon seeing this information, the professors' initial excitement turned into mixed feelings.

Then they picked out several perfect answer sheets, including one from a handsome Russian guy, one from a Moldovan boy, and three from China!
"China is indeed very accomplished in competitions!"

Upon seeing this result, the professors grading the papers couldn't help but sigh.

Of the six perfect scores, China accounted for four!
Such things have happened before in the history of the IMO. China has proven its strength time and time again in the IMO, but in contrast, China has been collectively silent in the mathematics community.

Just then, a young man in his early twenties burst into the grading room. He didn't go in, but just stood at the door and looked at the head of the grading team, Taragra, and said, "Teacher, we received a complaint letter."

Taragra is the head of the marking team for this competition and also the chairman of the IMO competition committee.

"complaint?"

Taragra was very puzzled, wondering what there was to complain about during the entire IMO competition.

"I've forwarded it to your email," the student said respectfully.

Taragra took out his phone. Although there was a computer in front of him, it was a local area network computer used exclusively for grading papers and he couldn't check his email.

"A special solution to the cubic Diophantine equation, Hui Chen, Jiangcheng University?"

He quickly extracted the key information.

interesting!
"Go and get a laptop, and also some draft paper."

"Taragram said to his students."

The student walked straight into the marking room, placed the notebook in front of the teacher, and then put a stack of draft paper aside.

He was prepared long ago!
Taragra gave the student an approving look, then eagerly turned on his computer and started browsing the official website of the Journal of Pure and Applied Mathematics.

The paper is real!
He quickly got the accurate answer.

He opened the paper and began to read it carefully. Before long, he started doing calculations on the draft paper.

The student also seemed somewhat helpless.

At this point, shouldn't the correct approach be to call over the participants from China to confirm whether the author of this paper is indeed that participant?
But you can't expect a scholar to do administrative work flawlessly.

"Hey friends, I think you should take a look at this paper!"

Twenty minutes later, Taragra stopped writing, looked up at the other professors in the grading room, and said excitedly.

Without him even needing to remind them, the other professors had already started watching from the sidelines. Some were also doing calculations, but they weren't as fast as Talagran in verifying the equations, because Talagran himself was a researcher of Diophantine equations.

"If it really was published by that young Chinese guy, that would be so exciting! He's only a teenager!"

"Perhaps he is the next Schultz!"

"It's too difficult to reach Schultz's level, but he will definitely achieve something in mathematics."

The professors got into an excited discussion, seemingly forgetting all about the complaint.

"Teacher, should we go and call the Chinese team over to explain?"

The student tentatively asked if, as an organizing committee member, he did indeed need to do something.

"explain?"

"Explain what?"

"Taragra asked incredulously."

"Of course, we need to confirm the author of this paper. The institution is Jiangcheng University. If it really is that participant, then according to the IMO rules, we should disqualify him from the IMO and invalidate his results!"

"Oh, my dear child, to hell with the IMO rules!"

Taraglan didn't hesitate to swear, "If this paper really was written by that kid, it would be an honor for the IMO to award him a gold medal!"

The student stood there, speechless, completely helpless against his capricious teacher.

He still doesn't understand. It's just a Q1 SCI paper. It is indeed an excellent achievement, but it's not enough to make the IMO feel honored, is it?

"That's right, we need to talk to the Chinese team. We need to confirm first whether these two people are the same person!"

Talagran quickly added, "Those damn Americans, they can't compete on the field, so they resort to these dirty tricks, it's disgusting!"

Disgusting!

……

"Chen Hui, come with me to the event organizing committee."

In a hotel near Saclay University, Xu Zhiyuan came to Chen Hui's room and said with a serious expression, "Your paper on Diophantine equations has been published, and someone has complained that you are not eligible to participate in the IMO. Now the competition organizing committee wants us to come in for questioning."

"Isn't my student registration still at Rongcheng No. 2 Middle School?"

Chen Hui frowned, not expecting such a twist. He was about to win the IMO gold medal and gain free attribute points.

He didn't want to lose that one free attribute point. "It's not that simple!"

Xu Zhiyuan frowned. "I have already submitted your student status information to the organizing committee, but someone is definitely behind this. If that's the case, they won't listen to your explanation. Since you published the paper under the name of Jiangcheng University, they can also consider you a university student. The definition of student status in China is not exactly the same as in the West. This is very tricky!"

He didn't expect Chen Hui's paper to be published so quickly, and he certainly didn't expect that someone would find it and then report it to the competition organizing committee.

Both of them looked very serious throughout the journey, and even the September sun in Paris seemed to become much hotter, making them feel irritable.

Twenty minutes later, the two, covered in sweat, walked into the event organizing committee office.

Hey!
Good guy!
There were more than a dozen professors in the office. Were all the professors from Saclay University present?
Seeing this situation, Chen Hui and his companion couldn't help but feel a sense of foreboding.

"You're Chen Hui?"

Taragran looked at the young boy with his innocent face and felt a surge of emotion.

He's young! He's young!
"Yes!" Although he was feeling heavy-hearted, Chen Hui did not show any fear. When the time came, if he really couldn't get this little bit of free attribute points, then so be it.

Did you write this paper?

Taragra took out a stack of A4 papers that he had just printed and placed them in front of Chen Hui.

"Yes!"

Chen Hui nodded again.

"God!"

"It's really you!"

"How old are you?"

Taragra stared intently at Chen Hui, his expression excited as he asked.

Almost all the professors in the office had the same reaction.

This?
Chen Hui was somewhat puzzled; this didn't seem like a formality to interrogate someone.

"The sixteenth." Chen Hui answered truthfully again. His birthday was the fifteenth of August, but he always celebrated his birthday according to the lunar calendar. The fifteenth of August is an important festival in China.

Unfortunately, this year there is a leap month in June, which means the Mid-Autumn Festival will be later than usual, falling on October 10.6th, which coincides with National Day.

Jesus!

The office erupted in excitement. To have such insight at such a young age, even if he doesn't reach Schultz's level in the future, he will surely achieve great things.

"Would you be interested in being my student?"

Taragra extended an olive branch directly to Chen Hui, clearly unaware of Kongnie's ordeal.

Chen Hui and Xu Zhiyuan exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with doubt. This didn't seem like an interrogation.
"I'm sorry, I already have a teacher."

Chen Hui politely declined.

The professors, who had initially been prepared to criticize Taragra for his lack of martial ethics, fell silent, their faces filled with disappointment.

"I have studied Diophantine equations for 23 years. I have published a paper on Diophantine equations in the Annals of Mathematics, titled 'The Undecidability of Diophantine Equations with Mixed Quantifier Prefixes for Integer Polyhedra,' and another paper in the Acta Mathematica Sinica, titled 'The Undecidability of Diophantine Equations with Mixed Quantifier Prefixes for Elliptic Curves over Function Domains.'"

Taragran was still somewhat unwilling to give up, and continued, "If you are interested in Diophantine equations, I believe I can offer you a lot of help and save you from many detours!"

“Mathematicians’ time is very valuable. If you feel that I can no longer help you, you can go to the École Normale Supérieure or Princeton.”

He is very confident in his field of research.

Chen Hui simply shook his head apologetically. He wasn't really that interested in Diophantine equations yet. If publishing a higher-level paper could earn him free attribute points, he might look into it later, but not now.

"Alright, young man, good luck!"

Taragra felt a little regretful, but offered his heartfelt blessings.

Theoretical mathematics can be said to be the purest research in the world, without so many vested interests. Every theoretical breakthrough helps other mathematicians. They are pooling the world's resources to build a edifice leading to the truth!
Even if Chen Hui doesn't choose him as his teacher, he will still sincerely wish Chen Hui well as long as Chen Hui achieves remarkable results.

Xu Zhiyuan was truly stunned. He had prepared himself to engage in a heated debate with the assembled scholars, determined to save Chen Hui's gold medal. He never expected things to turn out this way.

"Mr. Tarragran, is there anything about the IMO competition?"

Seeing that the other party seemed to think they could leave, Xu Zhiyuan finally took the initiative to ask.

“You have already submitted the materials, and we have confirmed that they are correct. There is nothing more to discuss.”

Taragra looked at Xu Zhiyuan with a puzzled expression, wondering what the other person meant by the question.

So that's it?
Both of them felt a little dazed as they left the organizing committee office. They had been prepared for a tough battle, but now they felt like they had punched cotton.

"I didn't expect these French people to be so nice."

Chen Hui sincerely remarked that before coming here, he had heard many anecdotes about France from Li Zehan, and after arriving, he witnessed their level of hygiene. However, to his surprise, the people here were quite nice.

“Mr. Taragram is a true, pure scholar!”

Xu Zhiyuan nodded in agreement and gave his own evaluation.

The true, pure scholar they spoke of, after a brief exchange with the professors in the office, felt as if he had a fishbone stuck in his throat and couldn't calm down, so he simply went upstairs.

Arriving outside Konné's office, I saw him sitting behind his desk studying a paper through the open door. His newly accepted student was waiting beside him, seemingly guiding the student's research.

To maintain such a high level of study at such a young age is something that Taragra greatly admires, and of course, also feels a bit envious of.

He wasn't sure if he would be able to maintain such abundant energy when he reached that age.

If mathematicians close their doors, it's best not to disturb them, but since they're open, they're always welcome to exchange ideas.

Boom boom boom!
Knock lightly on the door three times.

"Please come in."

Kong Nie smiled and asked, "Did the IMO go smoothly? Did you discover any promising talents?"

"You really are a prophet!"

Taragra responded with a smile, "I've actually found a promising talent."

"Oh?"

Kong Nie also curiously turned his gaze away from the paper, "Tell me about it."

"At only sixteen years old, he has already published a paper in a top-tier SCI mathematics journal. I've read the paper, and it's very insightful!"

"His IMO results were also outstanding," Taragran said. "After discussion by the judging panel, it was decided to award him a special prize this year."

"This kind of person reminds me of Schultz and Tao Terence from back in the day!"

"That's rare. I'm actually quite curious now. What kind of person could you possibly be to give such an evaluation?"

Kong Nie's curiosity was truly piqued, but he was also somewhat puzzled, "Why don't you take on such a promising student?"

Taragra shook his head with a wry smile, "I'd like to, but they're not willing."

"But you might as well give it a try. If you succeed, then having three Fields Medalists in one class would be quite a remarkable achievement in the mathematics world!"

"Stop keeping me in suspense, just tell me!"

Kong Nie understood and was somewhat tempted.

(End of this chapter)