Chapter 438: You Dare to Come—I Won

Spring weather changes drastically; in the morning the sun shone brightly, but by evening, raindrops fell like fine threads from a gray sky.

There was fog; as far as the eye could see, the city's skyscrapers shimmered faintly through the mist.

Xu Xu Qingzhou held Er Miao in his arms, opened the window with one hand, and a cool breeze carrying the scent of earth slipped through the gap.

"It's raining again."

Xu Xu Qingzhou checked the time—six-thirty—and picked up his phone to send Song Yao a message: "Text me when you're done, I'll come pick you up."

Song Yao: "Eight."

Xu Xu Qingzhou: "Okay."

"Huh~"

Knowing Song Yao was busy, Xu Xu Qingzhou didn't disturb her, put down his phone, and continued breathing oxygen; he took a deep breath, and most of his fatigue was washed away by the cool, fresh air.

Behind him, the desk was covered with sheets of handwritten drafts.

After four days of relentless calculation, he reluctantly realized the math had hit another bottleneck.

He had thought victory was just around the corner, that he was riding the wind and breaking waves—but before the clouds parted to reveal light, he ran aground.

He didn't try, like those mathematicians and physicists, to prove the Riemann Hypothesis using physical methods.

Instead, he derived a trace formula, aiming to combine it with the earlier purely mathematical zero-density formula through a semi-classical approximation.

He had already shown computationally that the spacing distribution of the zeta function's zeros closely matched the level spacing statistics of the Gaussian Unitary Ensemble (GUE).

But this seemed to circle back to the problem from half a month ago.

It wasn't complete—or rather, he couldn't push it further.

Just as Xu Xu Qingzhou could only prove that the spacing between zeta function zeros matched the GUE up to 0.48.

His conclusion that the zero distribution matched the GUE was based on a finite sample of zeros, meaning the zero-density formulas he'd developed were useless.

He still couldn't solve the core problem of the Riemann Hypothesis.

"Keep working."

Er Miao slipped free from Xu Xu Qingzhou's grasp, landed gracefully on the floor, and walked elegantly toward the sofa to sleep.

"Lazy cat," Xu Xu Qingzhou muttered under his breath, his gaze falling back to the drafts before him.

【Zero Density Formula: 【\rho(e)\sim\frac{1}{2\pi}\log\left(\frac{e}{2\pi}\right)-\frac{1}{2\pi}】】

Only at seven-thirty did Xu Xu Qingzhou grab his umbrella and head out on foot to pick up Song Yao; driving took five or six minutes, but walking took only ten or so.

When Song Yao stepped out of her office, she saw Xu Xu Qingzhou standing under the eaves, staring blankly at the trails of falling rain.

He looked exhausted, with dark circles under his eyes.

Xu Xu Qingzhou had stayed up past one last night and gotten up again at six this morning.

He looked disheveled.

Lucky for him, she didn't mind.

Xu Xu Qingzhou shook off his thoughts, opened his large black umbrella, and walked down the stairs with Song Yao.

"Do you know what the biggest difference is between you and a shut-in?"

"I have a girlfriend."

"Huh?"

"I have a beautiful, generous, kind, adorable girlfriend," Xu Xu Qingzhou added some embellishment.

"You know all that, yet you still make me worry every day. If you can't solve those calculations, just drop them—you're exhausting yourself."

Song Yao chattered on.

"I'm in good spirits, not affected at all. Right now, it's probably just like your last 50-star promotion match—frustrated, wanting to give it one more try."

"I wasn't frustrated last time," Song Yao snorted.

"Then why did you beat me up on the sofa?"

Song the campus beauty occasionally played games with Ding Ding Jiahui, or dragged him along on her days off, enjoying the thrill of carrying him along—she'd now reached 50 stars.

According to Song Yao, it was just a simple little game, requiring only a bit of data memorization.

"It's because you kept groping me."

"."

Xu Xu Qingzhou felt a twinge of guilt and changed the subject: "Anyway, don't worry—I won't get stuck in a rut."

It was already dark; streetlights glowed, and the rain still fell, the raindrops' paths more distinct under the orange-yellow light.

The two huddled under the umbrella; Xu Xu Qingzhou could smell Song Yao's fragrance, like gardenia, and glanced at the lonely figures beside them.

Pfft, single dog.

Far better to be squeezed under an umbrella with a sweet, soft girlfriend.

Song Yao linked arms with Xu Xu Qingzhou.

It felt safe.

She couldn't help recalling when they were still at Jingda, how foolish Xu Xu Qingzhou had mocked couples who huddled together in the rain.

She asked: "So what are you going to do? Keep going?"

"I've got nothing else to do. I'll organize the drafts, review the materials again. If I still have no breakthrough by the end of April, I'll set it aside." Xu Xu Qingzhou extended his hand outside the umbrella—the raindrops grew denser.

Though he felt disappointed, he couldn't waste his prime years on just one mathematical conjecture.

Besides, according to Jingda's training plan, he'd graduate with his Ph. D. in June, receiving degrees from both Jingda and Mashengligongxue Academy.

It would mark a new phase—he should start a new project, perhaps even stay on as faculty at Mashengligongxue Academy.

Song the campus beauty would still be here for another year; he couldn't leave anyway, and could keep researching in the library.

Song Yao nodded, thinking her worries had been unnecessary—though this guy seemed scatterbrained, he was remarkably rational.

"What are you thinking about?"

Xu Xu Qingzhou smiled: "I'm wondering what project to start after graduation. Do you need help over there? I could come assist."

"No."

This guy wanted to come to her office again.

Song Yao saw right through him—and recalled some unpleasant memories.

"You dislike me," Xu Xu Qingzhou said mournfully.

"That obvious?"

"."

By now they'd reached their apartment building; Xu Xu Qingzhou shook the water off his umbrella, climbed the stairs with Song Yao, and placed it in a bucket beside the shoe cabinet.

Song Yao put her things down and said: "Mathematical calculations—I, Professor Morton, and Kelly can handle them."

According to Professor Morton, economists who can't do math might as well go home and grow potatoes to avoid shame.

"I can bring tea and water."

Song Yao, stroking Er Miao, looked at him seriously: "You can bring me tea and water at home too."

". No argument there."

Xu Xu Qingzhou had no reply; he was hungry, so he opened the fridge—but all that remained were a few eggs and leftover ribs from afternoon.

He turned and asked: "Hungry?"

"I still need to lose a pound."

"Eat, eat—you've been dieting for five days already."

"No."

Song Yao shook her head; eating noodles this late was too sinful.

Xu Xu Qingzhou rubbed his chin: "I've got a perfect solution—lose weight and eat without sacrificing either."

Song Yao raised her eyes, waiting for his next words.

Xu Xu Qingzhou said slowly: "After eating, we can do more exercise—increase the intensity. Hmm, you can be on top. Don't worry—I won't resist."

"."

"Xu Xu Qingzhou, come here," Song Yao said flatly, gesturing with a finger.

"No."

Xu Xu Qingzhou shook his head like a rattle.

"Fine, I'll come to you."

Song Yao clenched her fists tightly, ready to smash Xu Xu Qingzhou into the wall.

She'd worried he might be crushed by disappointment.

Wasted concern.

"I'm sorry, oww—murdering my husband, ugh~"

(End of Chapter)