Graduation Season

May is graduation season at American universities.

Princeton's graduation celebrations last four days, a holiday for graduates and one of the most important moments for their families.

Many of the American students' families came to attend their graduation ceremony, and they were very proud.

Many graduates booked hotel beds for their families as early as February this year. Hotels and guesthouses around Princeton University were in high demand, and beds were in short supply as always. Princeton University had to make room in some student dormitories for graduates' families to stay for a few days.

The three levels of academic achievement are represented by three different types of gowns. The bachelor's gown is made of black fabric, with pointed long sleeves and is worn with the front closed.

The largest group of graduates were those wearing academic gowns. They laughed here, they cried here, they studied hard here for four years, and now they are about to leave.

Princeton University's master's gowns are also black, with a very simple design and no embellishments. This season's master's graduates make up one-fifteenth of the undergraduate graduates, and more than half of them will continue to pursue doctoral degrees.

Princeton University's doctoral gowns come in three colors: red, green, and black. Ou Ye chose red, Yu Lei chose green, and Ralph chose the traditional black.

Shen Qi was happy for those close to him who were earning their doctoral degrees.

The entire Mathematics Department was dressed in black gowns with gold velvet trim, including eleven Fields Medal winners, who sat in a row with an impressive air.

The Physics Department professors, all dressed in black tuxedos with light blue velvet trim, included eight Nobel Prize laureates, whose reputations were renowned worldwide.

The colors of the velvet trim represent academic disciplines: dark blue for philosophy, bronze for economics, orange for engineering, brown for architecture, white for humanities and history, and pink for the arts. Princeton professors turn out in droves; their students' successful graduation is a cause for celebration for them, and they certainly won't miss the graduation ceremony.

The lawn in front of the Nassau Hall was packed with people, and the principal's enthusiastic speech resonated with all the graduates.

With the deafening sound of gongs and drums, the fluttering of colorful ribbons, and the music starting, the graduates' party began.

"Dr. Ou, let's dance." Shen Qi approached Ou Ye and extended his right hand.

"Okay." Ou Ye accepted the invitation and danced gracefully with Shen Qi.

The two of them danced and laughed, their dancing skills were both mediocre, they were just jumping around aimlessly.

Ou Ye's tutor at Princeton, Lyndon Strauss Lyndon Strauss, admired her and expressed his desire for Ou Ye to stay and work at Princeton.

Ou Ye declined her mentor's invitation; her destination was clear: she would return to China with Shen Qi.

After the graduation ceremony, Shen Qi and Ou Ye invited Zhou Yu'an and Yu Lei to dinner at their home. The purpose was twofold: first, to celebrate Ou Ye and Yu Lei's doctoral graduation, and second, to bid farewell to Yu Lei.

Zhou Yu'an remained silent and sullen; everyone at the table except him was a PhD.

Yu Lei entered university one year later than Zhou Yu'an, but obtained his PhD from Princeton University earlier than Zhou Yu'an.

"I don't blame heaven or earth, I blame myself for not being good enough." Zhou Yu'an was completely drunk. Back then, he was the number two on the Olympic Math national team and had his share of glory.

Shen Qi advised, "There's a sequence to learning, Zhou Yu'an, stop drinking... damn it, don't throw up!"

The next day, Shen Qi saw Yu Lei off at Kennedy Airport in New York and said to him, "Yu Lei, you've followed me for three years and are the first generation of disciples in our school. After you go back, I hope you will remain humble and not arrogant. I wish you a bright future at Shuimu University."

"Little Brother Qi, I'll be waiting for you to come back in the capital." Yu Lei said goodbye to Shen Qi.

Shuimu University applied to relevant national departments to bring Yu Lei back to China. Yu Lei Princeton and has published papers in Top Four Journals. Although he has no overseas teaching experience or has never been an academic leader, Tsinghua University offered Yu Lei a good salary.

After all, Yu Lei was Shen Qi's first-generation disciple and one of his first doctoral students, and Shen Qi was the only Chinese recipient of the Philippine Fields Medal.

Things are valued for their scarcity. If Shuimu University can't get Shen Qi, they'll at least get his apprentice.

"Although you've left, your contribution to the <Hodge conjecture Algebraic Geometry Method> will forever be remembered. I hope you can carry forward the ideals of our school of thought at Shuimu University. After you return, it's all up to you. You must quickly grow into an academic leader at Shuimu University and achieve remarkable results in your field of expertise." Shen Qi's student, Yu Lei, is about to take up his post at Shuimu University. From now on, students trained by Yu Lei will have to call Shen Qi their patriarch.

"Understood." Yu Lei nodded, and said reluctantly, "Little Brother Qi, I'm leaving."

"Take care, have a safe journey, and send me a message once you arrive safely at the Capital Airport."

Shen Qi drove back to Princeton, and when he arrived at the faculty dormitory building, he parked and turned off the engine.

Just as Shen Qi was about to get out of the car, he noticed a man and a woman arguing fiercely outside.

The woman, blonde and blue-eyed, was Mary; she looked extremely angry.

The man, with long hair, was Schultz. He was pulling and tugging, muttering in German.

The verbal altercation quickly escalated into an armed conflict, with Mary delivering a swift and deadly kick to Schultz's groin.

Schultz clutched his groin in pain and knelt on the ground, while Mary walked away without looking back.

"Sister Mary's fighting power... is amazing!" Shen Qi witnessed everything. He originally wanted to get out of the car to help Mary drive away Schultz, but now it seems that he doesn't need to do anything at all.

Shen Qi got out of the car, and the Mercedes-Benz SUV beeped twice as it automatically locked its doors.

Schultz looked in the direction of the sound, struggling to his feet. "Shen, I can see you everywhere."

"Professor Schultz, haven't you returned to Germany yet?" Shen Qi had recently given a presentation with Schultz at Caltech. After the presentation, Schultz went to Princeton alone and got into an argument with his ex-wife Mary to his knees.

"Mary will come back to Germany with me," Schultz said firmly.

Why bother? Why put yourself through this? There's no need to pretend you're something you're not. I saw it all; you can't beat Mary... Shen Qi smiled and said, "Good luck."

"I lost the Fields Medal three years ago. But this time, I will win." Schultz straightened his long hair, his eyes gleaming with a fighting spirit.

"Time flies, three years have passed in the blink of an eye, and next year will be another Fields Medal year. Professor Schultz, good luck." Shen Qi waved and left.

"Shen, I'll win this time, Hodge conjecture!" Schultz's shout rang out behind Shen Qi.

"Win my ass, you're disturbing the peace." Shen Qi returned to his dorm and sent a message in the WeChat group. "I've got this sorted out here, how about you two?"

The other two members of the WeChat group are Lu Guozhen and Director Wu.

Lu Guozhen: "My progress is going smoothly, and I expect to finish in June, a month ahead of schedule."

Shen Qi (@Lu Guozhen) sent a string of thumbs-up emojis.

Director Wu: "I plan to complete it in July."

Shen Qi tagged Director Wu and sent a string of encouraging emojis.