Chapter Summaries

Key Plot Points and Events

• Professor Wang attends a seminar led by E Wei'nan and Li Dong, where Li Dong discusses his universality paper.
• After the seminar, Professor Wang approaches Li Dong to discuss a matter.
• They meet in a seminar room in Yuanpei College's dormitory building.

Character Developments

• Professor Wang: He is a seasoned mathematician who has dedicated his career to automorphic forms and the Langlands program. He is initially disheartened by Li Dong's paper, which invalidates his research group's work, but he quickly accepts it as a significant contribution to mathematics. He seeks Li Dong's help to find a new direction for his research.
• Li Dong: He remains humble and respectful despite his groundbreaking work. He apologizes to Professor Wang for the impact of his paper on the latter's research group, showing empathy and understanding.

Significant Themes

• Academic Pursuit vs. Competition: Professor Wang emphasizes that academic research is not about competing to finish first but about collective progress. Li Dong's paper, while disruptive, benefits the broader mathematical community.
• Mentorship and Collaboration: Professor Wang seeks Li Dong's guidance, demonstrating the importance of intergenerational collaboration in academia. Li Dong, despite his youth, is open to mentoring an older colleague.

Character Interactions

• Professor Wang and Li Dong: Despite their age difference and Li Dong's disruptive impact on Professor Wang's research, they maintain a respectful and open dialogue. They both value academic pursuit and are willing to learn from each other.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Professor Wang reveals his past work and recognition in the field of Automorphic Forms.
• He admits he can't progress further on his own, particularly with the Li Conjecture.
• Li Dong proposes forming a research group to complete the Langlands Program and shares two potential starting points.

Character Developments

• Professor Wang: Realizes Li Dong's exceptional abilities and considers joining his research group, ultimately deciding to do so, inspired by Tycho Brahe's decision to work with Johannes Kepler.
• Li Dong: Decides to form a research group to tackle the Langlands Program more efficiently, recognizing the need for collaboration despite his independent nature.

Significant Themes

• Collaboration vs. Independence: Li Dong's decision to form a group reflects the importance of collaboration in tackling complex mathematical problems, despite his initial preference for working alone.
• Mentorship and Learning: Professor Wang's decision to join Li Dong's group highlights the theme of learning from younger generations and the value of mentorship in mathematics.

Character Interactions

• Li Dong and Professor Wang: Their interaction leads to a mutual understanding and respect, with Li Dong sharing his vision for the Langlands Program and Professor Wang considering joining his research group.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Li Dong successfully recruits Professor Wang as his advisor.
• Professor Wang takes charge of establishing and managing Li Dong's research group.
• Li Dong decides to study under Professor E Wei'nan to prepare for joining Professor Wu Kai's group.
• Gao Wen returns to Peking University and requests to be Li Dong's advisor, which Li Dong agrees to via Principal Gong.

Character Developments

• Li Dong demonstrates his ability to recruit capable advisors, showing his strategic thinking and adaptability.
• Professor Wang proves to be organized, responsible, and dedicated, taking initiative in managing Li Dong's research group.
• Gao Wen displays his determination and persistence in wanting to advise Li Dong, showing his interest in Li Dong's potential.

Significant Themes

• The importance of mentorship and guidance in academic research.
• The need for organization and planning in managing a research group.
• The value of strategic thinking and adaptability in navigating academic challenges.

Character Interactions

• Li Dong and Professor Wang: Li Dong successfully recruits Professor Wang, who takes charge of managing Li Dong's research group, demonstrating a productive mentor-mentee relationship.
• Li Dong and Gao Wen: Gao Wen expresses his desire to be Li Dong's advisor, and Li Dong agrees, showing mutual respect and trust between the two.
• Li Dong and E Wei'nan: Li Dong seeks guidance from E Wei'nan to prepare for Professor Wu Kai's group, demonstrating Li Dong's proactivity and humility in seeking knowledge.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Li Dong meets with Professor Gao Wen to discuss the SNN project budget.
• Li Dong reveals he needs around 4.8 million yuan for the project, surprising Gao Wen.
• Gao Wen advises Li Dong on the project's budget and configuration, but Li Dong insists on his plan.
• Li Dong learns about the centralized procurement process from Gao Wen.

Character Developments

• Li Dong shows determination and independence in his project, challenging Gao Wen's initial advice.
• Gao Wen, despite being an experienced academician, is willing to support Li Dong's decision, showing understanding and flexibility.

Significant Themes

• The theme of trust is evident as Li Dong entrusts Gao Wen with the project's configuration, and Gao Wen supports Li Dong's decision despite initial reservations.
• The theme of professionalism is highlighted as Gao Wen guides Li Dong through the procurement process, emphasizing the importance of leaving professional matters to professionals.

Character Interactions

• Li Dong and Gao Wen's interaction shows a mix of respect and challenge, with Li Dong pushing back against Gao Wen's advice and Gao Wen ultimately supporting Li Dong's decision.
• Li Dong's interaction with Director Liu is mentioned briefly, highlighting the consensus among the university faculty to let Li Dong study without disturbance.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Li Dong meets Gu Ming, who wants to join his research group. Li Dong agrees to give Gu Ming a chance to interview.
• Wang Hao's progress in the National Competition is discussed. Gu Ming praises Wang Hao's abilities.
• Fu Chen and Wang Feng, both graduate students, are preparing for Li Dong's research group interview. Fu Chen is determined, while Wang Feng is reluctant.
• Outside Wang Zhigang's office, many people are waiting to join Li Dong's research group. Liu Ruochuan and Penrose arrive and sign up, causing two elderly professors to feel pressured.
• Li Dong meets Wu Kai, his new advisor in the chemistry department. Wu Kai introduces Li Dong to Su Yanqing, who will help Li Dong with preliminary work.

Character Developments

• Li Dong: Shows maturity and understanding in his interactions with Gu Ming and Wu Kai. He is open to giving opportunities to others.
• Gu Ming: Demonstrates determination and ambition in pursuing his academic goals. He is confident in his abilities and seeks Li Dong's support.
• Fu Chen: Shows dedication and diligence in his studies. He is determined to make the most of his opportunity to work with Li Dong.
• Wang Feng: Struggles with his reluctance to join Li Dong's research group due to his personal goals and fears about his career prospects.
• Wu Kai: Shows a unique sense of humor and a straightforward approach to his work. He is aware of Li Dong's potential and expects him to contribute significantly to the project.
• Su Yanqing: Shows humility and a willingness to support Li Dong's work, despite his own expertise and experience.

Significant Themes

• Ambition and determination in academic pursuits.
• The importance of mentorship and guidance in academic development.
• The challenges and uncertainties of research, and the need for perseverance and adaptability.
• The value of collaboration and teamwork in academic research.

Character Interactions

• Li Dong and Gu Ming: Li Dong agrees to give Gu Ming a chance to interview for his research group, showing support and understanding.
• Fu Chen and Wang Feng: Fu Chen encourages Wang Feng to see the value in working with Li Dong, despite Wang Feng's reluctance.
• Wu Kai and Li Dong: Wu Kai introduces Li Dong to Su Yanqing and explains the importance of the work Li Dong will be doing, setting expectations for Li Dong's role in the project.
• Wu Kai and Su Yanqing: Wu Kai entrusts Li Dong's preliminary work to Su Yanqing, showing confidence in Su Yanqing's abilities and acknowledging the importance of Su Yanqing's role in the project.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Li Dong visits the Chemistry North Building at Peking University, guided by Su Yanqing.
• The North Building is an old, research-focused structure with significant scientific history, including the birthplace of notable achievements like single-crystal graphene and chiral carbon nanotubes.
• They enter the Wu Kai Research Group's laboratory on the second basement level, dedicated to molecular structure and single-atom characterization.
• The lab is partially equipped, with many empty spaces awaiting new instruments for their new project in single-atom characterization.
• Zhang Yan, a PhD student in the group, is introduced to Li Dong.

Character Developments

• Li Dong: Shows curiosity and awe at the scientific history of the North Building and the scale of the research project he's joining. He also feels slightly embarrassed when addressed as "Eastern God" by Zhang Yan.
• Su Yanqing: Demonstrates his familiarity with the North Building and its history, as well as his understanding of the challenges and constraints of their new research project. He shows Li Dong around the lab and introduces him to Zhang Yan.
• Zhang Yan: Portrays a lively and teasing personality, immediately addressing Li Dong as "Eastern God" and playfully pointing out his embarrassment. She shows interest in Li Dong's abilities and is willing to help him understand the lab equipment.

Significant Themes

• The significance and history of scientific research at Peking University.
• The challenges and constraints of setting up a new research project, including the need for specialized equipment and the time-consuming nature of the work.
• The importance of understanding and adapting to the specific tools and techniques used in a research group.

Character Interactions

• Su Yanqing and Li Dong: Su Yanqing guides Li Dong through the North Building and the lab, explaining the history and challenges of their new project. Li Dong shows curiosity and a willingness to learn.
• Li Dong and Zhang Yan: Zhang Yan teases Li Dong about his nickname, "Eastern God," and shows interest in his abilities. She offers to help him understand the lab equipment.

Key plot points and events

• Li Dong inspects the chemistry lab and recognizes several instruments from earlier exposure, though he has never operated most of them.
• Impressed that he knows more than expected, Zhang Yan gives him a USB drive with manuals and tutorial videos. He can begin practicing with basic equipment once the team officially starts in three days.
• Li Dong asks whether he can familiarize himself with arriving equipment early, but Su Yanqing explains that Professor Wu has chosen an “auspicious” day according to the almanac for starting work.
• While Zhang Yan and Su Yanqing coordinate the equipment delivery, Li Dong leaves to study the materials rather than get in their way.
• On his way back, he calls Professor Wang to confirm the interview schedule and procedures for Li Dong’s mathematics project team, whose interviews are five days away.

Character developments

• Li Dong shows practical curiosity and some existing familiarity with laboratory equipment, while recognizing the limits of his experience. He is eager to prepare rather than risk being unhelpful.
• Zhang Yan revises her expectations of Li Dong after seeing his equipment knowledge and responds supportively.
• Su Yanqing acts as an informal guide, explaining Professor Wu’s unusual custom.
• Li Dong reflects that involving Professor Wang was a good decision and feels less concerned about juggling the two projects.

Significant themes

• Preparation and humility: Li Dong is willing to learn, acknowledges what he does not know, and steps aside when others have work he cannot contribute to.
• Tradition alongside science: Professor Wu’s reliance on auspicious dates contrasts with the lab’s modern scientific setting. Li Dong finds the practice odd but chooses not to judge it harshly.
• Balancing responsibilities: Li Dong is managing both the chemistry project and his own mathematics project, relying on others and using available time efficiently.

Character interactions

• Zhang Yan offers Li Dong learning materials and sets expectations for his gradual introduction to the equipment.
• Su Yanqing privately explains the almanac-based delay, prompting Li Dong’s disbelief and then amused acceptance.
• Li Dong politely leaves Zhang Yan and Su Yanqing to organize the delivery, then checks in with Professor Wang about the mathematics project.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Li Dong returns to his empty dorm room.
• Chen Nan and Liu Qiang are now working with Professor Zhang Zhiqiang on advanced mathematical topics.
• Wang Hao is collaborating with Gu Ming for the upcoming National Undergraduate Mathematical Contest in Modeling.
• Li Dong receives a USB drive from Zhang Yan containing detailed information about Professor Wu Kai's project team.
• The project aims to integrate the energy resolution of a synchrotron X-ray source with the atomic-scale spatial resolution of a Scanning Tunneling Microscope to achieve elemental identification and chemical-state characterization of individual atoms.
• The project's application direction is the development of single-atom catalytic drugs for cardiovascular disease, specifically to mitigate Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury.
• The project faces two major bottlenecks: the ill-posedness of the measurement operator and the contradiction among basis functions.

Character Developments

• Li Dong shows seriousness and dedication when he understands the potential life-saving impact of the project.
• Wu Kai's research group has nearly exhausted chemical and engineering solutions, leading them to explore mathematical approaches.

Significant Themes

• The pursuit of scientific breakthroughs despite facing significant challenges.
• The interdisciplinary nature of scientific research, with mathematics being explored as a potential solution to a problem primarily tackled through chemistry and engineering.

Character Interactions

• Li Dong interacts with his dorm mates, each pursuing their own academic interests.
• Li Dong's understanding of the project's potential impact deepens his commitment to it.
• Wu Kai's research group, though not directly present, influences Li Dong's perspective through their work and the project's documentation.

• Plot Points and Events: Li Dong, after reading the equipment manual, starts practicing "objectless training" at night. The next day, he joins the Wu Kai Research Group, where he expresses his intuition that the current mathematical approach is wrong, but he can't articulate why. Wu Kai decides to continue with the current plan while Li Dong explores his intuition further.
• Character Development: Li Dong demonstrates his intuition and willingness to explore new ideas, showing his confidence and independence. Wu Kai shows understanding and support for Li Dong's ideas, even if he doesn't immediately agree with them.
• Significant Themes: The theme of intuition vs. rational thought is explored. Li Dong's intuition tells him something is wrong, but he can't explain it rationally, leading to a moment of tension. Wu Kai, representing rational thought, decides to continue with the current plan despite Li Dong's intuition.
• Character Interactions: Li Dong interacts with Wu Kai, expressing his concerns and receiving understanding and support. He also interacts with the doctoral students, who are initially surprised by his statement but ultimately respect his opinion. Zhang Yan, a senior researcher, shows support for Li Dong's intuition.

Key plot points and events

• After leaving the Chemistry North Building, Li Dong broods over Wu Kai’s criticism: his intuition that the current research direction is wrong remains unsupported, making it difficult to call it a real idea.
• Back in his dorm, he checks the Azure Dragon Study Group and notices his experience bar has unexpectedly risen from one-third to two-thirds, despite finding no explanation in the chat history. He suspects a group member has accomplished something significant.
• Li Dong discovers a new request to join from physicist George Gamow and accepts it.
• Gamow enters the chat in surprise, recognizes Marie Curie and Niels Bohr, and tries to get their attention. When neither responds, he says he has read Curie’s entire debate with Mendeleev and learned a great deal from it.

Character developments

• Li Dong is discouraged by the gap between his strong intuition and his lack of evidence or a workable method. The unexplained experience-bar increase briefly cheers him, while Gamow’s arrival captures his curiosity.
• George Gamow appears as an enthusiastic, informal newcomer, eager to meet respected physicists and engage with the discussion he has been following.
• Wu Kai remains an offstage influence through his blunt but reasoned challenge to Li Dong’s unsubstantiated idea.

Significant themes

• Intuition versus evidence: Li Dong senses that his research direction is wrong but cannot yet justify that belief.
• Scientific achievement and recognition: The mysterious experience increase hints that major discoveries or accomplishments carry consequences beyond the group’s visible conversation.
• Connection across time and worlds: The group brings together historical scientists who can recognize one another and exchange ideas across apparent boundaries.
• Intellectual admiration: Gamow’s eagerness to contact Bohr and his appreciation of Curie’s debate show how scientific learning is shaped by mentors and peers.

Character interactions

• Wu Kai’s earlier criticism continues to weigh on Li Dong, even in solitude.
• Li Dong reads past exchanges between Curie and Mendeleev, then welcomes Gamow into the group.
• Gamow recognizes Curie and Bohr and attempts to reach them; their silence leaves him without an immediate response. He then explains that Curie and Mendeleev’s debate prompted him to speak.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Li Dong receives a message from George Gamow in the group chat, criticizing both Marie Curie and Dmitri Mendeleev for arguing outside the atom's door and not addressing its internal structure directly.
• Gamow shares his experience with alpha decay, explaining that he let the physical process speak for itself using Quantum Tunneling.
• Li Dong realizes the significance of Gamow's words and understands that the solution to the problem lies in physics, not mathematics.

Character Developments

• Li Dong gains a new perspective on the problem and becomes more determined to find a solution.
• Gamow demonstrates his scientific insight and ability to think outside the box.

Significant Themes

• The importance of direct observation and experimentation in science.
• The limitations of mathematical models and the need to consider physical processes.
• The value of interdisciplinary thinking and collaboration.

Character Interactions

• Li Dong and Gamow interact through the group chat, with Gamow providing valuable insights and challenging Li Dong's thinking.
• Li Dong's interactions with his roommates and fellow group members are brief but show a supportive and collaborative environment.

Plot points and events

• Zhang Yan assigns Li Dong the mathematical inversion work, the project’s main theoretical bottleneck. She urges him to follow the accepted approach first, rather than derail the group’s schedule with an untested idea.
• Li Dong independently works through the inversion method. He reaches the phase-ambiguity problem that has stalled research teams for years, then uses tools from pure mathematics—especially ideas related to the Langlands Program—to resolve it and continue through several more steps.
• Professor Wu Kai visits, expecting to encourage Li Dong through a familiar obstacle. He is astonished to learn that Li Dong has passed it, though Li Dong initially assumes the bigger inversion problem remains unsolved.
• Li Dong argues that mathematical inversion itself is fundamentally inadequate: its regularization methods impose mathematical assumptions that may not reflect the physical electron cloud, blurring information such as the third coordination shell.
• He proposes replacing inversion with a forward model built from physical quantities, including dipole transitions, orbital symmetry and orientation, X-ray polarization, and tunneling attenuation. Wu Kai objects that the effective vacuum barrier—and thus the key parameter (K)—cannot be directly measured, leaving the model with a critical gap.
• Wu Kai concludes that the proposal is too speculative by the standards of chemistry. Li Dong calmly insists that, although it may not work by chemical logic, “it works in physics.”

Character development and interactions

• Li Dong shows both intellectual boldness and caution: he tests the established method before challenging it, distinguishes a solved technical obstacle from what he sees as a deeper conceptual flaw, and presents his new approach as promising but not certain.
• Zhang Yan acts as a practical mentor, balancing confidence in Li Dong with the need to keep the project moving. She encourages him to prove his concerns rather than rely on instinct alone.
• Wu Kai shifts from reassuring supervisor to astonished, serious listener. Li Dong’s mathematical breakthrough makes him take the broader critique seriously, but his chemistry background leads him to question whether the proposed model can work without measurements of the tunneling barrier.
• Their exchange is respectful but tense: Wu Kai presses for experimental grounding, while Li Dong argues that physics can provide a route where established chemical methods see none.

Significant themes

• Cross-disciplinary thinking: Li Dong connects pure mathematics, applied mathematics, and physics in ways researchers within a single field might not consider.
• Challenging established methods: A technique accepted because alternatives seem exhausted may still be a self-imposed dead end.
• Mathematics versus physical reality: Mathematical regularization can stabilize a calculation while obscuring the physical structure it is meant to reveal.
• Evidence and intellectual humility: Li Dong tests his own idea against the standard approach, while Wu Kai’s initial skepticism gives way to serious consideration after seeing the derivation.
• Different disciplinary standards: What seems an unjustified leap to chemistry may appear viable from a physics perspective.

This is not a story chapter—it’s an author’s note from a web novel. Here’s a concise summary:

1. Key Plot Points / Events

• The author announces a monthly ticket lottery for 30 winners, with prizes of KFC (self-purchased) or spicy local specialties (~50 yuan including shipping).
• A monthly-ticket bonus chapter will be posted on the first of next month, revealing worldbuilding about the "Azure Dragon Study Group."
• The book is approaching 20,000 average subscriptions; to boost numbers, the author plans to combine three chapters into one (without reducing word count), unless readers object.
• The author will stop including monthly-ticket thank-you lists in author’s notes; instead, a separate thank-you chapter will be posted at the end of each month.
• A long list of reader IDs with monthly ticket votes is included.
• The note ends with a plea for monthly tickets, noting they're doubled that day.

2. Character Developments

• Not applicable in a narrative sense.
• The author persona is playful, appreciative, somewhat self-deprecating, and strategically engaged with readers (offering incentives, asking for feedback, explaining decisions).

3. Significant Themes

• Author-reader community engagement and reciprocity.
• The economics of web serial publishing (subscriptions, monthly tickets, incentives).
• Transparency about author decisions (chapter splitting, thank-you lists).
• Humor and casual tone in author-reader communication.

4. Character Interactions

• The author directly addresses "esteemed readers," thanks specific users by name, solicits monthly tickets, and invites reader input (e.g., objecting to chapter combining).
• No fictional character interactions occur.

Key plot points and events

• Li Dong proposes a physically grounded forward model for interpreting SX-STM measurements, using calculated orbital properties and a Gamow factor to identify the excited shell.
• Wu Kai praises the model’s elegance but points out a critical gap: its WKB decay constant, k, depends on an effective tip–vacuum–substrate barrier that no one has independently measured or established. Existing values are fitted from inversion results, making them unsuitable as an independent foundation for Li Dong’s approach.
• Li Dong accepts the criticism and agrees to continue the established inversion work for now, while maintaining that his forward-model idea may still be viable.
• Wu Kai gives him several days to investigate the physical basis of k, offers access to the group’s equipment through Yan’er, and proposes that he, Li Dong, and Professor Lu review the resulting data when Lu returns. The evidence will determine whether the project’s direction changes.
• Wu Kai asks to take Li Dong’s scratch papers. Li Dong readily agrees, though he privately doubts his own approach will work.

Character developments and interactions

• Li Dong shows confidence in his idea but also intellectual humility: he listens, concedes the unresolved problem, and accepts a practical path forward without abandoning his hypothesis. His casual willingness to share his notes surprises Wu Kai.
• Wu Kai balances affection and skepticism. He insists on analytical chemistry’s demand for reliable data, yet gives Li Dong time, equipment, and a chance to test his proposal rather than dismissing it.
• Their exchange strengthens their mentor–student bond. Wu Kai interprets Li Dong’s generosity as a sign that he trusts him as someone close, and privately feels proud of him.

Significant themes

• Theory versus evidence: An elegant model is not enough when a crucial parameter lacks an independent empirical or physical basis.
• Scientific rigor and uncertainty: Li Dong must distinguish between a plausible prior and a defensible measurement.
• Mentorship and trust: Wu Kai challenges Li Dong while still creating room for him to test his ideas.
• Intellectual humility: Progress depends on hearing valid criticism, acknowledging gaps, and letting data decide.

Key events

• Li Dong begins testing a new physics approach under Professor Wu Kai’s guidance. He asks Zhang Yan to arrange XPS measurements, a DFT calculation, and time on the low-temperature STM; a beamline experiment will have to wait. Zhang Yan provides practical LT-STM notes and a training schedule.
• Li Dong then joins the afternoon interviews for his mathematics research group. Professor Wang Zhigang introduces several senior mathematicians, and Li Dong reveals that he has also been working with Wu Kai’s chemistry group—news that surprises Professor Liu Ruochuan.
• In the interviews, Li Dong asks candidates questions on the Langlands Program and evaluates whether they can think independently, rather than simply reproduce textbook answers.
• Gu Ming gives an inventive answer, connecting Geometric Satake to Bezrukavnikov’s Double Affine Duality. Li Dong is pleased, having recommended him, but lets Professor Wang conduct the questioning to avoid a conflict of interest.
• Fu Chen delivers an exceptionally precise account of Arthur truncation. Li Dong recognizes his discipline and reliability, and marks him for consideration. The chapter ends as the final candidate, Wang Feng, approaches.

Character developments and interactions

• Li Dong shows confidence in pursuing ambitious work across physics and mathematics. In the interviews, he values originality but also recognizes the importance of careful scholarship and clear organization.
• Zhang Yan responds warmly to Li Dong’s requests, supports his plan, and offers hands-on guidance.
• Gu Ming demonstrates independent mathematical judgment, validating Li Dong’s faith in him.
• Fu Chen stands out through diligence, concentration, and meticulous mastery, rather than flashes of originality.
• Liu Ruochuan is surprised by Li Dong’s involvement in Wu Kai’s challenging research, but accepts that Li Dong gravitates toward difficult problems.
• The professors defer to Li Dong’s interview judgments because of his expertise, while Wang Zhigang’s reassurance grows when Li Dong handles Gu Ming’s interview impartially.

Significant themes

• Independent thinking versus rote knowledge: Li Dong favors candidates who explore their own reasoning, even when they stumble, over those who only recite polished answers.
• The value of steady, careful work: Through Fu Chen and the historical example of John of Sacrobosco, Li Dong reflects that fields need people who clarify, organize, and transmit knowledge—not only those who create new ideas.
• Intellectual ambition and collaboration: Li Dong’s work across disciplines shows the appeal and demands of tackling difficult, unresolved questions with others’ support.
• Fairness and responsibility: Li Dong avoids personally questioning his recommended candidate, showing care about impartiality.

Key plot points and events

• During Li Dong’s research-group interviews, Wang Feng answers a question on the cyclic Base Change Stable Trace Formula by reciting an approximation from Labesse’s survey rather than giving the standard account. When he claims it is his own understanding, Li Dong identifies the passage down to its exact location and rejects him for dishonesty.
• Wang Feng protests that Fu Chen’s answers were no better and suggests Fu’s connection to Professor Wang Zhigang may explain his acceptance. Li Dong says the decision was about Wang Feng’s lack of honesty, which he considers incompatible with mathematics and research. Wang Feng outwardly accepts the criticism but privately resents it.
• The interview round ends with eight students accepted. Liu Ruochuan praises Li Dong’s strictness and tells him that Teacher Tian hopes to join the project, though he is too proud to ask.
• Li Dong outlines the group’s ambition: “put the roof on the Langlands Program.” Its two research lines are proving the Li Conjecture and combining work on zero-equivalence criteria with local-global compatibility for GL(n) to advance functoriality.
• Li Dong says he will meet the group only about once a month. The new doctoral students worry about having so little access to him, while Wang Zhigang, Liu Ruochuan, and Penrose support the arrangement: Li Dong will set the framework, leaving the rest of the group room to develop results and smaller projects.
• Back in the dorm, Wang Hao is annoyed that Li Dong forgot Gu Ming’s interview. Li Dong then returns to his physics notes, trying to model tunneling through the WKB approximation. He reaches a difficult problem involving electromagnetic gauge symmetry, orbital parity, and the Au(111) substrate’s C₃ᵥ symmetry, and realizes he needs an expert’s help.

Character developments and interactions

• Li Dong demonstrates both intellectual precision and firm principles by catching Wang Feng’s copying. He also reveals that, despite his exceptional ability, he knows when a problem exceeds his understanding and is willing to seek help. His ambitious leadership style gives the group direction but leaves students uncertain about his limited presence.
• Wang Feng is exposed as academically disengaged and willing to pass off borrowed work as his own. His resentment and insincere acceptance suggest he has not truly absorbed Li Dong’s criticism.
• Liu Ruochuan supports Li Dong’s strict standards, advises him about recruiting Teacher Tian, and helps affirm his leadership.
• The doctoral students are uneasy about Li Dong’s once-a-month meetings, while senior professors trust his plan.
• Wang Hao teases Li Dong with cold annoyance over his neglect of Gu Ming’s interview.

Significant themes

• Integrity in scholarship: Accuracy matters, but honesty about the source of one’s ideas matters just as much.
• Ambition and collaboration: Li Dong’s sweeping goal requires a team, even though he could outpace its members; his limited supervision is intended to let others contribute meaningfully.
• Expertise and humility: Li Dong can lead a major mathematical project yet still reach the limits of his knowledge in physics and recognize the need for another specialist.
• Trust and mentorship: The doctoral students’ anxiety highlights how much young researchers depend on a supervisor’s guidance—and how a leader’s absence can be interpreted as abandonment.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Professor Zhou Qifeng has just finished a significant paper on gauge fields and quantum field theory, aiming to submit it to the Journal of High Energy Physics (JHEP).
• Li Dong visits Professor Zhou's office, initially thought to be asking for leave, but he's there to seek help with a problem related to gauge fields.
• Li Dong casually glances at Professor Zhou's paper and identifies a potential optimization, impressing the professor.

Character Developments

• Professor Zhou Qifeng: Confident in his work, he's aiming for the Changjiang Scholars program. He's initially dismissive of Li Dong but becomes impressed by the student's insight.
• Li Dong: Shows remarkable understanding of complex gauge field theories, demonstrating his intellectual prowess and confidence in seeking help from the best in the field.

Significant Themes

• Mentorship and Learning: Li Dong seeks guidance from Professor Zhou, showing the importance of mentorship in academic growth.
• Recognition and Respect: Li Dong's casual identification of an optimization in Professor Zhou's paper earns him respect and attention from the professor.
• Ambition and Striving: Both characters display ambition in their respective fields, with Professor Zhou aiming for academic recognition and Li Dong seeking help from the best in the world.

Character Interactions

• Professor Zhou and Li Dong's interaction is initially dismissive but turns into mutual respect as Li Dong demonstrates his understanding of complex theories.
• Director Liu, present in the office, witnesses the interaction and finds it amusing, showing his understanding of the dynamics between the professor and student.

Plot points

• Li Dong realizes he has been critiquing Professor Zhou’s own paper without knowing it. Zhou quietly accepts one of his suggestions and adds a revision note to the draft.
• Gao Wen secures a complete H800 system for 4.2 million yuan. Li Dong quickly gets 2 million from Lin Wei and pays the remaining 2.2 million himself, leaving 600,000 in his account.
• Dean Gao arranges a same-day visit for Li Dong with the elderly physicist Mr. Yang. At Yang’s home, Li Dong explains a chemistry problem involving X-ray-excited resonant tunneling and the interaction of U(1) gauge invariance, orbital parity, and the Au(111) substrate’s C₃ᵥ symmetry.
• Yang advises Li Dong not to force the symmetries into one group: U(1) belongs on the fiber, C₃ᵥ on the base space, and parity acts as an automorphism of the structure group. This layered geometric view immediately resolves Li Dong’s difficulty, allowing him to derive the effective barrier directly rather than infer it by inversion.
• Yang invites Li Dong to contact his assistant, Dr. Weng, with future questions. Because of Yang’s age and limited energy, the visit ends shortly afterward.

Character developments

• Li Dong is resourceful and willing to spend most of his savings on research equipment. He also shows humility and curiosity, openly explaining an interdisciplinary problem and quickly applying Yang’s insight.
• Professor Zhou moves from irritation at Li Dong’s uninformed critique to quietly incorporating the useful feedback into his paper.
• Mr. Yang demonstrates that his influence comes not only from his scientific achievements but also from his ability to clarify difficult ideas with a single well-chosen principle.
• Dean Gao acts as Li Dong’s advocate, arranging access to Yang and accompanying him.

Significant themes

• Interdisciplinary thinking: Scientific problems do not respect boundaries between mathematics, physics, and chemistry; crossing disciplines can be essential to solving them.
• Conceptual clarity over forced unification: Li Dong’s breakthrough comes from recognizing that related structures belong to different geometric layers, not from combining everything into one algebraic object.
• Mentorship and intellectual legacy: Yang’s guidance passes on a way of thinking, linking his historic work on gauge fields and geometry to Li Dong’s new problem.
• Respect for people and limits: The visit balances the value of mentorship with consideration for Yang’s health and energy.

Character interactions

• Li Dong’s blunt, accidental critique of Zhou’s paper creates an awkward but quietly productive exchange; Liu nearly laughs, while Zhou refuses to discuss the embarrassment.
• Gao Wen and Lin Wei help Li Dong obtain the server funds, while Wang Hao’s dinner invitation is brushed aside.
• Gao introduces Li Dong to Yang, who first discusses Li Dong’s mathematical reputation, then validates his willingness to work across disciplines and guides his reasoning.
• Dr. Weng supports Yang during the visit, manages its timing, and gives Li Dong her contact details for future communication.

Key Plot Points and Events

• Li Dong and Gao Yuanlin discuss Yang Zhenning's return to China and his contributions to Tsinghua University's Institute for Advanced Study.
• Li Dong learns about Yang Zhenning's deteriorating health.
• Li Dong receives a group announcement about Yang Zhenning and an invitation to invite him to the group, with a reward of +0.2 to all group owner attributes.

Character Developments

• Li Dong demonstrates his respect and admiration for Yang Zhenning and his dedication to learning and improving his skills.
• Gao Yuanlin shows concern for Li Dong's well-being and his dedication to his work.

Significant Themes

• The passage of time and the impact of age on individuals and society.
• The importance of education and mentorship in shaping future generations.
• The responsibility of the group owner (Li Dong) in making decisions that could significantly impact the group.

Character Interactions

• Li Dong and Gao Yuanlin's conversation highlights their mutual respect and understanding, with Gao Yuanlin acting as a mentor figure to Li Dong.
• Li Dong's internal dialogue demonstrates his determination and caution in decision-making, particularly regarding the group and its potential impact on living individuals.

Plot points and events

• After Mr. Yang’s insight that the relevant physical effects “aren’t on the same level,” Li Dong completes a step-by-step theoretical account of the tunneling parameter (k), grounded in the work function, image potential, and substrate-and-ligand barrier. He concludes that the result is derived from fundamental physics rather than an inversion.
• To test the theory, Li visits the Chemistry North Building and asks Zhang Yan to help obtain DFT, XPS, and LT-STM data. He operates the STM transfer system flawlessly after Zhang’s instructions, then records three exceptionally clean I–z curves.
• Li identifies three separate exponential segments in the current-decay tail, supporting his idea that different shells contribute independently. Zhang sees how the measured decay constants could be compared with DFT-predicted orbital directions. She recommends a PBE+U calculation and offers DFT+DMFT as a follow-up if the results do not align.
• Li leaves the lab to attend Wiles’s public lecture at Peking University. He finds the venue overwhelmed with visitors, ticket scalpers, and students trying to get inside. Although he has a reserved seat, the packed aisle forces him to squeeze through a chain of people who keep yielding after seeing him. He reaches the second row beside Tian Gang and learns there was a staff passage he could have used.

Character developments and interactions

• Li Dong shows increasing confidence and technical independence: he turns a physical insight into a complete derivation, learns unfamiliar equipment quickly, and immediately extracts meaningful structure from the data.
• Zhang Yan moves from instructor to active collaborator. Impressed by Li’s technique and reasoning, she anticipates his next step and contributes a computational plan. Her months-long difficulty with the problem appears to have been resolved by his approach.
• Li and Zhang work smoothly together, with Zhang trusting him at the equipment and Li recognizing her strong grasp of the underlying science.
• Tian Gang gives Li a practical tip about the staff entrance. Li privately blames Professor Liu Ruochuan for not telling him about it, despite Liu having arranged his seat.

Significant themes

• Theory tested by evidence: Li’s fundamental-physics derivation is paired with targeted experiments and computational checks.
• Scientific collaboration: Zhang’s expertise complements Li’s new approach, turning an individual insight into a workable research program.
• Talent and recognition: Li’s unusual ability is visible both in the lab and in the crowd, where people instinctively make way for him.
• Humor amid academic prestige: The scene contrasts the importance of Wiles’s lecture and its distinguished audience with the absurdity of scalpers, overcrowding, and Li’s accidental human-domino route to his seat.