The moment Cheng Che saw the system panel light up, he didn't rush to check it.
He first opened his laptop and logged onto the official website of Annals of Mathematics.
He had a premonition.
When the page loads, his paper is the first one in the homepage's recommended section.
Explicit optimization of effective constants in the Baker's Method and its application in specific equations.
His name followed the title, and Professor Liu was listed as the corresponding author.
To the right of the paper's abstract, the editor's note is placed in a separate box with a light gray background, making the layout very eye-catching.
Cheng Che clicked on it and took a look.
The chief editor wrote a rather long commentary, the gist of which was:
This paper completes the explicit optimization of the effective constant based on the Baker's Method, transforming the original theoretical estimate into a computable and verifiable accurate result, and gives specific applications of several classical equations based on this.
The editorial team believes that this work not only has practical value in the field of number theory, but also provides a reusable tool framework for research in related areas.
The editor added a sentence at the end of the article:
"The author's achievement of two significant results in a short period demonstrates his exceptional mathematical intuition and research ability. We look forward to his future surprises in many more areas."
Cheng Che stared at the last sentence for two seconds, then couldn't help but laugh out loud.
He opened WeChat, and there were already dozens of messages. Professor Liu's messages were at the top, three in a row.
First item. "The paper has been published on the homepage."
The second item reads, "Have you read the editor's note? I read it three times; he rarely praises people like that."
Article 3: "The dean called me this morning. He said the School of Mathematical Sciences is preparing to apply for a full professorship for you. You will be promoted from a specially appointed associate professor to a full professor."
Cheng Che stared at the words "formal professor," and his heart skipped a beat.
Specially appointed associate professors and full professors may seem similar, but in reality, they are very different.
Specially appointed associate professors are non-tenured positions with the same salary and benefits as associate professors, but they do not have a formal professional title.
It's a contract system with a fixed term; basically, it means "if you do well, you stay; if you don't, you leave."
Full-time professors are tenured positions with titles, long-term job security, the ability to supervise doctoral students, participate in academic decision-making, and have real influence in academia.
He was nineteen years old.
If this position is approved, he will be the youngest full professor in the history of Peking University School of Mathematical Sciences.
This is the first of its kind in the entire country.
He took a deep breath, suppressing the thought of "Am I dreaming?", and then opened the system panel.
[ Intelligence Trial - Phase One: Scaling the Peak Again. Task Objective: Publish a second independent paper in the * Annals of Mathematics * or a top-tier journal of the same level. Completed!]
He flipped down.
[Congratulations, host, you have acquired the passive talent " Still Waters Run Deep "]
[Congratulations, host, you have obtained the item " Scholar's Set "]
[ Still Waters Run Deep: The greater the external interference and the higher the pressure, the sharper the clarity of thought becomes. The effect is affected by intelligence stat.]
Cheng Che's eyes lit up after reading the instructions.
This talent is somewhat similar to [ Stars Surrounding the Moon ], but in a completely opposite direction.
Stars Surrounding the Moon makes him stand out in a crowd, Still Waters Run Deep make him more clear-headed under pressure.
This talent is most useful under pressure, whether it's crucial points in a competition, the final stage of writing a thesis, or dealing with unexpected situations.
He continued reading.
[ Scholar's Set: When worn, triggers Scholar's Fire, temporarily increasing your Intelligence by 5 points. Cooldown: 24 hours. Set includes: Hat, Gold-rimmed Glasses, Pen.]
Cheng Che was taken aback.
A set? This was the first time he had ever seen a system give out set-type items.
The hat, glasses, and pen set triggers an effect called " Scholar's Fire," temporarily increasing Intelligence by 5 points.
His current IQ is 90.
Add 5 points and it becomes 95.
Although it's only temporary with a 24-hour cooldown, the ability to boost Intelligence to 95 at crucial moments is already quite remarkable.
Moreover, with 95 points of intelligence combined with [ The Art of the Brain ] and [ Flash of Inspiration ], he might be able to touch some things he wouldn't normally be able to reach.
He took the suit out of the system space.
The hat was a dark gray beret, made of very soft material, with a thin metal strip along the brim.
The gold-rimmed glasses were very similar to the ones he had worn at the previous presentation, but the frames were thinner, and there was a line of very small characters engraved on the inside of the temples.
The pen is black with a matte finish and a small circular logo on the cap.
He put on the three-piece suit and walked to the bathroom mirror to take a look at himself.
With his beret pressing down on his hair and gold-rimmed glasses perched on his nose, he looked more scholarly than usual, like a young university professor from the Republican era.
He tilted his head slightly, and the reflection in his glasses created a nice effect.
"Looks a bit like Amon, haha."
He took out his phone and sent a message to Qin Lie:
"The second paper has been published in the * Annals of Mathematics *, featured on the first page."
Qin Lie replied quickly, clearly very excited:
"I saw it! Professor Liu just called me and said he's going to apply for a full professorship for you. You're a full professor at nineteen! If that gets approved, the trending topics will explode!"
Cheng Che smiled and replied, "Don't be so happy yet, let's talk about it after it's approved."
Qin Lie:
"Whether it gets approved or not, we still need to promote it first. Don't worry, I'll coordinate with Peking University on the wording, and we'll release it after the official announcement. You focus on preparing for the US Open these next few days; I'll handle the rest."
Cheng Che replied with an "okay" and placed his phone on the bedside table.
Then he sat back down at his desk and opened the schedule.
His opponent in the first round of the US Open has not yet been determined, but hard courts are the surface he is most familiar with.
I've won the Australian Open, the French Open, and Wimbledon.
The US Open is the final piece of the puzzle.
If you win it, you'll have a Grand Slam.
As he was thinking, his phone lit up again.
Qin Lie sent me a link with the title " Cheng Che's Second Paper Featured on the Homepage of the ' Annals of Mathematics,' Editor-in-Chief Offers Rare Praise."
He clicked in and took a look; the comments section was already buzzing with activity.
Holy crap, this is the second one??? The last one was only a few months ago!
[On the first page of the * Annals of Mathematics *, in the editor's note, who received this treatment last time?]
Cheng Che: Playing tennis is just a side job for me; publishing papers is my main job.
[So he's now a specially appointed associate professor, is the next step to become a full professor?]
[You guessed it, the one above, I heard the dean is already going through the procedures.]
A 19-year-old full professor??? I was still worrying about final exams when I was 19.
Is this the difference between a genius and an ordinary person? I feel like I've wasted my life.
[Stop talking, I'm going to study vocabulary, even though I still can't catch up with him.]
Cheng Che closed the comments section and was about to close his laptop when his phone vibrated again.
It wasn't Qin Lie.
It's a push notification from the US Open.
The lottery results are in.