After the US Open draw results were announced, Cheng Che glanced at his first-round opponent.
The France, ranked 47th in the world, is a clay-court player with a mediocre record on hard courts.
Cheng Che wrote down the name and turned off the notifications. There was no need to study this kind of opponent in detail; he could just play normally.
He closed the schedule and opened the system panel.
[ Intelligence Trial - Phase Two: Resolve Open Problems and Prove the Dao. Task Objective: Independently solve at least one publicly recognized problem in mathematics. Current Progress: 0/1.]
Cheng Che stared at this line of text for a while.
A publicly acknowledged problem in the mathematics community.
He ran through those familiar names in his mind: the Riemann Hypothesis, the Hodge Conjecture, P vs NP, and the Yang-Mills Existence-Mass Gap.
Each one is a century-old problem that has remained unsolved for decades, and each one is so difficult that even the most outstanding mathematicians may not be able to solve it even after exhausting their entire lives.
His current IQ is 90, and it can be raised to 95 with the Scholar's Set.
With an intelligence level of 95, combined with [ The Art of the Brain ] and [ Flash of Inspiration ], he might be able to grasp things that others cannot, but Riemann Hypothesis that level was beyond his reach for the time being.
It's not that we lack ability, it's that we lack time.
He also has to play sports and act in movies; he can't possibly sit in his office for ten years like a full-time mathematician.
He needs to find a target that meets the condition of being a "publicly recognized problem" and is also within his firing range.
This goal cannot be too big, nor too small.
It's too big to make, and too small to be suitable.
He closed the Intelligence Trial and then flipped to the Stamina Trial section.
[ Stamina Trial - Stage 3: Cross-Disciplinary Start. Mission Objective: Participate in a world-class track and field event and reach the finals. Current Progress: 0/1.]
With the US Open won, the second stage is complete.
Next up is track and field.
A world-class competition, reaching the finals.
This wasn't too difficult for him; he had Green Lights All the Way Certificate, so registering for the competition wasn't a problem.
Moreover, his current physical strength and endurance are both at 90, plus his " Chosen One of Long-Distance Running " and " Enduring Progress Without Fail " qualities, he has a very high chance of making it to the finals.
Qin Lie can handle the details of which competition to participate in and when.
He turned off the control panel and leaned against the headboard.
The system tasks aren't urgent; let's finish the US Open first.
In China, however, discussions about his second paper were not as heated as those about his first.
When Cheng Che first published his work in the * Annals of Mathematics *, the entire internet exploded. It trended on social media for three days, with headlines ranging from "Nineteen-year-old undergraduate proves century-old conjecture" to "Pride of Peking University " to "Is there anything Cheng Che can't do?"
This time, the discussion was much smaller, mainly focusing on academic circles and Cheng Che's fans.
When most people see the news that " Cheng Che has published another paper," their reaction is "Oh, he published another one," and then they scroll past it.
After all, for ordinary people, publishing a paper is news the first time, but it becomes commonplace the second time.
However, the discussion on Zhihu was still quite lively.
A question appeared on the trending list, "If Cheng Che focused on mathematics, what kind of achievements would he have?"
The answers below were divided into two camps. One camp expressed deep sorrow and indignation.
"He's nineteen this year, with two papers in the * Annals of Mathematics *, one solving the Schinzel-Zassenhaus Conjecture and the other optimizing the Baker's Method. This level of achievement surpasses even a PhD in any mathematics department. If he were to focus solely on mathematics now, Fields Medal in twenty years wouldn't be out of the question. But he insists on playing tennis, acting, and appearing on variety shows. Human energy is finite; no matter how talented he is, he can't do three things well at the same time. By the time he retires and returns to mathematics, his prime will have passed."
"To be honest, I think he should slow down. Reaching a Grand Slam in tennis is enough; the entertainment industry is even less important. With his current academic output, if he devoted himself full-time, he could establish himself in number theory within five years. It's a waste to be spreading his energy out like this."
The other side offered a rebuttal.
"What gives you the right to make choices for him? He won three Grand Slam titles in tennis, starred in a blockbuster film, and published a paper that made it to the front page of the Annals of Mathematics. You call it 'spreading his energy,' but he excelled at everything he did. What makes you think he would have been even better if he had focused solely on mathematics? Maybe he just enjoys this multitasking lifestyle."
"And you've overlooked one point: his involvement in sports and entertainment has brought more attention to mathematics than any popular science blogger. When he published his first paper, countless people who never read math papers searched for the Schinzel-Zassenhaus Conjecture. He brought mathematics into the mainstream. That value is no less than writing a couple more papers."
"Also, what you mean by 'focusing on mathematics' is based on the premise that he has the time. He has to play sports and film movies now, and he still published his second paper in the * Annals of Mathematics *. How do you know that if he dedicates himself full-time, he will definitely achieve greater results? Maybe his current state is the most suitable for him."
The two sides argued for hundreds of hours, and neither side could convince the other.
Cheng Che Himself was unaware of and uninterested in these discussions.
The US Open has arrived in the blink of an eye.
Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, Arthur Ashe Stadium.
The US Open held an opening ceremony this year, with all the participants lining up on the Centre Court and the host calling out their names one by one.
Those ranked higher were all top seeds, and the audience applauded politely.
When it was the middle level's turn, the applause was sparse; some people looked down at their phones, while others went to buy beer.
Then the host announced Cheng Che's name.
" Cheng Che, from the Xia Country— "
The entire Arthur Ashe Stadium erupted in cheers!
Cheers erupted from all directions of the stands. Some were shouting his name, some were yelling "KING," and some were waving the national flag above their heads.
" Cheng Che --!!!"
" Cheng Che --!!!"
" Cheng Che --!!!"
A group of people in the front row of the stadium stood up, some people in the second tier of stands whistled, and some people in the third tier of stands stomped their feet.
The host paused for a moment on stage, then smiled and waited a few seconds until the cheers subsided before continuing to announce the next name.
The screen was flooded with comments at that moment.
[Holy crap, this cheer is louder than all the previous contestants combined!]
[That's what you call a star player; even in New York, he gets home-court treatment.]
[When the previous high-ranking seed came out, the applause wasn't even half as loud as this one.]
Cheng Che's popularity at the US Open is even more exaggerated than at the French Open. Do United States also find him attractive?
I don't know if United States like his looks, but United States like his game. Hard courts are his best surface.
[ New York already has a large Chinese population, and with the addition of local tennis fans, this scene is not surprising.]
[I don't care, I watched this entrance three times.]
In the players' ranks, Cheng Che stood in the middle to the back, wearing a white Nike jersey. When he heard the cheers, he turned his head slightly and waved towards the stands.
That smile was like the warmest ray of sunshine in spring, so clean and bright that you couldn't take your eyes off it.
That wave triggered another wave of screams.
His first opponent stood next to him, looking somewhat envious.
Cheng Che withdrew his gaze and took a deep breath.
He wasn't too concerned about the excitement of the opening ceremony; what mattered to him was the upcoming competition.
Hard court.
The place he is most familiar with.
The final piece of the Grand Slam puzzle, here I come!