Chapter 160: Distinguished Young Scholar

"Aren't we all just laying bricks and building walls, contributing our efforts to the grand edifice of mathematics!" Hearing Wu Tong's modest description, Zhou Wenping couldn't help but laugh heartily.

On the path of mathematics, some people merely repeat and grope along the footsteps of their predecessors, while others use their own abilities to add bricks and tiles to the mathematical edifice.

Wu Tong was clearly in the lineage of those who added bricks and tiles, laying a robust foundation for the grand structure of mathematics.

"You've already done wonderfully. Take your time. Mathematics is a discipline of gradual progress. There's no need to pay attention to unnecessary remarks on the internet!" Pan Wenhua instructed carefully.

Recently, the internet had been in an uproar because of that bunch of scum. They were primarily worried that, with many young people nowadays chasing online trends, Wu Tong might be hurt by malicious online remarks.

After all, there were always some people on the internet who felt they could act recklessly behind screens, using keyboard attacks to viciously harm others. No matter how dazzling Wu Tong's achievements were, essentially she was still just a child who had not yet truly reached adulthood. As her mentors, besides guiding her studies and research, they also needed to constantly monitor her psychological well-being.

Psychological issues were inherently major preventative concerns in the scientific research community.

"Online? I haven't been surfing the internet much lately! I haven't paid much attention to it. Did something special happen?" Wu Tong had been so busy lately that she was practically running herself ragged. Her electronic devices had completely degenerated to functions solely used for communication and searching for academic literature. In fact, in classified areas, the internet was disconnected directly.

She truly hadn't had the time to pay attention to any trending news online.

"No, no, it's not worth your time to care about!" Zhou Wenping said repeatedly. He exchanged a glance with Pan Wenhua, and both of them felt relieved at the same time. It was better that Wu Tong hadn't seen it; now that this had passed, there was even less need for her to know.

"Come on, Wu Tong, fill this out!" Pan Wenhua directly changed the subject, bringing out another important agenda item for the day and handing a folder over to Wu Tong.

"The National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars?" Was she already eligible to participate in the selection for this?

"This was originally prepared by the state to cultivate scientific research talent. Those with ability ascend, regardless of age!" Zhou Wenping handed over a signature pen, encouraging Wu Tong to feel at ease and start filling out the application materials.

"Your achievements are worthy of this academic title. What belongs to you shouldn't be declined; take what you deserve!" Aside from her professional title, Wu Tong met all seven criteria for the Distinguished Young Scholars program. If someone who met two qualifying standards dared to apply, why couldn't their School of Mathematics' rising star be considered? If Wu Tong wasn't allowed to apply, no one else should bother playing this year—no one's achievements could compare to Wu Tong's this year!

As her mentors, they were keeping an eye out for her on all fronts.

In fact, many of these applications were things they merely submitted without really expecting the higher-ups to approve them immediately, but to their surprise, everything had gone unexpectedly smoothly. They guessed that besides Wu Tong's genuinely brilliant achievements in mathematics, another major possibility was that the classified project Wu Tong participated in under Elder Cheng genuinely and substantially contributed to the nation.

They understood the confidentiality regulations well, so they simply chose not to pry too much. Whatever treatment the higher-ups approved for Wu Tong, they would certainly handle it well.

After finishing the basic information, there was also a scientific research project application. A scientific research project? Wu Tong paused her pen for a moment, then decided on the Goldbach Conjecture. Just right—it would serve as a complete answer to Hilbert's eighth problem among a loving family, and completely bring this issue to a close in the hands of domestic scholars.

"The Goldbach Conjecture?" Pan Wenhua and Zhou Wenping looked at Wu Tong's brushstrokes in some surprise. They had thought Wu Tong would fill in the staged research on the Navier-Stokes equations. They hadn't expected Wu Tong to return to number theory.

The difficulty of this topic was truly not low! The crown jewel of number theory—was Wu Tong reaching out to pluck the moon from the sky?

"Let's set this as the goal. I'll produce some results as soon as possible. If things go smoothly, it should catch up in time for my graduation project. Using this as my graduation thesis—Dean Pan, Professor Zhou, is this acceptable?"

"Of course it's acceptable, absolutely no problem! Even if what you produce is only a phased result, it will be more than enough for your graduation needs!" The two nodded decisively. It was more than enough for a doctoral graduation design, let alone an undergraduate graduation project. Of course there was no problem!

"If you need any help, just ask!" Since Wu Tong was willing to charge towards the peak of mathematics, they would undoubtedly provide twelve-tenths of their support.

"If there are literature and materials in this area, Dean Pan and Professor Zhou can recommend more to me. I need to broaden my horizons!" Wu Tong didn't stand on ceremony and directly stated her needs. The basic materials in the library alone were already somewhat insufficient for her.

"No problem, we will do our best to help you collect them. We have already applied for Mr. Chen Jingrun's manuscripts, and in a couple of days, we'll send the electronic manuscripts to your inbox. Make sure to check it!"

Wu Tong had confirmed she would not be going abroad for advanced studies, nor was there any need for her to do so. Moreover, she was now involved in classified projects, making going abroad far too risky. They had to find ways to bring back more research resources for Wu Tong.

"Today, we also want to officially congratulate you as the youngest recipient of the Humboldt Research Award and the Cole Prize in Number Theory!" She was also the youngest recipient of the Ramanujan Prize and the Chern Prize. They looked forward to Wu Tong breaking the record for the youngest age threshold in even more major mathematical awards.

After Wu Tong finished filling out all the materials, the two mentors offered smiling congratulations. They couldn't be happier to receive this double good news, and the School of Mathematics at Peking University once again shone brightly because of Wu Tong. Celebratory banners were hung on the university's official website and throughout the School of Mathematics...

It was just that at the time, Wu Tong was away on a classified trip and couldn't be congratulated on this good news right away.

"The Journal of the American Mathematical Society has already published your paper. Since they are a monthly publication, the speed is relatively fast. This is also one of the 'Big Four'. The prize money will be deposited into your account by the middle of the month. The school's budget is limited, so we can only reward you with two hundred thousand; don't think it's too little!" With prize money scaling in the millions, given Wu Tong's research speed, Peking University's finances were indeed a bit strained. Of course, no matter how strained they were, they were overjoyed. Which university wouldn't eagerly anticipate scientific research achievements creating brilliance one after another?

"Thank you, Dean Pan, for your trouble. This is already plenty; I don't need anything special!" Wu Tong didn't plan on constantly shearing the university's wool or treating the school as an ATM. "If the school's budget is tight, you don't even need to give me the bonus. What the school gave me earlier is already more than enough!"

At the time, she hadn't expected Peking University to be so generous. Around the start of the semester, she had already taken millions in scholarships from the university, which actually made her feel a bit embarrassed. This wasn't her original intention when producing those achievements.

"It's fine, it's fine. If you have the ability, go for it. I was just joking! The school is in pain yet happy, overjoyed! The little bit of bonus we're giving you won't break the school!" Pan Wenhua hurriedly waved his hands. He was just used to joking around; he didn't want the child to take it seriously! Peking University wasn't so strapped for cash that it couldn't afford to pay student bonuses just because a student was too outstanding!

If words like that got out, it would make the neighboring university laugh their heads off and bring heavy funds to poach her talent—that would be disastrous!