On this day.
Morning.
In a certain prison.
Zhang Ye stretched lazily and woke up. There was no work, no work, no social engagements. He could sleep until he woke up naturally every day. After waking up, he would stroll around with his hands behind his back. Occasionally, he would practice his martial arts in the horse stance. Occasionally, he would sing a few lines of "Tears Behind Prison Bars". He was already used to life here.
"When will I return to my home?"
"When will I be able to return to my homeland?"
"Lock me down with chains."
"My friend, listen to me sing a song —"
Footsteps could be heard.
The young prison guard walked to the door and said with a smile, "Teacher Zhang, you're singing again?"
"Yes." Zhang Ye said, "Just practice your voice. You can't forget your basic skills."
The young prison guard said in admiration, "You're still very professional. Oh right, get ready. There's a visitor."
Zhang Ye chuckled. "Why are you here again?"
The young prison guard said, "It's not your parents. It was arranged through the prison administration. It seems to be someone from above. I don't know the details."
Zhang Ye rolled his eyes, "People from above? Then I won't see you. "
The young prison guard said, "It might be the leader."
"Who cares?" Zhang Ye waved his hand. "I'll reject them."
The young prison guard didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Then, then I'll go ask."
He left.
Not long after, the warden personally arrived.
The warden was a fat man. "Teacher Zhang, everyone's waiting."
Zhang Ye waved it off. "I'm not going."
The warden was speechless. "He's from the Chinese Academy of Sciences."
Zhang Ye smacked his lips and said, "Old Qian, of course I have to meet my family members when they come to visit, but I can't meet anyone else. I don't care if they're from the Chinese Academy of Sciences or not. If someone comes over and specifically asks to see me, do I have to go? One comes over and I go over? Where would I put my face then? "
The warden was amused. "So it's because of that?"
Zhang Ye said, "That's for sure. Although we don't have any status now, we still have to put on airs."
The warden said, "He really has something urgent to attend to. The leader of the Prison Bureau called me last night and asked me to help arrange it. He actually made an appointment, but where can I find you in the middle of the night? I can't come over and wake you up, can I? Isn't that unkind? "
Hearing him say that, Zhang Ye said, "Alright then, I'm just doing it for your sake, Old Qian."
Ten minutes later.
In the visitation room, Zhang Ye saw someone.
There were two people, a man and a woman. The man was in his sixties or seventies, wearing a pair of presbyopic glasses and looking at something. The woman was in her forties, neither pretty nor ugly. When Zhang Ye came in, the woman noticed him. She smiled and gently nudged the old man beside her, saying that he was here.
They both stood up politely.
Fellow Zhou looked at Zhang Ye. "Hello, Professor Zhang. Let me introduce myself. My name is Zhou Shi, and I'm from the Chinese Academy of Sciences." He pointed to the side. "This is Chi —"
Zhang Ye said, "Chi Xue, a research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Sciences' School of Mathematics."
Chi Xue smiled. "Professor Zhang knows me?"
Zhang Ye said, "There are only a few people in the mathematics field in our country. Even if I haven't met them before, I would still know them."
Fellow Zhou smiled and said, "It's easy since you all know each other. Come, let's sit down and talk."
They sat down.
Fellow Zhou and Chi Xue both placed great importance on this meeting, but Zhang Ye was clearly distracted.
Fellow Zhou spoke up. "Little Chi and I have come here with an important mission. It's related to a very important national project. As for the specifics, we can't reveal it to you yet. But during the progress of the project, we've encountered a difficult problem. There's a mathematical algorithm that we can't solve."
Zhang Ye said, "Then we'll have to find someone to solve it."
Fellow Zhou sighed. "No one can solve it."
Zhang Ye said, "Fellow Yuan?"
Fellow Zhou said, "We've found someone, but he can't do it."
Zhang Ye mentioned another name. "Professor Hu."
Fellow Zhou shook his head. "Professor Hu has been trying to solve it for half a month, but he still can't do it."
Chi Xue said, "Let's put it this way, Professor Zhang. We've invited anyone you can think of, but none of them can do it. That includes me."
Zhang Ye harrumphed in his head and did not answer.
Fellow Zhou looked at him. "After a retired Fellow of the Chinese Academy of Sciences saw it, he said that there are no more than five people in the world who can solve this algorithm. He said that all five of them are in America, but Little Chi's father and I refused to believe him. In the end, it was Fellow Chi who reminded us that the five most outstanding mathematicians in the world are not all in America. At least one of them is in China!"
Zhang Ye hurriedly said, "Whoa, don't flatter me. I can't take it."
Chi Xue said, "It's not that I'm flattering you. There are quite a few mathematicians in China, but if we really want to talk about the title of the world's top mathematician, you're probably the only one. We really can't solve this algorithm. We've tried countless methods, but we really can't do it. That's why we'd like to invite you to help us and the country solve this major problem together. Well, are you interested?"
Zhang Ye looked at them. "Yes, I'm not interested."
Chi Xue was speechless.
Fellow Zhou was speechless.
Clean and efficient!
No hesitation!
No! Interest! Interest!
How were they supposed to continue chatting? What was there to chat about!
Fellow Zhou said anxiously, "This is a matter of great importance for the country and its people. Professor Zhang, you can't have such a low level of awareness. You weren't like this in the past."
Zhang Ye threw up his hands and said, "Yeah, I've always been duty-bound to do things for the country and its people. For example, I was the one who fought back against the Korean hackers, didn't I? Wasn't it for the country and its people? But look at where this bro is right now. That's why I'm not interested in anything right now. The two of you, please find someone else who's more qualified. I'll just stay here and do my own thing. "
Fellow Zhou said, "You're just saying that out of anger. What's so good about this place? If you agree to it, I'll immediately contact the higher-ups and communicate with the relevant departments to bring you to our research institute. Although there will definitely be some restrictions on your personal freedom and you won't be allowed to go home or contact your family, at least you'll be able to walk around the research institute if you want to. It won't be like here, where you have to be restricted to your cell every day. You can go anywhere — "
At this moment, a prison guard knocked on the door. "Teacher Zhang, are you chatting?"
Zhang Ye turned around. "Ah, I'm chatting."
The prison guard smiled and said, "It's time for breakfast. We'll still be having our breakfast in the cafeteria today. Since you two have business to talk about, I won't be locking the door. You can go by yourself later."
Zhang Ye asked, "Which zone's cafeteria is it?"
The prison guard said, "Zone 2."
Zhang Ye nodded and said, "Got it."
Fellow Zhou was stunned. "Ah? Can I walk around freely in here? "
The prison guard smiled and said, "Others can't, but of course Teacher Zhang can."
Fellow Zhou's eyelids twitched a little. When the prison guard left, he immediately said to Zhang Ye, "Our research institute doesn't prohibit smoking either. If you're addicted to smoking, you definitely can't smoke in your room, but in the yard —"
The door suddenly opened and the prison guard returned. "I nearly forgot. The warden brought some cigarettes for you." He handed a carton to Zhang Ye and said, "You can smoke in your room without anyone stopping you."
Zhang Ye exclaimed, "Is that appropriate?"
The prison guard said, "Yes, it is."
Zhang Ye said, "Alright, thank Old Qian on my behalf."
Fellow Zhou's face darkened. He added, "The most important thing is that our research institute doesn't have any labor or modifications, so you don't have to —"
The door wasn't closed.
It opened again.
The prison guard closed the door and rushed in. "Oh yes, Teacher Zhang, it's your working hours after breakfast. It's still the same, so you don't have to worry about it. You can just go back to your room."
Zhang Ye said, "Hai, I don't think it's appropriate for me to always leave the group, right?"
The prison guard laughed and said, "How can I make you do any work! Are you scolding me? "
This time, the prison guard really left.
Zhang Ye turned around and wondered, "I didn't hear you clearly just now. What did you say?"
Chi Xue was speechless.
Fellow Zhou was speechless.
What did I say?
What the fuck can I say!
Fellow Zhou nearly vomited blood from anger!
How the fuck is this prison life?
I'm not even as well-nourished as you at home!
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