On the same day.
Peking University's Dean Pan called Zhang Ye's mother several times. In the end, Zhang Ye's mother could not take it anymore and got Dean Pan to contact Zhang Ye.
Zhang Ye took his mother's cell phone.
"Dean Pan, I really have something to attend to."
"No matter how important it is, you have to come over!"
"I've already renounced the award, so there's no point in me going over."
"The reporters are already at the door, and there are even foreign reporters!"
"Then please help me deal with it."
"If you, the main character, don't show up, who can handle it? Everyone is waiting for you to show up! Hurry up and come over! Now that the entire world knows about you renouncing the award, and the Abel Foundation has also issued a statement, there's no one here to urge you to accept the award. Even if you wanted to, you wouldn't be able to do so. I asked you to come over to deal with the media and clarify the situation. You have to finish what you started. What's the meaning of not saying a word or showing your face? If the foreign media sees this, they might think that our Chinese professors are all unreasonable! "
"Then … alright then."
"The press conference will be starting soon. Come over immediately."
"Alright, I got it."
"You must be there!"
"I understand. I won't make things difficult for you."
After putting down the phone, Zhang Ye informed his parents that he would be leaving. Then he changed his clothes and headed out. Dean Pan was right. Ever since the incident yesterday, Zhang Ye had not appeared in public at all, nor did he make any statements. Now that the overall situation had been resolved, the award had been forfeited, Johannes had been withdrawn, the Abel Foundation had suffered a huge blow, and Zhang Ye was being criticized by the global mathematics world, it was only right for Zhang Ye to show his face. He could not let Peking University and Dean Pan bear the pressure. In any case, Zhang Ye was already used to such situations.
...
Peking University.
7 PM in the evening.
When Zhang Ye arrived at the venue, a small press conference was already being held in a small hall of Peking University. Zhang Ye was ushered in by someone from Peking University from the back door. The moment he arrived, he saw that the small hall was filled with media reporters. Cameras and cameras were placed all over the place, and there were eight or nine foreign reporters with blonde hair and red hair who stood out the most. Everyone kept asking Dean Pan and a Peking University vice president questions.
When Zhang Ye appeared, the atmosphere in the hall changed!
"Professor Zhang!"
"Zhang Ye is here!"
"Teacher Zhang, is the reason why you turned down the award because the Abel Foundation is looking down on you?"
"Professor Zhang, do you know how much of an uproar this award rejection has caused in the international mathematics field? What do you think of the criticism from foreign scholars? "
The reporters all acted as if they were on steroids, one question after another!
A Peking University staff member immediately maintained order, "Speak one by one, speak one by one!"
Dean Pan glanced at Zhang Ye.
The Vice President of Peking University also looked at Zhang Ye with a look of blame. After the incident, this was the first time they had seen Zhang Ye in person. Regarding Zhang Ye's rejection of the award, it would be a lie to say that they did not hold it against him. Who in Peking University did not wish for Zhang Ye to win this honor and award? But it was too late to say anything now. Everything was a foregone conclusion, so what else could they do? He could only hope that after Dale's Conjecture was proven, Zhang Ye would not be as impulsive as he was this time. But then again, with this incident, how many other international awards would be given to Zhang Ye in the future?! This fellow was simply too unreliable and too f * cked up!
Zhang Ye went onstage and sat down next to the Vice President of Peking University. Compared to the sullenness of the Peking University side, Zhang Ye looked much more relaxed and even smiled occasionally. This made the Vice President of Peking University and Dean Pan gnash their teeth in anger.
Zhang Ye immediately answered, "Dear friends from the media, the reason why I turned down the award this time is entirely due to personal reasons, so please don't make wild guesses."
Hearing this, the Vice President of Peking University and Dean Pan nodded slightly and their expressions became a little better. They knew that Zhang Ye had said this after considering all aspects. Since the matter had been resolved, he had gotten his revenge and vented his anger. If he continued to harp on the issue of the visa, it would be pointless and undignified. As such, they decided not to bring it up again. If they were to continue to be so aggressive after the matter had been resolved, then the criticism against Zhang Ye would be even greater. If that happened, then it would really cut off any chances of Zhang Ye winning any other international awards in the future. Zhang Ye clearly understood this.
But the more they understood what Zhang Ye was thinking, the more annoyed Dean Pan and the others were. Who said that Zhang Ye was stupid? This fellow was clearly not stupid at all. He clearly knew and understood everything, yet the things that such a smart person did were completely unreasonable. Sometimes, it really made people at a loss whether to laugh or cry!
Zhang Ye continued answering questions. "As for the criticism of me from the international mathematics world, I didn't go online today, so I'm not too sure about it. But I would like to clarify that the decision to turn down the award was my personal decision. If anyone has any questions, feel free to direct it at me. Please don't make things difficult for my colleagues and leaders of Peking University."
Questions were constantly thrown at him.
One …
Ten …
Twenty …
Zhang Ye answered all that he knew and spoke in a bureaucratic manner.
It wasn't until an hour later that the Vice President of Peking University looked at his watch and interrupted the reporters' questions. He announced, "It's getting late, and everyone has asked their questions. Let's end the press conference here!"
Zhang Ye and the Peking University people stood up and prepared to leave.
The Vice President left the room without a hitch. Dean Pan was also halfway out of the room, but Zhang Ye, who was about to leave, did not have such a smooth journey. He was immediately surrounded by the reporters who had rushed up to him!
A reporter from the Beijing Morning News said, "Say a few more words, Teacher Zhang!"
Zhang Ye said helplessly, "Alright then, I'll answer one last question."
A foreign reporter said, "Zhang, I heard that there are mathematicians in China who are unhappy with your decision to turn down the award. What do you think of the evaluation of you by your fellow mathematicians in your own country?"
A female reporter from the Beijing Times said, "Professor Zhang, there are people who are praising you, but there are also quite a number of people who are scolding you. There's a lot of controversy about you, but what I want to know is not what other people think of you, because these comments can be seen everywhere. What I want to know is, how do you think of yourself? If a monument was set up to be passed down to future generations, and you were asked to write down your contributions or achievements, or even your remorse and self-evaluation, how would you write about yourself? "
This was a very interesting question.
Zhang Ye looked at her and smiled. "Then I won't write anything on this monument."
"You won't write anything?"
"Why?"
"What does that mean?"
Zhang Ye looked calm and said slowly, "Whether it's my merits or demerits, it's up to future generations to judge!" Saying that, Zhang Ye turned around and walked away without another word.
Dean Pan was stunned when he heard that.
When the vice president heard that, he suddenly stopped in his tracks and looked at Zhang Ye in a daze.
The reporters who were present were also stunned!
Zhang Ye's words were something that no one in this world had ever heard before. But in Zhang Ye's previous world, these words were very famous. The most widely spread saying was "it's up to future generations to judge" or "it's up to future generations to judge". Between the lines, it meant that after a few decades or centuries, the future generations would give a fair evaluation. However, what Zhang Ye said was not this. He did not throw the words "it's up to future generations to judge" or "it's up to future generations to judge" to the reporters. He did not care how the future generations would judge him. Be it praise or criticism, or whatever the future generations would say or judge him, Zhang Ye did not care. He only cared about one thing: having a clear conscience!
As for the rest?
They can say whatever they want!!
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