bestfiction Chapter 102 The Gears of Fate
Chapter 102 The Gears of Fate
Looking at the gentleman before him, Su Hao's nearly exhausted consciousness seemed to transform into a feather, drifting lightly back to the distant past.
The gears of destiny began when he was four years old.
At that tender age, when even holding a pencil was still quite clumsy, he, as if by fate, stumbled upon this theorem, which seemed like a magic spell, in a corner of a thick encyclopedia:
"Any flat map can be colored using only four colors!"
When young Su Hao first read this magical sentence, his mind was instantly filled with curiosity and an indescribable thrill.
He frowned in confusion, wondering if this thing was real.
Also, why are there only four colors?
Are three not enough?
So, the four-year-old child lay down on the floor...
He frantically drew maps in his sketchbook and clumsily cut out pieces of colored paper with scissors to piece them together.
He used his naive approach to verify that the theorem was indeed true.
However, when he turned to the next page and saw the method of proof described in the encyclopedia, his young mind was greatly shocked.
What the hell?
Exhaustive search by computer?
Did you spend thousands of hours calculating on a computer?
Although Su Hao was just a little kid at the time, his aesthetic sense as a born mathematician was already rock solid.
He felt that this method of proof was simply a scoundrel's act!
How can proof be based on brute force, which is devoid of any technical sophistication, such as exhaustive computer searches?
That's an insult to mathematics!
True proof should be a logical blade that shines with the light of wisdom and can cut through all the fog!
With a kind of childish, "Since you bunch of useless people can't do it, then I'll do it myself" kind of determination...
He embarked on the first challenge of his life.
But reality soon slapped him in the face.
A four-year-old child's knowledge is so limited that they wouldn't even qualify as cannon fodder in the face of the Four Color Theorem.
So, driven by this obsession, Su Hao asked his father for the first time in his life to buy him those advanced mathematics textbooks that even college students would find daunting.
In order to understand what graph theory is, he gritted his teeth and taught himself topology, a subject that even college students find difficult.
To calculate all possible configurations, he stayed up all night studying the obscure and difficult combinatorial mathematics.
From that fateful day onward, Su Hao, like an ascetic, frantically studied countless profound theories.
All of these initial intentions were aimed at overcoming this one and only problem at hand.
He experienced countless setbacks, frustrations, and failures.
Through repeated setbacks, he came to understand that there truly exists a cruel truth in the world that no matter how much ordinary people struggle or how much they kneel and beg, they can hardly reach.
But during those long and lonely years, during that period of agonizing torment, Su Hao gradually grasped the true essence of mathematics:
Mathematics, rather than being about giving you the brute force to smash through a high wall with a single punch...
Rather, it's meant to help you understand the wall itself.
We need to figure out exactly which theorems and logics, brick by brick, built that insurmountable wall.
Once you see through the true nature of the wall, the door will naturally appear there.
Since that's the case, there's no rush.
As long as you keep moving forward, even if you have to crawl, one day you will surely reach the finish line as a victor!
It was this almost obsessive belief that accompanied Su Hao through all the ups and downs, helping him grow into the young man he is today.
The winds of the spiritual world ceased, and Su Hao weakly raised his head, his gaze fixed intently on the gentleman in the suit and tie.
"What do you think of my proof?" Su Hao asked softly. "Are you satisfied with it?"
The gentleman remained silent, and his upright figure began to blur like ripples on water.
But Su Hao could clearly feel that the other person was smiling.
That smile carried a sense of satisfaction that transcended a century.
The gentleman praised him as if he were an elder: "Well done, little fellow."
Then, it slowly extended its illusory hand, with respect and affection, and gently stroked Su Hao's head.
As Su Hao watched the gentlemanly demeanor gradually dissipate, he also started to laugh foolishly.
Invisible rings of light surged and spread outwards.
All that remains in this space is that vast sea of stars, perfectly interwoven with four colors, representing absolute order!
Su Hao whispered in an extremely weak voice to the last remaining glimpse of the gentleman's figure disappearing into the void:
"goodbye."
For some reason, a wave of sadness washed over me.
Warm tears welled up in Su Hao's bloodshot eyes and then rolled uncontrollably down his pale cheeks!
"My...teacher!"
......
In reality, inside the classroom.
With his trembling, spasming hand, Su Hao struggled to move the piece of chalk in his hand.
With the last bit of strength pressed down, a line of words appeared on the screen:
"...In conclusion, four colors are sufficient for coloring any flat map."
Then, gritting his teeth, he carefully and solemnly wrote those few short but weighty letters at the very bottom of the blackboard.
QED (Proof complete)
With the final stroke completed.
Su Hao instantly felt that the last bit of strength that was holding him up at his fingertips was completely drained away, as if it had been sucked dry by a water pump!
"Snapped!"
The chalk, having fulfilled its mission, slipped from his limp fingertips, fell onto the cold ground with a crisp sound, and instantly broke in two!
In that instant, Su Hao's dilapidated body, barely holding on thanks to an almost frenzied tension in his nerves...
Like a dilapidated building whose main beam has been removed, it collapsed instantly!
His vision began to shake violently, and the world spun around him!
"Well……"
With a short, muffled groan squeezed out of his throat, Su Hao's world plunged into complete darkness, and his consciousness was abruptly cut off!
He fell straight backward like a kite with a broken string!
"Su Hao!!!"
Liu Zhiyun, who was the first to react, let out a piercing scream and rushed over like a mother leopard protecting her cubs!
She frantically reached out, trying desperately to support the frail boy who had collapsed in front of the blackboard, looking like a god falling from the sky!
But at this crucial moment, someone was even faster than her!
boom!
With a loud bang as the door was kicked open, a figure rushed forward like a gust of wind!
It's Shen Yuxuan!
Sweating profusely, he grabbed Su Hao tightly at the last moment!
He knelt on the ground like that, his arms bulging with veins.
Like catching an exhausted little bird in a storm, he steadily and very carefully supported Su Hao's limp body as it collapsed.
"Holy crap! What did you do to me, you brat?!"
"Help! Call an ambulance! An ambulance!!!"
Shen Yuxuan, holding Su Hao, roared at the crowd, his voice trembling uncontrollably as he felt Su Hao's light weight.
Until he placed his hand near Su Hao's nose and heard the faint breathing of the boy in his arms...
The man, who had been recklessly speeding, finally collapsed to the ground and let out a long sigh of relief.