Chapter 43

The security guard at the library, Old Yang, as usual came over at 6:30 to open the library doors. He went in alone to patrol, carefully checking each area. It was easy to see a large table almost entirely covered with books, many of which were haphazardly placed. After navigating around a pile of books, he saw a student-like young man writing quickly, finishing one sheet of paper and moving on to another.

Old Yang's eyes widened in disbelief, and he watched for about fifteen minutes. The young man then took a deep breath, organized the written pages, placed them aside, and leaned back in the chair. Soon, he began to snore.

Old Yang had worked at the library of the Basic Studies Department for ten years and had never seen anything like this. Seeing the young man sleep so soundly, he couldn't bear to disturb him. He quietly walked over, gently organized the messy books, and after finishing, took a blank sheet of paper, wrote a few words with effort, and then took the young man's written pages.

When focused, one doesn't feel tired, but after completing the task and relaxing, the fatigue from staying up all night hit him. Liu Meng couldn't hold on any longer and fell asleep on the chair. He didn't wake up until after 11:30, when he rubbed his eyes and sat up.

He felt an indescribable sense of satisfaction. The Cita Pan Conjecture had actually been solved by him. It was fascinating, profound, and simply incredible.

Looking up, he saw that the books on the table were all gone. He was startled and then noticed that the manuscript was also missing. This made him panic. If the manuscript was lost, it would be very difficult to recall such complex mathematical logic, and he would have to read all those books again to reconstruct it.

Now, completely relaxed, he couldn't regain the state of mind from last night.

He was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan, sweating on his forehead, and searched everywhere, even in the trash bin, but found nothing. Then he saw a piece of paper in front of him with "Room 104" written on it.

He didn't understand who had left the note but was eager to get his manuscript back. He took the paper and ran downstairs.

"Knock, knock, knock."

Old Yang opened the door and immediately recognized Liu Meng, letting him in.

Seeing the old man in a security uniform, Liu Meng didn't hesitate and asked urgently, "Sir, did you take the manuscript next to me? If so, please return it; it's very important to me."

"Libraries close at 10 PM, and no one is allowed to stay. Do you know that?" The old man ignored Liu Meng's anxiety and lectured him calmly and seriously.

"I know I was wrong, and it won't happen again," Liu Meng said, not wanting to argue and immediately admitting his mistake with a sincere attitude.

"If all students were like you, how could the library be managed? How could the books be kept in order? Don't give me those useless excuses. If you want your manuscript back, write a statement of regret and have your counselor sign it," the old man said sternly, with a look of impartiality and no room for negotiation.

Liu Meng was extremely anxious and knew he couldn't reason with such a man. He had to go back and quickly write the statement, promising not to stay in the library again, and then find Li Xin.

Li Xin looked at the statement, tapping his fingers on the table, and scolded, "This is unacceptable. What were you doing in the library in the middle of the night? Can't you read during the day?"

"Please sign it, counselor," Liu Meng said.

Li Xin lowered his voice and asked, "Is there something special in the library that you can't read during the day?"

He was genuinely curious, thinking Liu Meng had discovered some interesting books that were not suitable for daytime reading.

"The best books are in the last row of Section C. Once you start reading, you can't put them down. You should check them out, counselor; they're really good," Liu Meng said, playing along with Li Xin's curiosity.

Li Xin smiled and then put on a serious face, scolding Liu Meng again before signing the statement. Liu Meng took the signed statement and rushed back to the library. Old Yang took the statement, put on his reading glasses, and read it carefully.

He scanned it once, then again. Liu Meng wondered if he could even read.

"Can I have my manuscript back now?" Liu Meng asked, growing impatient.

After a while, the old man finally finished reading, went inside, and brought out a file folder, handing it to Liu Meng. His stern face softened, and he warned, "Don't do this again. You're still growing, and staying up all night is bad for your health. Go on."

Liu Meng, holding the result of his all-night effort, felt as if he had a treasure and couldn't resist kissing it.

While the iron was hot, after lunch, he continued his work in the library, opened his computer, and started writing the paper, simplifying the steps from the manuscript to make it seem profound and mysterious, omitting as many intermediate steps as possible.

Fortunately, his English had improved significantly, making the writing process not too difficult. He referenced the structure of several mathematical papers and his previous experience in writing English papers, completing the paper in less than six hours.

This was just the first step. A mathematical paper must withstand scrutiny from many experts, especially for a highly influential proposition like the Cita Pan Conjecture, which would attract many talented mathematicians to question and discuss it.

Only after withstanding scrutiny and being published smoothly could it be considered a success.

Finally, he finished writing and felt a great sense of relief and satisfaction. Although the paper might still have some flaws, it was almost impossible for Du Yi to surpass him.

He quickly finished dinner and rushed to Zhou Shiyuan's house for tutoring.

When he arrived at the Zhou family, the little girl had just come back. She made a face at Liu Meng and obediently started her homework, which made Liu Meng very happy. It seemed they had reached an agreement, and the little girl was no longer resistant to him, a good sign.

Feeling unusually relaxed, Liu Meng brought his own computer this time, connected to the internet, and directly submitted the paper to the authoritative journal in mathematical logic, *The Journal of Symbolic Logic*. During his chat with Kong Jidao, he had mentioned this journal and suggested that Liu Meng refer to its articles while thinking about the Cita Pan Conjecture.

After submitting the paper, he started browsing two Chinese websites, updating two chapters. The *Dianmama Chinese Network* had already exceeded 100,000 words, and *Huantao Book Alliance* had surpassed 110,000 words.

After browsing for a while, a wave of drowsiness hit him. He had been focused on mathematical reasoning all day, and his brain was still in an excited state, so he didn't feel tired. But once he relaxed, the fatigue hit him. He rubbed his temples, which were a bit sore, and fell asleep on the desk.

Soon, he was snoring rhythmically.

Zhou Shiyuan quickly noticed that the "evil" uncle had fallen asleep and kicked him, but he was sleeping so soundly that he didn't react.

She still had some homework to finish and was very angry. She put on her headphones and turned up the volume, but the snoring still seemed to penetrate her ears and enter her mind, making her feel annoyed.

She angrily took off her headphones and saw the sleeping man with a shiny drool at the corner of his mouth. A mischievous thought came to her, and a wicked smile appeared on her face, looking quite terrifying.

......

Donggua, whose real name is You Dong, is only 19 years old but is already the chief editor of the fourth group of *Dianmama Chinese Network*. She is a talented and unique girl who loves writing. In high school, she was immersed in the world of fantasy and began submitting articles to various magazines. She loves martial arts novels and, after reading all the masters' works, started writing her own.

She is one of the earliest enthusiasts of online literature and once mingled with a group of early rising authors on Baidu Tieba. In 2003, when *Dianmama Chinese Network* was founded, she was specially invited to join and became one of the founding members.

Though young, she has a lot of experience.

Her eyes are very discerning, and most of the works she selects become popular.

It was already time to go home, but the young girl hadn't finished reviewing today's manuscripts. According to the rules, once a work reaches 100,000 words, it must be reviewed by the chief editor of each group. Donggua is known for her seriousness and responsibility in her work.

She always finishes today's work today and never drags it out.

Moreover, she has a deep love for online literature. Reviewing works that have reached 100,000 words is her favorite task, like picking diamonds from sand. She finds it very interesting and challenging.

She stretched, took off her glasses, and rubbed her sore eyes. She leaned back in her chair, her lively bright short-sleeved shirt tightly hugging her upper body, her chest high and prominent, and her lower body in casual short pants, revealing her white thighs, slender calves, and a pair of red flip-flops on her small, delicate feet, with brightly colored toenails. Her slightly curly long hair fell to her slender waist, with a faint deep red highlight in the middle, making her look youthful and beautiful.

Her small, slender figure was like a lazy cat curled up in the chair.

After a brief rest, she got up, made a cup of coffee, and eagerly returned to her work. She clicked on the next manuscript to review, and the title "Hui Ming" caught her eye.

From the name and introduction, it didn't seem to be a fantasy novel. With great interest, Donggua began to read.