Super God-Level Top Student

As for the cold aloofness he had embodied,

...

Edward Whitten stood on the podium, a smile on his face, without any irritation at the sudden noise from below.

This was exactly the effect he had hoped for.

Qiao Ze's thoughts were too radical.

Who would suppress their own paper from being published just to prevent a student from being provoked?

He did not mind helping Qiao Ze gain fame, as the guy was already famous enough; his contribution wouldn't be more than icing on the cake.

But if everyone suggested that Qiao Ze publish his paper promptly, he would be benefiting the entire physics community.

Now, it seemed, the effect was indeed very good.

From his perspective, he could even see Xu Dajiang and Li Jiangao in the front row, being frequently questioned. This was a very good sign.

Those who could sit in the front rows of the conference were the most prestigious and respected seniors in the academic field.

If these people were all interested in the paper, there was no reason for Qiao Ze to keep hiding it, right?

As for the few students of Qiao Ze...

Honestly speaking, Edward Whitten felt that Qiao Ze's academic career had been too smooth. Attracting a few foolish students and letting him understand the rules of how the world operates was necessary. It was time for him to suffer some setbacks, to add some color to his perfect academic life wouldn't be a bad thing.

As for Li Jiangao and Xu Dajiang sitting below facing various questions, they responded with humble smiles.

This was also something that Xu Dajiang had instructed early on.

They had seen Edward Whitten's prepared PPT in advance, and also anticipated the reaction of the crowd.

A modest smile meant, although we were aware of these things early on, we don't want to make a big fuss about promoting them.

Look, Xilin University of Technology School of Mathematics is advancing in a low-key, honest, and steadfast manner, different in scale from those ostentatious show-offs who can't wait to trumpet their achievements. We have many great things, but we just don't advertise them...

Fortunately, there were many big names attending the conference today, and on the stage was a scholarly giant like Edward Whitten. In just two or three minutes, the noise from below gradually quieted down.

"So today, I will start my presentation with the discovery and significance of the Containment Graviton. The report will cover the following four aspects: understanding of basic interactions, verification and challenges of the theory, impact on cosmology, and new directions in physics research."

Indeed, my recent discussions with Qiao Ze have led me to realize some serious shortcomings, or rather, inherent flaws, in quantum gravity theory. Before I talk about this issue, I would like to quote Qiao Ze's description as my opening.

He said, "In the future, we shall uncover the deepest secrets of the universe in the subtle tremors of the Containment Graviton, and ultimately prove that even in the minutest details lie infinite power and connections."

...

For a Fields Medalist to use the words of a twenty-year-old young theoretical scientist as the opening to his own conference is an honor for any young scientist.

But if it was Qiao Ze, it seemed like a normal thing.

However, those below who knew Qiao Ze doubted that Edward Whitten had done some embellishment; they found it hard to imagine such poetic descriptions coming from Qiao Ze, whose vocabulary was so dry it was maddening.

And this was just the beginning, as the audience was soon to find astonishingly that Edward Whitten might have had some issues.

Because it was difficult to imagine that a giant's conference was filled with another person's views.

"Qiao Ze said..."

"Qiao Ze suspected..."

"Qiao Ze believed..."

"Qiao Ze's explanation/understanding/opinion on this is..."

Really, for a moment, Xu Dajiang felt something was wrong.

Giant, I invited you to give your own conference, not to be a mouthpiece for Qiao Ze. If you replace Qiao Ze's name with mine, is this Qiao Ze running the conference?

No, that won't do; Qiao Ze's conferences would never discuss such elementary stuff.

That guy would probably assume everyone understood and was aware of the content; he would only analyze and decipher the complicated formulas, dryly demonstrate the proving processes, and try to simplify the inherently complex proofs as much as possible to fit the conference's timeframe.

If one had to describe it, Qiao Ze's conference would be that kind, loaded with solid content, so dry you couldn't find a drop of water in it.

Edward Whitten did this well. He wouldn't dwell too much on those formulas and proving processes, focusing instead on the significance of this research and on deriving some results. Involving theoretical parts, he would only discuss some key mathematical ideas in the proof processes.

Though it was just as long, a one or two-hour speech, undoubtedly Edward Whitten's conference was more relaxing to listen to. For those who could immerse themselves, it was even described as delightfully interesting, of course, with plenty of thought-provoking content.

This was probably the same principle as too dry rice being hard to swallow.

This also proved once again that water is truly the source of all things; humans can never do without water since there are so many times and places that need lubrication.

In summary, Edward Whitten's conference was a great success.

The conference came to a successful conclusion.

After chatting with some acquaintances at the scene and leaving the venue, Li Jiangao became the center of attention surrounded by stars.

"Jian Gao, congratulations! You're not being forthright; I heard about your marriage from Zhang, of all people. What's this? Are you advancing in life and planning to sever ties with us?"