Chapter 1160 The Pope's Burial Place

The origin of the sketch in Professor Abel's notes has become a mystery.

It can be seen from the latter part of the notes that the scholar seems to have entrusted everything in the dream to the gods, and completely gave up the search for this clue.

Considering the background of the times, this is actually understandable.

Although Lu Zhou himself is an atheist, this does not prevent him from understanding Professor Abel's mentality.

It is a common feature of human civilization to entrust the unknowable mystery to a certain powerful existence.

In fact, why not himself? Assuming that the system comes from a certain "advanced civilization" or "future man" is not necessarily much better than entrusting this assumption to the "spirit of the universe".

Anyway, none of the three have solid scientific evidence that they actually exist, do they?

In short, I don’t know whether Abel has gotten rid of that grotesque dream, or he has chosen not to think about it. The rest of the notes have completely become a reflection on the century-old problem of “the quintic equation in one variable has no algebraic general solution” .

And what happened later, even without notes, Lu Zhou knew about it.

This Professor Abel achieved great success in 1824, and completed a series of mathematical achievements such as "Abel's Theorem" continuously.

It's just that these achievements did not improve his life, and did not even attract the attention of the Parisian mathematics community at that time.

Finally, in the spring of 1829, impoverished, he died of illness at the home of his fiancée. Most of the records of his deeds in later generations come from the collection of essays published by his teacher Professor Holm ten years later.

The world depicted in that sketch seems to have never appeared in history.

All clues about it were interrupted on that oil painting...

Standing at the gate of the yard, looking at Lu Zhou coming out of the house, Molina lowered her arms and asked.

"Where are you going to go shopping next? I can stay with you until the afternoon."

Lu Zhou: "Let's go here."

Molina raised her eyebrows unexpectedly.

"Is that enough?"

Lu Zhou smiled and nodded.

"Well, I stayed up all night last night, and I have to take a long trip tomorrow, so it's time for me to go back and rest."

After saying goodbye to Molina, Lu Zhou got into the car driven by Wang Peng and returned to the hotel where he was staying.

Rested all day.

Early the next morning, a black limousine from the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs stopped at the entrance of the hotel and picked up Lu Zhou.

The town of Omites they were going to was located in the south of France, a bit far from Paris. If they planned to return on the same day, the sooner they set off, the better.

Before getting on the bus, Lu Zhou originally thought that it would be enough for the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs to arrange a bodyguard and tour guide for him, but he did not expect that the director of the Basic Department of the French Ministry of Science and Technology, Giacobino, would accompany him.

To put it simply, this position is roughly equivalent to the sub-department in charge of basic scientific research in the Ministry of Science and Technology of Huaguo.

Lu Zhou is not particularly aware of such things as administrative levels. Even today, he has not quite figured out what level he is as the chief designer and consultant of the Lunar Orbit Construction Committee. However, before he set off, he listened to the The old man said that Director Giacobino who came to pick him up should be at the same level as Xiao Li.

The little Li that the old man mentioned, Lu Zhou reckoned that he should be referring to Chief Li.

Anyway, the level is not low anyway.

Apart from the polite greetings before boarding the car, there was not much communication along the way.

Lu Zhou, who had just brought a book into the car, didn't seem to be interested in chatting at all. He just flipped through the book in his hand quietly. Felt pretty tricky.

Glancing at the time on the watch, seeing that there was not much time left, he gave the driver a look to let him drive a little slower, then looked at Lu Zhou who was sitting opposite him, and spoke with a smile.

"..."Harvesting and Sowing", very interesting name, is it poetry?"

Turning a page casually, Lu Zhou said in a relaxed tone.

"Strictly speaking, autobiography."

autobiography?

Giacobino hesitated for a moment and continued to ask after thinking about it for a while without any impression.

"Who is it by?"

"Professor Grothendieck, I don't know what year it was written... Do you want me to read it to you?"

Giacobino smiled and said kindly.

"There are not many opportunities to listen to Academician Lu's lectures."

Looking at the smiling Director Giacobino, Lu Zhou smiled faintly.

He knew very well the reason behind the smile.

But even though he has seen through this point, he will not be so low in EQ to expose it face to face.

Clearing his throat, he selected his favorite part of it and read it aloud in a steady voice.

"...in every science we derive a pure harmony when we use it not as an instrument of power and dominion, but as an intellectual adventure to which our species has been striving throughout the ages. This harmony is more or less vast and rich from one period to another. And in different ages and centuries, the different themes they show us, and the subtle and delicate correspondence... is As if from nothing."

As if from the void...

Lu Zhou read this sentence twice. The first time was in French, and the second time was a translation based on his own understanding. He always felt that he could feel the profound meaning in it every time he read it.

What exactly is the void?

He has been thinking about this problem.

But for Giacobino, it was a little bit difficult to empathize with the profound meaning in Lu Zhou's heart. And in comparison, he was even more surprised by Lu Zhou's French.

The two of them had been communicating in English before, so that he didn't know that Professor Lu's French was so fluent.

"...You are very fluent in French. When did you start learning it? When you were working at CERN?"

Lu Zhou shook his head lightly.

"About last month."

Giacobino: "...?"

To be precise, he should have started learning at the end of last month when he decided to come to France.

Of course, there is no need to say this sentence, otherwise Lu Zhou is not sure if his chin will fall to his knee.

Seeing the stunned expression on Director Giacobino's face, Lu Zhou smiled lightly, and ignored him, but continued to read the autobiography in his hand.

Just when the conversation between the two of them could not continue, the driver sitting in the front row spoke at the right time.

"Here we are."

...

The St. Lizier Church is located in the small town of Omites. It is not a famous tourist attraction, but a small church where locals go to worship.

Standing at the door of the church, looking at Lu Zhou who got off the car, the old priest with cloudy eyes recognized his face at a glance, walked forward and said.

"You're here, I was almost boiled to death by you."

Looking at the wrinkled old priest, Lu Zhou was slightly taken aback, and smiled a little embarrassedly.

"Sorry to trouble you."

"What about the letter?"

Taking out the old envelope from his pocket, Lu Zhou handed it to the priest.

After opening the letter, he took a quick glance and confirmed that it was Professor Grothendieck's handwriting. The old priest returned the letter to Lu Zhou, muttering.

"Professor Grothendieck begged me to hand over his notes to you personally. I thought I could fulfill his wish eight years ago, but I didn't expect to wait from seventy-two to eighty years old."

"...I'm really sorry."

The old priest snorted unceremoniously and continued in a hoarse voice.

"You don't need to apologize to me. Anyway, even if you don't come, I won't be the one to lose. The person you really released is lying in the soil. If you feel embarrassed, go and tell him. Do you need a bouquet of flowers? Only ten euros , no matter what you do, the dead will forgive you."

Lu Zhou was about to take out the money, but after searching for a long time, he only found out a credit card. Director Giacobino, who was standing next to him, caught the embarrassment on his face, quickly took out his wallet, and looked serious. He looked at the old priest and said.

"Two bundles, please! Professor Grothendieck was a great scholar, and his departure is a loss to the world and to the people of France. And we owe him an apology..."

Because he was born in a war-torn era, Professor Grothendieck was always a radical pacifist during his lifetime. It is precisely because of this that he and the then Paris Institute for Advanced Study had serious differences and conflicts on the issue of "whether mathematics should be used for war purposes", which eventually led him to live in seclusion in a small village in southern France life……

These are old things.

Looking at Giacobino with a "as if" heavy expression, the old man snorted with his nose, and dropped a meaningful sentence with a half-smile.

"If you really think so, you won't be here eight years later."

After finishing speaking, he ignored the embarrassing expression on Director Giacobino's face, turned around and walked to the back door of the church, and stretched out his hand to push open the wooden door leading to the cemetery.

"Please come in, distinguished guests, his tombstone is the second from the left in the third row."

Lu Zhou nodded and walked towards the wooden door.

But when passing by the door, the old priest suddenly stretched out his hand and pulled Lu Zhou's arm.

"Wait a minute, this is for you."

As he spoke, he handed out a notebook from his hand.

Taking the slightly yellowed notebook from the hand of the old priest, Lu Zhou carefully opened the title page in his hand.

"Is this Professor Grothendieck's notebook?"

To be honest, there is only such a point, which somewhat surprised Lu Zhou.

The old priest: "There are others, but he said this is the most important, so I put it in the church. I can't understand the things on it, but according to him, it is a mathematical problem that has not been solved."

"He has always hoped to find someone to help him. In the past, he was in love with Deligne, and he also considered a German named Schulz, but he hated Germans and thought he was too young...just don't know why, When he was dying, he finally chose you who had never met."

Feeling the heavy sense of history in this notebook, Lu Zhou did not read it for the time being, but put it in his arms, looked at the old man and said solemnly.

"Thank you for keeping it for me for so long."

For this thank you, the old priest snorted with his nose, and said in an unceremonious and philistine manner.

"You're welcome, you are a rich man. If you want to thank me, you can donate some money to me. This church has not been renovated for fifty years."

Lu Zhou froze for a moment, then nodded with a smile.

"no problem."

Compared to those complicated math problems.

Only this matter is a trivial matter to him.