Chapter 867 It's Nice To Be Young

For Jinling, December is already winter.

The red leaves all over the mountain have receded, and what remains on the ground are the withered and yellow leaves all over the ground, but if you look around, you can still see patches of emerald green from the mountain. For those coniferous forests, winter is their home field.

Because he lives close by, occasionally when he is not very busy, Lu Zhou will change into his sportswear and come to this area for a morning run or an evening run.

For him, this place is like his back garden. Who is more familiar with him than him, probably those who have figured out this area from a technical point of view and are responsible for his security work...

"... I remember that some of the participants who came to the academic conference seemed to organize mountaineering activities. Why didn't you go with them?"

Faltings: "...I am an old man and young people have nothing to play with."

Lu Zhou reminded him: "I am also a young man."

Faltings was silent for a while, and said in an indifferent tone.

"...Well, I almost forgot if you didn't tell me."

Lu Zhou: "..."

After all, people can't keep up with their physical strength when they are old, and they have just walked halfway up the mountain, and Professor Faltings is a little out of breath. Reaching out his hand to unbutton the windbreaker, he took off the round hat on his head, turned his head and glanced at the stone steps that he had already passed, and looked at the empty mountain road, he took a few breaths and said.

"There...doesn't seem to be anyone here?"

"After all, it's already late December," Lu Zhou stopped, propped his knees with one hand, took a sip from the water bottle from the backpack on the back with the other hand, wiped his mouth and continued, " The weather is so cold, and it’s not a holiday, so tourists are rarely seen. If you want to see the most beautiful Zijin Mountain, you have to wait until early October. At that time, the mountains and plains are all golden, and when the wind blows, it looks like waves.”

Faltings raised his eyebrows, seeming a little interested.

"It looks like you come here often?"

Lu Zhou smiled and said, "My villa is on the mountainside."

Faltings: "..."

Although he is the director of the Institute of Mathematics of the Max Planck Society, his savings are obviously not enough for him to build a house on the edge of the scenic area...

However, these don't really matter.

At this age, no matter whether it is a house or a car, there is no longer any value worth pursuing for him.

After resting for a while, the two moved on.

After walking on the mountain for a while, Professor Faltins was already out of breath. Although the stubborn old man seemed to want to persevere, considering his physical condition, Lu Zhou had no choice but to say that it was getting late. Going up the mountain is not only inconvenient when coming down, but also there is nothing to see, which persuaded the old gentleman.

The two stopped at the rest area halfway up the mountain. Lu Zhou found a familiar restaurant. After greeting the owner, he asked him to help him get a piece of grilled fish and beer on the table.

Sitting on the stone table next to the railing, the two chatted while eating grilled fish.

"The grilled fish here is more delicious than the one in the hotel last night...what's its name."

"No name," opened a can of beer, Lu Zhou smiled and said, "You can see it in many small restaurants in Huaguo. Generally speaking, it is called grilled fish, or Wanzhou grilled fish. The method is basically the same, the difference is only the ingredients It's a little different, it's very suitable for eating, especially for drinking... Speaking of which, can you drink it?"

Professor Faltins smiled lightly, and with his skinny fingers, he opened the tab of the can.

"Are there any Germans who can't drink? In the countryside where I live, it may not be so convenient to go to the supermarket, but you can definitely find a tavern to drink."

Lu Zhou shrugged and said with a smile.

"Really? Why didn't I notice it when I went to Berlin?"

"Because it's the city center, it's not a place to enjoy life," Professor Faltings took a sip of beer, wiped his mouth, and turned his gaze to the mountain road not far away.

The sky had gradually turned yellow, and gauze-like halos were stretched out on the edge of the jungle. Squinting his eyes at the beautiful scenery, the old man took out his phone from his pocket and took a photo.

"...Speaking of which, how far is the top of the mountain?"

Lu Zhou thought for a while and replied.

"According to the speed just now, it will take about two hours to walk."

Professor Faltings was silent for a while, and suddenly sighed with regret.

"Then I'm afraid I won't be able to go up."

Hearing this sentence, Lu Zhou was silent for a while.

Although it felt like the old gentleman had something to say, he didn't know what to answer at the moment, so he could only comfort him with broad words, and brought the topic to a less serious place.

"It's okay, there are still many opportunities, next time we can start earlier."

However, I don't know if I didn't understand his kindness, or I didn't pay attention to this heaviness at all.

Professor Faltings, who was looking at the sunset in the sky, was silent for a while, shook his head, and said slowly

"Time waits for no one, especially for those of us who are left, almost counting the things that have not been done while counting the days we have left."

In the face of time, everyone is equal.

Whether it is a king or a farmer, when the final moment comes, they can only face death equally.

After a pause of about half a minute, the old man withdrew his gaze from the setting sun in the distance, and his eyes fell back on Lu Zhou's face.

"Now you are probably the person closest to God in this world... or the closest to the truth. Since Mr. Grothendieck passed away, it is the first time I feel that there is still such a person in this world, He has the potential to have the answers we all long to know."

Lu Zhou: "...Thank you for your compliment."

"It's not a compliment, it's advice... Of course, it also includes the blessing of a bad old man," Professor Faltings continued after taking a deep look at Lu Zhou, "Whether I can see that day or not, I hope you don't Give up. If there's anyone who might actually solve this problem, it's probably only you."

Speaking of this, the Germanic old man, who was always unsmiling and sarcastic at every turn, suddenly pulled the corners of his chapped mouth, and said in a tone as if he was joking.

"...If I'm gone that day, remember to leave a copy on my tombstone. But don't make me wait too long, I'm afraid something will crawl out from under my tombstone and go to you Knock."

While drinking in silence, Lu Zhou suddenly smiled and said.

"Forget about the tombstone. I swear I won't make you wait too long... Three years at the latest. Within three years, I will definitely find the exit of this maze."

"Three years?"

Amused by Lu Zhou's words, Faltins smiled.

Shaking his head, he looked in the direction of the top of the mountain, and he continued after a while.

"It's nice to be young."