Chapter 317 - 245: An Invitation from the USA

Chapter 317: Chapter 245: An Invitation from the USA

Pan Si: [Got it. I’ll clear everyone out now.]

Huang Yiyi: [Roger that, Boss! Mission accepted! I’ll pull the plug on anyone who dares to work overtime! [Fighting!] [Fighting!]]

A smile touched Chen Lin’s lips as he looked at the cheerful atmosphere in the group chat.

’That’s more like it.’

’As long as I’m the boss, our company will never embrace that whole "overtime is a blessing" culture.’

Chen Lin put his phone away and was about to head to the roadside to hail a taxi back to his rented apartment when the device suddenly vibrated in his palm. BZZZ—BZZZ—

The caller ID showed a long string of numbers.

’It’s not a domestic number.’

’The country code is +1.’

’A call from the USA?’

Chen Lin frowned slightly.

In the past, he would have most likely dismissed a call like this as a scam and hung up immediately. But after the Amy Howard incident and Fu Yangqing’s warning, Chen Lin was on high alert. He also understood that his number wasn’t one that just anyone could get ahold of now.

After a moment’s hesitation, Chen Lin answered the call.

"Hello?" Chen Lin’s voice was calm.

A man’s voice came through the phone—it sounded slightly aged but was full of vigor. He spoke in standard English with a hint of a British accent, "Hello, am I speaking with Professor Chen Lin from Huaxia?"

"This is he. May I ask who’s calling?"

"Oh, great." The person on the other end sounded very pleased, his tone growing warmer. "My name is Martin Bridson. I’m the director of the Clay Mathematics Institute and the chair of its Science Advisory Board."

’The Clay Mathematics Institute?’

Hearing this name, Chen Lin stopped in his tracks.

To anyone in the field of mathematics, this name was extremely prestigious.

Chen Lin had heard Shen Yan mention it during one of their previous conversations.

This was the same deep-pocketed institution famous for the "Millennium Prize Problems"—the one offering a one million US dollar reward for the solution to each of the seven problems!

"Hello, Professor Bridson." Chen Lin’s tone became more polite. "What can I do for you?"

"Well, Professor Chen."

Bridson got straight to the point. "We’ve been following the paper you recently published in *JAMS* on the manifold boundaries of generative models and hallucination control."

"It is truly a masterpiece!"

Bridson did not hold back his praise. "The profound understanding of differential manifolds and high-dimensional topology you demonstrated in the paper, as well as your innovative perspective in applying it to the field of AI, has astonished every member of our committee."

"You haven’t just solved the problem of AI hallucination. More importantly, you’ve provided the mathematical community with a completely new and incredibly promising set of tools for studying the boundaries of differential manifolds!"

Listening to the big shot’s professional flattery, Chen Lin kept a polite smile on his face, though of course the man on the other end couldn’t see it. "You’re too kind, Professor."

"No, it’s not flattery; it’s a fact," Bridson continued. "Therefore, on behalf of the Clay Mathematics Institute, I would like to formally invite you to the ’Interdisciplinary Symposium on the Frontiers of Mathematics and Artificial Intelligence,’ which will be held in Seattle one month from now, in early February of next year."

"Several Fields Medal laureates will be in attendance, including Professor Tao Zhexuan. We would be honored if you would join us as a special guest to give a 45-minute talk."

"I’ve already sent a formal invitation with the conference details to the email address you provided in *JAMS*."

’Go to Seattle?’

’For a conference?’

Chen Lin’s eyes narrowed slightly.

At that moment, a cold winter wind swept through the streets of Jinmen. Chen Lin pulled his coat tighter around him, his mind racing.

A few months ago, back when he was just a regular college student, he would have jumped at an invitation from a top-tier mathematical institution. A chance to go abroad and show off, all expenses paid? He would have agreed in a heartbeat.

’But now...’

"Thank you for the invitation, Professor Bridson." Chen Lin’s tone remained polite, but it lacked the excitement the professor was likely expecting. "This is a great honor."

"However, I’ve recently taken on new work, so my schedule is rather tight."

"So... I will have to consider it carefully."

"Oh, of course, of course."

Bridson clearly detected the note of refusal in Chen Lin’s voice, but he simply chalked it up to the young genius being busy or perhaps a bit reserved, and didn’t think much of it. "We very much look forward to having you.

If you decide on your itinerary, please feel free to reply to the email, and we will arrange a first-class flight and the best hotel for you."

"Alright. Goodbye."

After hanging up, Chen Lin stared at his phone screen and let out a soft scoff. "Seattle, huh."

He hadn’t even put the phone back in his pocket when, less than two minutes later, it vibrated again. BZZZ—

This time, the caller ID showed a local number with no saved contact information.

But Chen Lin knew who it was.

He answered.

"Hello, Old Fu."

Fu Yangqing’s calm, steady voice came from the other end. "Professor Chen, we just monitored an incoming call from an unknown overseas number. Call duration was two minutes and thirty seconds. The call originated from the Beautiful Country."

"Is something wrong?"

Chen Lin couldn’t help but marvel at the efficiency of the state security agents. ’I barely hung up the first call, and they’re already calling me.’

"Yeah, I got a call," Chen Lin said into the phone, waving for a taxi by the side of the road. "The caller claimed to be the director of the Clay Mathematics Institute, a man named Martin Bridson."

"The Clay Mathematics Institute?" Fu Yangqing seemed to have heard of the organization, as his tone softened slightly. "What did they want with you?"

"He said he’d read my paper in *JAMS* and thought it was good, so he wanted to invite me to a mathematics conference in Seattle a month from now," Chen Lin reported.