Chapter 5: The Elements (1)

He studied theoretical physics for 8 years, and although his grades were dismal, even if he were to plagiarize a paper, it would still require consulting materials. In terms of historical context, while the Elements of Geometry was quite suitable for the medieval level of the Great Xia Dynasty, the content within it was entirely not what he currently needed

Do you want to delete this book? The customer service representative responded quickly

This is a Bible of mathematics

Cheng Jinzhou felt reassured once again as he walked outside, murmuring softly, "That's enough, it will take just 1 minute."

Cheng Jinzhou was somewhat enraged. He was never known for his good temper, and despite having been tempered for so long at school, he remained a typical second-generation rich kid. At this moment, he slapped the edge of the bed and shouted, "Speak!"

The attendant's eyes flickered for a moment, and he said: "Both Shi Mo and I are aware of the rules and would not dare to speak carelessly in public"

Cheng Jinzhu entered through the small door as usual, leaving the servant Yan outside to wait for the grain sent by the Huo family. The third branch has two small courtyards of its own in the separate residence, and the servants are also from the third branch. Besides promptly reporting to the old residence, they will ensure that everything is arranged properly for him.

What can be seen?" Cheng Jinzhou asked again

With ease and proficiency, the wheat was selected, and the pile gradually diminished. After about two to three minutes, the voice of customer service 010 came through again: "Transaction successful, you may choose to read."

The familiar confirmation and cancellation options popped up, followed by a large selection box that included not only rice, wheat, and sorghum, but also wood, bricks, tiles, silk, and other items, surprisingly accounting for everything within a 10-meter radius.

All have been delivered to https://mhetushu.com, 40 shi of rice, 40 shi of grain, and 10 shi of sorghum. In the end, there remained a few taels and some cash.

Cheng Jinzhu first shook his head, then said: "At least I can copy it down."

Customer Service 010 indifferent remark: "Due to your Star Alliance level, your terminal can only maintain one book at a time."

The servant, who had not attended to the sickly child, heard a "bang" sound hitting the edge of the bed, and immediately knelt down, saying: "It is the gatekeeper from the other courtyard informing the young mistress."

The last sentence was directed at Shimo and Shiyan.

Throughout the entire book, the most practically valuable aspect is undoubtedly the theorem proofs based on the five axioms. If the poor student Cheng Jinzhou were to undertake this task, he might not necessarily succeed. It would be inappropriate for someone like Cheng Jinzhou, who prides himself on being recognized in the academic community, to claim that this book is worth only a few taels of silver.

The doctor smiled slightly and said, "Not bad, please thank the butler for me. Now, take the things over. You can get up too."

From a historical perspective, "Elements" holds infinite significance, and it would not be an exaggeration to regard it as the foundational work of classical mathematics. It is precisely through "Elements" that the rigorous logical reasoning methods, which are both most commonly used and most detested by today's middle school students, were established—because of the "proven propositions," it follows that the "matters to be proven are correct." Additionally, the well-known method of proof by contradiction was never conceived by individuals with an IQ of 200 prior to Euclid.

Yes. The two, Shi Mo and Shi Mo, were not familiar with Yuan and the sickly Cheng who came from the *map* book. After being pinched a couple of times by the scheming Cheng Jinzhou, they became obedient.

Cheng Jinzhu raised his head in surprise and said, "Of course not."

Of course

The light in the rooms other than the main hall was not very good. Cheng Jinzhu, feeling fatigued, stretched lazily and shook his head repeatedly in his heart. This body was truly too weak, to the point that even sitting in a vehicle felt exhausting, and he dozed off in a daze.

The servants in the annex are no fewer than those in the ancestral residence; however, the masters do not visit often, resulting in a slight reduction in their usual vigilance. Although they do not run about chaotically between the front and back gates, it is quite common for them to abandon their posts.

The ring shows no mercy: "Are you sure you want to repurchase a book?"

The steward of the Huo family

Upon arrival, press the button, and the ring will automatically receive it. You can also set the quantity. Currently, your Alliance points are 1, and your level is 1. You will only be able to access the autonomous trading platform once you reach level 3. Customer service 010 finished speaking, leaving behind a large virtual button and a white input field for entering numbers, resembling a search engine from a later era

Cheng Jinzhu raised his head and looked at Shimo, first asking, "Did you hear that?"

For the Chinese people, Xu Guangqi's translation of "Elements of Geometry" has been exerting its influence at all times. ... It is precisely through the translation of "Elements of Geometry" that the Chinese language has established the most fundamental terms of geometry today: point, line, straight line, parallel line, angle

The gatekeeper is the supervisor of the gatekeepers, which is something Cheng Jinzhou did not understand

Everyone, please leave. Cheng Jinzhou wiped his face with a silk scarf. After the three left, he pressed his finger on the ring again, desperately thinking: Customer service 010, customer service 010...

Waving his hand to dismiss everyone, Cheng Jinzhu finally pressed the large virtual button.

Cheng Jinzhu eagerly looked up to the chest-high position, where a book resembling an 8-inch paper edition appeared before him, surrounded by swirling smoke. If others could see the content displayed on the ring, they might even think it was a setup for a speech.

Cheng Jinzhu walked out of the storeroom with a pained expression; others could not see the content displayed on the ring, and this was no longer an advantage.

Cheng Jinzhu snorted and said, "The coachman?"

The two attendants could not explain, and Shiyan immediately knelt down and said: "It is the gatekeeper Gao Shiliu. He saw us coming to the courtyard and reported it first."

Casually washing his hands and face, Cheng Jinzhou did not use the pleasantly scented soap. The soaps of this era are quite complex, containing more than a dozen ingredients including angelica, white atractylodes, pig's tooth soap, camphor, almonds, and bean powder. While the effects of these ingredients are one thing, what Cheng Jinzhou found most intolerable was that most soaps contained finely ground lead powder, and the quality of the soap was largely determined by the amount of lead powder it contained. Therefore, ever since the girl mentioned it once, he stopped using it.

At the age of fourteen or fifteen, kneeling before Cheng Jinzhou, this fellow merely praised the wicked old society in his heart, and then boldly asked, "Which door?"

These five points, remarkable in ancient Greece over thousands of years, hold no value for a 21st-century man with a doctoral degree. Even if placed in the Xia Dynasty, similar understandings would not be considered novel.

The translation of these fundamental terms is both clever and clear, radiating a brilliant glow in itself

"What?" Shimu blinked.

"010, bring me another book." Cheng Jinzhou pouted.

Cheng Jinzhou uttered an "en" and said: "Get up, regarding such matters, you must inform me in advance in the future"

Feeling quite displeased at being ignored, Cheng Jinzhu had no choice but to first input the setting of 7.2 yuan before slowly making his way to the storeroom in the backyard

Shimi shook his head cautiously and said, "I didn't see anything special..."

Approximately 4.5 cubic meters of grain, weighing 90 stones, has been entirely piled into a small storeroom, which has been cleaned thoroughly around it

They are the attendants of Cheng Jinzhou, and their second-class monthly allowance also comes from here. Naturally, they will first cater to the young master, but they do not dare to easily offend the other servants

Cheng Jinzhu let out a sigh, feeling quite emotional; after his journey through time, he thought he would be completely disconnected from it.

No wonder that book on flowers was collected so quickly by the prince.

At this moment, the maid also brought a neatly arranged copper basin, a towel made of long plush yarn, a fine and small silk handkerchief, and a palm-sized bar of soap, saying: "Third Young Master, the second steward said that a vacant room has been cleared out for you in the storeroom at the back courtyard, where you can stack the grain."

The study of star formations primarily pertains to astronomy, and the foundation of astronomy naturally lies in mathematics and physics. The Great Xia Dynasty has fallen far behind other nations in the research of star formations. Therefore, it is not a problem for such a fundamental book to sell for several taels of silver as a manuscript fee, along with illustrations.

However, Cheng Jinzhu does not require dazzling brilliance; he desires to create glass, to make mirrors, or even to produce gunpowder. The content of geometry, excluding the proof processes, is entirely at the middle school level. Yet, it lacks any guidance in the areas most needed by those who traverse dimensions—through two points, one can draw and can only draw a straight line; a line segment (finite straight line) can be extended infinitely; with any point as the center and any length as the radius, a circle can be drawn; all right angles are equal; if a straight line in the same plane intersects with two other straight lines, and the sum of the two interior angles on the same side of the line is less than 180°, then the two lines will definitely intersect on that side when extended infinitely.

Cheng Jinzhou did not continue on this topic, lightly snapped his fingers, and asked, "Has the grain been delivered?"

"The Elements of Geometry ... ..." followed by the publisher and translator. Cheng Jinzhu read it word by word, and his face gradually darkened.

"Who said it was leaked?" The matter of buying grain is certainly not something that can be kept secret. Cheng Jinzhou had anticipated this early on. Given his current age of 12 and his status, whatever he does will inevitably be reported to his parents by the servants. However, he must not allow them to report it casually.

Shimi Mo lightly shook his head

When I woke up again, Shimo was already standing beside me. She first instructed the maid to prepare the washing items, and then whispered, "Third Brother, the Young Mistress sent someone to ask what you bought those grains for"

Have you gathered enough money? The customer service representative's tone was brusque

The samurai shook his head.

"What a pity for my silver," Cheng Jinzhou gently shook his head and casually flipped open the geometry textbook in front of him