I Am Ashamed of My Inferiority
Su Li's words were neither boastful nor exaggerated. The mathematics of this era, such as the theory of 'Gou San Gu Si' (a traditional calculation method), was already quite advanced, but compared to modern mathematics, it was as simple as a primary school student solving a basic equation.
For someone trained in modern mathematics, solving the mathematical problems of this dynasty was like a dimensionality reduction attack — akin to a university student beating up kindergarten kids in difficulty.
Su Li was confident that if the students here accepted her modern mathematical knowledge, then looking back at their traditional math would be as easy as one.
But Su Li knew clearly that the people here might not understand this, and even Director Gu, a man of broad knowledge, was hesitating.
On one hand, he believed in Su Li's talent and that she wouldn't boast; on the other hand, he simply couldn't understand the mathematical textbook which seemed like heavenly scripts.
Humans naturally harbor doubt and fear toward the unknown; it's only human nature.
Su Li understood this, so she was both clear and patient, saying, "Director Gu, actually this math looks difficult, but when you really learn it, it's not hard at all. If you're interested, I can teach you some basic math knowledge so you can personally experience the magic of mathematics. How about that?"
Director Gu was a man with a strong thirst for knowledge. He was very interested in the "Mathematics" textbook that looked like heavenly scripts. So Su Li asked Bell to bring paper and pen and personally taught Director Gu the basics, just like teaching Xiao Zetian to recognize numbers and do addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.
Director Gu was truly one of the smartest people of the era, with an extremely strong learning ability. He quickly recognized Arabic numerals and learned how to count with them.
Then Su Li demonstrated the simplest four arithmetic operations — addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division — as well as how to write vertical calculations and other basic math knowledge.
During the learning process, Director Gu's expression grew increasingly serious because he realized that although at first the Arabic numerals and various operation symbols looked like gibberish, once you got started and understood them, things became more and more magical.
No need for an abacus, not even requiring extremely strong mental calculation skills, just following a vertical format could calculate all kinds of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division results accurately and quickly. Compared to traditional math which heavily relied on mental calculation and the abacus, this was like heaven and earth apart.
Traditional math relied heavily on the abacus, but during the imperial exams, you couldn't use an abacus, so it depended on strong mental calculation and memory. Not every student had strong mental calculation skills, so many students with weaker mental math suffered greatly in the exams.
But Su Li's vertical calculation method didn't require very strong mental math skills. As long as you mastered the basic method, even a five-year-old child could calculate it. It was truly miraculous!
Su Li only taught Director Gu the basic introductory content and did not continue further, partly due to limited time and partly to give him time to digest the new knowledge.
Su Li closed the mathematics book and said, "Director Gu, what you learned today is only the tip of the iceberg of mathematics. Mathematics is like a vast ocean, boundless and infinite. If you master it, you can solve many problems."
Director Gu was still immersed in the wonder of the mathematics and was a bit dazed. After a long while, he stroked his beard, stood up sincerely, and respectfully cupped his hands to Su Li, saying, "Master Su, your mathematics is indeed far superior to my traditional calculation methods. I am ashamed and admit defeat."