Chapter 79
The father and daughter took their seats and finished introducing themselves.
Then Yoo A-yeon grinned and spoke up.
“Hmph. You know what, mister? Do you know why I chose EBC?”
“Uh, let me think...?”
Park Jung-woo swallowed hard.
“To be honest, doing interviews over and over is too tiring. So if I was going to do it, I wanted to do it properly just once!”
“I see.”
“So I thought about it a bit. And I figured a public broadcaster that works hard for educational purposes would be best.”
“Ah!”
“So that's why I contacted you, mister.”
At those words, Park Jung-woo felt a swell of emotion in a corner of his chest.
Of all the countless broadcasters, it just happened to be the EBC he belonged to that was chosen.
And not because of ratings or buzz, but because of the value of education.
It was a world where commercial broadcasting ran rampant.
An age where experts came out to promote sponsored products and people were busy using actors pretending to be ordinary people for covert ads.
Amid that trend, the work he had quietly done making educational content.
had been recognized as valuable by this genius girl.
Now, Park Jung-woo felt proud to be a member of EBC.
And thanks to that, he'd even landed the coveted chance to interview Yoo A-yeon.
Was this the reward given to someone who stubbornly kept digging one well?
“...Thank you.”
Park Jung-woo bowed his head sincerely.
“Heheh.”
Yoo A-yeon smiled brightly.
✒️✒️✒️
Park Jung-woo quickly composed himself and took a document out of his bag.
“Then before we begin in earnest, could you check this first? It's the interview contract.”
Swish-.
He held the contract out to the father and daughter.
“Yep.”
Yoo A-yeon and Yoo Jin-hu put their heads together and looked over the document side by side.
And then, as a bonus, they bonked their heads together.
“Ouch!”
“Oh, sorry.”
Yoo A-yeon held her head and teared up. Yoo Jin-hu laughed with a heh-heh grin as if he found it so amusing.
The sight of them being so affectionately close was adorable, and I smiled warmly without realizing it.
The father and daughter read through the document again.
The scope of filming and broadcast length.
Clauses regarding the use of likeness rights.
The scope of editorial rights.
Even the pre-broadcast review process.
“Hmm-.”
The father and daughter carefully scanned every line, one by one.
And then, soon after.
Nod, nod-.
The father and daughter looked at each other and nodded in satisfaction.
“Sounds good!”
“We'll proceed like this.”
Yoo Jin-hu signed briskly in the signature box, and Yoo A-yeon pulled a seal stamp out of her rabbit-shaped pouch and stamped it down with a thunk.
✒️✒️✒️
The interview began in earnest.
PD Park Jung-woo glanced down at the list of questions on his lap and asked his first question.
“Then here's the first question. You proved the Riemann Hypothesis at the age of six, something even scholars around the world couldn't solve despite devoting their whole lives to it. How do you feel right now?”
“Uhehing- Of course I'm this much~ happy!”
Yoo A-yeon spread both arms wide and emphasized “this much.”
“When people say I'm amazing, a genius, and clap-clap for me like that, I feel like I'm flying. I want to keep getting lots and lots of applause in the future too!”
At such an honest answer, Park Jung-woo couldn't help but snort a laugh.
“Haha, you're really honest. I hear you even published a paper in the most prestigious journal in mathematics?”
“Ah, right!”
Yoo A-yeon's eyes sparkled.
Rustle-rustle-.
Then she started rummaging through the small pink children's bag beside her.
“Look at this! It's the journal that published my paper!”
It seemed she'd deliberately brought it along to show off.
She lifted the thin journal high with both hands and thrust it toward the camera.
It was all written in English and covered in difficult formulas, so just looking at it made his head ache.
“Ta-da~ My name is printed right there in the table of contents, see? Heheh.”
Yoo A-yeon pointed to a part of the paper.
Ayeon Yu, right there in the author line.
Preen-preen-.
The sight of her puffing out her chest with pride was unmistakably that of a six-year-old girl.
“Understood. Then let's move on to the next question. Yoo A-yeon, you received the Millennium Prize from the Clay Mathematics Institute, along with prize money worth about 1.5 billion won. How do you plan to use it?”
“Hmm....”
Yoo A-yeon tilted her head.
“Honestly, I haven't really thought about it. I'm just going to leave the money with Dad.”
“With your father?”
“Yep. Dad’s really good at investing money. Stuff like financial planning.”
Yoo A-yeon glanced up at Yoo Jin-hu, who was sitting beside her.
Yoo Jin-hu gave an awkward smile.
“And besides, it's family policy that I can't just spend my money like water without my parents' permission.”
“Oh, I see.”
“If I bought everything I wanted the moment I wanted it, I'd end up with bad habits. I know that.”
It was an impressively sensible answer, hard to believe it came from a six-year-old.
“Yoo A-yeon, you're already being mentioned as a strong candidate for the Fields Medal, the Nobel Prize of mathematics. Do you think you'll be able to receive it yourself?”
“Nihihi, if I get it, I'd obviously feel super great, right?”
Yoo A-yeon smiled bashfully.
“The more awards, the better. If I get one, I want lots and lots of applause too!”
✒️✒️✒️
“Here's a slightly different question. How on earth did you teach yourself such difficult mathematics at the age of six?”
“Well... ever since I started crawling, I looked at the books in the study. My mom majored in mathematics, and my dad works in data analysis, so there were tons of math books in the study.”
Yoo A-yeon said as if searching through old memories.
“At first I just looked at them like picture books, but as I kept reading, math became so fun. There's a thrill when something you don't understand suddenly clicks.”
“Since you were crawling...”
Park Jung-woo let out a dry laugh.
The scale was on a whole other level.
“Then when you get stressed from studying difficult things, what do you usually do to pass the time?”
“When my head starts throbbing, I play with my family or go out.”
Yoo A-yeon answered without a hint of hesitation.
“Going out here and there hand in hand with Mom and Dad, or running around and playing with my little sister. Then my head gets all clear. For me, family is the best!”
“You really cherish your family.”
“Of course!”
Swish-.
Park Jung-woo flipped through the questionnaire for a moment, then cautiously opened his mouth.
“Um... this may be a bit of a delicate question, but kids your age are usually in the middle of learning Hangul or addition and subtraction. When you spend time with friends like that, have you ever felt left out or lonely?”
“...Hmm. If I'm being honest, that's a little difficult.”
Yoo A-yeon nodded honestly.
“I just couldn't really fit in with peers my own age.”
A brief note of loneliness colored her voice.
“But it's okay. I have a younger sibling who plays with me, I have my family, and I have the older sisters and brothers I play with at the chess club I go to often!”
Then Yoo A-yeon smiled cheerfully and brightly.
Park Jung-woo worried to himself that growing up must come with all sorts of hardships.
“Speaking of your younger sibling, what do you usually talk about with her? Are you just a normal older sister at home too?”
“Oh, no, not at all. I usually play board games with my little sister, but it's not just playing around—it's custom-designed to maximize Arin's brain development, you know?”
“Oh, is that so? Your younger sibling must be smart too?”
“Yes. My little sister has some exceptional qualities too, so I've been teaching her all sorts of knowledge and math myself. Recently, I've been teaching probability calculations and game theory.”
“...Huh?”
Park Jung-woo's eyes went wide.
“Y-you're already teaching your younger sibling that level of material? Isn't she only four?”
“Yep. But she's so smart that she follows along really smoothly.”
Yoo A-yeon began bragging about her younger sibling with a pleased smile.
“My little sister is kind of amazing, you know? I mean, she's good enough to beat me at a chess tournament and take the gold medal!”
“She... beat you?”
“Hmph. And she's way faster at mental arithmetic than I am.”
Yoo A-yeon thought hard for a moment, then added.
“It's hard to compare, but there's this mathematician named von Neumann who's incredibly famous in history for being fast at mental arithmetic, right? If that mister went up against my little sister, I think it'd be a pretty good match.”
Park Jung-woo could only stand there speechless.
What in the world was this family?
“I-I see. Then on to the next question... You've solved one of humanity's great homework problems, the Riemann Hypothesis. Is there another difficult problem you'd like to challenge yourself with, or any current goals?”
“Oh, that? Actually, I was recently offered a professorship at Seoul National University. So for now, I decided to become a professor.”
Yoo A-yeon said as if it were nothing.
“From now on, I think I'll teach the undergraduate seniors and do research too. I haven't decided on a specific research direction yet. I've already dug really deep into analytic number theory, so I might try researching a different field. Oh, if Professor Park Mu-yeol hears this, will he get sulky?”
“...”
Flutter-flutter-.
The questionnaire slipped from his hand with a rustle.
Park Jung-woo stood there with his mouth open for several seconds, unable to close it.
“W-what did you say? You were offered a professorship? Did you just say Seoul National University...?”
“Yep.”
Nod, nod-.
Yoo A-yeon nodded naturally.
“Actually, I got a flood of offers from universities all over the world asking me to teach. The United States had the best conditions among them, though...”
She shrugged.
“But to go abroad, Korea is still better after all. It'd be hard to eat Korean food there, too. So I decided to go to Seoul National University instead. Starting next year, I'll be Professor Yoo A-yeon!”
Park Jung-woo's mind went completely blank at the unexpected answer.
There had never been a scoop like this before.
Just reporting this scoop on its own would be enough to earn him a generous bonus and a promotion.
“B-but... next year, won't you be at the age to enter elementary school? Ah, and labor law and such...”
“Ah- that part—”
Yoo A-yeon waved her hands.
“I've already taken care of it. Don't worry.”
“....Okay.”
Park Jung-woo could only nod.
Common sense didn't work in front of this child.
“Th-then, if you become a professor at seven, you'll be teaching students much older than you. Do you feel any pressure about that?”
“Hmph. Not at all.”
Yoo A-yeon shook her head firmly.
“I believe there is no such thing as being too late or too early when it comes to learning. What's important isn't age, but the will to learn.”
It was a surprisingly mature lesson.
“Besides, I've taught my little sister at home so much, you know? So I'm already very used to teaching people!”
“...Amazing.”
Park Jung-woo was genuinely impressed.
Then he finally moved his gaze to the last line of the questionnaire.
“Then here's the last question.”
Park Jung-woo straightened his posture.
“There are so many gifted students and parents across the country who feel motivated by you, Yoo A-yeon. If you have anything you'd like to say to them, please give us a few words.”
“Hmm....”
Yoo A-yeon fell into serious thought for a moment.
Then she calmly spoke.
“Usually, around age three, the brain's synaptic density is at its highest. So if a child shows interest in a field at that time, it's good to nurture that area intensively.”
Her tone was serious, unlike before.
“But there's something really important here.”
Yoo A-yeon said, staring straight into the camera.
As if she were speaking to the viewers watching this interview scene.
“Usually, kids get bored and lose interest much more often. If a child's brain isn't motivated, they'll never do something they're not interested in, even if they die and come back to life, you know?”
“...Yes.”
“So when that happens, just go, 'Ah, I guess that's how it is,' and let it go. And never get greedy.”
Her eyes grew serious.
“If you force them even when they say they don't want it, that's not education—it's abuse.”
At that moment.
Silence fell over the room.
“I think children should grow by steadily doing only the things they like.”
Yoo A-yeon smiled bashfully.
“Just like I kept doing math because I liked it! Doing what you like is the best!”
Park Jung-woo was unable to speak for a while.
Over the past few months, after realizing how much her influence had grown,
she had spoken on behalf of children who were being burdened with unreasonable expectations by overly education-obsessed parents.
Too considerate a remark to have come from a six-year-old.
“...Thank you for your kind words.”
PD Park Jung-woo bowed his head.