In the domestic academic community, Qiu Zhengwen is known for being 'truthful'.
For instance, at the International Mathematicians Congress held in the capital at the beginning of the new millennium, when asked by a journalist, "How significant is an international conference? Is domestic mathematics truly approaching a world-class level as some assert?"
Qiu Chengwen bluntly responded with five words, "Still a long way off."
The reporter continued to inquire: "You hold Mathematicians Hua Luogeng, Chen Xingshen, and Feng Kang in high regard. Yet in the past twenty years, the Chinese mathematics community has not produced a scientist of considerable stature, nor any world-class results, is this correct?"
Qiu Chengwen's reply was, "There is indeed a gap between our level of technology and that abroad, and our mathematics is relatively backward, not having much of an impact on the world."