As Audrey watched the group head to the principal’s office, she clenched her teeth so tightly she nearly snapped them, keeping her reaction hidden. “Those damn fools!” she muttered. “A bunch of clueless, underprivileged students who arrogantly believe they’ve made the right choice. Let’s see how far your project actually gets!” With that, she turned on her heel and stormed off to David’s laboratory.
Half an hour later, Delilah and her group emerged from the principal’s office. “All right, does this put your mind at ease?” Delilah handed the record-filing document to Joseph, smiling as she indicated that he should keep it safe.
Joseph accepted it respectfully and put it away. “Yes, I feel reassured now. Thank you, Professor Reedshaw. I assure you, I will not let you down.”
“Don’t say that.” Delilah waved her hand. “I am only concerned with the factual outcome.”
Joseph nodded solemnly. “Understood.”
As it was getting late, Delilah took Sean and Claire home first. Meanwhile, Joseph and Adeline called Josie to go eat with them. Coincidentally, Josie had something to say to them and therefore did not decline.
Joseph first took Josie to their school laboratory, where Josie was introduced to two other team members. “Hello, I’m Tripp Moody. Adeline has spoken about you often, and I’ve been looking forward to meeting you!”
Josie glanced at Tripp, smiled, and extended her hand. “Hello, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“And me as well! My name is Ian Sullivan, and like Tripp, I am currently in my second year of the master’s program.”
Josie looked at the playful boy in front of her and suddenly remembered something. “Are you the one who published a paper on several aspects of human disease prevention in a leading medical journal last year? Ian?”
“Wow, I never expected my junior would pay attention to me–what an honor,” Ian beamed at her and winked.
Josie was somewhat excited–she truly gained a valuable asset. By inadvertently helping Joseph, she unexpectedly facilitated the recruitment of Ian into Jeremy’s team. And, Aiden’s greatest competitor in the research field was Ian.
Whenever Aiden and his team published new research, Ian would challenge them with critical papers, often embarrassing them. Later, Josie corrected several of their mistakes in her paper. Ian’s repeated questioning played an important role in Aiden and his team’s later success.
Josie privately asked Aiden to add Ian to their team, but he refused, calling Ian a show-off and a troublemaker. Later, Josie realized they were actually afraid Ian would upset their interests, reveal their lack of action, and show that their progress depended on exploiting her.
Looking back, that group of people was truly unpleasant. Josie pulled herself from her memories and, seeing Ian’s playful expression in front of her, felt genuinely happy. She never would have imagined that she’d have another chance to work with Ian.
She extended her hand and said, “It is also my honor, and I hope to have the opportunity to work with you all.”
“That’s more like it.” Tripp watched the two shake hands and smiled. “Otherwise, I would have thought you were showing favoritism and only favoring Ian!”
“It’s your own fault for not writing one or two papers for her to see; no wonder she doesn’t like you.” Ian joked as he gave Tripp a push. A few people started making a racket together.
Joseph approached with a smile and said, “The other two have already returned to their hometowns for internships, so we can’t introduce them to you. At present, all members of our team are here.”
“Josie, I guess we’re a team now, right?” Adeline linked arms with her.
Josie nodded and said, “Barring any unforeseen circumstances, your project and ours will be merged and carried out together. From now on, we will be considered a large team. Joseph, have you thought about this?”
“I have considered it.” Joseph nodded. “It is precisely for this reason that I refused Deputy Director Kinberg without hesitation. To be honest with you, I am very interested in Professor Reedshaw’s research topic. By combining it with our project research, I think there will be unexpected results, and I am looking forward to it!”
Josie had not expected Joseph to be so candid. “I am also looking forward to the future of this major project!”
“By the way, Josie, you told me before that Deputy Director Kinberg is Natalie’s mother. What exactly is going on?” Adeline looked puzzled.
After receiving the message from Josie, Adeline promptly took Joseph to meet Delilah and suggested that the project be officially launched. However, she had no intention of informing Josie about this decision.