Chapter 51
David was a man of special status. As a senior professor and the university’s vice president, with deep connections to the prestigious Reedshaw family in the medical field, he was still single and had never been married.
If a beautiful female student were in his team, rumors would inevitably swirl. But Josie was different. She was the kind of girl you’d barely notice in a crowd.
Shy, introverted, and focused entirely on her research, she didn’t have the same skills as Aiden and the others, but she was diligent, and her work ethic was impeccable. The lab was always spotless whenever she was there.
Her data was always thorough, and even the lab equipment was pristine. He was glad to have someone like her on the team.
The boys generally looked out for her, though they were lazy when it came to the lab chores. David knew that the cleaning and organizing always fell to Josie.
But these were small tasks that didn’t take much time. She was a young woman, so she just did it. No one forced her; she volunteered, and David turned a blind eye.
Over the years, Josie had accumulated numerous awards, big and small, and earned a decent amount of prize money. On top of that, she also received a stipend from the team as an assistant.
She wasn’t exactly living a frugal life, unless, of course, all her money had been swindled away by these mischievous boys.
Vincent came from a rural family and didn’t have much pocket money. Though he did have an assistant stipend, he had a big appetite for material things. It wasn’t surprising that he’d set his sights on Josie.
In the end, it was Josie’s own fault. Giving gifts was always a two-way street, and there was no room for regret afterward. Taking it to the internet and making a public spectacle of herself was just embarrassing.
The more David thought about it, the angrier he became. He was burning with rage, practically wishing he could kick Vincent to the curb.
Fortunately, not long after the phone call, Vincent pushed the door open and entered. Before he could even get close to David, David stormed over and kicked him to the ground.
“You little bastard! You’ve learned how to scam girls out of their money now? How could I possibly accept you as a student? You’re tarnishing my reputation! It’s a disgrace to everything I’ve worked for!”
“Professor!” Aiden quickly stepped forward, trying to stop David from going any further.
“This isn’t entirely Vincent’s fault. If you ask me, Josie is just as much to blame. She was the one who insisted on giving the gift. No one forced her.
“She’s just upset about leaving the team, and now she’s making a scene!”
The others chimed in to agree. “Aiden is right. If she were still on the team, she would never have let Vincent be humiliated like this. She probably would have begged us to accept her gifts.”
“That’s right,” said Kyle, quickly jumping in.
“We’ve always looked after her, being the youngest and slowest learner. We’ve helped her with experiments, had academic discussions, and answered her questions.
“She was worried we wouldn’t accept her gift, so she insisted on giving it. We only took it to reassure her. Who would have guessed she’d be this devious! Now she’s bringing it all up!”
Vincent clutched his stomach and slowly got up from the floor. He remembered the first time he accepted a gift from Josie—it had been with that same mindset.
But later… though he didn’t want to admit it, he had felt envious of the prize money she’d earned. Even though he made as much as she did, his expenses were high.
He had to send money home, unlike Josie, who only had to take care of herself. Besides, they were close, and he had helped her out a lot. So why couldn’t she buy herself a few nice things?
He never thought there was anything wrong with that. After all, the things he gave her weren’t expensive, but he had put thought into them. He had genuinely cared for her.
So he thought, ‘What has my sincerity gotten me? This cold-hearted woman! I really hate her!’
Vincent raised his hand to rub his eyes, looking awkwardly at David.