Chapter 1388

"Lily, don't be so upset. I'm asking you to take a break, not because we don't need you, but because you've worked incredibly hard. With your success, I believe things will get easier. You've contributed immensely, and we certainly appreciate your efforts." Thompson, fearing she was angry about being removed from the project, hurried to explain.

Lily simply shook her head. "Professor, regardless of whether you keep me on, you must stop this experiment. Continuing will only bring harm."

"No, it will bring change!" Thompson, despite past self-doubt, remained hopeful about his initial idea. "I believe it will succeed, even if we're still in the experimental phase. Every success is built on countless failures. You pulled it off, didn't you? Your product even helped an anorexic child eat! We simply placed a pot of flowers by his bed, along with a few drops of essential oil." He became animated, the result's effectiveness genuinely shocking him.

Of course, as the product was experimental and lacked rigorous clinical trials, its use was necessarily clandestine.

"You used it on a person?" Lily gasped, leaping to her feet.

"It was a trial, and it worked!" Thompson responded hastily, seeing her shock.

"What if it failed?" Lily retorted angrily, unprepared for such recklessness. "Although the experiment succeeded, this product isn't like the perfumes and essential oils I created. Those are fragrances; this is a drug! It can cure or sicken! Every medicine has side effects. How could you begin clinical trials so casually? There must be extensive supporting data to ensure safety before widespread use!"

"Even if it failed, it wouldn't be a big deal," Thompson mumbled, still unconcerned. "Besides, the results prove its success!" Wiping his glasses, he replaced them and said soothingly, "Lily, you made it work. You should be happy your creation helped someone! We're on a tight budget and schedule; we couldn't afford extensive testing. Now we know it wasn't a fluke—we actually did it!"

"What if you were wrong? What if the patient suffered an adverse effect?" Lily's fury intensified. She'd considered Thompson idealistic and principled, but their values clearly clashed irreconcilably. "We're talking about human lives! How can we treat them so lightly and misuse drugs like this?"

"Lily, I understand your concerns, but sometimes we need someone brave in the medical field," Thompson offered, believing himself entirely justified. "Besides, we took precautions, using only untreatable subjects. The anorexic patient, for instance, would have died without food. We saved him; it's a good deed!"

"Professor Thompson, there's no need to continue this experiment!" She spoke coldly, then whirled to her laptop, furiously typing.

"What are you doing?" Thompson, understanding her intentions, lunged for the laptop. "You're trying to destroy the lab data!"

"This experiment is evil and must not continue. We must delete all its data!" Lily typed faster, her words mirroring her actions.

Thompson glared menacingly. "You're crazy!"