Han Weicheng shook his head. "It's useless. Shulan Zhou's paper has already been published. Even if someone agrees to publish Lin Muyao's paper now, it's too late to matter."
"What? How could that happen?" Luo Jialin was stunned. How did Shulan Zhou manage to publish a paper?
She had no real connections in Shen City—she probably didn't even have contact information for the editorial offices of any academic journals!
Han Weicheng's face turned bitter. "You think we lost to Shulan Zhou? You're wrong. We didn't lose to her—we lost to her advisor!"
He then gave a resigned, indifferent smile.
"Mu Yanning has never accepted her loss to me. It's only natural that she wants to win this time, and Shulan Zhou's situation gave her just the opportunity."
"It's just a pity for Shulan Zhou. She chose a niche topic and thought she'd struck gold, but she doesn't realize she's probably just a pawn. Once she's used up, they'll toss her aside. She might not even graduate."
"Sigh. We were teacher and student once. I honestly feel sorry for her."
Luo Jialin helped Han Weicheng to his feet. "Professor, you're just too softhearted. She made her own choices. We've done all we could for her. If she doesn't graduate, it's her own doing."
"You're right," Han Weicheng nodded. "Even if I pity her, I can't help her anymore." He waved for Luo Jialin to leave.
"Lin Muyao has real potential. You and the others need to look after her—stop bullying her. And make sure you get that task I gave you done."
Han had doubted Lin Muyao's ability before, but after reviewing her revisions, it was clear she was on par with Fang Ruoshi and Tian Hua.
With a bit of guidance, she had a promising future.
As for Shulan Zhou, she was merely a convenient tool. What a pity she had been poached by Mu Yanning!
But it didn't matter. That bumpkin girl from the countryside had no vision, no perspective—how could she ever be a match for Lin Muyao? Mu Yanning's clever little plan was bound to backfire.
Lose once, lose forever. She'd never surpass him. And the Mu family was no longer the powerhouse it used to be—no longer worth his effort to curry favor.
After leaving the professor's office, Luo Jialin gathered the others to discuss apologizing to Shulan Zhou.
"The professor wants us to be sincere. If it brings her back, great. If not, we've done our part. After that, she's no longer our concern. Got it?"
Everyone nodded reluctantly.
They knew they had truly lost to Shulan Zhou this time. Her resolve and coldness were palpable.
She was no longer the timid junior they used to order around. If she came back now, she wouldn't let them push her around anymore.
Of course, she stirred up this whole mess just to return!
After all, who would switch majors in their senior year, especially to something so obscure? Graduating was already a gamble—getting a job would be even harder!
In their shoes, they'd come crawling back too.
"I'll write the apology letter," Guo Jialiang offered.
No one objected. In fact, they all seemed to welcome the idea of Shulan Zhou rejoining the team.
Lin Muyao's face went pale as she listened.
Tears welled in her eyes as she tugged at Luo Jialin's sleeve. "Jialin-ge, does that mean my paper won't get published? Has Professor Han given up on me?"
"Of course not." Luo Jialin, recalling what Han said, felt both guilt and affection toward Lin Muyao.
Originally, they had planned for Lin Muyao to shine by stepping over Shulan Zhou. But who would've guessed that Shulan's luck would bring her to Mu Yanning, Han's old rival?
"Thanks to Professor Mu's help, Shulan Zhou managed to publish her paper first. Since both papers covered the same topic, the journal rejected ours."
"But Professor Han said it wasn't your fault. It was his personal feud with Mu Yanning that dragged you down and forced you to bow to Shulan Zhou. He feels terrible about it."
"No," Lin Muyao's eyes sparkled with a flicker of glee. "Don't blame Professor Han—it's just my bad luck."
"Being valued by him is already the greatest honor. I'm proud to be part of this team. If apologizing to Senior Shulan puts everyone at ease, I'll do it. I'll do anything."
Her obedient tone only made Luo Jialin more fond of her. Apologizing to Shulan Zhou no longer seemed so unpleasant.
At least now, they were convinced that Lin Muyao had the poise and grace worthy of her prestigious background—unlike the petty, small-minded Shulan Zhou.
As soon as Luo Jialin turned away, a glimmer of smug satisfaction crossed Lin Muyao's face.
Men were just too easy to manipulate.
Honestly, she should thank Shulan Zhou. If Shulan hadn't insisted on digging into the plagiarism issue, how could she have earned Han Weicheng's trust so quickly and integrated into the team this smoothly?
She was just getting started.
Wait and see, Shulan Zhou. You've handed me such a generous gift—I'll make sure to return the favor in full.
After leaving the lab, Lin Muyao pulled a second phone from her bag...
…
The past few days had been a whirlwind for Shulan Zhou. She barely spent any time in her dorm—either she was in the lab refining her project for the competition or shadowing Mu Yanning at the hospital during practical lessons.
By the time she saw the public apology posted online by Luo Jialin on behalf of the team, it was already 11 p.m. She had just stepped out of the hospital's consultation room.
She yawned and stared at her phone, tears nearly forming from how hard she was laughing.
She'd waited far too long for this apology—not just in this life, but in the last one too.
It had taken this long for them to finally lower their noble heads… even just a little.
Too bad she didn't need it anymore.
Especially when she saw the words "You're always welcome to return to the team." All she felt was utter disgust.
And below the apology, bets had already started rolling in:
"I bet ten cents Shulan Zhou will definitely rejoin Professor Han's team!"
"No need to bet—this is clearly what she's been aiming for all along. Who wouldn't want to rejoin the school's top research team?"
"Not just the top in our school—this is one of the leading academic teams in the entire country! She's not stupid. She'll go back for sure."
And so on—all assuming she'd crawl back to Professor Han.
Only one comment stood out, bold and eccentric:
"I bet she won't go back. If I lose, I'll give 10,000 yuan to every single commenter here."
"Big talk! Do you even know how many students we have? Can you afford it?"
"Yeah, don't be all talk and no action. Everyone can see she'll definitely accept Professor Han's olive branch. It's Professor Han, for god's sake!"
The bold commenter replied again:
"Then bet me. If I lose, I'll pay up—10k each. If you lose, you don't pay a cent. Just do one good deed each. Deal?"
At this point, Luo Jialin chimed in—though he was using an anonymous account, Shulan Zhou instantly knew it was him:
"Since that commenter's so sincere, I'll take the bet. If Shulan Zhou does come back to Professor Han's team, I'll personally give 10k to every commenter here. To show I mean it, here's my account balance."
The bold commenter replied with his own account screenshot:
"Deal."
Commenters immediately exploded—these two were clearly loaded. The replies were full of people trying to ride their coattails.
The flattery was so excessive that even Shulan Zhou, who had been fuming, couldn't help but burst out laughing.
Mu Side walked out of the room and caught her giggling at her phone. The corner of her mouth lifted. "Aren't you going to bed yet? What's got you grinning at your phone like that?"