“I wonder which lucky man will end up with someone as wealthy, beautiful, and kind as Miss Heidi,” the shop assistant said with a wistful sigh.“Well, it certainly won’t be you, so you can stop dreaming,” Mr. Barrett teased, unable to resist a good-natured jab. “Didn’t you see how she looked just now? It was written all over her face that her heart belongs to someone already.”The shop assistant sighed dramatically. “Ah, Mr. Barrett, you should get back to your work. I’ll manage here by myself,” he said, his tone filled with a playful sense of defeat.Chuckling, Mr. Barrett shook his head and headed back to the storage area, leaving the young assistant to his daydreams at the front desk.Meanwhile, after nearly two hours of paperwork and running around, Joseph and Brady Rogers had finally completed Joseph’s onboarding process. With only a few minutes left before 4:30, they were now on their way to the conference room.“That was close, Mr. Wilson. We almost didn’t finish everything bef
“Mr. Wilson, over here, please. This is Professor Patricia Roberts, one of our deputy heads,” Brady said, guiding Joseph to the front and introducing him.“Professor Roberts, this is Mr. Joseph Wilson, our newest faculty member,” Brady continued.Professor Roberts was an elderly woman in her sixties or seventies, slightly plump but dressed elegantly. She had a warm and approachable demeanor, and when she saw Joseph, she stood up and extended her hand.“Mr. Wilson, it’s a pleasure. The principal has already told me about you. You’re quite impressive for someone so young—you might be the youngest professor in the history of our university. Welcome,” she said with a kind smile.“Thank you, Professor Roberts. It’s an honor to meet you,” Joseph replied with a polite smile, shaking her hand.“You’ve already met Professor Abel Jimenez,” Brady added, introducing the other deputy head.“Welcome again, young man,” Jimenez said warmly as he stood up and gave Joseph a firm handshake, grinning fro
“Dr. Martin, why don’t you introduce yourself?” Myers said, his energy palpable as he spoke.Charles Martin rose from his seat, briefly glancing in Joseph’s direction before addressing the room.“Hello, everyone. I’m Charles Martin. It’s an honor to be here, and I look forward to working with all of you,” Martin said, his tone polite and composed.As he finished speaking, applause broke out—but only from one side of the room. Joseph instinctively started to clap but quickly noticed that no one around him was joining in. The applause was coming exclusively from the Modern Medicine faculty. His side—the Traditional Chinese Medicine faculty—remained silent.Feeling awkward, Joseph stopped clapping and glanced around, his expression puzzled.“Mr. Wilson, a little tip—this side of the room is for the Traditional Chinese Medicine faculty, while the other side is for the Modern Medicine folks. We don’t usually get involved in their affairs, and they wouldn’t appreciate our applause anyway,”
Geoffrey Harris’s booming voice silenced the room. He had been in academia for decades and had served as principal at various institutions. Most universities’ medical schools operated in harmony, but Nova University’s medical departments seemed to thrive on conflict, with arguments escalating into physical altercations at times. It was a situation so absurd that it was hard to believe this was the highest medical institution in the empire. Once the room settled, Geoffrey Harris looked around. His authority commanded respect, and the professors and lecturers quieted down. "Mr. Harris, I have a question," Lincoln Myers said, his expression still stormy. "Go ahead," Geoffrey Harris replied casually. "This Joseph—are you sure he’s not your relative?" Lincoln pressed, his skepticism unabated. Joseph’s youth made it impossible for him to believe in the young man’s qualifications. "Listen to him! He’s still doubting you, Mr. Harris. He’s questioning your integrity!" Leonard Sanchez chi
"Fine." Lincoln sat back down, though his expression remained stormy. "You, arrogant boy! Since you claim to cure what modern medicine cannot, then tell me—what illnesses can Traditional Medicine treat that we cannot?" He punctuated his demand with another slap to the table, his voice dripping with hostility. Joseph, however, remained unflustered, his composure like a still pond. "Shall I give an example?" he asked, his tone light but deliberate. "Go ahead. But if you fail to provide a convincing example, you’ll regret it," Lincoln threatened, his anger barely restrained. "Very well," Joseph said, his voice steady. "Let’s take, for instance, the condition both you and Vice Director Gray suffer from—baldness." "The condition you cannot cure, but I can." His words hung in the air for a moment, as the room fell eerily silent, everyone processing the unexpected turn of conversation. Then, like a dam breaking, muffled laughter erupted throughout the room. "Hahaha… Oh, this is too
"That’s what you said, right?" Lincoln Myers asked, his eyes gleaming with a mix of excitement and cunning. "Yes, that’s exactly what I said," Joseph replied with unwavering certainty. "Good. Mr. Harris, I propose we request a high-level investigation into Joseph’s credentials from the education authorities. Simultaneously, we should establish an internal task force to cooperate with the investigation. However," Lincoln added with a smirk, "if the investigation reveals no issues with Joseph’s qualifications, I will personally take responsibility and issue a public apology to Joseph during a university-wide assembly." Lincoln’s words carried a tone of mock sincerity as he turned to Geoffrey Harris. "This…" Geoffrey hesitated, glancing at Joseph with a conflicted expression. "Principal, I don’t mind," Joseph said with a faint, reassuring smile. "Just agree to it." "Very well," Geoffrey relented, sighing. "If Mr. Wilson has no objections, then let’s proceed as proposed. I’ll file a
Today was Fiona Cooper's birthday.Reflecting on the countless humiliations he had endured over the past three years, Joseph Wilson had little affection for his wife, Fiona Cooper. However, as husband and wife of three years, it was her birthday today, so Joseph Wilson still bought a bouquet of flowers, intending to pick her up from work at the entrance of Cooper Group.It was laughable that, as a live-in son-in-law for three years, his wife in name had never looked him in the eye. They had always slept in separate rooms, and he had never even touched Fiona Cooper's hand.Fiona Cooper never allowed Joseph Wilson to appear at the company, so every time Joseph Wilson came to pick her up from work, he would stand far away and wait for her to come out. This time was no exception.However, what Joseph Wilson did not expect was to see his wife walking out of the Cooper Group building, arm in arm with a man."Charles, why are you back so suddenly?""I finished my business abroad and missed y
Joseph drove towards Cooper Group.The Cooper Group belonged to the Cooper family, the biggest family in Nova City. Three years ago, it wasn't, but in these three years, the Cooper family had developed very rapidly, leaping to become Nova City's top family.After about half an hour, Joseph Wilson finally arrived near the Cooper Building. He parked the car in front of a secluded alley and called Fiona Cooper."Fiona, I'm here, at the usual place."Joseph Wilson said after the call connected."I know. How many times do I have to say it? Don't call me Fiona. Call me Fiona Cooper." Fiona Cooper's disgusted voice came from the other end."Okay, Fiona Cooper. I'm here, waiting for you at the usual place."Joseph Wilson repeated his words.The other end immediately hung up. Joseph was used to this. Moreover, he had already made up his mind. It was time to leave.About ten minutes later, Joseph saw a tall, beautiful, fair-skinned woman walk out of the Cooper Group building. The woman was nat