Trick Him Into Divorce, Then Flee With His Unknow Kid

Chapter 264: Chapter 264 The Battle for NYU’s Representative

Samantha’s shameless words made a wave of nausea rise in Rose’s stomach.

The warmth disappeared from Rose’s expression as she met Samantha’s smug gaze—a look filled with superiority and self-satisfaction.

A faint smile curved Rose’s lips, but her eyes remained as cold as ice.

"You think far too highly of yourself," she said calmly. "Even if you dropped dead right in front of me, what difference would it make to me?"

Those kinds of remarks no longer affected her in the slightest.

Hearing Samantha bring them up now stirred no emotion whatsoever.

If anything, it only reminded her that love truly had the power to make people lose their reason, abandon their dignity, and throw away their self-respect.

Even someone like Samantha was no exception.

How pitiful.

Rose couldn’t be bothered to argue with Samantha over anything related to Ryan.

Nor was she willing to give Samantha the reaction she was so desperately hoping for.

She simply turned and walked away.

By the time Samantha reacted, it was already too late to stop her.

She could only stand there, staring at Rose’s retreating figure in disbelief.

Rose’s complete indifference left Samantha feeling inexplicably uneasy.

She was already at a disadvantage.

After all, Rose had publicly exposed the scandal at the Knight family’s cocktail party, and Samantha’s reputation within the industry had been severely damaged.

Not only would the Knight family hesitate to accept her for the sake of their reputation, but other prominent families would also view her as a liability and avoid getting involved with her.

Rose had nearly destroyed her professional reputation, her future prospects, and countless valuable connections.

As for Rose...

She had somehow been promoted directly to professor, and from what Dean Byrne had hinted, she might even be groomed for a future position at the National Center for Biomedical Innovation.

Samantha pressed her lips together before taking out her phone and calling Oliver.

It took him a while to answer.

"What’s up?" he asked casually.

"Can we speed up the preparations for the show?" Samantha asked. "I’d like to start filming as soon as possible."

After all, once the program aired, it would bring tremendous publicity and investment to NYU.

More importantly, it would strengthen her qualifications for admission to the National Center for Biomedical Innovation.

Oliver immediately understood. "Oh, that. Sure. No problem. But planning will still take at least two weeks. You and your family should start preparing now—especially the Hill family. Once the show airs, we’ll need several promotional angles: family relationships, company development, and so on. Everything has to tell a compelling story."

Thinking about how the Hill family would also benefit from the show’s popularity, Samantha finally relaxed.

It was a win-win situation.

And that was her greatest advantage.

As for Rose...

A faint, mocking smile crossed Samantha’s lips.

"Thank you, Oliver. You and Ryan have really gone out of your way for me."

Oliver chuckled softly. "That’s only natural."

Suddenly remembering something, Samantha asked, "Do you know why Ryan took Rose away from the Robinson family’s resort opening ceremony that day?"

Ryan had never mentioned it to her.

But she couldn’t shake the feeling that something unusual had happened.

Oliver answered casually, "Did he? You know Ryan. He never tells me much about his personal life."

Samantha sighed in disappointment.

Since she couldn’t get an answer, she simply said, "Let’s focus on preparing for the show."

"Don’t worry," Oliver replied. "That’s the best thing you can do right now."

Only then did Samantha smile again.

Exactly.

By then, she’d finally have the qualifications to compete head-to-head with a so-called "watered-down professor" like Rose.

*****

When Rose returned to the conference room, Ryan was already back in his seat.

Several rows separated them.

His head was lowered as he looked at his phone.

Sunlight streamed through the window, illuminating the sharp contours of his profile.

Yet it brought no warmth.

Instead, it only emphasized the invisible distance surrounding him—a world that seemed completely isolated from everyone else.

Rose couldn’t detect the slightest emotion on his face.

Not even after their confrontation earlier.

Even learning that she intended to marry Trevor hadn’t seemed to affect him.

To Ryan, it wasn’t worth a second thought.

It hadn’t caused even the smallest ripple.

Rose quietly returned to her seat.

The meeting resumed.

This was an internal NYU meeting, so representatives from the other New York universities weren’t present.

When Samantha returned, she once again took the seat beside Ryan.

Out of the corner of her eye, she glanced at Rose.

Then she smiled and addressed Leo.

"Professor Byrne, the top researchers from our country’s leading medical schools have all gathered for this neurological disease project. Every university’s research team is required to produce a patent related to our research direction. The winning teams will compete for positions on the elite research team and for admission to the National Center for Biomedical Innovation."

A confident smile appeared on her face. "My patent and accompanying research paper will both be finished within three weeks. I’m already halfway done, so I should be ahead of the other universities."

She paused before adding proudly, "So I’d like to apply to have my patent and paper represent NYU in the competition."

She was extremely proud of her progress.

Producing results so quickly would undoubtedly bring honor to NYU.

Naturally, Dean Byrne would think highly of her.

Leo looked at her. "You’re already halfway finished?"

Samantha smiled confidently.

"Yes."

"I’m making excellent progress."

She believed no one could possibly move faster than she had.

Leo closed the report in front of him.

"That’s good."

Then he added calmly, "However, NYU’s representative has already been selected."

"Professor Rose’s patent and research paper have both been completed and approved. They will represent NYU in the competition."

"As for your patent and paper, they’ll be evaluated during our internal review."

The smile on Samantha’s face instantly froze.

"What?"

Had Rose actually taken the opportunity that was supposed to belong to her?

How could Rose possibly have developed a patent already?

And when had she even written a research paper?

Who had given her this kind of preferential treatment?

Not a single university participating in the project had completed a patent yet.

How could Rose possibly have accomplished something so difficult?

Ryan also lifted his eyes slightly, glancing toward Rose.

Rose, however, had no intention of explaining anything to Samantha.

A patent?

That was the least of her concerns.

As luck would have it, she already held a patent related to neurological medicine.

Using it would save her considerable time and allow her to focus on completing her doctoral dissertation.

"How could you possibly finish that so quickly?" Samantha demanded.

Before Rose could answer, Alicia spoke matter-of-factly.

"Well, Professor Rose is already a professor. It’s only natural that she’d work more efficiently than a graduate student."

Alicia’s straightforward remark made Samantha’s expression darken even further.

Suppressing her anger, Samantha said coldly, "Without consulting the rest of us, the university simply decided that Rose would represent NYU. Doesn’t that seem like favoritism? After all, people are naturally skeptical of someone becoming a professor at such a young age."

The moment those words left her mouth, numerous people around the conference room turned to look at Rose.

Samantha knew perfectly well that Rose’s rapid promotion had already attracted both admiration and resentment.

She was deliberately exploiting everyone’s sense of unfairness.

She was certain someone would question Rose’s qualifications.

Leo looked at Samantha’s subtly smug expression before asking bluntly, "When you just requested to represent NYU, what accomplishments did you present to convince everyone?"

"Have you completed a patent?"

"Or finished a research paper?"

Samantha’s expression stiffened.

How could those situations possibly be compared?

She was nothing like Rose.

She had the ability to meet those standards.

As for Rose...

Aside from benefiting from special treatment, how could she possibly compare?

But this opportunity was incredibly important.

If she succeeded, it would become one of the greatest achievements on her résumé and serve as a major stepping stone for her future career.

Naturally, Samantha had no intention of letting Rose take it away.

"This decision was made by the university administration," Leo said firmly. "Students are students, and research is research. What ultimately matters is whose work has the greatest potential to benefit patients. Whoever achieves the breakthrough earns the opportunity."

Rose remained silent.

There was no point arguing once the decision had already been made.

She assumed the matter was settled.

Then, a calm, deep voice broke the silence.

"Rose is already a professor."

Ryan spoke slowly, his expression unreadable.

"Isn’t it inappropriate for a professor to compete with students for this opportunity?"

Rose’s grip tightened around the notebook in her hands.

She looked toward him.

Ryan never looked at her.

Instead, he addressed Leo directly. "For all the equipment and laboratory resources required during the later stages of this project, I’m willing to invest an additional one hundred million dollars."

He paused briefly before continuing. "If the university is willing, I’d like NYU’s representative for this competition to be Samantha."