Free Web NovelChapter 55: Chapter 55 The Legendary Aster Was Sitting Among Them
Seeing Samantha arrive, the Columbia University team immediately brightened.
“Ms. Hill, it’s no big deal. We should actually be thanking your boyfriend for sponsoring this event.”
“That’s right. If it weren’t for you, we never would have received such generous benefits.”
“You’re practically the boss’s wife already,” someone remarked, their voice full of admiration and flattery.
And how could it be otherwise?
President Knight had sponsored the event for Samantha. To everyone present, he was both their benefactor and the person funding the project.
Naturally, Samantha deserved the title of boss’s wife.
Samantha covered her mouth and smiled softly, unable to hide the delight in her eyes.
“You’re all being too formal. There’s really no need.”
Rose leaned back in her chair, watching the much-praised extramarital affair unfold before her as though she were merely a bystander.
Her gaze inadvertently drifted to Ryan.
Standing beside Samantha, he worked tirelessly to shield her from every storm life could throw her way.
A faint smile lingered on the corners of his lips.
He made no attempt to deny the title of boss’s wife.
When a man devotes himself wholeheartedly to a woman, he can appear noble and dazzling.
As for her?
After seven years as Mrs. Knight, she might as well have been invisible.
The cramps in her abdomen intensified, sending waves of pain throughout her body.
Oddly enough, the pain only made her mind clearer.
Rose lowered her gaze, concealing the trace of sarcasm in her eyes.
“What were you all talking about?” Samantha asked with a smile.
She sat across from Rose as though she hadn’t even noticed her presence, while Ryan took the seat beside her.
“It sounded lively.”
The topic immediately shifted back to Rose.
Several students from Columbia University chuckled.
“Ms. Hill, you don’t know. It seems Ms. Bennett had a romantic encounter last night and spent the night with someone.”
“But apparently, it was her husband. We were just wondering who exactly Ms. Bennett’s husband is.”
“Exactly. Since he’s here, she should bring him out so we can meet him. Maybe we could all have dinner together. That would be fun.”
The moment those words fell, Rose instantly sensed the indifferent gaze from across the table.
She didn’t look up.
After all, she wasn’t the one who had exposed the situation.
Ryan was the one who had mistaken her for someone else while she was on the phone and ended up accidentally putting on a display of affection.
The smile on Samantha’s lips faded slightly.
A flicker of anger flashed through her eyes.
She hadn’t expected Rose to let this story spread.
Didn’t Rose know that she and Ryan were now the admired couple everyone praised?
Was Rose trying to ruin their relationship?
“This is Ms. Bennett’s private matter,” Samantha said lightly. “I don’t think it’s appropriate for me to pry.”
Before she could finish, someone immediately chimed in.
“It’s fine. I’m sure Ms. Bennett won’t mind.”
“You and Mr. Knight are so perfect together and obviously in love. Ms. Bennett probably just doesn’t want to be outdone.”
Laughter erupted around the room.
Without exception, everyone was deeply curious about the husband Rose kept hidden so carefully.
The students from Columbia University looked at her with teasing smiles.
“Could it be that Ms. Bennett doesn’t want to introduce her husband because, compared to Ms. Hill’s boyfriend, he doesn’t quite measure up?”
“After all, Mr. Knight is practically the gold standard.”
Everyone instantly understood the implication.
There were very few men capable of standing shoulder to shoulder with Ryan Knight.
Rose could clearly sense the contempt, mockery, and amusement hidden within the glances directed at her.
They assumed she was too embarrassed to introduce her husband because he would inevitably be overshadowed by Samantha’s boyfriend.
Rose looked straight ahead.
Ryan.
The mysterious man behind the curtain.
He sat elegantly against the backrest, relaxed and composed.
Casually, he picked up the coffee pot and poured Samantha a cup of coffee.
Samantha accepted it with a sweet smile.
An invisible wall seemed to separate them from everyone else.
Ryan didn’t spare Rose a second glance.
Nor did he show the slightest guilt.
He offered no warning—whether open or subtle—for her to keep quiet.
From beginning to end, he remained an outsider, as though none of this concerned him.
That calm indifference felt like an ice pick driven into her heart.
It was as though he were reminding her to know her place.
Rose glanced at the empty cup beside her and nodded slowly.
“Ms. Hill, you’re overthinking things.”
“I don’t consider my husband or my family to be private matters, much less something to be ashamed of.”
“Of course we can talk about them.”
For a split second, Samantha’s expression faltered.
Her lips tightened as she shot Rose a cold look.
She didn’t believe Rose would actually expose the truth in public.
Had Rose truly lost her mind?
Did she really intend to offend Ryan like this?
This time, Rose felt Ryan’s gaze land on her.
She sighed inwardly.
Just as she had expected.
He only reacted when Samantha’s reputation, image, or feelings were involved.
If she called Ryan her husband in public...
The entire room would explode.
“Mr. Knight, I heard you were staying on the same floor as Rose last night. Do you happen to know who her husband is?”
Suddenly, Caleb—who had remained silent until now—spoke up.
His question instantly redirected everyone’s attention.
All eyes shifted from Rose to Ryan.
Rose glanced at Caleb.
She understood what he was doing.
He was protecting her.
By redirecting the question, he was preventing her from becoming everyone’s target while also avoiding the possibility of her exposing Ryan’s identity and provoking him.
The burden of answering now rested with Ryan.
As for how Ryan would respond...
“Is that something I need to concern myself with?”
His voice was calm and flat.
Yet every listener interpreted it differently.
The men from the Pharmacology Department exchanged glances before quickly reaching the same conclusion.
“That makes sense.”
“Given Mr. Knight’s status, why would he pay attention to someone who has nothing to do with him?”
But Rose understood the deeper meaning.
By denying any connection to her, Ryan not only cut off her opportunity to expose Samantha, but also subtly implied that he was the genuine article.
As such, he had no need to answer questions about another woman’s husband.
His words were always flawless.
With that response, everyone understood Ryan had no interest in discussing the matter.
The topic was tactfully dropped.
The issue was settled.
Caleb cast a sympathetic glance toward Rose.
Even Rose couldn’t help sighing inwardly.
The label of "the woman who’d been cheated on" might as well have been stamped across her forehead.
Only now did she finally understand why Ryan had insisted she spend the New Year with the Knight family.
Why he had spent so much money sponsoring such a large group to come to South Province.
Because he wanted to spend the New Year with Samantha.
In the midst of their passionate romance, they couldn’t bear to be apart.
When Rose refused to come, he simply found another way.
He brought the entire entourage with him, ensuring she would come willingly.
He intended to use her as a shield against Margaret’s suspicions while secretly spending time with Samantha behind the scenes.
In the end, she had simply been used.
Rose lowered her gaze and looked at the blood-red nail marks in her palm.
A trace of self-mockery crossed her mind.
A soon-to-be ex-wife as cooperative as me is truly hard to find.
At the very least, he should pay me for the service.
Samantha turned toward Caleb and gracefully changed the subject.
Samantha turned to Caleb and smoothly changed the subject.
“Mr. Byrne, I’d love the opportunity to meet Aster, the developer of Aetheris Medical AI, and discuss the platform in greater depth. Would it be possible for you to introduce us?”
The moment the name left her lips, interest sparked throughout the room.
“I used the Aetheris database during my graduate research,” one researcher said. “The amount of clinical data it integrates is incredible.”
“How much of the platform did Aster personally develop?”
“Is it true Aster designed the predictive treatment algorithms?”
“Were the therapeutic models developed alongside leading medical researchers?”
The conference room immediately came alive.
Aster.
One of the most mysterious figures in the medical research community.
Aetheris Medical AI had transformed from an ambitious startup project into one of the most influential medical AI platforms in the country.
As its founder—and the architect behind several groundbreaking diagnostic and treatment models—Aster had become something of a legend among researchers.
Only then did Caleb arch an eyebrow.
His gaze briefly drifted toward Rose.
“That depends on Ms. Hill’s qualifications.”
A faint smile tugged at his lips.
“Our Aster—the reason G.S. Pharmaceuticals has been able to stay ahead of the industry—isn’t exactly easy to impress.”
“Whether she agrees to meet someone depends entirely on her own judgment.”
A slight frown crossed Samantha’s face.
Apparently, even Caleb couldn’t make decisions on Aster’s behalf.
Still, that wasn’t surprising.
Someone with that level of brilliance had earned the right to be selective.
“That’s all right,” Samantha replied with a graceful smile.
“I’m sure there will be opportunities in the future.”
As long as she wanted an introduction, Ryan would find a way to arrange it.
Besides, she was confident in her own abilities.
Surely she and Aster would have plenty in common.
Exceptional minds tended to recognize one another.
Rose remained silent.
When she first launched Aetheris Medical AI, she had chosen to operate under the alias Aster rather than use her real name.
Only Caleb, Dr. Nathan Hale, and a handful of senior researchers knew the truth.
Over the years, countless people had claimed to be Aster.
At this point, even if Rose revealed her identity herself, few would believe her without undeniable proof.
But she had never cared much about recognition.
She preferred spending her time developing new therapies, improving treatment accessibility, and fighting to get innovative medications covered by insurance providers.
Across the table, Caleb shot her another meaningful glance.
If these people knew that Rose was Aster...
That she had earned her degree in artificial intelligence under one of the nation’s leading AI researchers...
That she had spent years integrating pharmacology, clinical research, and machine learning into a unified diagnostic platform...
And that after New Year’s she would be leading the development of an AI-powered drug discovery platform designed to accelerate the identification of promising therapeutic compounds...
If they knew all of that...
The entire room would probably be speechless.
Sometimes extraordinary talent seemed almost unfair.
The meeting continued without interruption.
The joint research team shifted its attention to targeted therapeutic applications derived from two decades of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular data.
Rose had worked with similar datasets years ago while leading a major research initiative.
As a result, she mostly listened, curious to hear what ideas the others would contribute.
Besides, her period had been particularly difficult this month.
Ever since the severe hemorrhaging she had suffered while giving birth to Ariel, her body had never fully recovered.
The cramps were brutal.
At that moment, all she wanted was to curl up somewhere quiet and sleep.
Lost in thought, she was suddenly pulled back by a voice from across the conference room.
"Ryan had hot ginger tea brought in for everyone."
Several people looked pleasantly surprised.
"Rose, could you help pass these around?"
Rose paused.
