Chapter 404

The more she thought about it, the more alarmed and uneasy she became. Natalie nervously took out her phone.

"Professor, the restaurant is all ready. When will you arrive?" Natalie said with a smile in her voice.

A heavy sigh came from the other end of the phone.

David said, "At a time like this, you’re still thinking about celebration? My phone’s been ringing off the hook today. I’ve been cleaning up your mess. This celebration dinner is off for now!"

“No way!” Natalie only focused on the party but nothing else.

She said, "Josie and her group are eating right next door. It’s clear they’re waiting to see me fail. If none of you come, won’t she truly walk all over me? Professor, you promised you would let me prevail over her. At a crucial moment like this, you can’t abandon me!"

Natalie didn’t care about anything else. Just thinking about Josie’s smiling face made her seethe with anger, and she couldn’t swallow her pride. More than anything else, she cared about showing off. She couldn’t afford to lose to Josie.

She had to make a grand appearance today and infuriate Josie.

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone.

David said, "You said Josie is eating next door? Who else is there? Is Ian there? How could they book a room right next to your private room?"

"How should I know?" Natalie was furious. She said, "She must have done it on purpose. She even came to ask me for the celebration party’s address earlier. It turns out she had it all planned out! Professor, do you think she got the Reedshaw family to help her block people from attending my celebration party? She just wants to humiliate me. She’s jealous of me because of all the papers I’ve written. She’s also jealous that I’m going to participate in the preliminary medical research competition. I think she’s desperate and wants to humiliate me to get your attention. You mustn’t fall for her trick and miss my celebration party.”

"Enough!" David said impatiently, "Stop thinking about the celebration party. Go to your room and wait for me. I’ll be there soon.”

David hung up the phone, seething with anger. He thought, Josie, you really set me up big time!

He wasn’t Natalie, nor was he as naive as her to think Josie simply blocked attendees of her celebration party to humiliate her, or that she booked the adjacent dining spot merely for a moment of pride. Josie clearly had this planned all along. David had read Ian’s paper, and the entry point was clearly consistent with Natalie’s research. Only the final research results were different.

As expected, Natalie never actually conducted verification experiments. All her papers, including the various data mentioned therein, were derived from theoretical calculations. However, medical research was not a math problem. Sometimes, accurate data could not be obtained solely through calculations. Even a subtle change in a decimal point could lead to completely opposite results.

The paper published by Ian not only contained complete experimental data for verification, but also included short videos of the experimental process. They were all proof that they indeed conducted a full series of experiments.

David remembered that this angle was an experimental assignment he gave to several students in his team years ago. At that time, only Aiden did the first phase of the experiment. Later, due to other, more critical research topics, the team members abandoned further experimentation. They only outlined a rough theoretical experimental calculation process.

The research outcomes from this experiment were so minor that David didn’t pay any attention to it at the time. Upon seeing Natalie’s paper, he simply felt it was a good opportunity. For an undergraduate student like her, completing a comprehensive experimental paper would be a significant advantage. With his further assistance, she could gain some reputation, but David didn’t expect Josie to be a traitor.

He thought, ‘If she hadn’t prompted Ian, how could he have undertaken such a minor research project?‘ He turned, grabbed the car keys, and headed straight for Delicate Inn.