I Married the President

「The Camp Dorms」

Someone must have leaked the news, because the contestants were in their dorms, deep in a heated discussion.

"Hey guys, if Professor Taylor really leaves, what’s going to happen to us Class A students? Do you think the other three mentors will give us a hard time?"

"What’s there to worry about? Professor Fisher and Mr. Mason are really nice. They wouldn’t give anyone a hard time."

"I’m just worried that after Professor Taylor leaves, no one will be able to keep Professor Sinclair in check. I’m afraid that woman will start giving out random scores again."

Hearing this, someone immediately clamped a hand over the speaker’s mouth and whispered, "You’re running your mouth again! Be careful Professor Sinclair doesn’t hear you and dock more points. You only have seventy left. Any more deductions and you’re finished!"

The guy scoffed. "Give me a break. My popularity is rock bottom, so I’m getting eliminated sooner or later anyway. I’ve been holding this in for a long time. She might as well dock all my points. I don’t even want to be here anymore."

Several of the top students, who had been quiet until now, all looked over. Liam Linden, Hayden Carson, and Leo Lynch looked like they wanted to say something, but in the end, they remained silent.

Both of them were contestants Cecily Taylor had her eye on. If she were to quit the show, the impact on them would be immeasurable.

After all, a portion of their supporters were people who had originally been Cecily Taylor’s fans.

Leonard Bishop sat alone to one side, pen in hand, scribbling something on a piece of paper. He took no part in their discussion.

That is, until he overheard someone say, "Last night, I borrowed a staff member’s phone to get online for a while. I saw people saying that Professor Sinclair was jealous of all the luxurious gifts Professor Taylor received, so she deliberately caused a scene at Professor Taylor’s birthday party to ruin it. And on top of that, she wrote an article smearing Professor Taylor today."

The others chimed in one after another:

"For real?"

"Professor Sinclair doesn’t seem like that type of person. Besides, I love the articles she writes. They’re really profound."

"It has to be fake. When Professor Sinclair had her birthday, didn’t she also get a ton of insane gifts? Like several sports cars worth tens of millions? She didn’t keep a single one in the end. I don’t think she’d be jealous of Professor Taylor."

"Who knows? You can never figure out what a girl is thinking. But that’s what they’re saying online."

Hearing this, Leonard Bishop finally couldn’t hold his tongue. "A reporter for the Astoria Daily needing to smear someone? You don’t have to be a genius to know that’s impossible. Stop spreading baseless rumors."

At his words, the others lowered their heads, unable to argue.

Just then, Claire Sinclair walked in.

The contestants who saw her guiltily looked away, not daring to meet her eyes.

Sensing the strange atmosphere, Claire Sinclair couldn’t help but ask, "What’s wrong, everyone? Why is it so gloomy in here?"

Leonard Bishop spoke up bluntly. "Professor Sinclair, someone said Professor Taylor is quitting the mentor panel. Everyone is worried about whether it’s true."

Claire Sinclair raised an eyebrow. "What does Professor Taylor leaving the mentor panel have to do with any of you? If you have talent, why would you be afraid of being eliminated?"

One of the contestants couldn’t help but retort, "Professor Taylor has been so good to us! How could it have nothing to do with us!"

Then another contestant boldly voiced their suspicion, "Professor Sinclair, people online are saying you deliberately smeared Professor Taylor. Now she’s leaving. Did you force her off of *Starlet Shine*?"

Claire Sinclair’s brow furrowed slightly. ’It seems these kids’ resentment toward me hasn’t gone away. If anything, it’s only gotten deeper.’

’It’s one thing to be shortsighted, but you shouldn’t show that weakness in front of so many people. Otherwise, you just look like an idiot.’