Chapter 115 - 113: Do Jokes Discriminate? As Long As It’s Funny!
For the members of the team, they couldn’t remember the last time they’d had such a decent meal.
It seemed that ever since the eight of them had hit it off and started pouring everything into their passion project, their quality of life had instantly plummeted. They couldn’t even bring themselves to splurge on cup noodles instead of the packet kind.
So, regardless of the chef’s skill, this meal was a supreme delicacy to them—a meal they would never forget for the rest of their lives.
Beer and Maotai soon arrived at the table, and the atmosphere reached a fever pitch. The invisible barrier between them and Cecilia Sterling momentarily dissolved. Some of them even began recounting the project’s hardships over the past year as funny anecdotes for her.
And gradually, Cecilia seemed to understand why this team was able to succeed.
They were a group of optimists who knew how to find joy in hardship, facing adversity with a smile and never thinking of giving up. More importantly, they had the courage to go all in, willing to scrimp and save, to band together for a common goal, and to bet everything they had at this stage of their lives!
Cecilia was reminded of a saying: ’Strength forges classics; champions are never made by chance!’
Halfway through the dinner, with many of them flushed from the alcohol, Timothy Rowe suddenly remembered something important. He patted Cecilia’s shoulder and said, "Cecilia, there’s something I was wondering if you could help with."
The smile never left Cecilia’s face as she looked at him and asked, "What is it?"
"In the middle of the month, there’s an AI corporate networking conference in Lorcain. Major companies from all over the country will be sending professional teams for technical exchanges. I think it’s an incredibly valuable opportunity. If our team could go, even just to listen in, we’d definitely benefit immensely."
Cecilia nodded in understanding. After a moment of thought, she said hesitantly, "I can’t guarantee I can get invitations, but I can see what I can do. Wait for my news."
Timothy nodded excitedly. Although Cecilia hadn’t given him a definite ’yes’, he had a gut feeling she could pull it off.
Meanwhile, at the Goodman Family’s villa in Hearthstone Villas, it was also dinnertime.
Since it was the last day of the holiday and Cecilia was out for dinner with her team, Estelle Goodman had returned to her own home.
Mrs. Goodman looked at her daughter and couldn’t help but tease her sarcastically, "Well, look who finally decided to grace us with her presence. I was starting to think you weren’t coming back at all."
Estelle couldn’t help but roll her eyes. "Cecilia’s house is less than five hundred meters from ours. You make it sound like I went abroad or something."
"Besides, we go back to school tomorrow. Don’t I need to come home to pack?"
Conrad Goodman watched his daughter with a doting smile. "It’s actually a good thing. To think your roommate lives so close. You won’t be bored anymore."
At this, Conrad asked reflexively, "What does your classmate’s family do? Is their business in Lorcain?"
"I don’t know," Estelle said with a pout.
Conrad was taken aback. "You didn’t ask?"
"Why would I ask about that?" Estelle looked at her father earnestly. "Cecilia and I have a very pure friendship. I’m not like you guys, who have to have an ulterior motive for making friends. What does it have to do with me what her family does? If I find out, are they going to give me some of their shares? I just like Cecilia for who she is. I feel like we really click, and that’s why we became friends."
Her words left the couple speechless.
Mrs. Goodman gave a helpless smile and looked at her husband. "Let’s just drop it. We asked two questions and got a lecture from our daughter."
Conrad also shook his head with a laugh, placing a piece of sweet and sour pork ribs—his daughter’s favorite—into her bowl. "Alright, whatever they do, anyone living in this villa complex can’t be doing too poorly. You’ve been imposing on them all holiday. When you have time, invite her over so we can host her as well."
Mrs. Goodman nodded in agreement. "Your dad’s right. The friends you make in college are very important. And she lives so close, so she could very well become a friend for life. Since you get along so well, you should cherish this relationship even more."
"Of course! I’m Cecilia’s only good friend at school right now." Estelle couldn’t help but feel a little smug thinking about Cecilia. "Her old roommates isolated her because she was too outstanding. I’m going to protect her from now on."
"Mom, Dad, did you know? Cecilia isn’t just beautiful, she’s a total brainiac. She scored over seven hundred on her college entrance exams. Our university’s admissions office had to go all the way to Veridia to specially recruit her. Otherwise, she would have gone to Aerospace University."
Hearing how exceptional Cecilia was, the couple instinctively exchanged a look. Conrad nodded. "Your mother and I support you making friends with such an outstanding girl. You are who you surround yourself with. Having a friend like that will help you improve and broaden your horizons."
Estelle smiled and nodded. ’If it weren’t for Cecilia, I never would’ve known how much fun it is to hire male models. It really did broaden my horizons,’ she thought.
"But you’ll have to wait a bit before she can come over. Cecilia’s been a little busy lately. She’s getting into investing. She just invested two million yuan in a project. That’s why she went out to eat with the project team tonight, and why I came home."
"An investment?"
"Two million yuan?"
The couple exclaimed in shock at the same time. While two million yuan wasn’t a fortune to their family, a sophomore was already getting into investing? And to start with a two-million-yuan investment, no less—that took real guts and vision.
One wrong move, and that two million could disappear without so much as a ripple.
"Look at you two, acting so surprised. I told you Cecilia was exceptional. When she wants to do something, she’s always decisive. Do you know what kind of project she invested in?"
As Estelle spoke, she fixed her gaze on her parents’ faces. She couldn’t help but feel a thrill of excitement thinking about the truth she was about to reveal.
The couple shook their heads in unison. Then they heard their daughter let out a soft laugh. "She invested in an advanced artificial intelligence program—the very field our family dominates. At the reception the other day, that upperclassman from my university tried to hand you his product proposal, but you didn’t even glance at it before sending him away. Cecilia saw what happened and immediately ran after him. The next day, I was the one who went with her to the negotiations."
"Wh-what?"
Conrad was startled. The scene from that day flashed through his mind. He did indeed remember the incident, but he never imagined there would be a follow-up.
Seeing her father’s shocked expression, Estelle raised an eyebrow in satisfaction and grinned. "I don’t understand the technical stuff, but if this project Cecilia invested in succeeds... Dad, how much is that going to sting? So many people were watching that day..."
"Estelle..." Mrs. Goodman shot her daughter a reproachful look. "What’s gotten into you? Are you trying to make a fool out of your own father?"
Estelle shrugged nonchalantly. "Does it matter who the joke’s on? As long as it’s funny!"