Chapter 306 Buying a Graduation Certificate
Chapter 306 Buying a Graduation Certificate
Morwen was stunned yet again.
What kind of school was this, exactly?
The students were clueless—fine. But even the teachers were this ignorant?
If they'd bothered to check Starlight University's official website for just one second, they'd know that the woman they were slandering as "never having attended college" was actually a Starlight University honorary alumna.
And they wanted to kick her out?
Were they insane?
They had actual talent standing right in front of them, and instead of trying to keep her, they wanted to throw her away.
Only an idiot would do something like that!
Morwen couldn't tolerate their stupidity any longer.
His expression turned serious. "Did you just say you wanted to kick out my student?"
"Professor Morwen, what did you just say?!" Jagger's eyes flew wide open, and he nearly bit his tongue.
His student?
Professor Morwen's student—that meant she was a Starlight University student!
Starlight University was infinitely better than The Lucent University. It was a top-tier institution.
Sure, The Lucent University was Emberlyn's premier school, but globally it barely scraped into the top twenty. Starlight University, on the other hand, was the undisputed number one university in the world.
Jagger wiped his glasses and stared at Victoria in disbelief.
This woman was a Starlight University student!
And Elara had just claimed she'd never been to college?
Morwen pressed on. "She's my student. I invited her to attend my lecture. Are you saying you want to kick her out?"
"No! Absolutely not! I'm sorry!"
Jagger broke into a sweat, terrified of offending Morwen.
"Professor Morwen, rest assured—we would never kick her out."
The lecture was about to start.
Morwen was always punctual and had no time to waste.
"I need to prepare. Victoria, welcome to my lecture."
Morwen parted ways with her for the moment.
Jagger pulled Elara aside, and the onlookers scattered to grab seats.
Steve finished parking and joined Victoria for Morwen's lecture.
After seeing the post about Victoria at The Lucent University, Emily rushed over with a reporter in tow.
She'd finally caught Victoria in a vulnerable moment—this was her chance to drag Victoria down from her pedestal once and for all!
After suffering through a rough patch, Emily hadn't become more humble. If anything, her jealousy toward Victoria had only intensified.
She and Jennifer were crammed into a run-down old house. Why should Victoria get to live in a mansion, eat gourmet meals, and have endless money to burn?
Day after day, Emily's envy twisted into something darker. More unhinged.
She wanted Victoria ruined. Disgraced. Cast out by the Windsor family and reduced to someone just like her.
In her haste, Emily hadn't even bothered to read the follow-up posts before barging over.
Emily stormed into Morwen's lecture hall with her entourage, and her abrupt entrance immediately drew every eye in the room.
Emily scanned the crowd until her gaze landed on Victoria. A shadow flickered in her eyes.
"Professor, everyone—I'm so sorry to interrupt. I'm just here to find my sister."
Behind Emily, the reporter was holding up a camera, making the whole scene feel like a spectacle.
The Lucent University students' gossip instincts instantly ignited.
"Wait, isn't that the streamer Emily?"
"It is! Her sister is Marcyen."
"Holy crap, this is amazing—live drama in real time!"
Under the curious and excited stares, Emily slowly approached Victoria.
"Victoria, so many viewers asked me to come ask you some questions. But you blocked my number, so I couldn't reach you. Today, someone online told me you were at The Lucent University, so I had to come find you here. You're not mad, are you?"
Ah, that classic fake-sweet tone.
If Emily hadn't popped up in the last couple of days, Victoria would've almost forgotten the Smith family existed.
She glanced up lazily, catching the malice glinting in Emily's eyes.
Emily had deliberately chosen to confront her in front of a crowd—to humiliate Victoria publicly and make everyone believe she was some college dropout who'd been faking it all along. A plagiarist.
"If you don't answer, does that mean you're guilty?"
Victoria's lips curved slightly. "Sure. What do you want to ask?"
Seeing her agree, Emily couldn't suppress her grin.
What an idiot Victoria was! She had no idea what was coming.
Emily asked her question, dripping with malice and a saccharine smile. "Victoria, everyone's wondering—why didn't you go to college?"
Emily thought she'd hit Victoria's weak spot. She couldn't hide the gleeful satisfaction in her eyes.
Victoria, you finally got what's coming to you!
But the room fell into an eerie silence.
Everyone stared at Emily like she was an absolute moron.
Wasn't she supposed to be Victoria's sister? How could she not know Victoria was a Starlight University student?
Those who'd watched the livestream suddenly realized something.
If Emily really was Victoria's sister, why didn't she know her own sister was a top student at Starlight University?
Was she actually Victoria's sister?
Or was she deliberately misleading her viewers?
Up on stage, Morwen—whose lecture had just been interrupted—was visibly displeased.
Another lunatic spouting nonsense.
Did no one in Lucent ever bother checking Starlight University's website?
His upbringing kept him from losing his temper outright, but his expression was tight.
"Miss, what are you talking about? This is a place of learning, not a gossip column."
Emily didn't recognize Professor Morwen. She assumed he was just some regular teacher at The Lucent University.
"Professor, you've misunderstood. I'm not making this up. She really never went to college—"
"Whether or not she went to college—don't you think I would know?"
Morwen had reached his limit.
He didn't have his student's patience. Professor Morwen had spent his entire life with clear principles, and he couldn't stand anyone slandering his students.
"I'm a professor at Starlight University. She's my student. I can personally guarantee that not only did she attend college, she's the youngest PhD graduate from Starlight University and one of our most outstanding honorary alumni. If you'd bothered to read anything, you'd know that her photo is featured on Starlight University's admissions website!"
Emily had never been abroad. She had no idea what Starlight University even was.
She turned to the camera and said, "Starlight University? Have any of you guys heard of it? Isn't that one of those schools where you can just buy a diploma?"
"Victoria, if you didn't go to college, fine—but why go to some place like that to buy a degree? And you even hired an actor to play along…"
When she said "some place like that," she covered her mouth and laughed.
Her contempt and mockery were on full display.
Morwen nearly rolled his eyes.
Why were people in this place so ignorant? They didn't even know what Starlight University was.
The Lucent University students were dumbfounded.
Starlight University?
Selling diplomas?
Was this some kind of new joke?
If you could actually buy a Starlight University diploma, they'd buy one too!
"Girl, if you're ignorant, don't embarrass yourself. Starlight University is the number one university in the world. Buy a diploma? Dream on!"
"If anyone can buy a Starlight University diploma, get me one too, will you?"
"That's Professor Morwen. Who could possibly hire Professor Morwen to fake something?"
"Someone this clueless is seriously making The Lucent University look bad."
"Who even let her in here?"
The Lucent University students' attitudes shifted from amused spectators to secondhand embarrassment.
Having Professor Morwen hear this kind of brain-dead nonsense was seriously humiliating for The Lucent University…
If Professor Morwen left with a bad impression of The Lucent University, their chances of applying for graduate programs at Starlight University would tank even further.
Oh hell no. They couldn't let that happen.
Now that their own futures were on the line, the students had zero interest in watching the drama unfold. They turned on Emily in unison.