Chapter 190
Dahlia's eyes lit up slightly.
She immediately moved the mouse and clicked. The page jumped, and a detailed exam guide appeared on the screen.
Top performers would be directly recruited into national-level research teams, with access to special stipends and top-tier lab resources.
The eligibility requirements weren't particularly strict—as long as you had a relevant research background and passed the preliminary review, you could participate.
Dahlia's gaze froze on that line.
Research?
She thought about how Dad had given Lucinda a tech company. No matter how much she begged, he'd refused to let her try.
Now, the opportunity had come.
If she could place well in this exam and show Dad that she was capable too, wouldn't he look at her with newfound respect?
At the thought, her breathing quickened.
She stared at the screen for a long while, her finger circling lightly on the mouse, then clicked on the registration portal.
Name. ID information. Educational background. Research achievements.
She filled them out one by one, then submitted.
The page refreshed. A line of green text appeared: [Preliminary materials received. Review results will be provided within seven business days.]
Dahlia leaned back in her chair, staring at the line, and slowly smiled.
This time… she was going to crush Lucinda underfoot.
Meanwhile, at the Wipere Villa.
Gemma held her phone, her face darkening as she finished reading the notification.
"Allegra, look at this." Gemma handed her the phone, her tone urgent. "The National Academy of Sciences exam—research selection, nationwide tour. You've been looking for a chance to prove yourself, haven't you? The Grayson family has been cold to you for so long. If you can place well in an exam like this, who would dare look down on you?"
Allegra paused, took the phone, and read through the exam guide line by line.
Her gaze landed on the words "past pass rate under 5%" and lingered there for several seconds. Then, slowly, her lips curved upward.
Research.
She wasn't particularly skilled at lab work, but back when she hadn't been brought back into the Wipere family yet—back in that small county town's high school—her physics, chemistry, and biology scores had consistently ranked in the top five of her grade.
Her teachers had said she was smart. It was just that her family's circumstances were poor, and no one had been there to push her forward.
Later, after the Wipere family brought her back, everyone only focused on her jewelry design, her socialite status, her fiancé. No one remembered that she'd once been someone who could win second place in the county-level science competition.
She smiled and handed the phone back to Gemma. "Mom, sign me up."
Gemma froze for a moment, then broke into a smile. "Really? You're willing to do it?"
"Yes." Allegra nodded. "You know what the Wipere family looks like right now, Mom. Dad's company is barely holding on. Marshall hasn't reached out to me in over half a month. If I don't do something, this family is really finished."
She turned, her gaze landing on Gemma's face. "I'm not going for fun. I'm going to place."
Gemma nodded eagerly. "Good, good! I'll register you right away! Don't worry, I'll find you the best study materials, hire you the best tutors—"
"No need." Allegra cut her off, her tone firm. "I'll handle it myself."
For the next two weeks, Allegra practically locked herself in her room. Her desk was piled high with printed past exams and textbooks.
Every day, she sat from dawn until deep into the night, stacks of scratch paper spread in front of her, working through formulas line by line, dissecting past standard answers sentence by sentence.
She discovered she hadn't forgotten any of it.
Those physics laws she'd once known by heart—if she reached out, she could still grasp their outlines.
Her confidence was slowly coming back.
On exam day, the Starlight City test center was located at the science and technology university on the east side of the city.
By 6:30 in the morning, the entire street was jammed with cars dropping off test-takers.
Allegra sat in the back seat of Gemma's old Mercedes, watching the slow-moving traffic through the window, her heart pounding in her chest.
"We're here." Gemma parked not far from the campus gate, turned to look at her daughter, her tone carrying a cautious hope. "Allegra, I'll wait for you here."
Allegra nodded, pushed open the door, grabbed her pencil case, and got out.
She wove through the bustling crowd, following the signs until she found her exam room.
The moment she stepped into the academic building, she paused instinctively, her gaze sweeping over the door plaques lining both sides of the hallway, each marked with an exam room number.
And in that instant, her gaze locked.
At the far end of the hallway, a familiar figure was just turning out from the stairwell.
White blouse. Dark gray slacks. Hair pulled into a low ponytail. Her pace unhurried. The morning light at the end of the corridor cast a faint golden glow along her profile.
Allegra's pupils contracted slightly.
Lucinda.
Why was she here?
Wasn't she a designer? Didn't she run a tech company? What was she doing at the National Academy of Sciences of Astoria's research selection exam?
Allegra stood rooted in place, watching that figure disappear through the exam room door at the end of the hall. Slowly, her lips curved upward.
From the looks of it, she was here to play around, wasn't she?
Probably trying to catch the eye of some wealthy sponsors by participating in the exam.
At the thought, Allegra felt a surge of satisfaction.
She withdrew her gaze, pushed open the exam room door, walked in, found her seat, opened the test booklet on her desk, took a deep breath, and began.
The afternoon practical exam was held in a different building—the lab complex.
When Dahlia walked into the lab, her gaze instinctively swept over the crowd. And then she saw Lucinda.
She was standing at a workbench by the window, head lowered as she looked at the instrument panel in front of her. Her fingers swiped lightly across the interface a couple of times, her movements casual.
Dahlia withdrew her gaze, walked to her own workbench, picked up a reagent bottle, and began following the procedure.
After the experiment ended, she handed in her answer sheet and walked out of the lab building, letting out a long breath.
She'd nailed it.
She'd felt confident about the essay questions on the written exam, and her practical operation procedure had been flawless. She figured she could at least place in the top fifteen percent.
A result like that would be enough to make Dad look at her with newfound respect.
She stood on the steps outside the lab building, watching the sun slowly sink toward the horizon, and for the first time in a while, her mood felt light.
That evening, the exam-end bell rang.
When Lucinda walked out, the Douglas family driver was already waiting at the entrance.
A dark gray business sedan sat quietly by the curb. Seeing her emerge, the driver hurried over. "Miss, Mrs. Douglas sent me to pick you up."
Lucinda nodded. Just as she was about to duck into the car, her phone buzzed.
She pulled it out. Reginald's name flashed on the screen.
She answered. His voice came through. "Done with the exam?"
"Yes."
"I'm at the school gate. You'll see me as soon as you come out."
Lucinda paused, turned her head, and glanced toward the gate.
Across half a street, the black Maybach was parked on the opposite side.
Reginald leaned against the car door, one hand in his coat pocket, the other holding his phone to his ear. Across the flow of traffic, his gaze was fixed in her direction.
Their eyes met. He lifted his chin slightly, like a silent nod across the distance.