Boss Lu: A reborn life is destined to be without regrets!
Chapter 234 - 178. Hug for a little while

Chapter 234: 178. Hug for a little while

"Nepotism."

Guan Yongyi pursed her lips, her gaze drifting to the doorway through which Professor Li had disappeared, expressionless.

"The kind that just shows up to mooch off someone else’s achievements."

"A nepotism tie as strong as yours?"

Lu Jincheng asked with a smile.

"They’ve got a tighter grip than I do."

Guan Yongyi propped her elbow on the corner of the desk, supporting her chin, leaving Lu Jincheng half of her profile.

"What do you mean?"

"I went to Professor Li proactively with my project proposal, but Professor Li took the initiative to mentor him. Think about it, could it be the same?"

The girl with the short hair pressed her cherry lips together, a hint of resignation in her tone.

"I thought Professor Li would pull in some grad student or doctoral senior to join the research team in name only, but who knew it would be him..."

"Well, who exactly is this guy?"

Lu Jincheng asked casually.

"Luo Yongfei’s dad is the deputy head of the East Lake High-tech District Court."

"Oh... then it’s all good."

Lu Jincheng spread his hands with a "I get it, I understand, quite normal" expression on his face.

Second-generation rich have their own way of doing things, and the bigger players...

They simply won’t be found mingling in the circles of ordinary folks.

Invisible to the common eye.

This kind of thing happens all the time on this land, we’re both all too familiar with it.

A student who never attended class but is listed on the roster, suddenly awarded the highest level of scholarship at the end of the semester.

A student recognized for having no talent, suddenly on the university’s list for recommended direct entry to graduate programs in their junior year.

Don’t rush to question it; it’s not because they’re extraordinary, but because their family is flexing its muscles somewhere out of sight.

The world of adults is full of swaps of interests.

Take Luo Yongfei, for instance, he doesn’t need to do anything himself; others will pave the way for him.

Unnecessary.

Professor Li herself is a senior partner at a law firm; naturally, she would make things convenient for the children of local court leaders, giving the green light.

After all, this is within her professional remit and not against the rules.

Handling a high-quality project well not only counts as personal achievement, but for undergraduates, it’s virtually tantamount to honor and recommendation for postgraduate studies.

Why not choose whoever she wants?

Guan Yongyi had put it subtly enough.

But Mr. Lu was not an ignorant little sheep.

One of the influential figures in the relevant department, to say he could call the shots in this region wouldn’t be an exaggeration.

He had encountered several similar individuals in his past life.

Shadow shareholders, the revolving door between politics and business, nesting in advance...

The big players had so many tricks up their sleeves it could make your head spin.

And the children of these big players naturally didn’t have to worry about money; their main task was to pad their resumés.

As high as their ability allows, that’s how high they would climb.

This is why the research topic that Lu Jincheng had painstakingly devised, even before it got started, had someone barge in unceremoniously.

"Hey, why the long face?"

Lu Jincheng reached out and waved his hand in front of the short-haired girl, asking with a smile.

"What’s one more person? I saw Professor Li assigned him quite a bit of the work just now. Isn’t he going to be busy?"

"Whether he’s busy or not isn’t the point... Before..."

Guan Yongyi’s lips turned down in a pout, her hand cradling her cheek moving to her ear, tucking a stray lock of hair back in place, stopping short of finishing her thought.

"Before what?"

Just as Lu Jincheng spoke, the door to classroom 302 opened again, and Luo Yongfei strode in, grinning broadly.

"Hello there! Guan Yongyi, from now on we’ll be working on the project together. Professor Li will add us to a group chat in a bit. I’m looking forward to your guidance~"

He seemed to completely overlook Lu Jincheng, his eyes fixed intently on Guan Yongyi, scanning her from head to toe, then up again.

Guan Yongyi didn’t say a word, merely nodding perfunctorily to keep a basic level of courtesy.

Luo Yongfei was around 172 cm tall, slightly overweight, wearing an Amiparis embroidered crewneck sweatshirt, and Hogan lace-up sneakers.

No prominent logos, but all were understated, niche luxury brands.

"Hey, buddy, you from the school next door?"

Seeing that Guan Yongyi gave no response, Luo Yongfei still approached with an amiable smile, turned his head to Lu Jincheng, and asked.

"Right."

"Then you must be something special to get into Professor Li’s research group. I heard she’s only been supervising doctoral students in recent years, rarely even master’s students."

Luo Yongfei rested his hands on the back of a chair, casually taking a seat near them.

"Especially just now when Professor Li was delegating tasks, she assigned you to provide data support and case studies, which is a lot more hassle than my job."

"It’s okay, doesn’t feel too bad on my end."

Lu Jincheng replied nonchalantly, arms folded.

He noticed that Luo Yongfei spent about ninety percent of his time looking at Guan Yongyi.

Even when he came over to talk to him, he wasn’t really interested in chatting; it was just an excuse to get closer while contemplating a new approach to start a conversation.

Sure enough, it took Luo Yongfei just a few seconds to think of a new angle.

"Hey, Guan Yongyi, this topic must’ve been chosen by you, right?"

"Impressive."

"Professor Li just told me there’s currently no scholarly work on the intellectual property rights of JK uniforms. It’s not only novel but also highly aligns with major policy directions. We’re sure to achieve results!"

"Oh, and you look really good in that JK uniform, suits you perfectly."

He stared at Guan Yongyi without blinking, his tone utterly sincere, his voice slow and steady.

"It wasn’t me, it was him who chose it."

In front of Luo Yongfei, Guan Yongyi finally spoke up more freely, pointing at Lu Jincheng beside her.

"Huh?"

A student from another school choosing the topic?

Wasn’t he just here to fill in the ranks?

Luo Yongfei, who had been organizing his praises, paused in surprise at her words.