Shu Lanzhou was still lost in the overwhelming shock of winning the award, completely unaware that Mu Side was still holding her hand.
Her heart was pounding uncontrollably.
After all, this was the very first time — in both her past and present life — that she had ever stood on stage to receive an award. The one and only time.
Back when she was part of Han Weicheng's team, even if her name appeared among the credits, she was never the one chosen to step onto the stage.
She had never stood so dazzlingly before an audience like this.
As the three of them walked onto the stage, the entire auditorium erupted with excitement.
"Oh my god, Senior Mu is holding Shu Lanzhou's hand!"
"Are they… dating?"
"Don't jump to conclusions! Didn't you see Senior He is holding her hand too? They're teammates — they're just holding hands for the award ceremony!"
"Seriously, are you guys focusing on the wrong thing? Shouldn't we be talking about them winning the award?"
"Yeah, it's incredible! It's their first competition, and they bagged first prize! Senior Mu is amazing!"
"It's not just his doing, okay? Don't overlook Junior Shu!"
"Right, right! I just realized — Shu Lanzhou is seriously adorable!"
"She's way too cute! How can anyone be this cute?!"
"When you put it that way, honestly, even if she is dating Senior Mu, I wouldn't find it weird at all."
"Doesn't it seem like someone like Mu Side — like a knight from the dark — totally matches a little sweetheart like her?"
"Get real! Dark knight? Mu Side is the dark, mysterious heartthrob of the entire school! Did you forget? He's ranked number one on the campus male god list!"
"Waaaah! He's so handsome, and she's so cute! They're the perfect match!"
"Totally perfect!"
"..."
As the murmurs of excitement grew louder, Luo Jialin and his group's faces grew darker and darker.
"Hmph, calling them a match? Seriously?" Du Yifan was the first to voice his displeasure. "Someone like Mu Side doesn't deserve a girlfriend. Shu Lanzhou wouldn't even look at him!"
Lin Muyao leaned in close and whispered to Guo Jialiang, "I heard Senior Du had a crush on Shu Lanzhou before... Is that true?"
"Yeah," Guo Jialiang answered distractedly, his eyes coldly fixed on Shu Lanzhou on stage, finding her utterly unfamiliar.
Lin Muyao sighed. "I don't get it... Why doesn't Shu Lanzhou like Senior Du? Could it be she actually likes someone like Mu Side — that whole dark, brooding type?"
"Don't talk nonsense!" Luo Jialin snapped, frowning. "Shu Lanzhou doesn't care about stuff like that. She only has eyes for her research. It must be Mu Side who seduced her!"
Heh...
Funny how earlier they were accusing Shu Lanzhou of being flirtatious, and now it was suddenly Mu Side's fault?
Lin Muyao sneered inwardly, but outwardly she sighed again. "But Shu Lanzhou just smiled at Senior Mu so sweetly… I've never seen her smile like that before."
"Idiot," Du Yifan muttered angrily. "She's too naïve — getting tricked and still smiling like a fool!"
Luo Jialin also caught that soft, tender smile, and it felt like someone had punched him straight in the chest. It hurt. Badly.
"She's just happy because she won. Of course she's smiling!" he snapped.
"..."
Lin Muyao felt like she was going insane.
These idiots — only now that they'd lost her did they realize what they had.
Did they actually think that saying a few nice things behind Shu Lanzhou's back would make her come running back into their arms?
What a joke!
She changed the subject with a forced smile.
"Once they hand out the second and third prizes, it'll be time for the grand prize, right?"
"Jialin-ge, do you think I can go up on stage too? Seeing Senior Shu up there looking so beautiful made me really want to..."
Before she could finish, the host's voice rang out:
"Congratulations to Luo Jialin's team for winning the third prize in the campus competition! Team representatives, please come up to the stage!"
"..."
Third prize.
THIRD prize?!
Everyone froze in shock.
A moment later, the auditorium burst into a flurry of whispers.
Even Shu Lanzhou frowned slightly. "They still managed to win something?"
"To be fair, their project wasn't bad, technically. And with Professor Han's reputation backing them, getting third prize was still within reach."
Mu Side helped hold the seat steady for her as she sat down.
After accepting their awards and returning to their seats, the second prize winners were just stepping down from the stage.
Shu Lanzhou nodded, then hesitated.
"I know... it's just..."
She bit her lip.
"You can call me petty if you want."
Those people didn't deserve any prize at all!
Han Weicheng wasn't worthy of the position he held!
"Not at all," Mu Side said with a small, knowing smile. "Shu Lanzhou is the least petty person I know.
If it were me... I wouldn't have stopped at just thinking about it."
"..."
What did that mean?
Would he have actually stopped them from winning?
Shu Lanzhou blinked, confused. Before she could figure it out, the host's voice rang out again:
"Representatives from Luo Jialin's team, where are you? Please hurry to the stage!" The host chuckled.
"Third prize is still an honor! Don't look down on it! If you don't come up soon, it'll be disrespectful to the presenters!"
Everyone in the school knew:
Any student trained under Han Weicheng would represent the school at national medical competitions, and they always returned with excellent results.
Campus competitions like this one? The grand prize was practically a guarantee — no one had been able to snatch it away for years.
Han Weicheng's name alone was a golden ticket.
So it wasn't just students who were jealous — even other professors quietly resented him, wishing they could win just once.
Now that Luo Jialin's team had only gotten third prize, countless students and teachers were secretly celebrating!
It wasn't malicious — just plain old human nature.
After all, who didn't want to be number one?
Luo Jialin's breath nearly caught in his throat, his teeth grinding audibly.
"Well? Didn't you all want to go up there? Move it!" he barked, his eyes sweeping coldly over Lin Muyao and the others.
None of them moved.
Tian Hua and Du Yifan sat stiffly, refusing to budge.
Third prize?
They couldn't bear the shame!
Finally, Guo Jialiang forced himself to stand.
Sitting by the aisle, Fang Ruoshi reluctantly stood up as well.
Last was Lin Muyao — her face burned so hot she didn't dare lift her head.
It felt like every pair of eyes in the small auditorium was watching them.
Third prize.
It had to happen the very first time she joined the team! Why?!
Watching Shu Lanzhou accept first prize earlier had already twisted Lin Muyao's jealousy into something monstrous.
She had dreamed of stealing the spotlight, basking in all the glory, and making Shu Lanzhou stew in resentment!
But now, the tables had turned — she was the one who couldn't even force a smile.
Lin Muyao bit her lip hard, practically trembling as she followed the others toward the stage.
Her blood boiled with humiliation and anger.
She couldn't believe she had lost — to Shu Lanzhou!
Since the other third-prize winners were already on stage, Fang Ruoshi hurried ahead, and Guo Jialiang naturally quickened his pace too.
Lin Muyao had no choice but to speed up as well.
But wearing high heels, with her head bowed low in shame, she failed to notice the edge of the red carpet...
And right there on the steps to the stage, she stumbled, pitching forward straight onto Guo Jialiang's back!
Fortunately, he was there in front of her — otherwise, she would've faceplanted onto the floor...
Before Lin Muyao could even regain her balance, someone in the audience let out a loud, drawn-out "Oof—"