CHAPTER 418: CHAPTER 418: INFERIORITY

This is where low self-esteem comes from.

So the next morning, when the two went downstairs to the hotel restaurant for breakfast, Ashley Shaw immediately noticed something was off when she saw Ariana Grant stuffing dumplings into her mouth for revenge.

She grabbed Ariana Grant’s hand and asked, "What are you doing? You finally lost a few pounds, and you want to gain it back?"

Ariana Grant’s eyes instantly turned red.

"Ashley, I’m planning to give up."

The two of them now understood each other better than anyone else, and Ashley Shaw immediately knew what she meant by that.

She frowned immediately and asked, "What happened?"

Ariana Grant lowered her head and said vaguely, "Nothing happened, just that I feel more and more that it’s impossible between us."

The past few days, it’s all been her wishful thinking.

"Tell me honestly, what exactly happened?"

Ariana Grant still wouldn’t say, but Ashley Shaw had her ways and stood up directly: "They say there are no secrets between best friends, it seems you don’t consider me one."

After throwing this line, she took a step as if to leave.

Ariana Grant panicked and quickly held onto her.

"I’ll tell you, okay? Don’t be mad."

Ashley Shaw turned her face back, showing no hint of anger.

Ariana Grant immediately understood, Ashley Shaw was bluffing her.

But since she had already started talking, she might as well explain everything clearly.

After hearing the whole story, Ashley Shaw couldn’t help but laugh.

"Has being lovesick lowered your IQ?"

"?"

"He’s cold to that girl because he has feelings for you."

Ariana Grant was skeptical, "Two people who’ve never even met—how significant could they be to each other?"

Ashley Shaw looked at Ariana Grant meaningfully and said, "Well, what about you? Haven’t you only seen Leon Zeller through a screen? I can’t say how significant you are to him, but I know he’s significant to you."

When Justin Grant’s parents were going through a divorce, she hadn’t moved in with Ariana Grant yet. During that darkest time, it was Leon Zeller who accompanied her—though through a screen.

So Ashley Shaw knew that to Ariana Grant, Leon Zeller was not just an online love interest.

He was her spiritual support during that time.

Ariana Grant lowered her head and said nothing, because Ashley Shaw was right, and she couldn’t argue.

Even though she seemed carefree about Leon Zeller, in reality, he weighed heavily on her mind.

After a few seconds of silence, Ariana Grant said, "I’m different from him; he’s a catch, so many girls have their eyes on him..."

Ashley Shaw pressed on Ariana Grant’s shoulders.

"You’re a catch to me too! If you ask me, whoever marries you will be happy for life. So if you two get together, it’s not you taking advantage of Leon Zeller, but him taking advantage of you."

"I..."

"Ariana! Listen to me, losing weight isn’t just for Leon Zeller, it’s for yourself as well. Do you still want those who look down on us to call you fat?"

Ariana Grant clenched her fists secretly.

The answer was: of course not!

Who is born to enjoy being ridiculed?

Ashley Shaw noticed the change in Ariana Grant’s expression and continued, "Even if we take a step back, it’s not for what others say to disgust you, but for your own health. Have you forgotten what Aunt Talbot said? If you want your digestive system to recover faster, losing weight is also important."

This completely convinced Ariana Grant.

"You’re right, not for anything else, just for my health, I’ve got to lose this weight!"

After saying that, she put the half-eaten dumpling back on the table and said, "I’m not eating it, let’s go for a morning exercise."

Ashley Shaw curved her lips, "That’s more like it."

However, the morning exercise didn’t happen because Elder Prescott called, saying he wanted to take them to meet the school’s teacher.

Ashley Shaw knew what this meant; the elder wanted to find someone to guide them.

To put it bluntly, it was to give them an inside track.

In the past, Ashley Shaw was actually very averse to this and disliked it, always feeling that taking the back door wasn’t right.

But after truly entering society, she realized that being able to take the inside track is a skill.

Those who have resources but don’t use them are the true fools.

She admitted that in her past life, she was quite a laid-back person with no pursuit.

Her only pursuit was to be with Warren Prescott.

But now she knew very well that to get something, you first have to be capable and qualified to have it.

Otherwise, even if something is handed to you, you can’t hold onto it.

Marriage is the same way.

If you’re ordinary, how can you expect a prince to like you?

But as long as you become a "princess" yourself, the prince will naturally wait for you.

But now she doesn’t want to become a princess, only to become a queen who can control her own destiny.

So this step of taking the back door was inevitable.

No matter how much she’d despised it before, she had to take this step.

After agreeing to meet at the school gate, the two of them went upstairs to change clothes and took a taxi directly to The Medical University.

Today, The Medical University was even more bustling than when they had visited last time, and by some coincidence, they ran into Tyler Joyce, whom they had met that day.

This time, Ariana Grant finally remembered Tyler Joyce’s name.

The three of them greeted each other, and Tyler Joyce was as enthusiastic as before, especially towards Ariana Grant.

But since Tyler Joyce was busy, he soon waved goodbye, clearly relieving Ariana Grant.

"What are we going to do if we keep running into him?"

Ashley Shaw teased with a smile, "You used to always say you were doomed to be alone for life, so why aren’t you happy now that romance is blooming?"

"Maybe this is... the troubles of a beauty?"

Ashley Shaw’s smile deepened.

"Once you successfully lose weight, your troubles will only increase."

"Is that your experience from someone who’s been through it?"

"You could say that."

While they were joking with each other, Elder Prescott finally arrived.

Today, the doctor didn’t come along; instead, there were two bodyguards.

Just dressed in regular clothes, they weren’t too conspicuous.

Ashley Shaw didn’t know that Elder Prescott had brought two bodyguards this time, but she quickly returned to her usual self after a moment of surprise.

On the other hand, Ariana Grant became a bit more reserved, evidently feeling uneasy about having bodyguards around for the first time.

"Have you waited long?" Elder Prescott asked.

"No, we just got here."

As they were speaking, an elderly man wearing thick reading glasses, assisted by a middle-aged man, walked out of the school gate.

Through Elder Prescott’s introduction, Ashley Shaw learned that this elderly man was an old professor, while the person supporting him was the dean of their academy.

The dean’s rank was naturally higher than that of a professor, but it was clear that this old professor was not an ordinary figure.

Through the dean’s introduction, they learned that the dean used to be this elder’s student, which showed how respected he was.

After sitting down for tea, Ashley Shaw learned even more.

It turned out that this was none other than Jasper Quill, a luminary in the medical field.

His name resonated both at home and abroad, and even someone like Ashley Shaw, who was completely an outsider, had heard of him, though she’d never seen him in person before.