"His drinking capacity is slightly better than mine." Nora tossed her phone aside, raised an eyebrow at her, and suggested, "How about we invite him for dinner tonight?"
Laura was taken aback, thinking this idea was a bit underhanded, but she said instead, "Do you think it would work?"
Nora chuckled, "We’ll know once we try."
While Laura and Nora were chatting casually, the last batch of Nora’s blueprints once again stirred up excitement throughout the entire workroom.
Since yesterday’s surprise, this morning, even before the always early Eduardo and Montague arrived, the specialists rushed in eagerly.
They behaved surprisingly well.
While waiting, they neither got anxious nor urged, instead gathering to continue researching and discussing Nora’s previous blueprints.
Having praised her all day yesterday, today they continued, and once they started talking about her, they couldn’t stop complimenting.
It seemed they collectively forgot their previous criticisms, insults, and mockeries of Nora.
"It’s here, it’s here!"
The two sentences echoed in the studio, suddenly sparking a wave of noise, one wave after another.
"Hurry, hurry, print it out quickly."
"Don’t bump into me, these old bones can’t take it."
The experts were suddenly busy running around.
Eduardo and Montague sat in the corner, watching the peculiar scene of people running back and forth, dumbfounded and exchanging glances.
"Isn’t this a bit over the top?" Montague clicked his tongue.
"Thinking about the day before... what a slap in the face, sigh."
Eduardo looked at them sympathetically.
Now, behind Nora’s back, they’re so thrilled, but who knows the awkwardness they’ll face when meeting her and mentioning their insults from the day before.
Adjusting his glasses, Montague said, "Ignore them, let’s continue."
Eduardo nodded with a smile.
Making models is mentally exhausting and requires a lot of patience. However, they were particularly looking forward to it.
As they say, practice yields true knowledge.
Sometimes, you understand the issues while looking at blueprints, but understanding is one thing; without practical application, only during assembly can one truly grasp the "essence" of the mechanism. Experience gained this way can’t be obtained just by looking at blueprints.
Taking out a cardboard sheet and placing it on the table, Eduardo suddenly remembered something and nudged Montague’s arm, "So, was the senior really intending to guide us?"
Eduardo sighed, "That’s great, having someone skilled to hold onto."
However, Montague responded with a barely audible sigh.
"What’s wrong?" Eduardo asked curiously.
"She only studies Ancient Mechanism Technique," Montague paused and pursed his lips before saying, "There are very few opportunities for development in this field. Professor Duncan is most regretful about this point."
"Comrade Montague, you’re a bit stuck in your thinking!" Eduardo raised an eyebrow and laughed, patting Montague on the shoulder, "People live for happiness. Why should studying what you love depend on the prospects of the industry?"
Montague looked up suddenly, somewhat surprised.
Eduardo felt smug, "I wasn’t wrong, was I?"
Agreeing without argument, Montague nodded.
While they were chatting, the bustling noise in the studio gradually died down, leaving only occasional discussions.
After about half an hour, the experts who had been glued to the blueprints with excitement couldn’t hide their emotions any longer and burst out with——
"Exquisite craftsmanship!"
This one sentence, like opening a tap, unleashed a torrent of conversation.
"She really did it! In less than three days!"
"Perfect! These blueprints are perfect! Even if we rack our brains, we can’t come up with anything better!"
"I’m sure that in current academic teaching and research, such a design is unmatched!"
Exclamations and praises flowed incessantly.
Among them, someone suddenly asked——
"Who is she anyway, has anyone asked Boss Scott?" Tʜe source of this ᴄontent ɪs 𝓷𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓵※𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮※𝓷𝓮𝓽
"Online says she’s a celebrity, done a few shows, and because of poor acting got criticized. Other than being good-looking, no other talents."
"Someone with this ability doesn’t need acting skills, does she? What did Boss Scott say?"
"There’s indeed a family connection, but I heard she’s an illegitimate daughter who recently returned to the Scott family. Her dad wants to take advantage of her grandfather’s birthday to openly acknowledge her identity."
"... Big families are really complicated."
"So Old Master Scott scored a win? An illegitimate daughter, untrained by them, yet her skills in Mechanical Techniques are extraordinary! What an honor for their family!"
"If it were me, I’d have brought her home eagerly, grinning ear to ear."
The experts, adept at research, were just as active in gossip, each one more enthusiastic than the last.
In the corner, Eduardo and Montague listened, dumbfounded——
Does the senior have such a background?
But hearing the experts’ analysis, why does it feel so... displeasing?
Why should the Scott family bask in the senior’s glory? Isn’t that taking advantage of her?!
Evening came quickly.
Before dark, Nora received the second payment.
Since the first blueprint was sent out, Ethan hadn’t said a word to her, letting her do as she pleased.
Now that the model was successfully made, proving the blueprints were correct, despite any issues Ethan had with Nora, he had no choice but to pay up.
With Spring Festival couplets mostly distributed, Michael and Marcus were tidying up in the yard, and Laura, with nothing else to do, volunteered to help in the kitchen with the auntie.
Except for Nora, who had been leisurely playing games with Luke, even when the transfer notification popped up, she merely glanced at it without looking closely.
With her Bluetooth headset on, Luke’s voice came through the game’s background music.
"If you had told me you were spending the New Year in the alley, I would have come back!"
"Wouldn’t your dad blow up my house then?" Nora teased with a laugh.
Luke sighed and said, "Not to that extent, at most he’d bring some people to your house to tie me up."
After a huge argument with Mr. Smith, Luke had been away for over a month, now enjoying himself so much that even for New Year’s he hadn’t thought of returning.
Mr. Smith wasn’t pleased, having just argued with Luke over the phone, but no matter how unwilling, with Mr. Smith not knowing where Luke was, there was no way to bring him back.
Waiting for the next game to start, Nora suddenly asked, "Really not coming home for New Year?"
"Nope, going back just means more arguments, pointless."
Hearing this answer, Nora instinctively glanced at the kitchen.
One and the same answer.
Nora didn’t say anything else.
Luke suddenly added, "I video-called with your grandpa a couple of days ago, and he actually gave me a suggestion."
"To learn from you," Luke said ominously.
"I was wondering," Luke continued with a fake puzzled stance, "Is it to learn the way you talk so unpleasantly, or how you constantly stir up trouble?"
Nora wanted to retort.
But before she had a chance, a call came in. Seeing the caller, Nora decisively ditched Luke and answered.
"What’s up?" Nora asked.
"Your juniors just called me."
Pedro’s voice slowly came through.
"Montague and Eduardo."
"Oh." Nora realized, then asked, "What do they want with you?"
"They heard about your background and are worried you’ll be bullied by the Scott family."
Nora didn’t know how to respond for a moment.
Well, um... bullying her is quite a challenge.
Pedro clearly understood this as well, simply relaying the message before shifting topics, "Ernesto Scott hopes Aaron Scott will recognize you at the birthday feast, publicly announcing your identity, do you know?"