Not just Mrs. Dawson.

Two lawyers waited until their legs went numb.

They weren’t in a hurry to leave because American lawyers charged by the hour – Mrs. Dawson would have to pay for the time they spent waiting with her.

As long as they were getting paid, being bored wasn’t an issue.

However, it was rather embarrassing for Mrs. Dawson, to be tricked by a female student. It seemed to validate McCarthy’s words – Mrs. Dawson, with her beauty pageant background, regarding intelligence… ahem, they shouldn’t think about their client this way.

One lawyer tried to ease the awkwardness:

“Ma’am, I don’t think any lawyer will be coming.”

After sitting for so long, Mrs. Dawson’s blood circulation in her feet was compromised from maintaining an elegant posture. She stumbled when standing up:

“Of course, I know no lawyer is coming. I’m waiting for Monday. He said he’d come to the school, there might have been a slight delay.”

Mond Dawson, her husband, Heidi’s father, Cornell University’s distinguished alumnus.

Neither lawyer exposed Mrs. Dawson’s pretense – if their client wouldn’t admit being fooled, why should they point it out?

Leaving the Academic Affairs Office, Mrs. Dawson’s teeth were clenched tight.

With Heidi now in Ithaca’s hospital, Mrs. Dawson suppressed her urge to find and kill Xia Xiaolan, heading to the hospital to see her daughter.

Heidi’s suicide attempt had been serious – she’d taken sleeping pills and cut her wrist.

Discovered by her roommate and treated promptly, she’d undergone stomach pumping and bandaging, long past the danger period. Her current hospitalization was just for recovery. Mrs. Dawson wasn’t avoiding confronting Jonathan – she just temporarily needed him, which was why she hadn’t turned on him yet.

In the hospital room.

Heidi wouldn’t even acknowledge Jonathan.

But whenever Jonathan left, she’d become agitated.

Doctors had preliminarily diagnosed her with depression.

However, caught early, it was still quite treatable.

“You’re back.”

Jonathan put away his book and stood up from his chair.

Mrs. Dawson’s attitude wasn’t pleasant, “Jonathan, could you come out with me for a moment?”

Jonathan had watched over Heidi while Mrs. Dawson was away during the day. When Mrs. Dawson returned to the hospital, Jonathan could return to school. They took turns watching over and accompanying Heidi. As for Heidi’s father, Mr. Mond Dawson, since arriving in Ithaca, he’d been busy networking with former classmates, spending very little time at the hospital each day.

As an ex-boyfriend, Jonathan felt clear-conscienced about his actions.

He and Heidi broke up because they weren’t compatible.

When Heidi was self-destructive, he had tried repeatedly to reason with her.

Then Heidi, as if defying someone, deliberately made her life worse, by taking sleeping pills and cutting her wrist. Was this world so unbearable for Heidi?

As Jonathan moved to leave, Heidi became agitated. Mrs. Dawson kissed her forehead – the shrew from the Academic Affairs Office was a gentle mother to her daughter:

“Jonathan and I are just going to talk in the hallway. We’re not leaving – if you need anything, just call us, okay? Honey, we’ll stay with you.”

Jonathan nodded too, “Hey, we’ll just be outside. Try to relax.”

Once out of Heidi’s sight, Mrs. Dawson’s face changed immediately:

“Jonathan, if you hadn’t broken up with Heidi, my daughter wouldn’t have depression. You’re at least half responsible for her suicide attempt. I haven’t taken any extreme measures against you so far because I’m thinking of Heidi – she needs you now, that’s your only value! Jonathan Reese, you and Heidi were once so perfect together. I don’t know why you broke up, but you need to give me an answer now, a guarantee.”

Jonathan vaguely guessed what Mrs. Dawson wanted to say.

“You want me to get back together with Heidi? That’s impossible—”

“Shut up! Even if you wanted to be with Heidi now, neither Mond nor I would agree. We just temporarily need you by Heidi’s side, to calm her emotions, and encourage her to stand up again. I went to the School of Architecture today. McCarthy suggested Heidi take a leave of absence and recommended she transfer to another major.”

Mrs. Dawson gritted her teeth.

Jonathan felt Professor McCarthy wasn’t wrong, “Heidi’s current state makes it impossible to continue her studies. Taking a break is the best choice. Changing majors could be considered – maybe she doesn’t truly love architecture.”

Studying an unloved major was too painful.

Previously, Jonathan had supervised Heidi’s studies. After their breakup, Heidi became self-destructive, and Jonathan was helpless.

Honestly, Heidi wasn’t particularly gifted. Rather than forcing her to study architecture, perhaps another path would be better – Heidi might excel in other fields.

Mrs. Dawson sneered, “Change majors? Her father is Mond Dawson – she can only study architecture. I know how to make Heidi pull herself together. First, keep you by her side. Second, I’ll get revenge for her! Even if I can’t get McCarthy kicked out of Cornell, I can drive away those two Chinese students.”

Drive away Ning Xue and Xia Xiaolan?

Mrs. Dawson had truly gone mad!

Jonathan didn’t know Xia Xiaolan well, but he knew Ning Xue.

Like him, Ning Xue genuinely loved architecture, and her talent in the field even surpassed his.

To access cutting-edge architectural knowledge, Ning Xue had come from China to study at Cornell. Jonathan angrily looked at Mrs. Dawson: “Ning won’t leave, and I won’t stay by Heidi’s side. Goodbye, Mrs. Dawson. I don’t think I’ll be free to come to the hospital tomorrow.”

He was still willing to be Heidi’s friend.

To encourage Heidi to stand up again.

But Mrs. Dawson had tied this to driving away Ning Xue, and Jonathan hadn’t forgotten that Ning Xue was his girlfriend.

Why treat Ning Xue this way?

Just because Heidi’s father was Mond Dawson?

Jonathan left the hospital directly. Mrs. Dawson returned to the room to find Heidi staring blankly at the ceiling. Suppressing her anger, she said, “You heard too – this Jonathan isn’t anything special. He’s just an ordinary architecture undergraduate. There are better men everywhere. Heidi, you must pull yourself together… What’s so terrible about a romantic setback? If you get kicked out of architecture by McCarthy, your father will be very disappointed!”

Heidi’s pupils constricted, her throat making hoarse sounds:

“No, Mom, I don’t want to disappoint you all. I’m not wrong – it’s all their fault!”

She had the year’s most outstanding boyfriend.

She even got an A in Professor McCarthy’s class.

She was suited for architecture, and wouldn’t embarrass her father!

Mrs. Dawson stroked her hair, “You’re right, it’s all those Chinese female students’ fault. They shouldn’t have come to Cornell. You’re the most excellent one, you’ll always be our pride.”

McCarthy’s words today had hit Mrs. Dawson’s sore spot.

Compared to Heidi’s father, Heidi’s performance in architecture seemed mediocre. Mrs. Dawson certainly couldn’t admit this point – that her union with Mond had lowered their offspring’s intelligence.