The Wife He Forgot to Marry (Winona and Yule) novel Chapter 237

"Winona."

She turned and saw two familiar faces—her upperclassmen from her university days, Nigel Slater and Ivy York.

Nigel walked over with a bright smile. "It really is you! Do you remember me and Ivy?"

Winona offered a polite smile. "Nigel, Ivy. It's good to see you."

Unlike Nigel's warm greeting, Ivy's attitude was noticeably frosty.

A young man stepped up beside them, looking completely shocked. "Nigel, Ivy, Winona was your junior in college?"

It was Sheldon.

"Yeah," Nigel laughed. "I had no idea the 'Winona' you've been talking about was our very own star student from the department."

After graduating, Nigel and Ivy had joined the Riverton Medical Research Institute and were now Sheldon's colleagues.

Sheldon chuckled, teasing them. "Well, as her seniors, you guys aren't quite on her level. When it comes to RNA drug delivery research, she's leagues ahead of you both."

Nigel nodded in agreement. "Winona was brilliant back in college. She missed a lot of competitions back then because of some family emergencies. Otherwise, she would have made a huge name for herself in drug R&D years ago."

Winona's grandfather had been severely ill at the time, and she was constantly traveling back and forth between her hometown and campus, forcing her to miss several major opportunities.

Seeing both Sheldon and Nigel singing Winona's praises only deepened Ivy's resentment.

Back in school, Winona had effortlessly drawn the attention of countless male students. Even Nigel, whom Ivy had harbored a secret crush on, deeply admired Winona.

Ivy didn't believe Winona was actually that capable. If Sheldon respected her, it was probably just because of her flawless, radiant complexion.

Besides, word was that Winona had quit Locke Group after less than a year of working there. For her to suddenly become Mr. Harper's protégé? She must have pulled some strings with a wealthy backer.

Sheldon and Nigel might be fooled by her, but Ivy wasn't going to buy it.

She gave a dismissive scoff and ignored Winona as the group headed into the main building together.

The interviews officially kicked off. The first twenty or so candidates were decidedly average, falling far short of the institute's high standards. Several of them couldn't even understand the concepts Winona was asking about.

Sheldon took a sip of water, looking visibly disappointed. "Last year, I complained that the rookies didn't have a solid grasp of the material. But these kids don't even know the basic terminology. How are they supposed to survive in drug R&D?"

Nigel reasoned, "Mr. Cohen, not everyone wants to dedicate their lives to R&D. Let's be honest, this field requires natural talent. Besides, they have other options. A lot of students would rather go into pharmaceutical sales for the high commissions than burn their brains out in the lab."

As they spoke, both men silently agreed that a true R&D prodigy like Winona was incredibly rare. Finding even one person with that level of aptitude would be a massive stroke of luck.

Sheldon sighed, wishing he had poached Winona for his team the moment she graduated.

He shot Nigel a resentful look—how could he have a junior this brilliant and not refer her to the institute? What a waste of talent.

Just then, a young male candidate stepped up for his interview.

Sheldon took his resume, glanced at it, and raised an eyebrow. He then passed it down for Winona, Nigel, and Ivy to see.