The speculation quickly shifted. Everyone assumed Dr. Wagner was breaking his hiatus purely for Charlene.

Why else would the notoriously reclusive mentor suddenly step into the spotlight? *Netizen D: Looks like Dr. Wagner really values Charlene.*

*Netizen E: Obviously! I heard he's even been mentoring her personally.*

*Netizen F: A genius billionaire boyfriend like Stewart Ferguson AND Dr. Wagner as an advisor? My God, how did Charlene get so lucky? With a god-tier support system like that, I wouldn't be surprised if she published a hundred more papers.*

*Netizen G: So jealous! But honestly, I've always found it a bit weird. Why is Charlene the only one publishing papers? Where are Mr. Ferguson's publications? Technically, he's Dr. Wagner's actual student.*

*Netizen H: Right?! I've been thinking the same thing! It doesn't make sense. You can't just say Mr. Ferguson is already successful so he doesn't need to prove himself by publishing.*

*Netizen I: So... is there a chance Charlene isn't actually that brilliant? Maybe Mr. Ferguson is just propping up his girlfriend... if you know what I mean.*

The implication was damning that Charlene's award-winning papers were ghostwritten by Stewart, and he was using his brilliance to pave her way to the top.

Academic fraud was a career-ending accusation. Prompted by the growing controversy, several industry professionals scrutinized Charlene's work. The consensus was that her research was undeniably authentic and groundbreaking.

But having solid research didn't necessarily prove she wrote it herself. If Charlene was completely incompetent, Stewart and his team wouldn't have risked such a massive lie.

But as the trolls pointed out, even someone completely clueless could pick up enough jargon to pass as a professional after spending so much time with Stewart and getting guidance from a heavy hitter like Dr. Wagner.

The debate raged across tech forums, dominating the news cycle.

Charlene rarely browsed social media, so she was completely oblivious to the brewing storm.

Stewart, however, checked the news occasionally and caught sight of the nasty comments.

He brought it up to her.

However, neither of them cared enough to engage. They had actual work to focus

on.

The next day, Charlene, Stewart, Gaylord Hearst, and a few of PrimeStar's lead engineers arrived at the Global Al Technology Conference.

It was the premier summit of the year, focusing on the bleeding edge of academic and commercial technology. With panels covering. embodied Al and large language

e language models, the Prime Star team was eager to dive in.

The venue was packed with tech giants and elite scholars.

They arrived right on time.

By the time they walked in, the convention center was already buzzing. It took Charlene,

Stewart nearly an hour just to der through the initial rounds of

handshakes and networking.

Just as they finally broke away to catch their breath, they spotted Vesta, Thorne,

and their entourage.

Seeing them wasn't exactly a shock at an industry event of this scale But one of PrimeStar's engineers suddenly paused, squinting at

someone standing nea

Vesta

group. "Raleigh?

FindNovel.net

Charlene and Stewart froze.

Noticing the slight shift in Stewart's expression, Charlene followed his gaze and locked eyes with a man who looked vaguely familiar. "Is that..."

"Raleigh," Stewart murmured, leaning close to her ear. "The year you came back to the company, Vesta..."

He didn't finish the sentence. Looking at Charlene's face, he knew the memory had clicked into place.

She definitely remembered him.

Across the aisle, Raleigh noticed them too.