What he lacked most was not money, not a house, not a car, but a biological daughter!
He had lived his whole life and still couldn’t compare to Sylvia’s useless father.
Ever since he learned that Monica had hastily married, out of respect, he never disturbed her life again.
Until she disappeared…
Until Sylvia reappeared in his sight.
He never thought of investigating Sylvia’s situation again because he believed it was the greatest respect he could give to Monica and Sylvia.
After all, Monica was already gone…
If he had known she would disappear back then.
He shouldn’t have been so gentlemanly, to hell with not disturbing, to hell with respect.
He should have taken her back then, kept her by his side, and maybe she would have been fine?
Countless times he was filled with regret and pain.
Now he just wanted to get along well with Sylvia, so that after his death… he could be worthy of Monica!
In the next two days, he participated in the show he invested in, “Winning with Dreams,” with Sylvia.
The show was pre-recorded and would be edited later.
For the first episode, he naturally had to be present in person, sitting with Sylvia and two other big shots as judges.
Sylvia looked elegant and noble in a professional suit, appearing serious yet dignified.
For this kind of workplace-themed show, one couldn’t dress too casually or wear evening gowns, which would look out of place.
Especially since Donald and the other two big shots were all in suits, Sylvia couldn’t be careless.
She wore an off-white blouse with an elegant design and draping fabric that looked wrinkle-free and very classy. She paired it with a gray skirt with a front slit and pointed high heels that looked very stylish and added to her charm when she walked.
She usually only wore high heels for evening events; in private, she preferred comfortable sneakers or casual shoes.
Now sitting next to Donald, she looked elegant and fashionable, exuding an aura.
The participants were mostly overseas returnees or graduates from prestigious schools, their resumes shining brightly.
But few were humble; most were arrogant.
After all, these people had been geniuses since childhood, and many were not just confident but extremely conceited.
One even invited Sylvia on stage to solve a very difficult math problem together.
It was said to be a world-class problem, with very few people able to solve it.
“My math isn’t great, but I’m good at other things.” Sylvia stood up, smiled slightly, and looked at the fearless contestant before her. “Your resume mentioned you were a student of Leonardo? Coincidentally, I once competed in the same competition as Leonardo.”
Leonardo was a well-known genius mathematician who had won numerous awards in world-class math competitions at just twenty-four years old, considered a miracle in the math world.
He once said he had participated in countless math and physics competitions in his short twenty-four years.
And he had only ever lost to one person.
Many asked who this person was, but he always remained silent, only saying: “My friend said she wanted to keep a low profile.”
So many thought it was just a legend.
“You? Competed with Leonardo?” The contestant wore glasses and looked gentle and chubby, with a friendly appearance.
“Yes, when I was about twenty.” Sylvia had already walked to his side. “Come on, let’s solve this problem together and see who finishes first.”
The stage had two blackboards and chalk prepared by the staff, with the problem clearly written on them.
The big shots in the audience were all academic elites and had heard of these high-difficulty problems.
The other contestants waited quietly in their seats. Seeing the problem, they couldn’t help but gasp.
They started whispering, “Oh my, I can’t solve this.”
“This is one of the world’s three toughest math problems.”
“Wow! Can Miss Andrews solve it?”
“She probably can’t; she just said she’s not good at math.”
The two at the blackboard seriously worked on the problem with their chalk.
Sylvia solved it quickly and efficiently.
She seemed not to need any thought at all.
Donald sat silently watching her, increasingly feeling she resembled Monica in appearance.
The more he watched, the more he marveled at how excellent she was! How could her biological father be such a loser? If only she were his biological daughter.
This intense longing made him feel uncomfortable all over.
“Done.”
As Donald’s thoughts wandered, he heard Sylvia on stage drop her chalk and clap her hands.
Everyone widened their eyes at the blackboard to see she had filled it densely with her solution.
But many in the audience couldn’t understand it.
Of course! If such advanced math were easy for everyone to understand, it wouldn’t be called advanced.
Shortly after Sylvia finished, the chubby contestant also completed his solution.
He believed his solution was perfect and excellent.
After all, he was Leonardo’s student and had specifically studied how to solve this problem.
If he couldn’t solve it, wouldn’t that disgrace Leonardo?
Confidently, he glanced at his answer and then at Sylvia’s.
However… when he clearly saw Sylvia’s solution, his face changed immediately.
Not only him but also two guest professors from renowned universities sitting beside the big shots were stunned. One of them was a titan in the math world.
This old professor adjusted his glasses in disbelief and said, “Your solution is ingenious! Both of your answers are correct. But Sylvia’s process is clearly more straightforward and clear. There are three known methods to solve this math problem. This contestant used the second method.”
“But you, Sylvia… your method isn’t one of the three. You used a fourth method. The answer is correct, and it’s simpler and clearer than the previous three.”
As soon as the professor finished speaking, the audience erupted in astonishment.
The chubby contestant swallowed hard in shock.
When he first saw it, he thought Sylvia’s answer was wrong. But after seeing it clearly, he realized it gave him an epiphany moment of clarity.
He used to solve this problem by rote memorization.
Seeing Sylvia’s solution made him finally understand the problem’s true meaning.
He couldn’t help but bow to Sylvia respectfully. “Thank you for helping me understand this problem’s true meaning. I concede defeat.”
After speaking, he lowered his head and returned to his seat.
The crowd buzzed with excitement. Was she really that amazing? A world-class problem! A math genius defeated by her?
This… was incredible!
Donald withdrew his gaze from the blackboard, still hearing the host’s continuous praise for Sylvia.
Various compliments made her seem like an unparalleled genius.
But Donald only saw her slender figure gracefully return to her seat beside him.
“Sylvia, how are you so good at math?”
“I just happened to know how to solve this problem. I’m nothing compared to people like Leonardo who truly contribute to mathematics.” Sylvia wasn’t very interested in research; otherwise, she would have joined an institute years ago.
The chubby contestant secretly turned on his phone and texted Leonardo while sitting there. “Leonardo, I got beaten by someone named Sylvia today…”
He sent a long message describing how Sylvia solved the problem step by step and even took a photo of her solution on the blackboard.
Fortunately, the camera didn’t catch him doing it.
He sent it to Leonardo. Soon, the busy Leonardo replied with just one sentence: “Losing to her is no shame.”
The chubby contestant stared at this sentence in shock, almost speechless with astonishment.
What did it mean that losing to her was no shame?
He didn’t understand for a moment and fell into deep thought.
To generate buzz for the show, the production team released clips of Sylvia solving the problem online with her and Donald’s consent.
The buzz created by Sylvia was immense. The traffic surged instantly.
Her solution was separately listed by the show team with detailed steps clearly outlined.
Many academic elites who initially weren’t interested in the show tried solving this problem. Many math experts also shared and analyzed her solution online.
Suddenly, many academic elites began paying attention to “Winning with Dreams.” Initially, there weren’t many applicants for the show. But Sylvia’s fourth method sparked competitive spirits among many scholars who wanted to showcase their skills on the show and see how they measured up against others.
The TV station and production team expected the show to be popular but never imagined it would explode to such an extent beyond their wildest dreams.
Especially after trending for a day, even the usually low-profile Leonardo shared it on social media with a comment: “I also lost to her back then.”
This quickly dominated the trending topics again.
Sylvia felt helpless and had to respond reluctantly: “Leonardo, my senior brother, don’t flatter me. Losing to me was years ago; you still remember it. Now I’m far inferior to you! You’re a god in mathematics; I’m just a nobody.”
“Oh my god! My idol and my goddess are actually senior brother and sister?”
“What is going on?”
“Can someone explain how she’s also Leonardo’s junior sister? This connection… is too strong!”
Netizens discussed fervently again.
Unexpectedly, Leonardo replied again despite rarely being online: “Junior sister, you’re too modest. Let’s visit our master together someday. Are you free?”
They were chatting on social media like it was WhatsApp!
“May I ask who their master is?! I don’t know! Please tell me!”
“Leonardo has several mentors who are all his esteemed teachers. Which one is it?”
Netizens speculated wildly about which legendary master could have such extraordinary disciples!