Ethan quickly interrupted:
"Don't, don't! Aren't you coming back next week? I'm not going anywhere!"
Emily's rapid breathing came through the phone, along with her incoherent chatter:
"I want to tell the whole laboratory! No, first post on Instagram! Wait... I have to go buy some local specialties first..."
Emily was so happy she almost asked for leave to come back, but in the end, Ethan was able to talk her down.
Finally, the siblings chatted for a while before hanging up.
Ethan didn't tell Jack, Victoria, Diana, and others in advance. He still wanted to wait for the results to come out.
For now, only his family knew.
.....
Afternoon.
The sun gradually set in the west, and the phone at Ethan's house rang one after another.
The admissions offices of Columbia, Stanford, Princeton, and other famous schools called one after another, and although they knew there was little hope, they all expressed their intention to recruit according to procedure.
"Thank you for your interest, but I already have a school I like."
Ethan responded one by one and politely declined.
Until the call from NYU. Unexpectedly, Ethan did not directly refuse this time.
What the director of NYU's admissions office never expected was that Ethan actually said he intended to come to NYU!
After hearing Ethan mention the conditions Harvard and Yale had offered, he went directly to the president's office to apply.
Since Ethan intended to come to their school, they would definitely have to fight for him at any cost.
This was the national valedictorian! As long as they secured him, they'd have major news this year.
Ethan had taken the exam with a super high score.
The total score was 1580 out of 1600! Only 20 points away from perfect.
This not only made him the top scorer in his state, but also topped the national rankings, setting a new record. While other candidates were still cheering for 1400s, this near-perfect score had become legendary.
Several universities called one after another.
MIT, Caltech, and other famous universities threw olive branches one after another. But Ethan had already made up his mind—from the moment he was reborn, New York City was the place where he dreamed of studying.
....
Looking at his son's calm expression after answering a series of phone calls, Linda gradually calmed down.
Linda probably guessed Ethan's general thoughts. She pulled her husband to sit next to Ethan and asked softly:
"Son, Mom can see what you mean... Are you not even planning to go to Harvard or Yale?"
Ethan nodded and admitted directly:
"Yep! I'm not considering Harvard or Yale. I want to go to NYU!"
Linda said to Robert:
"Honey, how is NYU?"
For their generation, Harvard and Yale were like unattainable myths.
As for other universities, they basically hadn't studied them, even the third and fourth ranked schools they didn't know.
For example, NYU was one of the top universities in the country. Ethan remembered that NYU was highly ranked and had only climbed higher in rankings by his previous life.
Seeing his parents confused, Ethan patiently explained:
"Mom and Dad! NYU is steadily ranked among the top universities in the US. Moreover—the business administration major I want to study, NYU is top-tier, in the same league as Harvard and Yale."
Ethan took out his phone and pointed to a photo of NYU's campus on the screen:
"This place has produced countless leaders in business, arts, and sciences. The purple flags at Washington Square and the resources in the Bobst Library are legacies you won't find elsewhere."
Ethan roughly explained NYU's situation briefly.
Linda looked at her son's shining eyes and suddenly understood that this child who'd had his own ideas since childhood had already planned his life.
Linda said with relief:
"Forget it! After all, our original expectation for you was that if you could get into a good four-year university, we'd be thrilled. But we didn't expect you to come back after taking the exam completely exceeding our expectations."
Robert also agreed with his wife's words:
"NYU, New York is also a great place. I went there when I was young—the Statue of Liberty, the lights of Broadway... Just take this opportunity to take your mother on a trip!"
Ethan hurriedly praised:
"Mom and Dad, you're really the most enlightened parents in the world."
"Of course!"
Robert and Linda were very happy.
Ethan's eyes lit up. He rushed back to his room and in the blink of an eye jumped back with a note:
"Mom and Dad, since you're so open-minded, you won't regret your original agreement, right? Fulfill what you promised me back then!"
After saying that, he looked at Linda innocently.
Linda couldn't help but laugh:
"You brat, can Mom still go back on her word?"
Saying that, she got up and walked to the bedroom, her skirt fluttering in the breeze.
"Here, one hundred thousand dollars."
Linda slapped the card into her son's palm and glanced meaningfully at her husband. "This is the private stash your father has secretly saved over the years. The PIN is the last six digits of his phone number."
"Pfft—"
Robert almost spat out a sip of tea. "Wait, wait! That's my..."
"Huh?"
Linda raised her eyebrows. "Your what? What do you want to do saving so much private money?"
Robert's Adam's apple bobbed up and down, and he suddenly hugged his son's shoulder:
"I was... saving this specially as a reward for my son! It's just right to cash in now—how appropriate!"
Linda:
"You know you should save some money with this!"
"Forget it, Mom will keep it for you! It's useless to take so much money at your age."
Ethan had already expected this and ran away with the bank card, otherwise the money would have to be taken back.
Linda pretended to chase, but was pulled back by Robert:
"Honey, what are you doing? Since we promised to give it to our child, it's inappropriate to take it back. We as parents have to keep our word."
Linda heard this:
"I'm just afraid he'll spend money recklessly!"
Robert smiled and patted his wife's shoulder:
"Don't worry, our son has his own ideas, has good judgment, and has grown up. He has that kind of self-control."
Linda turned to look at her husband suspiciously:
"No, this is the private money you've saved for several years, and now it's all been taken by your son. Don't you feel bad?"
Robert waved his hand heroically:
"Hey, what's there to feel bad about! My son became valedictorian—brought glory to our ancestors! Our Miller family also has a top scholar. When the time comes, those uncles will be even happier!"
But Robert knew very well in his heart that even if he got the money back, it wouldn't belong to him anyway...
However.
Linda's worries were completely justified.
Ethan not only spent money recklessly, but also went all in!
There are 50 advance chapters ahead in my Patreon. If you are interested can check it out.
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