It turned out that when Alex had donated the money, President Merrit had been away on a trip. Mr. Parker of the finance department had reported Alex's donation of more than one and a half million dollars in euros to the vice president. He had also said that Alex wanted to remain anonymous.
When President Merrit returned to the university the day before the party, the vice president told him that Alex had donated one and a half million euros, which was worth even more in dollars, and that he wanted to remain anonymous. When Merrit heard the amount, he was so astounded that he didn't even hear the rest of the sentence.
Merrit felt that since Alex had donated so much money, he should find a way to express his gratitude and respect toward him. The New Year's party was a good opportunity, so it was decided that Alex would present the awards to the winner of the first prize.
Hearing the president's words, Colin and the people near him were so surprised that they couldn't believe what they had heard.
"So, Alex was the sponsor. But he was obviously a poor loser. How could he have so much money?" Colin thought to himself.
"President Merrit, would you like to hand over the prize?" Alex said with a bitter smile.
"No, Mr. Ambrose, you are an important person in our school. You must present this award yourself." The president led Alex to the center of the stage and handed the certificates to him. He said through the megaphone to the students, "Let's invite Mr. Ambrose to present awards for the first prize!"
A moment ago, the audience had seen the president approach Alex, but they hadn't been able to hear what they had been saying. Now, when they heard that Alex was the sponsor, they were thunderstruck. Many people shook their heads and at first, they refused to believe it.
Everyone knew who the rich kids were in the school. Alex had never been mentioned. How could he have sponsored the party? But the president had confirmed it, and they had to believe him.
A girl ran onto the stage. "I know what he's done. Because he's the sponsor, he deliberately sabotaged Colin and Leona's performance! After doing his damage, he'll give the prize to Colin, which is humiliating to Colin and Leona!" The girl was a staunch supporter of Colin. She grabbed the host's microphone and said to the audience, "We don't need such people to give awards to Colin and Leona! Let's reject this!"
The girl's words immediately received the response she expected. Most of the boys were upset because of Leona and most of the girls because of Colin. Before, when Alex had pushed Colin aside and dragged Leona off the stage, everyone had developed a bad impression of him.
"Come down!" the crowd cheered.
"You don't need to present awards" the audience yelled.
"Who are you?" said some from the crowd. "It's awful that you're the sponsor."
Mr. Merrit became very anxious and angry when he saw the students below the stage hating Alex like this. He took the microphone and stopped them in a loud voice. "Don't talk nonsense. Mr. Ambrose is the sponsor of the party. Without him, there would have been no party. You all should thank him!"
"The party cost at most forty or fifty thousand dollars. We can crowdfund that. We don't want such people to give awards to Colin and Leona! Have him step down!" the girl who had grabbed the microphone earlier said out loud.
"Yes, we'll crowdfund it. Give him back his money and let him step down!" came a voice from the crowd.
"Wasn't it fifty thousand? That's a lot for one person, but there are thousands of us here, and each of us can pay a hundred dollars", yelled another.
People in the audience scoffed at Alex and preferred to raise the money themselves rather than let Alex give awards to Colin and Leona.
The crowd started chanting.
"Alex, step down."
"Alex, step down."
"Alex, step down."
"Stop it, all of you!" The president was so angry that he roared. "If anyone slanders Mr. Ambrose again, I will take measures!"
Mr. Merrit was very worried. Alex was a generous person who had donated one and a half million dollars and the students were mistreating him in such an ugly way. He felt ashamed of his university. If Alex wanted his money back, there was nothing he could do to stop him. And it wasn't that big a contribution to the school.
Hearing that the president had threatened to take measures, the students lowered their voices.
Mr. Merrit took Alex's hand and went to the front of the stage. He angrily said to them, "Do you think that Mr. Ambrose just sponsored the party?"
"Maybe," some unconvinced students answered in a loud voice.
"Well, I'd like to tell you the exact figure of Mr. Ambrose's donation. Mr. Ambrose has donated over one and a half million dollars to the Richmond University Foundation for various expenses, awards, grants, and experimental funds. Many of you applied for school grants with Mr. Ambrose's money. Do you feel good embarrassing him, insulting him, and asking him to step off the stage? Do you want scholarships and grants?" the president asked sternly, raising his eyebrows.
There was a great uproar from the seating area. How could the students believe that Alex had donated so much money to the school? Many people still held a questioning attitude towards the president.
Mr. Merrit turned on his cell phone and projected a picture of the stack of bills, together with information about the Richmond University Foundation, onto the large screen with a video camera. When the students saw the evidence, they finally believed that Alex had really donated that much money to the University.
He was obviously extremely wealthy. Many of them were applying for school grants. They were benefiting from Alex's generosity. How could they continue insulting him? Now they were in a hurry to make up for their previous impoliteness and impulsive behavior, and the tone of the audience changed.
"Alex, Alex!" the crowd chanted.
"Alex Ambrose, I love you!" said a girl from the crowd.
"It's wonderful, he's great! I've applied for a grant. Thank you for supporting me", yelled a young man.
"Mr. Ambrose, can you say a few words?" When the president saw with relief that the situation had finally stabilized, he handed the microphone to Alex.
The applause from the audience became more and more intense, and cheers came and went.
Alex couldn't refuse, so he took the microphone and said in a loud voice, "In fact, I donated the money because I had no place to put it. So, I sent it to the finance department. Originally, I thought that the sponsorship of the New Year's party would use it all up. I didn't expect that the party would only cost fifty thousand. The rest of the money will be left to the school for other purposes. I hope you can apply for financial aid." After Alex finished speaking, the president nodded and cheers rose from the audience.
"That's positive energy! This is how a wealthy man should act", the crowd cheered.
"Alex, I'll study hard when I get the grant", said the boy from the soccer team.
"Alex is much better than those rich kids who only use their money for drugs and girls", yelled the same angry girl.
"Well, no more nonsense. Let's ask Mr. Ambrose to give the awards to his team," said the president with a smile.
Alex took the certificate and went to Doug first. Doug looked at him and said timidly, "Alex, I'm sorry for being mean before..."
Looking at his withered appearance made Alex nervous. He wasn't a resentful person. He just handed the certificate to him and patted him on the shoulder.
Next was Fiona. Seeing Alex standing in front of her, she shrunk like a kitten and whispered in a soft voice, "Alex, I'm sorry. I used to laugh at you because of my ignorance. I've often laughed at you for being a fool. No, I don't mean you. I am the fool."
Alex thought that Fiona always laughed at him when they were rehearsing. Now, she looked like a different person. He said, "You don't have to cower in front of me. Usually, you laugh with me, not at me. Although it's a bit over the top, I don't really mind. But don't make fun of others in the future."
"Yes, I know. I'll remember your words." Hearing that Alex wasn't blaming her, Fiona was pleased and took the certificate with a sweet smile. Alex had already passed by. Looking at him, she felt that he was such a warm man that a smile remained on her face.
Seeing Alex walk in front of him, Colin's eyes grew cold with hatred. That day, he had been in the limelight, but Alex had stolen his popularity.
Alex extended the certificate, but Colin didn't want to take it. He looked in all other directions, wondering why it should be Alex who was presenting the award to him.
"Colin, don't you want the certificate?" Alex looked at the way he was acting in front of him and couldn't help but shout angrily.
"You..." Colin stared at him, his heart burning with anger. At Richmond University, no one had ever dared to speak to him in that tone.
"Colin, hurry up and take the certificate!" the president urged him.
He was unwilling, but now he had to take it. If he got angry with Alex on the stage, his image at the university would be completely destroyed.
He snatched the certificate, holding his temper in check.
Alex smiled, knowing that Colin must be very angry at that moment, while he himself felt extremely comfortable. Colin had been so arrogant for such a long time. Now, he would suffer a lot.
When he approached Leona, his face became gentle as he handed her certificate to her. "Your certificate."
Under the stage lights, Leona quietly looked at Alex, took the certificate, gave a faint smile, and said in a soft voice, "You're a very deep man."
Seeing her smiling at him, Alex felt a tremor run through his body. "I didn't mean to trick you, it was... it's... it's too complicated. I'll explain it to you later."
"He's so serious as if he's afraid of being misunderstood. Obviously, he has a special love for me", she thought. She was slightly moved and lowered her head. "If it is complicated. I don't want to see Alex."
"Well, Mr. Ambrose has already awarded the certificates. Now we invite all the cast members to come onto the stage and have a big group photo taken," the host said with a smile.
All the actors backstage came up. Alex sat in the middle with the president and vice president. Ian was surprised to learn that Alex was the sponsor of the New Year's party. He was shocked to hear that he had donated more than one and a half million dollars to the university. He was wondering who Alex really was, thinking that he might be more important than Colin.
Taking the opportunity presented by the group photo, Ian walked toward him, laughing lightly. "Alex, I'm sorry, I didn't know who you were before. I apologize to you. Please don't remember my mistakes, please forgive me..."
Looking at him, Alex couldn't help but get angry. For more than twenty days, Ian had been rude to him in front of other people. He was a total flatterer. Now that he knew that he had money, he was coming over to flatter him.
He smiled and waved to him. When Ian reached him, Alex grabbed his ear and said a few words in a low voice. Ian felt embarrassed, but he finally nodded and rushed offstage.
After a while, the line for the pictures had been arranged. Ian ran up from backstage and immediately caused a burst of laughter. It turned out that he was only wearing red underwear. Ian weighed nearly four hundred pounds, and his body was full of flabby fat. He stepped onto the stage trembling, but this was what Alex had asked him to do in order to gain his forgiveness. And he had to listen to Alex.
There was a lot of ridicule coming from the seating area, and the actors on the stage also thought Ian was disgraceful, so they kept away from him while laughing.
Ian walked toward Colin. Colin was surprised and asked, "Why are you coming over here?"
If Alex had donated one and a half million dollars to the school, he must be more important than Colin. Ian would rather offend Colin than Alex.
He went right up to Colin with a smile and put his arm around his shoulder. "Colin, I'm sorry."
Ian clung to Colin. No matter how much Colin yelled at him or tried to get him away, he just wouldn't let go. He hugged Colin, who seemed to be deeply trapped in Ian's rolls of fat. The people on the stage and off the stage laughed until their sides burst.
At that moment, with a "click," the big group photo was taken, which would be put on the university website. Colin's heart went cold when he thought of the way he was hanging shoulder to shoulder with Ian, a naked fat man.