C21 Chapter 21

Zhong Xinyi wasn’t picking a fight with Saang Shijuan out of loyalty to a friend. It was just that hearing him indirectly praise another woman had rubbed her the wrong way, so she went along with Du Yawei and took a shot at that woman too.

For one, it would bring her closer to Du Yawei.

For another, it would lower that woman’s standing in Saang Shijuan’s eyes.

Two birds with one stone.

As Xia Bing listened to the two women play off each other, she didn’t snap back in anger.

Instead, she calmly glanced at Du Yawei’s design not far away and let out a light laugh. “I’d say Mr. Saang has a very good eye.”

Caught off guard at being called out, Saang Shijuan froze for a second.

Du Yawei frowned. “What’s that supposed to mean? That my work isn’t as good as yours?”

Xia Bing didn’t bother sugarcoating it. “That’s right. Your work can be summed up in four words—an awkward mess.”

Saang Shijuan froze again. He hadn’t expected the offhand remark he’d made just to brush things off would match Xia Bing’s assessment exactly.

For a moment, he almost laughed—and in fact, he did. It was only the faintest lift at the corner of his mouth, too slight to notice unless you were looking closely, but the coldness in his expression softened, making him look completely different from the aloof man he’d seemed to be before.

Du Yawei and Zhong Xinyi were both stunned. They hadn’t expected an unknown designer to dare judge Du Yawei’s work like that—especially when the criticism was exactly the same as Saang Shijuan’s.

Du Yawei lost her composure, her voice sharp with anger. “Who do you think you are? What gives you the right to judge my work like that?”

Saang Shijuan’s eyes turned cold, and he shot Du Yawei a hard look. The temperature around him seemed to drop instantly, but Du Yawei didn’t notice. She was still too consumed by her anger over Xia Bing looking down on her work.

Around them, people in the crowd had already started whispering.

“That designer looks new. Can you believe she actually trashed Du Yawei’s work right to her face?”

“I mean, she was just named one of VE magazine’s hottest emerging fashion designers. If you dismiss her work, aren’t you basically dismissing VE magazine too?”

“Maybe that title was bought and paid for. No matter how I look at it, Du Yawei’s design really isn’t all that impressive.”

“Exactly. On the other hand, this unknown designer’s work may not seem that striking at first glance, but the tailoring follows the body’s natural lines beautifully. You can tell it was measured with real precision. Honestly, if it were me, there’s no way I could cut such soft, elegant lines.”

“...”

The surrounding voices were divided, some backing Du Yawei, others siding with Xia Bing. The corner of Xia Bing’s lips curled slightly, but the smile in her eyes was ice-cold. “Do you really want me to point out the flaws in your design right to your face?”

Du Yawei’s mouth fell open, as if she had just heard the biggest joke in the world. “What? You’re going to criticize my work? Ha! Hahaha!” She laughed exaggeratedly. “Fine. I’d love to see what flaws you think you can find in my design. But let me give you a little advice: don’t bite off more than you can chew. Everyone here is a professional fashion designer. If you can’t point out anything truly technical, you can forget about ever making it in this industry again!”

Xia Bing just smiled, completely unconcerned, carrying herself with the kind of pride that made it clear Du Yawei didn’t even register in her eyes.

Back then, she had graduated from Saint Martin at the top of her class. Countless top-tier global luxury fashion houses had fought to sign her. If not for the disaster that struck her family, and her fiancé’s illness on top of it, she never would have given up such a promising future and turned to surrogacy for quick money.