Chapter 291: Slander and Plagiarism
"Check the background of that French company." When I turned around, I caught Lin Xiaoxia hurriedly putting away her phone. "Also, pull up the surveillance footage from the past six months, especially the sample room and the design department."
Xu Sisi suddenly exclaimed: "I remember now! Last month I went to the sample room and saw Lin Xiaoxia taking pictures. She said she wanted to post them on WeChat Moments..."
Everyone's eyes were focused on Lin Xiaoxia. Her face turned pale instantly, and her fingers tightly grasped the strap of her bag: "I, I just..."
I walked up to her, "Just what? Hand over your phone."
She unlocked her phone with trembling hands, and in the photo album were all detailed pictures of various Suzhou embroidery samples, as well as chat records with a person named "angle". It turned out that the French company had long been eyeing our design, and after obtaining samples through Lin Xiaoxia, it registered the patent first and then accused us of plagiarism.
"......" I rubbed my temples tiredly, "At the same time, contact the media, we are going to hold a press conference."
Three days later, at the launch event at the Suzhou Embroidery Museum, we invited several embroiderers in their sixties to demonstrate on site. Under the camera, their wrinkled fingers shuttled flexibly, and every stitch and thread condensed decades of skills.
"This is the real Suzhou embroidery." I stood under the spotlight and held up the peony fan. "It cannot be replicated by cold machines. Every stitch is the result of the embroiderer's hard work. Every piece is a unique work of art."
After the press conference, Xu Sisi took me to meet an old embroiderer. The old lady took out a double-sided embroidery from the bottom of the box. The front side was a peony, and the back side was a butterfly.
"It's a unique skill passed down from generation to generation, 'Butterfly Love Flower'." Her eyes were sparkling with tears. "In fact, I have wanted to spread it for a long time, and now I finally have the opportunity."
I looked at the embroidery and suddenly had an idea: "Why don't we do a 'Suzhou embroidery inheritor' program? Let more people know the story behind this craft."
On the third day after the press conference, I was organizing the plan for the "Suzhou Embroidery Inheritors" program in the office when I suddenly received a call from an unfamiliar number.
"Ms. Gu, I'm Lin Xiaoxia's mother." The voice on the other end of the phone choked up, "Xiaoxia... is in the hospital."
The smell of hospital disinfectant was pungent. When I pushed open the door of the ward, I saw Lin Xiaoxia lying on the bed, her face so pale that it was almost transparent.
Sitting beside her bed was a middle-aged woman in simple clothes, holding a handkerchief embroidered with orchids.
"Ms. Gu," Lin Xiaoxia said weakly, "I'm sorry, I lied to you. But I have to do this."
I pulled a chair over and sat down, noticing a yellowed photo album on her bedside table. Lin Xiaoxia's mother flipped through the album with trembling hands, revealing old photos: young embroiderers working intently in front of embroidery frames. In one of the photos, a woman with eyes and eyebrows that looked 70% like Lin Xiaoxia was embroidering a huge peony painting.
"That's my grandmother," Lin Xiaoxia said softly, "She is one of the last descendants of 'Dielianhua'. Twenty years ago, the French company wanted to buy out this craft, but my grandmother refused. Later..." Her voice choked, "They sent people to steal the design drawings, and my grandmother fell down the stairs to protect the embroidery pattern..."
I suddenly remembered the "Butterfly in Love" painting that the old embroiderer showed at the press conference. No wonder it looked so familiar at the time.
"I have been collecting evidence over the years." Lin Xiaoxia took out a USB flash drive from under the pillow. "Not only do they want to steal our designs, they also want to monopolize the entire Suzhou embroidery market. I pretended to be bribed by them just to get this evidence."
Xu Sisi suddenly pushed the door open, holding a document in her hand: "I found out! Behind that French company is an international handicraft smuggling group, and they specialize in targeting traditional handicrafts from various countries..."
"Wait," I interrupted her, "Xiao Xia, why didn't you tell us earlier?"
"Because..." She bit her lip, "I found out that there are people in the company who are colluding with them. I'm afraid of alerting them..."
"You mean the Yun Group? Who are you to the Yun Group?"
Just then, the door of the ward was pushed open.
The man rushed in breathlessly: "Ms. Gu, this is bad! That French company held a press conference, saying that we copied their design!"
I stood up, looked at Lin Xiaoxia's pale face, and suddenly had an idea: "Xiaoxia, can you still embroider?"
She was stunned for a moment, then she understood what I meant, and a gleam of light flashed in her eyes: "Yes!"
Three days later, in the exhibition hall of the Suzhou Embroidery Museum, Lin Xiaoxia sat in front of the embroidery frame. She still had an IV tube in her hand, but her fingers were still flexible. Under the camera, she embroidered an unprecedented "Butterfly in Love with Flowers": the front was a blooming peony, but the back was a withered flower, with butterflies resting on the withered petals, as if in mourning.
"This is the real 'Butterfly Loves Flowers'," I said to the camera, "It is not only a skill, but also a spirit. Twenty years ago, someone gave his life to protect it; today, someone else stood up for it."
After the press conference, the police successfully smashed the smuggling group based on the evidence provided by Lin Xiaoxia. And Lin Xiaoxia, the girl who has been silently guarding the inheritance of Suzhou embroidery, can finally stand in the sun.
She stood in the museum's exhibition hall, looking at the photo of her grandmother on the wall, "I want to teach more people about 'Butterfly Love Flower', Miss Gu..."
I nodded and held her cold hand: "Let's do it together."
Fifteen days later, the exhibition hall of the Suzhou Embroidery Museum was crowded with people. Lin Xiaoxia stood in the middle of the exhibition hall, her face still a little pale, but her eyes were bright.
Behind her is a huge "Butterfly in Love with Flowers" embroidery, with a blooming peony on the front and a withered flower on the back. Butterflies rest on the withered petals, as if telling a story about protection and inheritance.
"Everyone," I said, standing in front of the microphone, "today is not only the day when the 'Butterfly Loves Flowers' technique is rediscovered, but also the day when our Suzhou embroidery brand officially launches the 'Inheritor Plan'."
At this moment, the door of the exhibition hall was pushed open. Qin Yu strode in, followed by several middle-aged men in suits and leather shoes.
I recognized one of them as the investor who had previously tried to acquire our brand through an unequal agreement.
"Miss Gu," Qin Yu walked up to me and whispered, "I brought someone with me this time."
I nodded and turned to the investor: "Mr. Wang, do you remember the acquisition agreement you proposed three months ago? At that time, I said that Suzhou embroidery is not a commodity, but a heritage. Now, I would like to ask you to take a look at this."
A video began to play on the big screen: old embroiderers taught young people how to embroider, Lin Xiaoxia insisted on completing "Butterfly Love Flower" on the hospital bed, Xu Sisi searched for scattered Suzhou embroidery inheritors in the countryside...
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