The competition began at a leisurely pace. Gu Anran had not faced Lin Xinrou directly in the preliminary rounds and other rounds. However, given Lin Xinrou's dissatisfaction with Gu Anran, she would not let Gu Anran's competition be so easy. It was also convenient that the first few rounds were easy to manipulate and not easily noticed by outside judges.
Lin Xinrou had secretly arranged for people to tamper with Gu Anran's materials and accessories, often replacing them with inferior ones. It would be a lie to say these small things didn't affect Gu Anran's competition; she nearly missed the submission deadlines several times. Fortunately, Gu Anran's skills were decent, so the competition proceeded without major issues. Some of these minor problems had already been discovered by Ye Lichuan and Gu Xiaotian.
But in the same competition, you're bound to run into each other sooner or later. Today, the competition is in full swing and has reached the point where it's a battle of skill to get into the top twenty. Everyone has the same materials. This competition is all about the designers' inspiration and designs. If the theme is novel, it's easy to get selected, but even if some designs are very beautiful, they won't be selected if the materials are poor.
Lin Xinrou knew the logic of this competition well, and seeing Gu Anran make it step by step into the top twenty, she couldn't help but feel envious. "I've already rigged Gu Anran's match, how come this little bitch still made it into this competition? But since you're in, then... you'll never get into this competition."
Looking at the list of selected participants and the match pairings sent by the competition organizers, I noticed that the rules for this competition were somewhat different from previous ones. Previously, a large number of people were initially selected, grouped into teams of ten, and given one hour to have designers create detailed sketches of everyday clothing, noting the theme and meaning behind each design. The designs from each team that were most suitable for everyday life and more easily accepted by the general public were selected.
Therefore, quite a few people were selected. Although some may have gotten in through connections, they will all be eliminated in the 60-to-20 competition today. After all, today's competition is different from usual, and the review panel consists of master-level figures in the design world; bribery is not so easy to pull off.
The format for this round of the competition is as follows: the sixty selected participants are divided into two groups. Each group is further divided into three subgroups, and ten people are randomly assigned to each subgroup. The ten people randomly draw balls from a box. Those with the same number start the match first. The judges select the winner from the two players, and the other player is eliminated. The remaining eight players then compete against the winner in descending order of their ball numbers.
If another person defeats the winner, that person becomes the winner and competes against the next person. This rule sounds simple, but it's a good way to eliminate backroom deals. The winner is determined by the five judges' choices. The score is three to two; the side with more than three votes or equal to three votes wins.
The sixty participants were divided into two groups, with the top two from each group advancing to the semi-finals (20 to 10). To avoid delaying the competition, the organizers spent a fortune inviting ten leading figures in the design industry. Some of these figures came on their own, hoping to find a successor to carry on their legacy. Of course, Ye Lichuan was behind this, providing some form of sponsorship. He wouldn't allow his people to be treated unfairly in such a competition.
Gu Anran was in the second group of the first group, but luckily her number ball was 2, so she had plenty of time to think about the theme of this design - "Sky and Future". Lin Xinrou was in the third group, looking at the materials on the table of the first group, she could not allow Gu Anran to win this competition to enter the top twenty.
"The judges said Gu Anran's group's theme is 'Sky and Future,' so I'll make sure you don't get the sky." Lin Xinrou looked at Gu Anran's piece of fabric and smiled slightly. "What will happen to the finished product if the fabric tears?"
Because Gu Anran's number was relatively low, the competition was scheduled for the morning of the following day. This conveniently gave Lin Xinrou the opportunity to "commit her crime." It was late at night, and to ensure the smooth running of the competition the next day, the organizers had all the supplies labeled with the contestants' names and placed in a small room.
In the middle of the night, a figure secretly pried open the window. Caught off guard, she twisted her ankle as she climbed in. Gently rubbing her foot, she noticed a small pearl on her wig had fallen off. She slowly walked to Gu Anran's preparation area and began working with the fabric. She took away any that seemed useful and replaced them with scrap materials she had brought. Satisfied, she left.
The next day, before Gu Anran and her family arrived at the competition venue, Gu Xiaotian wondered what his mother would do. Suddenly, a bad thought surfaced in Xiaotian's mind. "Mommy, Mommy, do you have any backup people at the venue? Assistants or something? Could you ask them to check your preparation materials for you? What if... what if someone doesn't want Mommy to win and tries to sabotage the materials?" Gu Anran, looking at Xiaotian, hadn't considered this possibility because she was so focused on preparing for the competition. Ye Lichuan, who was driving ahead, overheard Gu Xiaotian's words and called his assistant, telling him to quickly check the materials. Gu Xiaotian quickly added, "If it's bad, then we'll take it to that bad woman."
Gu Anran tenderly rubbed her son's head. "Thank you so much, Xiaotian, for thinking so much for Mommy." Xiaotian rubbed against Gu Anran's hand as she rubbed his head. Ye Lichuan also gave Xiaotian a praising look, as if to say that Xiaotian had done a good job this time.
Around 10 o'clock, the competition began. Lin Xinrou, with a "let's see what happens" attitude, went to watch Gu Anran's competition for the first time ever. Upon seeing Gu Anran's materials, she was immediately stunned. "How could this be? Didn't I destroy her materials? How could they appear perfectly intact in front of her?" Lin Xinrou gritted her teeth in anger. She stormed off the competition venue.
Seeing Lin Xinrou's reaction, Ye Lichuan and Gu Xiaotian understood. Gu Anran lived up to expectations and achieved good results in the group, and her design attracted the attention of the judges.
Lin Xinrou's competition was in the afternoon. Ye Lichuan and his son, knowing about Lin Xinrou's "good deed," dragged Gu Anran to watch the afternoon's competition. When Lin Xinrou saw the materials in her hand, she was stunned. "This, isn't this Gu Anran's? How did it end up here?" Lin Xinrou panicked and her legs went weak, so she braced herself on the table.
The judges examined the tattered fabric and Lin Xinrou's design draft. Although the lines were beautiful and the design was gorgeous, full of futuristic elements, it was somewhat overemphasized and lacked the element of the sky.
The other contestants couldn't help but whisper about Lin Xinrou's materials and works, and some of their voices were so loud that they reached Lin Xinrou's ears.
She handed the draft of her work to the judge and walked out of the competition venue without saying a word, but her hatred for Gu Anran grew even stronger.
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