Chapter 118
The long-awaited "Yunshang" has finally opened.
Lin Ting, Qin Wei, Song Xiaolei, Xiao Yuan, as well as the experienced mentors and new designers who were recruited, were all present, while Chen Zhiyi had some temporary company business to attend to and would be arriving later.
Master Hu's contact information was incredibly useful; he recommended it to everyone, and it brought in a group of experienced sample garment makers who were all skilled in pattern making, cutting, sewing, and embroidery.
The newly hired designer was interviewed by Lin Ting herself. She received a flood of resumes as soon as she posted the job openings on the recruitment website. The pandemic had forced many companies to lay off workers, creating significant employment pressure, especially considering the high salary Lin Ting offered. She was very clear about this: "Whoever is capable should be hired," and "If you want a cow to work, you have to feed it enough." But for Lin Ting, the applicant's educational background, overseas experience, or previous work experience at large companies were irrelevant. Her interview criteria were only twofold: one was ability—an original design on the spot for a given assignment, and those who passed were hired; the other was a matter of personal preference—she had to hire someone she liked. Why hire someone she didn't like just to cause trouble?
On the eve of the opening, Lin Ting tossed and turned, unable to sleep. Everything is difficult at the beginning, and everyone wants to have a good start, so she was particularly worried that the business would not be popular on the first day of opening.
Chen Zhiyi reassured her that she was overthinking it.
The truth is, you've been overthinking it. The entrance was piled high with flower baskets, a riot of color and a wonderful fragrance. If you didn't know it was a clothing brand store opening, you'd think it was a flower shop opening.
Lin Ting saw many familiar names in the flower baskets: her aunt and uncle's family, the old craftsmen from the shop in the county town, photographer Xiao Li, and Yun Shu, Xiao Man, and Ren Jingjing.
Those who truly love you will always be there for you, no matter when.
Lin Ting also saw Han Ming's flower basket, which she hadn't seen since their last conversation. Chen Zhiyi had mentioned that Han Ming was currently focused on the stage and was already working on his first original play. Lin Ting was proud of him because he was a very good person and deserved to have his talent known to more people.
Of course, the reporters and media who came upon hearing the news, the first customers waiting to enter the store, and the fans who came to support "Sister-in-law" created a huge and lively crowd.
All of this was thanks to Chen Zhiyi's vigorous promotion. After the charity gala, Lin Ting opened a Douyin account under the name "Yunshang" and uploaded a video of the production process of the three dresses from the gala. The video participated in Douyin's "Promoting Culture" themed high-quality video promotion event and quickly went viral. With Chen Zhiyi's reposting, it quickly became known to everyone, and the number of likes and followers increased day by day. Currently, the number of followers on the account has exceeded one million, and the growth rate of followers is extremely fast.
Clearly, Chen Zhiyi's Douyin account has become another official account for "Yunshang". Apart from the videos he forwards, all the others are videos he shoots himself. His camera always focuses on Lin Ting, whether she is working or resting, and whether it is a video of a few seconds or a few minutes. They are all filmed beautifully and exquisitely. Every shot is so beautiful that you can't take your eyes off her. The atmosphere is full of emotion, which proves the saying that the lens of a lover has warmth.
Of course, some career-oriented fans couldn't stand it and criticized Chen Zhiyi, saying, "Did you use all the directing knowledge you learned in the two years you spent abroad to film your wife? What's it like to have a purely love-struck idol? Your wife's ambition is almost surpassing yours, don't you feel any sense of crisis? Sooner or later you'll become the gigolo everyone talks about, so get your ambition going and start filming movies and TV series!"
However, these comments did not affect Chen Zhiyi at all; on the contrary, they stimulated his creative desire. He posted more videos on Douyin, and the content was all about Lin Ting and Yunshang, with nothing else.
In the internet age, mastering the secrets of traffic is the key to unlocking the door to wealth. That's why Chen Zhiyi confidently said that she was overthinking it, as the business was incredibly popular on the first day of opening.
The opening ceremony was elaborate, and the time was chosen by a feng shui master. Just before the appointed time, Chen Zhiyi called to say he would be a little late and not to wait for him. He also mentioned that there would be media present and interviews were inevitable, so she shouldn't be nervous and could just say whatever she wanted. He said he had already spoken to the media and wouldn't cause them any trouble.
She even shamelessly said that as a well-known "sister-in-law" in the entertainment industry, she would have many more interviews to come and should get used to it.
Habit? Lin Ting doesn't need to get used to it. Having a spokesperson who appears in public is enough for the family.
At 10:10, symbolizing perfection, the opening ceremony officially began. First, a few colorful firecrackers were set off to create a festive and lively atmosphere, followed by the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Lin Ting, Song Xiaolei, and Xiao Yuan stood in a row, each with a confident and proud smile on their face.
Confidence comes from standing in the heart of the city, with the future laid out before you.
Arrogance is about being able to make your own way in the most prosperous area of Shanghai with like-minded friends, start a business together, achieve success together, and rise to prominence together. It's something that will bring glory to generations to come.
Song Xiaolei was so excited she almost forgot herself. "With that one snip of the scissors, I felt like my ancestors' graves were smoking."
Xiaoyuan said, "As a vocational school graduate, what merit do I have to work in the city center of the country's largest city and even cut ribbons with my boss? This is something I never dared to dream of before. Really, you have to be a little shameless. If I hadn't volunteered back then, how could I have become Sister Ting's apprentice and have the opportunity to stand here?"
Song Xiaolei: "It's a pity that we're missing the major shareholder. But if he hadn't been absent, we probably wouldn't be standing here."
Lin Ting interrupted: "Nonsense. Even if he were here right now, you would all have to stand next to me. One of you is a key technical member, and the other is a company veteran. It's important to contribute money, but it's also important to contribute technology. Without technology, there is no core competitiveness. No matter how much money you have, it's all for naught."
Song Xiaolei smiled and said, "My sister's verbal skills are getting better and better; I can't even keep up with her anymore."
Lin Ting urged, "Alright, let's cut it together, don't miss the perfect time."
Amidst enthusiastic applause, deafening confetti cannons, and a constant barrage of camera flashes, the ribbon-cutting ceremony was successfully completed.
Next came the media interview segment. Fortunately, Chen Zhiyi had given prior notice, so Lin didn't seem too flustered when she heard it.
Compared to "Yunshang," the media prefers to ask about Lin Ting and Chen Zhiyi's relationship, as that's the hottest topic. The top idol has been in the industry for many years but has never admitted to being in a relationship, yet their official announcement caused a sensation. They've known each other for ten years, had a crush on each other for many years, and broken up and got back together several times, but he still loves only one person. Today, the female party involved made her first public appearance, so we couldn't help but ask her about it.
"Chen Zhiyi said you've known each other for ten years? If we go back to that time, he was still in high school. How did you two meet?"
"When he made the announcement, he said he fell in love with you at first sight, and then started having a crush on you? Didn't you know what he was thinking back then?"
How did he pursue you?
"When we parted ways and you saw him become a big star, didn't you ever think about contacting him?"
At home, does he listen to you more, or do you listen to him?
Do you have plans to get married?
...
The questions were varied and overwhelming, leaving Lin Ting completely bewildered. Was this what Chen Zhiyi meant by "making arrangements"? Was he sure he wasn't here to dig up dirt?
Lin Ting prepared many answers about the brand, but she hadn't thought about anything related to relationships, and more importantly, she didn't want to talk about that.
Song Xiaolei interrupted, "Today is the opening of the 'Yunshang' brand. We can ask some questions about the brand, but questions about relationships are a different price. We can't let you listen for free. How about the media present invest in a couples reality show and have them sign up? You'll make money, and we'll make money too, hehe."
Song Xiaolei laughed, which made all the media present laugh.
Xiaoyuan joked and changed the subject, "Today is the opening of our 'Yunshang' store. 'Yunshang' needs buzz and attention. Anyway, everyone knows where the store is. We can just stake out the place and get the material you want. The other person involved in the relationship will be there later. How about we do a joint interview?"
The meaning is obvious: they want to protect Lin Ting. Media people are so shrewd; she has no interviewing experience and could easily fall into their trap. It's better to wait for a professional spokesperson to arrive.
Since we couldn't get them to talk, we had no choice but to give up.
A male journalist wearing a black mask spoke up, "In that case, let's talk about 'Yunshang.' Since it's high-end custom-made, shouldn't all the styles displayed in the store be original designs?"
Lin Ting answered without hesitation, "Yes, and 'Yunshang' focuses on Chinese design. Its craftsmanship, fabrics, elements, and style all originate from Chinese traditions. This is the most fundamental difference between 'Yunshang' and other high-end custom brands."
The media professional scoffed, the sarcasm obvious: "Your 'yes' answer was far too easy. Shouldn't you have an explanation for the 'fabric plagiarism' incident three years ago? Otherwise, how can you justify your constant talk of original design?"
These words were like a thunderclap.
Other media professionals exchanged glances. "Plagiarism?" They never expected this.
The male media personality continued, "Don't think that just because you paid to take down the 'Road to the Skywalk' program, bought out the video of the press conference before the finals that year, and erased all traces on the internet, no one will know about this. Four years ago, as the chief designer of the M brand, you had the backing of a big brand with deep pockets and did not hesitate to directly copy the main fabric of a small e-commerce brand, causing them to lose their star product and their profits to plummet. A year later, they lost everything, and the brand closed down and disappeared. Shouldn't you explain this?"
"Shouldn't we boycott fashion designers who claim to be original designers but secretly engage in plagiarism? Shouldn't we stop them from doing this?"
Another female media professional, wearing a black mask and with a slender figure, stood up indignantly, saying, "I support it, and we should boycott it." She also took out a document from her bag, saying, "These documents are what I collected from Tianjin University. They clearly dropped out of university, yet they still boast about being academic geniuses."
"If you drop out of university, especially a prestigious university like Tianjin University, they generally won't expel you easily unless you make a serious mistake."
"Not graduating from university means you only have a high school diploma?"
"What kind of mistake did she make that would lead to her expulsion from school? You can't judge a book by its cover."
The female journalist spoke again, her tone impassioned, "A high school graduate wants to lead fashion, do high-end customization, and establish his own brand? Isn't that just because he has a sugar daddy? Is it something he can achieve by throwing money at the problem? How can this make those highly educated talents who worked hard to get into university or even studied abroad, those experienced but unappreciated designers, feel that they aren't hardworking enough? Ambitious enough? Talented enough?"
Xiaoyuan couldn't stand it anymore. "Nonsense! What era are we living in? Why are you still bringing up education? Tao Bihua, the founder of Lao Gan Ma, was illiterate. How can you expect to remove her from the position of chairman?"
A female media professional stated, "I'm not bringing up academic qualifications, but someone who relies on plagiarism and their boyfriend's financial support to 'gild' their resume should be boycotted."
Song Xiaolei also retorted with a barrage of insults, "If you're so capable, take off your mask and speak. Relying on your boyfriend's wealth? Our renowned designer, Teacher Ye Zi, is already famous. Does a social media influencer with eight million followers lack money? Besides, is it a crime to have a rich boyfriend who loves her and is willing to spend money on her? If you're so capable, go find one yourself. Is it bothering you?"
The female media personality seemed determined to take down Lin Ting. "Boyfriend? Building love on someone else's pain, and now everything's calmed down, with everyone's blessings? If they're so in love, why did they drag someone else into the mess three years ago when their relationship was exposed? Why did they make Sun Ziyan lose her idol status, her career, and even get kicked out of her home by the man, ultimately ending up disgraced and with nothing left? Netizens are too kind. A touching vlog and a long official announcement of their relationship have fooled everyone, preventing them from seeing the dirty things they did behind the scenes. Oh, and another shocking thing is that the founder of the Yunshang brand, now standing before us with both fame and fortune, is the daughter of a criminal. Her father was sentenced for bribery and embezzlement and is currently serving his sentence. They say like father, like daughter. If the father is so greedy, how good can the daughter be? She absolutely can't deny the plagiarism."
The media professionals present were all sighing with emotion. Many of them picked up their phones to try and find news from four years ago. According to the female media professional, the incident was quite big back then, but someone did pay to erase many traces. Very little information could be found online, but some clues could still be seen, such as the official statement on removing Tianqiaozhilu from the list, the statement from M Group on dismissing Lin Ting, the e-commerce brand boss seeking help, and Sun Ziyan's denunciation of Chen Zhiyi during her live broadcast.
Every single one of them told the female media professionals that it was the truth.
So the reporters present handed microphones to Lin Ting, asking her to explain, but Lin Ting remained calm throughout the process, her expression unchanged, as if the matter had nothing to do with her.
It's not unrelated; she had long anticipated this day when past events would be brought up and discussed, but she never expected it to be such an important day.
As expected, fate has never been kind to her. She's been living too happily lately and has become complacent.
Lin Ting forced a smile.
At this point, Chen Zhiyi's fans also joined in.
"My God, how can she still laugh at this moment?"
"She's so cunning. How did my brother fall for her? And love her for ten years. Does she have some kind of leverage over him?"
“My brother met her when he was nineteen. At that time, he was still a high school student and didn’t know anything. It was too easy for him to fall for a scheming girl like that.”
"I used to think their love story was so touching, but now I wonder if my brother was deceived. Thinking back, she was my brother's tutor at the time, but she had ulterior motives under the guise of a teacher. She seduced their child behind their parents' backs. It's disgusting."
All of this made all the previous blessings seem like a joke; in their eyes, Lin Ting and Chen Zhiyi were simply not a good match.
Just then, a loud shout came from the back of the crowd: "Come at me if you have a problem!"
Everyone turned their heads and saw Chen Zhiyi striding over. He had a stern face, his eyebrows were furrowed, his gaze was cold, and his lips were straight and tight, clearly suppressing his inner anger.
Everyone moved to the sides, making way for a passageway in the middle.
Chen Zhiyi went straight to Lin Ting.
Song Xiaolei and Xiaoyuan were visibly excited when they saw their reinforcements, and almost simultaneously exclaimed, "Brother-in-law, you've come!"
Chen Zhiyi looked directly at Lin Ting, but she avoided him. He reached out to hold Lin Ting's hand tightly, but as soon as he did, Lin Ting put her hand behind her back.
Chen Zhiyi gave her no chance to back down, forcefully pulling her hand out from behind her back and holding it tightly in his palm. "Look at me, trust me." His voice was deep and powerful, each word resounding.
Lin Ting then looked at him, and their eyes met.
"I will never let the same mistakes of three years ago repeat themselves."
Then he turned around, pointed at the two media people wearing masks, and said, "I recorded everything you just said. I will immediately initiate legal proceedings to sue you for defamation."
The male journalist was clearly taken aback and took a step back, but the female journalist did not, and confronted him head-on, "Defamation? Am I not telling the truth?"
Chen Zhiyi held up the file folder in his hand. "The facts? I'll tell you what the facts are right now!"
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