On Lu Xi’s side, she hasn’t officially sent a lawyer’s letter to Wang Qianru, but Wang Qianru has already caught wind of it.
Zheng Suxin had a falling out with her and canceled the school uniform competition contract.
At the time, her assistant reminded Wang Qianru that this was a unilateral breach of contract on Zheng Suxin’s part, with no reason, and they could demand compensation.
Wang Qianru scolded the assistant harshly.
“Are you stupid? Do you know who she is? If she breaches the contract, the most she’d pay me is a few hundred thousand. If I offend her, she could blacklist me and make it impossible for me to continue in this industry!”
Wang Qianru was furious and kicked the assistant out of her office.
But after the scolding, it only provided temporary relief. Once she calmed down, she decided to ask everyone she knows, trying to find a way to contact the people who traveled with Zheng Suxin to the island.
There was no choice; Zheng Suxin wasn’t answering her calls, and even blocked her. Wang Qianru was left confused, not knowing what she had done to offend her.
She spent the whole day trying to contact her.
“Ms. Zheng, President Zheng… I’m sorry if I did something wrong, can you tell me what I did wrong so I can improve?”
“There’s nothing to improve,” Zheng Suxin interrupted coldly, “I can’t tolerate anyone who tries to fool me with plagiarized work. Do you think I’m an idiot?”
Hearing the word ‘plagiarism,’ Wang Qianru froze.
How did Zheng Suxin know?
“I didn’t, that’s my original work, there must be some misunderstanding,” Wang Qianru quickly explained.
Zheng Suxin snorted, “Don’t worry, I’m not targeting you. But you’ve offended someone you shouldn’t have. Don’t even think about making it in this industry, get ready to go to court!”
“…”
Wang Qianru suddenly felt a chill, an ominous feeling creeping over her.
Back home, she didn’t eat dinner, heading straight to her study.
Zheng Suxin’s words had been so firm, it didn’t sound like just an excuse.
She said she plagiarized… but that school uniform design, she had taken it from Lu Xi. But Lu Xi was already dead, so how would Zheng Suxin know?
It shouldn’t have been discovered!
This wasn’t the first time she had used Lu Xi’s design. That was early in her career, when she was just a lowly intern, an assistant at a small company. When her internship ended, the company required them to submit five design pieces in three days, selecting two out of five interns to stay.
She was so overwhelmed that she could only come up with four pieces. Then, by chance, she found an old photo album and saw Lu Xi’s designs in it.
Since Lu Xi was already gone, and no one knew about those designs, she decided to use them to meet the deadline.
She reluctantly used them once…
That’s what she thought at the time.
After handing in the designs, she successfully stayed on.
But during that time, she was extremely nervous. Every time she was called into the office, she feared the truth would come out.
What if someone else had seen Lu Xi’s designs?
But after a year, the designs turned into clothes, sold in major department stores, and nothing happened. Wang Qianru finally relaxed.
Once she did it once, she figured it wouldn’t be exposed, so she used more of them.
Now, more than ten years had passed. How could anyone find out at this point?
Lu Xi…
Wang Qianru suddenly had an idea.
She opened the website for Mingli High School and saw the list of parents who signed up for the school uniform competition. Sure enough, Lu Xi’s name was on it.
She said she was a designer and had also participated in the school uniform design.
Wang Qianru immediately had a possibility in mind.
She was Mrs. Xie, maybe she knew Zheng Suxin. Could it be that their designs coincidentally matched?
Wang Qianru was so shocked she nearly fell back into her chair.
That’s impossible!
She was the new wife of Xie Yizhao, just the replacement for Lu Xi. How could she be Lu Xi?
“Go back and wait patiently.” Wang Qianru suddenly recalled something Lu Xi had once said, and she felt her scalp go numb.
If she really was Lu Xi, if she didn’t die and came back alive, would she know everything? Was she now trying to get revenge?
The more Wang Qianru thought about it, the more scared she became, feeling lost and helpless. Her husband knocked on the door for a while before she finally opened it.
“What are you doing? I’ve been calling you for ages,” her husband said, startled by her blank stare.
Wang Qianru didn’t care about him.
She pushed her husband away and ran to her son’s room.
Du Jiaqi was doing his homework and was startled by the sight of his mother with her hair disheveled. Before he could speak, Wang Qianru was already in front of him.
“Xiao Qi, tomorrow you must go with me to apologize to the Xie family.”
Du Jiaqi’s face turned white instantly. “No, I’m not going! You promised you wouldn’t make me go!”
Wang Qianru’s tone was firm: “Things are different now!”
Her husband and mother-in-law rushed over, one pulling her away, and the other protecting their beloved grandson. The elderly woman glared at Wang Qianru, “What’s wrong with you? Why are you always helping outsiders bully your own son!”
Wang Qianru couldn’t speak!
If her actions were really exposed, her son refusing to apologize would only make Lu Xi angrier.
But her family was so protective of him, she couldn’t do anything.
All she could do was swallow her pride and appeal to Lu Xi’s emotions. If she really was her, she couldn’t have no old feelings left, right? She wouldn’t want to destroy her completely.
The next day, Wang Qianru, with great reluctance, dialed Lu Xi’s number.
Unfortunately, Lu Xi was in Xie Yizhao’s office, and Lawyer Xu had just left.
Lu Xi hadn’t saved Wang Qianru’s number.
But seeing that it was a local number, she answered the call. When she heard Wang Qianru’s voice, she frowned and instinctively wanted to hang up.
“Is it really you?” Wang Qianru’s voice trembled, though she tried to remain calm. “Is it… Lu, Lu Xi?”
Lu Xi pursed her lips.
So she had finally realized.
She sat down on the sofa in Xie Yizhao’s office, raised an eyebrow, and asked, “If I weren’t her, wouldn’t it be that, having been copied by you for nothing, even in death, I wouldn’t close my eyes?”
Xie Yizhao shifted his gaze from the document to look at Lu Xi, a trace of concern in his eyes.
Lu Xi winked at him.
It’s fine, I can handle it.
Did this man really think she was an innocent little girl with no fighting power?
There was a long pause from the other side.
Lu Xi knew that Wang Qianru was now probably both shocked and regretful. Whether she believed it or not, Lu Xi was who she was, and it didn’t matter anymore. As a thief, she would never admit to her crime. She’d lie, find excuses, and try every means to escape the blame.
Lu Xi was actually curious about what Wang Qianru would do next.
Wang Qianru spoke again, her voice clearly choked with emotion: “Xixi, is it really you? This is so great! You’re alive, do you know how much I’ve missed you?”
Lu Xi : ?
This development was completely unexpected.
What was this woman saying? Had she gone mad?
Wang Qianru seemed to have prepared her lines, continuing in one breath, “I know there seems to be some misunderstanding between us. How about this? Let’s go out for a meal, go shopping, just like before. I have so much to say to you, so many things I couldn’t explain… Let’s clear up the misunderstanding…”
Lu Xi : …
Now she understood.
Wang Qianru was playing the emotional card to beg for mercy. Did she take her for a fool?
At this point, Lu Xi couldn’t help but admire Wang Qianru’s thick skin. Perhaps this was her trump card for surviving in society. Maybe she had won many times with this tactic, but this time, did she really think it would work easily?
“Stop joking,” Lu Xi interrupted impatiently. “There’s no misunderstanding. Since you’ve plagiarized, you should be ready to take responsibility. My lawyer will contact you, see you in court.”
Lu Xi hung up decisively.
It was a waste of time to say anything more to such a shameless person. In the world of adults, there are rules. Taking shortcuts might work temporarily, but it always comes with a price. The truth will be revealed in court.
This is called, the iron fist of justice won’t bypass anyone.
Xie Yizhao asked, “Was it Wang Qianru?”
Lu Xi nodded. “It’s fine, I’ve got it all under control.”
Seeing how calm she was, Xie Yizhao curled his lips, “Come over here.”
Curious about what he did in the office every day, Lu Xi walked over to him and leaned over to look at the document in his hand.
It was an all-English contract.
Xie Yizhao didn’t mind her looking, so Lu Xi took a glance and saw a lot of professional and obscure terms that left her puzzled.
“Mm, it’s fine, I think I got the gist,” Lu Xi pretended to clear her throat. “You go ahead with your work, I’ll head home.”
Xie Yizhao curled his lips again, staring deeply at Lu Xi, his gaze growing darker.
He held Lu Xi’s hand and patiently explained the content of the contract and his current major projects. Although Lu Xi didn’t fully understand, the man still explained everything in detail.
His voice was really pleasant, deep and sensual. If she closed her eyes, it was like listening to a professional financial news broadcast, only it was the midnight edition.
She couldn’t help but chuckle at that thought.
Unable to hold back, she smiled and exchanged a playful glance with Xie Yizhao.
He could tell she wasn’t listening, so he stopped, the corners of his lips curling into a faint smile. He pulled her into his arms, guiding her to sit on his lap.
Lu Xi suddenly felt a little nervous.
Fortunately, Xie Yizhao didn’t take it further. He just held her there, speaking in a low voice, as though requesting: “I have two more hours of work. Wait for me a bit and let’s have lunch together, okay?”
Lu Xi was stunned for a moment.
This morning, because she was still in bed, Xie Yizhao had already been half an hour late going to the office. Now, he was about to leave work on time… Oh no, had she become the legendary concubine who delayed the king’s morning court?
The man gazed at her, and she looked back at him, her face slightly flushed. She could feel the heat of his hand on her waist.
The atmosphere seemed to grow charged…
Just then, the office door was knocked on a few times.
Lu Xi, like a thief caught in the act, immediately stood up, pretending to adjust her hair.
Xie Yizhao pursed his lips and said in a deep voice, “Come in.”
Li Xiao entered the room, reporting something, not noticing anything unusual. “Mr. Xie, Ye Sisheng is here. He wants to see you.”
Xie Yizhao furrowed his brows and glanced at Lu Xi.
Lu Xi didn’t react, thinking Ye Sisheng had come for some business with Xie Yichao, and it had nothing to do with her.
She thought that it would be better to wait for Xie Yizhao to finish work and eat together, but it would be inconvenient for his work if she stayed in his office, so she took the initiative to go to the break room.
Though she could hear what was happening outside, Ye Sisheng wouldn’t be able to see her.
Soon, Ye Sisheng was led into the office by Li Xiao.
He didn’t waste any time. Upon seeing Xie Yichao, he went straight to the point and said, “Mr. Xie, I’m not here for anything else, but for this.”
He took out a design draft and placed it in front of Xie Yichao.
Xie Yizhao raised an eyebrow. “What’s this?”
Ye Sisheng’s handsome face remained expressionless as he replied, “Someone has plagiarized your wife’s… or rather, your ex-wife’s design. Are you going to do something about it?”
Xie Yizhao looked at the drawing and asked in return, “How do you know it’s my wife’s design?”
“I’ve seen it before, a long time ago,” Ye Sisheng replied, smiling with neither arrogance nor humility.
“…”
Xie Yizhao’s gaze darkened.
The things Ye Sisheng had seen a long time ago, he had only learned about after so many years.
It seemed like Ye Sisheng understood Lu Xi better than he did.