Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation  Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Xu Yini herself was surprised.

“Edmond, I thought that the announcement for the selected candidate would be announced later?”

She had come to Aqua Front extra early, yet Edmond found her arrival surprising.

Edmond clapped his hands in realization.

“Ah?! Did I forget to tell you? The decision has already been made.”

Xu Yini's heart sank and her smile became awkward.

“Huh?”

Edmond shrugged helplessly.

“We selected Ms. Tang Wei for the position. I'm sorry, Ms. Xu.”

The smile on Xu Yini's face froze.

Mei Li was shocked as well.

“But… Mr. Edmond, I thought you preferred Yini for the role?”

If Xu Yini was not the chosen one, then why had Edmond been so enthusiastic in their previous meetings?

Had it all been an act? However, he did not look like a deceitful person at all.

If G&S had already decided on the final candidate, why had they spent so much time on Xu Yini in the first place?

“Actually, we initially preferred Ms. Yini. She stood out among all the other contestants during the first voting. However, during the second voting, we realized that Ms. Yini would not be suitable for our upcoming theme, so—”

Xu Yini found it ridiculous.

“Edmond, I remember that you told me that the theme for the upcoming show had already been decided a long time ago.”

If Xu Yini did not fit the theme, she should have been notified or realized that something was not right. Why had they waited until the second voting?

There were three more days till the official press conference.

Confused, Edmond blinked helplessly.

“Ms. Yini, I think there's something that you missed. This press conference is not just an announcement for the autumn and winter show. It is also to announce the winner of the G&S international design compet.i.tion.

The winning designer has already signed a contract with us and we have already received the design drafts. We plan to use the designs to launch a series of new collections from this year onwards. It will last for a year or so, and we will be heavily investing in the debut in the Chinese market.

The model for the opening show will also be the first brand amba.s.sador for our company in the Chinese market.

Unfortunately, after some serious consideration, we all agreed that Ms. Yini's image isn't the right fit for the theme.”

The first design draft of the winning designer had high compatibility. Back then, several celebrities and models had fit the design well.

On top of that, Edmond had favored Xu Yini, hence the early bias.

However, after G&S received the remaining design drafts, they realized the first one had just been the start of many.

The winning designer had partic.i.p.ated in the compet.i.tion with only the first piece of the draft. It was already an astonis.h.i.+ng work, but it was just a small part of a bigger puzzle. The puzzle would only be completed with all the pieces.

The uniqueness of the design was rare and it astonished everyone from the internal management.

They hoped to bring the beauty of the designs to life and were aware that they needed to be meticulous with every detail.

It was for that reason that they had to reevaluate their candidates because the brand amba.s.sador would be the face of their future collection.

After some serious consideration, they had decided that Tang Wei was the one that matched the theme perfectly.

“I'm sorry, Ms. Yini.”

Personally, Edmond preferred Xu Yini, but he understood the priorities and responsibilities of his position. His preference was insignificant compared to the overall decision of the whole of G&S.

Since Edmond had already made it clear, Xu Yini knew she had lost her chance.

She took a deep breath and swiftly adjusted the look on her face. She curved her lips into a smile.

“It's okay, I understand. The designs come first, right? Besides, I'm sure we will have a chance to work together in the future, right?”

Edmond opened his arms and hugged the girl.

“Oh, of course! I personally hope that we can work with you in the future. Your beauty should be displayed on the center stage.”

Xu Yini was not particularly happy about the praise.

It was just common flattery. It did not make up for the brand amba.s.sador t.i.tle that she had just lost.

It was safe to say that G&S would not be having another similar position or collaboration in the foreseeable future.

Xu Yini left.

In the car, Xu Yini looked gloomy.

Ever since her debut, she had never run into any problems before. She had always had a countless number of invites lined up for her attention.

It was the first time that she had put in so much effort into a role just to find out that her efforts still fell short in the end.

Aside from the defeat, she also felt embarra.s.sed.

There had been rumors in her circle saying that she would get the final offer and she had believed it.

With everything down the drain, how would people look at her now?

Qinqin, her a.s.sistant, sat beside her quietly.

It was Mei Li who broke the ice.

“Yini, it's just a brand amba.s.sador position. Besides, you are at the peak of your career. There are many other endors.e.m.e.nts we can get for you. This is just one of many. There might be a better offer waiting for you in the future.”

Xi Yini scoffed.

Mei Li's words were meant for a rookie in the industry. It was not Xi Yini's first day in s...o...b..z. She was no longer the ignorant girl that she once was.

“It seems like G&S thought highly of that winning designer. They've even decided to use the designs to debut in the Chinese market. Mei, do you have any information on that designer?” Xu Yini asked.

Mei Li shook her head. “G&S kept it confidential. Till now, no one knows anything about this mysterious designer. I think we will just have to wait for the press conference.”

“Fine. Maybe we will meet the designer then,” Xu Yini said after some thought.

Two days flew by in the blink of an eye.

The last paper of the midterm, English, was finally over.

Ning Li started to pack her things as the other students in the cla.s.s compared answers with one another.

“Hey, what did you guys write on the 5th question?”

“A?”

“Me too.

“I chose C!”

“Pei Song, what about you?!”

Pei Song answered without even looking, “B”

“NOOOO!”

“I'm finished!”

“Me too!”

“Wait, I have to ask Ning Li! Ning Li, what answer did you choose?”

Ning Li zipped her bag and stood up. “B.”

The others cried in grief.

They were okay with one genius choosing B but two geniuses that chose the same answer? It was almost certain that the correct answer for that question was B.

“Ah! Whatever! It's over anyway! It's a holiday tomorrow, let's just enjoy it first!”

“I've invited Duan Xu and his guys for a basketball match. Wanna come?”

“Me too!”

“Brother Pei, are you coming?”

The school gave the students a short break after the final paper and the teachers were quite lenient to the students during this grace period. The students even got access to the basketball court and fields.

He Xiaochen came over.

“Ning Li, they are going to the basketball court. Are you going to watch?”

Ning Li looked at the time.

“I'm on janitor duty today, I'll pa.s.s.”

She was not interested in watching boys run around with a ball.

He Xiaochen put her hands together and begged. “Come on! You don't always get chances like this! No matter how hard you study, you still have to relax at times!”

“You go ahead then, I'll drop by after I have finished with my janitor duty.”

He Xiaochen nodded vigorously.

“I'll wait for you at the basketball court!”

Pei Song zipped up his jersey and nodded at the boys.

“Let's go.”