Chased by My Heartless Ex - Chapter 31

No sooner had she settled into her chair after coming up from the basement than Department Head Qiu notified the entire department to gather in the conference room to select the final drafts for the various outfits in the dress-up game.

Xu You didn’t even have time to take off the scarf around her neck before following Team Leader Qian into the conference room. Everyone sat according to their team groupings, and she found herself wedged between Team Leader Qian and Li Rui, feeling thoroughly awkward.

An assistant was adjusting the projector while Department Head Qiu stood by the screen with his arms crossed.

Xu You couldn’t shake a vague sense of unease, though she couldn’t pinpoint why. As the projector screen lit up, she pushed aside her worries, opened her notebook, and prepared to jot down anything useful.

“For this game design, we’ve again divided into several teams. As usual, we’ll start with the scenes…”

The design drafts submitted by each team member to the Department Head’s assistant had been categorized and compiled by team. In order, their styling design team was scheduled last. The Department Head sat opposite the projection screen while the assistant stood beside it, switching slides and offering brief prompts.

Halfway through the meeting, the central office air conditioning finally kicked in. A dry, warm gust blew directly onto Xu You’s face from the vent. Trying not to make much noise, she removed her scarf and draped it over the back of her chair. Before she could fully turn back, a low female voice whispered beside her ear.

“Tsk, you had quite the intense night, huh.”

Xu You ignored her, tugging at her collar to cover the skin that felt scorched under the other’s intense gaze, blocking her view.

For once, Li Rui didn’t press further or find some roundabout way to make things difficult. She let out a soft snort through her nose and chuckled, seemingly in a good mood.

The second-to-last team, character design, had just finished their selection. As the slides switched, Xu You pressed down hard on her pen, elbows propped on the table, bracing herself for the group’s judgment.

This was her first time since joining the company, and she was incredibly nervous.

“Let’s take a look at the final team’s styling designs. According to the client’s requirements, they’ve designed four series of outfits: Republican era, Western, Qing dynasty, and modern.”

The assistant spoke while scrolling with his index finger on the mouse. The layout shifted from a cover page to a collection of all team members’ works. As soon as everyone saw the last image in the first row and the last image in the fourth row, they gasped in unison.

Those near Department Head Qiu didn’t dare speak up, but murmurs started from the front rows, growing louder by the second.

“If I’m not mistaken, they’re identical.”

“No mistake about it. In our line of work, it’s obvious at a glance. Look at the cut, the colors, it’s practically copy-paste.”

“Who’s bold enough to plagiarize so blatantly?”

Department Head Qiu stared at the images on the slide, taken aback. He squinted, comparing them carefully for a few seconds. Confirming the designs were nearly ninety percent identical, he slammed the table and stood up.

He had used all his strength, and the slap against the wooden surface made the flesh on his face tremble. His glasses bounced on the bridge of his nose, and his chair shot back, hit the wall, and bounced forward again.

Faced with the minister’s fury, everyone fell silent.

Xu You stared in shock at the image identical to her own work. The murmurs around her snapped her back to reality. She calmed herself and compared every detail, they matched perfectly. Her heart sank, and her straight eyebrows furrowed tightly.

Department Head Qiu’s fiery gaze swept over the members of their team, his angry eyes scrutinizing each of them one by one.

“Who made these two charts? Stand up.” His low, furious roar echoed through the office, unsettling everyone.

Xu You quickly scanned the slides at the front once more, set down her pen, and stood up with her palms pressed against the table. The person beside her moved even faster, brushing past the fabric of her clothes and blocking the slanted projection light.

Their shadows formed two dark silhouettes on the screen, with the rightmost chart still visible.

“Did the company hire you to watch you pull these cheap tricks? You dare to disregard professional ethics in a public meeting, fooling yourselves and your colleagues, do you think you can pull this on our partners later? You two have no sense of your own limits.” Seeing Xu You and Li Rui stand up, Director Qiu showed no leniency just because they were women. Before the facts were clear, he criticized them both equally.

Everyone waited for their defense, other people’s drama was always the most entertaining.

“Director, I didn’t plagiarize.”

“Director Qiu, I didn’t.”

Xu You and Li Rui spoke simultaneously, each maintaining their own style, one sweet and cloying, the other cold and detached.

Department Head Qiu was too angry to be swayed by their tones. He shot them each a look, signaling them to prove their innocence.

“I have all my collected materials, layer creation times, and design concepts on my computer.” Li Rui’s long, sharp nails were painted black, complementing her red dress as she exuded confidence. She tapped the metal casing of her laptop, producing a clear, sharp sound. “I can bring it over right now, connect it, and show everyone.”

The colleagues exchanged glances. Her confidence in making everything public suggested that Xu You was the one guilty of plagiarism. With that thought, their disdainful gazes toward Xu You deepened.

Xu You inadvertently met Ouyang’s eyes across the room. “Bitch,” “slut”, one word written in each of her eyes, her mouth not idle as she mouthed at her:

You’re finished.

Li Rui handed her laptop to the assistant for setup, crossing her long legs under her short skirt, a smile playing on her lips as if she were watching a show.

Outside the window, thick snow had piled up, its reflected light casting everything in white. But no matter how white it was, it couldn’t compare to Xu You’s bloodless face. Seeing their expressions, her brow twitched, she had been set up.

Her eyes darkened, a gloomy aura surrounding her.

Li Rui wouldn’t dare do this unless she had prepared thoroughly to frame her. After years as classmates, almost everyone in the department knew about Xu You’s design process. With her meticulous attitude, she always conducted research before starting and had a habit of documenting everything in writing, just like the tasks Team Leader Qian had assigned her before, just like this project, just like today, which she had even presented in the meeting.

Written records, however, couldn’t establish a precise timeline and could easily be altered.

Li Rui had seized this loophole to stab her in the back.

As the assistant worked on the setup, Department Head Qiu stared at the motionless Xu You and let out a series of cold laughs.

He still remembered their first meeting during the final interview over half a month ago. This girl had an extraordinary aura and high professional standards, a rare talent. Though she had acted recklessly during the dinner, unable to flatter and making him lose face, he had genuinely seen potential in her.

Now, the treasure he had bet on had turned into scrap metal, or even worse. He snorted in anger, startling everyone, and then spoke.

“Xu You, do you know the consequences of plagiarism?”

Xu You met his eyes and nodded.

Li Rui’s computer was already connected to the conference room projector, clearly displaying the document’s creation time, multiple revision records, and the establishment and export of layers.

Solid evidence of plagiarism?

“Do you have anything to say about this?” Department Head Qiu pointed at the screen on the other end, his face expressionless.

Time seemed to pause. Xu You’s blank mind began racing rapidly. No matter how others viewed her, she had to find a way to clear her name.

Two knocks sounded at the door. Department Head Qiu shifted his gaze: “Come in.”

Zheng Ran entered carrying a large gift bag, wearing a surprised expression. Department Head Qiu slightly suppressed his anger upon seeing him.

“Assistant Zheng, what brings you here? Our department is in a meeting.”

Zheng Ran suddenly understood, handing the bags to his assistant: “Ah, with this cold snap and temperature drop, CEO Zhou asked me to bring some warmth for everyone. One for each person, please distribute them for me.”

“What’s going on here? Why so serious?” After handing over the items, he scanned the room and asked.

As Zhou Siyu’s assistant, Department Head Qiu couldn’t easily lose his temper and dismiss him. Impatiently, he gestured toward Xu You and Li Rui: “We’re dealing with intern issues. These two have been involved in plagiarism before even completing a month of work.”

“Ah, such a thing exists?” Zheng Ran feigned surprise. Having overheard some of it at the door, he had come in precisely to protect Xu You and uncover the truth.

Below, Ouyang received her share and made a veiled criticism: “Indeed, in a large forest, you find all kinds of birds.”

Department Head Qiu shot her a sidelong glance, and she shrugged.

“This is no small matter. Is there evidence pointing to them?” Zheng Ran paid no attention to the minor players, subtly exchanging a glance with Xu You to reassure her.

Li Rui tossed her long hair and coughed to attract Zheng Ran’s attention: “Brother Zheng, I’ve presented all my evidence. You can examine it anytime, computers don’t lie.”

“Please call me Assistant Zheng or Zheng Ran in the workplace,” Zheng Ran retorted bluntly. Then, turning to Department Head Qiu, he said, “Plagiarism can be a serious or minor issue. You know CEO Zhou dislikes these underhanded tactics.”

He paused, and Department Head Qiu nodded.

“But CEO Zhou dislikes even more seeing honest people being falsely accused,” he added meaningfully.

“Xu You, we don’t want to wrong you unfairly. If you have any evidence, now that Assistant Zheng is here, bring it out and let him judge it together,” Department Head Qiu, feeling the pressure, directly pulled Zheng Ran into the situation, making him part of the evaluation.

Xu You clenched her fists, her nails digging deeply into her palms. She had reviewed Li Rui’s various timestamps and calculated that hers indeed came later. But she refused to admit to something she hadn’t done.

“I-okay,” she murmured, her lips moving. “The materials are at my workstation. I’ll go get them now.”

Her steps were heavy, each footfall on the wooden floor producing a consistent, dull thud. As she reached the door and raised her hand, Zheng Ran spoke leisurely.

“Such a serious matter requires both of you to carefully recall everything… browser history, relevant chat records, anything that can prove your innocence. Don’t leave anything out.”

“Oh, right! Xiao Xu has chatted with me before. Let me see if I can export the chat history.”

Team Leader Qian, who had been holding her breath and tense until now, lit up at Zheng Ran’s hint. As she spoke, she pulled out her phone.

“No rush, we’ll review it together later,” Zheng Ran said, noticing the relief on Xu You’s face and the dissipating gloom. He nodded to her discreetly, his back to the others, and pretended to urge her, “Hurry back as soon as you can.”

“Should I contact President Zhou?”

The latter part was spoken softly, drowned out by the hum of the air conditioner, so only Xu You heard it.

Xu You shook her head, jogged back to her workstation to retrieve her laptop and manuscript, and asked an assistant to help her connect them.

“The creation dates of all my documents and images are later than Li Rui’s,” Xu You said, pulling up the file properties where the timestamps were clearly visible.

Li Rui, standing to the side, raised her eyebrows triumphantly.

Xu You shot her a glance, temporarily disconnected the screen, and began searching through her chat history with Team Leader Qian.

Someone complained, “Why did you turn off the screen? Trying to fake evidence right under our noses?”

Zheng Ran knew full well that Xu You’s contacts must include Zhou Siyu, but that relationship was currently being kept under wraps by both of them. There was no way she would open it for everyone to see and invite more speculation.

“To protect each other’s privacy. Once it’s pulled up, if anyone suspects it’s fabricated, I’ll immediately call in the tech department to verify,” Zheng Ran retorted, shutting down the criticism. The other person, intimidated and aware of their own motives, fell silent.

Xu You, oblivious to the exchange, focused on finding her earliest conversation with Team Leader Qian about this design. When she looked up, she had no idea what had just happened.

“Found it?” Department Head Qiu, who disliked Zheng Ran overpowering his team members, asked Xu You.

Xu You nodded and reopened the display. “After receiving the task of ten sketches, I discussed with Team Leader Qian. Since it was my first time, I wanted to learn some experience from her. Through our exchange, I decided to design ten outfits based on a timeline to showcase the evolution of clothing during the Republican era and highlight its characteristics through details.”

The chat history slowly scrolled, revealing that their conversation indeed revolved around eras and styles.

The screen froze as Xu You moved the cursor to the central gray time bar.

This date was earlier than any of the timestamps Li Rui had provided.

“This doesn’t prove you didn’t plagiarize,” Ouyang, acting as Li Rui’s pawn, spoke up again.

Xu You didn’t argue. She closed WeChat and opened her search browser to display her search history.

“When it comes to Republican-era clothing, most people think of cheongsam first. Cheongsam has four major schools. Since our game’s setting is the Qing dynasty, I chose the Beijing-style cheongsam as the prototype…”

As Xu You explained her creative process, she showcased her search history, with every point she mentioned clearly reflected in the records.

“Let me pull up the enlarged version of the disputed design draft. Everyone can compare it with what I’ve said and the search bar.”

Xu You focused intently on finding the image when Zheng Ran suddenly coughed, diverting part of the audience’s attention.

The screen split, with the enlarged image and the browser page each taking up half. Suppressed laughter erupted from below.

Confused, Xu You watched as the assistant, under Department Head Qiu’s instruction, scrolled up her browsing history. She finally saw what had been overlooked in the corner.

[Zhihu Q&A: How to get my girlfriend to come home?]

With the assistant exposing it, the laughter broke free. Xu You’s face burned as if about to explode, and she quickly stepped aside.