At the same time, not far from the committee headquarters, stood a luxury hotel.
A tall figure dressed in black stood by the second-floor window, gazing intently in Qiao Xi’s direction from afar.
Whether it was Qiao Xi arguing with the security guard or the moment the two nearly came to blows, there was not the slightest change in Nangong He’s expression.
Like a detached observer with no stake in the matter, he kept his hands casually tucked into his pockets the entire time.
Just then, Mo Hua hurried over and leaned close to whisper a few words into Nangong He’s ear.
“Her design was submitted, but it failed to pass the preliminary selection, so she came here demanding an explanation.”
Nangong He’s brows furrowed slightly, and a trace of impatience appeared on his coldly handsome face.
Parting his thin lips, he quietly gave a few instructions, and Mo Hua immediately nodded.
After speaking, Nangong He turned around indifferently and strode back into the hotel room as if nothing had happened.
Once Mo Hua received the order, he quickly pulled out his phone and made a call.
Only after personally seeing the guard let Qiao Xi go did he finally turn and leave in relief.
“Sorry about that, Miss Qiao. We may have offended you earlier. The chief judge is inviting you inside now,” the security guard said respectfully as he released her hand.
Qiao Xi was stunned, unable to process the guard’s sudden change in attitude.
Still, no matter what, at least the violent confrontation had been avoided.
However, less than fifteen minutes later, she walked back out of the committee building.
The words the chief judge had told her continued echoing in her mind, leaving her unable to recover for a long time.
Her design draft had never even been included among the submissions for the preliminary round.
She had clearly compressed the design files into a package and sent them to her boss earlier. How could they possibly be missing?
Frowning deeply, Qiao Xi dialed her boss’s number, but nobody answered.
She called three or four times in a row without getting any response, as if he had vanished off the face of the earth.
But there were still so many employees waiting at the studio. There was no way he could have simply packed up and disappeared.
Still unwilling to give up, Qiao Xi hailed a taxi and rushed straight back to the studio.
Today, she was determined to get to the bottom of this.
The office door was slightly ajar, and she pushed it open without hesitation.
“Do you need something?” Seeing who it was, the boss’s eyes flashed briefly with panic.
“Why did you withhold my work and make me lose my qualification to compete?” Qiao Xi asked bluntly, unwilling to waste time with nonsense.
The boss was a dark-skinned, overweight man with narrow eyes and a shifty appearance.
Pretending not to understand what she meant, he frowned and put on an act of thoughtful confusion.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. You were representing our studio in the competition. What benefit would I gain from withholding your work?”
Even at this point, he was still pretending ignorance.
Clearly, he wouldn’t give up until he was backed into a corner.
Qiao Xi stepped forward, her face full of mockery.
“Besides me, the only person who handled the final draft was you. If it wasn’t your doing, are you saying I deliberately framed you myself?”
The boss’s face darkened.
“What kind of attitude is that? I’ve been polite to you because the studio needs staff. Don’t push your luck!”
“This is the proof issued by the chief judge. Open your eyes and take a good look!” Qiao Xi snapped coldly. “It’s written clearly in black and white, with the official seal stamped on it. My design was never submitted at all!”
The reason she had joined this studio in the first place was simply to have an official affiliation for entering the competition. She didn’t care in the slightest about falling out with this boss.
As soon as she finished speaking, she raised her hand and flung the document she had received from the chief judge straight at his face.
The boss’s expression changed slightly. Catching the papers, he quickly flipped through several pages, his face gradually turning pale.
He hadn’t expected this woman, who seemed so ordinary, to actually have the ability to reach the chief judge directly.
It seemed he had underestimated her.
“There must be some misunderstanding here. Don’t panic yet. The preliminary review stage isn’t over. I’ll go—”
Qiao Xi interrupted him calmly but firmly.
“There’s no need. Give me your phone. I’m going to personally watch my work get submitted.”
“Otherwise, I’ll immediately report this to the committee and accuse someone of corruption, bribery, and rigging the competition before it even begins. Then nobody will get to compete.”
The boss’s face instantly turned extremely ugly.
“Don’t spread nonsense! You have no evidence. What gives you the right to accuse me of cheating?”