Chapter 529: Simply an Unfinished Blueprint

Chapter 529: Chapter 529: Simply an Unfinished Blueprint

Soon, Ms. Foster revealed Claire’s competition entry to the public.

"Since Miss Yeats demands justice, I assume she won’t mind making this public so that more people can judge our panel," she announced.

Claire gritted her teeth. Still, she felt there was absolutely nothing wrong with the design. It was Ember’s work. Back then, these very people had hailed Ember as an unparalleled genius. They couldn’t possibly go back on their word after only three years!

The design was displayed both at the venue and on the livestream.

[Holy crap!! So beautiful!!!]

[What is this? *Stepping on Snow and Seeking Plum Blossoms*?]

[It’s so pretty... So why did this design only get a 4.9? This proves it’s unfair, right?]

The contestants at the venue gasped in awe upon seeing it. Claire secretly breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed everything was fine. At the very least, everyone was stunned by its beauty, which meant the judging panel would be the ones facing scrutiny, not her.

"Does Miss Yeats think this is quite a good design?" Ms. Foster asked coldly.

Claire bit her lower lip gently, maintaining her quiet dignity. "Ms. Foster, I don’t know why you’re deliberately finding fault with me. I believe my design is superior to those of most contestants here. I don’t think I’m the only one who feels this way. You can ask the others for their opinions."

Several contestants lowered their heads. Although Claire’s words were abrasive, they were true. This *Stepping on Snow and Seeking Plum Blossoms* jewelry set was truly exceptional.

"Miss Yeats is certainly confident. I hope you can maintain that confidence moving forward," Ms. Foster sneered.

By this time, a few people had already noticed something amiss and frowned slightly. In the livestream, many viewers were scrutinizing the design, including designers from various studios who hadn’t participated in the competition.

[Why do I feel like it’s a bit weird... Not very harmonious...]

[It’s not that the completion rate is low, or that the design is ugly, it’s just...]

[It feels like a piece is missing, right?]

[Yes, exactly! That’s the feeling. It just seems like it’s not a complete set. It’s hard to explain; I can’t quite put my finger on it.]

Unaware that people were already starting to doubt her, Claire put on a look of forbearance and humiliation. "Ms. Foster, if you think there’s something wrong with it, you can just say it straight. Don’t fob me off with excuses about how everyone thinks it’s bad. I don’t believe that out of so many judges, not a single one liked my design."

"Actually, we all love your design," Ms. Foster said.

Claire was utterly indignant. "Then why did you—"

"So Miss Yeats still doesn’t understand where the flaw in this jewelry design lies? During the first round of scoring, the average score given by all the judges for this design of yours was a 9.9."

Claire’s breath hitched, her eyes widening in disbelief. A 9.9?! Then why on earth had they deducted five points from her?!

Zion Yeats also grew anxious. He stood up abruptly and said sternly, "Ms. Foster, if the design competition is maliciously targeting Claire, the Yeats family will definitely defend her to the end!"

"Don’t be hasty, Old Mr. Yeats," Ms. Foster said calmly. "It scored a 9.9 in the first round. But in the second round, after the judges had more time to study it, your average score dropped to a 5. Miss Yeats, let alone the judges, I believe that if given a little more time, the designers present here could also see exactly what flaw is hiding beneath this stunning facade."

"Huh..." The contestant who had won second place suddenly frowned.

The other contestants also seemed to have noticed something amiss. "This..."

The contestants in the stands were taken aback and began whispering among themselves. "Would Claire... would Ember make this kind of mistake?"

"Yeah... It’s so strange..."

Claire bit her lip hard. What mistake had she made? What flaw did this design possibly have? There was none at all!

"To think Miss Yeats still hasn’t figured it out," Ms. Foster sneered coldly. "Is this truly the acuity of the previous champion, the genius contestant Ember?"

"You..." Claire gritted her teeth.

Old Mrs. Yeats glared furiously, looking as if she wanted to charge forward and throttle Ms. Foster, along with Estelle Lockwood. She firmly believed this was all a setup orchestrated by them. Claire was so outstanding; how could she possibly make a mistake!

Claire clenched her fists, her body trembling. She couldn’t understand why all these people were kicking her while she was down. She thought, "Yes, it must be because they’re jealous of me! I am the previous champion, so these contestants want nothing more than to trample me to death so they’ll have one less competitor in the future. So vicious!"

Claire insisted, "Ms. Foster, if you have something to say, please say it straight. I don’t think there are any flaws in my design!"

Ms. Foster gave a cold laugh.

A contestant standing nearby couldn’t seem to watch this continue and hesitantly pointed out, "Miss Yeats... Is this design of yours... unfinished?"

Claire’s spine stiffened abruptly! Once one person spoke up, more and more people began to chime in.

"Yeah... This design seems to only be half-finished?"

"The title is *Stepping on Snow and Seeking Plum Blossoms*, but there are very few elements of ’snow.’ The plum blossom elements seem too heavy..."

"The two focal points of *Stepping on Snow and Seeking Plum Blossoms* are stepping on snow and seeking plum blossoms."

"The plum blossoms are what need to be sought. Against the overwhelming blanket of snow, the plum blossoms should be profound and hidden—a single touch of red amidst ten thousand snow-white mountains. Since it’s ’seeking’ plum blossoms, shouldn’t the design reflect the word ’seek’?"

"Actually, there’s a lot of variety when it comes to designing around *Stepping on Snow and Seeking Plum Blossoms*. It’s perfectly fine to highlight the plum blossoms, but the focal point of this design..."

The crowd paused before concluding, "Is clearly not the plum blossoms."

Ms. Foster scoffed. "Exactly. Take the bracelet for instance. The design for this bracelet uses gold wire entwined to look like branches, embellished with red plum blossoms. But as you can see, the plum blossoms don’t carry much weight in the bracelet.

"So, is the focal point of *Stepping on Snow and Seeking Plum Blossoms* the branches? Obviously not.

"Since the focal point isn’t the branches, and the plum blossoms don’t carry much weight, Miss Yeats, tell me, where is the focal point of this *Stepping on Snow and Seeking Plum Blossoms* design?"

Before she could reply, someone else answered for her. "It’s the snow."

Claire’s expression froze instantly! A bad premonition suddenly surfaced, spreading throughout her entire body along with a chill from the soles of her feet.

She panicked, thinking, "An unfinished design...? No, impossible! How could this *Stepping on Snow and Seeking Plum Blossoms* design be unfinished?! I’ve found both the design concept and the drafts. I’m certain this is Ember’s completed work!

"This is clearly Ember’s mistake. It’s Ember’s design focus that went off track. How can they blame me!"

"Looking at this jewelry set based on the existing bracelet and earrings, it seems the creator wanted to depict plum blossoms hidden in a blizzard, evoking the poetic imagery of ’a subtle fragrance permeating the snow.’ Therefore, the snow is of the utmost importance," Ms. Foster stated. "Miss Yeats... This is your own design. The work was born from your pen, yet you’ve never once considered its underlying concept?"

Claire gritted her teeth fiercely. "Actually, I never thought of it that way. My focus was precisely on highlighting the red plum blossoms..."

Ms. Foster interrupted mildly, "Then I’m even more curious. Why would the direction of the design differ from the creator’s own thoughts?"