Qiao Qiao finished refining the details at her workstation and immediately took the manuscript to Shi Xinxin's office.
She handed over the design and said, "Ms. Shi, I've made some minor changes to areas I felt were lacking. Please see if this works."
Shi Xinxin's gaze fell upon the design draft, and her eyes lit up. She was clearly much more satisfied than before, nodding, "Good. It seems your further studies have been very fruitful. You understand color matching and shades."
Qiao Qiao smiled shyly at such high praise from Shi Xinxin.
Shi Xinxin examined it closely for a few more moments. The theme of the design draft fit the competition's title, and the color scheme was also quite appropriate, with no significant flaws.
However, to ensure absolute precision, she handed the design draft back to Qiao Qiao and said, "Take this design draft to the design department and ask Sana and the other veterans. They'll likely offer a more precise assessment. But I believe this is already perfect."
Qiao Qiao had no objections and took the design draft to the design center.
The design center was very quiet, with most designers engrossed in their work. Qiao Qiao's footsteps in the hallway seemed rather loud.
She subconsciously lightened her steps and approached a seasoned designer's office with the design draft.
She knocked, and a voice from inside replied, "Come in."
Upon seeing Qiao Qiao, the person seated at the desk looked somewhat surprised, "What brings you here?"
Qiao Qiao pursed her lips and walked over, "Teacher Si Li, this is my design draft. I'd like to consult you. I hope I'm not taking up too much of your time?"
Hearing it was a design draft, Si Li's gaze shifted from the computer to Qiao Qiao's hands, a thoughtful expression on her face. "It doesn't seem like there are any new products requiring drafts recently. Where did you get this design draft?"
Realizing the design draft needed to remain confidential, Qiao Qiao instinctively started to say, "This is my personal..."
Si Li interrupted her, "It's a design draft for the Shi Luo competition, isn't it?"
Since she had stated it so clearly, continuing to hide it would be awkward. Qiao Qiao could only nod and admit it.
Si Li's expression turned a little colder, though she didn't show it much.
She curved her lips slightly, "Since it's for a competition, I naturally can't refuse your request. Let me see it."
Qiao Qiao breathed a sigh of relief and quickly handed over the design draft.
The moment Si Li saw the design draft, her eyes slightly froze, and her hand holding the pen paused.
Qiao Qiao asked in confusion, "Teacher Si Li? Is something wrong?"
Si Li forced a smile and gripped the design draft tighter, her fingertips pressing hard. "I'm fine. I just suddenly feel a bit thirsty. Could you go get me a glass of water?"
Since this was a consultation, Qiao Qiao readily agreed and hurried towards the water dispenser.
While she was bending down to pour water, Si Li's eyes, moments ago filled with warmth, turned cold, and a surge of jealousy rushed into her heart.
"Teacher Si Li, here is your warm water," Qiao Qiao placed the cup on the table, still cheerful.
Si Li's face had completely lost its previous demeanor. She nodded, "Thank you. But I see many problems with your design draft. Not only is the combination chaotic, but you don't even understand the most basic principles of color."
Qiao Qiao was taken aback. Ms. Shi had praised her color and combination skills just moments ago. Why did Si Li now consider them the worst?
Qiao Qiao had a rough idea forming in her mind. She lowered her eyes, "Teacher Si Li, I came sincerely to seek your guidance. You..."
Si Li slammed the design draft onto the table, "What do you mean by that? Are you implying I'm not treating your request seriously?"
Qiao Qiao tenderly took back the design draft, which was now creased at the edges, and bit her lip, "That's not what I meant. I just hoped for some precise pointers."
Si Li's face darkened completely. She put her hands on her hips, "I've been at CL for five years. With that experience, I'm bound to be better than you, a newcomer!"
Hearing the mention of experience and seniority, Qiao Qiao immediately lost her confidence.
Si Li scoffed, "Don't think you're so great just because you can draw a design draft for a competition. Your draft might get lost in the sea of submissions, and it could all be for nothing!"
Thinking of the scenario she described, and Ms. Shi's potential disappointment and helplessness, Qiao Qiao frowned, "That's not true. Ms. Shi personally praised this design draft. It won't be buried as you say."
Seeing Qiao Qiao's stubborn refusal to concede, Si Li sneered, "Only an intern who's been here for a few months would have such audacious confidence."
Qiao Qiao's face turned cold. She ignored Si Li's continued sarcastic remarks and turned to leave.
Si Li's voice followed, "I don't know how you became the Director of the Design Department. It seems to be just a title. You should spend more time learning from seniors and less time showing off in front of me."
Qiao Qiao pursed her lips and left without a word, opening the door.
Just seconds after she left, Si Li leaned back in her office chair, pulled out her phone from under the desk, and a smile slowly spread across her lips.
By the time Shi Xinxin received Qiao Qiao's message, she was already in a remedial class.
Beside her, three little boys hung their heads, each looking like a wilted head of lettuce.
Shi Xinxin crossed her arms. If she hadn't gone home unexpectedly, she wouldn't have discovered what these three were up to during their online classes!
The teacher was earnestly explaining on screen, while they, on the other hand, were busily engaged in their own activities in different corners. Though they were all engaged in high-intelligence pursuits.
"Teacher Li, please wait a moment. I need to check a message."
Shi Xinxin glanced at the message from Qiao Qiao. Qiao Qiao said everyone at the company was busy and couldn't spare time, so she was taking the afternoon off to visit an art exhibition at the museum.
Shi Xinxin readily approved her leave.
Her gaze then returned to the three little boys. "Tell me, what were you doing during Teacher Li's online class?"
Xiao Qian, showing the most sincere remorse, spoke first, "We had already mastered the knowledge from this lesson and found it boring, so we casually played with computer engineering."
Shi Xinxin said with a half-smile, "Alright. The other two, continue to explain yourselves."
Xiao Yu sighed, "I just thought computer programming looked fun, so I casually gave it a try."
Xiao Jie nodded in agreement, "I was diligently solving math problems. I found five different solutions for one problem."
The more Shi Xinxin listened to these children, the more she felt something was off.
She stealthily glanced at Teacher Li standing nearby, then back at them, and bit her lip, "Are you admitting your mistakes, or are you showing off to us?"
The children lowered their heads again, appearing ready to be disciplined.
Their chubby infant faces were filled with an innocence that made them look as pathetic as possible.