Chapter 13: Expectation

The project briefing started at 2 PM. After lunch, Chi Lanyi smoked another cigarette under a tree beside the botanical garden.

Yet the sweetness of LEJIA gradually morphed into some sticky, cloying taste in his nerves. Thick, sweet, like the scent emitted when skin presses closely against skin.

That wasn’t LEJIA, but the taste Gao Rong had personally shoved into his mouth.

Chi Lanyi’s shoulders trembled as he stubbed out the cigarette. He wanted to find a place to rinse his mouth, but it was already 1:40 PM; he would be late if he didn’t go to the briefing.

Chi Lanyi hated this kind of compensatory transaction, yet he also felt he deserved compensation for the trouble Gao Yuanzhou had caused him. Torn by conflicting emotions, he walked sluggishly. It wasn’t until 2:02 PM that he arrived at the meeting room.

There were three other students at the briefing, two boys and one girl, all of whom had already arrived early.

Chi Lanyi only found the girl familiar. They had met before at an exhibition and chatted briefly. He knew this girl was named Solene, one of the top performers among the junior students.

Of the remaining two students, one was Asian, the other Caucasian. Chi Lanyi didn’t know them and could only roughly guess they were both juniors.

The Asian student had an extremely cold and meticulous demeanor. Upon seeing Chi Lanyi arrive two minutes late, he shot Chi Lanyi a sideways glare, his eyes full of disapproval for Chi Lanyi’s lax behavior.

Chi Lanyi didn’t look at that student. Chi Lanyi only thought, these three students were probably the original three selected by the incubator.

And he himself was just an extra added by the school to quell the controversy.

As expected, the three junior students started whispering among themselves again in the room. Only Chi Lanyi was excluded, out of place.

He even got looked at several times by that Caucasian student. The Caucasian student’s eyes clearly read: “What’s a sophomore doing here? Probably some mediocre nepotism case.”

Chi Lanyi simply pretended not to see. He looked down, playing with his fingers, just wanting to return to his apartment.

Thankfully, once the project briefing started, all the students shut their mouths. Present at the meeting were project mentors and corporate representatives, as well as school administrators. Every face was renowned to designers in the fashion industry.

When one of the project mentors spoke, Solene’s eyes even shimmered with the light of someone about to cry. Chi Lanyi remembered Solene mentioning this designer to him at last year’s exhibition. Solene had been a bit incoherent then, saying she absolutely adored her.

The Asian student kept his spine ramrod straight, as serious as a math prodigy, yet unable to conceal the underlying excitement. The Caucasian student constantly asked questions, afraid these people wouldn’t remember him.

Only Chi Lanyi remained silent throughout.

He found it hard to concentrate. He felt he really didn’t need to be here causing trouble. Without this “compensation,” he could still shine in the May competition.

Until the Caucasian student said: “Regarding the project, I have a question—I always thought this project only selected three students each year…”

Chi Lanyi knew he was referring to him, yet remained wordless.

The corporate representative on stage smiled: “In the past, due to limitations in funding and resources, we only selected three students from among the many excellent candidates. But this year, our incubator project has received wider recognition and gained sponsorship from a new investor.”

Chi Lanyi’s heart skipped a beat. The Caucasian student continued to ask: “Wow, a new investor?”

“Actually, three out of our four project mentors were hired by him at great expense. This afternoon, he was also supposed to attend this project briefing. However, just before the briefing started, he had a personal matter that prevented him from attending.”

The Caucasian student wore a slightly regretful expression. The other Asian student then spoke up calmly: “May we know who this investor is?”

“Of course. He is the founder of Mirror Bridge Capital, Gao Rong.”

Gao Rong.

Surname Gao.

A name that made Chi Lanyi’s fingers clench abruptly. His gaze wavered, unable to suppress the shock in his heart.

It was through such a method that he was forced to learn Gao Rong’s name.

Gao Rong was actually the new investor in this incubator project.

“I know that name.” It was still the Asian student analyzing calmly. “He is the most sought-after investment genius of the past decade, making a name for himself on Wall Street at the age of fifteen. But I’ve never heard of him being interested in the fashion industry.”

“Perhaps our incubator project is the start of his foray into this industry?” The corporate representative joked, “Alright, the introduction ends here. Let’s move on to the next project theme segment.”

The corporate representative explained the evaluation criteria, timeline, and final presentation format of the incubator project, finally arriving at the reward mechanism.

Everyone was holding their breath at the generous rewards. Only Chi Lanyi’s mood was more complicated than before.

Gao Rong.

He repeated this name silently in his heart.

Was it Gao Rong who recommended him for this project?

After the briefing ended, Chi Lanyi was still preoccupied. Just as he rose from his seat, the Asian male student sitting next to him extended his right hand.

“My name is Fang Heng. Very pleased to meet you.” The man said stiffly, “Chi Lanyi, I’ve heard of you.”

Chi Lanyi paused briefly, then offered a polite smile.

That Caucasian guy was still looking at him with unfriendly eyes. Chi Lanyi murmured: “I don’t know if that’s a good thing.”

“You’re very famous. You won the gold award in the school competition right after entering as a freshman. I only achieved that in the second semester of my sophomore year. After that, you participated in the Youth Design Competition in Paris and won first prize. Several fashion houses sent you internship invitations.” Fang Heng said, “If you don’t think that’s a good thing, I can only assume you’re deliberately acting smug in front of me.”

He spoke with the precision and sharpness of a mathematician. Chi Lanyi had never encountered a designer classmate with this kind of style before; he found it rather intriguing.

Chi Lanyi thought again, he seemed to have heard that name before… After a long while, he recalled it was from Zou Jun’s mouth.

“I only transferred to F University in my sophomore year; I previously studied at I University. It’s only natural that some classmates don’t know me.” Fang Heng said rigidly, “Of course, there will also be some fools who dislike me for it, thinking I stole their opportunities, or because I refused their unreasonable requests. It doesn’t matter. I won’t let them have any effect on me.”

No wonder Zou Jun used Fang Heng’s name as a cover. Chi Lanyi felt Zou Jun must have been rejected by Fang Heng too. Zou Jun disliked Fang Heng.

“Thank you.” Chi Lanyi said, “I’m also very pleased to meet you.”

Fang Heng didn’t acknowledge this remark. He just looked directly at Chi Lanyi, stating bluntly but proudly: “I know this project has always been open only to junior students. They made an exception to allow you, a sophomore, into the project. I don’t know if there are behind-the-scenes dealings involved. However, I also want you to know that design is determined by talent.”

Chi Lanyi paused. Fang Heng continued: “I will only respect talented ‘exceptions.’ Going forward, we will have a lot of contact due to the project. I hope you can first understand my code of conduct.”

“…” Chi Lanyi was silent for a moment, then said, “Then you can rest assured. Before the identity of a sophomore student, I am a designer.”

Fang Heng didn’t smile, though. He still looked at Chi Lanyi with strict scrutiny—even though he had already exchanged contact information with Chi Lanyi.

Then, he quickly walked back to start brainstorming his theme.

Solene also greeted Chi Lanyi—friendly, but purely out of politeness, also carrying a sense of puzzlement at Chi Lanyi’s presence here.

The other Caucasian guy didn’t give Chi Lanyi any kind looks at all. He appeared sunny and enthusiastic, but Chi Lanyi could feel his rejection.

Chi Lanyi left the office. Thinking about the incubator, thinking about Gao Rong, he was deeply troubled.

At the end of the corridor, the corporate representative stopped him with a pleasant expression: “Chi, if you have a moment, we can talk privately.”

Chi Lanyi halted.

“Mr. Gao has very high expectations for your work. He says you are a highly potential and promising fashion designer. On his and your course mentor’s strong recommendation, you were selected for this project.” The corporate representative said gently, “Perhaps you find it very unexpected. But we can assure you that the project’s process and subsequent steps are absolutely orderly and transparent. In the incubator, there will only be competition among designers with different talents, no malicious infighting.”

“…”

“We are also looking forward to seeing your performance.”

Is that so.

So, it was indeed Gao Rong.

What did that phrase “malicious infighting” mean? So, was this incubator project a gift from Gao Rong to compensate him for being dragged into the rumors by Gao Yuanzhou?

It was almost as if Gao Rong knew he wasn’t suited to compete in complex environments, so he specially brought him into a vacuum zone more conducive to his growth.

Chi Lanyi knew he should go to the studio. He had to prepare his coursework, prepare for the competition, and also prepare for this incubator project.

Before entering F University, Chi Lanyi could hardly imagine himself using his time so tightly. Even with his countless breakdowns, negativity, and disorientations interspersed within these schedules, he was always working hard, showing his abilities well.

Compared to the endless emptiness and internal friction during idle times, the pressure related to design was nothing. When the pressure was high, he would also hurt, but at least that pain made him feel he was still alive.

But today, in the studio, Chi Lanyi discovered for the first time that he absolutely couldn’t concentrate.

His hands started shaking again. Chi Lanyi continuously tried to push Gao Rong out of his mind. Whether it was the gaze watching him, the words teasing him, the cigarette forced into his mouth, or that incubator project.

Yet the outcome made him despair. Chi Lanyi thought despairingly, he was really attracted to Gao Rong.

He was a homosexual who had developed feelings for Gao Rong.

Chi Lanyi threw his water cup onto the floor. He used scissors to forcefully shred fabric, turning his shame over this impulse into a powerful destructive desire. Just as he began to endlessly sew the coaster, trying to melt this breakdown into his work, the studio door was flung open with a “Bang.”

“Anybody in here, is Chi Lanyi inside?!” Someone shouted loudly, “Chi Lanyi, Chi Lanyi… Ah! You’re here!”

It was a familiar voice.

Chi Lanyi paused. He looked down at the coaster, stunned at what exactly he was doing. The intruder, as if finding a savior, yelled loudly: “I’m Gao Yuanzhou, you still remember me, right? A few weeks ago, we met at school…”

Gao Yuanzhou shook his head and said, “Forget it, no time to explain. You’ve got to save me, you have to come with me, let’s go, quick!”

“What are you doing?”

Chi Lanyi dodged his hand. Gao Yuanzhou shouted: “My mom and my uncle are at war!”

“…And what does that have to do with me?”

Chi Lanyi said.

“What does it have to do with you… Are you genuinely clueless or just pretending! Right now, you’re the only one who can save my mom!” Gao Yuanzhou was completely frantic.