I called out to Lin Chen just as he reached the door. My dad turned to look at me, too.
“Is this the one you’re looking for?”
In the living room, I spread out a huge sheet of draft paper.
On the day of the exam, when Lin Chen came to pick me up, he’d tossed his design draft into our trash can.
In my last life, Aunt Li had thrown it out, thinking it was garbage.
But this time, I’d retrieved it.
The giant sheet was now laid out in front of everyone, Lin Chen’s name and his company’s stamp clearly visible in the corner.
“This is it… this…” Lin Chen’s face went from white to red and back again.
“Uncle, Yun Qing, I need to take this back to my company for the next steps. My boss just called—there are still some changes to be made,” he stammered, trying to make a quick exit.
“Lin Chen, didn’t you just say this was already the final version?” I blocked his way, refusing to let him slip out.
The draft that had been sitting in our living room was so unprofessional that even Aunt Li could tell.
“Oh, so this was it! When I was taking out the trash, I opened it and looked… I never imagined it was a real design draft…”
Aunt Li was quick to defend herself, clearly anxious.
Honestly, calling it a child’s drawing would be an insult to children.
My dad awkwardly tried to make excuses for Lin Chen, but Lin Chen quickly folded the draft paper and stuffed it into his bag.
“Uncle, Yun Qing, I’ll head out now…”
“Aunt Li, close the door!”
“Anyone can leave today—except you, Lin Chen!” I said coldly.
My dad looked at me in confusion. “Lin Chen still has to rush back and finish his draft. What are you doing?”
“Hand it over—the thing you shouldn’t be taking with you,” I said, extending my hand and fixing Lin Chen with a frosty stare.
The security guards from the villa community, alerted by my call, arrived at the door, holding their batons.
Left with no choice, Lin Chen handed over the documents he’d taken from my dad’s study.
My father’s face turned red with rage. “You… you’re hopeless! How could you do something like this as a university student?”
I picked up the remote and turned up the volume on the TV.
On screen, Xu Yiran was being interviewed.
“Xu Yiran, can you share your thoughts and advice on the recent hot topic of ‘intellectual property theft’?”
“No matter the type of creation—writing or blueprints—if someone steals another’s work, the thief should unconditionally apologize to the original creator. As a future Minghua University student, I always remind myself of our school motto: ‘Act with integrity, achieve with diligence.’ Being genuine and down-to-earth is the foundation of everything!”
“The exam results will be released soon, and the mask covering plagiarism will be torn away. I believe the punishment for such behavior should be even more severe!”
The audience erupted in cheers, with words like “Lin Chen,” “Minghua University,” and “perfect match” floating through the air.
Aunt Li looked at me nervously. “Yun Qing, every time Xu Yiran mentions Minghua University, someone in the audience shouts Lin Chen’s name. Does she know him?”
“Xu Yiran said she’s Lin Chen’s ex-girlfriend. Is she following you around because she knows you like to steal things?”
“I… I’m not…” Lin Chen tried to defend himself.
“Enough!” my dad barked.
“Leave. And don’t ever come to see Yun Qing again!”
Lin Chen slunk out, covering his face in shame.
Money, reputation—I was determined to make sure he lost everything.
But this wasn’t enough.
Chapter 10
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