Chapter 72
Chapter 72
It really was her design!
Plagiarized down to the very last detail.
“How does it look, Nat? Could you confirm anything?” Joyce badgered her over the phone. Owned by NôvelDrama.Org.
Returning to her senses, Natalie turned to check the designer’s signature at the lower right corner of the design. She went livid when she saw Jasmine’s watermark. She picked up the phone again and held it to her ear, her words as cold as ice as she scowled, “Yes, confirmed. It’s definitely her!”
She had always known that Jasmine was a repeated plagiarist, but she never thought that one day, she would fall victim to that woman’s crime. The piece of work, which Jasmine copied off her, had been assigned to her by her mentor a year ago, with the theme being autumn.
Back then, she had designed about twenty pieces. Her mentor only fancied eight of them, deeming the rest to be behind the times. He had told her to discard them, but she couldn’t bear to discard her hard work. So, Natalie registered a secret account on a social media website for the sole purpose of honoring her designs, which she uploaded as a memento.
She did not expect Jasmine to discover her creations!
“Alright, Nat. We have proof that she copied off you. Let’s expose her to the competition organizer!” Joyce exclaimed angrily with her fist clenched.
Natalie bit her lower lip, “No, we can’t!”
“Why not?” Joyce was confused.
Natalie took a breath in. “Because Jasmine plagiarized Mina’s work, not mine. I’ve promised my mentor that I would not come out as Mina before I could make a name for myself in the local art scene!”
“So we’re going to let Jasmine go, just like that?” Joyce pronounced indignantly.
Natalie scoffed, “Do you think I’d do that? The only things I cannot tolerate at all in my life are theft and plagiarism. Since Jasmine dared to commit these crimes, I’ll certainly not let her go so easily. She likes copying, doesn’t she? Then she can do it to her heart’s content!”
“Nat, do you mean…” Joyce began, her eyes glinting with excitement.
The corners of Natalie’s lips curled slightly upwards as she smirked, “It’s exactly what you’re thinking.”
Jasmine had little talent for design, to begin with. The only reason she achieved her current status was primarily due to her acts of plagiarism. She won first place in the regionals this time, and she would surely find ways to plagiarize some more in the upcoming elimination round.
In that case, Natalie could upload more designs onto her social media platform, allowing Jasmine to copy. When the Golden Feather Award finals rolled around, Project Rebirth would have gained great success. Then Natalie would have the reputation she needed to come out as Mina, accuse Jasmine of plagiarism, and ruin that woman’s career once and for all!
With that plan in mind, Natalie hung up the phone and went onto the Golden Feather Awards official website to check on the theme for the next session. She was ready to set a trap for Jasmine.
It was at that moment that Jasmine marched into the office, clapping her hands. “Everyone, stop what you’re doing!”
The people in the office put their work aside and stared at her.
Natalie did the same too.
Jasmine had a smile on her face and seemed to be feeling quite grand. “Party at eight o’clock tonight at the Rose Booth of Sunrise Hotel. My treat. Anyone who doesn’t come is just going to make me look bad.”
Naturally, everyone in the room nodded their heads profusely. Some even murmured in surprise. “Ms. Jasmine, do you have any good news to announce?”
“Dummy, didn’t you watch the Golden Feather Awards announcement today? Ms. Jasmine won first place in the J City regionals! “
“That’s right!” Jasmine cast an appreciative look at the person in the back. “I’m ecstatic to have won first place, so I’m going out of my way to invite all of you to dinner.”
Upon hearing that, everyone else quickly stepped forward to congratulate Jasmine. Only Natalie remained in her seat, wryly observing the scene in front of her.
You only got the first place because you copied my work, and here you are proudly showing off without a shred of shame!
While Natalie was immersed in her thoughts, Jasmine suddenly turned to look at her. “Ms. Natalie, it seems you aren’t very pleased about my win. Is that right?”
Natalie got to her feet and replied with a straight face, “No, not at all. You’ve misunderstood me, Ms. Jasmine. I was just thinking about other matters.”
“Oh? Then may I know what’s on your mind?” Jasmine looked at her as she stroked her bright, red nails.
Natalie nodded, her eyes fixed on Jasmine. “Of course. I was wondering why your design style varies so much from before. Care to explain, Ms. Jasmine?”