A series of gasps echoed in the hall with Guiying feeling the most dread. To hear all three judges choose Ai with not a single vote on her side was a crushing blow to her heart.
Jun smirked as he placed his palms on the railing as Mrs. Qing delivered the news that shut Zhan Yahui right up. His brown eyes glinted with iciness, determined to give Ai justice.
Mrs. Qing, with a stern countenance, continued, "CherryBlossom and MissImperfectlyFine indeed had a tough competition. They both executed their stories very well. The strong message that CherryBlossom gave through her story resonated and made its impact. Don't judge a book by its cover. We have heard this many times, but she has demonstrated through her story effectively.
There were a lot of details and plot that could have gone wrong with the limitation to put everything in a short story. But she did a good job. I loved the strong protagonist. Despite the betrayal, she didn't fall weak, neither did she lose her faith in love and closed her heart. That's what we all need to know. One bad experience shouldn't dictate our decisions."
Everybody slowly nodded their heads. Guiying faintly smiled with her words.
"However, I felt MissImperfectlyFine's story had a great edge over hers. The life of the protagonist wasn't explicitly stated with the events which arose open questions and an open ending, making me anticipate what happened next. The use of nameless characters was striking. The duality of rebirth was interesting. The way she described the male protagonist was charming.
And how she confessed was heart pounding. It felt as if MissImperfectlyFine was confessing herself to someone present here."
Ai coughed. But hearing Mrs. Qing's thoughts on her story filled her heart with happiness. She respected Mrs. Qing a lot. She was also a romance author like her, and her books had been very inspiring for Ai as a writer.
For such an acclaimed and respected writer to speak such good words about her work, there was nothing else that Ai wanted more.
"There were a lot of elements she covered in her story, carefully binding each thread to one another perfectly without messing it up. The journey of the female protagonist in her quest to find what love meant and how she discovered different forms of love is what I loved the most," she softly smiled.
Mrs. Qing observed the confused expressions. She randomly pointed at a woman and asked her, "Who do you like?'
She flustered and answered. "I-I don't. I haven't fallen in love yet…"
Mrs. Qing smiled. "This is what I meant. I didn't specifically ask from a romantic point of view. Don't you like your parents? Don't you like your siblings?
"Yes. When I asked the question, you could have said that you like your family and friends. But people assume that love always has to mean romance. That is not true. Today is Valentine's Day. But does this day limit only couples to express their love?
Or for only two lovers to come together?
Can two friends or two siblings not express their affection for each other? Can parents not have a good time with their children? Valentine's Day signifies love. But it's not only romantic love. It is meant for all forms of love. That's what 'She' discovered.
Love is family. Love is friendship. Love is togetherness. That struck my heart the most. It's what we tend to forget which 'She' reminded me that tonight."
As the realization struck everyone, their hearts were filled with guilt. Everyone was guilty of assuming Valentine's Day for only couples. But when Mrs. Qing pointed out, they agreed that this day was meant to express love whichever form it came. They missed this part in Ai's story which after realization struck them hard.
Mrs. Qing was satisfied as everybody seemed to hold the same opinion. "That's why, for me, I voted for MissImperfectlyFine. These two…" she lowered her gaze to look at the two judges, "also were of the same opinion as me. When MissImperfectlyFine was telling her story, they were praising her too.
During the short break, I went outside to attend a call, and I assumed we would unanimously choose her as the winner. But they disappeared and after I returned, I haven't seen them since. Now, I came to know that they wanted to choose CherryBlossom? That wasn't what it seemed to me when we were discussing. I don't know what changed their minds. Both of them at once."
Xing Bi heaved a big sigh of relief. With one judge on their side, it was now impossible to twist the incident any other way. She beamed at Ai.
"Did you hear what she said? All three of them wanted to choose you!"
Ai touched her chest and felt it rapidly beating. Her face turned redder with how Mrs. Qing praised her story.
Xing Bi smirked and glanced at Zhan Yahui. "Now will you still say that we are plotting? Or will you accuse that we bribed Mrs. Qing?"
Mrs. Qing narrowed her eyes. "I hope nobody comes to this conclusion." ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ꜰʀᴏᴍ noⅴelfire.net
The emcee and the others shivered with the iciness in her voice. She wasn't a person who could be bribed. Her reputation only held humility and dignity.
Zhan Yahui gritted her teeth but kept her silence. There was no way anybody could offend her.
"I am quite disappointed to know this," Mrs. Qing sharply accused the two judges. "You betrayed the integrity of such a prestigious Summit for money. You don't deserve to be in this industry at all. On top of that, you got violent with a woman. That's shameful."
Everybody was now furious at such blatant cheating.
"Yes! Throw them out!"
After Xing Bi and Nian's testimony and Mrs. Qing's witness too, there was no doubt about the guilt. Furthermore, Nian also ordered the camera footage from outside the room where it was clearly seen that the judges tried to forcefully grab Xing Bi.
The emcee apologetically said, "It's unfortunate how the event turned out today. I have received a message from the management and assure you that we will fully investigate this matter and release a statement to the press. Until then…Mrs. Qing, can we take it as that the winner of the Authors' Summit is MissImperfectlyFine?"
Mrs. Qing smiled and nodded. "Indeed. That was our decision from the beginning had not two judges gotten corrupted," she walked up to Ai and said, "Congratulations, MissImperfectlyFine for winning the Authors' Summit."