Chapter 136 The Thief Cries Stop Thief
The competition on stage continued. The first piece received a high score of 88 points from the experts.
Next was the second piece. It was also strong, but clearly lacked some talent and inspiration, so it only scored 80 points.
Then, the third piece appeared on the screen. As soon as it did, everyone in the venue gasped in surprise. Some who had a deeper understanding of design immediately stood up, their eyes shining with joy, and exclaimed in disbelief.
At the same time, Liu Ran also looked incredulous. She stared at the third piece on the big screen, shaking her head repeatedly, murmuring, "Impossible, this is absolutely impossible, how can this be?"
Gao Juan and others also wore expressions of disbelief. Gao Juan said, "Huh, this piece seems to be Wu Yuqing's. I didn't expect Wu Yuqing's talent to be so good. Her design for our centennial Qingzhou University's emblem is simply perfect."
Students from other design schools also lowered their heads, their faces filled with shock. "Indeed, Wu Yuqing's progress in the past few years has been too great! This piece she designed is too obviously strong, with talent, inspiration, and beauty. The key is that it's so simple, yet it perfectly expresses the spiritual connotation of our centennial Qingzhou University. It's simply terrifying."
"A piece of writing is naturally formed; it's an accidental masterpiece! This time, Wu Yuqing's work is truly outstanding. I have to admire her. Although I don't like that woman Wu Yuqing, I have to say her piece today has completely conquered my heart!"
Gao Juan and the others discussed amongst themselves and then simultaneously looked at Liu Ran. Seeing Liu Ran's expression, Gao Juan's heart sank. She cautiously asked Liu Ran, "What's wrong? Liu Ran, do you also think Wu Yuqing's work is very strong? Is your work also inferior to this piece?"
Other students beside them sighed, saying, "Liu Ran, you don't need to be discouraged. This piece is too strong. It must be that Wu Yuqing performed exceptionally well, or she found many experts to design it beforehand. It's normal that you can't surpass her in just one night."
"Yes, yes, Liu Ran, don't worry too much about gains and losses. Just fail this time. Getting into the top three is enough; you don't have to fight for first place."
"Let Wu Yuqing be smug this time. After all, her piece is indeed amazing. We'll find another opportunity to defeat her next time."
The students around them all comforted Liu Ran.
However, Liu Ran's expression remained one of extreme surprise and horror.
Her body trembled incessantly.
Liu Ran shook her head and said incredulously, "No, it's not that. I'm not incredulous because Wu Yuqing's work is good. It's because Wu Yuqing's piece is too, too similar to my designed work."
"Although it's not entirely the same, the spiritual core, the brushwork, and the underlying ideas are completely consistent. How is this possible? Why are Wu Yuqing's work and my work so similar?"
Upon hearing this, Gao Juan uttered an incredulous sound. She frowned and said, "What? Are you implying that Wu Yuqing plagiarized your work?"
Liu Ran immediately shook her head and said, "I don't know, I didn't say that. But her piece is too similar to the work I designed, how can this be?"
Just then, the three judges on stage also cried out in admiration. Then, the three judges simultaneously awarded Wu Yuqing's design full marks.
This meant that Wu Yuqing's design had already secured victory, and no one could surpass it.
At this point, Principal Li Chenghui stood up. His face showed a look of admiration. He gave a thumbs-up to everyone in the auditorium and said, "Esteemed guests, this is truly brilliant. Wu Yuqing's work has shown me the hope of surpassing the world's top masters. Although this piece still has flaws, the talent it embodies is a radiance that even the most outstanding designers of the past decade cannot match. Therefore, I had to give it full marks!"
"Next, we will continue to appreciate the works of the participating students, but we will no longer score them. It will merely be an opportunity for display."
Li Chenghui sat down after speaking and began to play the works of the subsequent students.
Now that Wu Yuqing's work had received full marks, everyone had no further expectations for the outcome of the competition. Therefore, the following time was spent in a relaxed atmosphere, watching and discussing.
Before long, when the second-to-last design drawing was displayed, the entire auditorium was once again filled with exclamations. This was because the second-to-last piece was Liu Ran's work.
Liu Ran's work was virtually identical to Wu Yuqing's, especially in the astonishing consistency of the details. The only difference was that Liu Ran's brushwork was slightly more delicate. That was all.
At this moment, the entire auditorium erupted in discussion.
"What's going on? What's going on? How come there's another identical piece? Could it be that the two of them planned it together? No, no, you can see this is definitely not the same person, nor was it discussed by the same group. This must be plagiarism, absolute plagiarism."
"Who plagiarized whom between Wu Yuqing and Liu Ran?"
The discussion in the hall grew more intense.
At this moment, Wu Yuqing, standing on the left, rushed onto the stage. Holding the microphone, she stood on the platform, looking down at Liu Ran with an angry expression.
Wu Yuqing questioned loudly, "Liu Ran, what do you mean by this? I showed you my work not for you to plagiarize. I kindly showed you my drawings, and you said it would inspire you, but what now?"
"Now you've completely copied it, and what's more, you've submitted it. Where is your conscience? Where is the ethical bottom line of a designer?"
"After all, you were once a student of Qingzhou University's School of Design. Although you didn't get a diploma or degree, you studied here for four years and received four years of education. And what's the result?"
"You've done something like this. Are you worthy of Qingzhou University? Are you worthy of the teachers who taught you?"
"You are also a talented student. Dean Wang of the School of Design praised your talent highly, saying you were just momentarily misguided and made a mistake. But now? Look at what you've done. You've committed the crime of plagiarism again. It's evident that you haven't reflected on your mistakes at all in the past four years since graduation, and you've actually engaged in such a disgraceful act."
"Fortunately, the school didn't award you a diploma or degree back then, otherwise, it would have been a disgrace to Qingzhou University."