Below the stage, the audience erupted into a flurry of intense discussions.
"I remember this work belongs to Miss Pei, right?"
"I thought it was bad enough that she used her privilege as the daughter of the Pei family to make it into the finals. But to use someone else's work for the competition? Unbelievable!"
"Isn't she a proper college graduate? Can't she even come up with a single piece of work? Who would believe that?"
"Luckily I bet on Yuan Xi to win. You know what? Miss Pei has done this kind of thing more than once. A friend of mine was her college classmate. She plagiarized someone else's graduation project and even accused the other person of stealing from her. In the end, she graduated smoothly while the plagiarized student was suspended. She has no real talent at all."
"Really?"
"Why would I lie to you? If you don't believe me, I can dig out the old posts for you to see."
...
The virtual image paused for two seconds and immediately retorted, "Impossible! This... this is my work! Do you even know who I am? I'm the daughter of the Pei family. One of the guests here is my father. How could he let me be eliminated!"
Even though her voice had been processed, her rage was still palpable.
The judge mercilessly shattered her fantasy. "I'm sorry, it was Mr. Yan, another guest, who eliminated you. Mr. Yan has the power of veto."
Before she could say anything else, the backstage technicians cut off the signal in time. The projection on stage disappeared instantly, and the virtual host took the stage again, saying in a monotonous voice, "Please ask the judges to randomly select the next work for display."
Backstage, Pei Weiwei was almost driven mad with anger. "I don't believe it. My father is one of the guests. How could he let Mr. Yan eliminate me? Someone must be targeting me!"
Fearing that she might damage the holographic projection equipment in a fit of rage, the staff held her back firmly. "Miss Pei, if you have any questions about the competition, you can appeal to the organizing committee after the competition. Please leave for now. The next contestant is about to take the stage."
Pei Weiwei was forcefully escorted out of the control room. She turned around angrily and was met with several pairs of bright, curious eyes.
Zhou Yaru deliberately raised her voice and said to Xu Zixi, "I never thought Miss Pei would be so despicable. Not only did she tamper with your work in advance, but she also used someone else's work in the competition. I wonder who the poor soul she replaced is. They lost a great opportunity. How pitiful."
"Thank goodness Mr. Yan has good eyes. He saw right through Miss Pei's act and exercised his power of veto. Well done!"
Xu Zixi never expected that the man from the Yan family would be so unrelenting and directly eliminate Pei Weiwei. It seemed that this uncle of Yan Zhen was more sensible than she thought.
She couldn't help but wonder. If her identity were exposed, would this Mr. Yan make things difficult for her because of what happened four years ago?
Not only Zhou Yaru, but others also started pointing fingers at Pei Weiwei. She felt a mixture of anger and humiliation, as if she had lost all her dignity. She didn't even dare to look at Xu Zixi and ran out of the backstage in a hurry, covering her face with her hands. After she left the backstage and passed through the venue, the audience booed loudly when they saw her.
Ou Caicai sat in her seat, gripping the armrests tightly to stop herself from laughing at Pei Weiwei along with the others.
As if to add fuel to Pei Weiwei's humiliation, when the judges randomly selected the next work for display, they came across "The City of Hope."
Then, the host's voice boomed across the venue. "The next work to be presented is 'The City of Hope.' Please get ready before the countdown ends."
Just like that, the spotlight shifted from Pei Weiwei to Xu Zixi. Taking a deep breath, Xu Zixi got up and walked towards the control room. Zhou Yaru shouted after her, "Yuan Xi, come on!"
...
"The design concept of my entire work is inspired by the bioluminescent algae on the sea and the 'Golden Amber.' I named this project 'The City of Hope' because these two organisms are full of romantic and divine colors, with great potential for creating myths and love stories. Therefore, I want to transform this bay into a dreamy, romantic world full of miracles and hope, different from the real world.
Unlike traditional open beaches, it will be managed and operated as a closed scenic area. Each tourist will be assigned a role and identity when they enter the scenic area. They will experience a different life, develop a different story, and find miracles and hope in 'The City of Hope'..."
At the mention of "miracles," Yan Yincheng's attention was immediately drawn.
The reappearance of the "Golden Amber" was indeed a miracle because it had truly gone extinct in his previous life.
No, an even greater miracle than the reappearance of the "Golden Amber" was that he had been given a second chance at life. He had found his two cute and intelligent children in Haicheng when they were still young.
And there was her, the woman who would gently call him Brother Cheng and take him to the zoo and aquarium. In this life, she didn't die. She was living by his side and had become his fiancée.
Her gentle words echoed in his ears again. "I don't have much, but I'm really lucky. I'll share some of my good luck with you. I hope you can find a way to cure your eyes soon. As long as there's hope, you will surely be able to see. When that day comes, even if I'm at the ends of the earth, I'll rush back immediately and let you have a good look at me."
He thought that Haicheng was his "City of Hope."
Although he couldn't see, at that moment, he resonated with the emotions the contestant on stage had poured into her work and the core message she wanted to convey.
"The City of Hope" was not just an ordinary tourist attraction. It was a "second world" with healing energy where people could find hope and miracles. It was a very bold and unique idea that could surely make tourists reluctant to leave and deeply immersed in it.
He even felt an urge to experience this "City of Hope" for himself.
He had finally found what he was looking for.
His fingers moved slightly, and his score was immediately sent to the judges on site. A perfect score!
Pei Jun was also attracted by the exquisitely designed and magnificent model in the projection. Seeing that Yan Yincheng had given his score, he immediately gave his own evaluation. The same perfect score as Yan Yincheng.
Pei Mingyuan, standing beside them, clenched his fists tightly, barely managing to hold back his cheer. With two heavyweight guests giving perfect scores, the evaluations of the other judges on site would surely be good. The fifteen - minute presentation and explanation ended smoothly, and soon the score was announced.
98.89!
Almost a perfect score!
The whole venue erupted in an uproar!
Dai Sha jumped up from her chair excitedly, covering her mouth with tears in her eyes. Backstage, Zhou Yaru had the same reaction.
Pei Weiwei, who had been hiding in the corner waiting to see Xu Zixi's joke, stared at the score in disbelief. With this score, the outcome of the competition was already set. No other work could possibly surpass it.
She had lost again, and this time, she had lost completely.