Chapter 28: Collision

This off-shoulder gown was not much different from the one Yu Keyan had just chosen, but the details were more refined. The off-shoulder section at the shoulders was crafted from sheer organza, faintly revealing the skin, gracefully accentuating the line of the arms and achieving a flawless effect.

The moment Yu Keyan laid eyes on this gown, she couldn’t look away. Pretending to accept it with some reluctance, she took it from Wen Jiu and entered the fitting room.

When she emerged, Yu Keyan stared at her reflection in the mirror, unable to tear her gaze away.

Wen Jiu stepped forward with a satisfied smile, smoothing out the slight wrinkles on the gown. She glanced at Yu Keyan in the mirror and offered a heartfelt compliment. “You look beautiful.”

Yu Keyan hadn’t expected Wen Jiu to praise her, and with a proud expression, she replied, “You’ve got pretty good taste.”

After a moment, she awkwardly added, “Thank you for picking this gown for me. It’s beautiful. I really like it.”

Wen Jiu chuckled softly. She knew well enough—this proud little princess always said the opposite of what she felt.

After trying on the gown Wen Jiu had chosen, Yu Keyan picked out two more. For each, Wen Jiu offered thoughtful suggestions based on Yu Keyan’s style and the particular features of the dresses.

It was clear that, though Yu Keyan outwardly feigned indifference, she was quite taken with these gowns.

After Yu Keyan left, Wen Jiu continued to discuss matters with the store manager, recording some data.

Meanwhile, at the Mirror Elegance boutique in Zone B of the mall, Xie Meng and another colleague were also in conversation with the store manager, discussing similar topics and taking notes.

Once Wen Jiu finished her records, she bid the manager farewell and made her way to the second-floor corridor leading to Zone B of the mall. There weren’t many people around. Wen Jiu glanced down at the data she’d collected, pondering how to further refine it.

Suddenly, she collided with someone, and the papers and pen in her hand tumbled to the floor. The person she’d bumped into seemed to have been looking at his phone at the same moment; the device slipped from his hand and hit the ground.

Realizing she’d walked into someone, Wen Jiu quickly looked up and apologized several times.

“I’m so sorry, sir, I wasn’t watching where I was going and ran into you.”

As she spoke, she crouched down and picked up his fallen phone.

The man also crouched to retrieve Wen Jiu’s scattered papers, stacking them neatly before handing them back to her.

He finally spoke. “It’s really my fault. I shouldn’t have been on my phone while walking. Are you alright?”

Wen Jiu shook her head, returning the phone to the man in the black suit, who looked to be in a hurry, her tone apologetic as she glanced at him.

“I’m fine, but your phone’s screen is cracked. Give me your contact information—let me reimburse you for repairs or a replacement.”

The man took the phone and smiled gently. “That’s really not necessary. I can fix it myself. Besides, it was partly my fault too.”

Seeing she couldn’t persuade him, Wen Jiu apologized once more, only leaving after the man had gone.

After this brief interlude, Wen Jiu quickened her pace to meet up with Xie Meng and the others, and together they returned to the company.

Back at the office, Wen Jiu consolidated the data she and Xie Meng had gathered and devised corresponding solutions. Before the end of the workday, she called a brief meeting with the design department staff.

The meeting focused mainly on dress design styles.

Wen Jiu used the gown Yu Keyan had tried on that afternoon as an example. The flaw with that particular dress lay in the lack of harmony between the sleeves and the skirt. Even the slimmest, most delicate figure could find the sleeves appearing bulky and cumbersome. This was a detail that needed attention and improvement during the design process.

A well-designed gown should emphasize overall harmony; one should never sacrifice cohesion just to incorporate a trendy element.

After the meeting, the design team members left one by one.

Wen Jiu returned to her office, contemplating how to avoid such pitfalls in future gown designs.

The brief meeting had been only a suggestion—ultimately, each designer would have to rely on their own insight and understanding.