Bride To Be Not Me (Janice and Simon)

Janice looked at Heidi without a word and turned to leave.

Heidi stood there alone, thinking, "There are indeed a lot of shameless people in this world!"

Before the competition began, Heidi went to the backstage lounge. Her parents had accompanied her to the competition today.

Emma asked, "What exactly did Mrs. Moore ask you to help with?"

Heidi frowned. "It's nothing."

She refused to admit that Janice could do something she was incapable of.

Just then, they heard a knock on the door.

Heidi's tone was unpleasant as she called out, "Who is it?"

"It's me."

She recognized the voice and went to answer the door. "What are you doing here?"

It was Simon.

If anyone saw her getting too close to Simon at an event like this, it wouldn't be a good look. "Hurry up! Come in!"

Simon tolerated Heidi's unfriendly attitude, simply assuming that masters of crafts always had their own quirks. He hadn't originally planned to come look for Heidi, but when he found out she was a judge for the tournament, he became incredibly excited.

"Mom, Dad, I need to discuss some crochet matters with him. Please step outside." Heidi was eager to send her parents away.

Emma glanced at Simon, then smiled and greeted him together with Gregory, "Hello, Mr. Fitzgerald."

"Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Ryan."

Once they left, Heidi questioned, "Why are you looking for me? Janice somehow found out that I've been in contact with you."

"I just wanted to ask you about the crochet piece you gifted me. Was it really your work?"

A couple of days ago, Simon had finally managed to get a crochet piece from Heidi. After receiving it, he thought of having his company create a marketing campaign around it. But just yesterday, when he showed others the piece, some clients returned it with comments.

"Did you give us the wrong piece? This level of craftsmanship can be found anywhere in the country." Simon examined it again and noticed the difference himself. It didn't look like the work of a master at all— more like something a beginner would make in their lessons.

Heidi felt a surge of anger. "Do you even know how to appreciate crochet pieces?"

She firmly believed her skills were exceptional, especially when compared to Janice. The only difference was that Janice knew some uncommon techniques.

Her blind confidence stemmed from studying with her university classmates, who hailed from different countries and had never been exposed to crochet before.

Heidi, who had a background in textile restoration, appeared to be a genius in comparison to those amateurs. That was why, despite not producing any signature works, she still earned a bit of a reputation overseas.

"Of course, I appreciate the art itself," Simon replied. "That's why I think you might have given me the wrong piece. I just wanted to exchange it."

He placed the ornate wooden box containing the crochet piece on the table.

But Heidi insisted with absolute confidence, "Simon, I'm telling you—if you haven't reached a certain level, it's impossible for you to understand my work. That's exactly why I don't like entering competitions. What's the point of competing with amateurs who can't even understand true cultural heritage?"

She carried herself with the demeanor of Shirley Olson. She was fully immersed in the role.

Simon frowned, looking a little troubled. He picked up the piece and said, "Heidi, look at the back-some of the thread ends aren't even properly sewn. When you view it under sunlight, the silk threads are all uneven. Some are too tight, some are too loose... It's a complete—"

It was a complete mess!

But, of course, Simon wouldn't say that out loud.

Heidi sat down, holding firmly to her belief. "That just shows how little you know. This is a technique. How about this? Let's wait and see. After New Year's, I'll send one of my pieces to an international competition. Let's see if it wins an award."

Simon remained silent.

He had every reason to suspect that Heidi was deliberately withholding her best work from him and feeding him leftovers instead.

"Heidi, we're partners. Prosper Stitch Group urgently needs an outstanding crochet piece to make a comeback. Otherwise, we won't even qualify for the international competition. Our award-winning piece from the Spring Tournament last time isn't even up to standard for this Winter Tournament."