Chapter 1181: Mother’s Past
After school, Wen Xinya went to the teacher’s staff room.
Wen Xinya’s subst.i.tute teacher for her cla.s.s was Ji s.h.i.+han. She was in her forties and had been teaching at Capital University for more than ten years. She was an older and qualified teacher at Capital University, not only famous in the school but also a top design teacher in the world. A countless number of students who loved jewelry design hoped to receive her guidance even if they failed to become her student. According to her, several famous jewelry designers in the world today were her students.
This was also the reason why Yan Menglu lost it and even provoked her in front of the cla.s.s out of jealousy the moment she heard that there was a chance Xinya would be picked as her student.
After entering the school, Wen Xinya received guidance from Teacher Ji right away. Although she had a lot of knowledge, she could not digest all the teachings well. Even under careful instructions from the teacher, she fell behind.
Therefore, upon knowing that Teacher Ji allowed her to find her after cla.s.s, she was full of excitement and joy while rus.h.i.+ng to her office after school. Even if she could not become her official student, it would be great if she could receive a pointer or two.
The office door was not closed. Teacher Ji was sitting at her desk, digging through the materials. The sun shone on her profile, making her looked extremely focused. This made Wen Xinya unable to interrupt her.
Wen Xinya softly knocked on the door panel twice.
Ji s.h.i.+han looked up, took off her gla.s.ses, and smiled. “Come in!”
Wen Xinya entered the office and sat on the sofa.
Ji s.h.i.+han said with a smile, “What you said in the cla.s.sroom before was great!”
She had taught many students. On the first day of school, her first lesson and her first sentence, she would only say everything once and everyone would listen attentively. But to hear it and remember it by heart, only a few students could do it each year. But… anyways, the students who remembered her words by heart had achieved great results so far.
Wen Xinya was one of those few who remembered her words by heart.
This made her have more admiration for this student.
Wen Xinya blushed. Her heart was filled with guilt. “I only borrowed your words for my own benefit.”
Ji s.h.i.+han looked at her and smiled. “You did not borrow my words, because they did not come out of my mouth.”
“So… this sentence, was it from anyone?” Wen Xinya asked curiously. When she first heard this, it resonated with her and she felt that this sentence was full of wisdom.
Ji s.h.i.+han said. “It was from your mother, Mo Yunyao.”
Wen Xinya was shocked. “My mother!”
Ji s.h.i.+han laughed. Her smile was sentimental. “That year, your mother and I went to France for the first time to the French Fas.h.i.+on Jewelry Design Compet.i.tion. Although we were slightly reputable in China, we were not known internationally. We used all means to make our way into the compet.i.tion and somehow managed to pa.s.s the initial rounds. When we showed our faces at the compet.i.tion, one of the famous designers there insulted us Chinese designers on the spot. He said people from China were not worthy of becoming something as n.o.ble as designers. He even demanded that we be disqualified.”
Wen Xinya did not expect that Teacher Ji s.h.i.+han had such a relations.h.i.+p with her mother. She knew very little about her mother’s affairs. Not expecting to have a chance to hear a story about her mother from other people’s lips, her heart was touched and overwhelmed with joy.
Ji s.h.i.+han smiled and looked at Wen Xinya. “Our situation at that time was the same as what you encountered before, except we were facing top jewelry designers from all over the world, as well as well-known judging groups and tens of thousands of audience. It was on that occasion that your mother said those words. After speaking, some people laughed at it, some sneered at it, and some gloated. I remember the first applause was from a judge from the French royal family. He was so touched that he stood up and hugged us on the spot.”
At that time, both the country and diplomacy were very weak. Foreigners were discriminatory against the Chinese. Wen Xinya could picture that moment and was instantly filled with pride.
Ji s.h.i.+han laughed. “It was also because of that that the judge gave us high scores in the subsequent rounds of the compet.i.tion. I lost among the top four and took fourth place. As for your mother, she had a low score from one of the judges as her style did not suit his and placed second. However, her design became really famous and popular. The ‘Dragon Soul’ designed by your mother is still in the French Museum.”
Wen Xinya knew about “Dragon Soul”. It was a set of four men’s accessories—collar clips, cufflinks, watches, and rings. The dragon totem from Chinese belief was used as the design concept which brought out a strong and unique Chinese culture. Everybody was stunned at that time as they knew that this was not the best design prepared by her mother, but one improvised by her. She made use of this method to show her patriotic feelings and also revealed her pride as a descendant of the Dragon. She managed to get back at everybody who looked down on and discriminated against China.
Because of this, her mother’s unparalleled status in the jewelry design industry of China was formed.
At the same time, Wen Xinya was also quite shocked to find out that Teacher Ji s.h.i.+han actually took fourth place at that time. No wonder Teacher Ji s.h.i.+han’s status in the design industry was so high.
Ji s.h.i.+han looked at her and smiled gently. “Your mother and I were good friends. Strictly speaking, you have to call me Aunt Ji.”
After Wen Xinya entered the school, she did not indicate that she had any friends.h.i.+p with Yunyao just to see if she inherited her mother’s amazing design talent.
Indeed, she did not let her down.
In this present moment, if she were to compare her design talent to Yunyao, hers was not too bad as well. She had a solid foundation and a wide range of knowledge. She had seen the works she designed, which were quite stunning but not mature enough. She was like a raw piece of jade with a lot of potential. As long as she received the right guidance, she would surely s.h.i.+ne brightly.
Now that We Xinya learned about Teacher Ji s.h.i.+han’s relations.h.i.+p with her mother, she was no longer as cautious of her. “Aunt Ji, please tell me more about my mother in the future.”
Ji s.h.i.+han nodded and smiled. “Your mother that year was really so amazing.”
Mo Yunyao was a magnificent woman. They always exchanged design ideas and never hid anything. She also received a lot of advice from her. When facing that lady, you would be jealous. In terms of design, one could never surpa.s.s her, so she finally decided to train at Capital University and then began teaching.
After Mo Yunyao’s death, she received her design ideas saved over the years. With her ideas incorporated, her accomplishments in design took her to the next level.
Therefore, even if Xinya really did not have any design talent, she would still take her as a personal student and teach her with all her heart.