"I'm sorry, I knew this would happen. I've done my best to make amends, and I didn't let things get too bad." Gu Susu had to stop and respond to him.
Qin Tianyi got up and walked in front of her, lifting her chin. "Amends? This is considered amends? While there were no major incidents at the scene, do you think Mishang's women's wear sales will be good this year? What about the year's performance and company profits? Have you calculated that? How do you plan to make amends?"
"I..." Gu Susu felt very tired and hadn't thought that far ahead, so she couldn't answer him.
She was a designer and only wanted to create good design works. But tonight, her work was plagiarized, and she was forced to personally alter her own design. Her mood had already plummeted to the lowest point. How could she, like a businesswoman, consider a year's profit!
"You can't possibly compensate for the losses I'm talking about, so Chang Qingchuan still has to be responsible for this matter." Qin Tianyi released her chin, spread his hands, and said indifferently.
Gu Susu glared at him, not understanding why he brought up Chang Qingchuan again. This was clearly her fault.
She shouldn't have been so confident earlier and insisted on discarding the original plan and design, starting all over again.
But what was it all for? It was for Mishang Company's good. After all, it was the company Qin Tianyi cherished the most, and it was also a place where she had worked and contributed.
"What do you want me to do to make amends? You clearly know someone plagiarized my design, and this isn't my fault! And the only people who had seen all my designs before were you and Chang Qingchuan. He wouldn't do such a thing. Now you're blaming us, trying to shift all the blame onto us!"
The veins on Qin Tianyi's forehead twitched. He didn't expect Gu Susu to say such things to protect Chang Qingchuan.
He grabbed her face and pulled her towards him. "You dare to suspect that I leaked your design! Why would I do that!"
She had just spoken out of anger and couldn't think of a reason for Qin Tianyi to leak the design. She only felt pain in her face as he squeezed it, and she retorted forcefully, "You... you did it on purpose... you want to bring me down, to make me unable to stay in the company... and come back to be your... your fawning lapdog!"
"I would sacrifice Mishang's interests for you, for you?" Qin Tianyi became even more furious upon hearing her sophistry and let out a laughable laugh.
Gu Susu was startled. Looking at the handsome yet cold man in front of her, she felt an indescribable sense of humiliation.
"It hurts, let go of me." She held back the tears in her eyes.
Qin Tianyi removed his hand from her face. "You really think highly of yourself."
Gu Susu naturally knew that he would not sacrifice the company left by his mother for her. Facing his mockery, she calmed herself down and said, "Alright, I will compensate for all the losses. Starting tomorrow, I will not take any salary or bonuses from Mishang Company. All of it will be compensation to the company. Is that acceptable?"
Qin Tianyi said disdainfully, "How much can an ordinary designer earn in a year? I will find out who the mole in the company is, and then we'll talk. I'll mark down this debt you owe me for now."
After speaking, he stopped looking at her and sat back on the sofa, elegantly crossing his legs and drinking the milk, which had reached the perfect temperature.
Gu Susu pursed her lips tightly and quickly walked up the stairs.
"By the way, tomorrow afternoon, we can go to the law firm to sign the divorce agreement." Qin Tianyi's voice rang out again. Without looking at her, he continued, "I'll send you the location. See you at two in the afternoon."
Gu Susu slowed her pace as she went upstairs and responded faintly, "Okay." She then quickly ran up to the second floor, returned to the bedroom, and closed the door.
She leaned against the door, and the tears she had been holding back flowed out. She hadn't expected Qin Tianyi to be so prompt about signing the divorce agreement right after the press conference.
She had been very busy with the press conference recently and hadn't found a suitable rental apartment, nor had she made arrangements for Xiao Xingxing to leave.
She wiped away her tears quickly. Now was not the time for her to be sad, cry, or feel sorry for herself. She had to pull herself together and quickly arrange how she and Xiao Xingxing would live after the divorce.
If she couldn't leave Mishang Company for a while, she would have to continue living in Lancheng with her child. But the cost of living in a big city was so high, and she would have no salary or bonuses from tomorrow onwards. She would have to find a part-time job.
Thinking of these practical issues, she took out her phone, took a few deep breaths, and started searching online for suitable apartments and jobs she could do in the evenings.
She spent the night alone in the bedroom. Qin Tianyi, even though he was in the villa, did not return to his room and stayed in the study all night.
The next morning, they didn't see each other under the same roof. Qin Tianyi left even earlier than her.
Last night, she had already asked Chang Qingchuan for half a day off, and she still went to Mishang Company in the morning.
As soon as she arrived at the design department's office area and sat at her desk, her mind was somewhat absent.
Zhuang Ying, who sat next to her, had already heard about what happened at the press conference from other colleagues and kept talking, expressing her indignation on her behalf.
In fact, Gu Susu hadn't heard a single word, only nodding occasionally out of politeness.
"Sister Susu, do you think the person who plagiarized your design and gave it to someone from another company might be Tang Na? She's always been at odds with you. She's the most suspicious person in the entire design department!"
Gu Susu only caught snippets of her words and shook her head, saying, "It couldn't be Tang Na. Everything was confidential before the press conference. Besides me, only one or two senior executives had seen the entire design..."
Zhuang Ying cupped her head in her hands and said helplessly, "That's true. Our computers are all password-protected, and Tang Na wouldn't have had the opportunity. Then who was it? Who would steal your design?"
Gu Susu was enlightened by her words. She put away her dejection and the suffocating feeling, staring at the red mark on the calendar on her desk, and realized something.
She hurriedly picked up the calendar and looked at her computer again, recalling the time she stayed overtime to clean after work.
Zhuang Ying was right, it was Tang Na, it must have been her!
"Sister Susu, what's wrong? Do you know who stole your design?" Zhuang Ying saw her expression change, looking as if she had suddenly realized something.
Gu Susu looked up at the door of her desk and asked, "Zhuang Ying, do you know where the surveillance cameras are in our office area? I want to check the surveillance footage."
"This... there seems to be a surveillance camera at the entrance, but I'm not sure about other locations. Did you figure out who it was? I'll go with you to ask the security room." Zhuang Ying stood up, eager to help her.
Gu Susu also stood up and nodded, saying, "Thank you. Let's go to the surveillance room now."
With that, she forcefully closed her computer and left the design department's office area with Zhuang Ying.
Tang Na sat at her desk, seemingly engrossed in her work, but secretly observing their every move. Seeing them suddenly leave, she felt a pang of panic.