CHAPTER 148: CHAPTER 148: YOUR SCHEME

Hearing such news, the people in the audience were momentarily at a loss, looking at each other, bewildered.

Aidan Lockwood was the first to speak up and ask for an explanation. The organizer regretfully said, "We all recognize Miss Quinn’s work. It’s indeed very impressive, but we’ve heard that Miss Quinn has a lot of negative news in China. To avoid affecting the company and this event, we’ve decided to cancel Miss Quinn’s qualification to be shortlisted. We’re very sorry."

Shannon Quinn’s expression darkened upon hearing this reason, yet her heart remained calm.

She saw Lynn Kendall’s smug smile, as if by defeating her, Lynn had become the victor.

She didn’t stand up to argue for herself, as if she had become indifferent to all matters, knowing LW’s decision was made with long-term considerations in mind.

It would be troublesome if her work became popular, yet others brought up her scandals, damaging LW’s reputation.

She only felt that her efforts and dedication during this time had all been in vain, leaving her quietly frustrated.

Especially thinking that everything before had been orchestrated by Landon Sutton. She hadn’t wronged anyone, yet she didn’t know what role she played in his scheme, feeling somewhat aggrieved at the moment.

Was it because she did something wrong in a past life that she’s repaying debts in this life?

Sounds of soft discussions filled the surroundings. As Aidan Lockwood was about to stand up to fight for Shannon Quinn’s chance, Landon Sutton’s voice rang out first.

Fluent and authentic English, paired with his low and soothing tone, not too loud, nor too rushed, yet it held an underlying power.

"LW is mainly looking for design creativity. I believe Shannon Quinn’s work is outstanding; giving it up is truly a loss for LW. Besides, the external rumors aren’t necessarily true and shouldn’t be used to deny an excellent designer. Today, we’re selecting works, not choosing a perfect, flawless designer. I ask Mr. Sauron to reconsider."

The other LW representatives in the audience whispered among themselves. After a short while, a middle-aged woman walked up to the stage and whispered something in the organizer’s ear, who nodded and pondered for a moment before addressing the microphone, "After our discussion, we’ve decided to continue using Miss Quinn’s design. If it wins any awards, we will still issue the prize money. However, during the exhibition, Miss Quinn’s name will be concealed, and the work will be displayed anonymously. Miss Quinn, are you willing to accept this?"

Everyone directed their gaze towards Shannon Quinn. As a designer, she had initially intended to improve her reputation. Now, due to those false news reports, she couldn’t even have her name beneath her own work, naturally feeling aggrieved.

Aidan Lockwood thought Shannon Quinn would directly withdraw her work from the competition, but unexpectedly, she didn’t take long before letting out a soft reply, "I accept."

The three words, calm as a breeze, however, sounded heart-wrenching to Landon Sutton.

All of this began because of him. He professed how much he loved her, yet all he brought her were dilemmas and hurts...

He had considered letting her go, allowing her to freely pursue happiness. Perhaps, she might be happier than she is now.

But he couldn’t bear to let go so easily. The thought of her loving another and spending her life by someone else’s side made him incapable of accepting.

He was indeed selfish, selfishly disregarding her desires and forcibly taking her life and confining her freedom.

With the agreement reached, the meeting concluded.

The others arranged to go out for a meal to celebrate. Shannon Quinn used the excuse of feeling unwell to take a taxi back to the hotel alone.

Aidan Lockwood was worried about her, but as the boss, he also had to consider the feelings of other colleagues, so he only escorted Shannon Quinn to the car.

Afterwards, he noticed Landon Sutton also taking a cab, following Shannon Quinn. Although Aidan didn’t know the exact nature of the relationship between Landon Sutton and Shannon Quinn, he truly believed that Landon would take good care of Shannon.

Shannon Quinn returned directly to her hotel room, not wanting lunch, and lay on the bed with tears streaming down.

She didn’t know why she was crying; whether it was the pent-up feelings over time, her current awful predicament, or perhaps simply because of today’s meeting incident.

"Buzz buzz" her phone vibrated inside her bag. Shannon Quinn wiped her tears haphazardly, reached over to her bag beside the bed, and pulled out her phone.

The number calling was all too familiar. Dropping the pretense, he used the number Landon Sutton often used as his identity to call her.

Seeing it was him calling, Shannon Quinn hung up without hesitation. Before she could put down the phone, she received a text from him: I ordered food, someone will be sending it over shortly. Keep an eye out and open the door.

Quietly gazing at the text, Shannon Quinn didn’t respond.

Setting the phone down, she flipped over to lie on her back on the bed, sniffled, and used the back of her hand to dry the tears. Seemingly having come to a realization, she made up her mind and sat up on the bed, deciding to call back the number she had just hung up on.

Landon Sutton seemed to have been holding onto the phone, waiting for her response. He answered almost immediately.

Before he spoke, Shannon Quinn calmly said, "Come over, I have something to tell you."

Before the word "okay" was fully uttered, Shannon had already hung up.

Not long after, there was a knock on the door, it was the food delivery service, and just a short distance away was Landon Sutton walking towards her.

Shannon took the tray of food, thanked the service personnel, and without standing by the door waiting for Landon, she turned and walked back into the room, leaving the door ajar for him.

As Landon Sutton stepped inside, he saw her sitting at a table by the window, taking the food out one by one from the tray and placing it on the table.

He gently closed the door behind him, walked with long strides to sit across from her.

Perhaps concerned she wasn’t accustomed to foreign flavors, there were two Danish snacks on the menu, with most of the other dishes being Chinese cuisine.

Shannon didn’t ask Landon if he had eaten; it wasn’t that she hadn’t thought about it, she just didn’t care to inquire.

Picking up a spoon, she took a sip of the soup, set the spoon down, and was about to speak when Landon asked first, "Is it good?"

Shannon didn’t bother to give him a pleasant expression, glancing at him as she spoke, "Is there anything else you want to explain to me?"

Landon knew her calling him over was surely about wanting a clear explanation regarding him, but there were too many involved matters, and he didn’t quite know where to start, so he asked her, "What do you want to know?"

He had already made up his mind, no longer intending to deceive her, wanting to stand on the same side as her. Without lying to her now, Landon felt much more at ease.

Unexpectedly, Shannon, her head bowed, said while eating, "About your matters, I don’t want to know anything. I only want to know what role I played in your scheme "