Xia Xiaolan silently criticized Wang Jianhua’s father-in-law.

She didn’t know how successful Wang Jianhua had been in his previous life, or how much of ‘Xia Xiaolan’s’ glamorous lifestyle had been Xia Ziyu’s speculation. What was worth fighting over in such a man?

If Wang Jianhua had been living properly with his current wife, Xia Xiaolan might have had some moral reservations about arranging a reunion between him and Xia Ziyu, as it would hurt his current wife.

But since Wang Jianhua himself was unfaithful, carrying on with a female classmate, Xia Xiaolan felt no guilt whatsoever.

While it would be troublesome to lure him to Hong Kong from his position at a county-level investment promotion bureau in Fujian, getting him to Shenzhen would be easy.

Previously, Ye Xiaoqiong had used the same trick against Yuan Han—nobody could resist the temptation of “investment promotion.” For people in the investment bureau, performance meant attracting investment.

Thinking of Ye Xiaoqiong reminded Xia Xiaolan of ‘He Shiyuan’.

Though a woman of the streets, she had strong principles.

She had contracted some illness, and Xia Xiaolan wasn’t sure if she had recovered.

Xia Xiaolan hoped ‘He Shiyuan’ would survive.

As for Ye Xiaoqiong, her whereabouts were unknown after leaving Shenzhen, and her current situation was a mystery.

Yuan Han’s status, however, she knew about—he was quietly serving his prison time. The pretty boy who had climbed up by deceiving women had his face ruined. After his release, with his looks gone and a criminal record, life would certainly be difficult.

Xia Xiaolan was heading to the commercial capital after returning from Hong Kong.

In June, the museum’s design was published in “Domus” magazine.

In July, it was finally “A+U” magazine’s turn to publish.

After a month of fermentation following the Domus publication, with two top journals promoting her work, Xia Xiaolan’s name spread from New York’s architectural circles throughout the industry.

And not just in architectural circles.

The heat from her New York court battle with Lisa hadn’t completely died down!

The coverage in two top journals was also a recognition of her capabilities.

The Domus reporter described her as:

“A talented and hardworking young architect with her unique understanding of architecture.”

A+U’s language was even more dramatic, calling her a future star of Asian architecture.

“Her designs balance both artistic and commercial considerations…”

Japanese magazines were always this straightforward.

It was the Japanese nature—they genuinely admired capable people.

After admiration came learning, then striving to surpass.

A+U didn’t spare their praise for Xia Xiaolan—if it had been a Korean publication, they’d probably have been checking if she had Korean ancestry while praising her!

While both journals praised her in various ways, the AIA also formally apologized for their “lack of prudence,” seriously stating that certain selection mechanisms in the AIA still had loopholes. If they had been more careful, Lisa’s false claims about the theater design would never have happened.

Naturally, Xia Xiaolan would not have been disqualified from the Rising Star selection.

“She originally had the chance to win the first ‘AIA Rising Star Architect’ award, and we deeply regret… Fortunately, this hasn’t affected her continued creation of excellent works. AIA’s doors are always open to her. We welcome her participation in next year’s Rising Star selection. If she wins, she’ll break this year’s winner’s record—next year, she’ll still only be 23…”

The first “AIA Rising Star Architect” winner was quite unfortunate. Though Xia Xiaolan was disqualified this year, the series of events had made her far more famous than the winner.

What frustrated the winner more was that if Xia Xiaolan won the “Rising Star Architect” award next year, she would still only be 23, completely overshadowing him!

Fame should come early!

This saying applies to any industry.

While some people were late bloomers, for most, the watershed moment came in their youth.

The earlier one became famous, the more resources they could command.

Among architects, clients preferred to seek out those with reputations, especially wealthy clients!

Ordinary architects had to look for projects themselves.

Famous architects had projects piled before them, allowing them to pick and choose.

They could be willful with their ideas, and clients would often yield to the architect’s vision—after all, with such a reputation, the architect’s ideas must be more professional.

Without fame… ha, better listen carefully to what daddy client says! Without reputation, keep quiet or risk being replaced at any time!

Thus, those who led from the start would continue to lead.

Winning one award by chance, choosing better projects that were more likely to shine, then winning even more awards—naturally, the gap with ordinary architects grew ever wider.

From the New York court hearing in April to A+U magazine’s coverage and AIA’s public apology in July, the name “Xia Xiaolan” became even more prominent in architectural circles than she had anticipated.

Would a Chinese architect recognized internationally be denied recognition in China?

No, people who “brought glory to the nation” were always welcome.

The most direct manifestation was Frank bringing international projects to Qihang Studio.

They were Frank’s client resources, who didn’t understand why he would join a small Chinese studio. Frank explained that the studio’s founder impressed him, and the studio’s capabilities were reliable… and the client had heard of “Xia Xiaolan”!

A Chinese female architect who had won a lawsuit in America.

One who made the AIA bow their heads—this certainly aroused curiosity.

Qihang’s fees were cheaper than foreign firms, so they could give the project a try.

If they weren’t satisfied with the initial design, they could always terminate the cooperation.

Additionally, two domestic organizations had similar needs and came to test the waters with Qihang instead of design institutes, clearly recommended by industry insiders—if Qihang’s prices weren’t too outrageous, these two organizations were willing to give them a try.

What surprised Xia Xiaolan more was being recognized by a Hong Kong construction businessman at the golf club.

Not as the boss of Qihang Real Estate or Qihang Capital.

But as “Architect Xia Xiaolan.”

It was somewhat embarrassing—both magazines had published her photos. While ordinary people didn’t read professional journals, those in the construction industry wouldn’t easily forget.

Truthfully, it was extremely difficult for female architects to succeed in this industry.

Such a young and beautiful female architect was even rarer.

“Miss Xia is truly accomplished at such a young age!”

The construction businessman complimented Xia Xiaolan with genuine sincerity.

Perhaps her beauty made him particularly enthusiastic. But more than that, it was respect. Everyone had money, and with money, finding other beautiful women wasn’t difficult.

Talent was rare—making a name in a female-unfriendly industry at such a young age was worthy of respect.

In this money-oriented society, while most people were obsequious toward wealth, some fundamentally respected knowledge… Xia Xiaolan felt somewhat unfamiliar with this feeling. In her second life, she had only wanted to attend university to gain status and connections, never expecting to accidentally gain recognition in her professional field. This feeling, she had never experienced in her previous life!