trct_59

Chapter 59: Handing in the Manuscript

The day of the manuscript submission was Jie Yu'an's acupuncture day. Ji Qingzhou spent the morning accompanying him at the Jie residence for his treatment, and after lunch, he took the three prepared drafts and left the house, heading for the Olympic Theatre on Jing'an Temple Road.

Today also happened to be the newspaper's deadline, but Ji Qingzhou, considering that this was his first time submitting to the paper, had gone ahead two days early and personally made a trip to the Shanghai Daily office to deliver his drafts, just in case something unexpected came up or revisions were needed.

It was fortunate he'd made that trip. After Qiu Wenxin and his colleagues looked over the manuscript, they had no real objections to the fashion illustrations themselves—it was just that while these men wrote with an almost effortless brilliance, they genuinely knew very little about women's clothing.

Even though Ji Qingzhou had labeled the name of each item used and its color pairing beneath every illustration, they still occasionally couldn't match the names to the actual pieces, and needed Ji Qingzhou to point things out and explain before they understood.

This also taught Ji Qingzhou a bit of a lesson—for future fashion illustrations, it would be better to sketch in a pencil arrow to indicate things clearly, which wouldn't interfere with printing and would be much clearer besides.

After turning in the manuscript, he received his first payment—sixty-four silver dollars in total.

The payment came promptly, which made it clear that the Shanghai Daily office was not the kind of impoverished paper that withheld payment, as Qiu Wenxin had once described.

That done, he headed to the Olympic Theatre. After informing the doorman of his business, it was once again the same assistant in the dark blue plaid three-piece suit—Du Suijing—who received him.

"Mr. Lai came by this morning to hand in his costume designs. The boss seemed fairly satisfied."

As he led Ji Qingzhou upstairs, the assistant let slip a bit of harmless information about his competitor.

"The boss also told me that if you hadn't arrived by three o'clock this afternoon, he'd have sent me to your shop to find you. He likes working with partners who take their work more seriously and are more proactive about it."

Ji Qingzhou gave a slightly apologetic smile at that and said, "Something came up at home today, so I'm running late."

Du Suijing let out a small sigh. "Good thing you made it in time."

At the office on the southeast corner of the third floor, the assistant knocked twice, and once a voice called out "Come in" from within, he pressed down the handle and pushed the door open, letting Ji Qingzhou go in first.

He followed after, closing the door softly behind them.

Inside the spacious office, the blinds on the south-facing side were half-drawn, and the slanting afternoon sunlight cast narrow bands of light and shadow across the dark brown wooden floor.

Mr. Ramos wore only a linen shirt that looked very soft and light, sleeves rolled up, collar loose, as he leaned back in a leather armchair.

The skin of his exposed neck and arms was flushed just as red as his face—he seemed to be suffering plenty from the summer heat himself.

But to Ji Qingzhou, who had just stepped off the tram, the room was actually much cooler than outside, thanks to the ceiling fan whirring steadily overhead, sending down a stream of cool air.

"Mr. Ji, if you hadn't shown up soon, I was going to send someone to fetch you." Ramos's speech still carried a heavy southern accent.

He then sat up a little straighter, opening his arms toward Ji Qingzhou in a gesture of invitation to sit, half-complaining, half-instructing: "A summer afternoon like this ought to be spent soaking in a pool, not sitting in an office working, don't you think?"

"Sorry to have kept you waiting." Ji Qingzhou took the seat he'd been gestured toward, without offering much further explanation, and pulled the three drafts from his bag, laying them on the desk and sliding them across. "Please have a look."

Ramos wasn't entirely satisfied with his attitude—though he'd apologized, there wasn't a shred of sincerity in it. If Lai Sanqing had been on the receiving end of such a remark, he would have bowed several times at the very least.

He really was still too young, not yet versed in the ways of the world…

Ramos picked up the drafts, but before unfolding them, he lifted his gaze to glance at the young man across from him—his jade-like features, cast in the natural glow filtering through the blinds, were handsome in a way that seemed almost too fine to be real.

Well then, young and good-looking… he supposed he could let this bit of tardiness slide, just this once.

If the illustrations didn't turn out satisfactory, perhaps he could ask whether the young man might be willing to play Miss Li's fiancé in the film… so Ramos thought to himself, lowering his gaze to the drafts in his hands.

The moment he unfolded the stacked pages, his light blue eyes widened at once, and even the fatigue from working overtime that afternoon was instantly washed away.

In the illustration, a model with finely drawn brows stood with one hand smoothing her long hair to the side, the other holding a pearl clutch.

She wore a fitted, light purple sleeveless long dress, its fabric seemingly embroidered with silver thread and beading, sweeping from the left chest to the right hem in a glittering sprawl of peony patterns.

Her jacket had a soft, glossy sheen, seemingly made of hibiscus-purple brocade, a shade darker than the dress beneath it, its short, wide sleeves printed with faint peony motifs that echoed the dress without overpowering it.

Though this ensemble was styled as Western dress, one could clearly sense it incorporated more Chinese elements—the fabric and patterns leaned toward a more Chinese kind of splendor, elegant and classical, exquisite and richly detailed.

Yet the lace trim at the neckline of the sleeveless dress and along the jacket's sleeves lent it a touch of fashionable refinement all the same.

Even though Ramos generally favored more novel, Western-style fashions, he had to admit this Chinese-influenced ensemble was especially dignified and graceful—it gave him, in an instant, a real sense of what it meant to carry the elegance of a young lady from a distinguished family.

So this was Li Yunlin, right as she made her entrance!

Well-versed in the script, Ramos immediately had this thought, and eagerly flipped to the next page.

The second illustration was entirely Western dress.

The slender, graceful model wore a pair of sunglasses, with a straw wheel hat trimmed in gold ribbon on her head.

The silhouette was purely a basic style—up top, a blouse with bow-tied streamers at the collar and leg-of-mutton sleeves, made of sheer, pale yellow gauze; below, a light and flowing pale blue circle skirt, its satin fabric full-bodied, dynamic, and lustrous.

The sheer pale gold paired with the bright pale blue created a sense of light, romantic ease entirely different from the previous illustration.

It couldn't help but call to mind a leisurely summer afternoon—a beautiful young woman under a clear blue sky, vacationing with friends and family on a beach.

Seeing this illustration, Ramos found himself puzzled once more.

This, too, seemed to be Li Yunlin right as she made her entrance—except this was the elegant, captivating young lady he'd originally pictured in his mind.

He flipped back to the previous page, comparing the two illustrations, and though their styles were worlds apart, remarkably, both suited the character's air.

The difference was that the former was more elaborate and complex, more theatrically striking, while the latter's fashion was far simpler, more relaxed and everyday.

After a moment's thought, Ramos understood Ji Qingzhou's intention.

The man probably hadn't been sure which style he'd prefer—the more classical one, or the purely fashionable, Westernized one—and so had drawn up two different costume options.

On this point, the young man's attitude was, in fact, more conscientious than that of his old associate.

Mulling this over privately, he turned to the next page's illustration, and at once felt refreshed all over again.

The third illustration was a formal gown.

The model, her hair pinned up behind her head, stood with her face turned slightly to the side, one hand on her hip.

She wore a long, sleek black strapless gown with clean, flowing lines. Above the waistline, the fitted bodice traced the elegant curve of her chest, its gauze fabric interwoven with dense embroidery of gold thread and pearl sequins; below, the floor-length skirt was pieced together from long, bias-cut strips of sheer chiffon, lace, and gold-thread fringe, the varied linear textures bringing out the skirt's soft, flowing sense of movement.

Even more striking was the light, fluffy black feather shawl draped over one of the model's arms.

The irregularly shaped feather shawl fell from her elbow all the way to the floor, its flowing silhouette matching that of the gown, accentuating the model's slender, graceful figure.

Woven into the ink-black feathers were threads of gold, echoing perfectly with the gold thread embroidered on the dress and the dazzling gold pendant hanging from her earlobes and neck.

The entire ensemble, using only black and gold, was nonetheless dazzling to behold—alluring yet noble, giving off, at first glance, an unmistakable air of decadent extravagance.

Ramos gazed at the illustration for a long while, as though from that resplendent golden glow he could already catch the scent of wine drifting through a banquet at nightfall, mingled with the fragrance of perfume, flowers, and desserts.

"To think black, so understated and dignified, could produce an effect this extravagant…"

Ramos shook his head, unable to help but marvel, then looked up at Ji Qingzhou and asked, "What made you think to design a gown like this?"

"At first I wanted to use white, a white feather shawl would look more brilliant and radiant, and the effect on camera would be more dazzling and dreamlike as well."

Ji Qingzhou explained, "But this is Xiu Die's costume, and if I'm not mistaken, the two female leads are likely played by the same actress? So from a dramatic standpoint, I wanted to create a distinction between them.

"Xiu Die's gown style is dark and decadent, like a black swan harboring many secrets. Li Yunlin's costumes, on the other hand—both versions of her entrance outfits—lean toward pure, elegant colors, so you could think of her as a graceful, noble white swan. It's a film, after all, it needs a bit of exaggerated dramatic effect, and the costume design should reflect that too."

Besides, with a script this melodramatic, the more over-the-top the costumes, the better suited they'd be.

Ji Qingzhou added the thought silently to himself.

Ramos nodded thoughtfully, only now realizing that the two female leads could be distinguished in this way as well.

Holding this "black swan, white swan" concept in mind, he studied the illustrations once more in detail, then looked at Ji Qingzhou with an appreciative gaze, nodded, and suddenly asked, "Would you like to see Lai Sanqing's work?"

"I am curious, but we're in the same line of work, wouldn't that be a bit awkward?" Ji Qingzhou raised an eyebrow.

"It's fine, everything's signed, and I'm right here too, so there's no need to worry about being accused of plagiarism."

Ramos said this amiably, pulling several drafts from a drawer, then selecting one and handing it to him. "Here, take a look at the gown he designed."

The expression on Ramos's face as he said this was hard to read, and seeing him so readily offer up a competitor's work, Ji Qingzhou felt a flicker of unease.

He wondered if perhaps Lai Sanqing's illustrations were better than his own, and whether Ramos wanted him to see exactly where he'd fallen short.

He took the draft without any change in expression, glanced it over briefly, and immediately felt himself relax.

Lai Sanqing's illustration was clearly geared toward a more rigorous, precise style—fine brushwork, well-proportioned, just a clean, clear structural diagram of the garment.

"What do you think of the gown he's drawn?" Ramos asked unhurriedly.

Ji Qingzhou studied the illustration; there was no model drawn on it, only the dress itself.

The dress used a beige sheer gauze fabric printed with large black polka dots, styled with a square neckline and puff sleeves, its collar, cuffs, and hem all trimmed with double layers of black lace ruffles, the waist cinched with a black ribbon bow, and over it all draped a cape-style overcoat pieced together from staggered layers of lace—at first glance rather fashionable, but not really elegant, in truth.

"The colors and the fabric texture pair together reasonably well, but there are too many elements piled on, too cluttered, it doesn't look very refined," Ji Qingzhou remarked honestly.

"I think so too. He's been focusing too much on innovation, you can see it in his other two drafts as well. He's trying hard to overturn his usual restrained style, but in doing so, he's lost the very qualities that used to set him apart."

Ramos nodded slightly, clearly in agreement, and sighed. "I've said it before. He's an excellent tailor, but not an excellent designer."

Ji Qingzhou handed the draft back to him without further comment.

Ramos put the two sets of drafts away separately in the drawer, then broke into a smile and said, "Though your work will still need to be reviewed by the two heads of Dengli Company, I can already congratulate you privately, you've won this competition.

"Once casting wraps up, sometime around the beginning of next month, we'll draw up a contract with you, hiring you as the exclusive costume designer for the film's female lead. Don't worry, I've always been generous toward talented friends, and I'll be sure to offer you satisfactory compensation when the time comes."

"Good." Ji Qingzhou answered readily, a smile spreading unconsciously at the corners of his mouth, then asked tentatively, "Then may I ask who's been assigned to design the costumes for the other characters?"

"That'll still be handled by Mr. Lai. His team already has experience in that area."

Ji Qingzhou nodded, not particularly surprised by this.

After all, he was only one person—even if he could take on costume design work for the entire cast, he wouldn't have the energy to earn that much money on his own.

"As a show of my sincerity…" Ramos raised a hand and beckoned to Du Suijing, who immediately understood and brought over a plump kraft paper envelope.

Ramos took the heavy envelope and passed it to Ji Qingzhou, saying, "Inside is fifty silver dollars. It covers the remaining balance for those three drafts, and you could also call it a deposit for this deal. Please, Mr. Ji, do accept it."

The amount wasn't large—in truth, it was really more like a booking fee, securing his schedule ahead of time.

Ji Qingzhou accepted the deposit, and after leaving Ramos the Jie residence's phone contact and the address of his new studio, he took his leave.

.

After leaving the theatre, seeing that it was still early, Ji Qingzhou decided to swing by the little shop on Love Lane on his way and take care of some odds and ends.

On the way, he passed by the general store where he'd originally had the tailor shop's sign made, and after considering it a moment, he stepped inside.

As he crossed the threshold, the old shopkeeper was leaning back in his chair behind the counter, leisurely fanning himself with a palm-leaf fan.

Hearing footsteps, the old man lifted his head to glance at the visitor, and upon seeing who it was, sat up and gave a chuckle. "Young man, what brings you round today?"

Ji Qingzhou hadn't expected the old man to still remember him, and felt an unexpected warmth at it, curving his lips into a smile. "Same as before—a custom shop sign."

Not sure if he'd misunderstood something, the old man wagged a finger at him. "See, you'll still want to add 'Su Guang Cheng,' won't you?"

"You've got it wrong there. I'm not here to redo the old sign." Ji Qingzhou laughed. "I've opened a new shop, and I need a new sign made, plus a banner to go with it."

The old sign had been made for the tailor shop on Love Lane, but now that he was opening a studio, the custom pricing at the tailor shop would naturally need to fall in line with the studio's as well—he could no longer use the old "everything three yuan" slogan to draw in customers.

Going forward, if the little shop took on any more odd mending jobs, he'd let Zhu Renqing handle them if he could; if not, they simply wouldn't take the job.

As for the banner… he'd actually already had a wooden signboard made at the woodshop, spelling out the custom order options, meant to be planted at the street corner to point customers in the right direction.

But since tomorrow would be the studio's grand opening, he figured it was worth putting on a small event to draw in some new customers, and planned to hang a banner for a few days at the corner leading up to the Western-style house.

Ji Qingzhou glanced over the blank shop banners hanging in the store, then pointed to a large red banner on the wall. "Let's use that one. Write: 'Century Fashion Studio Opening July 16th, First Month Custom Orders Come With a Free Gift.'"

"Well, huh, seems this old man of mine read you wrong." Though the shopkeeper had guessed his purpose incorrectly, he seemed cheerful about it all the same, looking rather pleased on his behalf.

He then took down the sign and banner Ji Qingzhou wanted and began grinding ink to start writing.

One shop sign, one large banner, plus the character-by-character pricing, came to a total of two silver dollars for Ji Qingzhou.

Half an hour later, Ji Qingzhou walked out of the shop carrying the two now-dried signs.

Having pocketed the silver, the old man grinned and called out a blessing after him: "Wishing you a thriving business, may you open another new shop again soon!"

T/N:

1). "a model with finely drawn brows stood with one hand smoothing her long hair to the side, the other holding a pearl clutch", "She wore a fitted, light purple sleeveless long dress, its fabric seemingly embroidered with silver thread and beading, sweeping from the left chest to the right hem in a glittering sprawl of peony patterns", "Her jacket had a soft, glossy sheen, seemingly made of hibiscus-purple brocade, a shade darker than the dress beneath it, its short, wide sleeves printed with faint peony motifs that echoed the dress without overpowering it", "Though this ensemble was styled as Western dress, one could clearly sense it incorporated more Chinese elements—the fabric and patterns leaned toward a more Chinese kind of splendor, elegant and classical, exquisite and richly detailed", and "Yet the lace trim at the neckline of the sleeveless dress and along the jacket's sleeves lent it a touch of fashionable refinement all the same." The following are sketch and dress generated by AI based on the description for reference:

2). "entirely Western dress", "The slender, graceful model wore a pair of sunglasses, with a straw wheel hat trimmed in gold ribbon on her head", "The silhouette was purely a basic style—up top, a blouse with bow-tied streamers at the collar and leg-of-mutton sleeves, made of sheer, pale yellow gauze; below, a light and flowing pale blue circle skirt, its satin fabric full-bodied, dynamic, and lustrous", "The sheer pale gold paired with the bright pale blue created a sense of light, romantic ease entirely different from the previous illustration", "It couldn't help but call to mind a leisurely summer afternoon—a beautiful young woman under a clear blue sky, vacationing with friends and family on a beach." The following are sketch and dress generated by AI based on the description for reference:

3). "her hair pinned up behind her head, stood with her face turned slightly to the side, one hand on her hip", "She wore a long, sleek black strapless gown with clean, flowing lines. Above the waistline, the fitted bodice traced the elegant curve of her chest, its gauze fabric interwoven with dense embroidery of gold thread and pearl sequins; below, the floor-length skirt was pieced together from long, bias-cut strips of sheer chiffon, lace, and gold-thread fringe, the varied linear textures bringing out the skirt's soft, flowing sense of movement", "Even more striking was the light, fluffy black feather shawl draped over one of the model's arms", "The irregularly shaped feather shawl fell from her elbow all the way to the floor, its flowing silhouette matching that of the gown, accentuating the model's slender, graceful figure", "Woven into the ink-black feathers were threads of gold, echoing perfectly with the gold thread embroidered on the dress and the dazzling gold pendant hanging from her earlobes and neck", and "The entire ensemble, using only black and gold, was nonetheless dazzling to behold—alluring yet noble, giving off, at first glance, an unmistakable air of decadent extravagance." The following are sketch and dress generated by AI based on the description for reference:

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