A Tale of Two Cities Supporting Xinjiang

Guzalinur had just hidden the court summons in her schoolbag and hadn't even had time to think of a solution when her father, who had rushed home, blocked her at the door.

"You dare come back!"

Her father's face was ashen. He grabbed her schoolbag and pulled out the summons. After reading its contents, he was so angry that his hands were shaking. "I sent you to school to study so that you could find a stable job and live a peaceful life, not so you could cause trouble and get into legal trouble!"

Now look what's happened! We've been sued and have to pay compensation. You're making our family lose all face!

Guzalinur hurriedly explained, "Dad, this isn't my fault. It's the company that's cheating, the counterfeiters are up to no good, we've been wronged."

"Injustice?"

The father slammed the summons to the ground, saying, "Don't take on a job you're not qualified for!"

"I told you long ago not to follow that Teacher Chang around with all that practical training and design stuff, but you wouldn't listen. Now you've caused such a big problem. What are the neighbors going to think of our family?"

Before Guzalinur could say anything more, her father said decisively, "You can stop going to school. I've already made arrangements for you. A friend from the neighboring village will be coming to propose marriage next month. His family is well-off. You can marry into their family and live a good life. Don't bother with all this useless stuff."

Guzalinur burst into tears, "I won't marry him!"

I love design, I don't want to give up, and we can win this lawsuit!

"Win? What do you have to win with?"

"That company has money and connections. How can you, a student, possibly compete? Let me tell you, there's no room for negotiation!"

That afternoon, her father confiscated her phone and art supplies, locked her in her room, and even passed her food through the crack in the door.

Guzalinur pounded on the door, crying and shouting, but her father was determined not to budge: "You should reflect on your actions. You can come out again when you've figured things out."

Meanwhile, Chang Peng was also having a tough time.

He was called in for a talk by school leaders for violating regulations on educational reforms, his work was suspended, and he also faces the disciplinary action of being transferred to an administrative department.

The school leader said sternly, "Teacher Chang, your educational reform has caused too much of a stir. Students are being sued, and parents are complaining. The school is under a lot of pressure. You should take a temporary administrative position to avoid the limelight."

Chang Peng was extremely anxious. He didn't care about his own work; he was only worried about Guzalinur and the others' lawsuit.

He wanted to help his team find legal aid, but after visiting several law firms, they all declined when they heard that the case involved a small amount and that the opposing company had local connections: "Teacher Chang, it's not that we don't want to help, it's just that we're really not confident about this case, and we don't want to offend people for such a small matter."

Chang Peng was unwilling to give up, so he went to Zhou Mingyu for help again.

After listening to his request, Zhou Mingyu looked troubled: "Teacher Chang, I know you are anxious, but given the current situation, I can't get too involved."

The relationships with companies are complicated. If I get involved, it might make things worse, and I'd have to avoid any appearance of impropriety.

"Director Zhou, the children have been wronged!"

Chang Peng hurriedly said, "They just wanted to do a good job with the design, and now they're not only going to lose money..."

"I know, but there's nothing I can do about it."

Zhou Mingyu sighed, "I've already done my best to help you coordinate with the school to not hold you responsible."

Regarding the lawsuit, you should think of other ways, or let the children try to find a public interest lawyer themselves.

Seeing Zhou Mingyu's troubled expression, Chang Peng knew that pleading any further would be useless.

He walked out of the management committee office, feeling utterly powerless.

He wanted to help the children, but he was now powerless and his voice was weak. He was even about to lose his job and had no ability to fight against the company.

He took out his phone, intending to call Guzalinur, but found that her phone was switched off.

He then contacted other members of the team and learned that Guzalinur had been locked up at home, which made him feel even more guilty.

"Teacher Chang, what should we do now?"

"Zailinur is locked up, we have no one to take the lead, and no one is taking care of the lawsuit. Are we really going to have to accept defeat?" The team members' voices were full of despair.

"Don't give up, I'll think of another way. I'll try to contact Guzalinur's family to communicate with them."

Regarding the lawsuit, I'll visit several more law firms. Even if I have to beg, I'll find a lawyer willing to help you!

Guzalinur stared at the moon outside the window, her heart filled with resentment.

After her father fell asleep, she quietly took out the spare key hidden under the bed, tiptoed to open the door, and ran towards the school in the darkness.

Along the way, she was filled with both panic and anticipation. She was panicked because her father would find out and force her to go back and get married, but she was also hoping to get back to the team as soon as possible and work with everyone to figure out how to deal with the lawsuit and the slander.

But when she arrived at school, she was dumbfounded.

The gate to the training base was locked tight, and a notice was posted on it stating that the training project was suspended and the resumption time would be announced later.

She peered through the window. The table, which had been piled high with design drafts and samples, was now empty. Even the computers they had used to work late into the night had been put away, leaving only scraps of paper scattered on the floor.

She quickly ran to the dormitory to find the team members, but no one answered the door after knocking on several rooms.

She finally ran into a classmate from the same major, who sighed as soon as they saw her: "Guzailnuer, what brings you back? Everyone's gone."

"It's over? What do you mean?"

Guzalinur grabbed the other person's arm in desperation.

"What else could it mean? The lawsuit has escalated to such a large extent, the school is not taking any action, and the company is demanding compensation every day. Who would dare to continue doing design work?"

Alimu's family sent him back to his hometown to learn car repair, Patiguli became a cashier at a supermarket, and several others switched to other majors, all saying they would never touch cultural and creative products again.

She slowly walked to her usual spot, and squatted down, clutching a thick stack of design drafts.

These sketches include the third version of the gift box design that she revised overnight, sketches she drew when consulting with teacher Lin Wei, and dozens of sketches she drew to optimize the details. Each one is imbued with her hard work.

Tears streamed down her cheeks like broken beads, wetting the subtle patterns on the cotton padding of the drawing.

She murmured to herself, her voice choked with sobs: "Was I really wrong? I shouldn't have been so insistent on promoting the local specialties to the market, I shouldn't have followed Teacher Chang into those practical training programs, I shouldn't have disobeyed my father..."

If she hadn't insisted on making gift boxes, she wouldn't have offended the company; if she had given up earlier, the team wouldn't have fallen apart.

If she obediently marries, she won't get into legal trouble and bring shame to her family.

One "what if" after another swirled in her mind, making her doubt her own persistence for the first time.