Chapter Seven: Scoundrel!

Zhou Shuyua, seeing Jiang Zheng so absent-minded, simply snatched the napkin from her hand, waving it triumphantly.

“Oh? Is this a love letter from that shameless pretty boy you’re seeing?”

“Give it back!”

If Qin Mu had written it as a joke and it got out, she couldn’t imagine how big a scandal it would cause.

“Why are you so worked up? What’s on here, your hotel bill from last night, complete with the positions you used?”

Zhou Shuyua unfolded the napkin, expecting something syrupy, but instead saw the bold characters for “Eternal Youth Elixir.” She was momentarily stunned, then burst out laughing.

“Hahaha! This is killing me! Eternal Youth Elixir, really? Has that pretty boy turned your brain to mush? How could you dare bring out such a ridiculous thing?”

As she spoke, Zhou Shuyua tore the napkin into pieces, balled it up, threw it on the floor, and stamped on it several times.

“You snot-nosed little brat, I suggest you come up with something practical for the company. Stop daydreaming all the time, or you’ll never get a permanent position here. The company doesn’t keep slackers!”

Jiang Zheng’s eyes reddened as she stared at the crumpled paper on the ground.

No matter what, her brother had written it for her by hand. How could she let Zhou Shuyua insult it like this?

It was too much!

Jiang Zheng sprang to her feet, shoved Zhou Shuyua aside, and carefully picked up the torn pieces from the floor.

“You little brat, how dare you push me!”

Zhou Shuyua stood up angrily, ready to slap Jiang Zheng, when the director’s attention snapped over.

“Zhou Shuyua, what’s going on over there?” he demanded.

Zhou Shuyua shot a venomous glare at Jiang Zheng, then her eyes brightened with sudden inspiration.

“You’re dead today, you little bitch!” she muttered under her breath.

Raising her hand, she put on a pitiful smile. “Director, I saw Jiang Zheng holding a secret formula, something called the ‘Eternal Youth Elixir.’ She claims it can grant eternal youth. Why not have her show everyone?”

“Zhou Shuyua, this is a life-or-death moment for the company. This isn’t the time for jokes,” the director said sternly.

“It’s true! Jiang Zheng was just bragging to me about it. Why not have her show everyone?” Zhou Shuyua insisted, fixing Jiang Zheng with a look full of malicious glee.

Now that the director knew, Jiang Zheng was sure to be thrown out. Zhou Shuyua could hardly wait to see her humiliated.

“I…” Jiang Zheng stammered, desperate to explain that it was just a joke, when suddenly the doors burst open and more than a dozen people strode in, each radiating authority.

At their head was a woman of extraordinary beauty and commanding presence.

“It’s the board of directors—and President Lin!”

“We’re finished! They’re here to call us to account!”

The entire R&D department instantly recognized the arrivals—each of them a key figure at Yazi Beauty.

And especially President Lin Qingxue, renowned for her talent. A few years ago, she’d inherited Yazi Beauty from her father and turned the company into a powerhouse. If not for Hanmei Corporation’s new product, Yazi Beauty would still be ruling the beauty industry in Jiang City.

“President Lin, please, have a seat,” the director said, his previous bravado gone as he hurried to fetch a chair.

But Lin Qingxue ignored him, slamming her hand on the table, her beautiful eyes blazing with anger.

“I came here today to find out: is your R&D department just here to collect a paycheck?”

“Three whole years, and you haven’t made a single advance in beauty products! You’re still relying on formulas from my father’s era. Was Yazi Beauty founded to pay you to sit around and chat?!”

Her sharp rebuke, combined with her overwhelming presence, left everyone speechless. After a tense silence, a senior researcher finally stood up, trembling as he spoke.

“President Lin, it’s not for lack of effort. It’s just that making progress in beauty formulas takes an incredible amount of work.”

“That’s right. We’ve been working overtime every day, discarding hundreds of plans, but we haven’t found a new direction,” another chimed in.

“Then will someone tell me where Hanmei Corporation’s new product came from? Did it fall from the sky for them?” Lin Qingxue pressed, her questioning so intense that none of the old hands dared meet her eyes—they slunk back to their seats.

At that moment, an elderly man stepped forward.

“President Lin, I had someone look into it. Hanmei is actually backed by a century-old Korean beauty company. Their new product cost them billions to acquire from overseas. Because of their prestigious name, as soon as it launched, it monopolized the entire Jiang City market.”

This was Elder Hua, Lin Qingxue’s medical advisor and a confidant from her father’s era. With achievements in pharmacology and invitations from leading international conferences, he was an authority in the field.

Lin Qingxue nodded slightly—she had no doubts about Elder Hua’s words. Then she made her decision.

“In that case, we’ll do the same. Spend whatever it takes to find a new secret formula and bring it back to me! If you can’t, you can all pack your things and get out!”

The whole research department tensed up at her words.

It sounded easy, but secret beauty formulas were the crown jewels of every company. You couldn’t just buy them, no matter how much you spent.

“President Lin, must we go to such trouble?” Zhou Shuyua’s discordant voice rang out.

“We have a newcomer in the department—Jiang Zheng—who has a miraculous secret formula right in her hands.”

All eyes turned to Jiang Zheng.

She was dumbfounded. Zhou Shuyua had really thrown her under the bus in front of Lin Qingxue, determined to ruin her.

“Jiang Zheng, do you really have a beauty secret formula?” Lin Qingxue’s gaze burned with hope—this was the lifeline she desperately needed.

“Take it out! If it’s real, I’ll hire you on the spot—no, you can have your pick of any position in the company!”

Jiang Zheng was so frightened, she couldn’t get a word out.

It wasn’t that she didn’t want to show it. She just knew that what she held was a random note Qin Mu had scribbled down. It couldn’t possibly be real.

Seeing Jiang Zheng hesitate, Lin Qingxue added urgently, “If one position isn’t enough, I’ll give you ten percent of Yazi Beauty’s shares from my own holdings! We can negotiate dividends and bonuses later!”

Jiang Zheng stumbled back several steps, thinking hard, about to explain everything to Lin Qingxue.

Suddenly, Zhou Shuyua stuck out a leg and tripped Jiang Zheng to the ground.

“Ah!”

“If you’re too scared, let your big sister help you out.”

With a vicious grin, Zhou Shuyua reached out to pry the paper from Jiang Zheng’s hands.

“No…”

Jiang Zheng clung to the paper for dear life, but no matter how Zhou Shuyua struggled, she couldn’t get it free.

Smack! Zhou Shuyua slapped Jiang Zheng hard across the face.

“Little bitch! Don’t you know when to give up?”

Even after the slap, Jiang Zheng gritted her teeth, her face flushed, refusing to let go.

Seeing nothing else worked, Zhou Shuyua steeled herself and stomped down on Jiang Zheng’s hand.

“Ah!!”

The pain shot straight to her heart, especially with Zhou Shuyua’s razor-sharp stiletto heel digging into her hand. Tears sprang to Jiang Zheng’s eyes as her hand went numb.

Zhou Shuyua didn’t care about Jiang Zheng’s pain. Once she’d snatched the formula from her, she practically skipped over to Lin Qingxue, presenting it like a treasure.

“President Lin, this is the secret formula Jiang Zheng had. I barely managed to wrestle it from her,” Zhou Shuyua simpered, eager for praise.

Lin Qingxue disliked Zhou Shuyua’s attitude, but at this critical moment, the company’s survival came first.

Yet when she looked down and saw the mess of napkin scraps in Zhou Shuyua’s hand, her face immediately darkened.

“This is your so-called secret formula?”

True secret formulas were treasured, often engraved in stone—never scribbled on a napkin. This was an insult, a deliberate provocation.

But at that moment, Elder Hua’s eyes lit up. He quickly snatched the fragments from Zhou Shuyua and began piecing them together on the table.

“Elder Hua, no need to take it so seriously. That little bitch is just mocking us, rubbing salt into the company’s wounds!” Zhou Shuyua said, glancing back at Jiang Zheng, secretly gloating.

Offending Lin Qingxue meant Jiang Zheng would be blacklisted throughout Jiang City’s entire industry.

As Zhou Shuyua was basking in her anticipation, Elder Hua suddenly slapped her to the ground.

Smack!!

“Outrageous! Absolutely outrageous!” Elder Hua thundered, his beard bristling with fury, glaring at Zhou Shuyua.

“Elder Hua, what are you doing? The formula isn’t mine! If you’re going to hit someone, hit Jiang Zheng for deceiving the company and disrespecting President Lin!” Zhou Shuyua cried out, playing the victim.

But Elder Hua carefully cradled the fragments of napkin in his hands, tears tracing lines down his weathered face.

“This is the Eternal Youth Elixir! Passed down from our ancestors.”

“The true Eternal Youth Elixir!”