Zhao Ruilong's voice on the phone was extremely penetrating; even without speakerphone, Fang Ming heard everything clearly.
However, he didn't stay. Instead, he quickly exited the office, closing the door behind him as he went.
He was an undercover agent, an undercover agent with a certain degree of authority.
This identity not only allowed him to obtain first-hand intelligence on Qin Xiao but also gave him an extra layer of camouflage when facing other antagonists.
He wouldn't abandon this identity unless absolutely necessary. Therefore, acting too nosy and arousing Qin Xiao's suspicion would be more trouble than it's worth.
Inside the office, Qin Xiao ignored Fang Ming's departure. He propped his feet up on the desk and spoke very casually.
"Thanks."
"Hey, it's nothing. What's there to thank? In this little patch of Rong City, if I want to ruin a company, it's as easy as playing around!"
Zhao Ruilong was clearly quite drunk, his words slightly slurred, his tone brimming with arrogance and bravado.
"But, Old Qin, no offense, bro. Even though that girl Mu Qingxue is really hot, these days, three-legged frogs are hard to find, but two-legged women are everywhere. Is it really worth making such a big fuss over her?"
"If you really want a woman, I just got a few new models over here. A couple are even campus beauties from art schools who haven't graduated yet. You can play with them however you want, guaranteed to have more moves than that ice block Mu Qingxue..."
"We'll talk about that later. I'm a bit tired today."
Qin Xiao replied flatly, "Another day, I'll host and take you to the newly opened 'Heavenly Palace' to have some fun."
"Alright, I'll be waiting for Young Master Qin's arrangements then!"
Beep, beep, beep... the call ended.
Qin Xiao placed the phone back on the desk and fell into deep thought.
Although Zhao Ruilong was a playboy, he wasn't scheming and was fairly decent to him, Qin Xiao.
In his memories from his previous life, Zhao Ruilong didn't fall by Chu Feng's hand but by the hand of a nobody. As for who that nobody specifically was, Qin Xiao couldn't remember clearly anymore.
Because back then, he was being driven up the wall by Chu Feng; how could he have had time to inquire about Zhao Ruilong?
"I hope in this life, we can both avoid tragedy." Qin Xiao murmured to himself... On the other side, Zhou Zihao couldn't reach Fang Ming, and he certainly couldn't go find Shen Wanyin again, so there was no way to get Fang Ming to delete the photos.
But as long as he didn't stir up any trouble, Fang Ming wouldn't go looking for trouble by releasing the photos either.
Returning to his workstation, he mentally calculated the gains from this trip to the capital.
The thousand illusions mask, the Nine Yang Divine Needles, plus a Shen Wanyin... it felt pretty good overall.
"Yunlan International..." Fang Ming muttered to himself, quickly pulling out his phone from his pants pocket and opening Weibo and short video apps.
There was no need to search deliberately. The top three topics on the trending charts were blazing red, shocking to the eye!
[Explosive! Does Yunlan International's 'jade dew' cause cancer and facial rot??]
[The ruthless capitalist path of the beautiful CEO Mu Qingxue!!]
[Hundreds of victims join in a tearful, bloody accusation!]
Fang Ming clicked on the first hashtag. What met his eyes were a series of nauseating photos.
A once smooth and delicate face was now covered in red, swollen pustules, some even festering and oozing yellowish fluid, looking as terrifying as a toad's skin.
The accompanying text was even more inflammatory, pulling out all the stops.
[I'm a long-time fan of Yunlan International. I bought 'jade dew' because of CEO Mu's looks and reputation. But after using it for less than three days, my face started itching and stinging. A hospital check revealed severe steroid-induced dermatitis and even a cancer risk? Is this the so-called 'light of domestic products'? It's simply heartless murder!]
The comment section was already overrun, with keyboard warriors and water armies frantically steering the narrative.
"So disgusting! This kind of black-hearted company should just shut down!"
"I bought some too. Scared me so much I threw it away immediately. Refund!"
"The CEO of Yunlan International is so beautiful, but how can her heart be so poisonous? She wants to ruin all women's faces!"
"Person above, you can't judge a book by its cover. I heard she's done a lot of dirty deeds behind the scenes to climb the ladder. How dare you use products from someone like that?"
Fang Ming quickly scrolled through the screen, his brow slightly furrowed.
"This second siege Qin Xiao launched against Yunlan International is pretty fierce, huh?"
He had to admit, although that guy Zhao Ruilong wasn't the brightest, he was truly skilled at manipulating public opinion. Coupled with Qin Xiao's behind-the-scenes fanning of the flames, the online situation was basically one-sided.
Fang Ming continued scrolling down and soon saw Yunlan International's official response.
Mu Qingxue was clearly no pushover either.
Just an hour ago, Yunlan International's official Weibo account released a stern statement. Not only did it deny all accusations, but it also directly posted several quality inspection reports from authoritative institutions.
The bright red official seals on the reports were particularly eye-catching. All indicators were qualified, even exceeding national standards.
The accompanying text was also tough: [The innocent will be proven innocent. Regarding the malicious rumors and slander online, Yunlan International has fully authorized lawyers to collect evidence. We will pursue this matter to the end!]
However, what surprised Fang Ming was that this seemingly flawless statement didn't quell the netizens' anger. Instead, it was like pouring a ladle of water into boiling oil, instantly causing an uproar.
Because just five minutes after the statement was released, the so-called 'victim representative' went live to confront them head-on.
It was still live now.
Fang Ming clicked into the livestream.
On the screen, a woman wearing a mask and sunglasses, with gauze patches on both cheeks, was holding a test report also bearing an official seal, crying pitifully.
"Everyone, don't be fooled by Yunlan International! Their report is fake, bought off from an institution!"
"This report in my hand is the real one I got done myself at a third-party institution. It contains large amounts of heavy metals and banned hormones!"
"Mu Qingxue, if you have a clear conscience, dare you conduct a public, live-streamed test in front of all the media nationwide three days from now? If the test passes, I'll kneel and apologize on the spot, even go to jail. But if it fails... I want you to get out of Rong City and give an explanation to all the victims!!"
The woman's voice was shrill, each word dripping with anguish. Combined with her hospital gown, she instantly won the sympathy of countless netizens.
The live chat comments flooded the screen.
"Supporting the young lady's fight for justice!"
"CEO Mu, dare you take the challenge?"
"Live test in three days! If you don't dare, you're guilty!"
"Down with the capitalists!!"
Watching the fervor in the livestream, Fang Ming exited, tossed his phone on the desk, and a playful smile curled at the corner of his mouth.
"Interesting."
This plotline looked all too familiar.
If Mu Qingxue didn't accept the challenge, it would be tantamount to admitting the product had problems. Yunlan International would immediately be crushed by angry consumers.
If she accepted... Fang Ming could guess with his toes that since Qin Xiao dared to let Zhao Ruilong pull this stunt, he must have already dug a pit waiting for Mu Qingxue to jump into.
Three days was more than enough time for Qin Xiao to do many things.
Such as, bribing the testing personnel? Or tampering with the samples at the live event?
Or even... directly turning that so-called 'third-party authoritative institution' into his own people?
Although he didn't know which storyline's female lead Mu Qingxue was, Fang Ming was currently on the protagonist's side.
Even if just to help the Soldier King look after Chu Yao, he couldn't let anything happen to Mu Qingxue!
"The person responsible for the surveillance task on Mu Qingxue's side is Lao Gui. If I want to know the entire plan, maybe I can find a way through him? There are still three days left, plenty of time."
Ding dong!
Just as Fang Ming was thinking this, Chen Qian suddenly sent a message.
[Qianqian Little Princess]: "Honey, come shopping with me tonight?"
[Ming]: "Didn't we just get back from the capital? I'm exhausted. What shopping?"
[Qianqian Little Princess]: "My bestie just bought a new bag, so pretty, I want one too!! (shy jpg)"
[Ming]: "Huh? You mean, you want me to buy it for you??"
[Qianqian Little Princess]: "Is that okay? We've been together for so many days, and you haven't given me anything yet. (wronged jpg)"
[Ming]: "How much is the bag?"
[Qianqian Little Princess]: "Just over twenty thousand. (expectant jpg)"
[Ming]: "Do I look like twenty thousand to you??"
[Qianqian Little Princess]: "..."