Yi Zhuang had a huge stockpile, and just as the second batch of Bichen products went live, they sold out again.

The best-selling shades, as soon as they hit the counters, the sales assistants immediately contacted their regular customers, and even then, it was hard to get them.

Bichen was in a great position.

But it was precisely at times like this that Bichen’s internal team became even more on edge.

Quality was the foundation, and new products had to follow.

Only by continuously creating great products could the brand stay hot for a long time. Otherwise, relying on just one once-popular product could lead to becoming outdated.

Shang Xinglu and Yin Yao were calm and understood this principle well.

Based on this trend, Xiao Ke roughly calculated this year’s revenue, and she couldn’t help but be amazed. With so much money, why was the CEO still so calm?!

Xiao Ke, daring to ask, thought it might be because the CEO was bad at math and hadn’t really calculated things properly before the money came in.

But to her surprise, after hearing it, Shang Xinglu, with her face propped up, looked very worried.

“…I still can’t afford to support my husband, what should I do?”

Xiao Ke: “???”

Wait… CEO, why is your husband so difficult to support? Are you supporting a deity, not a husband?

Xiao Ke then recalled Lin Heng’s voice, his aura, and how he looked when he visited Bichen to see Shang Xinglu, the fleeting glance, and even the posts digging into Lin Heng’s assets… and how the CEO dared to support him…

Xiao Ke: “… CEO, I suddenly really admire you!”

Shang Xinglu: “???”

After all, Yi Zhuang, the competitor, was not at ease with Bichen’s success.

Manager Wang was so uncomfortable that he even considered using online tactics to smear Bichen, leaving bad reviews on the official store and even causing a stir similar to the previous allergy incident.

His mindset was simply: “If I can’t succeed, neither should you.”

But during this period, Bichen’s popular products were selling out so quickly that they were being sold faster than they could be produced.

Manager Wang found it difficult to even get any negative reviews going.

However, the allergy issue gave Manager Wang some space to maneuver.

Yi Zhuang had been involved in a similar scandal before, which had been cleared up, but stoking rumors around the issue could be profitable.

Just as he was thinking about it and preparing to make a move, his own company exploded with news that many customers had developed lip inflammation after using their products.

Instead of just asking for a return, they were suing for compensation.

As consumers in Yi Zhuang railed against the company, using public opinion as a weapon, online discussions started accusing Yi Zhuang of simply repackaging cheap, unbranded lip gloss as their own. Suddenly, the company’s reputation was in deep trouble.

Their public relations team had to spend all the money they had previously saved up just trying to handle the crisis, not to mention the compensation issues that followed.

Manager Wang’s wife also worked at Yi Zhuang.

She had been on maternity leave for a year, taking care of their second child, so she hadn’t been involved in the company’s affairs.

When she returned and heard the whole story, she kicked Manager Wang out of his chair.

She angrily shouted, “Are you an idiot?! You’re still thinking of spreading rumors? Even if you ruin them, do you really think anyone will buy your crap? What the hell is going on in your head?!”

Manager Wang had actually risen to his position thanks to his wife, as the real relative of the boss was her.

Despite his position, Manager Wang had once looked quite presentable before he gained weight.

Now…

His wife looked at him and felt a headache.

She wished she could have kicked him harder, not just knocked him off his chair!

Meanwhile, Shang Xinglu didn’t care at all about what was happening within Yi Zhuang or what dirty tricks Manager Wang was up to behind the scenes.

She was overwhelmed with work and firmly believed in one principle—if some side player wanted to ride on the coattails of Bichen’s success, they shouldn’t even think about it!

Hmph.

That day, Shang Xinglu finally got a break and went to a nearby shopping mall for a nice lunch.

Afterward, as she was walking down from the restaurant, she thought about browsing the mall a bit to help digest, only to stop in her tracks when she saw the jewelry section.

To be honest, the jewelry in the mall couldn’t compare to the collector’s level treasures stored in the Lin family’s vault.

But women are like that. As long as something is cute and well-designed, they’ll like it, even if it’s not made from precious metals.

In the window, there was a pair of diamond earrings that looked quite lovely, cut in a princess-square shape, elegant and beautiful.

Shang Xinglu remembered that she had bought a tie clip for Lin Heng in this very store using the car repair money that Shen Wang had given her. She really liked the designs here.

As her finger grazed over the glass display case, stopping at the pair of earrings, she unexpectedly bumped into someone’s hand.

Without looking up, she felt a strange familiarity.

A happy thought crossed her mind—following the usual romance tropes, this person must be none other than Mr. Lin, right?!

She turned her head.

However, it was Shen Wang.

Shen Wang was initially surprised, but his face quickly shifted to one of barely-contained anger.

It wasn’t really his fault.

The blame was on Shang Xinglu for changing her expression too quickly, going from a look of joy to “Oh, it’s you” in an instant.

He knew exactly who she had been hoping to bump into.

It was Lin Heng, of course.

The two of them saw each other every day at home, yet she still expected to run into him by chance—it was almost embarrassing.

Shang Xinglu, however, quickly noticed something unusual.

This area was all ladies’ jewelry, and Shen Wang’s mother was a very picky woman who wouldn’t care for something like this.

Shen Wang buying jewelry here was either to impress a date or to apologize for something.

Then, Shang Xinglu froze.

…Wait, how do I know all this?

She thought about it for a second and realized, oh right, these were all things mentioned in the silly original novel.

Shang Xinglu pushed aside the sense of incongruity and teased, “We bumped into each other, so that means your taste is good, right? Who are you buying it for? Want me to help you pick something out?”

Seeing her sly expression, Shen Wang thought she was even more annoying now.

Shen Wang gritted his teeth and said, “I’ve already chosen, it’s this pair.”

Shang Xinglu replied, “I was the first to notice it, so if you don’t tell me, I won’t back off. Come on, let’s see who can win!”

Shen Wang could feel his temples throbbing with the rising anger, and his patience was about to snap.

Shang Xinglu then added, “I’ll just ask one question—did you buy them for Yin Yao? You only need to answer ‘yes’ or ‘no’. See? Simple!”

“…Mm.”

After he answered, he even gave a little hum.

It was obvious, there was nothing to hide.

“Oh~~~” Shang Xinglu dragged out the sound, clearly amused, and continued, “You could’ve just said so earlier, I wouldn’t have dared to fight you for them.”

Suddenly, Shen Wang’s ears turned red. “No, last time I dropped her earrings…”

“Weren’t you just not telling me?” Shang Xinglu smiled sweetly.

Shen Wang: “I was trying to make up for it…”

Shang Xinglu made a fist and gave an encouraging gesture. “No need to explain! Go for it, Shen Wang! Why are you so slow? Watching you is making me anxious.”

She quickly turned to the sales assistant. “This pair, wrap it up, and this gentleman will pay with his card.”

Shen Wang: “…”

He felt like strangling her.

The two of them walked out of the store and happened to pass a group of high school students out for lunch. The private high school students had nicer uniforms than most, and they reminded Shang Xinglu of her own school days.

Shen Wang tossed the gift he just bought at Shang Xinglu. “Anyway, you’re going back to work, can you just pass it to her for me?”

Shang Xinglu threw it back at him. “No.”

Shen Wang threw it back again. “It’s just a small favor, why won’t you help me? Can you stop being such a troublemaker?”

Shang Xinglu glared at him. “You call that a gift? ‘On the way, just drop it off’? You’re lucky if she doesn’t throw it back in your face.”

Shen Wang: “Oh, so that’s why you threw gifts in my face back then?!”

Shang Xinglu: “Who throws gifts from the second floor?! You’re trying to give a gift or commit murder?!”

Before she could finish speaking, Shen Wang froze.

Shen Wang, who usually had a short temper and was quick to argue, suddenly went silent and stared at Shang Xinglu in shock.

“You, you, you…”

“What?!” Shang Xinglu snapped.

Shen Wang finally managed to get his words together. “Do you remember?”

Shang Xinglu was stunned.

Then, without thinking, she denied it. “…Remember what? I’ve always remembered.”

Shen Wang furrowed his brows. “What do you mean? How would you remember me throwing a gift from the second floor? That was something that happened in high school.”

Shang Xinglu was at a loss for words.

…How would she know? Well, somehow, she did know.

But the silly original novel didn’t mention that she and Shen Wang had ever been in a relationship, nor did it mention anything about their high school days.

Now that she thought about it, what Shen Wang said seemed even more off.

He was implicitly assuming that she didn’t remember.

Why was he so sure of that?

Shang Xinglu took a deep breath.

She lowered her voice and said, “…What are you trying to say?”

Shen Wang gave her a meaningful look and said, “I had a feeling something was wrong when I ran into you in the parking lot last time, so I asked someone else about it.”

“…”

“You’ve lost your memory.”

Shang Xinglu quickly denied it. “I haven’t.”

But she couldn’t say that. Instead, she changed the subject and asked, “…What did you hear?”

Shen Wang: “I don’t know much, just that you’ve forgotten a lot of things. In fact, when we ran into each other in the parking lot, do you remember? You said you didn’t remember my car’s license plate number.”

“…Not remembering a license plate is normal, right?” Even if he was her ex, they had broken up, and who remembers license plates?

Shang Xinglu was quite logical.

Shen Wang, for once, didn’t get angry.

He looked at her gently, a hint of nostalgia in his eyes.

He said, “My car’s license plate number is your birthday.”

But you don’t even remember your own birthday anymore.

Shang Xinglu: “…”

Shen Wang sighed and said, “I know you’re always strong, but there’s no need to hide things like this.”

After parting ways with Shen Wang, Shang Xinglu didn’t go back to the company, but instead headed to find Lin Heng.

Even though Shen Wang’s example seemed convincing, Shang Xinglu didn’t believe she had lost her memory.

Because her memory was perfectly intact.

Although she didn’t remember everything, she knew exactly who she was, where she worked, what she had done each year, where she studied, and everything in between.

But the people around her all seemed to believe that she had lost her memory.

Shang Xinglu was confused.

If she really had “transmigrated” and woke up in the Shanhai Guan’s big bed, why did even her ex-boyfriend, whom she hadn’t been in contact with for at least two years, assume she had lost her memory?

If she had been slipping up in her behavior, someone would have confronted her or tried to probe for information, but why was everyone so certain?

What had happened? Or was there some official diagnosis that led everyone to believe she had lost her memory without checking with her?

Shang Xinglu felt a headache coming on.

The reality didn’t quite match up with the memories in her mind…

Which was real, and which was fake?

Shang Xinglu drove to Lin Heng’s company, intending to ask him directly.