Li Xinyue was still brooding over the incident from the last commercial.

At her level as a celebrity, she was at the peak of her career. Every appearance was an opportunity, and she needed to seize it. Who knew? Maybe one day, something would happen that would make her famous.

If Bi Chen hadn’t become popular on Weibo, it would’ve been fine. But because it suddenly gained so much attention, Li Xinyue couldn’t help but feel upset.

It should’ve been her.

Not only did she miss out, but now the traffic was directed to the competitor.

Furthermore, because of what happened last time, her manager had punished her by canceling several of her activities, even replacing her with another artist for a brand endorsement originally meant for her.

If she hadn’t started getting close to Ye Songtao, the company might not have shown her any mercy, and she didn’t know how it would have turned out.

The closer you got to power, the more you felt like you had power.

After getting involved with Ye Songtao, just a few days had passed, and her manager’s attitude toward her had changed.

The suspended activities had been reinstated, and she even received better resources and treatment. With Ye Songtao’s intervention, Li Xinyue began to feel that she was truly in control.

She stiffened her neck and said, “There are so few Chinese people here, and it’s so coincidental we ran into each other at the restaurant last night? I don’t believe it was a coincidence. What are you pretending for?”

Shang Xinglu: “…”

Honestly, the fact that Li Xinyue was this agitated and trying to pin the blame on her could only be related to the incident from last night with Ye Songtao. The scandal between a famous actress and a CEO—it was obvious what kind of rumors that could generate.

Moreover, in this age of information, Shang Xinglu could easily find any details online with just a few clicks. It was so simple, but she didn’t even want to spare a moment’s attention to Li Xinyue.

…This was her rare vacation time, and even President Lin had made an effort to come.

How much is her hourly rate? How much is President Lin’s?

She wouldn’t even bother picking up a pile of money off the ground if it were wasted, so why would she waste her time eating up these nonsensical rumors?

Seeing Shang Xinglu remain silent, Li Xinyue sneered, “Don’t spread rumors about me again, or else…”

“Or else what?” Shang Xinglu replied coldly, and then immediately countered with a mocking tone, “Rumors? What you’re spreading is even a rumor?”

Though she hadn’t seen it, based on Li Xinyue’s behavior, Shang Xinglu could already guess what was going on.

Li Xinyue’s words had been taken as bait.

Li Xinyue snapped, “You still say you don’t know? You’re just pretending, aren’t you?”

Shang Xinglu: “…”

Ah, I’m not angry, I can handle it.

After all, I’ve faced off with idiots and bratty little brothers before.

Fools always try to drag you down to their level with their ridiculous logic, and then use their rich experience to defeat you.

Shang Xinglu couldn’t be bothered to argue further. She took out her phone and called her assistant.

Li Xinyue watched her warily. “What are you going to do?”

Shang Xinglu casually responded, “Hey, help me find a few marketing accounts—ones that are good at writing and stirring the pot. I have some photos of Li Xinyue’s dirt, and I’ll send them to you later. Oh, by the way, is the PR company we work with using any trolls? Get them on board. Don’t worry about the cost.”

After hanging up, just in time, Ye Songtao and Lin Heng walked in from the restaurant entrance.

Seeing the indifferent expression on Lin Heng’s face, the air around him seemed filled with an air of being exhausted from being pestered.

Shang Xinglu almost couldn’t contain her laughter.

The world-weary President Lin, too cute!

She quickly adjusted her face, opened the camera, and started snapping photos of Li Xinyue and Ye Songtao, who was standing slightly behind her.

Li Xinyue panicked and quickly dialed Shang Xinglu’s phone.

The phone slammed down on the table with a loud bang.

“What are you doing? Are you crazy?!” Li Xinyue screamed.

Shang Xinglu wasn’t angry, she remained expressionless.

She said, “Slandering? Spreading rumors? That phone call I just made? That’s slander. That’s spreading rumors.”

In other words, did she need to expose any private messages under a gossip blog?

Think again!

Shang Xinglu: “Don’t let me run into you again on this island. If I do, every time I see you, I’ll take a photo and spill the beans. Let’s see whether you can handle the scandal or whether I can handle the consequences.”

Back on the set, Shang Xinglu had been more polite, but now, Li Xinyue could sense she’d truly stepped on a thorn.

Her face turned pale as she realized she might have just hit a hard wall.

At that moment, Ye Songtao and Lin Heng walked over. They had just been out for a morning jog and now entered the restaurant together, seemingly having bumped into each other again.

As soon as Ye Songtao approached, he sensed the tension in the air.

He quickly asked, “What misunderstanding is going on here?”

It was impressive, his very first words were already labeling it as a misunderstanding.

Li Xinyue felt like her support had just returned.

She leaned toward Ye Songtao, saying, “It’s all a misunderstanding. Didn’t some bad things spread online today? It’s all my fault. I thought Miss Shang was the one who leaked it, so… it’s all my fault, Miss Shang, please don’t be mad.”

Ye Songtao said, “Oh, a misunderstanding! Quickly apologize to Miss Shang.”

“I’ve apologized, but she seems really angry…” Li Xinyue said, her voice full of grievance.

Shang Xinglu: “…”

…Looks like I’ve lost.

It seems I haven’t mastered the essence and subtleties of playing the pure, innocent character yet.

But she didn’t even want to practice tearing apart people like Li Xinyue.

Shang Xinglu, right in front of Lin Heng and Ye Songtao, bluntly said, “I hate her.”

Ye Songtao probably didn’t expect Shang Xinglu to be so direct and unyielding, not even trying to give any leeway.

Lin Heng glanced at Shang Xinglu, not saying a word.

His gaze was filled with helplessness, as if to say, “Are you three years old?”

Shang Xinglu raised an eyebrow. “Right now, I’m three years old. Just kick the annoying people away.”

Lin Heng was actually annoyed.

Having to socialize on vacation was really bothersome.

Was it easy for him to find time for a vacation?

It was just as Louise was also getting fed up with them.

Lin Heng straightforwardly said, “Ye Songtao, you heard her. She doesn’t like it. Whether it’s a misunderstanding or not, we’ll take our leave now.”

Ye Songtao: “???”

She says she hates you, and you leave just like that?

Ye Songtao suddenly felt like all the effort he’d put into keeping her company had been in vain…

Li Xinyue, with her good looks, had originally been a fresh impulse for Ye Songtao, but now, because of all the trouble she caused, he felt suddenly disgusted with her.

He snorted coldly and turned to leave.

“Look at what you’ve done!”

Li Xinyue, both upset and angry, looked at how Lin Heng treated Shang Xinglu so well, and jealousy surged in her heart.

…

After that, whether Ye Songtao and Li Xinyue had changed hotels or left early, Shang Xinglu didn’t run into them again.

Once Aunt Flo waved her goodbye, Shang Xinglu finally began her carefree holiday life with President Lin.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t long before the vacation ended, and both had to go back to work.

The first day back at work:

Missed President Lin.

The second day back at work:

Still missed President Lin.

By the third day, under Yao Yao’s smile, the company’s rapidly growing revenue, and the influence of the company’s funny single employees, Shang Xinglu had completely forgotten how to write the name “Lin.”

And on the fourth day, in the new year, Bi Chen released its first new product line since its change of ownership.

The entire Bi Chen team became busy.

Unlike the basic moisturizing line, this was a functional set, primarily focused on brightening and whitening effects.

Due to the previous surge in popularity, many consumers who had been curious about Bi Chen products had tried purchasing them.

Bi Chen products had always been of good quality. Consumers who had tried them during the previous online buzz gave positive reviews like “Not worse than big-name brands,” “Great value for money,” and “Good quality.” This resulted in a bunch of returning customers.

Although it wasn’t enough to create die-hard fans, Bi Chen was gradually building a customer base outside of its original fanbase.

So, the promotion of the new product line went a lot smoother than expected, with various promotional activities being steadily carried out according to the marketing department’s plan.

Apart from the advertisements purchased by Bi Chen, many beauty influencers were also willing to try out the trending new brand. Of course, skincare is a matter of personal preference, so some praised it, while others found it mediocre.

The new series didn’t see a sales spike like last time, but the sales were steadily growing.

While Bi Chen was focused on promoting the new product line, over the past two or three months, the company had been planning ways to improve brand awareness and expand its user base.

Then, suddenly, a news outlet released an interview.

The headline read: “Irresponsible Company Adds Harmful Ingredients?! Woman’s Face Damaged by a Local Skincare Brand, Consumers Beware of Fake Products.”

The article detailed how a woman had bought two bottles of a lotion, and within a week, she experienced pain on her cheeks.

After seeing a dermatologist, it was determined that the ingredients in the cosmetics were too harsh, and she was advised to stop using them.

The article went on to analyze how the ingredients in the lotion were potentially irritating and suggested the presence of steroid ingredients—dexamethasone.

That explained why many consumers reported seeing quick results.

With steroids, fast results are to be expected.

The article ended by revealing that the brand in question was Bi Chen, harshly accusing the company of being heartless and irresponsible.

The internet erupted.

With news of masks turning the skin fluorescent and other issues, the idea of bad skincare products had always terrified consumers.

As soon as this information broke, it spread like wildfire. Rumors multiplied like weeds in March.

Customers who had received their orders from Bi Chen’s flagship store started demanding refunds, and those who hadn’t opened their products also wanted to return them.

Those who had already opened them just threw them in the trash and posted photos on Weibo.

A full-blown crisis had erupted, but while Bi Chen’s employees were somewhat panicked, they didn’t lose control.

Yin Yao made a swift decision, instructing the official store: “Be polite. For unopened products, let them return them. Customer service should stick to the same script. If anyone asks, send them our ingredient list and explain that there are no steroid ingredients. There are people deliberately slandering us.”

When the news broke, the angriest person was Ye Jiaping.

He hated the use of steroids in ordinary cosmetics more than anything, and now these trolls were accusing his company of doing something he despised???

He was so furious that he almost wanted to punch someone.

Shang Xinglu, however, immediately hired a crisis management PR company.

Bi Chen issued a statement on its official Weibo, prominently displaying the ingredient list to prove there was no dexamethasone in their products.

But spreading rumors was easy, and refuting them was much harder.

The defamatory post had tens of thousands of shares, while the refutation only had a few thousand.

At this point, Shang Xinglu had a brilliant idea.

She made a few private calls and had the official Weibo post: “Misunderstood brothers, how long did it take us? @Waterdrop Shower Gel.”

Waterdrop Shower Gel was another brand that had been slandered a few years ago.

After a long period of clarification, netizens eventually realized they had been wronged.

Because of the lengthy gap, it had become a typical case of how rumors spread quickly, but refuting them was much harder.

Thanks to Shang Xinglu’s calls, Waterdrop Shower Gel’s official Weibo quickly reposted it.

The official account wrote: “Water’s wronged, and Chen is also wronged [crying].”

Then, they posted a meme with two sad-looking cats hugging each other.

Suddenly, a netizen commented: “What should I do if I suddenly ship this official account’s OTP?”

“Wronged duo?”

“Haha, the official account being cute is deadly.”

The serious refutation didn’t get much engagement, but the cute clarification post went viral.