The Plan to Leave No Survivors, Take Action

Vincent understood.

He finally understood.

Does TC have money?

Maybe.

Or maybe not!

Because the raw materials were too cheap—the X Essence serum’s base solution, priced at just 80,000 RMB per 100ml bottle.

Even though everyone bought it at double the price, it wasn’t written into the contract.

Meaning, TC’s accounts might not have much money.

Even if they paid out all the compensation, companies like L'Oréal would be last in line.

And even if they got a huge payout, without the X Essence serum, it would still be a death blow.

"Hurry."

"Contact General Manager Li from TC. I need the real formula for the X Essence serum. Money is no object," Vincent shouted.

After months of research, everyone had guessed the formula might be fake.

But they had no choice but to swallow the loss—they couldn’t confront TC, nor could they go public with it. It would tank their stock prices.

But now, TC was declaring bankruptcy. If they didn’t get the formula from General Manager Li now, they might never get it.

No matter the cost, they had to buy it.

...

The assistant dialed General Manager Li’s number.

His voice came through the line.

Vincent rambled on, and the assistant relayed his message.

"General Manager Li, let’s cut to the chase. How much for the formula in your hands? Name your price—any amount."

There was no time for games.

No room for negotiation.

Because soon, other companies would come knocking.

General Manager Li sounded puzzled. "Formula? What formula? Wasn’t it stolen by you guys? Sorry, I don’t have it anymore. The original files are gone. The X Essence serum we’ve been supplying recently was just from stock."

"Now the stock is depleted. No more raw materials, no more products, and the formula is missing. That’s why I’m filing for bankruptcy."

"As for our contract, I’ll file with the court. You’ll get your compensation."

"That’s all. I have other calls coming in."

With that, he hung up.

Under Vincent’s furrowed brow, the assistant stammered an explanation.

Vincent exploded, pointing at the phone and cursing in his native tongue. "That bastard is a fraud! The formula was a scam, the contract was a scam!"

The Chinese-American female VP shook her head. "Not necessarily. Maybe the formula really was stolen—just not by us. Whoever took it might have kept the real one for themselves. They’re the fraud."

"It doesn’t matter. None of this matters!" Vincent roared, jabbing a finger at her. "Your country has no concept of contractual integrity! Bastards! Scum!"

"..." The VP’s face darkened, but as a subordinate, she could only bite her tongue and endure the insult.

The assistant-translator interjected, "Boss, the priority now is to track down General Manager Li and negotiate face-to-face. Our X Essence serum stock is running low—just a few days’ worth left. His timing is too precise. By contract, they were supposed to deliver another batch the day after tomorrow."

"Son of a bitch!" Vincent snarled, his rage peaking.

...

It wasn’t just Vincent. Other companies had gotten the news too.

Many who tried calling General Manager Li couldn’t get through. The frustration was palpable.

Logically, this should be simple.

They had contracts. Even in bankruptcy, TC had to fulfill them—or pay damages.

Even if TC went under, compensation would follow.

But bankruptcy proceedings took time.

And the payout order was legally mandated—priority went to certain creditors first. Companies like L'Oréal were at the back of the line.

Bottom line: Nobody could afford to wait.

Their customer base was growing.

Even people who never used cosmetics had heard of X Essence serum through aggressive marketing. Once they tried it, they were hooked.

The results spoke for themselves.

The market had expanded, profits soared, and demand for the serum skyrocketed.

And now? No more X Essence serum.

This was suicide.

Vincent could already picture the enraged women storming their headquarters, ready to tear them apart.

...

General Manager Li’s exact words were:

"Sorry, I don’t have the formula. You guys stole it—the original copy. Before taking it, you wiped the encrypted files from my computer and fried the hard drive."

"So,"

"I have no X Essence serum formula. And the stock I had is all gone—shipped to you."

"The company’s funds? Also zero. Not a single penny left. After our secret deal, I breached the contract with Miracle Cosmetics and paid them most of our cash as penalties."

"Oh, and this factory? Rented. Lease is up."

"Go ahead, sue me. I’m ready to be blacklisted—no planes for me, anyway. I’m scared of heights!"

"And I don’t splurge. If I indulge, it’s on someone else’s dime. Doesn’t count as my expense."

Hearing this, translators and assistants cursed, "You’re a damn con artist!"

General Manager Li replied, "Not yet. But soon, I’ll be a full-fledged deadbeat!"

"What the hell? You’re not even planning to pay?"

"Exactly."

"...You motherf—@…#()!@&#!"

...

Meanwhile, elsewhere.

Cao Cheng called his wife.

"Is the setup done? Short the cosmetics sector."

Tang Xin, in Hong Kong, answered, "Ready long ago. You starting on your end?"

"Just kicked off. The media storm’s coming. Stock prices will nosedive—circuit breakers won’t save them. Some might delist."

"...Ruthless." Tang Xin had to admit, Cao Cheng’s move was brutal.

This left the cosmetics industry no way out.

It wasn’t as simple as ditching X Essence serum.

Market penetration was too deep. Many users had been on it for six months, even a year.

They were addicted.

And the results were undeniable.

Brand loyalty mattered, but when a product was this effective, labels became irrelevant.

People knew what worked.

If these major brands removed X Essence serum, some loyalists might stick around.

But for how long?

And they could never charge premium prices again.

Because loyalty didn’t mean stupidity. No one would keep paying top dollar for an inferior product.

Once or twice? Devotion.

Three or four times? Sentiment.

Five or six? Just idiocy.

In short—cosmetics firms couldn’t survive without X. And neither could their customers.

...

Tang Xin knew Cao Cheng’s entire plan.

Of course.

She was his wife.

Still, she warned, "Be careful these days."

"Don’t worry, I’m at your dad’s place," Cao Cheng said.

"??"

Tang Xin was stunned. "You went to the capital?"

"Just got off the plane, in the car now, heading straight to the courtyard house. Your dad isn’t home, but I’ve already contacted your mother-in-law—er, your mom. We’re on our way."

Tang Xin was puzzled. "You’re not planning to stay there, are you? It’s safe, sure, but do you really need to be that cautious? Things are much better domestically now."

Cao Cheng chuckled. "No, even if I wanted to hide there, your dad wouldn’t allow it. I’m here to pull some strings—gather a list of retired veterans and special forces soldiers to start a security company. I could use some protection myself, after all."

Tang Xin burst out laughing. "Now you’re scared? Whose idea was it to play such a ruthless move? Your plan was a total annihilation of the beauty market. Where on earth did you even get something like the X-Essence Serum?"

She was genuinely curious.

And Tang Xin wasn’t wrong—that serum was the linchpin of his scheme.

Without the X-Essence Serum, the plan would never have achieved its devastating effect.

After all, most products in the market were mediocre at best.

It wasn’t like some new formula could single-handedly crush the competition overnight.

No one knew where Cao Cheng had gotten his hands on it.

Cao Cheng smiled. "Let’s keep our relationship under wraps for now. And make sure you beef up your security."

"Don’t worry about me—I’ve got shadow guards."

"Good."

Cao Cheng didn’t elaborate further.

Was the security company really just for self-protection?

Hardly.

Cao Cheng wasn’t the type to die easily.

Besides safeguarding those close to him, the company was part of his long-term plan—laying the groundwork for the ‘Silk Road.’ That’s where his focus would be moving forward.

To stake his claim, all he needed was to set up security branches there.

As for weapons and ammunition? Not his problem.

Just throw money at it.

Buy from Fatty.

If the price was right, Fatty would sell anything.

…

This news couldn’t stay hidden.

Once TC Corporation announced its bankruptcy, even if the spread was slow, two days were enough for the word to reach the European sector.

Along with the reports came the bombshell—the X-Essence Serum was running critically low.

No cosmetics company had more than three days’ worth of stock left.

TC had clearly timed its shipments and controlled quantities, ensuring competitors were caught off-guard with empty inventories before dropping the bankruptcy bomb.

They left no room for recovery.

In other words, factoring in raw material reserves and existing product stock, most brands would run out within half a month to a month.

After that? The X-Essence Serum would vanish entirely.

A complete supply cutoff.

The news was leaked by an "insider" who sold it to major media outlets in Europe and America through a certain darknet marketplace.

Yes, that marketplace traded in information—the hotter the scoop, the higher the price.

Some ethical outlets bothered to verify the source through their own channels.

The less scrupulous ones? They published it immediately.

The result? Panic buying.

Consumers scrambled to place online orders where possible.

Those who couldn’t jumped in their cars and raided the nearest brand stores, clearing shelves.

A month’s supply?

Not a chance.

Once the news broke, three days max—raw materials would be depleted, and products would vanish.

The secondary market reacted just as fast, dropping an average of 3% across the board.