Everyone present fixed their gaze intently on Mrs. Chen, their expressions taut with tension.
Jiang Yutong was the sole exception; she sat calmly, savoring her dessert and sipping red wine.
Mrs. Chen gripped the microphone and announced loudly, "To be honest, the reason I am wearing this veil is that my face has not fully healed."
The hearts of the wealthy socialites sank with a dull thud, plunging once again to rock bottom.
They had initially felt a glimmer of hope upon hearing Mrs. Chen's earlier remarks, but it seemed there was no recovery after all...
The two reporters also whispered amongst themselves. "So, she hasn't recovered. That means the ointment is useless."
"Too bad. The traffic for a recovery story would be much higher than a failure."
Everyone felt that recovery was impossible.
If she had recovered, it would be a massive twist, guaranteed to generate explosive web traffic.
"Just keep filming. Some traffic is better than none," one reporter said.
Yet, he had a hunch that Mrs. Chen would not disappoint him.
Mrs. Chen listened to the murmurs around her and smiled.
Let them misunderstand.
The deeper the misunderstanding, the more powerful the impact would be when the reversal came.
Jiang Yutong's company had done her a massive favor, and she was determined to repay it properly.
A minute later, Mrs. Chen finally spoke again.
"Now, I will remove my veil and let everyone see the results of using these skincare products."
The chattering voices ceased instantly.
Once again, all eyes were focused on Mrs. Chen's face.
Although Mrs. Chen claimed her face hadn't healed, she was among the first batch of victims to develop skin issues.
Everyone wanted to see the current state of her face.
Mrs. Chen placed her hand on the edge of the silk scarf covering her face.
She didn't remove it immediately.
Instead, she said, "I'm going to count down from ten. After ten counts, I will remove the scarf."
"Ten."
"Nine."
"Eight."
"..."
As the countdown progressed, the tension in the room mounted.
Jiang Yutong raised an eyebrow.
Mrs. Chen's family was indeed in the tech and media business; she certainly knew how to build hype.
"Three."
Mrs. Chen continued counting.
"Two."
"One."
As the last number fell from her lips, Mrs. Chen gripped the edge of the scarf and pulled it away with a flourish.
Her face was revealed to the crowd.
"This—"
Everyone present widened their eyes in disbelief.
"Am... am I seeing things?" someone stammered, shocked beyond coherence. "Has Mrs. Chen's face actually recovered?"
"It looks like it. I saw her a week ago; her face was festering and rotting. Now, there isn't a single trace of it left."
"Th-this is absolutely incredible."
"I've asked almost every famous doctor in Yundu, and they all said there was no cure. Could Mrs. Chen really have recovered just by applying that ointment?"
Hope reignited in the eyes of the wealthy ladies.
"Wait, could she just be wearing makeup to make her face look this good?" one lady questioned skeptically.
To have a rotting, festering face recover in just one short week was simply too unbelievable.
"I doubt it. With a face like that, wearing makeup would ruin any chance of recovery. Besides, her face was festering so badly; even heavy makeup wouldn't be able to cover that kind of damage."
"That's true."
The reporters were equally astounded.
Recovering from their shock, they couldn't help but ask, "Mrs. Chen, didn't you just say your face hadn't recovered?"
"I said it hadn't fully healed," Mrs. Chen clarified.
The wealthy ladies and the reporters recalled Mrs. Chen's earlier words.
She had indeed said... it hadn't fully healed.
"Mrs. Chen, hasn't your face completely recovered?" Mrs. Fang stared at Mrs. Chen's face and asked curiously.
"No, not completely. There are still quite a few marks. Mrs. Fang, you can come closer and take a look," Mrs. Chen invited.
"Let me see."
Mrs. Fang stepped closer and indeed saw that there were still faint traces on Mrs. Chen's face that hadn't completely faded.
"It really hasn't fully recovered!"
Mrs. Fang couldn't help but ask, "Mrs. Chen, will these marks on your face really disappear completely?"
Even if it was impossible to restore her face to its original state, she would be satisfied if she could just reach Mrs. Chen's current condition.
Mrs. Chen smiled. "It should be able to be restored as good as new. It's just been a short time. In another week or two, it should be perfect."
A wave of excitement washed over Mrs. Fang and the group of wealthy ladies below the stage.
"Wonderful! This is absolutely wonderful! I never thought recovery was actually possible."
"Yes, yes, exactly! The famous doctors said there was no hope for my face, but to think it can actually be cured."
If she recovered, her husband wouldn't run off to find other women.
She wouldn't have to worry about a mistress taking her place in the household.
"Mrs. Chen," Mrs. Fang asked, suppressing her inner agitation, "may I ask what method you used to restore your face? Was it Jiang Tong Company's ointment, or did you find a specific doctor?"
The wealthy ladies pricked up their ears, listening intently.
Mrs. Chen smiled and replied, "I didn't use anything else. I only used the ointment provided to me by Jiang Tong Company."
"It was Jiang Tong Company's ointment that gave me a new lease on life. I came to this banquet specifically to promote my benefactor, and of course, my most important goal is to recommend this ointment to all of you."
The wealthy ladies discussed excitedly among themselves.
"Thank goodness! That ointment really works. My face can be saved."
"Right? I thought I was going to be like this for the rest of my life. I didn't expect Jiang Yutong's company to actually have such capabilities."
"Since the ointment works, their other skincare products must be safe too."
"This Jiang Yutong is truly impressive. To develop such effective skincare products at such a young age... her company's products are going to sell out instantly."
Hearing their discussions, Jiang Yutong curled her lips in a proud smile.
How could it not be impressive?
This skincare product was developed by her own cousin.
He had created the ointment as well.
"Today, I take full responsibility for my words. I guarantee that the ointment developed by Jiang Tong Company can indeed treat the damage caused by the Lin Qingwan Supreme Series skincare line."
Mrs. Fang said gratefully, "Mrs. Chen, thank you for telling me all this."
Mrs. Chen smiled and said, "Mrs. Fang, you'd better hurry and buy the ointment. Once this gets reported, you might not be able to get your hands on it."

for mindless slaughter, this isn't for you.] My name is Ye Shu, and I'm a transmigrator. It seems I'm supposed to be the protagonist, but that feels pretty unlikely. This world has been invaded by a system. The antagonists on the other side have suddenly become pure, flawless saints. The female leads have been force-fed the so-called "original plot," making them think they've been reborn. Now, everyone thinks I'm scum. Including the old lady in my ring. And here I am, in the Monster Beast Mountain Range, braising pork. To put my situation in perspective— It's as if, the moment Xiao Yan stepped into the Monster Beast Mountain Range, the Soul Emperor already knew he would become the Flame Emperor, and Yao Lao had been turned to the enemy's side. I have nothing right now. Oh wait, that's not true. I do have a white-haired loli child-bride who's the Heavenly Dao, and her only skill is acting cute. So, tell me guys... what are my chances of making it to the end?

grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)

ive and Ruthless] Before his transmigration, Ye Xuan was playing a game called "Severing Emotions to Attain the Dao." The game's core wasn't about leveling up by fighting monsters, but about conquering various "bad women" with wicked personalities and cold, fickle natures. There was only one method to conquer them: stay unwaveringly by their side, then die at a critical moment, driving them to madness after losing the protagonist. The higher their level of regret, the higher the player's score. To dominate the server, Ye Xuan conquered all the bad women. In the early stages, he showered them with boundless tenderness, only to choose to sacrifice himself for them later, making them weep bitterly and drown in regret. Among them were: Xia Lengyue, the unfaithful immortal wife who chased after powerful men and discarded her husband like trash. Ye Qingcheng, the Demonic Venerable of the Joyous Union Sect, who appeared pure and innocent but was, in reality, promiscuous. Wu Lingxiao, the Empress of the Great Xia Dynasty, who lusted after men and loved maintaining a harem. Bai Qiangu of the Endless Demonic Sect: a bloodthirsty mass murderer. However, when the protagonist transmigrated into the game world, he made a horrifying discovery. Eight hundred years had already passed. The bad women he had conquered had now each become deities and revered ancestors. Faced with the endless stream of toxic women coming for him, Ye Xuan could only rely on his god-tier acting skills to carve a path of survival through this world of treacherous women.

d intelligence to keep the plot moving, and sometimes even the protagonists are forced into absurdly dumb decisions. Why does the A-list celebrity heroine in urban romance novels ditch the top-tier movie star and become a lovestruck fool for a pockmarked male lead? Why do the leads in historical tragedy novels keep dancing between love and death, only for the blind healer to end up suffering the most? And Gu Wei never expected that after finally landing a villain role to stir up trouble, she’d pick the wrong gender! No choice now—she’ll just have to crush the protagonists as a girl!