"Come in." Chen Yue pulled the door open and yanked Shu Lanzhou inside before Mu Side could even reach to open it—the door was already shut again.
Chen Yue's room was a bit of a mess, with the curtains drawn tightly shut.
The coffee table and dressing table were cluttered with cosmetic products. Clothes—beautiful, fashionable ones—were strewn across the sofa and bed in the living room.
It was easy to tell she was someone who deeply loved beauty. No wonder she cared so much about her appearance.
Shu Lanzhou turned around. "How many days have you not been out?"
"Nearly half a month," Chen Yue replied with a face full of gloom.
"I'm an ad model, never had much of a name. I used to get some jobs, but ever since my face started having issues, I haven't taken a single gig in half a month."
Shu Lanzhou stepped closer, only then seeing clearly the red bumps all over Chen Yue's face, some of which were oozing pus. It looked rather bad.
"Do I look ugly now?" Chen Yue let out a bitter laugh. "Wu Shan never really liked me. If it weren't for my looks, I wouldn't even have dared to approach him."
"My mom says programmers have stable jobs, good income, and are honest—perfect husband material. I never really wanted to get married. I had dreams of my own, but I couldn't go against my family."
"They said if I just married obediently—found an honest man and settled down—they wouldn't interfere with my career. Otherwise, I'd have to go back home, take a civil service exam, and become a primary school teacher."
"But now, not only did I fail to win him over and ruin the marriage, I've ruined my face and lost my job. Looking like this, I don't even have the courage to go back home. It's all because of that damned spot-removal cream!"
She angrily swiped the bottles and jars off the coffee table.
Shu Lanzhou couldn't help but ask curiously, "You're still young, you shouldn't have age spots. Why were you using this kind of product?"
She bent down and picked up the jar of cream, glanced at the label—and sure enough, it was a product from the Luo Corporation.
Looks like their suspicions were right.
"This cream wasn't just for spots—it had whitening effects too. A friend of mine used it and recommended it. I didn't have age spots, but I did a beach photoshoot for a magazine and stayed under the sun for a few months."
"My skin darkened a few shades and I got sunspots. At first, the cream worked really well. My face brightened quickly, and the sunspots faded. I didn't expect…"
Tears started to fall from Chen Yue's eyes again. "I was too anxious. I wanted to win over Wu Shan quickly, land more contracts, make a name for myself here in Shen City."
"Now it's all gone. Everything's ruined. And the next mortgage payment is coming up—what am I going to do? What am I supposed to do?"
She began sobbing loudly again… her tears falling in heavy drops.
Shu Lanzhou's heart clenched at the sight. "Don't cry yet. Let me take a look first. Your face might still be treatable."
She turned and pulled the curtains open. "Those bumps are from toxins. If we get rid of them, keep your skin clean, and use some detoxifying medicine, you'll recover quickly."
"Once the bumps are gone, we'll work on repairing the rest. Step by step."
Shu Lanzhou took out her silver needles. "It's going to hurt a bit—just bear with it."
She had already examined Chen Yue's condition earlier and, combining that with her knowledge of Han Weicheng's products, determined that the issue was caused by toxic buildup from the spot-removal cream.
Chen Yue happened to have sensitive skin, so the reactions were much more severe and obvious than in other people.
When she saw Shu Lanzhou disinfecting the silver needles and getting ready to pierce her face, Chen Yue instinctively shrank back.
"You… you're not going to puncture all these bumps, are you? Won't that just leave me covered in scars?"
"The ones with pus have to be opened," Shu Lanzhou said firmly, pursing her lips. "But that's for the next step. Right now, I'll first apply a set of acupuncture points to draw out the toxins."
"Unfortunately, I don't have any medicine with me. If you're willing, we can go to the traditional medicine hospital tomorrow, and I'll prescribe something for you—oral and topical. Give it three days, and your face will calm down."
Chen Yue looked doubtful. "Re-really?"
"I'm a doctor. Would I lie to you? If you don't get better, you can come straight to me," Shu Lanzhou said, distracting her as she began inserting the needles.
Soon, Chen Yue's face was full of silver needles.
"W-what kind of doctor are you? Your treatment methods are so weird… Who even sticks needles in someone's face?" Chen Yue was nearly scared to death, terrified her face would only get worse.
Shu Lanzhou gave her a soft smile. "I'm a traditional Chinese medicine acupuncturist. Trust me—given your current condition, there's no better method."
The acupuncture process took some time, so Shu Lanzhou struck up a conversation.
"Since you're a commercial model, your face is your livelihood. Have you ever thought about getting a damage assessment done and suing the manufacturer of the cream?"
"Luo Corporation is a big company." Chen Yue hadn't even considered that.
"I'm just a regular nobody. I've got no power, no money. How could I even go up against them? I'd probably be silenced before the assessment is even complete."
That gave Shu Lanzhou pause. If Chen Yue thought this way, how did the other victims—the ones who came forward publicly—dare to be so bold?
Was it organized?
Was it something she had said publicly that inspired them, or was there someone orchestrating things behind the scenes?
This was a lead she needed to report to the police.
"Dr. Shu, thank you. I didn't expect you to come find me. I was rude before. I was just too desperate to win Wu Shan's trust and impress him—that's why I bad-mouthed your company."
Chen Yue looked a little embarrassed. "If I had just believed in your product back then, I wouldn't have ended up like this…"
She truly regretted it.
Shu Lanzhou shook her head. "It's not your fault. Their product does work quickly. That's a fact. It's understandable that people didn't believe in us."
"But now that things have reached this point, I won't hide the truth from you. Luo Corporation and the Mu Group have always been rivals. Recently, some counterfeit products of ours have surfaced."
"I suspect Luo Corporation is behind it. If you're willing, we can help you sue them, get justice, and secure the compensation you deserve."
Shu Lanzhou looked at her sincerely. "Luo Corporation's formula blends multiple chemical agents, all hovering right at the regulatory limit. The overall toxicity far exceeds the legal standard."
"What happened to your face will happen to other users too—it's only a matter of time. Would you be willing to stand up, to prevent more people from being harmed?"
"Don't worry. If you come forward, we'll be your backing. Luo Corporation won't be able to silence or threaten you. You won't be alone."
"Even if we lose the lawsuit, we'll cover all costs. You won't suffer any financial burden or unnecessary trouble."
"So—what do you think? Want to give it a try?"
Chen Yue still looked skeptical, struggling to understand. "But why? Why would you go so far to help me?"
"I already told you." Shu Lanzhou spread her hands. "First, Luo and Mu are direct competitors. Both companies launched spot-removal creams at the same time."
"Second, our Mu Group's counterfeit issue—I suspect it's Luo's doing. Right now, we have to take action. We can't let Luo use us as their scapegoat."
Chen Yue wasn't dumb. She immediately connected the dots. "You're saying Luo Corporation created the counterfeit scandal for Mu Group… to cover up their own product's problems?"