Chapter 100: Naturally Beautiful

“Eat your head! You glutton!” Lin Yang’s shout snapped her out of her daze, and she quickly hid the trace of jealousy in her eyes. Handing the camera back to the bearded photographer Chang, she looked up at Lin Yang, who was sulking and rubbing his belly like a little wife, and scolded him sharply.

Lin Yang was utterly speechless. Was this job not even allowing them to eat? It was downright unreasonable.

“All right, it’s getting late. Since someone has worked quite diligently on the shoot today, dinner at Hightide City is on me,” Bai Jing said generously, patting her chest without hesitation.

By the time they left, dusk was already creeping in at the horizon. The sunlight had vanished, and no matter how beautiful the seaside scenery was, darkness gradually enveloped it. After quickly packing up, everyone hurried to the car. They had been busy all afternoon and were starving, their stomachs practically pressed together from hunger.

Hightide City’s grand restaurant was quite famous in Tianchen District. Though it was no match for the five-star hotels, in the third-rate city of Jinhai, it was still top-tier. Even a casual meal here was a considerable expense.

After the lesson from being watched that afternoon, Bai Jing was especially cautious this time. She had her underworld contacts thoroughly check out Hightide City beforehand and confirmed there was no surveillance before feeling at ease.

Speaking of the two unlucky fellows caught by the police that afternoon—Mantis and Fish Head—their situation had been grim. Their identities exposed was a grave mistake for those involved in surveillance work, akin to losing their heads. Worse still, they had lost the miniature spy camera. Fearing the young master of the Fang family would blame them, they stubbornly refused to say anything.

Since it was a minor incident, the police couldn’t detain them. After a brief, symbolic interrogation, they were released without charges. Besides, Lin Yang, who had been threatened but remained unharmed, made it difficult to investigate further.

As soon as they were released, subordinates from the Fang family waiting at the police station’s entrance immediately seized them. Having failed to retrieve the desired information and exposed their identities, the two endured quite a beating. They vented their frustration by cursing Lin Yang, who had caused all the trouble.

...

The only place near the coast in Jinhai, thankfully not far from Tianchen District, was about half an hour’s drive at sixty kilometers per hour. Lin Yang, who loved to speed even on difficult mountain roads, reached the destination first in less than half an hour, leaving the two following vehicles far behind.

They waited for fifteen minutes at the hotel entrance before Bai Jing’s exclusive Porsche SUV came into view, followed closely by the Volkswagen business van.

As a VIP platinum member of Hightide City, Bai Jing had spent lavishly here before and was very familiar with the environment. Even before the car started from the seaside, she had reserved the VIP 888 Presidential Suite in advance.

Led dutifully by the hostess, the five of them headed straight to the private room.

The luxurious suite could easily accommodate a hundred people, which was somewhat extravagant for just five.

Upon entering, the table laden with fragrant dishes struck the five starving individuals with a strong impression. Just the sight of the food greatly whetted their appetites.

Lin Yang, as usual, was unrestrained. He hurried to the table and, without waiting for everyone to sit, boldly picked up his chopsticks and started eating.

It was no exaggeration to say he wolfed down the food. By the time the other four reached the table and sat down, Lin Yang had already devoured a tenth of the feast, his cheeks bulging like the pouches monkeys use to store food.

“Hey, Xiao Yang, show some manners! Everyone else hasn’t even started eating yet,” Bai Jing chided him with a frown. After all, the others were respectable figures, and Lin Yang’s boorishness showed no sense of gentlemanly grace—it was truly unseemly.

“No worries.” Surprisingly, Chang the photographer, who had been quite displeased with Lin Yang, seemed like a different person now. He showed no sign of complaint and immediately started eating as well.

Compared to Lin Yang’s wild and crude manner, the two women at the table ate gracefully, chewing slowly and discreetly—a perfect image of refined ladies.

When about two-thirds of the food was gone, Chang broke the intense focus on the meal.

“Vice President Bai, I can finish editing the advertisement video by tomorrow afternoon. But have you decided on a title yet? The title is very important,” Chang asked after rinsing his mouth with plain water, signaling the end of the meal.

Bai Jing didn’t answer immediately but turned her gaze to Lin Yang, who was still engrossed in enjoying the food. She sighed helplessly. “Xiao Yang, what do you think? Don’t tell me you want to call it ‘Golden Silkworm Powder’!”

“Golden Silkworm Powder? What’s that? Sounds tacky,” Chang frowned and asked quickly. As the photographer, he cared deeply about the title. He was confident in the video content and sure it would have an unexpectedly positive effect, but the name puzzled him.

Seeing Chang ask first, Bai Jing patiently explained the meaning so Lin Yang wouldn’t get offended by the term “tacky.”

“Oh, I see!” After Bai Jing’s explanation, Chang looked relieved. But being a perfectionist, he wouldn’t just let it go. He turned to Lin Yang, who owned the formula and thus had the right—or even copyright—to name the medicine.

Indeed, “Golden Silkworm Powder” was a rather vulgar name. It had been used as a postoperative auxiliary drug, which Lin Yang hadn’t cared much about since patients wouldn’t argue the name. But now, with the new medicine aiming to make a splash on the market as a beauty miracle, the name had to be elegant and resounding.

Naming wasn’t Lin Yang’s strong suit. He passed the question back to Bai Jing. “Jing, you should come up with a good name. It’s not my forte—you know that.”

“Me?” Bai Jing asked in surprise, then glanced at Lin Yang and the other three who had just wiped their mouths.

Seeing them nod, she lowered her head to think, but after five minutes, she still hadn’t come up with a pleasant and striking name.

“Oh dear! Everyone, help me think,” Bai Jing pouted helplessly after ten minutes of no luck.

Is it really that hard? Lin Yang thought silently. He wasn’t unwilling to think; he was just lazy. After all, once the medicine was on the market, he’d return to being a hands-off manager and plastic surgeon, living and working as usual. But now, there was an extra thorny problem—he needed to speed up his cultivation of the “Heavenly Spirit Thirteen Blades.” Zhang Zifeng’s condition couldn’t wait, and if what she said was true, his grandfather’s illness wasn’t looking good either. Recalling Tiger Girl Lin Qingcheng’s words last time, he felt a surge of worry.

The HSV virus was indeed a ticking time bomb. A full outbreak would be fatal. That reminded him again of the Tianyang Pill and catching the experts’ attention.

“How about ‘Beauty and Radiance Capsules’?” the young assistant, who had been shy and quiet, timidly murmured.

“Beauty and Radiance Capsules? Why not just call it ‘Beauty Pills’? Look at the advertising slogan for ‘Fuyan Jie’—‘Fuyan Jie washes for better health.’ Everyone remembers it after hearing it once,” Lin Yang shot a sharp look at the assistant, who immediately lowered his head, as if wanting to disappear under the table.

“Hmm, no, that won’t do. It’s really too tacky,” Bai Jing shook her head and rejected it too.

“How about ‘Beautiful Lotus’?” After hesitating for a moment, Chang offered his suggestion.

“‘Beautiful Lotus’ isn’t bad, but it sounds a bit awkward. Lotus, haha, Chang, do you have a thing for Sister Lotus? Is that why you thought of this name?” Lin Yang, showing no respect for elders, bluntly pointed out its flaw and teased him mercilessly.

That earned him several sharp glares. “You don’t want to think, but you also criticize others’ ideas? You deserve to go to hell!”

Embarrassed by their symbolic stares, Lin Yang awkwardly grinned and shamelessly pulled a cigarette from his pocket, lighting it for himself. He leisurely blew smoke rings, looking quite content.

Two suggestions rejected in a row, the atmosphere grew somewhat gloomy.

After ten minutes, just as Lin Yang was about to blurt out a mess of names, silent Dong Yingying raised her head, glanced around at the four, and said slowly, “How about ‘Natural Beauty’? I think that’s a great name.”

“Natural Beauty.”

The four echoed in unison.

“‘Natural Beauty’ is a good phrase. It embodies the deep meaning of our medicine following natural beauty, sounds elegant and resounding, and is poetic. This is really good.” Lin Yang, who usually rejected most ideas, perked up upon hearing those words. He stubbed out his half-burned cigarette in the ashtray and began to praise it.

“Yes, really good,” Bai Jing nodded in approval.

With two vice presidents praising it, the name change from Golden Silkworm Powder was unanimously approved.

“Hahaha, everyone, raise your glasses to toast the future glory of ‘Natural Beauty’,” Lin Yang enthusiastically lightened the mood.

“To Natural Beauty!” The five of them cheered, downing three cups in a row, bringing the lavish dinner to a close.

As they were about to leave, Lin Yang’s phone rang. He pulled it out and saw it was a call from Zhang Qiqi. Since Zhang Zifeng’s sudden illness last time, neither Su Qin nor Zhang Qiqi had his number. If not for Leng Nini, the mother and daughter would have been helpless. After returning last time, they had specifically asked Lin Yang for the number.

Fearing Zhang Zifeng’s condition had flared up again, Lin Yang answered without delay. “Hello, Qiqi? What’s wrong? Has Uncle Feng’s illness relapsed?”

“No, no. Dad’s condition is stable. It’s Nini who’s in trouble,” Zhang Qiqi’s anxious voice came through.

Lin Yang clearly heard the tension and worry in her voice, which puzzled him. What could have happened to that girl Leng Nini? Recalling her strange behavior that morning, his heart skipped a beat. Without wasting a moment, he said goodbye to the others and hurriedly drove back.