Chapter 78: Tangled and Conflicted

“What’s the matter, Sister Jing?” Lin Yang’s thumb lightly slid over the answer button, raising the phone to his ear. Sitting on the sofa, he tapped the coffee table with both hands, one leg crossed over the other, and asked with a playful grin.

“Hmph, President Lin, you’re really living the good life—throwing all this mess aside and leaving me to clean up. I’ve been run off my feet these past few days.” Bai Jing’s voice came through the receiver, brimming with grievance, sounding every bit like a wronged wife left all alone.

Truth be told, it had been nearly a week since Lin Yang and a few experts had developed a substitute for the main ingredient, golden silkworm pupae, in their new medicine. Since then, Lin Yang hadn’t set foot in Baifu Pharmaceuticals’ headquarters—not even a courtesy call to Bai Jing. He was living up to his reputation as the hands-off partner.

He knew this was his fault. After all, with the plan to launch the Golden Silkworm Powder, he held nearly fifty percent of the shares. This was a venture entirely separate from Baifu Pharmaceuticals, created specifically to counter Fangyu Pharmaceuticals. After a week’s frantic preparations, everything was ready, just waiting for the final go-ahead. As a key shareholder, Lin Yang’s presence was required, and there were still matters needing his approval.

Because of his dispute with Fang Tianyu, and Bai Jing’s intervention at the police station that day, Fang Tianyu, unable to take revenge on Lin Yang, had since turned all his wrath on Baifu Pharmaceuticals. His attacks had been relentless, as if he meant to devour Baifu Pharmaceuticals within mere days.

The Fang family’s aggressive expansion, with Fangyu Pharmaceuticals leading the charge, was another reason Bai Jing had to accelerate the plan. According to the original schedule she and Lin Yang had set, they were to accumulate two weeks’ worth of Golden Silkworm Powder before launching. Bai Jing’s sudden call never made Lin Yang suspect she meant to move up the launch by a week.

“Heh, Sister Jing, you know I’m a lazy sort. Besides, I’m not much of a businessman. You, on the other hand, are the best of the best—entrusting this to you puts my mind at ease. I told you from the start, once the medicine was ready, I wouldn’t meddle in the launch.” Lin Yang shamelessly shirked responsibility, all but saying, “Just leave it to you and I’ll sit back and collect the profits.”

“Ugh! Partnering with you is nothing but a loss for me. I have to do everything myself—my luck’s run dry! Honestly, my life’s one long, tragic battle.” Bai Jing’s voice was full of such plaintive suffering that one could almost picture her weeping for the cause. Only after venting did she get to the point of her call.

“All right, Lin Yang, enough joking. There’s something important today. Listen carefully.” The grievance in her voice vanished, replaced by seriousness as she laid out the gravity of the situation in detail—a speech lasting fifteen minutes, seeking Lin Yang’s opinion.

After she finished, Lin Yang fell silent.

He’d long known the Fang family and Fangyu Pharmaceuticals were bent on swallowing up Jinhai Pharmaceuticals, but due to various setbacks, their progress had been slow—until recently. Now they were making a sudden, all-out assault, sparing no expense: slashing prices to attract customers, using dirty tricks to frame smaller pharmaceutical companies, wiping out competitors in one fell swoop. It was an infuriatingly ruthless campaign.

But the Fang family had the means and influence. Even if Lin Yang detested their underhandedness, there was little he could do without evidence. In the eyes of the law, proof was required. Without it, trying to bring down Fangyu Pharmaceuticals was pure fantasy.

Seven days of frenzied attacks had left the market in turmoil. Against the Fang family’s deep pockets and wide connections, several pharmacies in Jinhai City had already folded, selling out and slinking away from the industry. Only the Bai family’s Jinhai Pharmaceuticals, once a colossus, was still holding on—barely. Their subsidiaries had been forced to withdraw one after another, and the Bai family was on the brink of disaster. No wonder Bai Jing had called, proposing to launch the Golden Silkworm Powder ahead of schedule as a last-ditch gambit.

“Sister Jing, if you’re fully prepared and confident, I won’t stand in your way,” Lin Yang said quietly. He wasn’t naive—he understood this was an all-or-nothing move, the original plan thrown into chaos.

There’d been no time to prepare marketing campaigns, craft slogans, or even speak with frontline distributors. Forcing a new drug onto the market in such haste was a gamble fraught with risk. If they weren’t ready, even if sales were high, the losses could be devastating.

From a long-term perspective, this might not matter, but such a rushed launch would make it nearly impossible to negotiate higher prices with partners later. Lin Yang was fundamentally opposed to such a counterproductive move.

“To be honest, no, I’m not fully prepared. But the Bai family’s position is on the edge. With the Fang family’s relentless assault, Baifu Pharmaceuticals might not last another week. By the time we’re ready, it could already be too late.” Baifu was the Bai family’s lifeblood. If they lost it, even a successful launch of Golden Silkworm Powder would be a hollow victory—what was gone would be nearly impossible to reclaim. That was why Bai Jing was willing to gamble everything.

Lin Yang said nothing. Though he rarely involved himself in the family business, he wasn’t ignorant of commercial strategy.

Marketing was crucial for any new product, especially medicine, where public safety was involved. Promotion had to be flawless, and government approval was essential. Lin Yang asked, “Sister Jing, has the National Safety Bureau’s certification come through?”

It was just a stamp, but the process could take at least ten days. He couldn’t help but worry.

“Not yet, but I’ve pushed them. They said it’ll be issued tomorrow. That’s not a problem.” Bai Jing was confident about the inspection—after all, the head of the Jinhai Food and Drug Safety Bureau was her second uncle.

The Bai family had built their empire in pharmaceuticals, but without strong connections, they could never have risen to the top of Jinhai in just three years. Their network in official circles was formidable.

“If I say I’m against it, what would you do?” Lin Yang hesitated for a long time before voicing the question.

Now it was Bai Jing’s turn to fall silent. At such a critical moment for her family, asking her to choose was almost an ultimatum, but Lin Yang had to ask.

“I’d probably insist,” she replied at last, voice firm.

A determined woman is a force to be reckoned with—knowing there are tigers in the mountain, yet venturing in regardless.

“All right, I understand. But let’s delay two more days. I’ll handle the rest. The publicity must be done properly, or even if the new drug launches, it won’t have the desired effect, and the Bai family’s situation won’t improve.” After weighing the options, Lin Yang offered a compromise.

A business-minded woman’s calculations were like a computer’s. Bowing her head in thought, Bai Jing swiftly calculated the possible losses over two days. After five minutes, seeing Baifu would still survive, she agreed.

A few more words and the call ended. Lin Yang shoved the phone in his pocket, his head pounding. He sighed—he’d wanted an easy life as a hands-off partner, but fate had other plans, dropping this massive problem in his lap.

Smoking was indeed his way of easing trouble. An old hand at the habit, he chain-smoked five cigarettes, filling the first-floor hall with thick fumes.

Just as he stubbed out the fifth cigarette in the ashtray, Su Qin emerged from the kitchen, her arms full of jars and bottles.

Glancing up, Lin Yang understood. He remembered the last time the young woman had been eager to learn cooking—she’d gone through the condiments with a vengeance, wasting a good deal. The empty jars in Su Qin’s hands were the result of that experiment.

Watching Su Qin tidy up the bottles into a clean trash bag and head for the door, Lin Yang asked, “Aunt Qin, where are you off to?”

“Oh, we’re out of oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar. I’m going to buy some more,” Su Qin replied with a gentle smile, the picture of a capable housekeeper.

“No need, Aunt Qin. I already sent one of my guys out; he’ll be back soon. Just sit and rest for a bit—you’ve been busy all day.” Lin Yang got up and led her to the sofa.

As soon as Su Qin sat down, laughter and playful shrieks drifted down from upstairs.

“Hehe, Sister Qiqi, how did you meet Brother Lin Yang? The way you look at him, you really care about him! But I like him too. You can’t go after him and compete with Ni Ni for Brother Lin Yang, okay?” Cold Ni Ni clung to Zhang Qiqi’s arm, her tone earnest and adorable, a sight that would melt anyone’s heart.

“Ni Ni.” Zhang Qiqi gazed at the pouty face, reached out and pinched her chubby cheek, her own voice tinged with melancholy. “I won’t compete with you for Brother Lin Yang, don’t worry.”

“I knew you were the best, Sister Qiqi!” Cold Ni Ni cheered like a magpie, flinging herself into Zhang Qiqi’s arms, snuggling up to her. Then, showing her mischievous side, she launched a sneak attack, tickling Zhang Qiqi’s sides.

Peals of laughter rang out from upstairs, making Lin Yang and Su Qin exchange amused glances.

Soon, Lin Yang’s bodyguard came hurrying in, arms loaded with shopping bags. Lin Yang couldn’t help but smile at the sight—he’d really bought everything on the list, so much that even his neck was draped with bags, making Su Qin laugh so hard she bent double on the sofa.

After a few polite words, Lin Yang headed out the villa door. It was time to get moving on the publicity front. In times like these, connections were everything.