"If we don't investigate, should we just hand the director's seat to Long Xingyue?" Xiang Hua shot a glare at Xiao Anning, clearly out of patience.
"You better pray that Luo Corporation can withstand the audit. Otherwise, not even the gods will be able to save you!"
Xiao Anning's face burned with frustration. "Don't tell me you haven't realized—they're doing all this just to replace Luo Corporation with the Mu Group. Are you really going to let them get their way?"
"Which ear of yours heard them say they want to replace the supplier with the Mu Group?" Xiang Hua's voice dripped with bitter sarcasm.
That was likely the brilliance of Long Xingyue.
"You just focus on notifying the relevant departments. This matter must be investigated thoroughly and by the book. Rest assured, as long as Luo Corporation meets our supplier standards, this procurement contract won't fall into the Mu Group's hands."
"If Long Xingyue wants to play the noble act, then he better stick to it all the way. If they want this contract, they'll have to come begging for it."
After sending Xiao Anning off, Xiang Hua turned and entered his office.
He seemed to forget one thing: if the hospital was to introduce new pharmaceuticals, they'd eventually have to partner with the Mu Group.
Elsewhere, Shu Lanzhou followed Long Xingyue back to his office.
"You're not upset I didn't bring up the Mu Group just now, are you?" Long Xingyue poured her a cup of tea himself.
Shu Lanzhou quickly stepped forward and received it with both hands. "How could I be? I didn't bring this matter up to help the Mu Group win a contract. I was just fed up with how they've been operating behind the scenes."
"Besides, if Guoyuan Hospital follows the proper supplier evaluation process, the Mu Group might not even lose to Luo Corporation. And even if they're on equal footing and Director Xiang insists on choosing Luo Corporation, it's not a big deal."
"After all, the new drug's contract is inevitable. He may be the director, but he can't go against the will of the hospital's leadership. Wouldn't you agree?"
Long Xingyue chuckled. "You really are perceptive. No wonder Long Xingyu keeps praising you at home."
"Haha… I really like Aunt Xingyu too. She's taught me so much over the past two years." Shu Lanzhou smiled and blinked playfully. "How's Elder Long doing lately? I'll visit in a few days to give him another acupuncture session."
"He's doing very well. He's always looking forward to seeing you." Long Xingyue handed her a proposal.
"This is my plan to promote traditional Chinese medicine at Guoyuan Hospital. Have a look and see if anything needs adding—especially about setting up an acupuncture clinic. That's something I'll need your help with."
This aligned perfectly with Shu Lanzhou's goal of bringing Mu Medical's practices to hospitals across the nation, starting with Guoyuan Hospital. Long Xingyue's initiative saved her a great deal of effort.
By the time they left the hospital, over two hours had passed. Not only had they finalized plans for the acupuncture clinic with Long Xingyue, they had also given a lecture promoting acupuncture techniques at the hospital.
It focused on emergency rescue techniques involving acupuncture points.
To her surprise, the doctors from various departments were more receptive than she'd expected, which delighted Shu Lanzhou.
"Senior, aren't you afraid Director Xiang will cover for Xiao Anning and still refuse to source drugs from the Mu Group?" Zhao Huanhuan asked seriously.
Shu Lanzhou shook her head.
"Even if I am, fear won't change anything. The contract with Luo Corporation was approved by Director Xiang himself—he obviously knew everything. Guoyuan Hospital's previous pharmaceutical supplier wasn't the Mu Group anyway, so this doesn't affect us too much."
"But after today, at the very least, he'll follow procedure. He won't be bold enough to hand out contracts to Luo Corporation under the table anymore."
"Besides, thanks to the success of our research, traditional Chinese medicine is gaining recognition. Director Long's influence in the hospital will only continue to grow. Xiang Hua doesn't have the power to override everything."
With the Long family's influence in play, Xiang Hua would have to be suicidal to violate regulations and risk damaging the hospital's reputation.
Zhao Huanhuan stretched with a yawn. "That's the best outcome. Our next research phase doesn't start for a few days—we can focus on setting up the acupuncture clinic first."
That "focus" ended up lasting a full month. When Shu Lanzhou finally had a break, she heard that Luo Jialin had registered a new company to sell cosmetic medical products.
She had just returned home that day when Mu Side handed her slippers.
"You were right. They really are shifting toward developing aesthetic medical drugs. I looked into the company's registration—Luo Jialin is the legal representative, and Xiao Anning is listed as a shareholder."
Shu Lanzhou was taken aback. "Xiao Anning is publicly backing Han Weicheng now? Isn't he afraid of dragging Xiang Hua into this? Or is this all on Xiang Hua's orders?"
"As far as I know, Xiang Hua has no idea," Mu Side said as he led her to the sofa. "Everything Xiao Anning's done has been behind his back—including the research center under his name."
"Is Xiao Anning's family rich or something? Research centers, new companies… Can he really compare with the Luo family?" Shu Lanzhou asked.
"Not at all," Mu Side shook his head. "The research center may be under his name, but he barely has anything to do with it. The real investor is a foreign national."
"A foreigner?" That surprised Shu Lanzhou even more. In her past life, she hadn't heard of any collaboration between Han Weicheng and foreign investors.
Mu Side shook his head again. "I haven't confirmed their identity yet, but based on other clues, he's probably a local from Shen City who emigrated years ago and became a foreign citizen."
"What about Han Weicheng—any recent activity?" Regardless of who the investor was, their real target was still Han Weicheng.
Mu Side gently held her fingers. "Five days ago, he brought people into Xiao Anning's research center. The research has likely begun."
"He brought people? What kind?" Shu Lanzhou asked, genuinely curious.
Mu Side chuckled.
"Students, researchers from other provinces—he's gathered all sorts. I also heard he secretly approached Fang Ruoshi and Tian Hua, though neither of them has made a decision yet."
"But I'm certain Luo Jialin will join his project."
Fang Ruoshi and Tian Hua were still working at the institute, but given their status as Han Weicheng's students, life there couldn't be easy—especially after Shi Yong and Zhou Yan were disciplined. That pressure might very well push them toward Han Weicheng.
Shu Lanzhou thought for a moment. Fang Ruoshi, under Ji Chuyun's thumb, was desperate to prove himself and earn some respect. It was only a matter of time before he turned to Han Weicheng.
As for Tian Hua, with the right price, he'd probably switch sides even faster than Fang Ruoshi.
Heh… So these old students of his were reuniting. Destiny, perhaps.
What would Luo Jialin think of Guo Jialiang and Du Yifan when he saw them again? And would he feel even a trace of guilt?
Mu Side kissed her. "Go take a shower, then come out for dinner. We're heading home tomorrow."
"Let's go in the afternoon. I made plans to go shopping with Dong Anlan and the others in the morning—might grab lunch together too." Shu Lanzhou hugged him and got up to shower.
Mu Side nodded. "Sure. Just send me the location when you're done, and I'll drive over to pick you up."
"Okay." Shu Lanzhou stepped into the bathroom. But just as she finished her shower, she heard her phone ringing.
She picked it up and saw an unknown number flashing on the screen…