Chapter 1249 - 1249: 797 There are many social schemes.

Du Heng was irritated and immediately turned to Gu Qinghong. "Gu, watch your words. Tonight I'm meeting my niece—my own niece. She's my family, OK? So, I won't be able to accept your invitation to dinner, and I won't in the future either. Understand?"

Gu Qinghong was stunned.

She never expected Du Heng to be so disrespectful.

Du Heng was also fuming. How could this woman be so shameless? Whether I'm a scumbag or not, what does that have to do with her? She's making such a fuss, as if I've done something to her. I never had a good impression of this woman to begin with. If it weren't for my belief in 'a doctor's benevolence,' I honestly wouldn't want to deal with her at all. I can't believe she's really pushing her luck, acting as if we're close. What's wrong with her!

After saying this in front of everyone, Du Heng went back to his office without a backward glance. Once he finished his work, he picked up his things and left directly.

Gu Qinghong remained standing dumbfounded in the corridor, looking as if she had been greatly wronged. Du Heng merely glanced at her, ignored her, and then got up and left.

As he drove out again, Du Heng checked the time and made a call to Du Xuejing. "Tingting, are you out of school yet?"

"Little Uncle, I'm busy right now. You should go home first; I'll call you when I'm done." Du Xuejing's voice was hushed, as if she were a thief. Before Du Heng could react, she hung up.

After hanging up, Du Xuejing apologized to the woman in front of her with a smile, "I'm sorry, Director Xue, please continue."

The woman, Director Xue, was very fashionable. She wore a short skirt paired with black stockings that had a letter pattern, making her legs appear exceptionally long and slender. Her hair was styled in large waves, and her dress featured a deep V-neck, creating a rather striking impression.

"Alright, let's continue." Director Xue seemed unfazed. She calmly looked at Du Xuejing and said, "Your concept for this cosmetic cream is excellent. Especially the claim that it's free of any chemical additives—that's very attractive. However, your formula and the resulting product can no longer be considered ordinary goods or even health products. They are, quite frankly, pharmaceuticals. And the application and sales processes for pharmaceuticals are completely different from those for cosmetics."

Du Xuejing nervously pursed her lips. "Director Xue, are you saying that my proposal won't pass?"

Director Xue smiled faintly. "I'm afraid so. It would be best if you could optimize it, ideally by turning it into an extract. That would make our application process much smoother."

Disappointed, Du Xuejing walked out of the office with a dejected expression.

"Tingting, what happened?" Outside the door, her besties saw Du Xuejing come out and immediately rushed over.

Du Xuejing shook her head in disappointment.

"They didn't approve it?"

"No way! Your cosmetic cream has such obvious effects, how could they not see it? We're the best advertisements!"

"Exactly! Look at my skin now—it's so smooth and delicate! Are they blind?"

"Forget it. If they can't see its value, it's their loss."

"That's right! It's their loss for not approving it!"

The girls began to comfort Du Xuejing, all talking at once. Still indignant, they left the company, surrounding Du Xuejing protectively.

Once outside, they discussed treating Du Xuejing to a nice meal, hoping food could soothe her disappointment.

While they were animatedly discussing what to eat, one girl suddenly pulled Du Xuejing aside. Frowning, she asked, "Tingting, what about the materials you showed them?"

Du Xuejing froze, then after a moment's thought, replied, "That director... she didn't give them back to me."

The girl who had spoken practically jumped. "Silly girl! What were you thinking? Those materials contained the formula's proportions and all the data from your experiments! How could you not get them back?"

"Don't just stand there! Go back and get them, quickly!" At this, the other girls also began to urge Du Xuejing, and together they pulled her along, running back towards the office.

When they reached the office, Du Xuejing, panting and a little timid, said, "Director Xue, I... I'd like to get my materials back."

The beautiful director in the office looked surprised at first, then glanced at her desk. "You didn't take them with you?"

Du Xuejing quickly shook her head. "No. I gave them to you when I came in earlier. I didn't take them when I left, and you didn't give them back to me."

Director Xue looked at her neat and tidy desk with a puzzled expression. Then, with a hint of reproach, she said to Du Xuejing, "You can see for yourself, these are all the things on my desk. There are no materials like the ones you mentioned. Think carefully. Didn't you perhaps drop them somewhere when you left?"

"Impossible!" one of Du Xuejing's friends spoke up. "Tingting was with us as soon as she came out of your office. We can all testify that she didn't have anything in her hands when she left."

As this girl spoke, the others also began to chime in, corroborating her statement.

Director Xue frowned. "Well, you can see for yourselves. The materials you're talking about aren't on my desk."

The girl who had first spoken up for Du Xuejing stepped forward, looked Director Xue squarely in the eye, and said, "Alright, stop the act. Do you take us for children? You think we'll believe whatever you say?"