63: Chapter 63: The Development of the "Youth-Preserving Pill" Drives Wealthy Women Worldwide Crazy

On the runway of the San Verde private airport, gale-force winds whistled by, whipping up sand and gravel.

A gulfstream g650 was on standby, its engines roaring deafeningly. However, the atmosphere inside the VIP lounge was eerily quiet.

Jessica sat on a leather sofa, clutching a thumb-sized crystal vial that glowed with a faint pink halo. Her knuckles were white from gripping it too tightly, and her eyes were a mix of skepticism, desire, and a desperate, all-or-nothing madness.

"Just this one bottle?"

She looked up at Chen Yuan, who was standing opposite her. Today, Chen Yuan wasn't wearing a suit; he wore only a simple white shirt with the sleeves rolled up, giving him a casual and languid air.

"What? Think it's not enough?"

Chen Yuan leaned against the bar counter, swirling the soda in his hand with his signature teasing smile. "This is the 'first batch' fresh out of my laboratory. To get this to you before your Oscar red carpet appearance tonight, I've worked several scientists to the bone."

Jessica took a deep breath.

Her condition recently had been poor. High-definition cameras were a female celebrity's greatest enemy; even with the most expensive skincare products, the fine lines around her eyes and her gradually sagging skin were constant reminders that her golden age was slipping away.

Hollywood was cruel. Once that face was gone, capital would abandon her without so much as a warning.

"Chen, you know what tonight means for me."

Jessica uncorked the vial, and a strange, delicate fragrance instantly filled the air—it was the scent of vitality. "If this stuff doesn't work, or if it makes me have an allergic reaction and swell up... my career is over."

"Then don't drink it."

Chen Yuan shrugged, making a move to take the bottle back. "That works, Lady Mary was complaining that there wasn't enough to go around anyway."

"No!"

Jessica pulled her hand back sharply, like a lioness guarding her prey. She didn't hesitate any longer, tilted her slender neck back, and downed the pink liquid in one gulp.

There was no bitterness, only a mint-like coolness that instantly slid down her throat. Then, a warm current erupted from her stomach, rapidly spreading to every limb and bone.

"Go on, Cinderella."

Chen Yuan checked his watch and gestured for her to leave. "Your pumpkin carriage is about to take off. Remember, don't forget our agreement."

Jessica touched her cheeks, which were beginning to heat up. Although she hadn't looked in a mirror yet, she could feel her long-dormant heart beating powerfully within her chest.

It was the vitality of returning to eighteen.

She took one long look at Chen Yuan, put on her sunglasses, and turned toward the boarding gate, her high heels clicking with the aura of someone marching into battle.

...

Los Angeles, Dolby Theatre. The 98th Academy Awards ceremony was being held here. The sides of the red carpet were packed with media from all over the world, and the flashes formed a galaxy of light, illuminating the night sky as if it were day.

Female celebrities were competing to outshine one another. In order to secure a spot in the headlines, they would have hung an entire jewelry store on themselves or plunged their necklines down to their navels if they could.

However, when a black stretch limousine slowly pulled up to the end of the red carpet, a momentary commotion rippled through the crowd.

The car door opened. A foot in a crystal high heel stepped out onto the ground.

Immediately after, Jessica Alba stepped out.

She wasn't wearing one of those exaggerated floor-length gowns, nor was she wearing any dazzling diamond necklaces. She wore only a very simple white silk slip dress, her long hair draped casually over her shoulders, and... she was wearing only the lightest, most natural makeup.

"Is that... Jessica?"

A veteran paparazzo in the crowd froze, even forgetting to press the shutter.

"God, am I seeing things? Was this photo taken ten years ago?"

The scene fell into a brief, deathly silence, followed by an explosion of screams and shutter clicks more intense than anything before.

"Click, click, click—!!!"

Jessica, through the lenses, was unrealistically beautiful.

Her skin was fair and translucent, like a freshly peeled egg, and it even glowed with a soft halo under the lights. The fine lines around her eyes, the sagging of her neck, and the fatigue from years of dieting and staying up late had all vanished.

In their place was an abundance of collagen—that firm, elastic vitality one only possesses in their youth.

She stood there, smiling and waving at the crowd, as if time had flowed backward twenty years for her. The heavily made-up competitors around her, pumped full of hyaluronic acid, were instantly made to look like old, flaking walls covered in white paint.

"Impossible! She definitely went under the knife!"

On the other end of the red carpet, a veteran best actress winner known for being "ageless" gripped her clutch so hard her nails were about to snap. "But... why is there no recovery period? I saw her last week and she still had eye bags!"

"This isn't plastic surgery at all!"

A fashion editor next to her took off her glasses, trembling as she wiped them and put them back on. "Plastic surgery faces are stiff, but look at her expressions... so vivid, so natural! This is natural youth! God, did she sign a contract with the devil?"

That night, who won the Oscar statuettes no longer mattered.

The next morning, every fashion magazine, entertainment headline, and even the financial pages worldwide were dominated by the same name.

"Miracle! Hollywood Goddess Returns to Eighteen!"

"Jessica's Secret: Genetic Mutation or Alien Technology?"

"Shocking! Mysterious Eastern Power Sweeps Hollywood!"

All social media exploded. Socialites were frantically forwarding Jessica's high-definition raw photos in their elite group chats, female celebrities were forcing their agents to find out Jessica's beauty secrets, and even Wall Street analysts were spending the night analyzing the commercial value behind it.

Just as the whole world was rife with speculation, Jessica posted a selfie on her Instagram.

In the photo, she was holding that thumb-sized empty crystal vial with the red and white Umbrella logo, and the caption was just one short sentence:

"Thanks to Umbrella Corporation, I've found the time I lost. #youth no. 1# #Chen Yuan#"

Boom!

If the public opinion before was just boiling, this tweet was like pouring a bucket of cold water into a deep fryer, causing an instant explosion.

"Umbrella Corporation? Is that the one that sells veterinary medicine on the Mexican border?"

"Don't talk nonsense, upstairs. They're a legitimate high-tech biotech company now! Even Johnson & Johnson got knocked down by them!"

"Who is Chen Yuan? I want all the information on this man within two minutes!"

San Verde, Pharmaceutical Factory office.

Chen Yuan watched the search index jumping wildly on his computer screen, along with the company's inbox, which was so full it was about to overflow with purchase requests. He closed his laptop with satisfaction.

"Boss, you really are a genius."

Victor stood to the side, looking at the names of the senders on those emails, and felt like his heart was about to stop. "The Dubai royal family, the eldest princess of the LVMH Group, and even several The First Lady... they are all asking, how much does it cost to buy a bottle?"

"And their tone..."

Victor swallowed hard, his expression strange. "It's as humble as if they were begging for their lives."

"For women, aging is a terminal illness."

Chen Yuan picked up his coffee and walked to the window. "When they discover that there really is an antidote in this world, things like reason cease to exist."

"Then how should we price it?" Victor rubbed his hands, his eyes full of dollar signs. "One million a bottle? I think they'd even pay that!"

"No, talking about money is too vulgar."

Chen Yuan shook his head, his gaze deep. "Although the cost is only one hundred dollars, we cannot sell it as a commodity. We must treat it as an 'entry ticket'."

"Only give it away, don't sell it, or... barter."

"Tell those who want the medicine that Umbrella Corporation is not short on money. What we lack are friends, privileges, and the things that money cannot buy."

Just then, the office door was knocked on gently.

Alice walked in, holding an encrypted satellite phone, her expression rarely serious.

"Boss, there is a special call."

"Who?"

"The other party did not reveal their name, but the signal source tracking shows it comes from a private estate in the Scottish Highlands."

Alice paused and lowered her voice: "That is the private property of the Windsor family."

Chen Yuan's eyebrows shot up.

The Windsor family? Doesn't that mean... the British Royal Family?

He took the phone, and before he could speak, an elegant, reserved, yet undeniably urgent old woman's voice came from the other side. It was in the most standard Royal English accent.

"Mr. Chen, I am calling you on behalf of a... very distinguished lady."

"We have seen Ms. Jessica's photo. Her Ladyship is deeply impressed."

"We know you are not short on money. Therefore, Her Ladyship is willing to offer a special gift in exchange for the 'youth' you hold."

"A five-hundred-year-old royal castle located in the Scottish Highlands, and... a hereditary barony."

"Do you think this chip is enough?"

Chen Yuan held the phone, the smile at the corner of his mouth gradually widening, finally turning into a wild, unrestrained expression.

Is this the joy that monopoly technology brings?

Trading sugar water that costs one hundred dollars for a royal castle and a noble title? This business is ten thousand times more profitable than robbing a bank!

"Her Ladyship is too kind."

Chen Yuan spoke into the phone, his tone gentle and humble, just like a true gentleman: "Deal."

"However, I have one small request."

"I hope the knighting ceremony can be held publicly. After all, I also want to go to that country with such a long history... for a vacation."