Company Bankruptcy, Late-stage Liver Cancer

"The new drug development has failed again. This is the fifth time this year. I suggest suspending all R&D investment..."

"The company's financial situation is also dire. We've suffered heavy losses this year, and there is no liquid capital left in our accounts..."

"Last week, President Zhang from the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China called to ask if we would have any trouble paying off the loan due next month. He might have heard some rumors..."

"Several minority shareholders asked me to relay a message to you. They want to withdraw their shares immediately and demand their capital be returned as soon as possible..."

"President Wei, that is the state of the company this year. The situation is extremely grim. Have you considered the proposals I drafted last time?"

"If we don't take action now, we can only sit by and watch the company go bankrupt!"

"Bankrupt?" The word hit him like a shot of adrenaline to the heart, instantly pulling Wei Kang's scattered thoughts back to reality.

His gaze finally focused on the worried middle-aged man standing before him.

This was Sun Chengren, the company's vice president and sales director. In his forties, wearing black-rimmed glasses, he looked refined and gentle. He was in his prime, yet his temples were already streaked with white, and the wrinkles on his face were as deep as if carved by a knife. At this moment, his brows were tightly locked as he delivered his report to Wei Kang.

Old Sun was a company veteran who had been there since Wei Kang could remember. For over twenty years, he had been his parents' right-hand man, and especially over the last six months, he had single-handedly held the entire company together.

Thinking of his parents, Wei Kang felt a sharp pain in his heart. They had both died in a car accident six months ago. Fresh out of university, he had rushed back to inherit the family business—a small private pharmaceutical company—vowing to preserve his parents' life's work and help it flourish.

He never imagined that, just half a year later, the company would be on the verge of bankruptcy.

"Bankruptcy..." Wei Kang squeezed out a bitter smile and muttered to himself, "Has it really come to this? In the end, I am just too incompetent."

He looked at the solemn Old Sun. "Uncle Sun, if not for you these past six months, I never would have gotten the hang of the company's operations. I've tried my best, but it seems I'm destined to disappoint Mom and Dad after all." At this, his nose stung, and his eyes began to well up.

Sun Chengren looked at him with pity. After a long silence, he finally spoke to console him. "Xiao Kang, I watched you grow up. I understand how important this company is to you, but there are many things in this world that are simply beyond human control. If the outcome isn't what you wanted, you still need to look on the bright side."

He seemed hesitant, his expression filled with shame, as he reached out to hand over a stack of documents. He sighed, "Xiao Kang, listen to your uncle's advice. If it really isn't working, sell the company. That way, you'll be set for the rest of your life. A while ago, General Manager Wu from Xinmei Group approached me about acquiring the company. Here is their acquisition proposal. Why don't you take a look and give it some serious thought?"

"Anyway, that's the situation with the company. If there's nothing else, I'll be heading out."

Wei Kang stared blankly at Old Sun's retreating figure as he left the office. His heart was a mix of complex emotions, and his chest ached dully.

After a while, he couldn't help but let out a bitter laugh. Had things really deteriorated to such a point?

It seemed his life had hit rock bottom; surely it couldn't get any worse than this.

He had fallen off a cliff this morning, only to find the valley floor covered in sharp blades. Now, all it would take was one final blow to finish him off.

He opened the acquisition proposal on his desk, glanced at it, and sneered. Heh heh, this General Manager Wu had fought his parents for over a decade. Now that victory was finally within reach, he couldn't even wait to watch from the sidelines; he had to come here and personally shovel the final pile of dirt onto the grave.

In truth, the acquisition offer was quite fair. They weren't kicking him while he was down or stripping the company bare; the terms were actually quite generous. He could take the massive sum of money, swallow his pride in front of his parents' lifelong rival, secure the jobs of his old employees, admit defeat, and make a graceful exit.

But what did money mean to him now?

He pulled another document from his drawer, his hand trembling slightly. After a moment, he spread it out on the massive desk and stared at it, lost in thought.

This was the medical report he had just received.

He had coughed up blood at home that morning and rushed to the hospital. After a series of X-rays and blood tests, the preliminary diagnosis was primary malignant liver tumor, already metastasized.

Upon learning that his parents were both deceased, the doctor had broken the news: late-stage liver cancer. He had less than a year left to live.

He let out a long sigh, his heart filled with bitterness.

He had only himself to blame for not taking care of his body. During his studies, he had constantly pulled all-nighters to keep up with his coursework. After earning his master's degree in pharmacy, he immediately took over the family business, spending his days either working through the night in the lab or drinking at business dinners.

Lately, he had been losing weight, and his abdomen had been aching—symptoms he had completely ignored, choosing instead to numb himself with work to forget the grief of losing his parents. And this was the final result!

At this thought, Wei Kang squeezed his eyes shut. His nose stung, and tears finally spilled from the corners of his eyes.

"Ding! Host criteria met. System binding in progress."

"Binding successful... Primary Pharmaceutical System has been activated."

"I hope the host can find a way to survive against all odds and escape this desperate situation."

A mechanical voice echoed in Wei Kang's mind, leaving him stunned.

Huh?

Did I just encounter a system?

In his spare time, Wei Kang read web novels, so he was well aware of the "orphan, transmigrator, and system" trifecta—the standard tropes for a web novel protagonist.

He was caught between laughter and tears. Is it because I'm an orphan in a desperate situation that I was able to activate the system?

But I didn't transmigrate, did I?

However, the moment he realized it was a pharmaceutical system, his eyes lit up, and a glimmer of hope sparked in his heart.

He hurriedly checked the system panel.

Unfortunately, most of the functions were grayed out and inaccessible; he could only make out some blurry text.

At the very bottom of the panel, there was one illuminated heading.

"Drug Side Effect Extraction System?"

It sounded incredibly powerful and high-end.

Wei Kang didn't quite understand it, but he felt it was impressive, and he was filled with excitement.

He continued to read.

Level: lv1

Host: Wei Kang

Points: 0

The system panel was extremely simple, containing only these few data fields without much extra information.

Perhaps it was because the system activated was only at the primary level; if it were to be upgraded continuously in the future to activate intermediate or advanced systems, there would likely be more information and data fields.

The level and host information were clear at a glance, but the rules for these points were unknown. They were at zero—could there really be no Newbie Gift Pack? Wei Kang couldn't help but complain.

He looked at the explanation behind the points column and realized that he could earn points whenever the new drugs he created were used by others; the more people who used them, the more points he would receive.

He suddenly became thoughtful. This system seemed to embody the spirit of Doctors with a benevolent heart; it was a perfect match for him.

Suddenly, the mechanical voice rang out again.

"Ding! Detected that the host is nearing the end of his life. Please claim your Newbie Gift Pack."

There have always been people arguing that it is impossible for a drug to go from clinical trials to market in just a few months. To these readers, I can only say: please respect the facts. In reality, there are many innovative, life-saving drugs that have been approved by the FDA and brought to market in just a few months.

I truly cannot understand it—can you not just search the history of Gilead on Baidu? As one of the top ten pharmaceutical companies in the world, there is plenty of news about them.

The following two drug examples are sufficient to prove that groundbreaking, life-saving drugs can indeed pass review and hit the market in three months, and can also reach tens of billions in sales within the first year.

"In 2006, Gilead's three-in-one treatment drug Atripla was approved for market, becoming the first single-tablet Cocktail Therapy. In clinical trials, 80% of HIV-infected patients saw a significant reduction in HIV virus levels after taking the medication. With its milestone status and excellent efficacy, the FDA took only three months to approve its marketing application using the fast-track review process."

"In December 2013, Gilead's hepatitis C drug Sovaldi (commonly known as 'Gilead Generation 1') was approved for market. It completely crushed its competitors in three dimensions: cure rate, compliance, and adverse reactions. The cure rate for hepatitis C could reach around 90%. More importantly, no serious adverse reactions were found in clinical trials. Consequently, after its launch, Sovaldi rapidly captured the market and became the new standard for hepatitis C treatment. In 2014 alone—the first year on the market—Sovaldi's sales broke the $10 billion mark."

You don't actually think you're smarter or more professional than the FDA and the Drug Administration Bureau, do you?