"Chen Yue, I'll handle your brother's situation. I can have someone advance the costs for you. I'll send a lawyer to the hospital to meet you shortly," Liu Yutong said.
Chen Yue was somewhat overwhelmed by the favor. "Sister Yutong, this... this is too much trouble for you. How can we possibly... this..."
Liu Yutong reassured her, "Don't stand on ceremony. This isn't just your personal matter. If it really is a problem with the formula, then many more babies might be victims behind the scenes. We must get to the bottom of this. You just need to cooperate fully with my lawyer, alright?"
Chen Yue nodded, her eyes growing warm. "Alright. Thank you, thank you so much, Sister Yutong."
She was genuinely deeply moved.
She had always heard others say Liu Yutong was aloof and unapproachable, but after actually interacting with her, she realized everyone had completely misunderstood her.
Turns out she was such a warm, caring person. It was truly wonderful.
Liu Yutong comforted her a few more words, urging her not to worry, then turned and hurried away without even entering the dormitory building.
She couldn't afford not to hurry, because she wasn't sure if their supermarket chain sold Xiao Lu formula. If they did, an emergency recall was imperative to nip the potential hazard in the bud.
As soon as Liu Yutong got into her car, she directly called Yang Xin.
"Yang Xin, arrange for an immediate check. See if any of our supermarkets are selling Xiao Lu formula. I'm heading to the University Town branch now."
"What's wrong, Miss?"
"I suspect this brand of formula might have issues. Go check right now. Pull all stock from shelves immediately. For any already sold, dispatch people for an immediate recall. Also, arrange company vehicles to take babies who consumed this formula to major hospitals for comprehensive check-ups. We'll advance and cover all costs..."
Liu Yutong spoke rapidly, yet her instructions were meticulous and clear.
Yang Xin rarely saw the young mistress so urgent and grasped the seriousness of the situation. He promptly hung up and frantically contacted all branch managers, ordering the immediate removal of all formula from shelves.
By the time Liu Yutong arrived at the University Town branch, supermarket staff were already urgently removing the relevant formula. It wasn't just the Xiao Lu brand; other formula brands were also temporarily pulled.
Whether they could be restocked would depend on the results of self-inspections and third-party testing.
In truth, when Wanlong Supermarket initially introduced brands like Xiao Lu, the procedures were sound.
The suppliers provided complete third-party inspection reports, and Wanlong conducted standard sampling checks, confirming no issues before putting them on shelves.
After all, Xiao Lu formula wasn't some small brand but a major enterprise with a market value in the billions.
The real problem lay in the testing standards, as the published standards did not require testing for melamine.
This wasn't due to incomplete standard-setting but rather the standard-setters underestimating the depths of human malice.
As the saying goes, with 100% profit, people dare to take desperate risks, even trampling the law.
Wanlong Supermarket's efficiency was impressive. Within less than twenty minutes of Liu Yutong's order, all branches had completed the removal of all formula brands.
During the removal, Zhao Tianyi and his law firm staff fully participated, assisting supermarket employees with evidence collection throughout the process.
After this, nearly all of the group's hundreds of vehicles were mobilized for the formula recall, especially for Xiao Lu formula.
Subsequent events proved Liu Yutong's judgment correct.
After expedited processing.
The next day, both the group's internal lab and third-party testing agencies reported results. Among the dozen-plus formula brands sold in the supermarkets, five were substandard, testing positive for melamine.
Among them, Xiao Lu formula had the highest additive levels and was also the most well-known and best-selling brand of the five.
At the hospital.
Liu Yutong personally visited the little babies in the pediatric wards.
Although the formula wasn't produced by them, they were the sellers. They failed in their duty of due diligence, so they bore responsibility; they were at fault.
Admit mistakes when you make them, and correct them promptly—this was what she always emphasized to her subordinates.
After all, no one is perfect, no enterprise is flawless; problems will arise to some extent, herself included.
If not for Chen Yue's brother's situation alerting her, she might have truly forgotten about this matter.
Fortunately, the remedy was timely. By tracing back to retained samples from shipments, they discovered that only the most recent two or three batches were problematic; last year's batches were all qualified.
Meaning, the illegal practice of adding melamine by those unscrupulous businesses hadn't been going on for long.
Among the currently hospitalized babies, not many showed obvious symptoms; most cases were relatively mild, which allowed Liu Yutong to breathe a slight sigh of relief.
After seeing the children.
Liu Yutong went to the parents and offered a sincere apology.
"Everyone, brothers and sisters, I am Liu Yutong, Chairman of the Wanlong Group. I am deeply sorry. Our work had oversights, causing your babies to suffer. Please rest assured, all medical expenses and subsequent nutritional care will be fully advanced and borne by our supermarket. I guarantee every child will receive the best possible treatment."
"Regarding this incident, Wanlong Supermarket will absolutely not shirk responsibility. We have now completely removed and recalled all related products."
"Simultaneously, I hereby announce the group will establish a special fund for the long-term tracking and safeguarding of these children's healthy development. As for pursuing accountability from the related formula brands, our legal team has already initiated proceedings. We will pursue this to the end and guarantee our utmost effort to secure the highest possible financial compensation for everyone!"
"............"
To be honest, among these parents, if Wanlong hadn't proactively sent people to pick them up and urgently recalled the formula, many might still not know the problem was with the formula.
Now, with the group's boss personally apologizing and making commitments, even though their hearts ached for their children, they truly couldn't muster anger towards her. Some even felt grateful inwardly.
If not for their insistence on bringing the babies to the hospital for check-ups, some parents wouldn't have known their children's fussiness was due to physical discomfort.
Coupled with Wanlong Supermarket's usually excellent service and reputation, and their sincere, proactive handling of the problem, the parents had nothing more to say.
After calming the parents, Zhao Tianyi also hurried over with several lawyers.
"Miss, we have collected all relevant evidence, witness statements, and materials provided by the parents. We are ready to file lawsuits against those five companies at any time."
Zhao Tianyi adjusted his glasses and held up three fingers. "This time, we anticipate securing compensation of no less than eighty million."
From last year to now, Wanlong Supermarket has sold a significant quantity of formula. Although the problematic ones were the most recent batches, they intended to trace back all sales to maximize the compensation claim!
Liu Yutong nodded. "I trust you. Once the compensation is settled, make sure the affected families receive what they're owed immediately. As for the remainder, after deducting your legal fees and our procurement costs, donate it all to the welfare home."
She had no intention of keeping money like that.
"Understood, Miss Liu!"
Zhao Tianyi thought for a moment and added, "Miss Liu, I suggest we delay filing the lawsuit for now? Let's keep the news under wraps first."
