What's most infuriating is that leaders of DZ agencies at all levels and heads of some powerful units and departments have all become victims. Lin Yao doesn't know if they paid for the poison themselves, but he feels speechless when faced with the information from distributors, customers, and operators at all levels.
These people actually demanded that Minhong Pharmaceutical send experts to their homes to diagnose their illnesses. Of course, they also demanded that Minhong Pharmaceutical personally deliver the genuine drought-resistant beverages to them. At this point, they were also afraid of buying counterfeit medicines and beverages again, so they requested a certificate from Minhong Pharmaceutical and that the certificate number and destination area be published on the company's official website, simply because they were too busy with work to come in person.
The members of the preparatory team gathered in the conference room, staring at each other in bewilderment with Lin Yao. The person who made such an unreasonable request was simply asking for trouble—like a centenarian hanging himself.
"The website has issued an announcement stating that there are a total of 100,000 toxic products and the estimated number of poisonings exceeds 10,000. No one from Minhong Pharmaceutical will send experts to diagnose the illnesses, nor does the company have that many experts. Once the company, together with experts and scholars nationwide, finds a solution, we will only prioritize treating patients who have come to Chengdu. As for the others, they can do whatever they want. Minhong Pharmaceutical is too small to accommodate so many important figures." Lin Yao coldly left the meeting room with these words.
The technology center was packed with a large, densely packed group of people, all dressed smartly, but with strikingly similar expressions—they stood there looking utterly dejected. The patients, a collection of elites from all over the country, went to great lengths to please every member of the preparatory team. Even the volunteer girls responsible for answering calls and providing internal services were driven to distraction by them, and only after a large number of security guards were deployed to enforce restraints were the services able to operate smoothly.
"Elites!" Lin Yao thought with admiration. He felt that if all these people worked for him, they would probably become the richest people in the country, then the richest in Asia, and then the richest in the world, because they were all doing well in their respective industries and could be considered talented individuals.
Lin Yaocai had his own thoughts, but he didn't really expect to impress these people. Once someone achieves a little success, they lose their sense of self-worth and dream of becoming their own boss and making a lot of money. They forget about being humble and cooperative. Of course, they all show great affability and humility in public, but those shouldn't be taken seriously.
The crowd grew densely packed, and the preparatory team mobilized the resources of the municipal Communist Youth League to organize local volunteers to register names and maintain order. They then led the group to a recently relocated school dormitory. Lin Yao squeezed into the dense crowd, secretly observing the patients' conditions.
"Uncle, please have some water." A little girl, about five or six years old, speaking with a northern accent, tugged at Lin Yao's trouser leg and handed him the half-full bottle of drought relief drink. Her young mother, standing next to her, stopped her and urged her to finish the whole bottle.
Lin Yao smiled, watching the little girl's tearful face as she struggled to put the bottle to her mouth and swallow the drink with difficulty. He felt a pang of sadness; the hearts of parents are so pitiful. They give their children the best of everything, and even children who don't need any special care are poisoned because of their parents' love.
Bending down, Lin Yao handed the little girl a small gold tag. "Little sister, take this, don't lose it. Uncle will play a game with you. You have to answer when he calls you."
"Okay, Uncle, I don't want to drink water anymore, but my mom insists I drink it. My tummy hurts so much." The little girl seemed to have grasped at a straw and poured out her grievances to the stranger Lin Yao, hoping that he would persuade her mother to stop forcing her to drink water.
"Drink slowly, it's okay if you don't drink so fast." Lin Yao patted the little girl's head and prepared to straighten up.
Suddenly, a commotion erupted in the hall, a buzz of whispers and panicked screams filling the air. The information relayed indicated that someone had vomited in the hall; the poisoned individuals, mostly elites, had likely researched the symptoms of kidney failure online, and nausea and vomiting were among them. This stark reality triggered a rapid surge of panic.
The little girl's mother squatted down, tears streaming down her face, and picked up the half-full bottle of drought relief drink from her hand. She held it to the little girl's mouth, seemingly intending to force it down her throat. "Feifei, listen to Mommy, drink this water right now. You must drink it all right away. If you drink it all, Feifei can go to the amusement park to play."
When the little girl named Feifei saw her mother's tears, she did not refuse, but the pain on her face became even more obvious. She swallowed the drink that her mother poured over her with difficulty, tears streaming down her face. Then she choked and coughed repeatedly, and the drink she coughed up spilled onto Lin Yao's clothes.
"Feifei, listen to me, keep drinking, you must finish it." The young mother was in tears, which Lin Yao, who was standing next to her, could not bear to watch.
Lin Yao sighed, gently took the little girl's hand, and let the grass extend its tendrils to explore her body and examine her.
Moderate poisoning doesn't pose an immediate danger. Lin Yao breathed a sigh of relief upon receiving this conclusion and took the hand of the young mother who was about to continue drinking the water. "Don't worry, Feifei will be fine. Just drink slowly. She'll be okay once she finishes this bottle of beverage today."
Seeing the young mother's still frightened eyes, Lin Yao gently comforted her, "Tell Feifei to keep the cards in her hand safe, they'll be useful later, don't worry."
"Thank you!" The young mother was clearly a shrewd person. Hearing Lin Yao's tone and instructions, she immediately knew that he must be an employee of Minhong Pharmaceutical. The token he mentioned must be very useful, and she figured her daughter's life was saved. Thinking of this, even more tears welled up in her eyes. She stood up and bowed to Lin Yao, "Please, you must save Feifei. Even if something happens to us, please save Feifei."
Lin Yao immediately slipped away. People around had already noticed the strange situation, and if he didn't leave now, he might not be able to leave at all. After walking a distance away, Lin Yao turned back and saw the young mother in the crowd still looking in his direction with teary eyes. At this moment, Fei Fei was being held in the arms of a middle-aged man, who was also looking in their direction with hopeful eyes. This was clearly a family that had drunk the poisoned beverage.
He then selected a little boy, and after handing over the six gold plaques—half young men, half middle-aged men, and half elderly men—Lin Yao made the announcement over the loudspeaker.
Feifei was overjoyed to see him again. Since meeting this uncle, her mother had stopped forcing her to drink water. In her young mind, she regarded Lin Yao as a person with great abilities. As soon as she entered the heavily guarded room, she turned around, got off her father, and rushed into Lin Yao's arms. "Uncle, Feifei has seen you again."
"Be good, Feifei. Uncle will buy you something delicious later." Lin Yao picked up the little girl, greeted another little boy, and then sat down.
"I called you here because I want to discuss something with you." Lin Yao's voice was calm and even. Several patients stood anxiously in front of him, their eyes filled with hope. "Because we can only stop the disease from worsening, we haven't found a way to completely solve it yet. So we need several volunteers of different ages and genders to cooperate in researching treatment plans. If you are willing, please sign the voluntary agreement in person or through your guardian. If you are not willing, we will not force you. You can leave the room immediately."
The crowd stared at Lin Yao with fearful expressions. After a long while, they exchanged glances and whispered among themselves. Finally, an elderly man spoke up, "Excuse me, what are the risks of this kind of research experiment, and what guarantees can we obtain?"
Lin Yao pondered for a moment before speaking, "That's all I can say. Those who volunteer to participate in the research experiment have a greater chance of being saved than anyone else outside. In addition, we will purchase a one million yuan insurance policy for each of you to prevent your condition from worsening beyond normal circumstances. Normal circumstances are based on the average level of those outside."
Everyone fell silent. Fei Fei's mother rushed up to Lin Yao and bravely looked him in the eye. "I'll sign. I'll agree to any condition as long as you can cure Fei Fei."
“Xiao Mei…” The middle-aged man also came over and took Fei Fei’s mother’s arm. He still had some doubts. This kind of experiment is usually the most dangerous, which is the exact opposite of what Lin Yao said about it being the safest. He was a little worried.
"Don't worry about it, I believe in this person." Fei Fei's mother abruptly shook off her husband's hand. She had sensed Lin Yao's determination and confidence in the hall earlier, and now she had to take a gamble, betting that her feeling was right, otherwise her daughter might never have another chance.
"Xiaomei, let's discuss this again." Feifei's father was still worried, so he pulled his wife's arm again, trying to draw her to his side.
"Let go of me!" Fei Fei's mother's voice suddenly rose. "We can get a kidney transplant if we have kidney failure, but what about Fei Fei? How can such a young child get a kidney transplant? No way! I believe in this little boy; he will definitely cure Fei Fei. Get out of my way!"
Lin Yao kept his mouth shut and didn't speak. He couldn't make any guarantees at this moment, otherwise it might uncover more secrets. Xiao Cao's secret absolutely couldn't be known to anyone. He was certainly confident in Fei Fei's treatment; treating such individual cases was no problem at all. However, it would be highly inappropriate for him to treat all ten thousand patients one by one.
For the first time, Lin Yao experienced an internal struggle: whether to risk exposing his own secret to save someone or to selfishly protect his biggest secret to ensure the safety of himself and his family. These two thoughts clashed fiercely.
After a long while, Lin Yao secretly breathed a sigh of relief and made a decision in his heart.
Everything in this world has a cause and effect. I am not a savior, I don't have the ability to help everyone, nor do I have the noble sentiment to sacrifice myself to save people. I will continue to follow the law of cause and effect. Helping others while protecting myself and my family will be my principle from now on.
In an instant, Lin Yao suddenly felt the light in the entire room dim. He felt a little sad, but also a little relieved. Ever since he got Xiao Cao, he had been carrying a heavy burden, and this burden was now being lifted.
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Chapter 123 The Little Grass Came to Life
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Feifei's mother was the first to sign an agreement to voluntarily cooperate with the research experiment. This type of toxic acute renal failure has a greater impact on children, and she received a verbal guarantee from Lin Yao. After Feifei's mother signed the agreement, the little boy's parents also signed the agreement, and then others came over one after another to sign the agreement.
Of the eight people selected, only one middle-aged man named Liu Gensheng did not sign the agreement.
Liu Gensheng is an ordinary worker in Chongqing. His wife is frail and often ill. Heeding rumors, he bought a drought-relieving beverage from the black market, and his wife's health improved significantly after drinking it. This time, the distributor was selling a beverage produced by Huarentang, which was said to have the same effect. Based on the previous success and the brand advantage of Huarentang, Liu Gensheng gritted his teeth and took out his meager savings to buy a bottle of the beverage.
Poverty reveals true feelings. The couple, who had shared hardships together, were now poisoned. Liu Gensheng, who had been coaxed into drinking half a bottle of beverage by his wife, was also poisoned. They had only bought one bottle of beverage in the lobby. Thinking about the long-awaited medical expenses and their family's dire financial situation, even the clause in the agreement that included free drought relief drinks could not sway Liu Gensheng. He said this as he was about to leave, "We don't have money for medical treatment, we don't even have money to buy drinks. If things get really bad, we'll go back to Chongqing and be a pair of star-crossed lovers."
Hearing these simple and honest words, Lin Yao felt a lump in his throat. How many people are willing to give up their lives for their loved ones? This is what it means to have true love.
Taking out a gold plaque that had been collected, Lin Yao said in a somewhat hoarse voice, "If I could let your wife enjoy free drinks to maintain her condition, would you be willing to cooperate with the experiment?"