Chapter 9221. Thank you all for your monthly votes! I'm so grateful!
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The occurrence of numerous unnatural deaths among industry professionals within the jurisdiction already constitutes a major case.
The Nanchong Municipal Party Committee and Municipal Government have ordered the Nanchong Municipal Public Security Bureau to solve the case within a specified time. This serious and fatal incident involving 18 people has caused extremely negative social impact. Only by solving the case quickly can we give an explanation to the private entrepreneurs and individual business owners, and to the people.
In some reports and documents, solving cases has become an emergency measure to prevent panic.
Actually, there was no panic, but there was still a social impact.
There was fear, urgency, worry, and also jubilation.
What is frightening is that the series of cases that occurred in just two or three days involved all private enterprises and individual merchants. These victims were connected and even had obvious common characteristics, namely that they were all the main people responsible for selling counterfeit drugs.
Therefore, all those who manufactured and sold counterfeit goods were terrified, fearing that the same misfortune would befall them. In a state of constant fear, when they looked back on their actions, they felt regret for the first time, and some even felt a little guilty.
Making soy sauce from hair, rinsing duck feet and chicken feet with hydrogen peroxide, soaking seafood (such as rehydrated squid, cuttlefish, shrimp, and oysters) in formaldehyde (a preservative used to soak biological specimens and corpses), using sodium formaldehyde sulfoxylate to manufacture vermicelli, noodles, dried bean curd, and enoki mushrooms, adding laundry detergent to flour to fry dough sticks, and refining and selling gutter oil—these are just some of the most unscrupulous individual business owners and small vendors who, for the first time, feel threatened beyond the reach of state organs and the law.
This kind of threat isn't like the fines and sentences imposed by state authorities when they enforce the law, telling you which chapter and article of which law you violated. Instead, it comes from a mysterious force of unknown origin, ruthless and merciless, and these are the methods that truly terrify counterfeiters and unscrupulous merchants.
Even the owner of a pharmacy in Xichong County, who had only been selling counterfeit drugs for three days, had six fingers chopped off from both hands, leaving only the thumb and index finger on each hand. His ankles were also shattered. Even after surgery to remove the bone spurs and recover, he will only be able to walk slowly and shakily for the rest of his life.
All unscrupulous businessmen felt sorry for the lifelong disability suffered by this "boss" who sold counterfeit medicine in Xichong County, and felt it was all wrong. At the same time, they were also afraid of the punishment they might face for their even more egregious behavior.
Among these terrified businessmen, some, whose consciences hadn't been completely devoured, turned over a new leaf and went back to legitimate business, managing to remain indifferent even to those whose businesses weren't as profitable as their unscrupulous counterparts. However, the vast majority, after the initial period of fear subsided, returned to their old, unethical ways. After all, ruthlessness could enhance their competitiveness and generate profits; they simply didn't have that kind of high moral ground.
The Nanchong Municipal Public Security Bureau's Criminal Investigation Brigade and the police stations in the counties and cities where the case occurred felt a sense of urgency, treating the serious case involving eighteen people, some dead and some injured, as their most important daily task.
There is a connection, and the target is Minhong Pharmaceutical in the provincial capital.
All the victims shared a common characteristic: they had sold counterfeit and substandard children's cold medicine produced by Minhong. In particular, the surviving pharmacy owner from Xichong County was the only one among all the medicines he sold that was counterfeit; all his other sourcing channels were perfectly legitimate.
Minhong Pharmaceutical is the murderer, or rather, the murderer has a close relationship with Minhong Pharmaceutical. This inference was quickly sent to the desks of the director, political commissar, and vice mayor in charge of the policing system of the Municipal Public Security Bureau. However, the law requires evidence, and for Minhong Pharmaceutical, which was still at the center of national public opinion, they could not be disturbed without concrete evidence.
Because once this major case is exposed, it must be solved as soon as possible; otherwise, the relevant responsible persons and leaders in charge will inevitably be stigmatized for "inaction." Social pressure is one aspect, but it will also inevitably affect their future promotions.
Rumors spread the fastest and most effectively in the world. Although there was no authoritative mainstream media reporting, such exciting news still spread rapidly in the Nanchong area. The list of pharmacies that sold counterfeit drugs also became known to the public. As a result, some patients who had bought medicine from these pharmacies and clinics were worried about their health, and hospitals in various places saw a significant increase in patients voluntarily undergoing physical examinations and tests.
Compared to the previous three types of people, the fourth type is the most numerous and widespread. These people all applauded the case, and some even publicly declared that they did not want the case to be solved, but rather that the "heroes" and "heroes" who were willing to commit the crime could punish unscrupulous businessmen who endanger people's health in a wider range of areas.
The general public shows almost no pity or sympathy for the deaths and disabilities of such people. The majority attitude is "they deserve it."
This case also gave rise to a popular saying in Nanchong: because most of the owners of counterfeit medicines died from taking high concentrations and doses of toxic fake drugs, customers in vegetable markets and small restaurants often say to the owners, "Don't try to fool me, or you'll end up taking medicine yourself," to ensure the authenticity of the goods.
In a short time, the social atmosphere improved significantly, and the people felt much more confident.
*****
"Yao'er, did you do it?" Luo Jimin frowned as he looked at his son, his face full of worry.
"How could that be?" Lin Yao's lie came out without hesitation. He didn't want his parents to know about this, even if they were very suspicious or even if they were certain in their hearts, he would never admit it.
The psychological burden of killing is not something everyone can bear. Lin Yao was unwilling to let his parents bear this pressure, as they had already had a hard enough life.
"I've been exercising near the East Gate these past few days, and I also gave my older brother a little training. You all know the Yi family members are all skilled in martial arts, and they're very good at it. It would be a shame not to give my older brother a chance to train him." Lin Yao continued to lie, his smile appearing quite honest.
No one knows a son better than his father, and no one knows him better than his mother. Although Lin Yao spoke with absolute certainty in both expression and tone, his feigned innocence seemed more genuine than reality. However, Luo Jimin and Lin Hongmei had long been aware of their son's abilities, as well as the skills of the Yi family members who were always with him. They actually had a good idea about the case, but they simply hadn't said anything. After all, this was murder, depriving others of their right to live, and more than a dozen at once. Even if these people truly deserved to die, they would rather have done it themselves than have their son Lin Yao's hands stained with the blood of others.
“I remember when we were in Ya’an, we liked to chat at night.” Lin Hongmei’s voice was calm. Although she didn’t frown, her facial expression was serious. “Once we were talking about counterfeit goods. We said that the most despicable things in this regard were fake medicine and then fake food. As for ordinary civilian products, our family didn’t have any particular feelings about them.”
Lin Yao was taken aback. He thought that his father, Luo Jimin, had asked directly, indicating that he already had suspicions. But his mother, Lin Hongmei, brought up the past, which meant that she was certain that he had done it. Perhaps his father thought so too, but he just didn't show it as much as his mother.
“Yao’er, those who sell counterfeit medicine deserve to die, and I won’t defend them. And those who produce counterfeit medicine too,” Lin Hongmei’s tone suddenly turned stern. “Whether you did it or not, you better behave yourself! Don’t make your father and me worry!”
Lin Yao gave a low, hesitant "Oh," sounding unsure of himself. Lying, especially with his parents who knew him so well, was an extremely difficult task.
Nevertheless, Lin Yao would never admit that he was responsible for the incident, and he would rather they doubt it than admit it.
Luo Jimin was also very worried about his son's safety. Although the relevant departments had not contacted Minhong, through a roundabout connection, someone had already relayed a message through Wu Jianwei. Of course, the message wasn't some trivial matter like "confess and get leniency." Rather, it was something like, "Behave yourself, don't make things difficult for us."
Even Duan Qing mentioned this matter during a casual phone conversation, as if he had heard some gossip related to Minhong, saying that someone had helped Minhong expose counterfeits, and finally said that Minhong was lucky and hoped that it would focus on production and research and development in the future to achieve better results.
This is an indirect approach. It seems that everyone suspects that Minhong was behind this case. Luo Jimin is proud but also worried. He is convinced that it was his son's doing, but does he, as the father, have the support for such an illegal act?
Luo Jimin's biggest worry was his son Lin Yao's safety. Committing such a serious crime under the very nose of the law—if nothing bad happened, all would be well, but if something did, the whole family would be ruined. He couldn't imagine the consequences of the truth coming out, so he became even more anxious, unable to find a reason to stop his son from killing again.
Just as Lin Yao understood his father Luo Jimin, Luo Jimin also understood his son very well. In Luo Jimin's view, his son, beneath his gentle exterior, was actually fiercely opposed to evil. Now that he had extraordinary abilities, he was acting more flamboyantly. He had sensed the changes in Lin Yao during this period, which was why he was even more worried about Lin Yao's future safety.
“Sigh… Yao’er.” Luo Jimin thought for a long time but couldn’t find a good way to persuade his son. “In the future, you must not use that disguise ability casually. The fewer people who know about it, the better. Don’t show it off, and don’t let your cousin know, so that it will spread.”
Lin Yao was shocked and immediately realized that his parents' attitude was more resolute than he had imagined. They insisted that he had killed someone, but they also trusted him completely and did not restrain his future behavior. They were simply worried about his future safety.
"Dad, Mom, don't worry. Actually, ordinary handguns can't threaten my safety anymore. Don't worry, I'll be careful." Lin Yao still didn't admit that he committed the crime, nor did he say what he would do in the future. He only told his two relatives about some of his abilities, which was also to put their minds at ease.
"Yao'er, have you found the person who produced the counterfeit medicine?" Lin Hongmei's tone changed quickly. She was very happy to hear that even a pistol could not threaten her son Lin Yao's safety, and her face beamed with joy.
Lin Yao was about to answer, but stopped himself the moment he spoke and quickly changed his words, "How would I know? I just heard about this from you guys."
"Little fox!" Lin Hongmei's eyes darted around, and she smiled even more happily, thinking that if even she and her husband had to keep it a secret, her son would be even more careful outside.
After racking his brains and engaging in a back-and-forth, cryptic conversation with his parents for half an hour, Lin Yao finally gave up. He quickly made an excuse to leave the pharmaceutical factory to refine pills. This way of speaking, which resembled classical Chinese and hid the meaning between the lines, was something Lin Yao disliked. Getting away was the best course of action.
Ge Yong was still driving. He was in a great mood after accomplishing something big with his brother. This meant that his increasingly capable brother had not abandoned him. His feelings of loyalty to his brother grew stronger, and he had already decided to follow this brother for the rest of his life.
"Xiao Yao, we've found the person who produced the counterfeit medicine. It's a medicinal herb processing factory in Xindu County. The boss is named Zhang Fusheng, thirty-seven years old. He flew to Shanghai early this morning." Ge Yong already knew his brother very well, and at this moment, in front of several key figures, he directly used a nickname to address Lin Yao. This was also at Lin Yao's request. In the past, he would avoid using such a nickname in front of outsiders, but now he was completely open about it.