"Prime Minister, I really want to increase production, but the key problem is that tea is everywhere, but the amount of tea with truly miraculous effects is only so large every day. Please wait until I go there and give me a detailed report."
Vice Premier Lu put down the phone and said to Gu Xuemei, "Gu, although you didn't come up with the medicine, you found the method, so you should be the one who discovered the virus. I don't think Professor He and the others will have any objections."
The conference room door was pushed open, and Professor He and his group rushed in. They had all heard Vice Premier Lu's last words and said repeatedly, "No objection, no objection. We were the ones who took Gu's virus sample. We came here specifically to apologize. We only ask that Vice Premier Lu let us have a cup of that magical tea as soon as possible. We really can't hold on any longer. If we keep going like this, we'll all die."
Zhao Qiang shrugged: "Sorry, there's only one packet. Hang in there a little longer. The CEO of the Youth Health Products Company is on his way to Dongyang City. He has plenty of slimming tea there, and he'll definitely meet everyone's needs."
He Guozhang and the others said, "Alright, alright, we'll wait a little longer. Mei, we're actually doing this for your own good. Don't be angry. It was really wrong of us to make a decision without consulting you. Now we've decided to make an exception and hire you. You don't have to be a nurse anymore; you can directly join our medical team..."
Gu Xuemei was a kind girl. When He Guozhang and the others treated her kindly, she immediately softened and forgot about the unfair treatment they had given her before. She even felt ashamed for taking Zhao Qiang's credit and said, "Actually, this wasn't me..."
Gu Xuemei was interrupted by Zhao Qiang before she could finish speaking. He said, "Actually, my senior sister feels that she is not good enough, but since everyone is so enthusiastic, she can only reluctantly accept it."
When Yang Shiqi and Shan Hongfei arrived at the quarantine area, the sight of the surging crowd made her scalp tingle. She wondered where all these people had come from. Didn't they have anything better to do than stay home and avoid infection? It's strange how Chinese people think. Even though they can't eat all the salt at home, they still go to great lengths to buy it at high prices. Isn't that just being a busybody? And now they're all gathered together. What's the reason for this? It's as if going out for a stroll will scare away the virus.
Shan Hongfei said, "Look, our manpower is getting weaker and weaker. Judging from their route these past few days, they are preparing to flood into the city's central hospital. You know, if Vice Premier Lu were to have any mishap there, no one in Dongyang City could bear the responsibility."
Yang Shiqi said, "So many people can't be acting on their own. There must be someone organizing them. Have we found the leader yet?"
Shan Hongfei said, "Yes, we have observers on high-rise buildings using binoculars to observe, but even finding the leader is useless. When we send people to arrest him, he hides in the crowd, and the crowd deliberately covers for him. We can't arrest people in the surging crowd."
Yang Shiqi said, "Order the observers to continue observing, and report immediately if the leader appears."
Dan Hongfei immediately instructed his staff to notify the observers via walkie-talkie. At this moment, the crowd below started to riot again. The barriers set up at the intersection could no longer stop them. With a loud crash, the crowd pushed over the heavy concrete barriers and ran forward along the road, smashing the shops on the side of the road as they ran.
Dan Hongfei immediately instructed the personnel at the next intersection to set up a barrier and make sure to stop the crowd at the intersection. Otherwise, the Central Hospital would be just across the intersection, where Vice Premier Lu was staying. More importantly, there were many patients there. If there was a conflict with these people, the number of infections would increase dramatically. He didn't know what these people were desperately trying to do by rushing to the hospital.
"Secretary Shan, Secretary Shan," came the call from the walkie-talkie. Shan Hongfei immediately took the walkie-talkie from the staff member. "This is me, speak."
"I've already seen the leader. He's at the entrance of the rice noodle shop, talking to a man in red and two women. The crowd only started to riot after he gave the order. I've already observed him twice yesterday, there's no mistake." The observer was furious. If he hadn't seen anything, that would have been one thing, but he had witnessed the whole process. Shortly after the leader gave the order, the crowd would destroy a roadblock or injure several armed police officers maintaining order.
Dan Hongfei pointed the walkie-talkie megaphone in Yang Shiqi's direction, so Yang Shiqi heard the message at the same time. She immediately adjusted her X-ray glasses and zoomed in on the rice noodle shop across the street. The entrance was a mess, with broken glass everywhere. No building was intact wherever these people went. Clothing stores and shops along the street were looted. Perhaps this was their purpose in mobilizing the crowd to attack the Central Hospital, to take advantage of the chaos.
The loudspeaker kept broadcasting, urging the citizens to calm down and that the government was working on a solution to the infection outbreak, and that treatment drugs would be available soon. But no matter how much the broadcaster shouted until his voice was hoarse, the citizens ignored him; they continued shouting as if they had inexhaustible energy pushing forward.
Having locked onto her target, Yang Shiqi pushed off the ground with both feet, her body instantly launching her away from Shan Hongfei. This was on the second floor, and Shan Hongfei was startled. He immediately reached out to grab Yang Shiqi, but his hand grasped empty air. His heart leaped into his throat, but instead of seeing Yang Shiqi fall to the ground, she flew rapidly through the air, heading straight for the leader.
Four men were discussing their next robbery target in front of the rice noodle shop when one of them suddenly sensed something amiss in the sky. Looking up, he cried out, "Oh no! Someone's flying over here!"
The leader shouted, "What nonsense! There are no flying people... **, run into the crowd and hide!"
Yang Shiqi wasn't very proficient with the anti-gravity device. It wasn't that she didn't practice hard, but rather that her brain didn't have the abnormal reaction ability of Zhao Qiang. Therefore, her 'flight' speed was not fast, which gave the four people enough reaction time. So by the time Yang Shiqi flew to the entrance of the flour shop, the four people had already dashed into the crowd.
Yang Shiqi's running shoes lacked propulsion. Although the anti-gravity device was activated, she wouldn't automatically turn without external force. So, after landing, Yang Shiqi could only react to the target again. However, the four people were already obscured by the crowd, and Yang Shiqi quickly lost sight of them. For a moment, she had no idea where to bounce. Moreover, the crowd turned and surged towards Yang Shiqi. Their purpose was obvious: to attack Yang Shiqi.
As the group drew closer, Yang Shiqi roared at them, "Get out of the way!"
The crowd did not obey her orders. Instead, two men charged at Yang Shiqi. Yang Shiqi was already annoyed that the crowd was blocking her target, so she vented her anger on the two men. Without hesitation, she drew her compressed gun from her waist and fired a shot at them.
Boom! A tremendous force struck the two men, causing them to stop abruptly as they ran forward. They were then thrown backward. Fortunately, it was only a low-level attack; otherwise, they would have exploded and died instantly. Even so, they lost their mobility upon landing and it would take several days for them to recover.
The crowd paused briefly. No one knew who Yang Shiqi was, and fearing for their safety, they dared not approach. However, someone behind them shouted, "The soldiers killed someone! Kill him!"
The crowd, incited to a frenzy, surged forward again, disregarding everything. Yang Shiqi fired another shot, sending at least a dozen people flying. However, there were too many people behind her, and Yang Shiqi's compressed gun couldn't compress the air in time. Left with no other option, Yang Shiqi activated her anti-gravity device, leaping onto the heads of the crowd. Unable to catch her, the crowd threw stones into the air. From above, Yang Shiqi could see clearly, especially the man in red. She fired a shot behind her, and the recoil propelled her towards him.
The man in red kept looking up. He didn't know what was going on with this person. If it was a martial arts technique, it was impossible for her to stay in the air for so long. But seeing her flying so slowly, as if she were swimming in water, terrified the man in red. As she got closer and closer to him, the crowd became an obstacle for him, trapping him and preventing him from escaping.
Yang Shiqi finally reached the top of the man in red. She briefly deactivated the anti-gravity device, immediately slamming her body to the ground before reactivating it. However, her body continued to fall due to inertia. Yang Shiqi slammed onto the man's head; he had long hair. She grabbed his head, and at that moment, the compression gun fired a shot into the ground. Using the recoil, she lifted the man in red into the air.
The man in red let out a scream of agony, as if his scalp was about to detach from him. However, as Yang Shiqi's anti-gravity device enveloped him, the pain disappeared once his weight vanished. He felt light and floated up with Yang Shiqi. But he only floated for a short while before Yang Shiqi slammed him to the ground. By then, she had flown away from the crowd, and below was an empty street.
With a thud, the man in red landed on the ground, nearly breaking his bones. Yang Shiqi landed immediately afterward, and the crowd surged towards her, intending to rescue the man in red.
Yang Shiqi pulled the man in red up from the ground. She switched to a regular pistol, pointed it at the man's head, and said, "Make the crowd back and let your companions come over here on their own."
The man in red straightened his neck and said, "Are you dreaming? You think you dare to fire a gun?"
The surging crowd shouted, "Let him go! Let him go!"
Yang Shiqi shouted to the crowd, "Get back, get back or I'll beat him to death!"
Someone in the crowd said, "You dare? You wouldn't dare fire even if you had the guts."
Bang
Volume 2 [409] Exorbitant Prices
【4o9】Exorbitant Prices
In the past, Yang Shiqi's personality was even more fiery, but she wouldn't have killed someone on a whim. However, after being educated by Zhao Qiang, she understood a principle: the privileged class must kill when necessary, because killing a few people is for the good of the majority. Therefore, the killing is justified, valuable, and will not cause trouble for the privileged class.
The verbal pressure from the crowd enraged Yang Shiqi. With a flick of her finger, she fired a shot. The bullet pierced the red-clad man's temple and emerged from the other side. The red-clad man collapsed to the ground, blood gushing from the muzzle, staining the surroundings crimson. The gunshot stunned everyone. No one would have imagined that this androgynous man would actually fire a gun, and that he would hit their so-called leader in the head.
Finally, a young man reacted first, and he lunged forward frantically, shouting, "I'll kill you to avenge him!"
Bang! The young man also fell into a pool of blood. His unarmed fighting skills were no match for a gun. Yang Shiqi, without hesitation, fired another shot into his head. Her expression remained calm, unmoved by the bloody scene before her, displaying a touch of Zhao Qiang's style. She even took a moment to give a cold smile and say to the crowd, "Come on, if you're not afraid of death, I'll eliminate you one by one."
A middle-aged man in his forties shouted, "How could you kill someone?"
Yang Shiqi brandished her gun and said, "Whoever doesn't go home right away will suffer the same fate as these two. You might be next."
A voice shouted from the back of the crowd, "Everyone, attack together! He's running out of bullets. Let's devour him alive to avenge the victims!"
Yang Shiqi recognized the voice; it was the same voice of the leader who had shouted for people to hide in the crowd. Yang Shiqi pushed off the ground, and several people who rushed at her missed their target. They had used too much force, causing their heads to collide, and one of them even fainted on the spot. Everyone watched in disbelief as Yang Shiqi rose up from the ground and flew into the sky like a bird.
Yang Shiqi had a clear view from the air, and even with the leader crouching down, he was still clearly visible. Bang! Yang Shiqi fired the first shot. The leader was crouching very low, so the bullet hit a woman next to him, and she immediately fell to the ground. Then, Yang Shiqi fired another bullet with a bang. The leader was crawling between people's legs when the bullet grazed his body and sank into his thigh with a thud. The leader screamed and sat down on the ground.
Bang! Another bullet came down, and a citizen closest to the leader was knocked down. At this point, no one dared to doubt that Yang Shiqi would kill them. Why would anyone be so foolish as to step forward to protect the so-called leader like they were on drugs? Everyone was trying to avoid her. No matter how much the remaining two female leaders talked, no one believed them anymore. Everyone scattered, leaving the leader and the two women standing in the middle of the road.
Dan Hongfei, who had a clear view from the building across the street, immediately dispatched everyone around him, "Go down and help Lieutenant Colonel Yang arrest those people. Anyone who lets them escape is to go home and be suspended from duty."
The people on the street were already scattered. At this point, they wouldn't rashly and openly oppose the government personnel. Everyone watched coldly as the leader and two women were tied up, and two corpses on the ground were also covered with bags and quickly pulled away. Several people taking pictures with their mobile phones were also approached by the staff and their phones were confiscated. This kind of thing must be dealt with.
At this time, all media outlets in the city began to announce that a drug to combat the H virus had been found, and all citizens were asked to stay at home and wait for the neighborhood committee to distribute the medicine. Any citizen who ignored the warning and went out on the street would not be able to obtain the medicine.
With this reassurance and the absence of a ringleader stirring things up, the citizens went home one after another. Of course, some took advantage of the chaos and looted shops on neighboring streets on their way back. The losses suffered by Dongyang City this time were definitely in the tens of billions.
Zhang Lingfeng arrived at Dongyang Central Hospital around lunchtime. He was driving two trucks, loaded with unsold inventory due to the virus. He had initially thought that sales would be severely affected, but unexpectedly, this stuff turned out to be a life-saving medicine. Zhang Lingfeng was all smiles. He liked doing business with the government because he could set the prices.
In the conference room of the city's central hospital, Vice Premier Lu's face was rosy, a far cry from the paleness he had experienced that morning due to diarrhea. Several guards who had previously been excluded from the protection circle because of diarrhea had also returned to their posts. After drinking that cup of tea, their diarrhea had stopped, and they felt relaxed and energetic, treating the bee slimming tea as a miracle drug.
Zhang Lingfeng entered the meeting room and first greeted Vice Premier Lu and others. Then everyone sat down at a large conference table to discuss the distribution of the honey slimming tea.
Zhang Lingfeng said, "These are all products that I brought for sale. The content of mother tea is low, so it's best to brew one bag first to try the effect. Otherwise, if they don't have a therapeutic effect when you go out, the negative impact will be greater, and it will also damage the reputation of our company's products."
He Guozhang said, "Experiments are certainly necessary. We have already prepared ten severely ill patients outside. Please make some tea immediately."
Zhang Lingfeng waved to the staff he brought, and a large box of slimming tea was brought to the conference table. In front of everyone, he tore open the packaging, took out ten packets, and brewed them in ten cups. Then he placed the cups on an induction cooker to heat and brew the tea. This was to improve the effect of the tea, since it only contained a very small amount of mother tea. If it was not brewed thoroughly, it might affect the treatment effect.
Ten critically ill patients were brought in, mostly elderly, but also including two children. They were all suffering from severe diarrhea and were exhausted. These were patients admitted a few days ago, and if they did not receive treatment, they would likely not survive. If the slimming tea could stop their diarrhea, then treating other patients would be a piece of cake.
The teacups were soaked in cold water for a few minutes after being brewed. Gu Xuemei and the others tested the temperature of the tea before giving it to the patients. Everyone waited patiently because the tea needed to be absorbed in the stomach before the special substances in the tea could enter the body and clear the H virus.
The first person to feel abdominal pain was a middle-aged man. His absorption was faster, so he was the first to feel the abnormality. He Guozhang and others were the first batch of test subjects to drink the tea, but because their diarrhea lasted only a short time, the experiment on severely ill patients could not be omitted. They knew that abdominal pain would be felt during the process of clearing the H virus, probably because a large number of viruses were concentrated in the abdominal organs. Therefore, they were not too panicked about the symptoms that appeared in the patients. The abdominal pain symptoms disappeared in a very short time, and then the patient asked to go to the toilet. After this middle-aged man went to the toilet, other patients also experienced abdominal pain, and everyone went to the toilet.
He Guozhang said, "It seems that these slimming teas have the same effect. We drink the more concentrated ones, but it's actually a waste. So it's absolutely necessary for us to promote them on a large scale."
Zhang Lingfeng said, "I would like to remind you all of one thing first. The production volume of this tea is extremely low, and the cost is very high. The special substance it contains is a top secret product of our company. Its level of secrecy is a hundred times higher than that of Coca-Cola's formula. Some time ago, our company was almost losing money selling it just to gain some fame. Otherwise, why would we limit the quantity? A few days ago, the company was planning to cancel the preferential price. I didn't expect to encounter this situation. If we promote it as you suggested, I'm afraid I will go bankrupt."
He Guozhang said, "Does Mr. Zhang mean that a set of slimming tea costing over ten thousand yuan is not even up to your cost price?"
Zhang Lingfeng replied without batting an eye, "That's what I mean."
One expert pointed to the slimming tea and said, "This is just tea leaves, not gold leaves."
Zhang Lingfeng retorted, "You know nothing! Do you know how much money I spent developing this technology? A full trillion!"
A murmur of disbelief rippled through the room; naturally, no one believed the price of one trillion. But who could calculate it for Zhang Lingfeng? And who would dare to do so?
Zhang Lingfeng continued, "Ten thousand yuan is just the initial investment. You've forgotten one thing: ten thousand yuan is the price of a set of slimming tea. This set contains thirty tea bags and can treat thirty patients. How much does that cost per patient? Only a little over three hundred yuan. I'm going to lose a fortune. Back then, the medical expenses for a single patient were more than the price of a set of slimming tea."
Vice Premier Lu had initially frowned, thinking that the Zhang family's grandson was trying to profit from the situation. However, breaking down a set of slimming tea into thirty packets seemed to reduce costs too much. He knew how much economic power the country had used to contain the virus.
At this moment, the first patient came out of the bathroom and said to everyone, "I feel much better. My stomach doesn't hurt anymore, I don't feel like vomiting anymore, and I don't seem to have any symptoms of diarrhea anymore. I feel relaxed all over now."
He Guozhang sighed, "What a miracle drug! This is a severely ill patient, yet it took the same amount of time to clear the H virus as a mild case. Mei, take the patient downstairs for a full checkup. We already have H virus reagents, right? Test the H virus level in his body and send the test report to Vice Premier Lu in a bit."
Gu Xuemei responded and led the patient out of the meeting room. Now that everyone had antibodies, they were not afraid of contact with patients. Since Gu Xuemei had 'discovered' the H virus and the drug to treat it, her status had been recognized by He Guozhang and others. Even if these old men did not recognize her, they could not, because they could not find a better treatment.
After considering for a moment, Vice Premier Lu asked Zhang Lingfeng, "Zhang, what's your opinion? The country is in dire need of this medicine right now. Patients have appeared all over the country, even in inland cities. You can understand how much damage it will cause to the country if it is not controlled in time. Your grandfather and maternal grandfather are both reasonable people, and you are not a child anymore."
Vice Premier Lu was trying to block Zhang Lingfeng's excuse for raising prices by using his grandfather and maternal grandfather to pressure him. However, Zhang Lingfeng, an arrogant and domineering second-generation rich kid, didn't have so many concerns. He said without hesitation, "Ten thousand for a pack of tea. That way, I can still make a little profit. Otherwise, let alone supplying it freely, I won't be able to get any more goods after I finish these two truckloads. This stuff isn't something I laid eggs for. People know that it's a rare commodity. If they hold back the raw materials and don't give me any, there's nothing I can do."
Vice Premier Lu asked He Guozhang and others, "You should calculate the time and cost we need to research the same drug right away."
He Guozhang reminded Vice Premier Lu: "We just examined this tea carefully in the laboratory. This specially treated tea contains a substance that we cannot recognize, just like the previous H virus. We cannot synthesize this substance, so no matter how much money we are given, we cannot manufacture a drug to treat the H virus. The price is impossible to calculate."
Vice Premier Lu had a plan in mind. He said to Zhang Lingfeng, "How about this, Zhang? I'll consult with the central government first to see what the price will be. I'll give you an answer later. As for these two truckloads of slimming tea, let's start with 10,000 yuan per pack. What do you think?"
Zhang Lingfeng was overjoyed. "Alright, would I dare disobey Premier Lu?"
Vice Premier Lu smiled wryly: "You're simply profiting from a major national crisis."
Zhang Lingfeng chuckled: "I don't care about money. As long as it's money, I'll supply it to the domestic market for 10,000 yuan a pack, and to the foreign market for 10,000 US dollars or 10,000 British pounds. They can buy it or not, even if they pay me, I might not have the goods to give them. After all, I am a descendant of Yan and Huang, so I have to ensure the domestic supply first."
Vice Premier Lu chuckled: "You still have some conscience. I need to report to the Central Committee. Let's adjourn the meeting here."
Zhang Lingfeng walked out of the conference room. Zhao Qiang and Yang Shiqi were talking at the door. Yang Shiqi was still a little flustered in front of Zhao Qiang. She had no psychological burden about killing the African, but she was still a little overwhelmed when facing her own countrymen, especially in front of Zhao Qiang, which made her show her weak side. As for in front of outsiders, she had to pretend to be nonchalant.
Zhao Qiang patted Yang Shiqi on the shoulder and said, "It's okay, you'll get used to it."
Zhang Lingfeng chuckled foolishly: "Master, we're going to make a fortune this time."
Zhao Qiang asked, "Are you short of money?"
Zhang Lingfeng said, "We don't lack it, but it's better to make money than not to make money. I'll sell our slimming tea separately, 10,000 yuan per pack. What do you think?"
Yang Shiqi exclaimed in surprise, "Are you ripping people off?"
Zhang Lingfeng said with a straight face, "What do you know? The market demand for this kind of medicine will be huge in the future. If there wasn't a huge return, would I have persuaded Master to increase production? Right, Master?"
Zhao Qiang said, "Let's supply the domestic market first, and not worry about the international markets."
Zhang Lingfeng said, "That's natural. However, given the characteristics of our country, I estimate that a portion will be allocated to foreign countries. So I plan to set a price first. I won't sell it to anyone below the price I set. Whoever has the ability can produce it themselves."
Zhao Qiang didn't care about the price and said, "You can decide for yourself, just don't forget to share the money with me later."
Yang Shiqi rolled her eyes: "You two are both shrewish."
Zhang Lingfeng said to Yang Shiqi, "You have to help me. Vice Premier Lu went to consult the central government about the price of slimming tea. You should talk to your grandfather in advance and ask him to put in a good word for you when the price is set. Also, Hu Qian, I'll call her right away."
Zhang Lingfeng's enthusiasm was driven by profit. In the past, a large package cost 10,000 yuan, but now it costs 10,000 yuan per package. The difference in value is huge. After promising Hu Qian a large cake, Hu Qian agreed. With the strong support of the Yang and Hu families, Zhang Lingfeng's outlandish price was actually accepted by the central government.
Actually, this price isn't that high. If the country were to develop a new drug, not only would the timeframe be limited, but the investment would be far greater than buying Zhang Lingfeng's slimming tea. This is why Zhang Lingfeng dared to ask for such an exorbitant price. Although he's a spoiled rich kid, he has a keen eye for things. Not all spoiled rich kids are foolish; at most, they're arrogant because of their family background. However, not all spoiled rich kids are arrogant; many are quite sophisticated.