Chapter 684: Chapter 652 The Incident of Dropping the Burden 【Thanks to the League Leader Wuzhu for the reward!】_1
Mr. Zhao burst through the door, Zhou Ning charged out holding the person, Mr. Zhao started yelling at the top of his lungs, and even pushed open the doors to the opposite interrogation and observation rooms. His face was a picture of panic, his mouth wouldn’t stop moving, and his hands were trembling incessantly.
"Director Xu, Director Xu! Where did you go? Hurry up and find someone to take Mrs. Fei to the hospital, I don’t know if she also took a bite of that boxed meal, she started having a nosebleed, and now she has fainted."
Upon hearing the commotion, Xu Dayuan rushed up from below the staircase and saw Zhou Ning, staggering with Liu Yufei in his arms, he froze on the spot.
Mr. Zhao’s shouting also revealed the panic on his own face.
"I’ve ordered Guan Jian and the others to drive, and take Liu Yufei to the hospital."
Zhou Ning had already rushed to the stairwell, but he was physically spent. Seeing Fang Dongsheng running toward him from the opposite direction, he quickly tossed Liu Yufei into his arms. Fang Dongsheng barely had time to react as he caught her in a frenzy, but the sight of both Liu Yufei’s and Zhou Ning’s bloodied appearances threw him into a panic.
"What happened, what’s all this blood?"
Zhou Ning shook his head.
"I don’t know the reason, Mr. Zhao suspects that Liu Yufei might still have taken a bite of the boxed meal, but she didn’t say. Also, working continuously these days, even a healthy person couldn’t stand it. She said she was tired and wanted to sit for a while, but as soon as she sat down, her nose started bleeding profusely, and then she lost consciousness. I’m worried it really is because of the boxed meal, we should not delay any further and head to the hospital right away."
Fang Dongsheng also became anxious.
"Let’s go, let’s all head to the hospital. We don’t know how much anyone has eaten, and it’s just that our poet reacted quickly, otherwise we would have all been laid out today. Plus, it’s already the middle of the night, let’s all go get checked out. In case some of us still have toxins remaining, wouldn’t that be fatal?"
Xu Dayuan hesitated, Mr. Zhao grabbed his arm, hoisted up a bit of flesh, and turned it round, blinking fiercely as if his eyelids might just fly off. It seemed Xu Dayuan still didn’t understand, and Mr. Zhao, with his eyes turning red, became desperate.
"I promised Chen Cheng that I’d watch over Liu Yufei. This person hasn’t been interrogated yet; we can deal with it tomorrow. We can’t possibly stake our lives on this. What kind of support is this? It’s nothing. If they wanted to support, they should’ve been here the day before yesterday. They came in the middle of the night and still want to participate in the interrogation. They can do it themselves. I’m done serving them. Mr. Fang, let’s go to the hospital!"
Influenced by Mr. Zhao’s emotions, Fang Dongsheng also felt tears welling up in his eyes.
Indeed, they’ve come from Qindao to support, giving their money, heart, and soul with enthusiasm to help. When problems arose, they didn’t hide or avoid but helped deal with them right away. They came to support Ganzhou’s development; how could they harbor bad intentions?
On the other hand, looking at one’s own people from the province, they’d been asking for support for two days, procrastinating to the point where enough time had been lost to circle the Earth several times. And when they arrived, it was already the dead of night.
There were this and that issue to deal with, and right upon arrival, they demanded to participate in the interrogation, specifically Bai Qishan’s, faces full of doubt. This was unsatisfactory in itself, and no one even bothered to inquire whether the poisoner had been caught or if anyone had been poisoned just a few hours before.
Fang Dongsheng, already holding someone, had no hands free to wipe his eyes and shook vigorously upward to secure his hold on Liu Yufei.
"Let’s head to the hospital, contact your friends at the People’s Hospital. Let’s all get checked out for peace of mind. Since the leadership of the supporting brother units has arrived, let them take over here. They came at dawn to participate in the interrogation, do they really think they’re that important?"
I don’t serve anyone today. If they dare, let the provincial department issue a decree to remove me from my post. Anyway, I’ve had enough of this rotten place in Longyou, corrupt from top to bottom, and still they dare act like they’re some kind of leaders, pah!"
Mr. Zhao didn’t expect Fang Dongsheng to be so supportive. His words couldn’t have been more effective in raising morale. Indeed, several people standing in the corridor, one by one, looked less than pleased.
By then, Xu Dayuan had grasped Mr. Zhao’s intention, gestured for Fang Dongsheng and the others to go downstairs first, and then patted Mr. Zhao’s shoulder in appreciation.
"Announce in the group chat, gather downstairs in five minutes, then head to the People’s Hospital. Inform He Shancun that we might have been poisoned and a full check is necessary. Request the People’s Hospital for their full cooperation."
Mr. Zhao nodded, glancing toward the group of people and then giving Xu Dayuan a thumbs up before quickly descending the stairs. His rank wasn’t high enough; Xu Dayuan had to step in front. But halfway down the first floor, he stopped to listen, hurriedly sending out a message he had already drafted in the chat group.
Soon after, ding-dong sounds came from various rooms, doors opened one after another, with a peek out the door before quickly exiting. No one asked what should be done with those leaders. Some people clutched their stomachs, murmuring quietly:
"My stomach feels a bit uncomfortable."
"Yeah, there’s a cramping feeling in my gut; it’s reassuring to get it checked out."
This reaction amused Mr. Zhao; none of them were fools after all.
But the play needed to be carried through completely, and these people had to be taken care of properly, otherwise it really would be too much.
Mr. Zhao quickly ran back upstairs and waved to the people in the corridor.
"Don’t just stand there, hurry down and get in the cars, the hospital is already notified and ready to check us out."
Xu Dayuan turned around and addressed the supporting personnel without the slightest courtesy:
"For the safety of over fifty members of the task force, I think we can put other work aside for now and get checked out first to be on the safe side. I’ve already mentioned that we were poisoned. A doctor from Qindao spotted the problem, preventing everyone from eating more. We don’t even know how much has been consumed. Here..."
Xu Dayuan paused, the implication was clear, were they planning to take over or to look after the case of poisoning of over fifty people? It was a death sentence for anyone who chose to proceed with the interrogation, for such a person would certainly be under suspicion.
As expected, scanning the room, no one spoke up. Xu Dayuan sighed.
"Across the way, the Ganzhou City Hotel has rooms ready for you all; you can go there directly. Of course, you can also proceed with Bai Qishan’s interrogation now. But as I’ve said, we’ll wait for the translation work from Qindao. What do you think?"
A white-haired man in plain clothes walked out, and Xu Dayuan recognized him; he had just been introduced as the representative from the Longyou Province National Security, the leader in charge of this operation. His name was Xing Shusheng.
"Comrade Dayuan, nothing is more important than the safety of our comrades, so let’s start with the check-up. We indeed came at an inconvenient time, so I will take the team to rest first. We will come over at 8 o’clock tomorrow morning, what do you think?"
Xu Dayuan made a troubled expression and nodded:
"That’s fine, I will take the personnel to the hospital for a check-up first. It’s better if there’s no problem, but if there is, we can handle it as soon as possible. At the time, I didn’t realize how serious this matter was. After all, the few people in front of me haven’t eaten yet, so let’s meet at 8 o’clock tomorrow morning. Shall I urge Qindao to translate the recording and have someone send it over to you?"
The white-haired leader waved his hand.
"You guys hurry to the hospital; just make sure to arrange the security here, and we’ll retreat."
With that, the white-haired leader was the first to step towards the stairs, none of the others dared to make any snide remarks, only varying expressions crossed their faces. Seeing them leave, Xu Dayuan also waved his hand.
"Everyone, get on the car."
Going down the stairs and getting into the car, Liu Yufei had been sent away by Fang Dongsheng beforehand. Xu Dayuan got into the same car with Tao Zhenshan, Fang Mu, Mr. Zhao, and Zhou Ning, Mr. Zhao taking the driver’s seat, heaving a sigh of relief and starting the car.
"That was really close."
Xu Dayuan looked at the others and leaned back in his seat.
"Was it you guys who came up with that trick?"
Mr. Zhao’s head shook, like a bobblehead doll.
"It was Mrs. Fei’s idea, seeing how you were only deflecting on your side and not interrogating. She guessed that the contents of the recording must have involved some major event that Mr. Hu needed to confirm, so we..."
Tao Zhenshan looked at the others and let out a chuckle.
"Stop blaming Liu Yufei, such a crafty trick must have been Mr. Zhao’s idea. Although it seems unprincipled, the other side also knows we’re stalling, but nobody dares to say anything. After all, sticking your neck out at this time would mean you have something to hide."
Xu Dayuan nudged Zhou Ning.
"Don’t be silent; I know you are the brains of the operation. Mr. Hu indeed sent a message, saying it involves a plan in Qindao. He needs to verify it and will give me the news by 3 o’clock in the morning at the latest. I was also worried about how to stall them."
Zhou Ning smiled.
"Can you tell us what it’s about?"
Xu Dayuan shook his head.
"Mr. Hu didn’t elaborate, but I get the gist. It’s something similar to the city destruction plan of Suijing District Thirteen, anyway, the scope is extensive, and the matter is indeed significant, especially since this is the most recent arrangement."
The others nodded. Zhou Ning fell silent for a moment then took a deep breath as they approached the People’s Hospital:
"I want to take a look at that abandoned building where our family lived, on the second floor."
Mr. Zhao was the first to turn around, vehemently shaking his head.
"I disagree, the last time we went, you fainted as soon as we got to the guard post, and that faint lasted four days. Are you trying to scare me to death?"
Xu Dayuan patted Zhou Ning on the shoulder; he understood what Zhou Ning meant.
"I’m not worried about that. The last visit triggered Zhou Ning’s memories because of these houses, it wasn’t because there was something wrong with the place itself. However, it’s been nineteen years, and back then that house should have been a welfare house for the People’s Hospital. Housing reforms have been going on for many years, so wouldn’t someone have moved in? And many people know your father’s identity. According to our analysis, your father might have dealt with Sapporo, Minjin, and others who knew about these ’treasures’, even the ceremonies back then faced interruptions, probably due to your father. But would they overlook your family’s building?"
Mr. Zhao nodded but then shook his head again.
"Perhaps the opposition will conduct a thorough search, but I always feel that as a professional, your father must have left some message for those investigating this matter afterward, to provide some clues. Zhou Xiaozhou, try to remember, did your father ever say anything particularly special?"
Zhou Ning fell silent.
The experience of that night had replayed countless times in Zhou Ning’s mind.
His father had much interaction with him that night. That night his father held him and said many things, mentioning the southern border, the wild wolves, and even made a wolf tooth into a keepsake, though the cord was a bit long.
Wait, a wolf tooth?
