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墨書 Inktalez
Cheng Shuping arrived at Zhou Junsheng's home and stopped a maid from the Zhou family, asking, "Where is your master?"
The maid pointed to the room where Cheng Shuhua used to live. "The master is in the lady's room."
"Does your master still go there often?"
"Yes!"
"Got it, you can go about your business!"
Cheng Shuping sighed and then walked to the outside of Cheng Shuhua's room and knocked on the door.
"Aren't you supposed to not disturb me?" Zhou Junsheng's voice came from inside the room.
Cheng Shuping helplessly replied, "Junsheng Zhou, it's me!"
After a moment, the door was opened by Zhou Junsheng.
At this time, Zhou Junsheng looked much older than seven years ago; there were streaks of gray at his temples. "Shuping, it's you. Come in!"
Cheng Shuping walked into Cheng Shuhua's room behind Zhou Junsheng. The room was neatly arranged, bright and clean, almost exactly the same as it had been seven years ago. Clearly, someone had been taking care of it during these years.
Cheng Shuping felt nostalgic. "It's been seven years; you still can't forget my sister."
Zhou Junsheng said sadly, "Yes! In the blink of an eye, Ruoxin has been gone for seven years! Over these years, our people have searched high and low but found no trace of Ruoxin. I wonder how she and the child are doing now."
Zhou Junsheng sat down by Cheng Shuhua's bed and picked up a family photo from the bedside table, gently rubbing it with his right thumb.
Cheng Shuping comforted him, saying, "I think she must be truly scared—afraid that returning would bring harm to the child—and continues to hide from us so we can't find her!"
Zhou Junsheng nodded and sighed. "No matter what, that's all in the past now. You didn't come to see me just for Ruoxin's matter, did you?"
"No! I came today to report on the operation of the pharmaceutical factory."
Zhou Junsheng put the family photo back in its place and said, "Let's sit down and talk!"
Cheng Shuping sat on a chair and took out a ledger from his pocket. "Junsheng Zhou, the situation at the pharmaceutical company is not what it used to be. This month, our market share has continued to decline, and the losses are even more severe than last month. If this situation continues, within a year, our factory will be crushed by Tao Pharmaceuticals!"
"Tao Pharmaceuticals!" The image of Tao Gongjin gradually surfaced in Zhou Junsheng's mind. "Back when Tao Gongjin and I were researching 'biotechnology,' his company was just an obscure workshop. I never expected that in just a few years, it would develop into a large enterprise that can compete with us."
Zhou Junsheng took the ledger that Cheng Shuping handed him to review.
"Yes! Tao Pharmaceuticals has been dedicated to the research and development of new products and new drugs. Their medicines are potent, effective quickly, and cheaper than similar products, which has quickly gained market recognition. In contrast, our pharmaceutical company hasn't launched any new drugs for a long time. Although we still have some old customers from before, it doesn't change the fact that we are operating at a loss!"
"Are you trying to tell me that we need to speed up the development of new drugs? Only then can Qilin Pharmaceuticals be revived?" Zhou Junsheng flipped through the pages of the Qilin Pharmaceuticals ledger.
Cheng Shuping nodded. "Many of the new drugs developed by Tao Pharmaceuticals are targeted at our pharmaceutical company. Recently, they have introduced a series of promotional measures, and many of our old customers have been lured away by them. In Shanghai, about eighty percent of pharmacies and hospitals are preparing to cooperate with Tao Pharmaceuticals to purchase their products."
After thinking for a moment, Zhou Junsheng said, "They have promotional policies; we can have them too. Shuping, spread the word in Shanghai's pharmaceutical industry that no matter what their prices are, we will always undercut them by five percent. I don't believe that Tao Gongjin's limited assets dare to compete with us head-on!"
Cheng Shuping replied, "Doing this will only solve the immediate problem. Treating symptoms rather than the root cause is not a long-term solution!"
Zhou Junsheng sighed in frustration. "I know. I will urge the laboratory to focus on antibiotic research. If all goes well, by the end of this month, two antibiotics aimed at preventing disease deterioration and delaying human aging will be ready for production. I won't look at this ledger anymore; seeing all these deficits is making me anxious."
Zhou Junsheng handed the ledger back to Cheng Shuping, who tucked it back into his sleeve.
Zhou Junsheng instructed again, "Send someone to buy some of Tao Gongjin's new products from pharmacies for testing."
Cheng Shuping asked in confusion, "What for?"
"I suspect there might be something fishy about their new drugs."
Upon hearing this, Cheng Shuping nodded in understanding and said goodbye to Zhou Junsheng: "Junsheng Zhou, if there's nothing else, I'll head to the company now!"
"Go ahead!"
Cheng Shuping left the room. Zhou Junsheng sat back down by the bed and picked up the family photo again, rubbing his thumb over Cheng Shuhua's face in the picture. "Ruoxin, if only you were still here with me during these ups and downs at the company; perhaps you could help me come up with ideas and lighten my burden."
In the photo, Cheng Shuhua is smiling.
On the street, Tao Ziwen and Wang Zhiyuan hurriedly weave through the crowd.
Wang Zhiyuan is unusually excited: "Ziwen, what a coincidence! The murder weapon was unexpectedly discovered by the victim's wife! Isn't this significant?"
"We can't draw conclusions yet. Once we get to Zhu Dapeng's house, everything will become clear!"
Tao Ziwen and Wang Zhiyuan turn into an alley and stop at a barred gate.
Behind the gate is a dilapidated two-story wooden structure, which is the home of the deceased, Zhu Dapeng. They came here because Zhu Dapeng's wife found a bloody iron rod that is suspected to be the murder weapon and reported it to the police.
In the living room of the Zhu family, Tao Ziwen carefully examines the bloody iron rod discovered by Zhu Dapeng's wife, pinching a bit of blood with his fingers and sniffing it. Meanwhile, Wang Zhiyuan inquires about the origin of the iron rod from Zhu Dapeng's wife, Zhu Fan.
Zhu Fan replies timidly: "I... I found it in the river east of this street. Seeing it covered in blood, I thought it was the weapon that killed my husband."
Tao Ziwen asks Zhu Fan: "May I go upstairs to take another look?"
Zhu Fan hurriedly responds: "Yes."
Zhu Fan takes a key from a drawer and goes upstairs, followed by Tao Ziwen and Wang Zhiyuan.
"I knew you would come to check the crime scene, so I locked the door upstairs!" Zhu Fan says as they reach Zhu Dapeng's bedroom door. She unlocks it with the key and pushes it open.
The bedroom of Zhu Dapeng still has its original furnishings.
Tao Ziwen approaches the bed with the iron rod and inserts it into a round hole left in the bed frame; it fits perfectly.
"This is indeed the murder weapon. However..." Tao Ziwen hesitates and ponders, clearly still unsure about some aspects.
Wang Zhiyuan urges: "Since we've found the weapon, the murderer should be caught soon. Ziwen, just say what you need to!"
Tao Ziwen looks at Zhu Fan: "Did you hear any unusual sounds when your husband was attacked?"
Zhu Fan was a bit nervous: "I thought my husband was just breaking things again, so I didn't pay much attention."
"So, you didn't see the murderer!"
"Um."
"What about the sounds of your husband struggling? If he was stabbed, he would definitely scream."
Zhu Fan's eyes showed some panic, but she still tried to remain calm: "I thought he had fallen again and was shouting because he couldn't get up, so I didn't think much of it. He... he used to do that when he got drunk."
Tao Ziwen continued to press: "You didn't hear the sound of the murderer prying open the window when they escaped?"
Zhu Fan thought for a moment, shook her head, and her eyes became even more frantic as she replied: "There were only his shouts from upstairs, so..."
Zhu Fan looked at Tao Ziwen with some fear.
"I understand! If I think of any more questions, I'll come back to ask you!" Then, Tao Ziwen turned to Wang Zhiyuan, "Brother Wang, you should know I've asked everything I needed to. Let's go back!"
Wang Zhiyuan was puzzled: "That's it... it's over?"
"Yes! Do you have any more questions?"
Tao Ziwen gave Wang Zhiyuan a knowing look, and Wang Zhiyuan immediately understood: "Since it's over, let's head back to the police station!"
Afterward, Tao Ziwen and Wang Zhiyuan wrapped the bloody iron rod in oil paper, said goodbye to Zhu Fan, and left the Zhu household.
Once outside, Wang Zhiyuan held the bloody iron rod and asked in confusion: "Ziwen, if Zhu Dapeng's wife is the murderer, she should have hidden the murder weapon in a place we can't find. Why would she give it to us?"
Tao Ziwen replied: "I can't figure that out either."
As they walked, Wang Zhiyuan continued: "If Zhu Dapeng's wife isn't the murderer, then who else could it be? Also, even if he was completely drunk, there should have been signs of struggle when Zhu Dapeng was killed! But all that was found on his bed was a pool of blood—aren't you curious about that?"
Tao Ziwen added: "I'm curious about more than just that. The deceased's room was neatly arranged; what kind of drunkard keeps their room like this? Furthermore, the pry marks on the window were made from the inside out, and there were no footprints outside. This clearly indicates that the murderer didn't enter through the window or escape through it; those pry marks were intentionally made. I didn't think of these things yesterday; it was only after coming back today that I realized them."
"The person who killed Zhu Dapeng is his wife."
Tao Ziwen was walking when he suddenly stopped.
"What’s wrong with you?" Wang Zhiyuan asked.
Tao Ziwen pondered, "If the murderer really is her wife, then she must have planned it in advance. Let's go to the Tavern!"
Tao Ziwen turned around, and Wang Zhiyuan, still trying to figure things out, chased after him. "Hey, why are we going to the Tavern? Wait for me, what are we going to the Tavern for..."
As for what Tao Ziwen was going to do at the Tavern, that will be revealed in the next chapter. Meanwhile, Tao Gongjin had Guo Zhuanghuai capture a child for experiments, and Guo Zhuanghuai indeed brought one back.
Guo Zhuanghuai entered the Laboratory of Dow Pharmaceuticals Building carrying a sack filled with a living creature. He tossed the sack onto the ground and then used one hand to untie the rope securing the sack's opening. A ten-year-old child, bound by ropes and with a rag stuffed in his mouth, crawled out.
A staff member from Tao Gongjin's Laboratory grabbed the child's shoulder and dragged him toward a glass-walled room. The child saw bloodstains everywhere and decaying rabbit corpses. Terrified, he struggled desperately but was still pinned against a pillar and tied up.
Another staff member approached with a syringe filled with a certain amount of reagent. As the child watched this staff member get closer, he saw them wipe his shoulder with a cotton swab before inserting the needle into his skin. He wanted to scream, but with the rag in his mouth, he couldn't make a sound.
The reagent was slowly injected into the child's body, after which all staff members exited the Glass Room and locked the door behind them.
Tao Gongjin, Sun Puyi, and Guo Zhuanghuai observed the child's reactions from outside the Glass Room.
The terrified child looked at Tao Gongjin and the others outside, breathing rapidly. Finally, he became agitated and began to struggle fiercely against his bindings. Eventually, he broke free from his restraints and suddenly charged toward the glass door. With a loud crash, as the glass door cracked under his impact, splatters of pus and blood hit the walls of the Glass Room. Tao Gongjin, Sun Puyi, and Guo Zhuanghuai were stunned by this sudden turn of events. The child collapsed, convulsed, and slowly died.
Sun Puyi analyzed to Tao Gongjin: "Chairman, perhaps this time we used too much reagent!"
Tao Gongjin nodded: "Next time let's try using half of this amount!"
"Alright!"
Tao Gongjin turned to leave when Guo Zhuanghuai hurriedly followed him: "Chairman, I need to discuss something with you."
"There are no outsiders here; go ahead!"
"I haven't visited the Casino in a while; my hands are a bit itchy..."
Tao Gongjin had just reached the door of the Laboratory when Guo Zhuanghuai eagerly opened it for him.
Tao Gongjin paused and looked at Guo Zhuanghuai, "What happened to the three hundred dollars I gave you a few days ago?"
"That was only three hundred dollars. I spent one hundred on Opium, and the remaining two hundred... well, I lost it all in one night," Guo Zhuanghuai replied awkwardly, revealing his crooked yellow teeth.
Tao Gongjin waved his hand dismissively, "Then go to the account room and get another three hundred! It's on me. But remember, don't let your gambling interfere with what I've arranged for you!"
Guo Zhuanghuai quickly promised, "I won't!"
Tao Gongjin then walked out of the Laboratory.
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