CH 209

Lin Chen had certainly thought before that if one day he could be lucky enough to be with Xing Conglian, they would definitely have a very interesting life. As it turned out, his speculation was correct.

After saying “goodbye” to Xing Conglian, Lin Chen took out his headset and walked out of the ward with a thick stack of medical examination reports that needed to be filled out by a doctor.

At the moment the door opened, the medical staff pushing the hospital bed whizzed past, and Lin Chen stepped back and stood back in the doorway.

In a moment of surprise, he saw an old man lying on the hospital bed, feeling that fate was unpredictable, often just like this moment.

He remembered yesterday walking through the special care ward and seeing the old man full of energy educating his subordinates, but now he lay on the hospital bed without any awareness, as if only one breath remained.

The elevator door opened in the distance, and the hospital bed was quickly pushed in. The iron gate closed, and the floor numbers on the elevator sign quickly descended.

Slow footsteps sounded behind him, and Lin Chen turned his head and was surprised to see the young subordinate who had been reprimanded by the old man yesterday.

They looked at each other, and the young man in a suit and leather shoes avoided his gaze. It seemed he didn’t intend to chase after the hospital bed.

Lin Chen held the medical examination report and took a brief look at the other person. He turned his feet and walked towards the other person.

The young man’s hair was very soft, as if deliberately highlighting a fierce temperament, and his hairstyle was cut very short, making him look out of place. He wore gold-rimmed glasses and an ill-fitting suit, looked dejected, and had no pain or resentment on his face, only confusion.

“Hello,” Lin Chen greeted the other person.

“I’m sorry to have troubled you.”

He didn’t expect the other person to answer like this. “Troubled? “

The young man lowered his head even more. “When I was scolded by the chairman yesterday, you just happened to pass by.”

Lin Chen was even more surprised. With such short eye contact yesterday, the young man could remember him, and now he mentioned this embarrassing thing specifically. Following the principle of saying what was on his mind, he asked strangely, “Why suddenly bring this up?”

“I…” The young man hesitated. Although he looked like he didn’t know whether to speak or not, he continued, “I thought…you wanted to talk to me about something. I thought that this would be…the beginning…”

He patted the other person’s shoulder calmly and explained to him, “Would you feel that such a beginning is suited for starting an intimate conversation?”

The young man rubbed his face with his hand, shook his head, and turned to leave.

Lin Chen was helpless. Why did he always encounter such vague and unclear things when he just went out for a medical examination? After the young man took a step out, he stopped him. “I’m going for a medical examination now. It will take about an hour. If you have time, would you like to accompany me?”

The young man turned around and nodded vigorously.

Lin Chen stood at the elevator entrance, and the young man beside him politely pressed the elevator button for him as if he were used to doing this. When the elevator door opened, the other person even held the door and let him go in first.

“The chairman is sick. Don’t you have to go and keep him company?” Standing in the elevator, Lin Chen found a topic to chat with the other person.

“I made the chairman sick. He told me to fuck off and never show up in front of him again.”

The young man’s voice was thin and soft, as if it could be cut off at any moment. Lin Chen thought about this sentence in his heart. Normally, when a chairman met a disliked subordinate, he would only say “you don’t have to come to work tomorrow”. Saying things like “fuck off” and “never show up in front of me again” didn’t seem quite right.

“Then resign.” He thought for a moment and replied.

The young man looked at him resentfully.

“He’s not your father, so you don’t need to be so subservient.”

The young man smiled bitterly.

Lin Chen suddenly understood something. “Is he really your father?”

The young man lowered his head again and pecked like a little chick.

“Are relationships in rich families always so twisted that the son has to call his father the chairman…” Lin Chen said, thinking of Xing Conglian for no reason.

In fact, since Xing Conglian revealed his wealth, he had always avoided thinking about this kind of issue. Who knew what the Xing family would do because the eldest grandson of the main branch married a homosexual. Although he subconsciously believed that Xing Conglian’s parents wouldn’t come to him throwing a check, it was hard to predict the thoughts of the rich.

Just as Lin Chen was getting lost in his strange thoughts, the young man who had been following him finally couldn’t help but speak. “The chairman… has always disliked me… He thinks I’m too weak… And I made a big mistake recently… I failed a bidding project… and the chairman got sick because of anger… Isn’t that my fault?”

Hearing this, Lin Chen turned his head to look. He suddenly realized that since he met Duan Yang, he might have a special physique that attracted confused young people. Why was this stranger already telling him about his personal struggles?

Lin Chen sighed, and the elevator door opened.

He walked out first, and the young man followed like a lost little duck.

“What kind of illness does your father have?” Lin Chen stood at the elevator entrance and asked, looking at the floor indicator in the lobby.

“Hypertension, but the doctor said there might be a cerebral hemorrhage…”

“If there is a sudden cerebral hemorrhage, the patient should be sent for an MRI first, right?” Lin Chen followed the indicator and walked to the right.

“What did you say?”

“Nothing.”

“I don’t know why, but when I see you, I want to talk. I’m really sorry… It’s not good for someone like me to be so forward, right?”

“I can only say that your personality is not suitable for the job you are doing now, such as being in charge of the bidding case, right?” Lin Chen said as he walked.

“You’re being too direct.” The young man couldn’t take it.

“Actually, it’s not really your personality that’s the problem, but rather your temperament. You seem to have a typical phlegmatic temperament. You can remember me after a brief eye contact, which indicates that your intelligence and memory abilities are quite good. You are better suited to be a scientist or an artist, rather than managing a factory. The factory has wasted your potential,” Lin Chen comforted him.

“How do you know that I work at a factory?”

“You’re wearing a suit with the logo of ‘Guanghua Chemicals’ embroidered on it.”

The young man nervously touched his pocket and said embarrassedly, “I used to work in chemistry, but the chairman said I had to take over the factory in the future and couldn’t do research anymore, so I was transferred to management. But I really don’t understand it.”

“It’s already not easy for you to know what you can and cannot do,” Lin Chen comforted him and led him to turn right.

At the end of the hallway was a closed magnetic resonance imaging room, and the door reflected a metallic silver light.

The young man also saw it, and his words trembled. “You mean…me?”

Lin Chen folded the medical report and put it in his pocket. “Since he is your father, let me accompany you.”

He didn’t know what was wrong with his words, but the young man’s eyes turned red in an instant.

Many people came and went outside the MRI room every day. Lin Chen stayed outside with the young man for a while, watching the patients and their families come and go, and listening to him talk about things related to the chairman.

The young man said his name was Zhan Tianming, only one letter away from a famous railway expert. He hoped his father could survive, because he was worried that he would have to take on the heavy responsibility of managing the entire factory, but he also felt that such a mentality was too selfish. He wanted to become stronger, but his personality issues became a deep problem for him. He really couldn’t manage people.

Zhan Tianming didn’t have deep feelings for his father, which stemmed from the constant criticism and lessons he received during his upbringing. His father controlled everything in his life, including his choice of major in chemistry in college and his current transfer to management. All of these decisions were made with the factory in mind.

Lin Chen listened silently, building a psychological profile of this young man. Zhan Tianming’s case was all too typical, and distorted father-son relationships often have similarities. He also quickly understood why Mr. Zhan would vent his inner emotions to anyone he could find because, in his life controlled by his father, he really didn’t have anyone to talk to.

Not long after, the isolation door of the MRI room opened again, and Mr. Zhan’s attending doctor walked out. Zhan Tianming rushed up to him.

“The patient’s brain hemorrhage is still relatively severe, but there should be no immediate danger to his life. I still recommend conservative treatment…” The doctor said a lot.

After listening for a long time, Zhan Tianming finally asked, “The chairman, will he recover?”

“You know, the brain is very difficult to predict. The specific damage situation depends on the absorption of the hematoma. I will still lower the blood pressure in the early stages and cooperate with some drugs that can absorb brain hematoma. However, brain damage is irreversible, and there are many drugs to choose from. The specific treatment plan will be determined after consultation…” The doctor wore a mask. When he said this, he suddenly stopped and said, “I remember Mr. Zhan is in the pharmaceutical industry?”

“We are a chemical company and also produce pharmaceutical-related chemical additives. But strictly speaking, we cannot be considered a professional pharmaceutical company,” Zhan Tianming answered very honestly.

“If you can get some Nordren through special channels, Mr. Zhan’s recovery may be better.” 

Upon hearing this, Zhan Tianming’s expression visibly lowered. ” Nordren…?”

Lin Chen had been sitting outside the MRI room all this time. When he heard the word ” Nordren”, he looked at the doctor in surprise. The doctor was about forty years old, and his expression when he mentioned Nordren didn’t seem fake. He seemed to recommend the drug because its efficacy was indeed significant. And according to the doctor’s words, Nordren hadn’t yet been officially mass-produced, so it could only be obtained through special channels. Therefore, he had no great interest in making recommendations for his own benefit.

“Do you… know about Nordren?” Lin Chen stood up from the bench and asked the doctor.

“Who are you?” The doctor hesitated.

“I… am a friend of Mr. Zhan.” Lin Chen looked at Zhan Tianming and answered.

“Oh.” The doctor didn’t ask much and answered very straightforwardly. “This drug is closely related to our neurology department, so I have been tracking and observing it. Its clinical effect is indeed good, but it is a later-stage treatment. The early stage is still mainly drugs that promote hematoma absorption.”

Upon hearing this, Lin Chen suddenly remembered the scene when Duan Yang first took him to the hospital. They were at the door of the neurology department, watching the elderly people who were unable to move due to brain damage, and Duan Yang explained to him what a revolutionary drug it was.

“Is this drug really that good?” Suddenly, a nearby patient’s family member approached.

The auntie’s voice was very loud, and there were many patients’ family members at the door of the MRI room. When they heard the word “drug”, more people crowded around.

“In the pharmaceutical industry, it is difficult to define good or bad standards,” the doctor said frankly.

The auntie grabbed the doctor and said, “Didn’t you just say it’s good? My husband also had a brain hemorrhage last time, and now he is paralyzed. Can this drug cure him?”

“Specific circumstances depend on your husband’s medical case. It’s hard to say.”

“We can’t understand what you doctors are saying!” the auntie complained. “Just tell me the truth.”

Seeing more and more family members of patients around prick up their ears, Lin Chen said slowly, “But I remember the listing process for Nordren was quite complicated, and it caused fatalities.”

“I’m not too sure about that.” The doctor put his mask back on. “I’m just suggesting an option. I remember Zhourui will be holding a new drug presentation at a hotel tomorrow. You can go check where it is and learn more for yourself. It should be better than just listening to me.”

After the doctor finished speaking, Mr. Zhan’s hospital bed was pushed out, and the doctor left with it after nodding to them.

However, the family members outside the MRI room were in an uproar.

The auntie with sharp ears grabbed Mr. Xiao Zhan. “Do you have connections? Can you get this medicine? Tell me, how did you manage to get it?”

Lin Chen backed away and avoided the onslaught of the patients’ families. He watched as Mr. Xiao Zhan became a small boat in a storm, being pulled and tugged until his clothes were all wrinkled. The people around him finally let him go, probably because they felt he was too inky in his speech.

Zhan Tianming stood there in silence, looking depressed from the moment Lin Chen mentioned “Nordren”.

Seeing this, Lin Chen walked over, patted his shoulder, and asked, “Does your failed bidding project have anything to do with Zhourui Pharmaceutical?”

Upon hearing this question, Mr. Xiao Zhan was about to cry.

“Can I go see the chairman first?” Mr. Xiao Zhan looked around. “Where did they take the chairman?”

“Just now, the doctor said that Chairman Zhan will be sent to the intensive care unit. No visitors are allowed,” Lin Chen replied.

“Oh?” Mr. Xiao Zhan hesitated. “I see. Are you still going for the physical examination? Shall I accompany you?”

“Forget it, let’s go see your father in the ICU,” Lin Chen said as he walked forward, and Mr. Xiao Zhan followed closely behind.

After walking for a long while, Mr. Xiao Zhan finally asked, “Why do you want to know about the bidding project, and… What is the Nordren fatality case all about?”

“I thought you didn’t care,” Lin Chen turned around and said.

“Really?” Mr. Xiao Zhan hesitated for a moment and continued, “I didn’t ignore your question just now. I just didn’t know where to start.”

“You can start anywhere,” Lin Chen said.

But about five minutes later, Lin Chen deeply regretted what he had just said.

To be exact, although Mr. Xiao Zhan spoke slowly, it didn’t mean he spoke less.

Mr. Xiao Zhan was a bona fide chatterbox, starting from the entire process of a drug going to market and explaining in detail the complex process of a drug ultimately being used by patients.

Lin Chen frowned and listened. On the pharmaceutical company side, there were a series of processes such as early project selection, product research and development, animal experiments, and clinical trials. It was rare to obtain approval for a drug to be marketed, and there were still many problems in drug production, promotion, storage, transportation, and other aspects.

Mr. Xiao Zhan’s father’s factory mainly provided an emulsifier to Zhourui Pharmaceutical in the long term. The specific chemical terms made Lin Chen’s head spin, but he still summarized the key information in Mr. Xiao Zhan’s words. Guanghua Chemicals had been providing emulsifiers to Zhourui Pharmaceutical for years, but they lost to another relatively unknown company in the bidding meeting for the new year.

What was originally well arranged suddenly changed, but business losses were secondary. The main issue was that Chairman Zhan doubted Mr. Xiao Zhan’s ability.

Today, Chairman Zhan heard from an insider in Zhourui’s procurement department that the reason why Guanghua Chemicals failed in the bid wasn’t because of the price but because abnormal impurities were detected in the emulsifier they previously provided. Fortunately, the pharmaceutical factory’s quality inspection personnel were responsible and discovered the problem. However, the company’s senior management was furious and put Guanghua Chemicals on the blacklist.

Lin Chen and Mr. Xiao Zhan walked to the vending machine, took out three coins from their pockets, and bought a bottle of chilled Coke. Mr. Xiao Zhan’s voice was so gloomy that it could squeeze out water. “I was in charge of production before, and Chairman Zhan thought…I didn’t manage production well and caused the problem. But I…I don’t know what happened.”

The Coke rolled out, and Lin Chen bent down to take it.

Mr. Xiao Zhan continued, “But if there is a problem with our product, why didn’t they come to us for compensation? Both the business process and the legal process can be followed, but they just kicked us out without giving us a chance to make things right. This is just unreasonable.”

Lin Chen had been silent all along, but when he heard this, he handed the Coke to the young man in front of him and said calmly, “Indeed.”

Mr. Xiao Zhan looked up and refused his Coke. “I don’t drink carbonated drinks.”

Lin Chen showed him his injured hand and said calmly, “I’m asking you to help me open it. It’s not convenient for me.”

Mr. Xiao Zhan was embarrassed again and quickly helped him open the can.

Lin Chen took a sip of the Coke, thought about something, and asked, “Can your father’s internal relationship with Zhourui Pharmaceutical tell you what type of impurity it is?”

Mr. Xiao Zhan shook his head vigorously. “I don’t even know how the chairman got this information, and he didn’t tell me. If I knew, I would definitely go and ask him!” Mr. Xiao Zhan pushed his glasses up and rolled up his sleeves.

Now that Chairman Zhan was in a coma and the matter involved an insider, it was unlikely they could find the specific person for the time being. Lin Chen pursed his lips and said to Mr. Xiao Zhan, “Are you a chemical expert?”

“Well… I can’t say I’m an expert in chemical engineering. I just studied it…”

Lin Chen interrupted him. “I suggest you go back and check your factory’s emulsifier products yourself, and it would be better to have a report from a reputable professional institution. At the same time, check all the supply reports for previous batches, and if there are samples left, it would be even better to preserve all the evidence.” Lin Chen put the Coke bottle on the windowsill and took out his phone. “In short, do it as soon as possible.”

“I was planning to do that, and I’m going back now!” Mr. Xiao Zhan said as he was about to leave, but he suddenly stopped, feeling uneasy. “But… what about the chairman?”

Looking at him, Lin Chen asked, “Do you think the factory is more important to your father, or his own life?”

“Of course, the factory is more important,” Mr. Xiao Zhan answered without hesitation.

“So, do you understand what you should do?” Lin Chen asked in response.

……

Xing Conglian was in the forensic science department, waiting for the fingerprint identification results.

Around him were forensic police officers coming and going. Some were examining the blood-stained clothes from when Tan Kang was stabbed yesterday, but more were doing knife comparison work.

The crime scene where Tan Kang was stabbed, and the surrounding garbage bins didn’t reveal the weapon used by the killer. They could only determine the type of knife used to stab Tan Kang from his wounds. The forensics lab was filled with all kinds of knives of various sizes purchased from the market, but so far, they hadn’t found a weapon that matched the size.

There were very few leads available, with only a pile of blurry surveillance videos left. Wang Chao and the other officers were tirelessly reviewing the videos.

Xing Conglian took out a cigarette, and just then, his phone rang.

As he answered the phone, Xing Conglian felt inexplicably nervous. “What’s wrong? Is the medical checkup result not good?”

“Um…” Lin Chen’s voice came through the phone.

Hearing the hesitation in his voice, Xing Conglian suddenly had a strange suspicion. “You haven’t gone for the checkup yet, have you?”

“I was planning to, but something came up,” Lin Chen said.

If Lin Chen were in front of him, Xing Conglian would have the urge to knock him down, take off his pants, and spank him, but this was Lin Chen. He couldn’t do that, so he just imagined the scene in his mind and patiently asked, “What happened?”

“I met someone strange.” Lin Chen paused and said, “To be precise, it’s a lead that can’t be called a lead.”

Xing Conglian switched the phone to his other hand and listened to Lin Chen’s simple description of the supply problem at Guanghua Chemicals. After pondering for a moment, he said, “Zhourui Pharmaceutical suddenly changed its supplier because of impurities in the raw materials?”

“It’s not exactly sudden, but it did happen recently,” Lin Chen said.

“Do you think there’s a problem here?”

“I’m not sure. It may be because I’ve been listening to too many complicated issues in the drug marketing process that I suddenly feel that we may have jumped to conclusions at the beginning, and this matter may not be as we thought.”