Li Quanwen said, "The most likely cause is deterioration in food quality, leading to food poisoning."
"Deterioration?" Fang Yi thought for a moment, and said, "How would we test for that?"
Li Quanwen replied, "We would need to use detection equipment and conduct large-scale sampling to determine whether food deterioration is indeed the cause. As for food poisoning, I’ve seen many cases, such as expired food or contamination with unclean substances, and so on..."
Fang Yi pondered this and then asked Li Quanwen to make every effort to wake the last two patients who were severely poisoned.
Fang Yi turned his head to look at Shen Binnan and noticed her face was a bit pale. He said, "Sit down and rest for a while."
The two sat down on a bench in the hospital corridor.
"It absolutely cannot be expired food." As soon as they sat down, Shen Binnan abruptly spoke, "I have very strict requirements on this and have issued clear regulations; any chain store that dares to sell expired food will face severe punishment."
Fang Yi disagreed and said, "What if the temptation of profit is greater than the punishment?"
Shen Binnan fell silent.
Fang Yi continued, "It must be Ren Hao starting to make his move."
Fang Yi added, "If it’s Ren Hao who has started, then it would explain why people got food poisoning."
Shen Binnan said, "But the other party isn’t foolish. They must have a plan and wouldn’t leave us any handle to grab."
"That’s also true..." Fang Yi looked troubled, and then he thought of something, "I heard that the boss of Lotte Company was killed?"
Surprised, Shen Binnan looked at him and asked, "How do you know about this?"
"Whether I know isn’t very important. What’s important is the contract between Longtu Group and Lotte Company. If you could explain it in detail, maybe there’s a way to turn things around," Fang Yi said.
Turn things around? Shen Binnan was skeptical but, having learned from her father Shen Hongyang of this man’s mysterious background, she no longer underestimated Fang Yi as she had before.
"The contract between Longtu Group and Lotte Company was signed by me two months ago. Longtu Group aims to grow and cannot rely solely on food, so I thought of starting with real estate," Shen Binnan said.
Fang Yi nodded slightly and smiled, "That’s very insightful." This was not mockery, but his genuine thought; what was the most profitable business in Xuan Cang right now? Of course, it was real estate!
Shen Binnan continued, "The contract concerns a plot of land in the West Suburb. The value of this land is substantial, and if developed, the profits would be enormous. At that time, Lotte Company subcontracted the construction to several companies, and Longtu Group had a share, but the largest one. If something happens to Lotte Group, Longtu Group would be the first to suffer the most damage."
Fang Yi pondered and said, "That’s not right; you are just a contractor. If Lotte Company encounters problems, then Longtu Group could claim a penalty for breach of contract."
However, Shen Binnan smiled ruefully and said, "It’s not like that. What you don’t know is that, to secure the deal, I actually paid a substantial deposit."
Fang Yi’s heart skipped a beat, "How much?"
"Three hundred million."
"From this, it’s clear you were determined to win this project," Fang Yi sighed. "But it’s quite like gambling."
Shen Binnan replied indifferently, "But doing business is a gamble after all."
Fang Yi nodded, discerning the sharpness and confidence in Shen Binnan’s words.
"To sum up, now that Lotte Company is in trouble, your three hundred million deposit is likely to be washed away, right?" Fang Yi continued.
"Is three hundred million a lot for Longtu Group?"
"It’s not a lot, but it’s not a little either."
Fang Yi said, "Now I understand, Ren Hao’s move is quite vicious."
A look of perplexity appeared on Shen Binan’s face.
Fang Yi continued, "I’ve already caught the murderer—it was Mo Fengkuang who instructed him to do it."
Shen Binan’s brilliance allowed her to deduce the entire situation in no time.
Mo Fengkuang was a member of the Black Water Alliance, and since the Black Water Alliance was controlled by Ren Hao, Mo Fengkuang had someone kill the boss of Lotte Company, throwing it into chaos. Consequently, Longtu Group would inevitably be implicated, suffering a substantial setback.
With just one life taken, Longtu Group would face a major blow—why wouldn’t they take such a move? Besides, it was indeed Ren Hao’s style.
Shen Binan mused, "What about this food poisoning incident?" Unconsciously, she had started to rely on Fang Yi as the main point of support.
Fang Yi replied, "It’s simple, a two-pronged approach."
The so-called ’two-pronged approach’ not only targeted Lotte Company with disruption but also utilized the food poisoning incident to smear Longtu Group’s reputation while inciting internal chaos. Killing two birds with one stone, the strategy couldn’t have been more ruthless.
Shen Binan took a deep breath and said, "From this point of view, we can’t underestimate this Ren Hao."
However, Fang Yi shook his head and said, "That idiot doesn’t have the brains for this; in my opinion, it’s his father who orchestrated this scheme."
The foremost magnate among the three giants of Moon City!
Such a two-pronged strategy could only be conceived by a cunning old fox like that. Though Fang Yi and Shen Binan had not met him, they could already sense the man’s dreadfulness.
His ruthlessness was evident without even seeing him!
"What do you think we should do next?" asked Shen Binan, who, without realizing, had already started to treat Fang Yi as an equal.
Fang Yi proposed, "Let’s first go check out that chain store."
Shen Binan agreed, as she had the same intention.
Thus, the two left the hospital and headed directly for the chain store.
The so-called chain store was actually a supermarket, named Longtu Supermarket. When Fang Yi and Shen Binan arrived, there were already Manager’s people investigating the scene.
Shen Binan declared her identity but was barred from entering. At this moment, the same office lady from before hastened over and whispered, "Manager Shen, there’s something fishy about these Manager’s people."
"I could enter when I arrived earlier, but after I’d been there for a while, someone came and drove me out and sealed off the scene."
"Who was that person?" Fang Yi inquired.
The office lady glanced around and then pointed at the entrance to a man who was smoking, "It’s him."
Fang Yi and Shen Binan looked at the same time, spotting the smoking man.
"Mo Fengkuang?" Shen Binan’s eyebrows slightly raised.
"Exactly him," Fang Yi clicked his tongue, "Who would have thought that Mo Fengkuang could make such a name for himself even in the Manager’s ranks. It seems the Black Water Alliance really does have ingrained influence in Martial Arts Traders."
Shen Binan said, "It’s going to be tough getting in."
Fang Yi casually responded, "It’s not without a solution," seemingly unworried.
Hearing Fang Yi’s words and seeing his relaxed demeanor, Shen Binan’s expression softened slightly. The next moment, she saw Fang Yi take out his phone and dial a number. Fang Yi did not hide his call from Shen Binan, so she heard him address someone as Miss Kong.
Shen Binan puzzled over this—just who was this Miss Kong?
(Late night’s first update! Please support by voting!)