Merchant and doctor

Chapter 2370 The Dark Foundation

Occasionally, Bian Mu would also buy things online that were hard to find in physical stores. The goods from various merchants on the "Couqianqian" e-commerce platform were generally very cheap. Having been frugal since childhood, he naturally used this online shopping app the most.

When Bian Mu shops online, he always focuses on studying the most negative reviews from his customers first. In his view, the lowest quality of a product sold online can be gleaned from these reviews. He almost never looks at the best reviews.

The Dong sisters underestimated the value of their collaboration with "Yuangu Traditional Chinese Medicine Preparation Factory." Dong Yushan directly concluded that for Bian Mu, "Yuangu" Traditional Chinese Medicine Preparation Factory was a "white elephant"—it seemed useful, but it was actually quite tasteless.

Old Hou's evaluation was relatively more objective and fair, but... Old Hou is ultimately not in the same field, so he didn't really have much say in some very crucial technical details.

Dian Shuhua had a pretty good impression of the "Yuan Gu" pharmaceutical factory. He was rather introverted by nature, and at most, he would reveal a certain inclination in his words, but he would not easily draw any clear conclusions.

The big decisions still need to be made by Bian Mu himself!

After much deliberation, Bian Mu planned to first talk to the technicians, operators, logistics and purchasing staff who were the most miserable employees at "Yuangu Traditional Chinese Medicine Preparation Factory" and had already retired.

How long a large wooden bucket can be used normally often depends on the shortest and most rotten plank, and the "Yuan Gu" pharmaceutical factory is no exception. Bian Mu attempted to use a similar approach to thoroughly investigate the pharmaceutical company's true nature!
……

As night fell, the "Yuangu" Traditional Chinese Medicine Preparation Factory stood quietly on the north bank of the river dam, appearing inconspicuous from a distance.

Bian Mu parked his car under a large tree on the west side of a small park in the middle of the street. There were four or five ordinary family cars parked in front and behind him. The surrounding area was quiet and there were few people. Occasionally, someone could be seen riding an electric bike and speeding by.

Mu Xian first inspected the small river directly opposite the south gate of the pharmaceutical factory along the dam. The electronic map showed that the river was called "Xiaoyue River". The surrounding area was originally the core area of ​​Lijin Ancient City. With the continuous changes of history, this area now seems to have become a forgotten corner of history and appears somewhat remote.

The Xiaoyue River was originally a proper river that flowed through the ancient city of Lijin. Now, its water volume has shrunk by at least 70% or 80%, and the wide river channel seems somewhat superfluous. The streetlights on both sides of the embankment are obviously newly installed, shining brightly, and the pebbles of all sizes on the bottom of the riverbed are clearly visible.

The river is shallow and clear, and it should never have stopped flowing. Occasionally, when it flows through narrow sections of the waterway, it can make a clear and crisp sound. Most of the reeds on both sides of the river have been cleared away. The spring equinox has passed, and with the arrival of the rainy season, it will be a lush and verdant landscape again around the beginning of summer.

Built along the water, one can imagine that this river must have been a key reference point for Cao Qiling's site selection.

Stone steps were built along the dam bank, leading neatly all the way to the bottom of the riverbed. As it got dark, Bian Mu lost interest in going down for a stroll. After climbing over many guardrails, Bian Mu returned to the pedestrian walkway on the expressway and walked along the winding path towards the south gate of the "Yuan Gu" pharmaceutical factory.

The old-fashioned stone gate had a dim light, making it difficult to tell what kind of stone was used. Others might overlook it, but Bian Mu had to examine it carefully, as there was definitely something special about it!

Following market trends, the south gate has been converted to an electronically controlled gate, and the security guard post is located inside the gate on the west side. The entrance now features eight or nine more speed bumps than other company gates, appearing somewhat jarring from a distance and seemingly unnecessary. The area in front of the gate is quiet; not a soul is in sight. According to Lao Hou, this gate was the factory's main entrance a few years ago. After several changes in factory leadership, one of them believed the factory's poor performance was due to the gate being misaligned. He insisted on expanding the east gate, and with a new sign, that became the factory's main entrance.

Auspicious purple clouds are coming from the east?!
What kind of logic is that?!
The security room was lit up, and through the glass window, you could only see an elderly male security guard, several years old, watching TV from the side.

Bian Mu chose a blind spot in the security guard's field of vision and walked towards the base of the wall. The green belt near the base of the wall was exceptionally well-maintained, and there was not a trace of the usual clutter found elsewhere. There was also no trace of stray cats or dogs. What was different was that the section of the factory wall near the ground was entirely made of black stone. At night, it looked dark and somewhat oppressive. Under the streetlights, it even reflected a bright, gleaming light from a certain angle. Without a doubt, this thing was not ordinary stone.

"The four walls are probably built according to the 'rooted' design of the old Cao. It would be difficult for any emerging company in the last twenty years to find a similar stone-based brick wall..." Thinking of this, Bian Mu bent down, picked up half a brick, and randomly tapped a spot a few times.

It made a clear, resonant sound, and surprisingly, it even had a faint metallic quality.

"Huh?! What kind of stone is this? It looks a bit like the stones from Cuiwei Mountain... I feel like I've seen similar photos somewhere before... Wu Fenglan... Yes! Those documents! Could it be that kind of golden stone?!" Thinking of this, Bian Mu's mind was suddenly flooded with memories, and his nerves tightened instantly...

"Hey! Who's there?! Sneaking around like that... Come out!" Before he finished speaking, Bian Mu felt like several people were coming from his right side and behind him. One of the men had a particularly loud voice and shouted a few times at his location.

"Excuse me! I'm looking for someone and I'm a little disoriented. Could you tell me roughly where the dormitory area of ​​this pharmaceutical factory is located?" Stepping across the green belt, Bian Mu clapped his hands together a few times and walked confidently toward the group of people.

"Family area?! Who are you trying to fool! Everyone around here knows the factory area and the family area are far apart. Confess! What did you steal?!" The leader shouted at Bian Mu.

Besides the man, there were four other people standing opposite him, three men and one woman. The woman looked to be in her late thirties and was looking at Bian Mu with suspicion. She stood still and didn't move. The other three men quickly surrounded Bian Mu and soon had him in the middle.

Damn! I've been mistaken for a thief again.

"Hehe... I really am looking for someone, Xiao Jianfeng, Engineer Xiao! He's over seventy years old. I was asked to come and visit him."

"Old man Xiao?! You're so sick you can barely get out of bed, and now you're all acting all high and mighty... only now do you remember! Where were you before! Show me your ID! Who knows if what you're saying is true or false!" As he spoke, the leading man walked straight towards Bian Mu, trying to verify his true identity.

Some of these visitors seem to have ill intentions! For a moment, Bian Mu was genuinely scratching his head.

Who carries their ID card around all the time for no reason? Seriously!
However, there were many people on the other side, and it was difficult to explain things clearly in a short time. This was troublesome.

While Bian Mu was still in a daze, the man opposite him had already walked right up to her.