Reborn Cat Sheriff

Chapter 382 Fainted from Exhaustion

Do you know what you've done wrong?

In the interrogation room of the Municipal Public Security Bureau, Lin Youlu, Lin Youfu, Lin Youcai, Yuan Dajun, Yuan Zhongwang, and Wang Tianma were locked in different rooms and interrogated separately.

"I...I didn't do anything wrong, why are you arresting me!"

Lin Youfu tried to argue his way out of trouble, even putting on an innocent act. But his eyes were darting around, as if he was still considering whether or not to confess.

"Was it you who added methanol to the liquor containers that had already been produced and inspected?"

Pan Yingxi didn't bother with riddles and glared at him directly, saying, "Methanol has been detected in the alcohol dispensing containers in the bottling workshop where you five are located! This workshop is your workplace, are you still going to say it wasn't you who did it?"

Lin Youfu was taken aback.

After thinking for a moment, he honestly admitted, but still resentfully, "I... okay, I admit it. I did add alcohol... or as you said, methanol, to the liquor. But so what? At most, it affects the quality and alcohol content a little. It won't do anything to me. You shouldn't treat me like a criminal! At most, the factory will fine me a little. What else? You have to call the police for such a small thing. You're really asking for trouble! Heh... Did the factory officials tell you to do this? If you want to fire us, just say so. Why make such a fuss..."

'Snapped! '

Pan Yingxi slammed his hand on the table, interrupting Lin Youfu and startling the female police officer who was taking notes.

With bloodshot eyes, Pan Yingxi glared fiercely at Lin Youfu and said, "Why do you think this is a small matter? Do you think adding methanol to liquor is harmless? Do you know that this can kill people? Do you know that you are committing a crime!"

"Forehead……"

Lin Youfu was startled, and after a long while, he said in astonishment, "Did I kill anyone? I only added a little alcohol, not much at all! Besides, alcohol is a disinfectant, how could it be harmful?"

Seeing Lin Youfu's reaction, Pan Yingxi was taken aback for a moment. "Don't you know that what you call alcohol is actually methanol? It's poisonous! Don't you know it's not drinkable? Whether you drink it or get it on your skin, it can cause poisoning, blindness, or even death!"

Lin Youfu was also stunned for a moment, then curled his lip and waved his hand, saying, "Nonsense! What can blind people? Isn't that industrial alcohol? Do you think I don't know anything? What I got was alcohol, not industrial alcohol! It has the same name as baijiu (Chinese liquor), both are similar substances! Besides, I even diluted what I got with tap water. To put it bluntly, I just added a little tap water to the liquor! How could such a small amount be poisonous? Officer, are you trying to frame me? Are you trying to fool me like this? Of course, I admit that I lied to Lin Youlu and the others! I actually only got two barrels from Wang Mazi, and I've been diluting it with water to fool them!"

"..."

Pan Yingxi was completely speechless.

He never imagined that the perpetrator of this large-scale methanol poisoning incident, which had alarmed almost all the leaders in Zhangzhou, was actually an illiterate person!
Even his and his accomplices' motives weren't to make money; they were simply to secretly increase production efficiency and make themselves appear more capable than other workers, so the factory wouldn't fire those of them who didn't have contracts.

That's it.

But what happened...?

Currently, a total of thirteen patients in Zhangzhou City have been diagnosed with methanol poisoning symptoms, including three patients who are at risk of blindness. The most serious case is still in critical condition and at risk of death.
Moreover, all Zhanghe Daqu liquor produced by Zhanghe Daqu Distillery, regardless of brand, date, grade, or batch number, has been urgently recalled, whether or not it has been sold.

Even if the bottle of wine did not pass through Lin Youfu's workshop, it must be retrieved without hesitation, and the winery shall be responsible for all breach of contract compensation.

This time, out of consideration for the old distillery, they cited product quality issues as the reason, concealing the presence of methanol. However, regardless of the circumstances, the recall, compensation, and destruction of such a large quantity of products, coupled with the medical treatment and compensation for the victims, and the fines and penalties imposed on the distillery by market regulators, will undoubtedly cause Zhanghe Daqu Distillery significant damage this time. And it's not just these five individuals involved; the factory's leaders and legal representative will also bear various legal responsibilities.

"Thank goodness... thank goodness you diluted it with water! Otherwise, I can't even imagine how many people would have died from drinking high-purity methanol! And thank goodness... it was discovered in time..."

Pan Yingxi felt both fortunate and helpless, feeling that Zhangzhou City was truly unlucky this time.

A scoundrel working in the diesel factory's tank area smuggled raw materials for making methanol diesel out by scaling the wall, selling them at a pittance for just enough to buy a few packs of cigarettes. Another bastard used illegally purchased methanol as ethanol, even deceiving his own people by diluting it with water while demanding money from them! These two beasts, along with four clueless but cunning fools, created a massive incident that nearly turned the entire city of Zhangzhou upside down.

Although the case has been solved, the liquor that has ended up in the hands of citizens is still being urgently recovered.

The city sent a text message to remind the owners that the liquor had quality problems. Owners could bring unopened bottles to a designated location to return the liquor and receive compensation. This should deter those who are tempted to sneak a taste.

Despite this self-service confiscation system, the police are not idle. Text messaging isn't foolproof, and even a single bottle of methanol-contaminated liquor still lurking outside poses a significant threat to both the police and the person in possession. Lin Youfu's foolish dilution was a complete blunder; even he didn't know the final ratio, which differed entirely from the concentration in every thermos Lin Youlu and his accomplices had smuggled into the factory. Some contained only water with trace amounts of methanol, while others had a high concentration capable of being lethal. Therefore, all of this liquor must be recovered without exception, and the police's task remains extremely challenging.

To be honest, it's quite baffling how things have come to this. If these people had even a basic understanding of chemistry, if they had done a quick search on their phones, if they had even a shred of respect for the law and factory regulations, this wouldn't have happened!

Or if the factory's management and inspections had been stricter and more meticulous, and if product analysis and sampling had been conducted more frequently, this incident would not have happened.

Yet, despite these layers of errors, this case still occurred in such an absurd way.

In the following days, all the police and industry and commerce departments in Zhangzhou City were busy investigating the problematic Zhanghe Daqu liquor that was mixed with industrial methanol.

The good news is that Lin Youfu and his accomplices' activities began before the Lunar New Year, meaning the crimes lasted for a little over a month, and most of the problematic liquor remains in warehouses and has not been shipped. The bad news is that despite this, various departments in Zhangzhou City dare not allow even a single bottle of recently produced Zhanghe Daqu to appear on the market.

This is a situation where it's better to be safe than sorry; no one can guarantee that these five people weren't lying. If the alcohol ban is implemented based on the dates of their crimes, the police workload will naturally decrease significantly, but what if a few bottles slip through the net?
The laboratory analysis results are in: the industrial methanol used by Lin Youfu and his group is a more troublesome substance than industrial alcohol.

Because it is repeatedly and frequently circulated in the production process of methanol diesel, it contains not only low-purity methanol, but also a large amount of potassium chemical residues, chlorides, heavy metals, and so on.

Even if this substance doesn't pose the same health risks as methanol, it still falls short of the one percent standard for food consumption. Furthermore, the long-term accumulation of these heavy elements in the body can be just as harmful as low-level methanol.

"Based on the product batch number tracing, starting from December of last year, the problematic liquor produced in workshop B2, where Lin Youfu and others worked, involved three grades and a total of 3,174 bottles. Of these, 2,400 bottles, or 400 cases, were waiting to be shipped from the warehouse. Of the remaining 774 bottles, 174 were recently produced and are still waiting to be boxed in the packaging workshop. Another 600 bottles, or 100 cases, have already entered the Zhangzhou market in the last two days. We have recovered 412 bottles of these, and of the remaining 188 bottles, after deducting the 112 bottles that have already caused harm, 76 bottles are still unaccounted for."

Five days later, at a municipal meeting, Yang Ye gave a precise report to the municipal government leaders and the special commissioner from the provincial department on the final results achieved by all the police officers and industry and commerce department personnel in Zhangzhou City over the past five days.

However, judging from the expressions of the leaders in the meeting room, the result was clearly not good.

"So, it's possible that even more victims could emerge?"

A female deputy mayor asked with a grim expression.

"According to the analysis of the seized liquor, a large portion of the bottled liquor had very low levels of methanol and impurities. Lin Youfu did not understand dilution techniques, and his simple act of filling the bottles with tap water resulted in very low methanol levels in some of the problematic liquor, basically below the standard that would cause harm to the human body."

Yang Ye shook his head and continued expressionlessly, "In addition, the problematic liquor that appeared on the market was basically the finished product from the first few days of production. At that time, Lin Youfu was not bold enough and the amount of methanol added was not high. Therefore, there is reason to believe that the remaining seventy-six bottles have most likely been consumed, but the victims did not show any signs of poisoning."

"Deputy Director Yang, right? I can understand that if there are low-dose cases, there must also be high-dose cases, right? Who can guarantee that all the remaining undiscovered problematic liquor has been consumed? Even if there's only one bottle of highly toxic liquor, it could still kill a few more people!"

The provincial commissioner spoke slowly in a low voice.

"..."

Yang Ye had no way to refute it.

Although he wanted to say that the remaining ones were mostly sold through small retailers such as roadside supermarkets and community stores, it was impossible to accurately trace the whereabouts of each bottle with the current conditions and manpower.

But the specialist was right. Any lost bottle could mean a life, and no one can just give up.

"All our comrades in the Municipal Bureau are still working hard, and not a single person has fled the scene. The entire police force in Zhangzhou will not withdraw until all the problematic liquor has been found."

"Hehe... Just do what you can, but remember that everything is for the safety of the people. Human life is of paramount importance! Yang Ye, you're a veteran Party member, I don't need to explain this principle again, do I?"

"Yes!"

Yang Ye slowly saluted and made a pledge.

"Damn it!" Shao Yongkang slammed the baseball bat down hard, shattering the small plastic stool in front of the police officers who were taking a break into pieces, with the broken parts flying dozens of meters away.

No one expected him to hide a metal baseball bat in the police car, and no one expected Shao Yongkang to suddenly explode. Seeing his menacing demeanor, everyone around him was terrified and dared not utter a word.

"How could that be possible? Those damned bastards, do they even know what they're talking about? Find all the bottles, why don't they try it themselves? They just throw the bottles away after drinking, the garbage truck crushes them, and they're supposed to find the eggs?!"

Shao Yongkang swung his baseball bat wildly, cursing incessantly. His already volatile temper, amplified by the prolonged fatigue and exhaustion of the past five days, seemed to have transformed into a raging inferno.

If the deputy mayor and the provincial commissioner were here, he might have smashed a stick over their heads.

"Tao'er, why don't you go and try to persuade them?"

Chen Liang secretly winked at Zhuang Tao, who was working next to him.

"I'm not stupid!"

Zhuang Tao rolled her eyes.

She'd been living a relatively comfortable life at the Criminal Investigation Team 1 these past few days. Unfortunately, this unexpected and major trouble turned her rare good mood into a state of utter despair, with five days without a full night's sleep.

"What's the rush? So many people are watching, don't embarrass the Municipal Bureau. Old Shao, let's just do our best. As long as he's alive, we'll fight to the death. Whatever the outcome, at least we can have a clear conscience, right?"

Zhai Xiaojun sat steadily on a small stool, holding a thermos in his hands. The so-called ten-fold concentrated unsweetened black coffee made his cheeks twitch with bitterness.

He survived for almost five days straight without sleep, relying on this to get through it all. He didn't even go home once during those five days, and even in the dead of winter, Zhai Xiaojun could still smell the stench emanating from his own body.

Seeing Shao Yongkang glaring at him fiercely, Zhai Xiaojun slowly sipped his coffee and said, "Although those two are surnamed Guo and Huang, they are really not a couple. Calling them a 'dog couple' is somewhat insulting to the senior commissioners from the provincial department."

"Damn! Is this the time to be agonizing over this?"

Shao Yongkang kept moving his arms and swinging the baseball bat, the only way he could regain his composure and calmness.

However, faced with the current situation, no one could bring themselves to give up. If the poisoned wine still existed, it would mean the loss of an innocent life!
"Captain! News from Zhanghe Police Station: another case of Zhanghe Daqu liquor has been found! Six intact, unopened bottles were found in a small shop near the Zhangshi Drug Rehabilitation Center!"

Wang Liqun received a phone call and then rushed over to report the situation.

"Did Mimi do this? How many bottles did she find today?"

Shao Yongkang wasn't surprised at all; right now, only that cat could still consistently bring him surprises. In the past five days, Mimi alone had accounted for one-third of the number of problematic liquors found.

How many bottles are still missing?

Shao Yongkang turned to Zhai Xiaojun and asked.

"Twenty-eight bottles."

Zhai Xiaojun had memorized these numbers thoroughly in the past few days, and could easily get the latest number by subtraction.

Shao Yongkang paced around anxiously a few more times, then stomped his foot angrily and said, "Damn it! The last twenty-odd bottles are too difficult to search! Lao Zhai, shall I leave the overall coordination to you? I'm getting impatient, I'm going to take a stroll outside. Mimi was able to find liquor at the drug rehabilitation center, so maybe there are some we've overlooked that slipped through the net."

"Captain! The Central Hospital has received another patient with methanol poisoning. This person is severely poisoned and was found unconscious; they were immediately taken to the emergency room!"

The direction that Zhuang Tao was in charge of contacting has brought the latest news.

"Damn! The jinx was right, there really is a big shipment!"

Shao Yongkang cursed again.

"At least one less bottle, now it's twenty-seven."

Zhai Xiaojun spoke casually.

From the moment the number of victims exceeded one hundred, he maintained this expressionless, stoic demeanor. Especially now that more than ten people have died or been seriously injured or disabled, the mere loss of consciousness is insignificant.

Despite the police's desperate pursuit and interception, poisoning incidents still occurred, which was disheartening.

"What's the point of us doing this? Those who received the information but refused to hand over Zhanghe Daqu liquor are just courting death. Just like that stupid old man yesterday, we went to his door to ask him if he had it, and he said he didn't, and ended up in the ICU at noon!"

A policeman angrily threw the folder in his hand to the ground.

"pick it up!"

Shao Yongkang stared at the man with a cold, expressionless face and said fiercely, "Even Mimi, a cat, is still desperately searching. What right do you have to give up? All of you combined have found less problematic liquor in the past five days than Mimi alone. And you still dare to throw a tantrum in front of me?"

"I……"

The policeman wanted to argue, mentioning the cat's ears, nose, and so on. But as a policeman, he wasn't so blind as to ignore right and wrong; he simply picked up the folder and turned to leave.

"Where to go?"

Shao Yongkang shouted, "We're short-staffed right now, nobody's going to slack off! Five days is nothing! Unless we only have one or two bottles left and absolutely no other options, nobody's going to desert their post!"
"Nursing home!"

The policeman gave one last reply and left without looking back.

"Now we can only consider more remote rural areas and places like nursing homes and orphanages that are semi-isolated from the outside world."

Zhai Xiaojun sighed.

The larger the search area, the more manpower is needed. Even the local police stations in Shili and various townships are already going all out; where else can we find more resources?
"Whoosh..."

Lin Ge gasped for breath, feeling excruciating pain all over his body. But things had come to this point; how could he give up now? The new victims proved that things weren't as optimistic as they had imagined; the remaining twenty-odd bottles of wine might represent twenty-odd lives.

"But everyone has really reached their limit."

Lin Ge looked at Sun Chang, who was being supported by Zhang Ke, and Li Siyu, who waved her hand to refuse Li Yiduo's concern.

"If only there were a few more people. Even just a few extra to help everyone take turns resting would be great!"

Lingo sighed, his tail drooping.

Thank you Fengxue Yiling for the 100-coin reward!

Also, it's almost the end of the month, and your monthly pass expires in two days. Everyone, check your pockets; if you still have any, shamelessly beg to borrow some.

Finally, more than 300 words were cut from yesterday's chapter.

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(End of this chapter)