Reborn Cat Sheriff

Chapter 507 Fake
"Woo woo woo~"

Suddenly, sirens blared, and police cars appeared from all directions, blocking the surrounding intersections completely. The piercing sounds and blinding lights, the adrenaline-pumping roars, even made the surrounding atmosphere feel solid and oppressive.

Even the same police officer in plainclothes and in uniform exudes completely different levels of intimidation. A sense of suffocating panic made them exchange glances, and one by one, they scattered and fled without hesitation.

"Heh! I knew it. How could a few counterfeiters have the guts to assault or kill a police officer? They'd only dare to bark a few words from afar. If we back down, that would be a real defeat!"

Lu Hui turned around triumphantly to boast to the others, but his clenched fists and trembling legs secretly relaxed a little.

Pu Lingyu breathed a sigh of relief, and at that moment she really wanted to find a chair to sit down and rest.

"Mimi, have you memorized the scents of those people?"

Zhao Zhigang gave a cold laugh and exchanged a glance with Lin Ge. He had no intention of letting those guys who dared to threaten the police off the hook. Putting everything else aside, the fact that they were secretly manufacturing counterfeit drugs needed to be thoroughly investigated and they needed to be punished by law.

"Ah!"

While the arrest operation was in full swing outside, Lin Ge suddenly sneezed for no apparent reason, and a snot bubble even appeared on the tip of his nose.

He was a little worried that he had caught a cold, after all, his body hadn't fully recovered. Not in the mood to argue with Zhao Zhigang, Lin Ge just squinted and jumped back onto the window, feeling the familiar scents scattering and fleeing in the wind, and hearing the sounds of doors slamming and people inside frantically trying to destroy evidence.

But what's the point? Unless time can be reversed, none of these guys will escape prison.

Are you all alright?

Director Wang, who was personally leading the team, breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that the four people were unharmed.

God knows how anxious and nervous he was when he heard on the phone that four policemen were cornered in a shop by criminals who even threatened to kill each other.

Filled with anger and fear, he emptied the entire city police department of all available personnel, then sped and even drove recklessly to the scene of the incident, managing to arrive just in time to prevent the worst-case scenario from unfolding.

“We’re fine. Those people aren’t as capable as they make them out to be. They’re just a little clever and audacious, and they think they can just come and threaten us because they’re so reckless.”

Lu Hui bowed to Director Wang and urged again, "However, Director Wang, this matter is probably not easy to handle! The counterfeit medicine here is not caused by one or two masterminds, but by a counterfeit group that includes a considerable number of small workshops in this large market. I don't know what they were thinking in the beginning, but as it stands, I estimate that this is not the first or second time they have done this kind of thing in this place."

At this point, Lu Hui walked to the computer: "Hmm... come and take a look. The printouts stored in this printer include not only the counterfeit drug Yitomizhi, but also high-end small appliances, high-end furniture, and even brand-name home furnishings! These people are openly counterfeiting and selling their products by putting the labels of big brands on them. I even have a guess now... it's very possible that all the workshops in this big market are making these counterfeit goods and selling them to other places. It's a bit scary."

"Through the internet?"

Director Wang raised an eyebrow and quickly understood what Lu Hui meant.

Online shopping involves seeing only a picture at first, and then facing after-sales problems later on. This business model and platform have been a dumping ground for counterfeit, fake, and inferior goods since their inception.

After-sales service is difficult, returns are troublesome, and protecting one's rights is even more troublesome! The costs of distance, returns, and time also force many people to suffer in silence.

In addition, there are more stores selling counterfeit goods than genuine ones, and they may even have a wider selection and better service, making it impossible to avoid buying counterfeit goods in today's society.

Since the advent of online shopping, numerous counterfeit production bases have emerged in China, churning out a dazzling array of inferior and counterfeit goods. Previously, these items would be rejected by dollar stores and small shops for being too cheap, but now, simply adding a free shipping gimmick can attract countless buyers. Especially for inexpensive items whose value doesn't even cover return shipping costs, they are destined to be unwanted and end up in the trash.

Regardless, consumers have spent their money, and counterfeit shops have made money. With a population of over one billion in China, this market is enough to make countless counterfeiters incredibly wealthy, while leaving consumers and genuine brand owners heartbroken.

In short, this is a major problem that is very difficult to solve in China. For consumers, buying counterfeit goods is not the main issue; buying inferior counterfeit goods is the real headache. As for the government and society, well... the cost of counterfeiting is low, and the penalties are weak, so it seems that no matter what measures are taken, it is impossible to completely eradicate this persistent problem.

As dozens of police cars completely sealed off the entire hardware market, intelligence and evidence began to be rapidly gathered and compiled. This place, which should really be renamed the counterfeit goods market, was gradually stripped of its disguise and exposed to the public.

Mimi led a dozen or so police officers to arrest people. None of the seven guys who dared to threaten the police would escape.

Meanwhile, Zhao Zhigang approached Director Wang to report the intelligence he and Lin Ge had gathered.

Especially regarding Mi Zhi's whereabouts and the bottling workshop that was once used to bottle counterfeit branded liquor but is now being used to bottle medicine, we urged our colleagues to shut it down immediately. In addition, we also urged everyone to collect evidence from the other workshops that were previously discovered producing packaging and containers. As for the auntie who had previously dared to be arrogant at the door but was now pretending to be ignorant and denying anything, she was immediately handcuffed.

The woman was quite heavy, and her tantrums—sitting and lying down on the ground—were so intense that even in handcuffs, three or four police officers couldn't subdue her. Seeing her rolling around on the ground and deliberately trying to slip out, one of the officers angrily brandished his stun gun.

Immediately... the auntie chickened out, recovered from her illness, and obediently got up.

In short, although they encountered a terrifying situation at first, once there were enough police officers and their momentum was established, these people were unable to continue resisting.

The on-site arrests went very smoothly. The few men who hurriedly fled were all apprehended and brought to justice under the pursuit of Lin Ge and the encirclement of a large group of police officers. The most troublesome tasks then became collecting evidence, transferring stolen goods, and conducting detailed investigations of the merchants for whom no criminal evidence had yet been discovered.

At this point, even the industry and commerce department got involved. In short, after all the customers were asked to leave the scene, it became a busy situation where there were more police officers than suspects.

As more and more evidence was discovered and successfully compiled, this large-scale counterfeit market selling counterfeit brand-name goods was finally clearly exposed to the public.

"The counterfeit goods here are mainly home furnishings and small daily necessities. In addition, some small workshops also produce and sell counterfeit goods on their own, find a few printing shops near the entrance to put the labels on them, and then sell them openly online. They even choose websites with good after-sales support, or second-hand channels like scalpers, which are easier to exploit, to counterfeit and cheat people out of money. As for large and medium-sized home furnishings, the shipping costs are very expensive. Even if out-of-town buyers find out that the goods are counterfeit, it is difficult to protect their rights, or they can only accept the high return shipping costs of hundreds or thousands of yuan."

Pu Lingyu was displaying remarkable competence at this moment; or rather, as a civilian police officer, her earlier panic did not indicate incompetence. After being quickly compiled by her, the numerous documents had transformed from a complex web into clear lines.

Seeing that Director Wang's expression was not good, Pu Lingyu continued, "It is precisely because of the platform's indulgence and the buyers' mentality of finding it troublesome and not cost-effective that their counterfeit business can flourish. When the four of us came here before, we were wondering why there seemed to be no business here, yet so many storefronts were still open. Now that I think about it, it should be said that they have long since given up on or do not care about any physical customers."

Director Wang couldn't help but laugh: "Hehe... I didn't expect that a counterfeit production base could appear in our Changshi. Have you found out if there's a team or mastermind behind such a large-scale counterfeit operation?"

"That's the most troublesome part of this case! Director Wang, there's no one managing or organizing them at all. All their actions are based on learning, imitation, and mutual support. It's now very difficult to trace which shop started the counterfeiting business in the first place. Basically, once someone discovered that counterfeiting was profitable, others followed suit and joined the ranks of counterfeiters one by one. They even have several dedicated groups where they help each other, cooperate, and share the spoils. To be honest, if I weren't in the counterfeiting business, I would be amazed by this kind of unity in this day and age. Then, as the counterfeiting industry became more and more popular, related printing shops and courier stations opened up around them, forming a perfect, unobstructed industrial chain. If we hadn't been discovered by chance this time, no one knows how long they could have continued to operate secretly like this."

At this point, Pu Lingyu sighed.

During the process of organizing the evidence, she discovered that there was an electroplated flower stand among the items, which was exactly the same as one she had purchased online two weeks prior.

I initially planned to return the flower stand because I found it unstable and the support frame showed signs of deformation and paint peeling. However, the entire flower stand only cost me a little over forty yuan, but the return fee would be twenty yuan, which seemed like a bad deal, so I reluctantly continued using it.

Looking back now, I realize that my own mentality was one of the reasons why these counterfeiters were able to operate so rampantly.

Director Wang rubbed his temples and said helplessly, "Haven't the Changshi Industry and Commerce Bureau or the 315 Consumer Rights Protection Bureau received any complaints?"

Pu Lingyu shook her head and said, "Buying counterfeit goods online has become a fairly common practice now. Online shopping is all about convenience; how many people are serious about it and willingly go through all the trouble and waste time pointlessly? So most people who buy counterfeit goods just accept their bad luck. As for complaints, the platforms themselves have certainly received countless such complaints and can help appease buyers. And as for the industry and commerce authorities... I doubt anyone would go through all that trouble over a few dollars or tens of dollars, right?"

"..."

As a veteran police officer, Director Wang had nothing more to say.

Counterfeiting is indeed a major problem in China. Or rather, like piracy, it has become extremely difficult to eradicate.

For younger people like Pu Lingyu, buying counterfeit goods has become an unavoidable part of life.

It's an open secret that counterfeiters profit from every city and industry. Take, for example, the well-known term "OEM" (private labeling). The only difference between OEM and counterfeit goods is whether or not it's licensed. And those various clothing brands, and those unheard-of brands openly sold in shopping malls and online stores, might very well be manufactured in the same place as counterfeit goods.

The line between genuine and fake is often blurred. Inferior goods only harm consumers. Of course… while piracy and counterfeit goods have their own national circumstances, the production and sale of counterfeit food and medicine… this is absolutely beyond the scope of what the country can tolerate!
"Ah!"

Lin Ge sneezed again, feeling somewhat tired. But he didn't feel any discomfort anywhere on his body as he shifted, so he squatted down on a chair and continued listening to Director Wang and Pu Lingyu chat.

Pu Lingyu spoke with righteous indignation, unconsciously drawing her closer to Lin Ge.

Seeing that there seemed to be some pictures on the phone in her hand, Lin Ge curiously stood up, leaned on Pu Lingyu's arm, and craned his head to look inside.

"what!"

Pu Lingyu only then noticed the cat beside her, and her expression changed drastically as she quickly and forcefully shook Lin Ge off.

"Fuck!"

This was the first time Lin Ge had been treated so violently. He let out a startled howl and stumbled back several steps before managing to regain his footing.

He was annoyed by the woman's terrible attitude toward the cat when he saw Pu Lingyu rubbing her hands frantically with a grimace, even taking out wet wipes to frantically wipe the places Lin Ge had touched.

"Surely not? Even if you really hate cats, does it have to be like I've been touched by poop?"

Lin Ge stared at the woman making exaggerated movements, his face full of black lines.

"Hiss... Is your cat allergy worse than before?"

Director Wang rubbed his temples and sighed.

"There's nothing I can do! It's just my constitution, okay? I get a rash the moment I touch a cat or dog. Like now, if a cat touches me, it immediately turns into a bright red patch that won't go away for days..."

Before she could finish speaking, Pu Lingyu was stunned.

There was nothing unusual on her smooth arm. The rash inside wasn't red or swollen; there were only abrasions from excessive rubbing.

This scene was completely unbelievable to her, because just the day before, she had developed a rash all over her body after a police dog from the station tried to get close to her! Why this cat...?

"Is this a fake cat?"

Pu Lingyu blurted out her doubts.

"..."

Lin Ge was speechless.

Director Wang glanced at Pu Lingyu, then at Lin Ge, unsure how to explain the situation. He knew very well that his subordinate was severely allergic to animals. So why, after being touched by a cat, did he show no symptoms whatsoever?

"Hey, Mimi... don't move!"

Suddenly, something occurred to her, and Pu Lingyu's eyes lit up. Forgetting about reporting to Director Wang, she carefully squatted down and approached Lin Ge, then slowly extended her hand.

"Let me touch it, see if my allergy is gone?"

"..."

Lin Ge watched speechlessly as Pu Lingyu placed her hand on his back, gently touched it, then withdrew it to look at it again. Then she reached out to touch Lin Ge's ear, but Lin Ge turned his head to avoid it, yet she didn't get angry. Instead, she shifted her target and grabbed one of Lin Ge's front paws.

"You woman, aren't you annoying!"

After pulling his claws out of Pu Lingyu's grasp, Lin Ge turned and ran.

"hey-hey……"

Pu Lingyu wasn't angry. She chuckled foolishly and turned to look at a police dog being led by a policeman. The silly dog ​​was excitedly watching Lin Ge as it worked, only letting out a helpless whimper after Lin Ge disappeared from sight.

"What's going on with that woman?"

Lin Ge, somewhat curious, went to find Zhao Zhigang to watch him work.

In fact, Zhao Zhigang didn't need to do anything more in this situation, so he, Lu Hui, and Ma Xian continued to discuss the remaining issues related to Mi Zhi.

Most of the etorizine from Yixinda has been recovered, but four to five tons remain unaccounted for. Also lurking in the shadows is the drug-making ring that uses etorizine to produce toxic smoke powder. This substance is actually the key to this case; the counterfeit factory was merely an accidental discovery.

However, it remains hidden in the fog.

"Yeah~"

Suddenly, Pu Lingyu's scream came from afar!

Lin Ge could hear the mixture of surprise and anger in her voice, and he had no idea what this woman had done this time.

But none of these things mattered to him. The most important thing right now was to find the remaining Yi Mi Zhi and the drug factory as soon as possible, and then go back to Zhang City to get some rest.

Although nothing abnormal was found in his body, such frequent sneezing was quite unusual for Lingo. He didn't know if he was sick, but it was best to take precautions just in case.

Not knowing what Lin Ge was worried about, Zhao Zhigang looked at Ma Xian and asked, "Have Captain Lei and Captain Ge found any clues? We've come up empty-handed, what's the situation on their end?"

"We're still searching for that truck, but we haven't found any clues yet! At least we found the remaining Yitomizhi here, but their two groups haven't found a single thing."

Ma Xian shook his head.

Zhao Zhigang scratched his head. "Hiss... That's troublesome! Do we have to start searching for clues all over again? What were the results of the interrogation of the people from Yixinda? Did they not reveal any other way of shipping the goods?"

Lu Hui shook his head and said, "There are security cameras at the factory gate and warehouse entrance! Several vehicles responsible for shipping have been checked, and the only suspect is that truck."

"Then we can only wait for the results from Captain Ge and Captain Lei."

Zhao Zhigang sighed.

Turning his head, Zhao Zhigang saw Mimi dozing off with her eyes half-closed, looking a little listless. He couldn't help but rub Lin Ge's head and say, "Mimi, hang in there! Just a little more to go. Once we finish this case, we can go home."

"Without a single clue, how can we possibly finish this easily?"

Lin Ge sighed.

Just then, Ge Fenghua called Lu Hui. Lin Ge listened intently and realized that the fake-plated van and its current owner had finally been found!
(End of this chapter)