American Medicine God: Starting by Inheriting a Pharmaceutical Company and Selling Medicine

The following evening, at a jazz bar.

Marcus Reynolds sat alone in the corner, his third glass of whiskey already in front of him.

As the Vice President of Sales at Vought Pharmaceuticals, he was once a legend in the industry. He came from Pfizer, bringing with him the air of a true "big pharmaceutical company" elite. But now, although his business card bears the title of VP, he knows he's a washed-up clown.

"Drinking alone again, Marcus?"

A voice rang in his ear. Marcus looked up and saw two men sitting down opposite him.

"I don't know you," Marcus said, slurring his words. "If you're selling insurance, get lost."

"We're not selling insurance, but we do want to talk to you about 'risk'." Mulder pushed up his glasses and slid a business card in front of Marcus. "FBI."

Marcus was half-sober. He instinctively looked towards the door, wanting to run away.

"Sit down." Miller coldly pressed down on his shoulder. "We don't want to handcuff you in front of your subordinates. Taking you back in public, even if you come back unscathed, the gossip won't stop, and your career will be over, understand?! Especially since you're currently sitting on the sidelines."

These words pierced Marcus's heart like a needle.

"You know what I'm talking about, Marcus," Mulder leaned closer. "That former cheerleader named Katie. She's a Senior Vice President (SVP) now, your boss, right? And you, Pfizer's top salesman, now have to report to some little girl who sells medicine with short skirts and perfume."

Marcus's face turned bright red, and he gripped the wine glass in his hand so tightly it made a cracking sound.

"Victor's blind..." he gritted his teeth. "He has absolutely no idea what professional pharmaceutical sales is!"

Mulder interrupted him, "We know there's something wrong with OxyContin's data, Marcus. We also know you have the key to access the core database. After all, you're a veteran."

"I can't give it to you." Marcus's hands were trembling. "I have a confidentiality agreement. That bastard Saul will sue me until I'm bankrupt."

"If the ship sinks, the confidentiality agreement is worthless." Mudd pulled the encrypted floppy disk from his pocket. "This is what we got. We only need the password. If you give it to us, you won't be a defendant, but a tainted witness. We'll protect you. Otherwise, you can expect to be taken away from work in public!"

Marcus stared at the floppy disk, then looked into Mudd's eyes.

Anger, jealousy, fear...

In the end, hatred for Katie, the arrogant woman, prevailed.

"The password is..." Marcus took a deep breath, grabbed a napkin, and wrote down a string of characters: "VictorIsGod1986".

...

One week later. Water Pharmaceuticals headquarters.

The cold wind, carrying rain and snow, lashed against the glass curtain wall of the Water Tower.

"Action! Action! Action!"

With a sharp shout, six black FBI sedans screeched to a halt in front of the building. The doors opened simultaneously, and twelve agents wearing dark blue trench coats emblazoned with "FBI" filed out.

Miller took the lead, striding to the front desk and slamming a neatly folded document onto the desk with a "thud".

"FBI! Search warrant!"

This time, he was full of confidence.

Saul Goodman came out.

He was wearing a dark blue double-breasted suit today, with a professional fake smile on his face.

"Oh, oh, isn't this our Agent Miller?" Saul opened his arms. "I heard you got some interesting 'numbers'? Let me guess, it was given to you by a former employee named Sarah?"

Miller's heart skipped a beat. How did they know Sarah?

"Sarah is missing, Saul," Miller said coldly. "Don't tell me you don't know where she is."

"Missing? That's terrible." Saul clutched his chest dramatically. "Maybe she went on vacation to Hawaii? After all, she stole company property and might need to find a place to dispose of it."

Thor suddenly stopped smiling.

"Detective, the floppy disk you have is stolen. According to the 'fruit of the poisonous tree' principle, it is inadmissible evidence. Moreover, it is 'isolated evidence.' You have no witnesses, no original records, only a disk that anyone can modify. On what basis do you accuse my client?"

"Based on this search warrant!" Miller roared. "We want to compare it with all the original paper files!"

"Of course, of course." Saul turned to the side and gestured for them to proceed. "Cooperating with law enforcement is the duty of every citizen. I'm also curious if you can find even a single piece of paper in the 'original files' to prove your fantasy."

Saul led them to a huge multi-functional conference room on the first floor of the building.

Miller and Mudd were stunned the moment they pushed open the door.

This is a maze. A maze made of stacked cardboard boxes.

Thousands—no, perhaps tens of thousands—of standard-sized kraft paper filing boxes were densely packed throughout the several-hundred-square-meter hall. They were piled higher than a person, like rows of brown city walls. The air was thick with the smell of paper pulp.

"What is this?" Miller's voice trembled.

"This is what you wanted." Saul patted the nearest box affectionately. "Thirty-two million pages. Research logs, clinical data, meeting minutes, emails, financial statements... even the napkins we used when we discussed this project in the cafeteria."

"I need the computer data!"

"Unfortunately, the server room had a burst pipe last week. This is the only physical backup." Saul spread his hands. "Take your time, agents. But let me warn you, these thirty million pages don't contain the kind of 'tampered' data you have on your floppy disks. Because we're innocent."

...

Week 1.

Miller and Mulder sat in a "trench" made of cardboard boxes, their eyes bloodshot.

This is an unequal war.

Saul shuffled all the documents. Next to the minutes of the March 1986 R&D meeting was a potato purchase list for the cafeteria in May.

"I can't find it..." Miller's voice was hoarse. "I can't find the corresponding data at all. The data on the floppy disk is the experimental record of Group S-12, but I've searched through all these thousands of boxes, and the files of Group S-12 are as if they never existed."

"They destroyed it," Mudd said, rubbing his temples. "Or they hid it on one of those thirty million pages of waste paper. They're drowning us in a sea of ​​information."

To make matters worse, four corporate lawyers, like vultures, sat nearby, constantly watching them.

"Objection. This document contains trade secrets."

"I object. That piece of paper involves customer privacy."

Every piece of paper that might have some value was withheld by the lawyers under the pretext of "Privilege Review".

...

The fourth week.

The team, originally consisting of twelve people, has dwindled to six. The bureau's budget has been exhausted.

"Miller." Mulder suddenly grabbed an invoice. "Look at this. This is a destruction record. Just the day before our raid, a shipment of two tons of 'expired documents' was sent to a shredder."

Miller jumped to his feet: "Damn it! They knew beforehand!"

Just then, the doors to the conference hall were pushed open.

Saul walked in with several uniformed police officers.

"Good afternoon, agents." Saul wore a victorious smile. "I think today's search can be concluded."

"You have no right to kick us out!" Miller drew his gun. "The search warrant is still valid!"

"The search warrant was applied for based on evidence obtained illegally." Saul pulled out a document and threw it on the table. "Just an hour ago, Marcus Reynolds surrendered to the police."

Miller and Mudd were struck dumb.

"Marcus?"

“Yes, our poor former sales director,” Saul sighed. “He admitted to stealing the company’s encrypted data and handing it over to you. More importantly, in his confession, he said he did it under ‘unlawful coercion’ and ‘threats to his life’ by federal agents.”

Saul pointed at Muldur.

"Agent Fox Mulder. Marcus accuses you of threatening him with his past at Pfizer, even implying that you would fabricate evidence to frame him and send him to jail if he didn't cooperate. This is a serious abuse of power."

"You're lying!" Miller rushed forward and grabbed Saul's tie. "Marcus did it voluntarily!"

"Who would believe that?" Saul looked at him coldly. "One's a paranoid detective with a criminal record, the other's an honest executive who's 'frightened.' Whom will the jury believe?"

The police came up and took out handcuffs.

"Agent Mulder, please come with us."

Mudd did not resist. He looked at Miller silently, his eyes filled with deep sorrow and resolute determination.

He knew this was a losing game. Victor wasn't just destroying evidence, he was destroying witnesses. Sarah had disappeared, and Marcus had betrayed him (or been bribed). Now, someone had to be held accountable.

If he also falls, then the investigation into Vought Pharmaceuticals will come to a complete end.

"I did it."

Suddenly, Mudd spoke. His words echoed through the hall.

"I went to see Marcus alone. I threatened him. Agent Miller had no idea. He was waiting for me in the car."

"Mold!" Miller's eyes widened in horror. "What are you talking about? We clearly..."

"Shut up, Miller!" Mulder snapped, "This is my case! You're too stupid to have seen through my methods!"

He turned around, extended his hands, and let the cold handcuffs lock his wrists.

He has to get Miller out of there. As long as Miller is in the FBI, the spark remains.

Thor raised an eyebrow, seemingly satisfied with the ending: "What a touching brotherhood. Take them away."

...

One week later.

The Department of Justice withdrew its order. Mulder was dismissed, investigated, and sentenced to six months in prison. Marcus, because of his "voluntary surrender" and "cooperation with the investigation," was only given a two-year suspended sentence, then released on bail, and subsequently moved to Florida with his family, disappearing without a trace.

Miller walked out of the prison-like conference room alone.

In the hall, Saul Goodman was still standing there.

"Leaving?" Saul handed over a business card. "Don't look at me like that, Miller. These are the rules of the game. Mulder didn't understand the rules, so he's out. You're a smart guy, you're an accounting expert. Waters Legal is hiring for internal compliance audits. The starting salary is ten times what you're making now."

Miller looked at the business card.

He wanted to tear it to pieces and shove it into Saul's mouth. But then he thought of Mudd, who was in prison, and how his meager salary simply couldn't afford a good lawyer to help Mudd appeal.

"roll."

Miller roared and turned to rush into the rain.

But he held the business card tightly in his hand and didn't throw it away.

...

Top floor office.

Victor stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, looking down at the figure below who appeared incredibly small in the heavy rain.

"Did he accept it?" Victor asked.

"I'll take it." Saul stood behind him, pouring wine. "Give him six months. When he's had enough of the cold shoulder in the office, when he realizes that justice doesn't pay the bills, he'll come back to us."

Victor turned around and looked at the world map on the wall.

"Well done. Was Marcus's side handled properly?"

"It's all cleaned up. He's a smart man; he knows that taking the money and keeping quiet is the best way to retire."

Victor raised his glass, looking at the crystal-clear ice cubes inside.

"This is not a victory, Saul. This is just the beginning of cleaning up the battlefield. Law, morality, truth... these are all commodities that can be priced. If we bid high enough, even God will sit down in this room and negotiate with us."