Chapter 47.2: The Three Great Problems of Life
At this point, Photographer Zhao completely lost his composure. He slammed the newspaper onto the desk.
“Isn’t that basically poisoning people?!”
“I paid one yuan and fifty cents a pound for that beef! How could they scam me like this?!”
“Are they even human?!”
Huang Xueling, who had been enviously listening just moments ago, immediately shut her mouth.
Thank goodness no one around here sold this kind of beef. Otherwise, she probably wouldn’t have been able to resist buying some to try herself!
Seeing how furious Photographer Zhao was, Jiang Xia silently suppressed another possibility and comforted him.
“The person selling the beef might not even know it’s poisonous. They may only know that adding it makes the meat look better and more appetizing, which is why they use pixiao. Eating it once in a while probably won’t cause any problems. Still, I’d recommend that you stop eating it in the future, Brother Zhao. After all, if the beef seller ever gets the dosage wrong, then…”
Who would dare eat it after hearing that?!
Photographer Zhao nodded repeatedly. “Definitely not. I won’t eat a single bite of it ever again.”
But simply agreeing wasn’t enough to calm Photographer Zhao down. When he thought about how people in the surrounding courtyards often bought half a pound or a pound and a half of the stuff for their children to try, he immediately felt that they couldn’t just let this go.
This stuff was poisonous!
“No. This could cause serious problems if someone gets hurt.”
Photographer Zhao shot to his feet. “I have to tell Captain Feng. We need to investigate this guy’s stall, give him a proper talking-to for a few days, and make absolutely sure he never uses pixiao again!”
With that, Photographer Zhao headed for the door.
Jiang Xia immediately sensed trouble. She hurriedly reached out to stop him.
“Don’t, Brother Zhao. This isn’t something Captain Feng’s department handles. Why don’t you call the Administration for Industry and Commerce and let them deal with it?”
“Contacting the Administration for Industry and Commerce takes too long!”
Photographer Zhao waved his hand dismissively. “Captain Feng can send two people over, and they’ll have the guy back here by this afternoon!”
Ah…
Well, that’s that.
I really did my best.
Jiang Xia silently withdrew her hand.
Pixiao was considered a medicinal material in traditional Chinese medicine, and it wasn’t particularly cheap. To save on costs, the beef vendor might not necessarily have bought it for this purpose.
And the food industry had always been good at adapting to local conditions, making do with whatever was available, and using whatever could be found nearby…
In other words, there was another readily available substance that could produce a similar effect. It was just a little disgusting.
And its name was—
urine scale.
Yes, that was the sediment formed when dissolved substances in urine precipitated out.
Compared to gutter oil, it felt like the two were practically neck and neck.
At this point, all Jiang Xia could do was hope the vendor had a little conscience. Otherwise, once Captain Feng sent people over to investigate and interrogate him, then Photographer Zhao…
Forget it.
She’d just mourn for him in advance.
Forensic Doctor Sun glanced up at Jiang Xia. Seeing her reaction, he knew there was definitely something she hadn’t said because it was too awkward to bring up.
He wisely didn’t ask. Instead, he said with a smile, “This should fall under the field of chemistry, right? Jiang Xia, you even know about this?”
“My older sister is a chef.”
Jiang Xia withdrew her hand. As she compared the keys, she said, “So I picked up quite a bit just by listening. Regulations aren’t very strict right now, and food sold at street stalls isn’t always particularly hygienic. Whenever possible, it’s better to avoid eating it.”
Huang Xueling was already wondering what she was supposed to eat with her meals. She immediately asked, “What about pickles? Are those bad too?”
“With pickled vegetables like these, even if ordinary salt is used, nitrites will still be produced during the pickling process. The levels generally peak within the first two weeks, but around the third week, as the microbial community becomes established, the nitrite content gradually drops back down to a safe level.”
Jiang Xia spread her hands. “But even when it’s safe, there will still be some. Eating less is simply healthier.”
“Huh?”
Huang Xueling’s mouth fell slightly open. “Even pickles contain poison?”
“Talking about toxicity without considering the dose is just being unreasonable.”
Jiang Xia continued, “People can die from eating too much salt too. As long as you don’t overdo it, there’s no need to worry so much.”
“I agree with that.”
Forensic Doctor Sun nodded. “Still, you really do have to be careful about food. If something goes wrong, it can cost someone their life. I remember there was a case before where someone drank homemade liquor. The liquor turned out to be poisonous, and he ended up drinking himself to death.”
“Fermented foods and drinks can be pretty dangerous. If you don’t have the expertise to make them yourself, it’s best to buy properly manufactured products.”
“Oh, you’re thinking too highly of commercial products. Some of the alcohol sold outside isn’t safe either.”
Trace Examiner Li also looked up and chimed in, “Two years ago, I went to the provincial department and heard about a case. Someone had set up a legitimate little distillery. The liquor itself was perfectly fine, but the guy started adding pesticides to it and selling it! And the alcoholics who came to buy from him actually insisted on his liquor, saying it had a stronger kick and made them feel lightheaded. A stronger kick? They weren’t getting a stronger kick—they were being poisoned!”
Good grief.
That was certainly brutal.
Jiang Xia continued comparing the keys while listening to their conversation, feeling as though she’d truly had her eyes opened today.
Huang Xueling, however, grew quieter and quieter the more she listened.
Why were there so many poisonous and harmful foods?!
Would she ever be able to eat anything safely again?
Jiang Xia only needed five minutes to compare the keys, but somehow she ended up listening to more than an hour of food-related gossip. It wasn’t until lunchtime that she finally stopped, still thoroughly engrossed in the conversation.
Afternoon.
It was time to go back to work.
Jiang Xia took the key and the results of her comparison to the First Criminal Investigation Squad, then leisurely returned to the office.
She glanced at Photographer Zhao’s seat and noticed that he still hadn’t come back.
After waiting for more than an hour, Yang Lihua returned from the restroom. He scratched his head with a bewildered expression.
“I don’t know what’s wrong with Brother Zhao. He’s been throwing up by the sink this whole time. I asked him if he wanted to go to the hospital, but he wouldn’t say anything.”
Forensic Doctor Sun glanced at Jiang Xia, then reached out and tapped Yang Lihua on the arm.
“Why do you care about so many things that aren’t your business? Hurry up and memorize your material. I’m going to quiz you in a little while!”
Yang Lihua immediately stopped smiling.
Your apprentice is very unhappy and will go memorize his material right away.
＊
Zhan Shui Railway Station.
Waiting Hall.
Chen Yongyi was waiting for the train with his apprentice and assistant, Xu Zhenwei.
People were constantly coming and going around them. The already limited number of seats had all been taken, and unable to find anywhere to sit, Chen Yongyi simply found an empty spot and quietly waited.
He had originally intended to leave discreetly, but after solving cases all over the place for so long, quite a few people knew him. Before long, a railway police officer spotted him.
The officer looked several times before finally confirming his identity and asking in surprise, “Expert Chen, what are you doing here waiting for the train?”
Chen Yongyi looked up at the railway officer and asked somewhat apologetically, “Excuse me, but you are…?”
“I’m Du Yunqing.”
Seeing that Chen Yongyi still hadn’t remembered him, Railway Police Officer Du Yunqing added, “The throat-slashing murder on the train last year. I was on that train. You even questioned me about what happened.”
“Oh—”
The moment the case was mentioned, Chen Yongyi immediately remembered.
“I remember. It happened in Carriage Eleven. You were responsible for security in Carriages Six through Nine, right?”
“That’s right, that’s right!”
Du Yunqing nodded repeatedly. “I was only responsible for those four carriages. You still remember.”
“That case was a real headache for us railway police. Thankfully, you managed to solve it.”
Seeing Chen Yongyi’s apprentice carrying their luggage, Du Yunqing continued asking, “So you came to Zhan Shui for work, and now you’re heading back to Quancheng?”
“I’m not going back to Quancheng.”
Chen Yongyi shook his head slightly. “There’s a difficult case over in Jiang Province. They’ve asked me to go take a look. I’ve already bought a sleeper ticket and was just waiting for the train.”
“Jiang Province?”
Du Yunqing thought about the next few trains scheduled to arrive. If he remembered correctly, Chen Yongyi would have to wait another two hours or so.
And that was assuming the train wasn’t delayed.
But these days, what train wasn’t delayed?
If a train was only half an hour late, that was practically considered fast!
“You’ll have to wait more than two hours.”
Du Yunqing looked around before saying directly, “How about you come to our duty room and rest for a while, Expert Chen? Standing here is too tiring.”
Chen Yongyi shook his head. “No need to trouble you. I’ll be able to rest once I get on the train.”
“We’re all public security officers under the same sky. It’s just resting in the duty room for a while. How could that be a bother?”
Without giving him a chance to refuse, Du Yunqing grabbed Chen Yongyi by the arm. “Standing around like that is exhausting, and a sleeper berth isn’t exactly comfortable either. Come on, sit down and rest for a while first.”
Chen Yongyi couldn’t pull himself free, so he followed Du Yunqing to the duty room.
Xu Zhenwei picked up the luggage and followed them as well.
The duty room was temporarily empty. Du Yunqing first rinsed out a cup with hot water, then put some tea leaves in it and filled it with hot water. He placed the cup in front of Chen Yongyi.
“Expert Chen, have some tea.”
“Thank you.”
Chen Yongyi thanked him, then added, “You don’t need to fuss over me anymore. I’ll sit here for a while and then leave.”
“Sure, I know.”
Du Yunqing agreed verbally, but in his mind, he was already calculating what kind of local specialty he should buy for Chen Yongyi to take with him—and how he could find an opportunity to notify his superiors.
Seeing Du Yunqing’s expression, Chen Yongyi knew that his words had gone in one ear and out the other. He sighed inwardly, already expecting that he’d have to spend the rest of his time making polite conversation with people.
But then he noticed a portrait on the duty room’s desk, with several lines of text underneath it.
Curious, he reached out and picked it up.
There was more than one portrait.
Reading the text beneath them, Chen Yongyi let out a soft “Huh?”
There were six portraits in total, each depicting a different person. The drawing technique was quite distinctive. It was somewhat reminiscent of the classic Lei Feng portraits, but more realistic than those, looking almost exactly like a real person.
The text underneath each portrait stated the crime the person had committed. Five of the six were extremely detailed, listing the person’s name, age, and home address. But one only had an age and a nickname, clearly indicating that they didn’t know the person’s actual identity.
Now that was interesting.
Wanted posters featuring portraits weren’t unheard of. If the police knew who a criminal was, they could simply go to the person’s home, find a family photograph, and have an artist draw a wanted poster from it. That would make perfect sense.
But if they didn’t even know who the person was, where had they gotten a photograph to draw the portrait from?
Looking at the robbery charge listed underneath, Chen Yongyi could be fairly certain that the police in Changning City probably hadn’t found a photograph of this person.
In other words, the artist hadn’t drawn it from a photograph.
And if there was no photograph, the only other possibility was a verbal description.
A portrait drawn from someone’s verbal description?
Now that was interesting.
“Comrade Du.”
Chen Yongyi looked up and asked, “Where did you get these portraits?”
“They were distributed by the Changning Railway Bureau. They said these people are all criminals and asked us to keep an eye out for them.”
There was a curious note in Du Yunqing’s voice as well. “I don’t know where they found the artist, but these portraits really do look remarkably accurate.”
“I think so too.”
Chen Yongyi had a vague feeling that these might prove useful someday. He asked, “Do you have many copies of these portraits? I’d like to take one.”
“We have plenty. Go ahead and take some.”
Du Yunqing said, “They gave us twenty copies. Take as many as you want.”
“That’s good.”
Chen Yongyi nodded slightly. He looked through the six portraits once more, then folded them up and put them in his bag.
Du Yunqing found an excuse to step outside and soon brought over his superior. Chen Yongyi could only summon his energy and exchange some polite pleasantries. Fortunately, the other man was quite perceptive. Seeing how tired Chen Yongyi looked, he didn’t bother him for long. After exchanging contact information, he found an excuse to leave, though not before bringing over quite a few local specialties as a parting gift.
Chen Yongyi couldn’t refuse, so he had no choice but to carry the specialties onto the train.
The two of them had bought hard-sleeper tickets. The aisle between the bunks was quite crowded, and the lower bunks had also been occupied by passengers from the hard-seat section who didn’t have assigned seats.
Xu Zhenwei put down the suitcase and went over to reason with them. He soon managed to politely persuade one of them to leave.
Chen Yongyi sat down with the local specialties, placing them beside the carriage wall as he let out a breath.
Getting onto this train had really been quite an ordeal.
The three bunks opposite them—the upper, middle, and lower—were already occupied.
The passengers in the upper and middle bunks were both asleep. Chen Yongyi couldn’t see the person in the upper bunk clearly, though he could just make out that it was a man. The man in the middle bunk had his back turned, so his face was impossible to see.
The man in the lower bunk, however, had sat up and was cracking sunflower seeds, looking bored.
He was wearing a white shirt, had his hair neatly combed in a side part, and wore a pair of glasses. He looked rather like a government cadre.
Chen Yongyi glanced at him and was just about to look away when something suddenly struck him as odd.
Wait.
Didn’t this man look somewhat like one of the criminals he’d just seen in those portraits?
That criminal…
Was his name Yang Da?
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