Ten kitchen staff and Guihua, who was in charge of procurement, were also taken away with Jing Yongli.
Factory Director Jiang Bin was also supposed to be detained, but Mayor Peng considered that someone needed to be in charge of the aftermath at the factory. Moreover, Jiang Bin was mainly responsible for production and sales, and he hadn't been much involved in logistics and supplies. Thus, he was told to stop work and await investigation and questioning from the health and police departments.
The health bureau dispatched an investigation team to seal and sample all ingredients from the canteen, including vegetables, rice, and the lunch dishes, to be sent for testing.
A total of 256 people experienced different reactions in this mass food poisoning incident, with women being the majority.
Thirty-six of the severely ill patients were sent to the District People's Hospital for treatment. The other 220 people only had mild vomiting and nausea. After being induced to vomit and given IV drips at the health center, they had basically recovered by four or five in the afternoon and were able to go home normally.
The 36 severely ill patients also showed improvement after their stomachs were pumped at the People's Hospital and were expected to recover after a few days of hospitalization.
The health department announced the investigation results on the local television news that evening, stating that the mass food poisoning incident at Lijian Panel Factory was caused by excessive pesticides in the luffa soup, and no fatalities occurred.
The poisoning incident did not rule out human factors, and the police department was actively investigating. The investigation results would also be announced to the public.
Simultaneously, Lijian Panel Factory was ordered to suspend operations for rectification. After the investigation results were released, the enterprise and its responsible persons would be punished. If intentional poisoning was involved, the criminal responsibility of the culprits would be pursued according to law, and no leniency would be shown.
This incident attracted widespread public attention, and provincial and municipal media also reported on it, placing Lijian Panel Factory in the spotlight.
However, the employees and their families at Lijian Panel Factory appeared calm. Not a single person went to the factory to cause trouble because the factory had good performance, good benefits, and the highest salary levels in Xinqiao, and was considered a high-paying enterprise in the entire Xinhe District.
They cherished their jobs and believed that the matter would pass quickly, and they could return to work.
Feng Wu called Yang Jian after dinner to report.
Upon hearing that over two hundred people had suffered food poisoning, Yang Jian was terrified. He only breathed a sigh of relief when he learned that no one had died.
"Brother Jian, Yongli has been arrested, and the factory has also stopped production. Director Jiang asked me to ask you how to proceed. Should we find someone to help get Yongli and the others out sooner and resume production as soon as possible, otherwise the losses will be too great."
"Xiao Wu, tell Director Jiang not to worry, and don't look for anyone. The impact of this matter is too great, and it's useless to look for anyone now. The factory cannot resume production in a short time.
When the public opinion subsides, the police will also have investigation results. Then, ask Director Jiang to approach Peng Zhaoyang to request resumption of work. Our factory is a major taxpayer, and the town will not ignore it.
Tell Director Jiang to issue a notice that during the suspension period, all workers' wages will be paid as usual. Workers with mild poisoning will receive a subsidy of 500 yuan each, and severely ill workers will receive 2,000 yuan each. All hospitalization expenses will be borne by the factory."
Yang Jian knew that the most important thing to do at this moment was to stabilize people's minds. As long as the workers did not cause trouble, the factory would resume work soon. The loss from the suspension was merely a few days' earnings from the casino for him, and it would not cripple him.
"Okay, Brother Jian, I'll tell Director Jiang later."
"Xiao Wu, this matter is a bit strange. Didn't everyone eat lunch in the canteen? Why were only over two hundred people poisoned?"
"Brother Jian, I've discussed this with Director Jiang. The poisoned employees all drank the luffa and egg soup at noon, and most of them were female employees. The male employees were not poisoned because it was hot weather, and they drank beer and beverages instead of the soup.
This situation was also confirmed by Liu Yong and his wife. Any employee who bought beer or beverages from their small shop did not get poisoned."
To take care of his relatives, Jing Yongli had Liu Yong's wife open a small shop in the factory. Yang Jian was aware of this.
"Xiao Wu, do you think this could be the work of Shen Hua and his gang?"
As soon as something happened, Yang Jian's first thought was that Hong Xing's gang was retaliating.
"I have this suspicion too, because Dalin's uncle directly refused Shen Hua's request to buy land and even smashed his window at night. And Guihua's aunt is responsible for the canteen procurement. With such a major incident, Guihua's aunt will definitely bear the main responsibility and might even go to jail."
"These scumbags, they would do anything unethical. Does he think we will yield to this? Xiao Wu, tell Director Jiang and Manager Han that no matter what happens, we will never bow to evil forces. We will not compensate a single cent for the sand quarry."
"But if we continue like this, we will be very passive. Why don't I find someone to take care of Shen Hua."
Feng Wu was not like Jing Yongli. His way of solving problems was to use violence to counter violence. He hadn't made a name for himself before because he lacked financial strength. If he got into trouble fighting, his family had no money to compensate. Now, with his wealthy cousin Yang Jian as his backing, he feared no force.
"Shen Hua is just a pawn; getting rid of him won't solve the problem. To catch a snake, you must strike its head. The strategist of their group is Brother Mao, and the leader is Hong Xing. Brother Mao is an old fox, and I can't do anything about him for now.
But Hong Xing often comes to Nanhai. I am planning to deal with him. If he is eliminated, their team will fall apart, and they will no longer be a threat to us."
"Alright, I hope you can speed things up. These people won't give up until they achieve their goals. The sand quarry is always a hidden danger for us, and they won't withdraw easily."
"It's okay, their sand quarry is not large and will not affect the river construction for the time being. Hong Xing is not an ordinary person. Not only does he have strong official backing, but he also has a vast influence in Nanhai's underworld. Dealing with him is not easy."
Yang Jian followed Bai Zheng's advice and no longer planned to act personally. He wanted to eliminate Hong Xing without implicating himself or making Hong Xing's family suspect him.
Xinhe Detention Center.
Jing Yongli was detained for seven days. During these seven days, he was interrogated daily by both the police department and the health department.
But he knew nothing. Before the incident, he hadn't been to the factory for a week; he had been in the hospital taking care of his father.
On the eighth day, a patrol officer interrogated him alone again. This was clearly against regulations, as interrogations must involve two police officers present simultaneously, but he had no way to protest.
"Director Jing, I'm not here to interrogate you today. I want to chat with you about something else."
"Section Chief Yu, what do you want to chat about?"
This patrol officer was an acquaintance, Jing Yongli recognized him. He was Xu Zheng's uncle, Yu Xiangdong, who used to be the deputy director of the Xinqiao Town Police Station and was now the section chief of the Legal Affairs Section of the District Police Bureau.
"Director Jing, we are acquaintances, so I won't beat around the bush. This food poisoning incident can be big or small. If you cooperate actively, I can help you see the sun outside tomorrow. Otherwise, the consequences will be very serious."
Yu Xiangdong was an old hand in the police force and knew how to break through a person's psychological defenses.
"How do you want me to cooperate?"
"Answer a few questions honestly."
"Ask away."
"First question, have you been in contact with Yang Jian all along? Where is he now?"