Half an hour later, after the military doctor finished examining Kanda Tamayama, he said to Kitaoka Ryoko, who was standing next to him, "Mr. Kanda's cornea is congested, swollen and itchy, and his vision has deteriorated significantly. He needs plenty of rest and cannot overexert himself."

Upon hearing this, Kitaoka Ryoko asked, "What exactly caused this? How long will it take to recover?"

The military doctor looked at Kitaoka Ryoko, shook his head slightly, and said, "It's hard to say in this situation. Perhaps with more rest, she can recover."

When Kitaoka Ryoko saw the army doctor shake his head, she had a bad feeling. She turned to Kanda Tamami and bowed, saying, "Mr. Kanda, please don't work for the next few days and get some rest."

Kanda Tamazan's expression turned somewhat grim. He knew there was definitely something seriously wrong with his eyes, something that had never happened before. He felt frustrated but didn't want to say anything more. He waved his hand, signaling everyone to leave.

Kitaoka Ryoko and the others left. She asked the military doctor to come back to her office with her and pressed him again, "What exactly is wrong with Mr. Kanda's eyes? Please tell me in detail. I will take full responsibility for everything concerning him."

The military doctor nodded before truthfully explaining, "Mr. Kanda's eyesight has deteriorated drastically, and his optic nerves have also been damaged. Given his age, there is almost no chance of recovery; this is irreversible damage."

These words immediately shocked Kitaoka Ryoko. She hadn't expected the problem to be so serious and hurriedly asked again, "Why did this happen? Kanda Tamazan's eyesight was always very good in Japan. How could it suddenly be damaged like this after just arriving in Shanghai?"

Seeing how nervous Kitaoka Ryoko was, the military doctor hesitated for a moment before finally saying, "Please forgive my bluntness, but this should be considered intentional injury. Mr. Kanda not only suffered eye damage, but he also has symptoms such as headache, insomnia, and arrhythmia. My preliminary diagnosis is poisoning. As for what kind of poison it is, I cannot determine it at the moment. It will require investigation by professionals like you!"

Medicine was relatively underdeveloped at that time, and many doctors, unless they were specialists, were unaware of the symptoms of methanol poisoning. At the very least, this military doctor was not aware of them.

"Poisoned!" Kitaoka Ryoko's body went limp and she slumped into her seat. "Are you sure?"

How could such a thing happen? This is a heavily guarded printing base. All the personnel are my carefully selected trusted subordinates, and each one can withstand rigorous investigation. Moreover, the number of people who can contact Kanda Tamazan, including myself, is very small, and these few people are loyal and reliable confidants. How could this be?

"I'm sure!" The military doctor shook his head regretfully as he looked at Kitaoka Ryoko's absent-minded expression.

Kitaoka Ryoko recovered from her panic. She managed to calm herself down, waved for the medic to leave, and then picked up the phone to make a call, reporting the situation in detail to Sagawa Taro.

When Taro Sagawa heard the report, he was startled and rushed to the printing base without delay.

"Team Leader Kitaoka, how is Mr. Kanda doing now?" Sagawa Taro asked as soon as they met.

"Mr. Kanda is resting in his room. I haven't told him the real reason yet. I'll consult with you first and then see how to handle the situation."

"Has the military doctor confirmed it's poisoning?" Sagawa Taro asked again to confirm.

Kitaoka Ryoko nodded and replied, "It's been confirmed, but we don't know exactly what kind of poison it is!"

Sagawa Taro paced back and forth in the room a few times before speaking, “Your response was excellent. We cannot let Mr. Kanda know that he was poisoned. Go and get the military doctor to agree on the story. Say that he is old and frail, and that his eyesight has declined due to the change in environment after coming to China.”

Kitaoka Ryoko looked at Sagawa Taro with a hesitant expression.

Sagawa Taro continued, “Mr. Kanda is a national treasure-level master sculptor in the country. He has made many friends in the upper echelons of the government. Our superior in the Special Higher Police, Vice Minister of Home Affairs Takeda Hitoshi, is a longtime friend of his. This time, we asked Mr. Kanda to make the engraving. It was Vice Minister Takeda who invited him. If Vice Minister Takeda finds out that it was because of our inadequate protection that Mr. Kanda was poisoned, causing his eyesight to deteriorate permanently and making him unable to pick up a carving knife again, the consequences are not something that people like you and me can bear. Even your teacher, Section Chief Tsuchimoto, would be in the same boat.”

In the eyes of those powerful and wealthy, we are nothing but ants. With just a single word, they can plunge us into the abyss. Therefore, we absolutely cannot shoulder this responsibility. Do you understand what I mean?

“Yes, I understand!” Kitaoka Ryoko quickly nodded in agreement.

Japanese society was strictly hierarchical, with almost all central government power in the hands of high-ranking nobles, which was far beyond the reach of commoner officers. This situation would have been even more severe if it weren't for the emergence of many outstanding talents from commoner backgrounds in the military in modern times.

"Should this matter be pursued further?" Kitaoka Ryoko asked softly.

"Of course we have to investigate. If you get slapped, you have to find out who did it, right?" Sagawa Taro said angrily.

"But the investigation must be conducted secretly, and we must not make a big fuss about it. If we don't get to the bottom of this, this kind of thing will continue to happen."

"Yes, I'll investigate immediately and find the culprit." Kitaoka Ryoko nodded in acceptance.

Sagawa Taro thought for a moment and then asked, "Since it's poisoning, then there must be a problem with the food. Was Mr. Kanda's food prepared in the military mess hall?"

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