Liu Zhiqiang squinted and lowered his voice even further.
"Director Wang, let's not beat around the bush. Next week is the sports meet, and I need you to add a little something extra to the spinach for lunch."
Wang Daikui's face turned deathly pale instantly, and his obese body trembled slightly.
"You...you mean..."
"Just as you think."
Liu Zhiqiang interrupted him.
"But don't worry, it's not something that will kill anyone, it'll just make the kids vomit and have diarrhea."
Large beads of sweat appeared on Wang Daikui's forehead, and he subconsciously took a step back.
"Principal Liu, this...this is illegal! What if something happens..."
"What could possibly happen?"
Liu Zhiqiang sneered.
"If the dosage is controlled properly, at most it will just be food poisoning symptoms. Besides, who would suspect you? The ingredients were supplied by the Su family; the responsibility lies entirely with them."
Seeing that Wang Daikui was still hesitating, Liu Zhiqiang took out another piece of paper from his inner pocket.
"I heard your son is graduating from university this year and wants to work for the Education Bureau?"
Wang Daikui stared intently at the paper, his breathing becoming rapid.
That was the employment notice from the Education Bureau, already stamped with the official seal, only needing to be filled in with the name.
"As long as this matter is accomplished."
Liu Zhiqiang waved the paper.
"Your son can report to the Education Bureau tomorrow. He'll have the salary and benefits of a deputy section chief. How about that?"
Wang Daikui's hands began to tremble involuntarily.
His son is his pride and the hope of the whole family.
He was willing to do anything for his son's future.
But...
"Principal Liu, I...can I know why?"
Wang Daikui mustered his courage and asked.
Liu Zhiqiang's face instantly darkened.
Don't ask questions you shouldn't ask!
He suddenly grabbed Wang Daikui by the collar.
"You just need to do as I say. If it goes well, your son will have a bright future. If it goes wrong..."
He let go and patted Wang Daikui's face.
"Your entire family will never be able to survive in Beijing."
Wang Daikui's legs went weak, and he almost knelt down.
He picked up the envelope with trembling hands, feeling as if it weighed a ton.
"remember."
Liu Zhiqiang gave his final instructions.
"Next Wednesday at noon, all teachers and students will have to eat that spinach. The symptoms will have to be displayed in front of reporters. And..."
He leaned close to Wang Daikui's ear.
"Sneak the remaining 'material' into Su Jianguo's truck."
After Liu Zhiqiang left, Wang Daikui slumped onto the rice bag.
"What kind of karma have I created..."
Wang Daikui covered his face and began to cry silently.
It was late at night.
Wang Daikui returned home and sat alone on a stone bench in his courtyard.
In front of him was the small glass bottle that Liu Zhiqiang had given him.
"Dad, why aren't you asleep yet?"
Wang Lei, the son, came out rubbing his sleepy eyes, still wearing a T-shirt with the university logo on it.
Wang Daikui hurriedly covered the glass bottle with newspaper.
"Lei Zi, Dad's thinking about something. You should go to sleep first."
Wang Lei did not leave, but sat down next to his father.
"Dad, is something wrong? You've seemed very uneasy."
Seeing the concern in his son's eyes, Wang Daikui could no longer hold back.
He told his son everything, trembling, including Liu Zhiqiang's threats and the terrible plan.
"That beast!"
After hearing this, Wang Lei slammed his fist on the stone table.
"Dad, let's call the police!"
"no!"
Wang Daikui grabbed his son's hand in terror.
"Liu Zhiqiang has powerful backers; we can't fight them. Besides..."
He stared at the job offer letter in anguish.
"Your future..."
"future?"
Wang Lei sneered.
"I'd rather not have a job obtained through such dirty means!"
The father and son fell silent.
A night breeze blew by, bringing a touch of coolness.
Suddenly, Wang Lei's eyes lit up.
"Dad, I have an idea. I have a classmate in medical school; we could switch this medication for a milder laxative..."
Wang Daikui suddenly looked up.
"you mean..."
"We can replace the poison with a laxative."
Wang Lei lowered his voice.
"This way, the children won't be harmed, and Liu Zhiqiang's plan will appear to be successful."
Wang Daikui pondered for a long time before finally nodding.
The next morning, Wang Lei went to see his medical school classmate, while Wang Daikui pretended nothing had happened and went to work.
The night before the sports meet, Wang Daikui secretly took the changed "medicinal powder" home.
He carefully poured the original poison into the toilet and flushed it away, then poured in a similar-looking laxative.
"If the dosage is controlled properly, at most it will cause diarrhea, there will be no danger."
...
Time flew by and the day of the sports meet arrived.
At five o'clock in the morning, just as dawn was breaking, Su Jianguo was already standing at the warehouse entrance of the Sujiatun vegetable base.
The morning dew dampened his trouser legs, but he didn't care, his eyes fixed on the workers loading baskets of freshly picked vegetables from the greenhouse onto the truck.
"This batch of spinach was picked at 3 a.m., it's absolutely fresh."
Su Jianjun walked over with a list and handed it to his older brother.
"As per your request, each tree underwent three rounds of washing and pesticide residue testing."
Su Jianguo took the list, examined it carefully, and nodded.
"You can't be careless when it comes to food for children."
He walked over to the truck and picked up a spinach.
The emerald green leaves still held water droplets, the stems were plump and straight, and they exuded a fresh fragrance.
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