Chapter 246: The toxin is 1200 times that of cyanide
"Lili, come and have some more food."
The chef was a very kind fat uncle, and Xia Lili had become familiar with him during the training period.
"Yes, I'm starving after standing guard today." Xia Lili pointed at the menu: "I want a seafood platter! Pan-fried cod! Scallops with mango salsa!"
Xia Lili listed all the dishes in one breath and looked at the head chef expectantly.
The chef smiled and said, "Okay, wait a minute, I'll ask the chef to make it."
"Thank you, uncle!" Xia Lili smiled gratefully at the head chef. When she met the head chef's smiling eyes again, she suddenly felt dazed.
The smile on Xia Lili's face suddenly disappeared. She had met a lot of unlucky people today!
The first scene is set in the cruise ship's kitchen.
The kitchen clock showed 4:30 in the morning, and the main kitchen was brightly lit.
The stainless steel cooking table reflected the cold light, and the chef, wearing rubber gloves, was deftly handling the wriggling octopus tentacles.
The kitchen helpers around were busy preparing breakfast ingredients, and white mist was rising from the steamer.
There is nothing unusual in the scene here. It is just the kitchen staff getting up early and busy preparing breakfast.
The hallucination scene switches to Act 2.
In the staff lounge, the head chef and a dozen employees were chatting while eating their work lunch.
Suddenly, someone started slurring their words and someone dropped their chopsticks.
A waiter stumbled in, his face pale. "Something's happened! Several guests at the Deck Restaurant are showing symptoms of food poisoning!"
——"What's going on?"
The chef stood up suddenly, but suddenly covered his throat.
Amidst the horrified gazes of the crowd, he fell straight down like a piece of wood.
The sounds of retching were heard one after another around, and someone slid off the seat twitching, his face turning pale and blue.
But at this moment, the medical team on the cruise ship was overwhelmed.
The passengers who first showed symptoms of poisoning are receiving emergency treatment in the VIP medical cabin, and one after another, people are suffering from poisoning reactions.
The medical resources of the entire ship were instantly overwhelmed, emergency medicines were consumed at a speed visible to the naked eye, and there were simply not enough medical staff.
Even more tricky is the route location.
The cruise's destination is Emerald Bay, an island developed by the Pei family.
Now, the luxury cruise ship is sailing on the high seas about 270 nautical miles from Emerald Bay, at the most awkward midpoint of its voyage.
The nearest modern medical port is Xingzhou City, but even at full speed it takes 18 hours to reach. The scattered fishing villages and small islands around it are simply unable to cope with such a large-scale poisoning incident.
Pei Group urgently launched the highest level emergency plan.
Seven medical helicopters are taking off simultaneously from Xingzhou, Yangcheng and surrounding military bases, but it will take nearly two hours for the nearest rescue force to arrive.
On the deck, staff were clearing three helicopter landing areas, while new patients were constantly being carried out of the guest rooms on stretchers.
The scene in the hallucination was anxious and terrible. It took a long time before the chef was carried onto the helicopter on a stretcher.
The hallucination scene switched again, focusing on a clean white ward.
The chef lay weakly on the hospital bed, with an oxygen tube in his nose and an electrocardiogram monitor connected to his chest.
The doctor stood by the bed, holding the medical record, his finger tapping the shadowed area on the CT scan. "Although the timely rescue saved his life, the neurotoxin has already caused irreversible damage to multiple organs."
He sighed and continued, "My liver and kidney function is only 40% of a normal person's. I'll need dialysis three times a week. The most serious damage is to my nervous system, which will cause persistent tremors in my hands. I'm afraid..."
The doctor paused, "I'm afraid I'll never be able to hold a kitchen knife again."
The chef lying on the hospital bed stared at the ceiling with empty eyes. A tear rolled down the corner of his eye and soaked the pillow.
On the LCD TV in the ward, the news anchor reported the latest news with a serious expression:
"Our news: A major safety incident occurred at the fashion gala held yesterday on the Pei Group's 'Brilliant' cruise ship."
"According to preliminary investigations, the seafood used in the banquet was contaminated with blue-ringed octopus toxin."
"So far, 54 people have been poisoned and sent to the hospital, three of whom are still in a coma, and one elderly patient has unfortunately passed away due to respiratory muscle paralysis."
The camera switches to real-time footage from the stock exchange, showing a cliff-like drop in the stock price curve of Pei Group.
The anchor continued, "This incident has triggered a chain reaction, not only causing Pei Group's stock price to plummet 12% in a single day, but also facing multiple class-action lawsuits. The food safety department has established a special investigation team..."
The monitor next to the bed made a regular "beeping" sound, which contrasted sharply with the noisy news reports on TV.
The sunlight outside the window was still bright, but it couldn't illuminate the heavy air in the ward.
The hallucination ended here, and Xia Lili's vision returned to clarity.
The chef's voice came to my ears:
"Lili? Are these the things you want to eat?"
"What sauce would you like with the seafood platter?"
Seeing that Xia Lili didn't respond for a long time, the head chef waved his hand in front of her.
Xia Lili suddenly became serious. "No, I won't eat it for now!"
After that, she shouted to the kitchen through the window: "Everyone in the kitchen, stop what you are doing."
When everyone heard Xia Lili's serious words, they all stopped what they were doing and looked at her in confusion.
Xia Lili called Pei Qinyue and said, "Pei Qinyue, have someone send equipment capable of detecting tetrodotoxin to the kitchen immediately!"
After that, she took out the intercom and said, "The security team will take control of the kitchen first and prohibit anyone from entering or leaving."
"All kitchen staff please cooperate with our investigation."
It is not known whether the blue-ringed octopus was accidentally mixed into the food and contaminated the seafood.
Or did someone deliberately put blue-ringed octopus into the seafood ingredients to ruin the cruise trip?
The security team arrived at the scene quickly and surrounded the kitchen tightly.
Xia Lili picked up the intercom and said, "Everyone, please be careful! The food section may have been contaminated with blue-ringed octopus toxins. Everyone, please do not touch the food in the kitchen."
The blue-ringed octopus is one of the most venomous marine creatures and, like pufferfish, secretes tetrodotoxin.
The toxin of a single blue-ringed octopus can kill 26 adults within minutes, and there is currently no effective antidote.
If a blue-ringed octopus appears in the kitchen food warehouse, the entire food warehouse may be doomed.
At Mrs. Bai's birthday party, the murderer poisoned Pei Qinyue by hiding cyanide in the crack of a fork.
The tetrodotoxin in this blue-ringed octopus is 1,200 times that of cyanide!
Xia Lili's heart was beating very fast at this moment.
The deputy director of security was a burly middle-aged man. He respectfully asked Xia Lili, "Director Xia, the kitchen and food storage areas have been completely sealed off. What should we do next?"
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