Chapter Two: Intelligence Is Not an Answer

【Rejection value: D. Return: emergency access to an Anhe Pharma supplier contact. Valid for twenty-four hours.】 A virtual card appeared: Shao Wenqing, Vice President of Quality, followed by a private number and one note—accepts reproducible test results only. Manager Luo turned away. Jiming stopped him. “I'm not asking you to trust us. Lend me one active probe and ten minutes. We test it in front of you. If I fail, I pay the testing cost and promise in writing never to contact Anhe again.” Luo hesitated. He had rejected cooperation, not verification. Five minutes later, a spare probe came through the gate. Using a thermos, an ice pack, and an exhausted battery, Cheng Ye reproduced the fault.