Simulation Game: Crisis Management

Chapter 564 - 255: Threats (Part 2)

But Gu Ji discovered an anonymous user account specifically criticizing Lin Renna, likely a media relations troll from Shansang.

However, Lin Renna’s professional level is quite commendable.

The three essentials of journalism: truthfulness, timeliness, novelty.

The article was written with tense seriousness, reasoned and compelling, and she published it at dawn to quickly bring out those firsthand witnesses in the emergency room yesterday.

At least, the issue of the "MERS virus" has begun to ferment.

Causing a public uproar is just a matter of time.

Gu Ji called CDC researcher Jiang Chengxun again, but the phone was still off.

Just then, Jang Siyun suddenly sent a message, saying that the file address for "Jiang Chengxun" had been found, along with a photo of a document.

Gu Ji didn’t have time to wash up, hastily grabbing a briefcase and heading to the underground parking lot.

Jiang Chengxun’s home is located south of Seoul, near Pingze City.

Arriving at the address, it was a mid-level apartment on the outskirts.

He parked the car downstairs, showed his credentials to the property, and only then did the security personnel take him to the central position on the fifth floor by elevator.

Gu Ji knocked on the security door, revealing his identity.

"Jiang Chengxun, this is Jin Zhijiu, please open the door, Jiang Chengxun..."

"Stop knocking, Chengxun isn’t home."

Just as he shouted a couple of times, the door next door suddenly opened. An elderly lady with silver hair looked curiously at Gu Ji dressed in a suit but wearing a mask and gloves. "And you are..."

"I am a prosecutor from the Central District Prosecution, having some important matters to discuss with Jiang Chengxun. His colleagues mentioned he took leave and went home. Are you saying he didn’t return last night?"

Seeing she was elderly, Gu Ji took a few steps back on purpose, steeling himself against transmitting the virus.

"That should be the case."

The elderly lady seemed quite familiar with Jiang Chengxun, speaking slowly: "I’m a light sleeper, you see. This apartment’s walls aren’t very soundproof. Every time Chengxun returns, I can hear him. I’m sure he didn’t come back last night. Didn’t you call him?"

"His phone’s off."

"Oh, there might be some urgent matter back home. His mother hasn’t been in good health, typically falling ill once every year."

"Back home?"

Gu Ji took out his phone, locating Jiang Chengxun’s hometown address in the file, situated in a remote area of Jizhang County, Busan City.

Attempting to dial the listed landline, surprisingly, it was answered.

From the other end came a voice saying "Annyeonghaseyo," precisely Jiang Chengxun’s voice.

"Jiang Chengxun, it’s Jin Zh..."

"Beep beep beep!"

Before Gu Ji could finish, the call was abruptly disconnected. Subsequent attempts to call back resulted in an "unreachable" message, possibly due to the line being unplugged.

Such bizarre behavior by Jiang Chengxun.

There is only one possibility.

He is being threatened!

So Gu Ji approached Jang Siyun again, asking him to get in touch with the Jizhang County Police Department in Busan City to investigate Jiang Chengxun’s hometown.

Upon completion, he drove off towards the Seoul Central Disease Control Center.

On the way, he realized there was a black Hyundai trailing him on the right. If memory serves, he noticed this car as he departed from the underground parking lot in the morning, even the license plate was identical.

Someone was tailing him!

It seemed not just Jiang Chengxun, even he was becoming a target now.

But who was Gu Ji?

A seasoned expert in counter-surveillance, having honed "disguise and trailing" to perfection through bomb checkpoints and overseas operations in Japan.

He led the trailing car into the city center, specifically driving to areas with frequent traffic lights, using the "accordion effect" by repeatedly stopping and starting to lose the tail.

Arriving at the CDC parking lot.

Gu Ji directly showed his credentials and located the head of the testing center.

"What’s the result of the testing sent in yesterday?"

"The results are out; it’s bacterial pneumonia."

The head was a middle-aged man with black-frame glasses, who called up a diagnosis document on the computer, showing the virus’s specific IGM antibodies increased fourfold.

But Gu Ji spotted something amiss.

"Weren’t there four samples total, two per person, two blood samples, and two lower respiratory extracts? There’s only one serum report here!"

"Four samples? Well, I’m not aware of that, we only received one sample for testing."

"One? What about the person responsible for bringing the samples back yesterday?"

"All these samples were handled by Jiang Chengxun. He took leave and went home last night."

The head again shifted the responsibility onto Jiang Chengxun.

Witnessing this, Gu Ji felt an urge to land a punch on the other’s face. Such evident concealment while the central CDC ignored it, weren’t they truly afraid of virus spread?

"Can I go fetch the samples from the hospital now?"

"Seoul Shansang Hospital has its own testing center, under non-special circumstances, we usually don’t get involved."

The head spread his hands, adopting a "not my problem" attitude.

This path was blocked.

Gu Ji swiftly made a judgment, knowing that the two patients must have already been isolated at Shansang Hospital, making it impossible to retrieve samples.

Now, only three paths remained.

One was to find Jiang Chengxun, another was to leverage Lin Renna to stir up a media campaign online, and another was...

Emergency Respiratory Department Chief: Han Zaiyuan!

Indeed.

Although Han Zaiyuan’s attitude was somewhat unfriendly back then, seeing his efforts in saving lives made it apparent he was a genuinely caring doctor.

If he could get the MERS virus identification report or patient samples from Han Zaiyuan, there would still be hope for a turnaround.

So, he resolutely left the disease control center.

Seoul Shansang Hospital Emergency Department.

On a weekend morning, the flow of people in and out of the parking lot was as endless as ever, possibly even more than yesterday.

"Cough cough cough..."

"Ouch! It hurts so much!"

"Doctor! Doctor! Please, save me no matter what..."

In the emergency room lobby, countless patients were crowding, one group sitting on chairs waiting for their numbers, another surrounded the triage desk asking the nurse which department they should visit, and another clogged the registration window, waving Korean bills and credit cards.

Gu Ji dared not imagine.

How many would spread the virus outside if an infection outbreak occurred?

He moved through the corridor to the respiratory department.

Even the bench in front of the department’s doors was packed with people, and through the door crack, he could hear the groans of patients inside, sounding like an examination was underway.

He opened the door.

The nurse inside shouted, "Close the door quickly! What are you doing... Jin, Mr. Jin?"

No way, the female nurse was the same Hee-jung who had helped the white-haired elder’s family yesterday.

At first, she didn’t recognize him, not until spotting his green N95 mask and those sharp eyes.

Upon hearing "prosecutor," Han Zaiyuan, who was diagnosing a patient, turned his head in surprise. "Mr. Jin, what brings you here?"

"I have something important to discuss with you, concerning Seoul citizens..."

"Hee-jung, please take the patient for an X-ray."

"Oh, okay."

Before Gu Ji could finish, Han Zaiyuan sensed something, urgently interrupting him and clearing the room.

Once everyone left.

He shut the door, staring sternly into Gu Ji’s eyes.

"Stop making baseless claims and leave the emergency room immediately. The hospital’s top management is already very dissatisfied with you!"

"Dissatisfied about what? For my speaking the truth?"

Squinting, Gu Ji noted the anxious and panic-stricken look in Han Zaiyuan’s eyes, realizing the MERS infection in patients must have been confirmed.

"What truth?"

Han Zaiyuan replied with a question, "The CDC sent a message this morning, confirming through serology that it’s only bacterial pneumonia for the patients."

"Oh? Let’s not even mention the missing sample issue, would you really devote such serious attention to a common bacterial pneumonia? From the moment I entered, everyone here was masked and gloved. Ordinary pneumonia doesn’t seem to have such a high transmission risk, does it?"