Eyes that are the same as those of evil

Chapter 114 The Army of Justice 16
The outside helper was from the customs anti-smuggling department, who had been in charge of many jade smuggling cases. He knew that the jade was very valuable just by looking at it.

The phoenix-patterned "Nothing Happens" plaque was picked up and highlighted in two sentences.

"It really is top-quality mutton fat jade. In 2008, a mutton fat jade Zigan plaque was auctioned for 1.06 million yuan."

"Nothing to worry about" is a type of Zi Gang brand.

Now everyone looked at those pieces of jade in a completely different way.

However, after looking at the safety buckle, the other party couldn't quite tell whether it was also made of mutton fat jade.

He looked at it over and over and said, "Most jade smuggling involves raw jade stones, and there aren't many finished products. However, finished jade products are very common in cases of counterfeiting and fraud, especially small items like safety buckles."

"Most of the mutton fat jade safety buckles on the market now are fake. They are made of water stone or 'Aliao', which are not expensive. Some even use emulsified glass to imitate them. The cost of one is less than one yuan, but they are sold for at least forty or fifty yuan, or even hundreds or thousands of yuan. It is a very profitable business."

In the blink of an eye, Zheng Yan thought of a related question: "Can ordinary plastic factories make this emulsified glass?"

"I really don't know that, but even if you can't do it in your own factory, it's not difficult for someone who runs a plastics factory to know a few people in glass factories. Why not just cooperate?"

Now everyone is wondering why Qu He tried to win over her current husband, Lü Rongzhi.

They probably want to start an illegal business selling fake jade.

“But there’s a problem,” Zheng Yan tapped the table, “where did these jade pieces come from? It couldn’t possibly be bait that Qu Hejin bought at a high price to lure Lu Rongzhi into his scheme, could it?”

Putting aside the price, the existing mutton fat jade cannot be bought simply by having money.

Tan Jia recalled the news Lin Zhiyue reported and said, "There must be someone with an even higher status behind them. Without anyone to guide them, how could Qu He and Jin Xiangyuan, who were doing so well in their steamed bun business, suddenly think of setting up a honey trap and using Yang Shun to sell fake medicine?"

After hearing the details of the case, the anti-smuggling officers also began to analyze it.

“Indeed, such cases are usually backed by a gang, with each member having a different role. Jin Xiangyuan and Qu He are probably the thugs on the surface.”

“There’s another question,” Tan Jia added. “Most of these jade pieces are children’s ornaments: peace pendants, safety buckles, longevity locks. Judging from this phoenix-patterned peace pendant, it’s most likely for girls. Regardless of where the jade came from, why do they all happen to be used for the same purpose?”

"Did Qu He and the others only choose children's items because they only had one son suitable for opera? That means they must have other jade items in their home. If these are all they have, it means the jade comes from a consistent source."

The anti-smuggling officers immediately thought of a possibility: "Ghost goods. Burial goods."

The others stared wide-eyed: "No way, this gang also does tomb raiding? That's an incredibly wide range of activities."

The more they analyzed it, the more complicated it became, even involving tomb raiding.

Zheng Yan felt a headache coming on and sent someone to check if Qu He and Jin Xiangyuan had any other jade artifacts.

"While you're at it, search all these people's homes and see if there's anything else that shouldn't be there, besides the jade."

"Also, thoroughly investigate their financial records!"

Tan Jia kneaded the dough, calming his mind to think. The more he investigated, the more mysteries emerged. Among the most inexplicable questions was why Jin Xiangyuan and Qu He had orchestrated this theft involving swapping genuine goods for counterfeit ones.

This behavior doesn't make sense.

Furthermore, if they had superiors, how were they targeted and recruited? What talent do two people selling steamed buns have for engaging in illegal activities?

After they joined the gang, why did they first think of running a fake drug business instead of other businesses?
As she thought about it, she made a long white towel for the clay figurine Jin Xiangyuan and draped it around his neck.

I've got the feel for it. When the time comes, I'll roll out a piece of clothing, sculpt it, and carefully color it, and it will be perfect.

She was kneading the clay with ease, lost in thought and silent, but her appearance and movements were so conspicuous that the anti-smuggling team member stared at her for a moment, then again, his eyes questioning Zheng Yan.

Zheng Yan couldn't understand what he was trying to ask, but he just gave him a random look in return. Anyway, all he had to do was raise his eyebrows, and whatever the other person understood was none of his business.

Not long after, the people who went to search for the items returned and said that they found no other jade artifacts or anything else that shouldn't be there in Qu He and Jin Xiangyuan's homes.

Xiao Chen came running back, sweating profusely, his eyes shining, and said, "I checked Yang Shun's pharmacy, and the purchase records didn't seem too unusual. The expensive medicines he bought definitely weren't from legitimate channels. Upon further investigation, I found that he buys a lot of packaging materials every now and then, and there are also a few strange expenses around the same time."

Zheng Yan understood: "Selling counterfeit drugs. Yang Shun owns a pharmacy, so he should have considered the properties of the medicine. Counterfeit drugs are mostly made by replacing real medicine with vitamins or other similar drugs that are harmless. I encountered a case like this a few years ago, and the amount involved was as high as several million."

"It's not just about selling fake medicine!"

Xiao Chen presented the evidence: "We previously suspected that Qu He and Jin Xiangyuan had targeted Yang Shun and then began to coerce and entice him to do illegal business together, right? But I checked his financial transactions, apart from those from his legitimate pharmacy business, and found that many of his other income transactions were for 78 yuan, with a high repetition rate. I suspect that this is the money from selling counterfeit drugs. And the first 78 yuan transaction was made more than three years ago."

Tan Jia reacted the fastest: "Does that mean Yang Shun was originally selling fake medicine, and then Jin Xiangyuan and Qu He discovered it, so they set a trap to get a share of the profits from him?"

Xiao Chen nodded vigorously.

Tan Jia's heart suddenly started racing, as if the astonishing truth was about to be revealed, and all she needed to do was dig one more shovelful.

But holding the hoe, she didn't know which patch of soil to dig in, so she just dug here and there.

“Zhao Qingxiang is the same,” she murmured. “He was a habitual thief, which is why Jin Xiangyuan and Qu He targeted him, turning him into Qu He’s lover and using him as a henchman in this theft case. Could Lü Rongzhi have also been doing illegal things all along, which is why Qu He targeted him and insisted on marrying him to make things easier?”

Zheng Yan thought it made sense and then asked someone to investigate Lü Rongzhi.

The financial statements of several people were laid out in front of them, and everyone analyzed them together.

Xiao Chen: "Illegal businesses make money so fast. Even Lu Rongzhi, the owner of a plastic factory, isn't as rich as these people, especially Qu He. They don't do business on the surface, but the amount of money coming in and out is huge. That is to say, no one investigates them. As long as someone investigates, their business won't last this long."

“Wait a minute,” the foreign aid worker from the anti-smuggling department said with a serious expression, “there are irregularities in the inflow and outflow of funds in Quhe.”

Zheng Yan squinted and stared intently: "What's wrong?"

"Look at these transactions: scattered inflows followed by concentrated outflows, which matches the characteristics of underground banking instruments... They're laundering money!"

(End of this chapter)