The crackdown on organized crime began with the arrest of the mother-in-law.

Chapter 832 Discovery of Toxins, Report to the Municipal Party Committee

Meanwhile, through analysis of Zhao Qiang and Sun Ming's communication records, technicians discovered that the two had several heated conversations with Li Yang before the incident, with the conversations lasting for a considerable period of time. Furthermore, the day before the explosion, Zhao Qiang sent Li Yang a strongly worded text message that read, "Don't go too far, I won't let this go."

All clues pointed to factory manager Li Yang as the suspect. However, when the police prepared to question Li Yang, they discovered that he was not at the factory when the explosion occurred. According to Li Yang's secretary, on the day of the explosion, Li Yang had traveled to a neighboring city to attend a chemical industry seminar. The itinerary was pre-arranged, and there were relevant meeting attendance records and accommodation vouchers.

"Did he really attend the seminar?" Li Ming frowned, his eyes revealing suspicion. He immediately arranged for police officers to go to the neighboring city to verify Li Yang's whereabouts, and at the same time, to investigate the organizers and participants of the seminar, inquiring about Li Yang's performance and details of his whereabouts during the conference.

In a neighboring city, officers located the person in charge of the seminar's organizer. The person in charge recalled, "Director Li did attend the meeting, but he seemed preoccupied and didn't speak as enthusiastically as usual. During the break, he took several phone calls, and each time he finished, he looked unwell. He also left a day early."

Although Li Yang had an alibi, his unusual behavior during the meeting further convinced the police that he was involved in the case. After learning of the investigation results, Qin Chuan instructed Li Ming to continue investigating Li Yang's clues, starting with his financial situation, recent fund flows, and interactions with other suspicious individuals.

Li Ming's investigation team plunged into a deep dive into Li Yang's interpersonal relationships, interviewing his relatives, friends, business partners, and senior personnel within the factory. During a conversation with a longtime friend of Li Yang, the friend seemed hesitant and reluctant to speak. Li Ming astutely noticed this detail and patiently guided the conversation. Finally, the friend sighed and said, "Old Li is ruthless in business; he'll do anything for profit. Recently, he and Zhao Qiang had a major conflict over the factory's development direction, and they almost came to blows. Moreover, I've heard that the factory has some shady dealings in its operations; it seems they're using some unapproved hazardous materials. I don't know the specifics, but something just doesn't feel right."

This clue alerted Li Ming, who immediately deployed officers to investigate the factory's production processes and procurement records. The officers meticulously reviewed numerous documents, leaving no detail overlooked. In a hidden archive room within the factory, they discovered a series of clandestine purchase orders, clearly showing that the factory had privately acquired various highly dangerous chemicals without approval from relevant departments. These chemicals were used in specific production processes, a serious violation of safety regulations. "This is absolutely a major discovery," Li Ming said gravely. "These unapproved hazardous materials could not only be a potential cause of an explosion, but they might also conceal a more complex chain of interests."

Meanwhile, forensic pathologist Zhang Lin was still "talking" to the corpse in the autopsy room. She meticulously examined the body, leaving no detail overlooked. During an in-depth analysis of Zhao Qiang's internal organs, Zhang Lin discovered abnormal lesions in his liver tissue, not caused by a common illness. After a series of complex tests, Zhang Lin determined that Zhao Qiang had been exposed to an extremely rare toxic chemical substance for an extended period before his death, a substance not present in normal chemical production environments. "This is too strange," Zhang Lin murmured to herself. "The source of this toxin in Zhao Qiang's body is very suspicious, and it's very likely closely related to the case." She quickly informed Li Ming of this discovery.

Upon learning the news, Li Ming immediately convened a meeting of all investigators. "We have two major discoveries: first, the factory illegally used unapproved hazardous materials; second, a rare toxin was detected in Zhao Qiang's body. These two leads seem independent, but they are likely interconnected. We must accelerate the investigation to find out the source and purpose of these hazardous materials, as well as how Zhao Qiang came into contact with the toxin. At the same time, the investigation into Li Yang cannot be relaxed; his network of relationships may still hold more crucial information." Li Ming's gaze swept firmly across the group as he issued the orders.

After identifying the key clue of the rare toxin in Zhao Qiang's body, Qin Chuan immediately shifted the focus of the investigation to the source of the toxin. He assigned Li Ming to lead a team of elite police officers to conduct a comprehensive investigation of the raw material suppliers, production processes, and surrounding locations where the toxin might have been encountered at the Northern Chemical Plant.

Li Ming knew the task was arduous, and he and his team worked day and night. They first meticulously reviewed the factory's raw material procurement list, leaving no suspicious chemical source unchecked. During their communication with suppliers, a small chemical raw material plant caught their attention. This plant had previously supplied a batch of special additives to a northern chemical plant. According to the supplier, these additives were custom-made to meet the specific requirements of the northern chemical plant and might contain some uncommon chemical components.

Meanwhile, Qin Chuan arrived at the municipal party committee meeting room to report on the case's progress to the municipal leaders. The atmosphere in the meeting room was heavy, and the municipal leaders listened attentively to Qin Chuan's report.

"Distinguished leaders, there has been a significant new development in the case of the explosion at the hazardous chemical warehouse of the Northern Chemical Plant." Qin Chuan stood in front of the projector, his expression serious. "We have detected a rare toxin in the body of the deceased, Zhao Qiang. This toxin did not originate from a normal chemical production environment. Currently, we are focusing our investigation on the source of the toxin."

The municipal party secretary frowned slightly and asked, "Comrade Qin Chuan, what does the appearance of this toxin mean for solving the case? Is it directly related to the explosion?"

Qin Chuan pondered for a moment and replied, "Secretary, judging from the current situation, the appearance of the toxin is very likely related to the core of the case. As a shareholder of the chemical plant, Zhao Qiang's presence of this toxin in his body is likely related to complex power struggles within the factory. Although it cannot be determined at present whether the toxin and the explosion are directly related, there may be an indirect connection between the two. We speculate that someone may have used this toxin to persecute Zhao Qiang, and behind this series of events, there may be factors that led to the explosion."

Another leader raised the question: "Is there a clearer direction for the investigation into the cause of the explosion?"

This is what higher-level leaders are focusing on.

Qin Chuan then provided an answer.