Physician Lian placed the sealed sample vial in the small test frame. The clinic test room had a narrow table, two measuring lamps, and a glass-fronted cabinet for approved stock. The new crate remained outside the room under a paper seal. No one had opened it beyond the single bottle used for the sample.
“Patients are still receiving the verified supply?” Qinghe asked.
“Yes,” Lian said. “We have enough for today’s appointments and the next delivery. We can hold this batch until we know what it contains.”
She ran the first concentration test. The lamp traced the mixture in a faint green line. The measured preparation was stronger than the label allowed.
Bai leaned in. “Could the sample have changed during storage?”
“It could, but the concentration is not explained by evaporation alone.” Lian wrote the reading down. “I’ll test a second portion from the same bottle.”
She rinsed the glass tube, changed the measuring solution, and repeated the process. Lian attached the first result to the sample record, then asked Zhen to bring the delivery label. The label listed a concentration far below what the test had measured.
“Could the bottle have been swapped?” Yan asked.
