Fen arrived at the clinic carrying a ledger under his arm. He was the market cooperative’s manager, a broad-shouldered man with ink on two fingers. He sat only after Ning offered him a chair away from the waiting room door.
“I brought the purchase book,” he said. “I don’t want my members accused of buying stolen medicine.”
“Neither do we,” Ning replied. “We need to know what was sold and who chose to use it.”
Fen opened the ledger to a pair of entries for two supplement crates. The seller had described them as discounted seized stock and shown a Registry number. Fen had written down the number and the amount paid.
“I thought that meant they were safe,” he said.
“Did the seller show a complete release certificate?” Gu asked.
“He showed a stamped slip with the number. I didn’t know there was another document.” Fen rubbed the ink on his fingers. “I should have called the Registry. We had been paying too much for the old supplier, and he promised the crates before the next night shift.”
Ning asked, “Did the workers know it was seized stock?”
