Chapter 452: It is Both a Tonic and a Poison

“Comrade Li, you’re really here! That’s great, please come in!” With this exclamation, a figure hurriedly ran out from inside.

Li Yiyi immediately recognized the person—Ito Keisuke.

After running out, Ito Keisuke saw that Li Yiyi was being stopped outside, and immediately became angry. He shouted at the two subordinates blocking her, “What are you doing? Who told you to treat our respected guest like this? Do you still want to keep your jobs?”

Li Yiyi continued to pretend she didn’t understand their language, and with a hint of impatience, she said, “Mr. Ito Kei, can I go in now? If I can’t, I’ll just leave.”

“Yes, yes, of course you can. Our staff didn’t know you were coming today. It’s my fault for not explaining it to them properly. I’ve already talked to them, and from now on, you can come and go freely,” Ito Keisuke replied quickly.

Li Yiyi didn’t say much, only pulling the corner of her mouth up slightly before turning and walking toward the interior.

Ito Keisuke turned around, smiling broadly at her retreating figure, before happily running after her.

Once inside the office, Li Yiyi couldn’t help but admit that many things here were indeed better than what was available in her own country.

Looking at the equipment used by the staff, Li Yiyi suddenly felt that coming here might not have been a bad idea after all.

She now had a better understanding of why the higher-ups had sent her here to cooperate with them. It was likely to let her see the technology and equipment they used firsthand.

“Comrade Li, these are some of the cultivation rooms of our Stock Association. The machines inside were purchased at great expense from Country M. Would you like to take a look?” Ito Keisuke, noticing her curiosity as she looked at the darkened labs, eagerly approached to offer an explanation.

Li Yiyi pursed her lips and nodded gently. “Is it convenient? If it is, I don’t mind taking a look.”

“It’s very convenient, no problem at all,” he said immediately, signaling to one of his subordinates to unlock the door.

“Mr. Ito, these rooms cannot be entered without permission from Mr. Tanaka Ichiro,” the staff member he called in said, looking troubled.

Upon hearing this, Ito Keisuke’s expression darkened slightly. “Mr. Tanaka is still in the hospital. I am currently in charge here. Are you telling me that, as the person in charge, I can’t bring someone in to see what’s inside?”

“I… I don’t know. I’m just following orders. Please don’t blame us, Mr. Ito. If you really want to go in, you’ll need to ask Mr. Tanaka’s permission first. Once he agrees, we can open the door for you,” the staff member explained.

Li Yiyi listened with an indifferent expression, picking up on the fact that they seemed to place significant importance on what was inside those cultivation rooms.

Originally, she was only here out of curiosity, but now, seeing how seriously they treated the contents, she couldn’t help but wonder if there was something unspeakable inside.

Ito Keisuke glared at the staff member blocking his way with a fierce look.

“Sorry, Comrade Li, there was a small incident. It seems we won’t be able to visit the cultivation rooms for now. Let’s go another day. I promise I’ll take you in personally next time,” Ito Keisuke said apologetically, turning back to explain to her.

Li Yiyi smiled politely, appearing unconcerned. “It’s fine. If I can’t see it, then forget it. I wasn’t insisting on seeing what’s inside anyway. Please continue showing me around.”

Seeing her reaction, Ito Keisuke felt a little guilty, as he had made quite a bit of effort to invite her here. He felt bad that he couldn’t even fulfill such a small request.

“We do have other labs here where they’re researching a lot of things. If you don’t mind, I’ll take you to visit them now,” he said eagerly.

Once inside, Li Yiyi realized that she had been somewhat narrow-minded. Since she had the chance to visit and see how things were done here, she was more than willing to take it.

“Is it convenient? If it’s not, then forget it. I don’t want to make things difficult for you,” she said with a smile.

Ito Keisuke showed a slightly embarrassed expression before resolutely saying, “It’s convenient. I’ll show you myself. I want to see who dares to stop us. Plus, since we’ll be working together soon, the more we interact, the better.”

Li Yiyi gave a faint smile and followed him to several other labs inside.

She had to admit, this Stock Association office was indeed vast. There were three floors, and each floor served a different purpose. The first floor was dedicated to storing rare herbs they had collected from China, the second floor was where she had just been, with each lab demonstrating its own unique value.

As for the third floor, she didn’t have a chance to visit. It was said that only Tanaka Ichiro had access to it.

But the more they kept her from going there, the more curious she became.

“Comrade Li, I’m really sorry, but I can’t take you to the third floor. That’s where Mr. Tanaka’s office is, and no one is allowed to go up without his permission,” Ito Keisuke said apologetically when the third floor was mentioned.

Li Yiyi responded politely, “It’s fine. But how is Mr. Tanaka now? Is he feeling any better?”

She hadn’t heard any news about him for a while, and couldn’t help but wonder if he was still alive.

“It’s not going well. His condition is worsening,” Ito Keisuke explained with a hint of embarrassment.

Both of them knew exactly why Tanaka had ended up in the hospital, but it was an embarrassing matter, and neither of them wanted to discuss it.

“Comrade Li, did you already know what kind of pill it was you took earlier?” Ito Keisuke asked, looking sincere.

Li Yiyi thought for a moment before answering, “I didn’t know beforehand, I’m not a prophet. I only found out after I had it checked.”

“But those ingredients inside the pill were all top-quality medicinal herbs. There’s no way it could have contained any harmful substances. How could Mr. Tanaka have gotten into such a state after taking it?” he continued to ask.

“Some medicines are indeed top-notch and appear to be tonics for the body. But in medicine, even the best tonics, when mixed with other substances, can have a completely different effect. Do you understand?” Li Yiyi explained generously, seeing how curious he was.