"Mr. Shida... Mr. Shida is severely infected, and he's almost gone."

Dr. Matsushima shook his head.

"Quick, take me to see him!"

Gu Ji couldn't wait to get up.

The two of them rounded two wards and arrived at a room on the innermost side of the medical office. This was originally Matsushima's private office, but it had now been cleared out to serve as the intensive care ward.

"Mr. Shida, this is from Xiangzhou CHP..."

"I... I know."

Before Matsushima could finish speaking, Shida interrupted.

Compared to Nakamura Hiro, his symptoms were noticeably more severe, with his cheeks both a purplish-red, like a ripe eggplant that would burst and seep fluid at a light touch. His hospital gown and bed sheets were stained with large patches of blood.

"Mr. Shida, I want to ask about the source of the consumable raw beef on the cruise ship, how supplies in the raw food area are stored, and whether there's any issue with cross-contamination."

Gu Ji went straight to the point, locking the cause onto consumable raw food.

Initially, he had considered whether this virus outbreak was caused by food-borne infection, but after all, this was a large, ultra-luxurious cruise ship, theoretically not prone to food safety issues. Otherwise, if passengers fell ill and it made the news, the reputational damage would outweigh the benefits.

But after observing the patient distribution just now, he felt increasingly uneasy.

On the cruise ship, the ratio between the Japanese and tourists from other countries was nearly 1:1, yet the infected were almost all Japanese, with a few being white people from Europe and the United States. This ratio was absurdly skewed.

A few patients experiencing similar situations might be coincidental;

But there's a set of over a hundred clinical data reflecting one characteristic of infectious diseases: the distribution pattern of high-risk groups, those particularly susceptible to infection.

Unlike susceptible groups, high-risk groups are primarily influenced by factors like occupation, lifestyle, diet, and culture. For instance, high-risk groups for AIDS include men who have sex with men and drug users, while Ebola's high-risk groups include doctors and funeral workers.

Visitors on the ship don't work and their daily lifestyle revolves around entertainment and shopping, which are largely similar.

The only difference lies in dietary habits.

"Beef..."

Mr. Shida seemed to slow down due to the severity of his symptoms, took a long time before answering:

"Most of the meat is sourced from Hokkaido, with a small portion coming from imported cold chains. Ingredients are uniformly packaged and stored in the freezer, and before dining, chefs cut the ingredients and place them on ice blocks to preserve freshness."

Indeed, there's a risk of cross-contamination!

Japanese people love raw food, particularly sashimi and seafood. But seafood isn't a host for viral hemorrhagic fever unless it's mixed with livestock meat!

"Miss Jian, are you saying the virus source might be from raw food?"

Dr. Matsushima suddenly spoke up.

"Yes, very likely. The virus doesn't tolerate high temperatures but can survive on frozen food for several hours to several days."

Gu Ji also detailed the distribution ratio of the infected, "Only this can explain why the virus spread into the isolated cockpit and engine room, because..."

"Because no one would skip meals!"

Matsushima's eyes widened as he took over the latter half of the sentence, clearly terrified at having narrowly escaped infection himself.

"Who's in charge of the food procurement?"

Gu Ji continued to inquire.

"Mori... Morita... Ugh—!"

Just as Mr. Shida was about to answer, his back suddenly stiffened physiologically, his neck stretching, and he spewed a large amount of black-red liquid from his mouth, mixed with chunks, as his pupils dimmed and life left him.

"Hurry... someone come quickly!"

Matsushima hurriedly shouted towards the outside of the room.

Gu Ji stared intently at the chunks, all organs and tissues being "decomposed and melted" by the virus, showing just how much suffering a critical patient could endure, "Where is Mr. Morita now?"

"I don't know. Since last night, he's been missing."

Matsushima shook his head.

A trace of malice flashed in Gu Ji's eyes. As the cruise manager, how could he disappear at such a critical moment? He took out his walkie-talkie, "Morita, respond if you hear, respond immediately."

There was a long silence, no answer from the walkie-talkie.

"Has anyone in the cleaning department seen Morita? If you conceal this information, under infectious disease prevention regulations, you are already suspected of breaking the law..."

The cleaning staff is responsible for disinfecting the entire cruise, they couldn't not have seen Morita, unless he jumped into the sea.

Moments later, a middle-aged woman's voice came through, "I... I saw Mr. Morita in room 17003."

17th floor?

Isn't that the presidential suite?

He had just ordered all suite guests to be moved to standard rooms last night, and Morita still dared to open a room privately?

"Security police, come with me to the 17th floor to arrest him."

Gu Ji's voice was icy cold as he put down the walkie-talkie and rushed out, taking the elevator to the 17th floor.

This area's decor was obviously more luxurious compared to ordinary guest rooms, with only 9 rooms, a spacious, bright corridor, marble-tiled walls, and even a layer of cashmere carpet underfoot.

As they turned the corner, there were already two security guards and police officers standing in front of room 03.

When Gu Ji approached, Xiaowu Yefu, the taller one, hurriedly reported, "Miss Jian, Mr. Morita is not inside."

Gu Ji walked to the door.

Looking inside, it was piled high with various exotic foods and drinks, making it seem as though a luxurious restaurant had been looted.

Most importantly, there was raw food inside!

"Everyone, immediately search for Morita. He is most likely already infected, be cautious!"

Gu Ji spoke with a cold, chilling tone.

Upon hearing that Morita was an infected person, all the security personnel and police on the cruise suddenly grew serious.

Before long, someone reported via the walkie-talkie, "Morita found, in the 15th-floor deck stairwell!"

Gu Ji hurriedly ran down.

Before reaching the 15th floor, he heard Morita cursing back at the security personnel fiercely.

Sure enough, Morita was being pinned against the wall by two security guards, his silver-rimmed glasses askew, looking quite disheveled.

"You wild woman! What exactly do you want? I'm the manager of this cruise! Cough, cough... How dare you order them to arrest me!"

Seeing Gu Ji, Morita was so anxious that he kicked空lessly.

"You dare call yourself a manager? The cruise is suffering a virus outbreak, and you not only don't help manage it, but disregard control strategies, hiding in a suite to enjoy yourself like a coward—do you do justice to those working tirelessly, risking their lives?"

Gu Ji's words were as sharp as pearls, making the two guards' eyes blaze with anger, eager to beat Morita on the spot.

"Nonsense! The command is in your hands; there's no space left for me to work!"

Morita quickly countered.

"Cut the crap. Were the raw meats on the cruise purchased by you?"

Gu Ji wasn't going to argue with him.

"Yes, so what?"

"I suspect the virus source is from the beef, spreading through cross-contamination with frozen raw foods. Where exactly were these meats purchased from?"

Gu Ji's gaze was ice-cold, "Don't try to lie. I've seen the room; you've eaten raw food too, haven't you just been coughing? You might already be infected; finding the virus source early, and you might avoid suffering like those severe patients!"

"The virus comes from the beef..."

Morita was first taken aback, then his eyes widened as if recalling something terrifying. In the next moment, his nostrils twitched sharply, and a gush of bloody red instantly dripped out!!

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