43: Sixth Brother

With a massive sum of 14 million US dollars, it was clearly unrealistic to only collect antiques.

The war hadn't broken out yet, so antique prices hadn't reached the point of a massive crash.

He had Wang Tianxi do this just to throw people off the scent, and incidentally to bring some back to the modern era for a rainy day.

As for the rest of the funds, letting them sit in the account gathering dust...

...was something Lu Fan, as a modern businessman, was absolutely unwilling to do.

The only way forward for this money was to put it to work and produce goods.

Thinking about the Battle of Shanghai area in a few months, it was time to prepare war supplies.

No sooner said than done; Lu Fan took out a pen and paper and began to list industries related to the war.

Currently, the fastest and most effective way to intervene in the war was through the logistics support system.

Clothing factory: He could bring bulletproof raw materials from the modern era and immediately pivot to producing body armor.

Food factory: No changes needed at all; just adjust the products to produce high-sugar, high-calorie nut cakes.

Cannery: Just run at full capacity and that's it.

Spinning mill: Gauze bandages were essential wartime medical supplies.

Shoe factory: At this stage, the war still relied entirely on legs for marching; time to introduce the legendary yellow rubber-soled canvas shoes.

While he was writing furiously, a car horn honked outside.

Then, hurried footsteps approached.

Lu Fan saw Lin Tianrong rushing in frantically through the window, with Tang Jifeng close behind.

*Bang, bang, bang!*

Along with the frantic knocking that sounded like a death knell, a plea for help came with a slight sob: "Brother Fan, please, save Sixth Brother!"

Lu Fan opened the door, looked at the grief-stricken Lin Tianrong, and asked, "What's going on?"

"My Sixth Brother... in the hospital... he's almost..."

Lin Tianrong was out of breath, too emotional to even speak clearly.

Tang Jifeng quickly explained: "Brother Fan, it's like this. Old Third's Sixth Brother has been given a critical condition notice by the hospital."

He used his connections to ask around and found out you cured the daughter of Ma Jieli from the Municipal Council yesterday.

Hoping for a miracle, he came here to ask for your help."

Lu Fan frowned slightly and asked, "What illness? Do you know?"

Lin Tianrong finally caught his breath and answered with a trembling voice: "Lo—lobar—pneumonia..."

...along with tonsillitis. He's running a persistent high fever right now."

"Brother Fan, I've met Old Third's Sixth Brother. He's straightforward and courageous, a patriotic businessman with good ties to that side."

Tang Jifeng lowered his voice and gestured a number with his hand.

"Why didn't you say so earlier?" Lu Fan said with a look of displeasure. He went back into the room to grab a medical kit and urged them with a long face.

"A life is at stake! Let's go! What are you waiting for?"

He might not save others, but a patriot had to be saved.

Lu Fan arrived at the hospital and saw the man lying on the bed—pale, with a persistent high fever and blurred consciousness.

He decided to try anything as a last resort and started a skin test without a word.

In this situation, only penicillin could save the day.

At this point, he didn't care about appearing shocking and directly took out an ear thermometer to scan.

Good heavens, his temperature had already broken the 40-degree mark and was heading toward 41.

If the fever didn't break soon, the man would be a vegetable even if he survived.

Lu Fan opened his medical kit, his gaze shifting between Motrin and some white tablets, hesitating.

Motrin was a common fever reducer for children, with ibuprofen as its main ingredient.

It was a relatively safe and effective antipyretic, analgesic, and anti-inflammatory drug that could help reduce fever.

It's very effective for children, but less so for adults, and requires a larger dose.

But for such a high temperature, the effect might not be ideal.

While the white tablets were more potent, improper use could lead to side effects.

After all, the name Analgin was infamous; everyone knew its reputation.

After a moment of internal struggle, Lu Fan gritted his teeth and picked up the white Analgin.

He poured out a tablet, dissolved it in warm water, and gave it to the man.

In a life-or-death moment, a lower safety ceiling was still better than him losing his mind.

"Everyone out! Why are you all crowding in here? Are you afraid he's not infected enough? Afraid he won't die fast enough?"

Under his white mask, Lu Fan's expression was exceptionally serious. Facing the layers of people, his words became sharp.

With a single look, he had Tang Jifeng clear the room and signaled Lin Tianrong to bring over the diagnostic records.

After a quick review, Lu Fan, who only had a superficial understanding of medicine, felt a bit more confident.

penicillin could suppress this illness.

But he wasn't entirely confident because the illness had been delayed for far too long.

If he had taken over the treatment this morning, the success rate would have been eighty to ninety percent.

Now? It depended on whether his luck held out.

The skin test results came back with no allergic reaction, and Lu Fan breathed a sigh of relief.

He prepared the medication and gave the injection directly.

Lu Fan packed up his equipment, took a deep breath, and looked at the patient before saying, "Old Third, we've done all we can; the rest is up to fate. I've done what needs to be done."

"I can't guarantee the results. Find someone dedicated to watch over him; family members shouldn't come in for now."

Hearing there was still a chance, Lin Tianrong breathed a sigh of relief. "Brother Fan, don't worry. Sixth Brother's family are all reasonable people."

The medicine wouldn't take effect that quickly, and there was no point in waiting there, so Lu Fan and Tang Jifeng went downstairs to the garden to light a cigarette.

"Old Fourth, what's the deal with this Sixth Brother?"

Tang Jifeng took a deep drag of his cigarette, his face full of respect. "Sixth Brother's real name is Chen Liting. He's a famous industrialist from Shandong region and a leader in the dyeing industry."

"The fact that the Lin family could pull out unscathed today is entirely thanks to his willingness to take over all of the Lin family's factories."

Lu Fan's curiosity was piqued. "The Lin family has quite a few assets in Shanghai. Did he take over all of them?"

Tang Jifeng said with certainty, "Yes! Two textile mills, two dyeing plants, plus a cotton mill."

"This Sixth Brother bought them all at market price without a word, which allowed Old Third to withdraw completely."

Lu Fan realized this was a formidable man, expanding so aggressively at a time like this.

Without the right tools, one couldn't take on such a task.

He probed further: "You said he's a patriot. How so?"

At the mention of this, a smile appeared at the corner of Tang Jifeng's mouth, and he lowered his voice. "Now, that's an interesting story."

"Late last year, someone approached Sixth Brother to dye some cloth—a very sensitive shade called Eighth Route Gray."

Under high-pressure surveillance, this big shot pulled off a masterstroke of deception.

He actually ignored the pressure from above and dyed Eighth Route Gray on a large scale.

He even used his own channels to deliver the goods at cost.

The most amazing part is that the secret hasn't been exposed to this day.

No one in Nanjing noticed a thing.

Do you know? This is how Sixth Brother did it..."

In the garden, Tang Jifeng smoked and detailed Sixth Brother's past heroic deeds.

The story, told in detail, made Lu Fan's eyes light up. This man was a talent! A great talent.

Thinking of his own plans, he secretly resolved that he must not miss out on such a patriot.

Just then, Lin Tianrong's shout came from upstairs.

"Brother Fan, something's happening with Sixth Brother! Come up and take a look!"

Lu Fan tossed his cigarette butt and stood up. "Let's go, Old Fourth. Let's see what's happening."