"Who would dare to cut corners on medical supplies for the wounded? What are the people in the logistics department even doing? Don't the doctors who receive these things check them?" Cross's face darkened as he couldn't help but curse.
"Well, I'm pretty mad about this myself," Borsalino said slowly, seeing Cross's anger. "Since you, the patrol officer, are here, I'll hand this matter over to you. Find the source of those substandard products!"
"If I find the culprit, how should I deal with them?" Cross asked in a low voice.
"Hmm..." Borsalino scratched his head, thinking for a few seconds. "If it involves internal Marine personnel, deal with them according to military regulations. If it involves outsiders, you can handle it as you see fit. I'm giving you full authority. Consider it your first show of force as a new officer!"
"With your word, I'll go all out with the investigation!" Cross nodded, satisfied with the response.
Cross didn't stay in Borsalino's office for long. After finishing his tea, he was led to the office next door by a subordinate. After resting for a while, he put on a cold face and began the task Borsalino had given him.
"We're here, Commodore Cross!" A middle-aged military doctor in a white coat led Cross to a warehouse at Branch G-2. He ordered the guards in front, "Open the door!"
"Yes, Vian-san!"
Rumble~
With a series of loud noises, the five-meter-tall iron warehouse door was opened by two Marines.
Cross unceremoniously walked into the 200-square-meter warehouse, followed closely by the military doctor, who was called 'Vian.' This man was the deputy chief military doctor of Branch G-2, with the rank of Commander. His superb medical skills earned him the respect of the Marines.
"After that incident, our military doctors inspected all the medical supplies, including medicine, bandages, and gauze. We discovered that half of them were substandard and were gathered and stored here," Vian said, pushing his glasses up his nose and pointing at the hundreds of boxes of medical supplies stacked in front of them with a heavy heart.
Cross walked forward with an expressionless face and opened a large wooden box. He found it filled with scattered white gauze, some of which had already turned yellow, as if they hadn't been washed properly.
"This is clearly recycled gauze, but it wasn't properly sterilized and cleaned. During the field treatment on the battlefield, the medics didn't have time to check the contents of the first-aid kits and just used the cotton, gauze, bandages, and medicine for hemostasis or pain relief. Who would have thought..." Vian didn't finish his sentence, instead letting out a heavy sigh.
Cross's expression was a bit grim, but he didn't blame Vian. Instead, he asked, "Vian-san, where did these medical supplies come from? Were they sent from Marine Headquarters?"
"No, they weren't!" Vian shook his head. "From what I understand, each branch is allocated a corresponding budget from Marine Headquarters to purchase supplies from merchant associations on our own. For this, our Marine hospital filed a report, and Vice Admiral Borsalino signed the approval. The logistics department was then in charge of making the unified purchase!"
"Has this ever happened before?" Cross asked again, nodding.
Vian pondered for a moment before cautiously answering, "In the five years I've been at Branch G-2, this is the first time such a terrible thing has happened!"
"Do you know which merchant association the logistics department bought these medical supplies from?"
"It used to be the Jimmy Trading Company. The president is Jimmy Myers. He has a partnership with the World Government, so he's one of our Marine suppliers. I don't know about now," Vian answered honestly.
"Okay, I understand." Cross took a deep breath and nodded. "Where's the head of the logistics department? Take me to him!"
He had a strong impression of the Jimmy Trading Company because when he was at Marine Branch 201 in the North Blue, his old enemy, Glens Felburn, had hired a group of assassins and bounty hunters. They hijacked a merchant ship from the Jimmy Trading Company to sneak onto Miko Island, where Branch 201 was located, with the goal of assassinating him.
He also knew a bit about Jimmy Myers, who was said to be a business genius. In just a few years since taking over the Jimmy Trading Company, he had turned it into a behemoth and established connections with the World Government.
However, his motto was "make a fortune quietly," and he was a low-key person who disliked showing off.
Afterward, Vian led Cross to the location of the logistics department, which was at the back of the Branch G-2 fortress. The head of the logistics department was Commander Partt, a large man with a lot of fat. He was wearing a sky-blue shirt, a white coat of justice draped over his shoulders, a thick gold chain around his neck, and a cigar in his mouth, looking like a newly rich man.
"Commodore Cross, I've heard you were coming to serve at our Branch G-2. I never thought I'd get to see you on your first day. What an honor!" Commander Partt's eyes narrowed into a smile. He quickly walked around his desk, his flabby body jiggling, and respectfully welcomed Cross to sit on the couch.
"Oh, you know me?" Cross was a bit surprised, yet showed no expression. He wasn't surprised that Commander Partt knew he was coming to Branch G-2. The head of the logistics department was a lucrative position, so it was easy to make friends with other officers, and gathering information was naturally no problem.
However, although he had been to Branch G-2 once before, he hadn't stayed for long. Besides a few Rear Admirals and some of the Marines who participated in the Gurri Island battle, others shouldn't have known who he was.
"When you arrived at Branch G-2 with Chief Instructor Zephyr, I happened to be at the port commanding my subordinates to transport supplies. I overheard your conversation with Vice Admiral Borsalino and Rear Admiral Strawberry. I still remember your impressive demeanor to this day," Commander Partt explained with a smile, adding a compliment at the end.
"I see." Cross nodded with a cold expression. He got straight to the point. "Vice Admiral Borsalino has given me full authority to investigate and handle the case of the substandard medical supplies. Is there anything you need to tell me?"
Commander Partt's face suddenly changed, and he quickly exclaimed, "This is a setup! This is a total setup, Commodore Cross! I really didn't have anything to do with it!"
"Don't yell so fast!" Cross waved his hand, cutting off the man's cries of injustice. His cold eyes stared into Commander Partt's and he said sternly, "As the head of the logistics department, all military supplies have to be purchased by you. When the supplies arrive, you and the inspectors are also required to check and approve them before they are distributed to the various departments and warships. So, whether or not you were directly involved in this case, a charge of negligence is absolutely inescapable!"
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