Chapter 39 Poisoned

Chapter 39 Poisoning

Immediately after, the middle-aged woman at the same table also clutched her stomach and collapsed to the ground, curling up as she cried out in pain, "Da Niu, Er Niu, my stomach hurts, it hurts so much..."

Seeing his younger brother and mother fall to the ground one after another, clutching their stomachs in agony, Da Niu grew both frantic and furious. He shouted, "Shopkeeper! You black-hearted shopkeeper! You have no conscience, making money by harming people—aren't you afraid of retribution?"

Some bewildered diners instinctively asked, "Brother, what do you mean by that?"

"I heard long ago that this restaurant's food has problems. Many people who ate here ended up with stomach trouble, and some were even seriously harmed!

I never wanted to bring my mother and younger brother to this place.

But my mother insisted, saying this restaurant has been open for many years without any incidents, and the food is delicious, so she was determined to come.

She even told me not to believe rumors unless I saw them with my own eyes, but now...

Mother, do you believe it now? Those weren't just rumors! Who would spread such rumors for no reason? It's clearly the truth!

It's this restaurant's food that's the problem, and it's what made my mother and younger brother suffer!"

Over on the other side, the husband was also shocked and furious, shouting, "Then my wife, my wife must have been harmed by this unscrupulous restaurant too!

I remember now—just as we were about to enter, someone warned us this restaurant had problems and told us not to eat here.

At the time, I thought they were just a rival spreading lies to slander this place.

But now, thinking back, they were giving us a sincere warning!

Oh no! I never should have brought my wife here."

"My wife has been with me all these years and never once dined in a proper restaurant. I just wanted to treat her to a good meal, so I ordered all those meat dishes.

I couldn’t bear to eat much myself and saved most of it for her—who would have thought I’d end up harming her instead!"

Da Niu added, "I also ordered meat dishes and couldn’t bear to eat much myself, so I gave most of it to my younger brother and my mother. Who could have guessed this black-hearted shop would serve poison!"

The diners at the other tables who hadn’t been affected were both shocked and alarmed. They all stood up, not daring to take another bite.

Someone spotted the shopkeeper approaching and immediately shouted, "Shopkeeper, explain this at once! Is there really something wrong with the food in your establishment?"

The shopkeeper’s expression turned grave as he clasped his hands and said, "Everyone, I, Liu, swear on my life that the ingredients in this humble shop are guaranteed fresh and harmless. There is absolutely no issue."

"At a time like this, you old fool still dare to lie through your teeth! If there’s no issue, why did my younger brother and my mother suddenly fall ill?"

"That’s right! We’re going to report this to the authorities and have this harmful place shut down! Everyone, remember this man well. Go out and tell our fellow townsfolk to stay far away from him, or who knows when they might end up dead!"

"I, Liu, dare to swear on my life because I have done nothing heinous! How about this—I’ll first summon a physician to examine these patrons, and then have the physician inspect whether the food in this shop is at fault. Is that acceptable?"

"No! Who knows if the physician you summon is in league with you! We’ll find our own physician. Everyone can come along. If the physician confirms my younger brother and my mother fell ill from eating something they shouldn’t have, I ask you all to bear witness. I will surely report this and have this shop sealed, so this black-hearted shopkeeper can’t harm anyone else!"

The onlooking diners exchanged glances, and many were persuaded, planning to follow along.

Da Niu and the husband were about to help their respective family members up from the ground when a clear, pleasant voice interrupted them: "There’s no need to summon a physician. These three people did indeed eat something they shouldn’t have—they’ve been poisoned."

Su Zheng had somehow appeared behind the crowd, with Luo Yunchen following closely by his side.

Everyone turned toward the voice and instinctively made way for the two of them.

Su Zheng approached Er Niu and said to the husband, "Bring your wife closer. Let me examine her."

The husband and Da Niu instinctively exchanged a glance before looking at Su Zheng. Hesitantly, the husband asked, "Are you a physician?"

"I merely came here to dine. You should bring your wife over quickly. I suspect she has likely been poisoned, and perhaps I can find a way to alleviate her suffering. Look how she is struggling—it would be difficult for you to take her to a clinic now, wouldn't it?"

Hearing this, the husband assumed Su Zheng must be a physician’s apprentice who recognized symptoms resembling those from consuming tainted food.

After all, that man had said that after taking the pill, even a physician’s examination would diagnose poisoning from unclean food.

Thinking this, the husband could not bear to let his wife endure the pain. Alleviating it shouldn’t affect the diagnosis, so he carried his wife over beside Er Niu’s mother.

The innkeeper did not know what Su Zheng was doing. Was he helping these people incriminate the restaurant?

The innkeeper looked at Luo Yunchen with concern.

Though Luo Yunchen also did not know Su Zheng’s intentions, it did not stop him from quietly watching the scene unfold.

He signaled the innkeeper to step aside and simply follow Su Zheng’s lead.

The innkeeper had no choice but to restrain his emotions and wait to see what Su Zheng would do.

Su Zheng circled the three people lying on the ground, shaking his head with a grave expression. "It is indeed poisoning."

The crowd immediately erupted, loudly condemning the unscrupulous establishment.

Su Zheng raised a hand, speaking more loudly. "Everyone, please calm down. Listen to me—this is not food poisoning, but drug poisoning. All three have accidentally ingested the same medicine, and now its effects are manifesting."

Those nearby were filled with doubt upon hearing Su Zheng’s words. Only Da Niu and the husband objected.

They shouted, "Who are you? If you don’t understand, don’t talk nonsense! We hadn’t eaten anything all morning before coming here—not even water, let alone any medicine! My brother and my mother only became like this after eating the food here!"

"Oh! I see! You must be someone that unscrupulous innkeeper hired to deceive us!"

Su Zheng looked at the two with utmost sincerity and said earnestly, "I am absolutely correct! Think carefully—half an hour ago, did your family members eat something unusual, something they do not normally eat?"

Before the two could instinctively refute him, Su Zheng spoke again with earnest emphasis, word by word: "Think carefully. Half an hour ago, something they had never eaten before but ate today. Think hard—was there anything?"

Hearing Su Zheng’s serious and pointed emphasis, both men naturally recalled the pill they had taken before entering the inn.

Their retorts stuck in their throats. After a moment, they stubbornly insisted, "N-no, there wasn’t. We didn’t eat anything."

But the tone of their denial was no longer as firm or indignant as before.

Su Zheng sighed. "Perhaps you are unaware. Let your family members think carefully instead."