Chapter Seventy-Seven

After browsing the milk tea shop and street stalls, Yunxin didn't return to the sesame seed cake shop for an hour.

A long queue had formed in front of the shop.

"Expected to die in 2 hours, 10 minutes and 46 seconds."

"Expected to die in 2 hours, 16 minutes and 39 seconds."

"Expected to die in 2 hours, 43 minutes and 56 seconds."

Yunxin: ?

Is this a queue to die?

The shop owner was packing the sesame cakes into bags, ready to collect payment. "Here you go, eight cakes, keep them safe."

After the customer paid, just as he was about to take the bag, Yunxin stopped him, saying, "There's something wrong with the cake, don't eat it."

The shop owner was puzzled, "The pancakes are all made to order... what could be wrong? Other people have eaten them and nothing has happened."

Unlike other businessmen Yunxin encountered who, when questioned, didn't examine themselves but immediately retorted, he first worried about what would happen if what the other party said was true.

When a customer saw Yunxin holding the same pancake, he immediately gasped, "Could it be that she bought it before and her companion had a problem eating it?"

The customer who was first in line and had already paid realized what was happening and immediately pulled his hand back, saying, "I don't want this pancake anymore! Give me my money back."

There are many different opinions, and all sorts of theories exist.

Yun Xin had to raise her voice, "The cakes I bought are fine, it's this batch that's faulty! I'm a spiritualist, I have a bad feeling! To avoid wrongly accusing someone, I'll call the police first!"

Upon hearing this, the onlookers thought it made sense and began dialing the police.

At this point, some people couldn't wait any longer and wanted to leave.

Yunxin stopped them, saying, "Until the police arrive, everyone should stay where they are."

One customer was dumbfounded, saying, "I'm in a hurry to get home and cook."

Some people also said, "I have to pick up my child from kindergarten."

Yunxin could no longer stop her.

At this moment, a man and a woman walked over, showed their identification, and said, "We are patrol officers in this area. We came here specifically because we heard about the incident... If you are in a hurry to leave, that's fine. Please leave your identification information first, and we will contact you again if needed later."

With someone else taking over, Yunxin was happy to be a hands-off manager, watching the patrol officers communicate with the customers as if nothing had happened.

After a quick registration, those who were in a hurry left, while those who weren't stayed to watch the excitement.

The patrol officer came over and asked, "What happened?"

The shop owner shook his head, "I don't know!"

It felt like my business was being suppressed, with people saying there was something wrong with the cakes and they couldn't sell them.

"I am a spiritual-attribute superpowered individual," Yun Xin introduced herself. "I bought a pancake from this store an hour ago and didn't think there was anything wrong with it at the time. I went out for a walk and when I came back, I found out there was something wrong with the pancake. Eating it might cause problems."

"That's impossible. I followed the same steps and used the same tools," the shop owner argued.

An employee nearby whispered a reminder, "Flour!"

The shop owner suddenly remembered, "We ran out of flour earlier, so I went to the warehouse to get some more... but what's the problem?"

This is how we always do it, and we've never made a mistake.

The patrol officers exchanged a glance. "Where's the flour?"

The shop owner honestly took out the flour, saying, "It's all here, bought from the supermarket."

The patrol officer called the laboratory technicians for help.

Before the help arrived, someone nearby shouted that their companion had suddenly clutched his stomach and collapsed for some unknown reason.

The shop owner looked over and saw that the person who had fallen to the ground was still holding his pancakes. He immediately broke out in a cold sweat.

"Officer, I'm innocent! I didn't do anything, I was just making pancakes as usual..."

"Don't cry foul yet," the patrolman interrupted his rambling, asking directly, "How many pancakes did you make after switching flour, and how many people did you sell them to?"

The shop owner recalled for a moment, then felt a pang of anxiety. "There were about a dozen people. Some bought it and ate it right away, while others said they would take it home and eat it with their families when they got back."

The patrol officers immediately contacted the police station to intercept them.

Not far away, someone lay on the ground, groaning in pain. His companion, at a loss, quickly called an ambulance.

A while later, the laboratory staff arrived first. After taking samples and testing them, they stated, "The flour has been poisoned; the toxicity is very high, and the dosage alone is enough to be fatal."

Upon hearing this, the onlookers erupted in uproar. Some instinctively stepped back, some whispered among themselves, and some quickly threw away the pancakes they had bought from the shop, preferring to lose money rather than risk their lives by testing the food.

The shop owner realized something was wrong, grabbed the patrol officer, and pleaded earnestly, "Officer, this has nothing to do with me, but you must investigate this thoroughly."

The patrol officer said, "Let's go check out the warehouse first."

The patrol officers and colleagues from the laboratory followed the shop owner to the warehouse.

Yun Xin not only didn't move her feet, but also wanted to go home—anyway, with the police in charge, it didn't matter whether she was there or not.

While she was thinking, someone spoke to her, "Luckily you were here, otherwise something terrible would have happened."

Yun Xin: "...I never expected that I would encounter something like this while out shopping to clear my head after losing my job."

All I can say is that death is like the wind, always by my side.

Upon hearing that Yunxin had lost her job, the man immediately perked up, pulled out a business card from his pocket and handed it to her, saying, "My name is Ma Zhichao, my family runs a business. Would you like to work for our company?"

"Isn't this inappropriate?" Despite saying that, Yun Xin didn't object at all and took the business card without hesitation.

Ma Zhichao argued vehemently, "The elderly in my family love pancakes, so they specifically asked me to come and buy some. If you hadn't stopped me, buying these pancakes now would have poisoned the whole family!"

"You saved us, of course I want to express my gratitude."

"By the way, is there any position you'd like to apply for? I'll see if I can help you arrange it."

Ma Zhichao did not casually extend job offers.

First of all, this person took the initiative to stand up and stop it, which shows that he has a kind heart.

Secondly, the ability to make accurate predictions indicates that one's spiritual attributes are not low.

Overall, this is a talented individual with both ability and high moral standards, and is worth recruiting.

"I don't have any particular position I want to hold." Yun Xin thought to herself, in this world, it's already difficult enough to find a reliable job, so where is there room for being picky?

Ma Zhichao discovered several more of Yun Xin's strengths—cooperative, good-tempered, and not picky!

He immediately promised, "Sure! I'll arrange it for you as soon as we get back!"

The patrol officers searched the warehouse but found nothing. They then decided to take the suspects back to the police station for further investigation.

Yunxin was summoned to the police station for questioning.

After they were questioned and released, it was already dark.

Yun Xin, "..."

What kind of mess is this?!

After questioning in the interrogation room, the person with the lie detector ability determined that the shop owner and employee were not suspects, and then began a long investigation.

If a suspect is found, it's easy to confirm if they are the real culprit. The problem is that we don't know who did it, and there are no suspects.

The police began reviewing surveillance footage around the shop day and night.

Four days later, Yunxin had almost forgotten about the incident when the murderer was caught.

The investigation report revealed that the real culprit was a former friend of the shop owner.

A few years ago, a friend's mother fell seriously ill and needed surgery, so he borrowed money from everyone he knew. When he found the shop owner, the owner had just paid the deposit and was preparing to quit his job to open the shop.

"How much more do we need?" the shop owner asked on the messaging app.

"Around 100,000 or so," my friend replied in a voice message, his voice weary. "The people I know are either getting married and taking out loans to buy houses, burdened with mortgages and barely making ends meet, or they're hedonists, spending all their money and living in the moment, never thinking about the future. I've asked so many people, but I can't borrow any more."

"What about your house? Would you have money if you sold it?" the shop owner asked again.

"Sold it a long time ago! My mom and I have been renting a place to live outside," my friend replied.

The shop owner was immediately caught in a dilemma.

After graduating, he was always mistreated while working for others. He had long planned that one day he would save enough money to quit his job and start his own business, becoming his own boss.

To achieve this goal, he lived frugally and worked diligently for several years.

Now that I've saved enough money and my wish is about to come true, an old friend suddenly jumps out to borrow money.

This money is different from others. If he lends it out, he will have to continue working for others. By the time he saves enough money in the future, he will be older, have started a family and career, and may not have the energy or ambition to leave the workforce and start his own business.

My friend's mother is seriously ill and really needs money for treatment.

The shop owner thought about it all night and smoked several cigarettes. The next morning, he told his friend, "I'll give you the money I used to open the shop. Take it and use it first. Saving lives is the priority."

My friend was overjoyed, "Thanks! You're a true brother, you're a real friend!"

Before transferring the money, the shop owner made it clear to the other party, "The timing of your loan request is unfortunate. I have already found a shop and paid a deposit. I can't get this money back, so I can only transfer 100,000 yuan to you. You can pay me back 120,000 yuan later."

friend,"……"

Friend: "If I borrow 100,000 and have to repay 120,000, isn't the interest rate a bit high?"

Friend: "If you negotiate with them, you'll definitely be able to get your deposit back!"

The shop owner was about to transfer the money when he suddenly stopped.

A deposit is different from a down payment. If you pay a deposit and sign a contract, and then fail to fulfill the contract, the deposit will not be refunded.

All I can say is that the timing of the loan was extremely awkward. If the contract hadn't been signed a couple of days earlier, this trouble wouldn't have happened.

He thought that as long as he explained things clearly, the other party would understand. But judging from the implication in their words, the other party didn't want to take responsibility.

What should we do then?

He deliberately broke his contract for his friend, gave up his own life plans to save his friend's mother, and in the end, he still had to bear the cost of the breach of contract.

That 120,000 didn't actually include interest. The 20,000 difference was the deposit; he just wanted to get back the entire principal.

The shop owner kept thinking about it and felt that something was wrong.

His friend messaged him again, "I misspoke earlier. At a time like this, you're the only one willing to help me, so it's only right that you offer a higher interest rate! Don't worry, lend me 100,000, and when you repay it, I'll calculate the interest at an annualized rate of 10%!"

The shop owner finally couldn't keep his composure any longer.

I treated you like a brother, but you treated me like a scoundrel taking advantage of my misfortune?

In the end, it all came down to borrowing 100,000, but what he had to pay in return was 120,000.

With an annualized interest rate of 10%, the principal and interest will be paid off in two years, totaling 120,000 (100,000 + 100,000 * 0.1 * 2). He just got his principal back. Does the other party think he received too much interest and is trying to make a huge profit?

The shop owner immediately replied, "Doing business requires integrity. If you sign a contract and then break it, you should pay the penalty."

"120,000 yuan was my initial investment in opening the shop, and I didn't charge you a single penny of interest from beginning to end."

"Since you're unwilling, pretend I never mentioned this."

After saying that, I blocked him.

The friend wanted to say something more, but the message could no longer be sent.

The shop owner was furious.

He agreed to lend money without even asking his friend to write an IOU or considering whether his friend could repay it.

As a result, the other party refused to even pay the breach of contract fee (deposit)...

The contrast between the two only made him look more like a fool.

The shop owner decided to forget about it, pretend that nothing had happened and that he knew nothing, and continue with his original plan to start the business and open the shop.

A few years passed in a flash.

The shop owner is successful in his business, his business is booming, and he has also gotten married and had children.

In contrast, my friend couldn't borrow money for the surgery, and his mother passed away. Afterwards, he moved around to different places, renting rooms to make a living. At least a third, sometimes half, of his monthly salary went to rent.

The remaining money has to cover food and drink, so there's hardly any money left to save each month.

But he still had to pay off his debts, so my friend gritted his teeth and decided to work in a factory. It was tough, with daily overtime, but thankfully, room and board were provided. He figured that if he could endure a few years of hardship and pay off his debts, things would finally look up for him.

There are unexpected changes in the weather.

Before the foreign debt was paid off, an unexpected event occurred.

When working in the factory, workers are required to wear gas masks during work hours.

My friend finds it too hot, so he wears it properly when someone is patrolling, but secretly takes it off when no one is watching.

Things happen by chance.

A factory pipeline ruptured, causing an industrial gas leak that instantly knocked down workers who had not taken proper protective measures.

When he woke up again, his friend was in the hospital. The doctor told him that he didn't have long to live because he had inhaled too much industrial gas.

Upon learning that he was nearing the end of his life, the first person his friend thought of was the shop owner.

He hated the shop owner for not helping him when he was in dire need, and he was even more envious of the shop owner's current success, with a wife and daughter. In contrast, he himself was burdened with debt, nearing the end of his life, and had accomplished nothing.

Driven by extreme emotions, the friend found an opportunity to poison the flour in the pancake shop.

Because the toxic substance is a white powder, it is inconspicuous when mixed in flour, and ordinary people cannot detect it at all.

The shop owner usually stores the flour he buys from the supermarket in large wooden barrels in the warehouse. He goes out for lunch with his employees, leaving the shop unattended.

According to the shop owner, there was no cash in the shop, nothing worth stealing, and it didn't matter since no one was watching.

But who would have thought that there was someone who had been "thinking about" him all along? He would seize any opportunity to poison the flour, determined to ruin the business of the pancake shop.

Ultimately, the twelve people mistakenly ate poisoned pancakes and nearly died from poisoning. Fortunately, they received timely treatment and survived.

And that so-called friend, before the legal trial could even begin, closed his eyes first.

It is said that his initial plan was to die silently after poisoning the food. This way, the police wouldn't be able to find the culprit, and the pancake shop would bear most of the responsibility.

Unfortunately, the police acted too quickly and found the real culprit not long after the incident.

After reading the report, Yun Xin was speechless.

Is it due to environmental factors?

Everyone seems to be going crazy lately.

(End of this chapter)