Xiao Yunying had someone bring over a porcelain basin, poured out all the stewed chicken, and picked out the dark red mushrooms from the chicken meat.
The rest of the mushrooms were just regular shiitake mushrooms, nothing to worry about.
The dark red mushroom pieces, when pieced together, formed a whole mushroom about the size of her palm.
Xiao Yunying put down her chopsticks and pointed to the mushrooms arranged on the table, saying, "Judging from the ingredients alone, the other dishes are fine. But I'm not sure about this one. You can have a doctor test it to see if it's poisonous."
The cook's apprentice, who was being carried away, suddenly said, "This is it. It should be right. My master only tasted two sips of this chicken soup, and not long after, he started foaming at the mouth."
Xiao Yunying asked, "Do you recognize this mushroom?"
"I don't recognize it, but my master taught me, just like what the girl said, that brightly colored mushrooms with patterns should never be eaten."
Chen Yuancheng said with a stern face, "Ling Qi, take her to the clinic and have the doctor examine her."
Ling Qi picked up the dark red mushrooms, put them on a plate, and carried it out.
Xiao Yunying found it a bit strange: "Doesn't any of you recognize poisonous mushrooms? Most of them are inedible because of their bright colors. As a chef, you should know which ingredients are edible and which are not."
The chef's apprentice said, "That's not right. I prepared the ingredients for this clay pot stewed chicken. I killed and chopped the chicken into pieces, and I soaked and cleaned the mushrooms before serving them to the chef to make the dish. There were no red mushrooms in it at the time."
Chen Yuancheng looked sharply at the apprentice: "Are you sure you didn't have this when you were processing the mushrooms?"
The apprentice, fearing misunderstanding from his employer, anxiously explained himself:
"Boss, you have to believe me. I'm not trying to shirk responsibility. I really didn't have this when I was washing the mushrooms. All the other mushrooms were small and round, but this one was a different color, with a flat cap, and it was torn into small pieces. It was too obvious."
On my first day with my mentor, he taught me how to identify ingredients that are not safe to eat, because I would be responsible if our valued guests got sick from eating them.
"Besides, even if I didn't know these mushrooms were inedible, my master would have noticed while cooking. The mushrooms are so red; my master isn't blind, how could he not see them?"
Xiao Yunying felt that the apprentice's words made sense. Most of the people who could eat at Huiweilou were wealthy and powerful people in the city. If something went wrong with the food, it was not something he could afford to take responsibility for.
If something really happens, losing money and going to jail are minor issues; if you encounter someone who holds a grudge and is unreasonable, you might lose your life.
Unless he was bribed to do this on purpose, he wouldn't be this careless.
Xiao Yunying said, "This is not an accident; you need to investigate it thoroughly."
Chen Yuancheng said to his apprentice, "We can't just listen to your side of the story. Your master is unconscious right now. We'll find out when he wakes up. Don't stay in the kitchen for now. Go wait outside."
The apprentice scratched his head anxiously, but the shopkeeper spoke up: "Master, Li Yuan is unlikely to lie. He is Old Li's nephew."
"His own nephew?"
The shopkeeper quickly said, "Don't worry, boss. He didn't get in because of Old Li's connections. Li Yuan is hardworking and has a great talent for cooking. He has been learning cooking from Old Li since he was a child, and now at his age, his cooking is just as good as Old Li's."
Xiao Yunying approached Chen Yuancheng and said, "Don't worry about how he got in. I don't think it was him. A nephew wouldn't harm his own uncle who is so good to him, would he?"
He foamed at the mouth and fell into a coma after only drinking two sips of soup, which shows how potent the toxins in the mushrooms are. If it had been any more serious, he might not have woken up.
It's certain someone did this on purpose. Mushrooms don't just appear out of nowhere. Is someone trying to sabotage you? Are the guests who booked the banquet today particularly important?
Chen Yuancheng said, "It can't be said that they are distinguished. The person who booked the banquet is a local major grain producer with many estates and fields under his name."
The head of the household was kind-hearted. He bought grain at a slightly higher price than others and sold it at a slightly lower price than other grain shops. In years of disaster, he would distribute grain and porridge. He also adopted many children without parents. He was a great philanthropist and was deeply loved and respected in Donglin City.
The guests he was hosting were major grain producers in the south. The purpose of their banquet was to discuss a wheat-for-rice trade for next year, hoping to lower rice prices so that more people could afford white rice.
Xiao Yunying blinked. As far as she knew, the cheapest grain price in Donglin City was at the grain store at the market entrance: "Are you talking about Wang's Grain Store over there at the market?"
“That’s right, the head of the family is surnamed Wang.”
Xiao Yunying knew this grain shop very well; she had always bought her grain there. The prices were indeed the lowest among all the grain shops in the city, and the shop assistants were also good; they wouldn't shortchange customers or sell inferior goods.
"He's a really good person. Does anyone know that he made a reservation at Huiweilou Restaurant?"
"The news that the Wang family wanted to exchange flour for rice with grain merchants from the south had already spread before the banquet was booked. This attracted the attention of many wealthy families. The fact that the banquet was booked at Huiweilou was not a secret, and many people knew about it."
Xiao Yunying understood: "So it's not necessarily aimed at Huiweilou, it could also be to sabotage this business."
If the deal goes through, it will shake up grain prices throughout Donglin City, potentially ruining the livelihoods of countless people.
After thinking for a moment, he added, "It could also be a double kill, because in the eyes of outsiders, Huiweilou is not your private property, but the Chen family's property."
If they used poison directly, Huiweilou could explain it as being framed. But using poisonous mushrooms makes things much easier; the explanation becomes unclear, and the probability of a successful false accusation increases significantly.
Donglin City is so big. If the Chen family occupies too much, other families will occupy less. Countless merchants regard the Chen family as a thorn in their side.
If word gets out that someone ate poisonous mushrooms at Huiweilou Restaurant, it could ruin Master Wang's business and damage the Chen family's reputation.
Xiao Yunying asked the apprentice named Li Yuan, "Have you noticed anyone getting close to your master while he's cooking?"
Li Yuandao: "I was busy chopping and preparing vegetables and didn't pay attention."
Chen Yuancheng asked the other women who were specifically responsible for washing vegetables for Chef Li, "What about you?"
Everyone shook their heads. An older woman said, "Go back to the boss. We've been busy washing and picking vegetables and preparing ingredients for lunch. We haven't had time for anything else."
A woman standing at a distance said, "Boss, I saw it. I've been peeling potatoes and garlic by the corner of the wall and haven't left much."
Chef Li was in charge of several stoves, and no one else went to them except him and his two apprentices who helped him pass ingredients and tend the fire. The other kitchen helpers handed over the dishes and left without getting close or lingering.
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