"Okay, okay." Aunt Wang was also a very warm person.
"Well, that day I was planting vegetables by the river when a young man walked by. He was very handsome, but I didn't recognize him. I was sure I'd never seen him before. So I greeted him. As everyone knows, I'm very outgoing and I love to greet strangers."
“I greeted him and said he looked unfamiliar and I had never seen him before. He was very polite and said he was Old Li’s nephew and had come back to visit his elder. I thought we were all neighbors, and Old Li had lived with us all his life, so seeing his relative still felt a bit warm.”
“He said he came back to visit the elderly and would also take a stroll around the village. He came out empty-handed, without any items in his hands. I asked him if he needed me to accompany him, but he said no, he would just take a stroll and then go back.”
“I figured he had already refused, so I shouldn’t follow him. After I saw him leave, I continued planting vegetables. I saw him walk around the river, occasionally squatting down to scoop up water from the river and drink it. I guess he thought the spring water here was very delicious.”
"Sister Wang, are you sure he wasn't carrying anything in his hand, like a bag or a bottle?" Xiao Qianqian asked, unable to contain herself.
"Let me think..."
"Yes, I'm sure. He was empty-handed at the time; he wasn't carrying anything."
Is there a problem?
"Has that river been poisoned?"
"Poisoning? My God, which heartless bastard did such a heinous thing?"
"You suspect it's that young man?" Aunt Wang realized as well.
"We initially suspect that he did it, which is why you need to think carefully, Sister Wang, about whether he exhibited any unusual behavior at the time."
"Abnormal behavior? Let me think about it."
"No, there really wasn't anything. This young man just walked around and went back. I'm sure he wasn't carrying anything at all; his hands were completely empty."
"Alright, Sister Wang, you can go back now. Come back and tell us if you remember anything."
"good."
After Wang's wife left, the group fell into deep thought again: how was the poison thrown into the river?
"Since he didn't poison anyone during the day, did he do it at night, perhaps scouting the location during the day?" the middle-aged expert said after thinking for a moment.
"That's a possibility, but the problem is that the amount of poison needed to kill someone would be enormous. Where would he hide it?"
"Yes, quite a lot is needed."
"By the way, Qianqian, is this toxin a chronic poison?"
"It's not a chronic condition. This kind of toxin should theoretically produce symptoms as soon as it enters the body. So where is the problem?"
"That's really strange. Yes, where's the problem?"
"Let's go to Old Man Li's house and ask him about some details."
The village party secretary, who had been relegated to the background, finally came in handy: "Come on, I'll take you there."
"Hmm," a few people followed the village secretary out of the makeshift tent.
Once outside, the villagers who had been lying on the ground took the antidote prepared by Xiao Qianqian and began to recover, their complexions gradually regaining their color.
"After taking the antidote, you also need to take herbal medicine for a week to completely eliminate the toxins from your body. I will write a prescription later, then collect the herbs and brew them for all the poisoned villagers to take. Also, village chief, the river needs to be temporarily closed off. Do not drink from it until the cause is found. Send someone to check if there is any drinking water available elsewhere."
“Okay, I’ll send someone to look for it. I’m also anxious. There are so many people in the village, and drinking water has become a problem. It’s a real headache.”
"I will find out the cause as soon as possible and then solve the problem for you at its source."
"Thank you so much, Dr. Xiao. Thank you, thank you, you're a benefactor to our village."
"Saving lives is my duty, you don't need to be so polite."
"Yes, just around the corner is Old Man Li's house."
"Okay, let's go quickly then."
"good."
The group soon arrived at Old Man Li's house, a very dilapidated mud house.
“Old Li lives alone. His children are all in the city and rarely come back.”
The village secretary pushed open the door and went in. Old Li was picking vegetables in the yard, preparing to cook. When he saw the door open, he stood up.
"Old Li, I've brought some medical personnel over to take a look. They want to know more about the situation."
"Okay, please have a seat."
Old Li brought out a few old, worn-out chairs with uneven legs, making it feel like sitting on a seesaw.
"Grandpa, you don't need to be so polite, we can just stand."
"Here's the thing, can we see the gift that young man gave you?"
"Sure, come with me. The gifts are in the room; I haven't seen them yet."
"good."
The group followed Old Man Li into his house, where he fumbled for a candle and lit it.
"There's no electricity at home, so I'll light some candles for you."
"Thanks."
The candles were lit, brightening the room. Xiao Qianqian and several experts walked to the place where the gifts were placed, which consisted of several gift boxes.
There was a box of wine, a box of tea, several boxes of fruit, and a box of pastries.
The group discussed it and carried the gift box into the yard.
I checked the outer packaging and there was nothing unusual.
"Can we take it apart and take a look?"
"Tear it down."
Several people opened the gift box and took out the contents. There were only these items in the gift box, nothing else.
The bottle was intact and showed no signs of being opened, so it seemed that it really hadn't been tampered with.
The tea, fruit, and pastries were all intact; from any angle, it was just a gift, and there was no sign of any tampering.
Strange, these things all look perfectly intact, and there's no possibility that they contain toxins.
"Did he only bring these few boxes of gifts when he came? Did he bring anything else?"
"No, he only brought these few boxes when he came in. I really didn't see anything else."
"By the way, I have another question. When he was staying at your house, did he go out at night?"
"No, I'm very sure about that. I'm old and can't sleep at night, so I know very well whether he went out or not."
The group was disheartened when they heard him say that. They had thought they might have found some useful clues, but it seemed like it would be difficult to find the cause.
This is really strange. How did the poison get into the water? Could it have been someone else, not him?
The group left Old Man Li's house somewhat dejectedly.
"You guys go back first, I'll go for a walk by the river again," Xiao Qianqian said to the others.
"Okay, Xiao girl, don't worry too much. We're all thinking about it, and we'll find the reason eventually."
"good."
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