Dinner was forced to stop.

Mary wanted to induce vomiting in Melanie, but she couldn't bear the external stimulation, so she had to rush her back to the bedroom, draw the curtains, and give her a quiet environment.

Then, she found □□ in the medicine box, which is a sedative drug specially used to treat phobia and can effectively treat convulsions.

With both methods, Melanie's condition improved a lot.

Leo wanted to stay to accompany her, but Mary said: "She needs a quiet environment. Extra noise and light may trigger another seizure."

He gave up and returned to the dining room with others.

Jian Jing was holding a mobile phone, circling around the dining table, taking pictures from multiple angles.

Kimberly asked loudly, "Why don't you let us go see Mela?"

"Are you a doctor?" Jane asked.

Kimberly said excitedly, "No, but I..."

"More people won't help, and I need you to stay as a witness." She said.

"Witness what? Are you so cold-blooded?" Kimberly was very angry.

Jian Jing said, "It's obvious that this is a case of poisoning. I don't want everyone to leave and let the person who did it quietly dispose of the evidence."

"Poisoning?" Hollen was the first to come in, "Why are you so sure?"

Jian Jing said, "Melanie was poisoned by strychnine. Unless she accidentally ate horse money, I can't think of any reason for her to be like this."

Mary came in second and frowned, "Where was the poison?"

"Wine, or something else, I'm not sure." Jian Jing made a judgment, "It would be best to put everyone's food in a container and send it to the police for testing."

"It's not difficult. There are enough in the kitchen." Mary said, "But Bana only has a small police station. I bet they don't have the ability to solve the murder case."

Xiong George disagreed: "Don't say that about old John. He just likes to drink a little and is a little confused. At least last month, he caught a kid who stole from a convenience store."

Jian Jing: "..."

To be honest, Guiguo can't do it.

"That doesn't matter." She said calmly, "Put it away first. Strychnine is not easy to decompose. It can be detected even after a long time."

"Okay, I'll go get it. Uncle George, you come too. We'd better be witnesses to each other, right? Miss Jane." Mary asked sharply.

"I hope to package it separately. Maybe you can't take so many boxes by yourself?" Jian Jing asked back.

Mary glanced at her, sensing some kindness, and said in a gentle tone: "Maybe." She grabbed Xiong George, who was still in a state, and dragged him away.

The air was stagnant for a moment.

Kang Mucheng looked at Leo, with concern in his eyes. His friend's face was very ugly, pale and blue, and it was not just worry or anger, but also a trace of fear that could not be missed...?

He asked on behalf of his friend: "Do you suspect that it's not just Melanie who has been poisoned, but someone else among us?"

Jian Jing shook his head and said, "We have almost finished eating. Strychnine takes effect very quickly. If other people have been poisoned, they should have had adverse reactions by now. Of course, if it is a capsule or mixed with food, the onset time will be greatly prolonged. But I don't think there is anything to worry about."

There are several possible motives for poisoning:

1. Targeting Melanie's personal actions, so the others should be fine.

2. Targeting the random actions of the people present, the poisoning time should be about the same, and if there is no onset, it is probably not true.

3. Targeting everyone's collective poisoning, same as above.

Carl couldn't help but speak up: "I don't understand, who would do this? What's the benefit?"

His wife Kimberly reacted faster than him and was more likely to think: "It's a wedding, dear, there's a wedding going on here soon - is there any other reason?"

Hollen nodded: "Leo, this is a threat."

Si Yingjie listened in confusion for a long time, and finally understood a little, and whispered to Jian Jing: "It must be Mary, she likes Leo."

Jian Jing: "Puff -"

Si Yingjie glared at her.

She turned her back and pretended nothing happened.

Leo was unaware of the hidden truth. He thought for a long time and said with determination: "No, August, it's not that bad. This is just a more intense persuasion - Melanie's condition is not serious, right?"

It is more likely that she doesn't eat enough. Jian Jing complained in her heart, but did not refute it outright.

Leo used the word "persuasion", why?

Kimberly asked anxiously: "Then the wedding..."

"I have already registered with Melanie, and the wedding can't change anything." Leo said quickly, "Let's talk about this later. If the snow stops tomorrow, I will send Melanie to the hospital first."

He scanned everyone with his eyes and took a deep breath: "That's it, I'm a little tired, sorry."

Without waiting for the guests to respond, he got up and left the restaurant.

Kimberly stood up immediately, holding her shawl: "I'm going to see Melanie."

No one stopped her.

Carl followed.

Hollen asked the other men: "Want a cigar?"

It was only half past eight, and it was still early to go to bed. Si Yingjie was feeling bored and got out of the armchair: "Okay, just in time to refresh myself. Mucheng, are you coming?"

Kang Mucheng glanced at Jian Jing and agreed.

Jian Jing was waiting for Mary alone in the restaurant.

Five minutes later, she came over with the food cart again. This time, it was no longer filled with delicious dishes, but brand new plastic containers.

"George has to clean up the kitchen, can the two of us do it?" she asked.

Jian Jing said: "Of course."

The two began to clean up the table, pouring each person's food and wine into containers and labeling them.

Mary noticed that Jian Jing's movements were very careful. She used a clean fork to stir the dishes, stir the soup, and also picked up the wine to observe the sediment under the crystal lamp.

After doing all this, she sealed the things and put a note with her name on it.

"You don't look like a doctor." Mary said.

Jian Jing: "Indeed, you are not. Are you a doctor?"

"I haven't passed the exam for a license yet," she said calmly. "If you want to know why I'm a maid here while studying medicine, you can ask me directly."

Jian Jing said straightforwardly, "Why?" "

My mother used to be employed by the Winter Castle. After she passed away, Leo sponsored my college tuition." Mary said frankly, "In return, I will come here to work during the holidays." Jian

Jing realized that this red-haired girl was a straightforward person, so she got straight to the point: "You don't seem to approve of this marriage?"

"Yes," Mary admitted, and said, "That's right, so I am the first suspect now?"

"Because you took the champagne? NO." Jian Jing said slowly, "It was Leo who poured the wine."

Mary was really anxious and denied it flatly: "It can't be Leo, he loves her very much."

"Then why don't you agree?"

There was a silence.

"This has nothing to do with poisoning. I don't want to answer." Mary said coldly.

Jian Jing tactfully changed the subject: "Who do you think would 'persuade' Leo in this way? If Melanie had drunk a few more sips, he would have been a widower."

Mary looked thoughtful, and after a while, she said: "I don't know, maybe Mr. Hollen is right, this is intimidation."

"Intimidate who?" Jian Jing.

Without hesitation, she said, "Of course it's Leo."

"Who wants to threaten him? We are all friends who came to attend his wedding." Jian Jing blinked, remembering the experience at the pizza shop at noon, and asked tentatively, "Could it be... someone in the town?"

A trace of haze appeared in Mary's eyes: "Bana is not a famous place. I don't know if it is the case in your country, but in Bana, everyone knows each other, and many people have lived here for generations. They don't like Winter Castle."

"Why?"

"Land." She said coldly, "The Sal family bought a lot of land, some of which were other people's ancestral property. When they were short of money, they sold the land, but then they said the Sal family took advantage of the situation."

Mary's speech speed became faster: "I think this is what happened: during the day, among the people who came to the castle to help, there was a guy who was deeply resentful. He found a way to poison somewhere, and he didn't have to harm Melanie, anyone would be fine, as long as he could get revenge on Leo."

It makes sense.

But Jian Jing instinctively believed that Mary was not telling the truth, at least not the whole truth.

While talking, the two had already packed up and worked together to send the lunch box into the underground ice cellar. This is a purely natural cellar, which can maintain a low temperature in the cold winter without any equipment.

Mary found an iron box, put the box inside and locked it. She

handed the key to Jian Jing: "I think you don't trust it in my hands, so I'll give it to you."

"You seem to trust me a lot?" Jian Jing was surprised.

Mary said: "You have nothing to do with Leo, so you are the least suspicious. Of course, the other man is also, but he doesn't look reliable at all."

"Thank you for your trust, I will keep it well." Jian Jing put the key in her pocket.

Mary: "It's late, I'll take you back to your room."

"No, I know the way."

"There are many forks in the castle, some of which were reserved for servants in the past. Don't wander around, it's easy to get lost." Mary warned meaningfully, "If there are any strange sounds, it's the wind."

Jian Jing smiled: "Okay, I remember."

The two parted ways.

But unfortunately, the way back was peaceful for Jian Jing, and she didn't hear any strange noises.

The fatigue from the journey had not subsided yet, so she didn't visit the castle again. She took a hot bath early and turned the mattress over to the harder side.

Then, she turned on the wall lamp and wrote down her thoughts in her notebook.

Strychnine, only Melanie's wine was problematic (?)

Indiscriminate killing? Specific target?

Leo, Winter Castle, what was the strange noise?

Melanie ate very little, was she worried? Premarital phobia?

Kimberly (Melanie's cousin), she was very concerned about marriage? Reason?

Holen (hidden last name?), the first to make a threat

Mary didn't approve of the marriage, she and Leo?

Real estate? The attitude of the people in the town towards the Winter Castle

There were so many doubts, more than the hair that had fallen out.

Jian Jing only thought for a while before she was drowsy from all the worries.

Before she knew it, she really fell asleep.

In the middle of the night, a strange and ethereal singing woke her up.

From the cracks in the ceiling, from the partitions in the wall, from the deep underground water pipes, a strange singing came. The syllables were very vague, and it was hard to tell what language it was. It should not be English, French or Chinese.

The tune was very strange, up and down, not pleasant, vague, sometimes close, sometimes far away.

Jian Jing felt that it was indeed the sound of the wind, and then she suspected that she was being fooled.

She couldn't tell, and she climbed out of the bed in frustration and went to the bathroom.

"Ah!" A shrill scream came from under the floor.

Jian Jing: "..."

How could it be fixed? It happened to be the time to go to the toilet.

She hurriedly solved the physiological problem, grabbed the phone, and rushed out. Panic footsteps came from all corners, converging from all directions to the guest room on the second floor.

The person screaming was Kimberly, who lived downstairs with Carl.

The door opened, and Carl hugged his panicked wife and looked at the corner in shock.

There, sat a skeleton dressed in gorgeous clothes.