Chapter 55: Aftereffects of Poisoning

Previously, Lü Chunqiu had heard that Wu Miao’s agent was a senior family member who kept him under strict control. Now, seeing it firsthand, she realized it was indeed true.

Still, the trick of giving him something to chew on seemed effective—Wu Miao finally settled down somewhat and gnawed away at his teething stick in his seat.

“Thank you,” Wu Miao’s agent breathed a sigh of relief and offered her thanks to Lü Chunqiu.

Now that her artist was under control, she finally had a moment to chat with Lü Chunqiu. “Are you his agent?”

“Yes,” Lü Chunqiu replied, feeling Mo Fei’s forehead. Sensing it was a bit cold, she took off her suit jacket and draped it over him.

“The doctor just said he ate the most of those toxic mushrooms, so the aftereffects might hit him hardest,” the woman said, her eyes tinged with sympathy. “Fortunately, they’re not lethal mushrooms. Once this passes, he’ll be fine.”

Lü Chunqiu blinked and glanced at Mo Fei, tempted to pry the teething stick out of his mouth to make him stop chewing. All he ever thought about was eating, and now, of course, he was the first to suffer from food poisoning.

Yet she still couldn’t make sense of the situation. “That restaurant chosen for the end-of-shoot banquet is an old, reputable one. How could something like this happen?”

The woman shook her head, indicating she didn’t know.

“It’s precisely because it’s an old establishment.” Officer Xiao Xu, reading a newly received message, sighed and walked over to the patients, phone in hand to show everyone. “This is a photo my colleague just took in the restaurant’s kitchen, of some mushrooms that hadn’t yet been cooked. Experts have identified them as Amanita subjunquillea, also called the ‘Deadly Little Angel.’”

He swiped to another photo. “And this one is Psathyrella amygdalinospora, another toxic mushroom commonly mistaken for edible ones in poisoning cases. If ingested, there’s a seventy percent chance of poisoning, and the fatality rate is also seventy percent.”

“The hotel owner said business has been good lately, so they’ve been buying more and more varied mushrooms from local farmers. Luckily, for their chicken soup, they picked long, slender mushrooms for appearance’s sake. The two kinds that hadn’t been cooked yet are deadly if consumed by mistake.”

“We’re trying to notify everyone who dined at the restaurant today to come to the hospital for a check-up. If any of you know someone who has dined there recently, please let them know as well. Food poisoning is no small matter.”

Chaos erupted among the family and friends accompanying the patients. Some shouted about suing the owner, others demanded compensation, some voiced their lingering fears, and many, not having caught what the officer said, asked others for clarification. The hall was soon a hubbub of noise.

Officer Xiao Xu was surrounded by people asking how this would be handled and could only patiently reassure them in a gentle tone.

The one thing to be grateful for was that the mushrooms they ate were not fatal.

If a death had occurred, the situation would have been far more complicated.

The restaurant would certainly be closed, and compensation was inevitable. Now it all depended on the attitude of the owner and whether the victims wished to pursue the matter further.

Lü Chunqiu pressed her forehead and let out a long sigh.

This must be an unlucky year—so many things had gone wrong.

She resolved to visit a temple to burn incense, then a Taoist shrine to pray, and finally even a church for service.

Try everything, leave no stone unturned in seeking good fortune.

Whichever method worked best, she’d devote herself to it with renewed vigor!

As Lü Chunqiu was mentally organizing her plans, Wu Miao suddenly leapt up with a loud “Wow!”

Both Lü Chunqiu and his agent were startled.

Wu Miao began swaying and flailing his limbs as if he had no control over them.

His agent immediately called for the doctor, looking as though she would have preferred to sedate him then and there.

Lü Chunqiu’s gaze fell on Mo Fei, who lay on his chair with his eyes closed, clutching it tightly. She suddenly felt he wasn’t so difficult to manage after all.

He had eaten the most mushrooms, yet was the quietest of all.

Wait, was he dead from poisoning?

She checked his breathing and breathed a sigh of relief.

Thankfully, he was still alive.

In truth, Mo Fei’s unusual calm was due entirely to the overwhelming dizziness that made the world spin around him. Even while holding onto something solid, he was still dizzy.

Whenever he opened his eyes, it felt as if he’d been thrown into a kaleidoscope—one that doubled as a washing machine drum.

Mo Fei feared he’d throw up again if he wasn’t careful.

Just to feel a little better, he could only hold tightly to his chair and pretend to be a piece of lichen, steadfast and immovable no matter how hard you tried to pull him away.

Officer Xiao Xu finally finished answering all the questions from the patients’ companions.

Those with milder symptoms didn’t even need to have their stomachs pumped; after an IV drip, they could go home and rest.

Given the choice, who would want to stay in a hospital smelling of disinfectant when they could sleep in their own warm bed?

Groups of people helped their loved ones out of the hospital, and gradually, only a few people remained in the emergency room.

Officer Xiao Xu glanced at the clock. It was nearly dawn.

He approached Lü Chunqiu and asked, “Do you want me to give you all a lift home?”

At this hour, with the patients stable, he could finally call it a night.

Lü Chunqiu’s eyes were bloodshot from exhaustion. She didn’t try to put on a brave face and nodded in gratitude. “That would be a big help, thank you.”

Officer Xiao Xu reached out to help Mo Fei up, but when he tugged, nothing happened.

Puzzled, he used more force and ended up lifting both Mo Fei and the chair together.

When he released his hold, the chair crashed to the floor with a thunderous bang—enough to startle anyone who’d been up all night.

Lü Chunqiu became alert, eyes wide. “What’s wrong?”

Officer Xiao Xu’s expression was oddly complicated. “I don’t know—he just won’t let go of the chair, and besides…”

And besides, for reasons he couldn’t explain, every time he looked at Mo Fei he felt an urge to slap handcuffs on him and bring him in for questioning.

The previous night had been too chaotic for him to notice, but now that things had settled down, the impulse was impossible to suppress.

His rational mind told him it was wrong to treat someone who hadn’t committed a crime like that.

But his instincts screamed—just cuff him!

Had he caught this odd compulsion from his mentor?

Officer Xiao Xu was left both surprised and uncertain.

Having been jostled, Mo Fei suddenly opened his eyes and stared intently at Officer Xiao Xu.

His gaze was nearly enough to make the officer feel guilty, but before the tension could build, Mo Fei gagged.

Lü Chunqiu, alarmed, quickly called for the doctor.

Mo Fei waved her off. “No need. I just feel… a bit nauseous.”

He covered his mouth, his complexion ashen.

Seeing he was still coherent, Lü Chunqiu relaxed but scolded him, “The doctor said you ate the most, no wonder you feel the worst.”

“Were you a starving ghost in your past life?” Lü Chunqiu moved forward to help him up.

“Wait, hold on.” Mo Fei raised both hands to stop her, then slowly sat up on his own. After a moment to steady himself, he began to breathe heavily. “But those poisonous mushrooms were so delicious…”

He couldn’t help but lick his lips.

His words left the other two speechless.

“I think I finally understand what went through the mind of the first person who ever ate a crab,” Officer Xiao Xu said, shaking his head.

Not a starving ghost, but something even more extreme.

Lü Chunqiu shook her head as well. “I finally get how people figured out how to eat all those poisonous things.”

As long as you survive the first time, just keep trying until you never die from it.

That kind of spirit—truly remarkable.