Chapter 417: Chapter 417: The Critical Time Point
"I know, you’ve already told me the symptoms and the time they occurred, but I want to ask, the day before or maybe two days before the symptoms appeared, did the elder visit any place, or eat something from outside? Do you have any recollection of that?"
"My mother, she usually just stays at home, tending to her plants, spending most of her time sitting in the yard, soaking up the sun. She rarely goes out."
"But son, now that I think about it, she did go to a temple fair that one time. I went with your Aunt Guizhi to the fair, and after coming back from the fair, that reaction occurred. I haven’t been since then."
"You mean, you went to the temple fair on the east side of the town? Ah, I didn’t pay attention to that; I’m always so busy with work and hadn’t noticed this point. What’s the matter, Dr. Liu?"
"Madam, please try to remember. At the fair held in that town, did you eat or drink anything? Did you have any contact with other people? Do you remember anything about that?"
"That day, the fair was bustling. I can’t remember what I ate or drank; it’s been too long, I truly can’t recall."
While she was speaking, although she seemed quite helpless, Liu Zheng understood her perspective, after all, her age was there for all to see.
Asking her to recall something from two or three days ago might be possible, but asking her to remember something from half a year ago was not necessarily something even he could do.
"Alright, I’ve finished applying the medicine. Now, you don’t need to touch these wounds anymore. Starting today, take the medication I’ve given you, and that’s all you need to worry about. After 7 days, you can officially get out of bed and move around the yard a little. Slowly, you’ll be able to fully recover."
"Okay, I understand, Dr. Liu. Thank you, thank you so very much."
"It’s nothing, madam. If anything comes up in the future, just inform Mayor Liu and I’ll come over personally to examine you. Now, you rest up, and I’ll be off."
After saying goodbye to the elderly lady, she left the room, with Mayor Liu following close behind.
So, when Liu Zheng was describing the old lady’s condition inside, Mayor Liu sensed that his questioning was not without reason; it must be related to the illness she had contracted this time.
But Mayor Liu was somewhat puzzled.
Just yesterday, Liu Zheng clearly said it was related to that flowerpot, but now, why did he suddenly suggest a relation to the temple fair? What exactly was it related to? Even he was getting confused.
"Dr. Liu, what exactly is going on? Why did you suddenly ask about my mother, if she had gone out, suggesting something untoward happened to her outside?"
"Yes, that’s a possibility. So, I wanted the old lady to try hard to remember, but I’m asking too much of her. After all, it’s been so long, and it’s unlikely she can recall it now."
"But, didn’t you tell me yesterday that this was related to that flowerpot? Does it not have anything to do with the flowerpot anymore? Is there another connection now?"
"Mayor Liu, what I’m going to tell you next is related to this illness. It may sound confusing, but it is the truth, and I hope you can trust me. I’m definitely not spouting nonsense here."
"Dr. Liu, how could I not trust you? After consulting so many famous doctors without a solution, we’re close to finding one with you. I will take every word you say seriously, go ahead."
"Firstly, half a year ago, you visited a temple fair, and now I suspect that the elder came into contact with a certain substance there. You could understand it as her being poisoned by someone."
"What are you saying? Poisoned? Who did it? And why would they want to poison my mother?"
"I’m not sure about the specifics, but I do know that a certain element exists in her body, which is one of the triggers leading to her illness."
"A trigger? So that means it’s not the main element? What’s the main factor then? Are you implying that the main factor is that flowerpot?"
"I want to ask about the timeline, which is very important. Did you come into contact with those flower seeds first, or the temple fair?"
"The flower seeds came first, but those flowers were just starting to bloom when we went to the temple fair. Yes, it was the flower seeds first and then the temple fair."
"The flower seeds were just laying the groundwork. Afterwards, there was this trigger—meaning that when these two substances combined, they caused a reaction in her body. Any one of these things on their own wouldn’t cause a reaction in the body. Do you understand what I’m saying?"
"I get it. Are you saying that separately, these things might not be toxic to the human body, but when combined, they create a toxin? And this toxin manifests as skin lesions in the elderly lady, is that right?"
"Exactly, Mayor Liu. There’s a reason they say you’re an educated man; you understand immediately. That’s exactly what happened. So, that flowerpot is one of the main reasons for her body’s current skin lesions."
"Who could it be? Why would they do such a thing?"
"I’d like to know, who gave you those seeds? And they did tell you the seeds were imported from abroad, right?"
"Yes, I bought those seeds from a small vendor. He even showed me some pictures, and I thought the flowers were extraordinarily beautiful. I had almost never seen anything like it, so I bought them. To tell the truth, the seeds weren’t expensive; they only cost me 50 yuan."
"Did you approach him first, or did he come to you?"
"I remember I was sitting at the door then, and I saw him passing by with his load. You know I love flowers, so I approached him to see if there were any new varieties, and that’s when he recommended these seeds to me."
