The Sweetness of the Seventies
Chapter 332 - 303: Unlucky Rooster, Detection (6/6)_1

Chapter 332: Chapter 303: Unlucky Rooster, Detection (6/6)_1

Third Grandma Qi and Wang Shuping looked at He Tiantian with puzzled expressions.

"Why can’t we eat it?" asked Wang Shuping, who couldn’t help notice that the sugar cakes made by Liu Lingli actually looked quite appetizing.

"Indeed, anyone who can make such cakes must be a clever girl," Third Grandma Qi also praised.

He Tiantian was anxious, for they hadn’t considered the malice of Liu Lingli.

What she knew, she had learned from the Snake King and didn’t know how to explain.

"I once overheard Liu Lingli talking badly about me behind my back, and she mentioned being jealous of me more than once. You can’t judge a person’s heart by their appearance; who knows if Liu Lingli might poison these sugar cakes?" He Tiantian said. Her words were based on the truth, and she was not framing Liu Lingli.

Third Grandma Qi frowned but said nothing.

Having heard this, Wang Shuping couldn’t help but smile wryly, clearly disbelieving, "Aren’t you overthinking it? It’s just the competitive nature of young girls. Liu Lingli is not a child; could she really do something as grave as poisoning?"

"Mom, you’ve also told me before that we should be careful. Food is not to be trifled with - if there’s something wrong with it and we ingest it, even if we vomit it out, it can still harm our health," He Tiantian urged. "Have you forgotten that right after we fixed up the Peach Orchard, someone came to sabotage it? Even though Hu Erlai and Hu Goudan are dead, think about it—why would those hooligans come to destroy the Peach Orchard when there isn’t even a single peach there?"

Wang Shuping was taken aback and then nodded, "Indeed, your dad and I have always been puzzled about that!"

"Since it’s puzzling, then there must be something fishy! And coincidentally, those two people are dead. How can there be so many coincidences in the world? So I’ve always felt that the person wanting to harm us is still out there; we just don’t know who it is!"

"But we have no grudges with Liu Lingli..." said Wang Shuping, still skeptical.

At that moment, Third Grandma Qi finally spoke slowly, "Shuping, let’s not eat the cakes."

"Stepmother, Tiantian is just a kid, and now you’re thinking like her as well?" Wang Shuping laughed and cried in disbelief, surprised that even her stepmother felt the same.

"Better safe than sorry," said Third Grandma Qi. "I remember when I was young, one of my father’s friends brought us chocolate cake from Shanghai City as a gift. At that time, my father had a favorite concubine who took the cake for herself. It was my father’s birthday, and they celebrated it at the concubine’s place, eating some of the cake. To our shock, when we woke up the next morning, my father and his favorite concubine were tied up and taken to the mountains. Later we found out that the kidnappers had taken my father’s friend’s son, and when he couldn’t afford the ransom, they came up with the plan to kidnap my father."

Wang Shuping was startled. She may not believe her daughter, who was young, but Third Grandma Qi was an elder, and she had lived through the experience herself, which made her reconsider her previous insistence.

"Then let’s not eat it!" Wang Shuping said, "One must always guard against others!"

He Tiantian, holding a few pieces of the sugar cake, went to the backyard.

"Tiantian, what are you doing?" Wang Shuping asked, puzzled. If they weren’t going to eat it, they could just throw it away.

"I’m going to crush a piece of the cake and feed it to a chicken to see if there’s really something wrong with the cake," He Tiantian said. Having spoken, she had already gone to the backyard, tore the sugar cake into small pieces, put them into a separate chicken cage, and then placed a rooster inside.

She wrapped up the rest for evidence.

After washing her hands, He Tiantian came back to have a meal.

Wang Shuping didn’t think much of it, finished her meal, rested for a while, and then went up the mountain with He Tiantian.

Meanwhile, Third Grandma Qi, who had stayed at home, occasionally strolled to the backyard. In the afternoon, she discovered the usually dominant rooster looking listless, as though half-asleep.

This rooster was kept alone, and there were some crumbs left in the cage; the rooster had eaten the cake.

Could it really be an issue with the cake?

Third Grandma Qi took a small wooden stick and poked the rooster a few times. The rooster immediately perked up and became lively.

Third Grandma Qi saw this and let out a small sigh of relief.

Even though she was on guard, her heart still did not wish for such a situation to occur!

That evening, He Tiantian tore off another half of the pancake and gave it to the rooster.

The next morning, when the rooster crowed, both He Tiantian and Third Grandma Qi noticed that the rooster’s call was not as loud as before.

He Tiantian fed the rooster with the sugar pancake three times a day.

On the third morning, the rooster’s voice was noticeably lower, and it lacked the strength in its body; it would only jump when prodded with a stick, and not very high at that.

This pancake has a problem!

Third Grandma Qi, He Jingyu, and Wang Shuping all realized it.

"Shuping, this pancake has problems, doesn’t it?" Third Grandma Qi said skeptically, "I’ve been raising this rooster for several years, it’s always been strong; it shouldn’t be like this without a reason."

Wang Shuping also felt a wave of fear and said, "Yes, if Tiantian hadn’t been cautious that day, we would have eaten those pancakes, and we would be the ones feeling unwell now. But I don’t understand, would a young girl really dare to poison someone just because of jealousy?"

Wang Shuping couldn’t comprehend why Liu Lingli would be so malicious!

"Who knows what that girl was thinking!" Third Grandma Qi remarked, "Maybe someone else was behind it all!"

A remark from Third Grandma Qi led He Tiantian to think even more.

There indeed was someone instigating Liu Lingli, but who could it be?

No matter how much He Tiantian racked her brains, she couldn’t figure out who would commit such a malicious act.

This was practically a fight to the death!

He Jingyu thought for a moment and said, "Let’s do this, let’s not startle the snake in the grass. Tomorrow, I’ll go to Huai City and discreetly take this pancake to Qi Ling so he can help us see what’s really in this pancake!"

"Yes, that’s a good idea." Wang Shuping nodded, "We’ll report it to the authorities after getting a clear understanding of the situation."

Third Grandma Qi looked at the rooster and said, "Jingyu, take this rooster as well for an examination to see what harmful effects the substance might have."

"Yes, stepmother, I’ll take it with me," He Jingyu responded, "During the days I’m away, Shuping, don’t go to the back mountain. Tiantian, you work at the livestock team, you need to be with other people and can’t act alone."

Even though his daughter was tougher than he had imagined, He Jingyu couldn’t help but instruct her so.

"Got it, Dad," He Tiantian replied.

Early the next day, He Jingyu, with the pancakes and the rooster in tow, borrowed Secretary Qi’s bicycle and headed to the county town, then took a bus to Huai City.

When Qi Ling saw He Jingyu, he personally came out to welcome him.

"Uncle He, have you come to Huai City for something?" Qi Ling knew that Uncle He was in charge of the Peach Orchard experimental fields in Qijia Village and was always personally involved. He wouldn’t leave there without important reasons.

*******

I recommend my friends’ completed novels "He Yu’s Farming Chronicles," "Reborn: Spiritual Wisdom," and "Tough Babe Bao."