"Do you think this person is crazy? They said the kid could still be saved, what does she want by demanding money here?"
"What does she want? Of course, to extort money, otherwise why would she insist on bringing her sick grandson here?"
"He doesn't look poisoned to me, his face is just a bit pale, nothing else unusual."
"If you eat meat from a pig with swine fever, it doesn't usually present with these symptoms. I remember hearing that if you eat meat from a pig with swine fever, you usually vomit or have diarrhea, why is her grandson lying there so quietly? These symptoms really don't match."
"So, they are really trying to extort money?"
"Most likely."
"..."
The old woman's liver was about to explode from anger hearing these people disbelieve her. She had put on a show under the sun all this time, only for these people to turn against her because of a few words from a busybody. It was infuriating.
However, thinking of her objective, she had to continue until the boss of this establishment willingly handed over money.
"There's no justice! This black-hearted boss bought rotten pork for us to eat, killing my grandson! Heaven, strike them down with lightning!"
Zhang Liunian twitched his mouth, gave Grandpa Tang a look, and then retreated to find someone to handle the situation on-site. The first stop was the health center.
Soon, medical staff arrived.
"Everyone make way, we are doctors. Let us see the child's condition."
Leading the group was a middle-aged female doctor, Shangguan Zhaoxia, famous throughout Nancheng Health Center as a general practitioner omniscient. No illness could escape her diagnosis for long; she was a doctor of great skill.
This old woman was also from Nancheng, though she lived in the countryside. She had been ill before and had been admitted to Nancheng Health Center, so she naturally recognized the renowned Shangguan Zhaoxia.
But precisely because she knew her, her face turned instantly ashen. She shrieked and lunged forward, "Oh, my poor little grandson, how could you be so miserable, harmed like this by this black-hearted person! Don't worry, Grandma will avenge you and not let them off easily."
As soon as she finished speaking, she even pressed her body onto the little boy, causing his limbs to twitch.
Shangguan Zhaoxia was furious at the sight. She pushed the old woman aside and scolded, "How can you be a grandmother? Your grandson has fainted and his condition is unknown, yet you directly press your body on him? Even if he wasn't sick, you would press him to death. I think you just want him to die faster!"
She really couldn't understand how this old woman acted as an elder.
The child on the ground was only five years old, his constitution was weak, and he was clearly malnourished and ill. If she were to press on him a couple more times, it would be a miracle if he didn't die.
The old woman, caught off guard and pushed aside by Shangguan Zhaoxia, her eyes darkened. But thinking that if her condition was discovered, things would be revealed. Her eyes rolled, and she began to howl into the doctor's ear, "Doctor, I didn't mean to! I was just too worried about my little grandson. Please save him, quickly save him! If you can save my grandson's life, I will work for you like a cow or a horse..."
The old woman dared not lunge again this time. If she did, everyone would surely brand her as the one who killed her grandson. She didn't want to bear such a reputation, but she could still interfere with Shangguan Zhaoxia's diagnosis.
Her tactic was indeed effective. Because her voice was loud enough, she disturbed Shangguan Zhaoxia, preventing her from examining properly. Finally, losing her patience, she ordered someone to pull the old woman away.
"Murder! Murder! You want to collude with this boss to kill my little grandson! I'll fight you!" The old woman dared not let go. If Shangguan Zhaoxia found out the cause of the illness, she would end up in jail.
"Who exactly wants to harm your grandson? Everyone here can see clearly." Zhang Liunian, who had just returned, saw the old woman causing trouble again and immediately spoke out.
The surrounding people had also seen clearly. This old woman was just there to cause trouble, willing to harm her own grandson for compensation. Doctors had already been called, yet she was hindering them, preventing her grandson from receiving medical treatment. This was clearly problematic and an attempt to cover up the truth.
This old woman was definitely up to no good.
"Who is black-hearted? The grandson's life is hanging by a thread, and she's preventing him from being treated. What a cruel heart."
"If this were my mother-in-law, I would kill her."
"If there really were a heaven, it would strike this old thing down first."
"..."
Listening to everyone's words, the old woman knew it was over, truly over.
What made her even more distraught was that Shangguan Zhaoxia, without her interference, quickly diagnosed the child's unconscious state.
"This child is in this condition because he ingested sleeping pills. The dosage was quite high. Even if sent to the health center for a stomach pump, there's no guarantee he will wake up, but we will do our best." Shangguan Zhaoxia said this, but still, she immediately ordered the little boy to be rushed to Nancheng Health Center.
But as soon as she spoke, the crowd erupted. It turned out there was no issue with the pork at all, only meticulous planning. To scheme, they would even drug their own five-year-old grandson, they were worse than beasts.
"Pah! And you wrongly accused the braised meat seller. So it was you, you old hag, trying to extort money that led to this. Shameless."
"Pah! Why doesn't such a wicked old thing die? How could she bring herself to harm such a young child?"
"Old hag, is this child not your biological grandson!"
"It's quite possible, otherwise how could she be so heartless."
"..."
The crowd was merely speculating, but they had guessed the truth.
This little boy was indeed not the old woman's biological grandson, but a child bought from human traffickers. Initially, they treated the child well, as their son and daughter-in-law had been childless for eight years.
Who would have thought that only three years after buying the child, their son and daughter-in-law would have a biological grandson? With a biological grandson, the bought one naturally became dispensable.
Using him to extort money was not the first time their family had done it. However, they had only done it in Jiangcheng before and had not dared to do it in Nancheng. Yesterday, Young Master Tang had paid them a hefty sum to do it. They had momentarily been blinded by greed and agreed to do one last job, but because of a busybody, it led to their ruin.
"Everyone, don't worry, I've called the police. I believe the officers will seek justice for that poor child." Zhang Liunian was stunned, he hadn't expected the old woman to have given the medicine. However, adhering to the principle of better safe than sorry, he had indeed called the police.
"Who are you, and why are you minding other people's business? You damned scoundrel, are you too full of yourself with nothing to do, having to pick a fight with an old woman like me?" Seeing the truth exposed by Shangguan Zhaoxia, the old woman, disregarding everything, charged at Zhang Liunian, wanting to tear his face apart.
But before she could succeed, Zhang Liunian kicked her aside and sneered, "You came to my shop's doorstep to cause trouble, and you're not allowed to seek justice for myself?"
"What? You are the owner of this braised meat shop? You owe me money, or I'll smash myself to death at your shop's door and haunt you even as a ghost." The old woman was dumbfounded, she hadn't expected such a young man as Zhang Liunian to be the owner of this popular braised meat shop.
"Still thinking about money? You should explain to the police why your grandson was given a large dose of sleeping pills!" Zhang Liunian flicked his sleeve, which the old woman had almost touched, as if there was something dirty on it.