Chapter 78: Corpse Poison!

Smack!

Ye Tianci struck Song Gaonian across the face with a slap.

“How dare you hit me?” Song Gaonian clutched his cheek, glaring at Ye Tianci in fury. “You brat, I promise you won’t make it out of Qingcheng Hospital alive! Security!”

Song Gaonian shouted loudly. Several hospital security guards rushed in—but not on his behalf. Instead, they were escorting an elder in his late fifties, whose presence exuded authority and command.

The elder’s features were stern, his gait powerful and dignified, radiating the aura of a leader.

“Big brother, that man is Shen Guosheng, the top official of Shucheng. I’ve heard he’s related to Shen Cangyun,” Tang Ying whispered.

Ye Tianci nodded, his eyes sizing Shen Guosheng up and down. By Shen Guosheng’s side was another elderly man in a white coat—the hospital director, Jin Dafang.

Seeing the two approach, Song Gaonian hurriedly scrambled to his feet, plastering a sycophantic smile on his face. “Director Jin, City Lord Shen.”

“Vice Director Song, have the patients been saved?” Shen Guosheng asked urgently.

Longxiang Grand Hotel was the premier establishment in Shucheng, one of the city’s top ten enterprises. An incident of mass poisoning was a severe blow! If the poisoned guests could not be saved, the scandal would be catastrophic.

It would not just shut down the Longxiang Grand Hotel for rectification—Shen Guosheng himself would have to resign in disgrace.

His anxiety was plain.

Song Gaonian, flustered and still clutching his face, stammered, “They’re still undergoing emergency treatment, City Lord Shen. Rest assured, we’ll do everything to save them.”

“Still being treated?” Shen Guosheng’s face darkened, his tone icy. “Weren’t all the patients brought in two hours ago? How are they still in treatment?”

Song Gaonian tried to explain, “City Lord Shen, the toxins these people ingested are highly unusual—”

Shen Guosheng noticed the swelling on one side of Song Gaonian’s face and frowned. “What happened to your face?”

Song Gaonian, adopting a pitiful look, pointed at Ye Tianci for sympathy. “City Lord Shen, this young man struck me. If you hadn’t arrived, I don’t know what else he would have done! You must stand up for me!”

Shen Guosheng’s gaze turned cold as he fixed it on Ye Tianci. “Why did you hit him?”

Ye Tianci replied calmly and without deference, “Because he deserved it.”

Shen Guosheng raised an eyebrow, surprised by Ye Tianci’s composure. Even the most prominent figures in Shucheng approached him with deference or fear. Yet Ye Tianci’s demeanor was utterly unruffled, as if Shen Guosheng were no more than air.

Unable to help himself, Shen Guosheng took a second, harder look at him and spoke with authority. “You hit a man and still think you’re in the right?”

“That’s right—struck him and still so brazen about it! City Lord Shen, you must punish him severely!” Song Gaonian crowed triumphantly, convinced that Shen Guosheng would avenge him.

Before Ye Tianci could reply, Tang Ying stepped forward. “City Lord Shen, I am Tang Ying of the Tang family. I invited Mr. Ye here—and I told him to slap Song Gaonian.”

“He was prepared to let the poisoned guests from my family’s hotel die rather than allow Mr. Ye to examine them. He deserved it!”

Xue Haisu immediately echoed, “Young Master Tang is right. Song Gaonian, puffed up with his title of vice director, did nothing but pull rank and impede Mr. Ye from saving lives.”

“Mr. Ye hit him at my urging, too. I was desperate to save those people.”

Both took the blame on themselves to shield Ye Tianci.

Understanding dawned in Shen Guosheng’s eyes. He glared at Song Gaonian. “Is what they say true?”

Song Gaonian, embarrassed, stammered, “City Lord Shen, I wasn’t strictly stopping him. It’s just that he doesn’t work for Qingcheng Hospital. If he killed someone in treatment, wouldn’t our hospital—”

“Fool!” Shen Guosheng barked. “Just because he isn’t one of yours, he couldn’t save them? If your staff were so capable, would two hours have passed without saving a single life?”

At his rebuke, Song Gaonian bowed his head. Director Jin beside him looked mortified.

“Jin Dafang, let me make myself clear: if any of those poisoned guests brought to your hospital dies, you’ll be peeling garlic in prison!” Shen Guosheng’s voice was cold and final.

Director Jin trembled and hurriedly promised, “Yes, yes! I’ll order everyone to do their utmost—no one will die!”

“As for those who get a little power and let it go to their heads, there’s no need to keep them in this hospital,” Shen Guosheng said, casting an angry glance at Song Gaonian.

Director Jin understood immediately. His face stern, he barked, “Song Gaonian, you’re fired. Pack up and leave at once!”

“What?!” Song Gaonian was dumbstruck. Fired—over such a trivial matter? “You’re firing me over this? Are you serious?”

“Human lives are at stake! Yet you dare call it a trivial matter?” Shen Guosheng roared. “Jin Dafang, get him out of here!”

Shen Guosheng was known for his iron-fisted leadership—decisive, never wavering, and merciless when it came to discipline. That was how he’d earned the nickname “The Iron-handed City Lord.”

“Leave—now!” Director Jin shouted furiously.

Song Gaonian dared not protest, slinking away in dejection. Distracted and despondent, he tripped at the door, falling flat on his face and leaving with a bruised and battered countenance—a fitting end to his humiliation.

Xue Haisu approached Director Jin and whispered something in his ear. Director Jin immediately turned and bowed respectfully to Ye Tianci. “Mr. Ye, may I trouble you to examine the patients?”

Without hesitation, Ye Tianci began to assess the poisoned victims. All exhibited the same symptoms: lips purple, faces ashen, eyes clouded, and every one of them had lost their sight.

“Mr. Ye, it’s neither snake venom nor rat poison. Can you identify it?” Xue Haisu asked quietly.

Ye Tianci replied evenly, “They’re suffering from corpse poison.”

“Corpse poison?” The words sent a jolt through everyone present.

He pointed at the patient on the bed. “Look at the backs of the poisoned—they should all have blackened skin along the spine. On either side of the spine, there will be blue, plum-blossom-shaped patches, spreading gradually outward. For milder cases, the marks may be confined to the back; in severe cases, they may already be spreading to the abdomen. Once the chest is entirely covered, there’s no saving them.”

Director Jin immediately waved for action. “Quick! Check every poisoned patient!”

Doctors and nurses rushed to comply, even the security guards lending a hand.

“This one’s back is completely black, with a dozen corpse spots!”

“This patient’s marks have spread to the belly!”

“My god, this one’s corpse marks have started spreading toward the chest!”

Cries of urgency and alarm filled the air.

Director Jin’s face went pale. He bowed anxiously to Ye Tianci. “Mr. Ye, since you’ve identified the poison, please, save them! I have no wish to end up peeling garlic!”

“Director Jin, there’s no need to panic. Gather all the poisoned patients in a single large room and have them sit up—no one should be lying down. Seal every window and door so there’s no draft. In the center of the room, set up a large iron cauldron filled with water. Add one pound each of glutinous rice, mugwort, realgar, and cinnabar. Boil it over a strong fire. Have everyone sit around the cauldron and inhale the steam. Once they regain their vision, the poison will be dispelled.”

Ye Tianci issued his instructions swiftly.

Director Jin memorized everything and immediately ordered his subordinates to carry out the plan.

With ample hospital staff, it didn’t take long to gather all the poisoned patients in a spacious room with sealed doors and windows. The large iron cauldron was set up, and all the ingredients Ye Tianci requested were added. Soon, a roaring fire was blazing, and the patients sat in a circle around the steaming cauldron, letting the vapors envelop them.

Ye Tianci beckoned Tang Ying aside and spoke in a low voice. “There was a fatality at the hotel, correct?”

“Yes,” Tang Ying nodded.

“Where’s the body?”

“In the hospital morgue.”

With a calm wave, Ye Tianci said, “Take me there.”

Taking advantage of the commotion, the two slipped quietly away toward the morgue.