Chapter 1240: The Authorities of Boya Pavilion Get to the Bottom of the Truth
It was already 5 PM, but none of the ladies mentioned their intentions to leave, partly because the host had yet to announce the end of the gala and they had yet to receive the gifts. Another reason was also that everyone was waiting for the host to get to the bottom of the truth. The waitresses also did their best to help by serving tea, snacks and dried fruit.
The incident may seem like a terrifying event that happened during the gala. Although it was daunting and unbelievable, everyone felt thankful that it did not happen to them.
However, things were different for the owner of the Boya Pavilion. Now that things had escalated to this point, they were completely implicated and the owner could not just use a quick method to resolve the matter and stay out of it. Once the gala ended and word about the incident spread to the public, Boya Pavilion would be at a huge disadvantage and the reputation of the Heiress’ Gala would also be ruined completely.
The owner and Wen Xinya seemed to be speaking to each other amicably under the porch. They looked so harmonious that no one would have expected that they had just had a harsh conflict.
The owner of Boya Pavilion was deep in thought while Wen Xinya remained calm and composed. The two of them exchanged verbal attacks and Wen Xinya managed to gain the upper hand.
At this moment, one of the waitresses entered the porch together with an elderly man.
The owner asked gently, “Thank you for going to the trouble, Old Mr. Sun. How did the investigation go?”
Now, the owner simply wanted to put an end to the matter, for fear that there would be unwanted trouble if it were to drag on. After all… Wen Xinya was not to be trifled with and still had Old Mr. Mo to support her.
Perhaps, others did not understand Old Mr. Mo well enough and only found him to be cool and aloof. However, the owner knew clearly that Old Mr. Mo would never spare anyone who crossed the line and pushed his limits.
Old Mr. Sun stroked his grayish-white beard before saying, “I’ve looked into it and discovered some jimsonweed powder in the tea and snacks that have been served to the ladies. The person who poisoned the food is familiar with Traditional Chinese Medicine. Hence, he or she could precisely add the correct amount of powder so as to make it undiscoverable.”
Fortunately, he was proficient in Traditional Chinese Medicine and hence, could differentiate between different herbs and medicines. Thus, he managed to find some jimsonweed residue in the tea dregs and plates that the snacks were placed on.
Most importantly, it was a busy day for the staff since it was the day of the gala. Hence, they did not have enough time to clear and wash all the dishes. That was the reason he could find out everything within a short period of time.
Everyone got a great shock after hearing his words.
The owner’s face grew sullen and she said, “That just proves that Lin Yingxin was speaking the truth about jimsonweed.”
As long as it was verified that there was indeed jimsonweed involved, it would be easier to find out the rest of the matter. They would be able to find out some clues.
Besides, there was another important clue—the waitress who had served the tea and snacks to Wen Xinya. Clearly, the waitress knew that the tea and snacks were all spiked and hence, had placed them in front of Wen Xinya accurately.
They decided to put the issue about the snacks and tea appearing in front of Lin Yingxin’s table aside for now.
Since there were so many clues, it would be easy to find out what actually happened and they would soon be able to trace back to Xia Ruya.
The lady cook in charge of the kitchen exclaimed, “Madam, I didn’t spike the food and tea. I was stricter with the staff today because of the gala…” Her eyes then darted around, as if she was afraid that others wouldn’t believe her. She then seemed to have suddenly thought of something and frantically said, “Miss Xia was the only person who entered the kitchen, apart from the few helpers whom you have arranged.”
The owner of Boya Pavilion asked, “What was Miss Xia doing in the kitchen?”
The cook frantically said, “Miss Xia said that you told her to go inside the kitchen to help out with the preparation of snacks and tea.”
Her explanation was reasonable and hence, Xia Ruya became the only suspect.
After hearing the cook’s words, everyone reckoned that Xia Ruya had something to do with the matter.
The lady in charge of the pantry said, “Madam told Miss Xia to teach us and give us some tips about brewing floral tea, and pair them with the snacks provided. Miss Xia was afraid that something would go wrong and hence, she gave us instructions before the gala started.”
The owner asked, “Who else entered the pantry apart from Miss Xia?”
After giving it some thought, the lady shook her head and said, “The pantry is an important room in Boya Pavilion and it contains a plethora of famous tea leaves and tea sets. We’ve never dared to be careless even during normal times. We were even stricter today because of the gala. No one else has entered the pantry except Miss Xia. The surveillance camera footages are proof.”
Hence, that meant that Xia Ruya had entered the pantry too. That made her even more suspicious.
The lady in charge of serving the tea said, “Miss Xia has once reminded everyone that we have to serve the floral cakes and tea together. We also have to pair them according to the preferences of the ladies. Miss Xia seemed to have been very familiar with the taste preferences of the ladies and hence, we paired the individual sets of cakes and teas before serving them. However, Miss Wen doesn’t like lilies, so we specially instructed the cooks to make a floral cake that’s of a different flavor.”
The lily-flavored floral cakes in Boya Pavilion tasted wonderful and they would receive high ratings during every Heiress’ Gala. Hence, there would always be a lily-flavored cake in every set of snacks. After hearing Xia Ruya’s words, the cooks obviously wouldn’t dare to serve the lily cake to Wen Xinya.
In that case, it would be easier to tamper with the cakes and tea since the waitresses would know that the unique set was meant for Wen Xinya.
The owner’s face grew more and more petulant, and to make matters worse, she heard the waitress who had served the snacks and tea to Wen Xinya and Lin Yingxin say, “Since the cakes and tea had been paired beforehand, I knew exactly that the lily-flavored cakes were meant for Miss Wen. However, I accidentally knocked over Miss Du’s teacup and in a moment of panic, I served the wrong set of snacks and tea to Miss Wen. I only found out when I went back to the yard, but…”
However, there was no time for her to change the set of snacks anymore. Back then, she thought to herself, I can’t afford to offend the guests and the owner. Anyway, there’s only one lily cake in every set of snacks. If Miss Wen doesn’t like it she can just not eat it. I’ll just pretend I don’t know.
Everyone then understood why Lin Yingxin was the one who ended up getting poisoned.