Chapter 697: Poisoning

"What’s wrong with this cured meat? It hasn’t gone bad. We ate it last time and were perfectly fine." Phoebe Huxley didn’t believe it and went to grab a piece, but Tang Xiaonan stopped her.

"Dollar says we can’t eat it. Let’s give it to the chickens first."

Tang Xiaonan picked up a piece of meat and tossed it into the chicken coop. A few chickens happily pecked at it. They finished the entire piece, and the chickens seemed fine.

"What does a dog know? Just eat it. I cured this meat myself." Phoebe Huxley was about to take another bite when Dollar started whining urgently. He had no strength left, and tears of desperation streamed down his face.

"Don’t eat it. Dogs have a sixth sense. He wouldn’t be crying for no reason."

Felix Thorne also felt something was wrong. A dog crying for no reason was surely a bad omen. For this to happen during the New Year was truly vexing.

Tang Xiaonan grabbed a few more pieces of cured meat and fed them to the chickens. ’Dollar must have discovered something,’ she thought. ’That’s why he’s trying to stop us. Could the meat be poisoned?’

She thought about the dog that had been poisoned at Linden Golding’s house and the chickens her own family had lost. Seeing Dollar in his current state, Tang Xiaonan’s heart began to race. ’Maybe we were wrong. What if it wasn’t a petty thief, but someone deliberately poisoning our animals?’

’That would explain why the person didn’t take the poisoned dog and chickens. A petty thief would have definitely climbed the wall to take them. The courtyard walls of rural houses aren’t high; they’re easy to get over. It makes no sense to go to the trouble of poisoning them just to leave them behind.’

’But who would do this on purpose?’

’In the entire village, only Linden Golding’s family and theirs had been targeted. That meant the culprit held a grudge against both families.’ Tang Xiaonan’s heart pounded faster. The answer was becoming terrifyingly clear.

’Other than Jacqueline Spann, she couldn’t think of anyone else.’

"The chickens are dead! Mom, come quick, the chickens are dead!"

Jim Thorne, who had been watching from the courtyard, burst in yelling. A nerve in Phoebe Huxley’s forehead began to throb. She felt short of breath, and a sharp pain lanced through her chest. Those were the last few laying hens she had.

"What are you screaming about? I’m not deaf!"

Consumed by rage, Phoebe Huxley smacked Jim Thorne on the forehead before storming out. When she saw the chickens fluttering weakly in their coop, the pain in her heart intensified.

’A total wipeout!’

’Not a single one left.’

But her precious daughter was the one who had thrown the cured meat, and she couldn’t bring herself to hit her. So—

"What are you standing there for?! Go get your grandpa to treat the chickens! You’re dense as a brick! Keep wasting time and you can forget about eating eggs! You’ll be eating dirt!"

Phoebe Huxley slapped Jim Thorne on the back again. She felt so stifled that she had to hit something. Jim was baffled by the slap, but he didn’t dwell on it. ’Mom’s always slapping me around every few days anyway. I’d probably feel weird if she didn’t!’

Jim Thorne dashed off to get Byron Thorne, practically dragging him over. Seeing the chickens struggling in their death throes, Byron Thorne shook his head. "They can’t be saved. Best to kill and cure them before they’re completely dead."

A wave of fury washed over Phoebe Huxley, making her vision go black. ’My chickens! The ones I worked so hard to raise for a whole year, all ruined by that damned bastard! If I ever get my hands on the son of a bitch who poisoned them, I’ll chop him into mince and feed him to the pigs!’

"Dad, can you take a look at this meat? Do you think it has rat poison in it?"

Felix Thorne held out the cured meat for Byron Thorne to inspect. A chilling fear washed over him. Thank goodness Dollar had the sense to warn them. Otherwise, his family would have met the same fate as those chickens. ’This poisoner is so ruthless,’ he thought. ’They want to wipe out my entire family!’

’Who in the village wants my family dead?’

He searched his memory. He’d never done anything wicked or harmed anyone. ’Who on earth could the culprit be?’