Li Dashan wasn’t stupid. He immediately caught the key point in Shen Qingli’s words.
He asked in disbelief:
“What do you mean? Are you saying my mother got into trouble because she ate that wood ear vegetable?”
“That’s impossible! I didn’t eat it today, sure—but I ate it yesterday and the day before! There’s no way it had a problem!”
“The reason I didn’t eat it this morning was because I’d already had it for several meals in a row—I was sick of it! That’s why I didn’t eat it!”
Shen Qingli didn’t bother arguing with him. Instead, she directly laid out the evidence she had asked Constable Mo to collect from Li’s house.
Then she explained calmly and logically:
“Your Honor, please look. This is the half-eaten dish of wood ear vegetables. Since Li Dashan didn’t eat it, it was most likely all consumed by the old lady.”
“And this basin contains uncooked wood ear vegetables.”
“According to Li Dashan, his mother gathered quite a lot this time—enough that it couldn’t be finished in just a few days. So she soaked all of it in water and would simply take some out when she wanted to eat. Convenient, yes—but also dangerous.”
After hearing this, Magistrate Gu nodded, acknowledging her point:
“What you say makes sense. But I still don’t see a problem. How can you be certain that this old woman’s death is related to these vegetables?”
“Could it be that someone poisoned her food?”
Not just the magistrate—even everyone present was confused.
Wood ear vegetables were commonly eaten by everyone. Especially in warmer weather, after rain in the mountains, mushrooms and similar plants grew abundantly.
People knew that brightly colored mushrooms could be poisonous—but no one had ever heard of wood ear vegetables killing someone.
Seeing that no one believed her, Shen Qingli remained calm and continued explaining:
“Fresh wood ear vegetables are not poisonous. In fact, they are quite tasty and beneficial to the body.”
“But the ones in Li’s household are different. They were soaked in water—and from the looks of it, for a long time.”
“This type of vegetable has a characteristic: in warm weather, if it is soaked in water for too long, it produces a toxin called bongkrekic acid.”
“Once consumed, it can cause poisoning.”
“Normally, this toxin doesn’t kill instantly. But the old lady was elderly and in poor health—her body couldn’t withstand it.”
After hearing this explanation, Li Dashan was stunned.
So… his mother’s death had nothing to do with anyone else?
It was entirely because she ate the vegetables she picked herself?
Then how could he extort money from the doctor?
No—this couldn’t be allowed!
Immediately, Li Dashan began shouting angrily:
“That’s complete nonsense! Just because you say it’s poisonous doesn’t make it true!”
“I say you’re in cahoots with that doctor—trying to clear his name!”
“Your Honor! Please, you must seek justice for my mother!”
After he spoke, the crowd outside began whispering again. Most people were skeptical.
They had all eaten wood ear vegetables before—how could it possibly be so dangerous?
Old Master Li and the Li brothers grew anxious hearing people criticize Qingli, but they were helpless—they didn’t even know if what she said was true.
They could only watch.
Magistrate Gu struck the gavel again:
“Silence!”
Once the courtroom quieted, he asked:
“Shen Qingli, what you’ve said is still only speculation. Do you have concrete proof?”
“There is a physician here—perhaps he can test the vegetables with a silver needle to see if it turns black?”
In his view, poison should be detectable this way.
But Shen Qingli immediately rejected the idea.
“That won’t work, Your Honor.”
Then she proposed a more direct method:
“I have a suggestion.”
“This bowl of wood ear vegetables is here. Please have Constable Mo catch a mouse.”
“Let the mouse eat it. If it dies shortly after, wouldn’t the truth become clear?”
Mo Jingyuan, who had been standing beside the magistrate, was stunned.
Did she just tell him—
A dignified chief constable, a skilled martial artist—
To go catch a mouse?
Was she treating him like a cat?!
However, Magistrate Gu found the idea reasonable and immediately gave the order, ignoring Mo Jingyuan’s silent resentment.
Before long, Mo returned—pinching a mouse by the tail with a handkerchief, clearly disgusted.
The mouse, likely starving, immediately began devouring the long-soaked wood ear vegetables placed before it.
Shen Qingli had already noticed the dish had turned sticky—clearly full of toxins.
But a starving mouse would eat anything.
Soon enough, it had eaten a large portion.
Everyone watched closely as the mouse scurried around the courtroom.
Since it was important evidence, Mo Jingyuan had to keep it from escaping.
The solemn courtroom atmosphere became strangely… comical.
Even the onlookers found it fascinating.
But soon, they noticed—
The once lively mouse began to slow down.
Then it collapsed.
And stopped moving entirely.
Magistrate Gu immediately ordered an examination.
The coroner confirmed: the mouse had died of poisoning.
The result shocked everyone present.
So soaked wood ear vegetables really could become poisonous!
Thinking back, many realized how lucky they had been.
Usually, when people gathered too many, they would dry them for storage and only soak them when needed.
But sometimes, for convenience, they left them soaking for half a day or longer.
After witnessing this, no one would dare do that again.
It was terrifying.
With the truth revealed, Magistrate Gu looked at Shen Qingli with admiration and asked:
“Shen Qingli, do you know medicine?”
She replied modestly:
“I’ve only read a few medical books. It just so happens that something similar occurred in my family before, so I recognized it.”