Chapter 467: The Disappearance Of Mr. Huang (1/2)
Xiaotao grabbed one of the bottles and we walked back to the Necropsy Workshop, ready for further testing.
I pierced the top with a sterilized awl, poured some into a container and tasted it. It turned out that glucose tasted normal so it was the protein we couldn’t stomach.
”Remember the case where our suspect was mistaken for a vampire because of a protein metabolism disorder. Could it be a similar kind of disease?” suggested Xiaotao.
At the thought of the pale vampirish man, I shook my head, ”That’s impossible. Protein metabolism disorder is a genetic disease that produces an allergic reaction with the intake of certain proteins. That’s completely different from not being able to stomach meat. Ours is a problem with taste. Besides, we ate meat in the afternoon and we’re fine.”
”Why wasn’t there a reaction during lunch?” asked Xiaotao.
”Perhaps our bodies hadn’t absorbed the poison at the time,” I speculated.
Even with further contemplation, I was still scrambling to make sense of it all. What was the point of such a poison? Xiaotao began tidying up the workshop, accidentally cutting her finger in the process. As she clutched her finger, I said, ”Don't move, I'll get some iodine to disinfect the wound.”
”It’s a tiny wound,” she argued.
She slipped her finger between her lips and sucked on the blood. As I explained how easy it was for the wound to get infected, I reached for the iodine. But just as I turned around, a thought suddenly crossed my mind. Noticing the look on my face, Xiaotao asked, ”What’s wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?”
”Don’t you feel sick when tasting your own blood?” I queried.
”Not at all,” Xiaotao shook her head. “Is there protein in blood?”
”Yes, a very high content of it!” I said.
”I don’t have the slightest bit of nausea. In fact, it tastes sweet!”
As soon as the words fell from her lips, I had a bad guess as to what the poison did. To verify my hypothesis, I grabbed a sterilized knife, sliced my finger, and tasted my own blood. An attractive flavor spread across my tongue, accompanied by an indescribable sweetness.
I reached out so Xiaotao could taste my blood as well. A moment later, she covered her mouth with shock and cried, ”Goodness, why does your blood taste so good?”
”My blood doesn’t taste good. It's the poison interfering with our taste buds that makes the brain think human blood tastes good.”
”But is the protein in human blood any different from the protein in milk?”
“Of course.”
”The problem doesn’t lie with the bottle of wine but with the person who delivered it. He definitely has ulterior motives.”
”I’ll call my dad now!” said Xiaotao.
Upon realizing she couldn't get through to her father, Xiaotao phoned home. The housekeeper, Mrs. Zhang, said Mr. Huang went out with a friend in the evening. When Xiaotao asked who that friend was, the housekeeper reported it was Mr. Mu, the man who gifted Mr. Huang the bottle of wine.
As soon as she hung up, Xiaotao left the Necropsy Workshop and headed to the technical department to get them to locate Mr. Huang’s position through his cell phone.