Chapter 9 The First Suspect
As Foyle’s words fell, the air inside the carriage seemed to freeze.
That accusation caused Liu Hong, who had been sitting to the side with tears in her eyes, to instantly turn cold. She did not retort; instead, her gaze at Foyle grew sharp as a blade.
Foyle adjusted his glasses, clearly satisfied with the shock he had produced, and added unhurriedly, “Classic motives for murder are nothing more than a few: disputes over property, crimes of passion after a broken relationship.”
“Any of these could be enough to provide Madam Liu Hong with motive for murder.”
Then, with a shift in tone, he spread his hands and put on a show of mock seriousness. “Of course, we haven’t officially started the investigation yet; this is just the most reasonable inference based on our current logic chain.”
“Everyone, don’t take it too seriously.”
Was the world’s fourth-ranked detective just throwing out random guesses?
Chen Yu sneered inwardly. As if I’d believe you, you sly old fox. You’re clearly trying to bias everyone, to steer the investigation toward Liu Hong from the outset.
Slouching back in his seat, he broke the suffocating silence. “Since our great detective has made a guess, why don’t we verify it?”
Chen Yu’s gaze turned to Liu Hong, his tone softening. “Sister Liu, do you and Mr. Luo still have the house you lived in ten years ago?”
Liu Hong looked deeply at Chen Yu, the iciness in her gaze thawing a little, replaced by a hint of complexity. “The police concluded it was a disappearance,” she said, her voice thick with suppressed emotion. “So all these years, I’ve never moved out.”
“I always thought, just in case… just in case one day he comes back, he would still know the way home…”
Her words cast a heavy shadow over the carriage once more.
Perhaps everyone present took it for crocodile tears, except for Chen Yu, who believed her feelings were genuine—he had seen, in his “retrospections,” the obsessed look that man had given the photograph before his death. That kind of emotion could not be faked.
“In that case, would you mind if we take a look, Miss?” Chen Yu smiled as he made the request.
“…Yes,” Liu Hong nodded gently, closing her eyes and saying nothing more.
“Great!” Lin Bing immediately ordered the driver in the front seat, “Driver, let’s go to Madam Liu’s house!”
She signaled the crew backstage to temporarily cut the live feed to the scenery outside, in accordance with the show’s usual practice—to give the audience a buffer during transitions, and to let the contestants catch their breath.
“Alright, everyone can relax a little now,” Lin Bing said, resuming her professional smile. “Madam Liu’s house isn’t far, we’ll be there in just over ten minutes.”
“Hey, beautiful,” Chen Yu suddenly winked at Lin Bing, speaking in a roguish tone, “Can I ask you something?”
Lin Bing blinked in surprise, then smiled. “Go ahead.”
“What’s the contestant welfare like on this show? Do you provide meals? I just had a brush with death and I’m starving.”
His lighthearted demeanor instantly eased the tension in the carriage.
Lin Bing laughed, handing him a tablet. “So you really didn’t read a word of your contract? Just have that million-yuan prize on your mind?”
“Here, contestant handbook—see for yourself. The production team covers food, lodging, and transportation. We’re not about to shortchange the ‘undead ancestor’ here.”
Chen Yu took the tablet and lazily scrolled through the pages. But his seemingly casual eyes scanned the crucial information with the speed of a scanner:
Live broadcast from 2 to 5 p.m.… Freely available time outside of that…
All related parties are under big data surveillance to prevent escape…
Live video will be delayed and processed by the back end…
Perfect.
Just what Chen Yu wanted.
These details were far more important than the million-yuan prize. It meant his real hunting time would be outside the view of the cameras. While everyone else acted in the open according to the show’s rules, he, with his “retrospection” ability, would be the only hunter lurking in the shadows.
He tossed the tablet back to Lin Bing and spoke lazily, “I’ve read the rules—plenty of loopholes.”
“Oh?” Lin Bing looked at him with interest. “Tell me, what do you think is the biggest flaw in our show?”
Chen Yu smiled and was about to answer when a sudden, urgent ringtone cut him off.
It was Yan Zheng’s phone.
“Hello?”
Yan Zheng answered, face calm. But after listening for only a few seconds, his square-jawed features suddenly changed color.
“What did you say?!”
He shot up from his seat.
“Send me the address! I’m coming right back!”
He hung up and, without further explanation, turned to Lin Bing with a grave tone. “Host Lin, urgent business—please pull over!”
“Got it!” Lin Bing didn’t press for details and immediately signaled the driver.
Everyone in the car, including the three detectives, watched breathlessly as Yan Zheng hurried off, disappearing around the corner.
With the imposing captain gone, the air in the car instantly felt lighter.
Chen Yu exhaled in relief.
Damn, this Captain Yan always gave him flashbacks to the merciless drill instructor back in the police academy.
The car rolled on. After a short drive, they pulled up in front of a somewhat aged, standalone villa.
Liu Hong’s home.
The door opened. As Liu Hong was about to get out, Chen Yu’s languid, playful voice sounded at her ear.
“Sister Liu, if you don’t mind me asking—these past eleven years, have you lived here alone?”
His gaze swept, seemingly carelessly, over Liu Hong’s well-kept profile, then he grinned slyly. “Or is there a new knight in shining armor?”
The question was skillfully timed—posed at the moment when the subject was most relaxed, it often revealed the truest reactions.
Countless viewers in the live stream held their breath.
Liu Hong’s body tensed almost imperceptibly, but soon relaxed again. She turned, her beautiful eyes brimming with just the right amount of sadness.
“No.”
“In my heart, Xiangdong is only missing, not dead.”
“I’ve been waiting for him to return—how could I look for another man?”
She finished with a soft sigh, her lovesick, steadfast image instantly igniting a wave of sympathy in the live broadcast.
“Is that so?” Chen Yu smiled meaningfully. “It seems your marriage truly was enviably strong.”
He followed behind Liu Hong as she stepped out of the car.
Before them stood an old-fashioned, even slightly peeling, two-story villa.
Chen Yu quickly recalled what he’d read in the contestant manual.
The Xiangdong Group, now valued at a hundred billion.
And this Liu Hong had inherited forty percent of Luo Xiangdong’s shares—undeniably a fabulously wealthy woman.
A woman worth billions, living in such a rundown place for eleven years? Was it nostalgia, or did she have something to hide?
They walked up to the ornate wrought-iron gate.
Liu Hong pulled out her keys, but as she reached the lock, she noticed a gap as wide as a finger—the door was ajar.
The blood drained from her face.
The live camera caught the moment, and the comment stream exploded.
“Damn! Something’s up!”
“Did someone break in? Or is there… someone inside?!”
“This atmosphere is insane! More thrilling than a horror movie!”
With everyone watching intently, Liu Hong’s trembling hand slowly pushed open the gate. The group followed her in, single file.
Just then—
“You’re back!”
A mellow male voice sounded from the living room.
Everyone looked toward the source.
There stood a tall, strikingly handsome man, younger than Liu Hong, dressed in loungewear and holding a cup of coffee, smiling at the entrance.
His eyes were warm and full of affection. When he looked at Liu Hong, there was unmistakable intimacy.
The air seemed to freeze completely.
The expressions on Foyle, Pipe, and Bubble Girl’s faces became priceless in an instant.
A moment ago, she was the weeping, devoted widow, claiming to have waited eleven years for her lost husband…
And now, from her home, emerges a man so obviously close to her?
The live stream, after a fraction of a second of stunned silence, was instantly drowned in a tidal wave of comments.
“????????”
“Holy—! The slap heard around the world!!”
“What happened to living alone, no boyfriend? Her face must be burning!”
“An actress! That’s Oscar-worthy acting right there!”
In the car, Lin Bing—about to get out herself—nearly jumped up at the scene on the monitor.
It was here.
That damned show-stopping moment had finally arrived!