Yu Deng walked forward with a tense expression on his face.
He wasn't sure what to do next or where to go. He just knew he needed to stay far away from his troublemaking stepson.
Yes, now the stepson had earned the label of "troublemaker" in Yu Deng's mind.
The viewers in the live stream were enjoying the drama.
[Dengdeng's serious expression when he's upset is so cute. I'm going to be overwhelmed by cuteness!]
[Baby, you're like a grumpy cat.]
[If it were anyone else, I'd think it was making a big deal out of nothing. But if it's Dengdeng, then I support him too much. He must apologize.]
[But I can understand the stepson's position. It seems like Dengdeng drew a special role that's different from other newcomers, so the stepson might think he's trying to test him.]
[Well, from the gameplay perspective, the stepson didn't do anything wrong.]
[But that doesn't stop me from criticizing how he's treating his wife's wife, being scared and not knowing how to console her, and even testing her.]
"Why are you walking so fast, little mom?"
Cheng Xiao, tall and long-legged, quickly caught up with Yu Deng.
Yu Deng looked at Cheng Xiao with his slightly reddened, beautiful eyes. He didn't say anything, but his gaze seemed to convey a lot of grievance.
Cheng Xiao clicked his tongue.
It seemed rather unreasonable.
Forget it, he caused this trouble, so he might as well try to make amends.
Cheng Xiao grabbed Yu Deng's sleeve to prevent him from leaving. "I didn't finish what I was saying."
Yu Deng pouted slightly and said, "Then say it now."
Suppressing the urge to press his lips, Cheng Xiao said, "I just felt that it was disrespectful for a butler to bypass you and give orders to handle those guests."
In a sense, this was indeed Cheng Xiao's true feeling at the time, so it wasn't a lie to say it now.
"Sorry, little mom. Next time, I'll consult with you first about these matters."
Yu Deng, with his clear, distinct eyes, looked at the stepson for a few seconds before nodding. "Alright."
Since the stepson had apologized, he would graciously remove the "troublemaker" label.
Cheng Xiao lowered his gaze and looked at Yu Deng for a few seconds, almost unable to resist pinching his face.
So easy to appease.
He wondered if his long-deceased father, whom he had never met, could have easily soothed his little mom as well.
Meanwhile, excluding the Mediterranean man, the other players were, under the guidance of the veteran player, scattered around the mansion, chatting with people to try and find some clues.
The instance had started in the afternoon, and after a lot of commotion, it was soon dark.
Cheng Xiao, carrying a box he had taken from a servant, was walking back to the original mansion when he happened to run into two players.
"Hey, Cheng Xiao," said the tall, thin man among them, using the name given by the instance. "What are you carrying and where are you going?"
Cheng Xiao stood on the steps, giving the two of them a faint glance. "It's none of your business."
The tall, thin man wanted to get angry but was stopped by the woman beside him. She forced a smile and said, "This instance is a difficult one, and there's no competition among players. We need to work together to uncover the truth; otherwise, none of us will survive."
They were most afraid of someone like Cheng Xiao, who had both the courage and capability—someone who was not easily deceived and didn't follow orders. Seeing him about to leave, the woman quickened her speech. "The clues are all mixed up right now. We only know the surface situation, and the testimonies from the Cheng family members are insufficient. When we talked to Cheng Wenhao earlier, he didn't provide us with many clues."
"The butler told us earlier that unless there are special arrangements, guests must return to their rooms before ten o'clock at night. It's best to follow the rules on the first night. We need to search for clues quickly before the time is up."
Cheng Xiao shrugged. "Then go find them."
The tall, thin man almost doubted whether Cheng Xiao was pretending to be clueless. "Your identification card is better than ours. If anyone can find clues more easily, it would be you. You need to come with us."
"Stop trying to boss me around. If you want to go, go yourselves." Cheng Xiao was already impatient.
The corners of the young man's mouth held a habitual smile, but his eyes were dark.
"Besides, aren't you veterans? Let me think, you must have some life-saving items and skills. A newbie like me shouldn't go and make things worse."
The two veterans indeed had ways to save their lives, and their expressions changed slightly at being called out.
"Alright, I need to deliver food to my stepmom."
Cheng Xiao glanced at the box in his hand and inexplicably thought of Yu Deng's angry face, saying casually, "If I'm late, he'll probably throw a tantrum from hunger."
The veteran players thought, "Is this guy really interested in that NPC?"
"Cheng Xiao, tomorrow morning, we're all having a meeting. Make sure you come," the woman called out.
Cheng Xiao was already out of sight.
...
At this moment, Yu Deng, the NPC himself, had returned to his room to rest for a while.
He locked the door, drew the curtains, turned on all the lights, sat on the bed to relax for a bit, and started organizing the clues he had gathered since entering the instance, trying to deduce who the murderer was.
After pacing around the room and sorting through the clues for a long time, Yu Deng found his mind even more muddled and regretfully gave up.
The good news was that while walking around, he accidentally discovered that the bedroom had a door concealed by decorations and patterns, which he hadn't noticed in the dim light initially.
When he unintentionally pushed it open, he found it led to a private bathroom.
There was a flush toilet, a simple shower, a bathtub, a sink filled with various bottles, and a small hook.
In the context of a century ago, these were indeed luxuries only affordable by wealthy families.
Yu Deng carefully tried the faucet and found that normal hot water flowed out. Moreover, there was clearly nothing hidden in this space.
If he were to take a very quick shower, it should be fine.
Perhaps it was because he had witnessed the tragic state of that bald man, but Yu Deng kept feeling a faint smell of blood on himself, along with a sticky sensation, making him want to take a shower.
Or maybe he could just endure it.
Yu Deng hesitated for a long time, and the system couldn't stand it anymore:[Host, you now have a special identity. As long as you don't reveal your identity in front of the characters within the dungeon, you generally won't be a priority target for attacks.]
Yu Deng's eyes lit up as he opened the wardrobe, pulling out a change of clothes and a bathrobe. After rummaging through the compartment for a while, he found the only pair of underwear.
At that moment, there was a knock on the door.
"Who is it?"
"Little Mom, it's me. Open the door."
Yu Deng casually tossed the clothes onto the bed and opened the door a small crack. He exchanged a few seconds of eye contact with Cheng Xiao before fully opening the door.
Cheng Xiao squeezed in and said to Yu Deng, "Something happened today, and it's a mess. Aunt and the other concubines don't feel like eating, so the food is being sent to their rooms. I brought yours along the way. Little Mom, you should eat first."
Yu Deng responded with an "oh."
To be honest, he was a bit hungry.
He softly said thank you, without wondering why his stepson insisted on bringing him his portion. He simply carried the box to the small round redwood table.
Yu Deng opened the box and saw a porcelain bowl with a serving of rice, clear soup, and vegetables inside.
It was plain and didn't look very appetizing.
Yu Deng wrinkled his nose but didn't feel like being picky.
Cheng Xiao took the opportunity to look around his little mom's room.
At first glance, he didn't see anything special, just some ordinary furniture.
Cheng Xiao's gaze inadvertently fell on the large bed in the center of the room and suddenly froze.
A few pieces of clothing were scattered on the bed.
A small piece of white fabric was carelessly thrown onto the bed. Because the fabric was so thin, the color of the bedding could be seen through it.
Does Little Mom even throw such clothes around?
And he directly opened the door to let him in—Isn't he afraid of being seen?
Yu Deng didn't notice anything unusual. He looked at Cheng Xiao curiously and hesitated, "Do you want to watch me eat?"
"I won't disturb you, Little Mom."
Cheng Xiao stood for a moment, glancing at Yu Deng's profile, and then quickly left the room.
After finishing the bland dinner, Yu Deng carried the empty bowl back to the kitchen.
On the way, he encountered a maid with braided hair who quickly took the box from him. "Madam, let me take this."
Yu Deng was about to thank her when he heard a conversation from nearby.
"You two, must you do such things at home before the wedding?" A woman scolded angrily. "Now, everyone knows that you're out of line. Zhi Yue too, she's usually so easy to manage, yet today she's been acting up with him."
Yu Deng stood at the top of the stairs and looked up to see the eldest daughter of the Cheng family and her son's fiancée approaching.
Miss Lin, looking ashamed, couldn't lift her head and seemed about to cry.
Yu Deng met her embarrassed gaze and politely looked away.
It wasn't unusual for the Cheng family's direct descendants to encounter each other in their mansion, but the scolding felt a bit strange.
Cheng Chaoxia awkwardly cleared her throat and said stiffly, "Little Yu, you and Xiao should keep watch for the first night. Wenling is still on her way back. I'll have them keep watch tomorrow night."
Yu Deng: "…"
Keep watch? For a vigil? Could he refuse?
[Ding! Player Yu Deng has triggered the side quest: Vigil-Keeping
Note: If the side quest is not completed, the player will face certain penalties.]
Yu Deng frowned.
What? There are side quests too?
"After ten o'clock in the evening, remember to come over," Cheng Chaoxia finished assigning tasks and hurried away.
Yu Deng was left with the nephew and his fiancée, who were likely older than him. The three of them looked at each other, unsure.
Miss Lin glanced at Yu Deng, seeming to want to ease the tension, and turned to her fiancé. "Wenhao, don't some of your classmates handle case investigations?"
"Yes, some of them studied abroad. I heard they studied criminal investigation."
Lin Zhi Yue lowered her head and spoke softly, "I see. I hope they can help find the culprit quickly."
Yu Deng nodded in agreement.
After bidding farewell to the couple, Yu Deng returned to his room. Although the side quest was worrying, he decided to take a towel and bathrobe and head to the bathroom.
The shower facilities here weren't as comfortable as modern amenities, but at least he could take a hot shower.
There were no unexpected issues during the shower. Yu Deng quickly cleaned himself, put on his bathrobe, and prepared to change clothes.
However, this was the troublesome part: there was no place to store clothes in the bathroom, so he had to change outside.
Yu Deng picked up the clothes on the bed, shook them out, and realized something was missing.
Yu Deng: "…"
His memory was foggy. Where were his underwear? He distinctly remembered preparing them to be placed here.
Yu Deng, refusing to believe the situation, searched every corner of the bed, looked around on the floor, and even reopened the wardrobe to check again.
He found nothing.
Could he really have remembered wrong?
[Baby, open the comments quickly, Mommy will tell you where it is.]
[There's a pervert; I won't say who.]
[Be careful, Little Deng; some bad dogs are insidious.]
"System, have you seen my underwear? Could it be under the bed? I dare not look down there." Yu Deng had to ask for help from his own system.
[It's not down there.]This kind of harmless little help doesn't count as cheating, and the system quickly gave an answer.
"Then where did it go?"
The system euphemistically stated, [Ordinary fabric does not have the ability to move, so its movement must rely on some carriers.]
Yu Deng pondered for a while.
So it was taken by someone.
Yu Deng was angry.
Well then, who was so despicable as to steal his underwear?