In Red Heart 3's escape room, there are police officers to help. If players really don't understand what to do, they can follow the police's footsteps to find clues. Although the score will be very low, at least they can pass the game.
In Red Heart 4, without police assistance, players must rely entirely on themselves to deduce and find clues, significantly increasing the difficulty.
The flight attendants' identities also provided significant advantages to those attempting to break into the area. They could check passengers' tickets at any time to confirm their names, and once a crime was committed, they could analyze and deduce information by questioning the passengers.
Xiao Lou has a lot of experience in "remembering faces and names," and it's not difficult for him to remember all the names.
Hairstyle, height, facial features, combined with seat and name, Xiao Lou checked tickets and memorized them, paying special attention to those who showed unusual behavior.
Of the five family members, the little girl, Yu Xinxin, was about six years old. She greeted Xiao Lou with a cute, childlike voice, calling him "Uncle." The child's politeness suggested good upbringing. Her parents were all smiles, and her grandparents were kind and gentle. Their surname, "Yu," was unique in the entire carriage, making it easy to remember. Xiao Lou subjectively deduced that this family was unlikely to be the murderer—their warm and harmonious family had no reason to commit murder.
There were two couples, the boys were named Zhou Quan and Zhou Zheng, I don't know if they were brothers.
Zhou Quan's girlfriend is named Yue Xiaoquan. Both names contain the character "quan," making them sound the same and easy to understand. She has a very pleasant voice and two shallow dimples when she smiles. She has long, black hair, delicate features, and clear, bright eyes, possessing a charming and approachable quality—a truly refreshing and natural beauty.
Zhou Quan and Yue Xiaoquan wore matching light blue T-shirts, each printed with a cute little cat.
Zhou Zheng's girlfriend is named Mo Jiaran. She is the girl who changed seats because she thought the guy next to her was too sloppy. She has beautifully painted nails, a necklace, bracelet, and earrings. Her curly hair is dyed dark brown. She is wearing a matching outfit with her boyfriend and a mini skirt, deliberately showing off her long legs. She is obviously a girl who loves to dress up.
The couple wore matching white outfits, each with a cute little dog printed on the chest.
The couple with cats printed on their T-shirts and the couple with dogs printed on their T-shirts are both handsome men and beautiful women, and they look very well-matched.
The four of them bought half-price student tickets.
Xiao Lou noticed this and casually said, "Four of you, let me see your student IDs."
The four of them cooperated and produced their student IDs.
Zhou Quan and Zhou Zheng are both science and engineering students from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC). The former studied computer science, and the latter studied materials physics. Their student IDs show their birth dates, and it turns out they were born on the same day.
Xiao Lou feigned interest and asked, "You two share the same birthday, are you twins?"
Zhou Quan nodded and said, "I'm the older brother, and A-Zheng is the younger brother. We're fraternal twins."
Xiao Lou smiled knowingly: "No wonder, they don't look alike."
Yue Xiaoquan and Mo Jiaran both come from Medical School; the former studied clinical medicine, and the latter studied nursing.
Xiao Lou glanced at Mo Jiaran, who was wearing red nail polish, with some surprise. Nursing majors train nurses, and many practical classes require hands-on experience, such as giving injections, bandaging, and changing dressings. If a girl has long nails and wears nail polish, she will definitely be scolded by her instructors. She probably took advantage of the holiday to put on fake nail tips and then painted them, further proving how much this girl loves beauty.
The four are of similar age and are all currently juniors in college.
Their relationship was very close. After they switched seats, the two girls ended up sitting together and whispering something in each other's ears.
After understanding the general situation, Xiao Lou smiled and returned the student IDs to them.
After the four students put away their student IDs, Xiao Lou continued to say to the boy sitting on 8F, "Please show your ticket."
The latecomer's name was Jing Weiguang, a relatively uncommon surname, "Jing," which was also easy to remember. Because he was rushing to catch the train, he was dressed very sloppily. He kept his head down, trying to straighten his wrinkled clothes. When Xiao Lou came over to check tickets, he frantically rummaged through his pocket for his ticket, finally finding it after a long search, and blushed as he said, "N-I'm so sorry..."
Xiao Lou smiled slightly and said gently, "It's alright, no rush."
The ID number on the ticket was blurred out, but the date of birth was still visible.
Compared to the other college students next to him, the latecomer was actually born 6 years earlier than them, and should be around 26 years old. Because he had a baby face and looked very young, Xiao Lou almost mistook him for a student. Now it seems that 26-year-old Jing Weiguang is already working, and his hurried train ride was probably for a business trip.
Xiao Lou returned the ticket to him and continued checking the next row.
Seeing Xiao Lou checking tickets with a smile on her face, the five sisters couldn't help but huddle together and whisper among themselves.
"That flight attendant is so handsome!"
"I like this kind of warm, smiling guy the most. He looks really good when he smiles."
"Should we try to find out his phone number?"
"Isn't this a bit inappropriate?"
"It's not illegal to strike up a conversation with a handsome guy, so what's wrong with it?"
"You're right, then go ahead and do it!"
Although Xiao Lou couldn't hear what they were saying, he could roughly guess from the girls' occasional glances at him that they were talking about him. Xiao Lou didn't mind; they happened to be sitting in the last row. After checking the tickets in front of him, Xiao Lou walked over and said with a smile, "Excuse me, everyone, could you please show me your tickets?"
Disembarkation ticket.
Several girls quickly took out the train tickets they had prepared beforehand.
Liu Xiaoyan, Zhang Xiaoning, Wu Xiaofei, Song Xiaoyu, Cheng Xiaoli.
Xiao Lou: "..."
A very neat and uniform name.
I wonder if the parents of these five girls know each other, how come they all happened to give their daughters the name "Xiao"?
Fortunately, the five girls had very different hairstyles, wore different colored skirts, and varied in height, weight, and build, so it was easy to remember their hairstyles, body types, and clothes.
While checking, Xiao Lou joked, "Your names are so similar. If you had the same last name, I would have thought you were sisters."
The girl sitting in the aisle said, "We grew up together, like sisters."
Xiao Lou asked casually, "Is this a group trip?"
The girl said, "Yes, we take annual leave every year to go on trips together."
The other three didn't speak, but their eyes were all on Xiao Lou, smiling without any malice. Xiao Lou didn't want to chat with the group of girls for too long, so she returned the tickets to them and reminded them, "Girls, when you travel together, be careful."
All five nodded to indicate that they understood.
The train moved forward slowly.
The LCD screen on the top of the carriage shows the current time as 18:30.
Just now, the train departed at 18:00 sharp. Xiao Lou spent half an hour checking tickets. He checked very carefully and got a general understanding of the passengers in the carriages—his main focus was still on Jing Weiguang, who was late for seat 8F, and Zhou Quan, who was in row 8. Yue Xiaoquan, Zhou Zheng Mo Jiaran and her boyfriend, along with a group of five best friends all named "XiaoX".
Just then, Xiao Lou heard the train's announcement system playing. The female announcer spoke in a gentle voice: "Dear passengers, it's dinner time. Our dining car has prepared a sumptuous feast, including hot and sour shredded potatoes, stir-fried beef with celery, and braised pork ribs..."
She rattled off a long list of dishes, then added, "You can dine in carriage number 5 in the middle of the train. We also offer set meals: chicken rice for 5000 gold coins and beef rice for 5500 gold coins. Passengers who wish to use a set meal, please register with the attendant in your respective carriage, and we will deliver your dinner to your seat..."
Xiao Lou got hungry just listening to it.
In Red Heart 3, the escape room was filled with instant noodles every day. It seems the food in Red Heart 4 has improved a lot. I wonder if the train crew gets to eat the food on the train for free?
The passengers in the carriage started drooling when they heard the announcement.
However, the food on the train is quite expensive, so most passengers don't plan to buy food on the train. Instead, they take out snacks they've prepared in advance from their bags. Some people have bought instant noodles and then go to the connecting area between the carriages to find hot water...
After discussing it together, the four couples registered with Xiao Lou for two chicken cutlet rice dishes and two beef rice dishes.
The five best friends brought out bags and bags of snacks; as frequent travelers, they were very well prepared.
Jing Weiguang, sitting on the 8th floor, took a cup of instant noodles out of his bag and said to Zhou Zheng, who was sitting next to him, "Excuse me, could you move aside?"
Zhou Zheng frowned unhappily, but didn't say anything, and stepped aside to let him leave.
After Jing Weiguang had walked away, Zhou Zheng's girlfriend, Mo Jiaran, said coldly, "This guy is so slovenly! He smells disgusting. I don't know how long it's been since he showered. I can't stand it!"
Jing Weiguang was late earlier. Xiao Lou had been in close proximity to him at the car door and didn't smell any obvious odor, but his clothes were wrinkled and his appearance wasn't very presentable. This girl probably took advantage of his sloppy appearance to express her dislike for him.
Zhou Zheng gently coaxed her, " Ranran, don't be angry. There are all kinds of people on the train. From now on, we'll buy sleeper berths when we travel, and the four of us can share a room so no one will bother us..."
Mentioning this topic, Mo Jiaran looked annoyed. She turned and glared at her boyfriend, gritting her teeth as she said, "I warned you a long time ago to buy tickets two weeks in advance, but you insisted that tickets for this train were easy to buy and there was no need to rush... And what happened? In the end, we couldn't get sleeper berths and had to sit in hard seats! Three days, 72 hours! Sitting in hard seats, my back is about to break. I've never suffered like this in my life! Are you stupid? You can't even buy tickets in advance. Can't you be a little more reliable at 20 years old?!"
Her voice was loud, attracting the attention of many people.
Xiao Lou immediately turned around and looked at them alertly.
Zhou Zheng carefully put on a smile and said, "I'm sorry, it's all my fault. I didn't expect that, especially since it's not peak tourist season, all the sleeper tickets for this train would suddenly be sold out..."
Mo Jiaran rolled his eyes and said, "Didn't expect that? Is your brain only filled with physics formulas all day? I asked you to deliver a gift on my birthday last year, and you forgot because you were doing experiments! What kind of girlfriend are you looking for? Go live with your circuit boards!"
Those around couldn't help but burst out laughing when they heard this.
Zhou Zheng's face turned red and then white as he was scolded.
Zhou Quan, who was standing next to him, whispered to try and calm them down: "You two stop arguing. I'll ask the train conductor if we can pay the difference and get a sleeper ticket."
He stood up from his seat, walked over to Xiao Lou, and politely asked, "Excuse me, are there any sleeper tickets available on this train? Can we pay the difference to move to a sleeper carriage?"
Xiao Lou didn't know either, but he still had to do his job as a train conductor, so he smiled and said, "Wait a moment, let me ask." After picking up the pager, Xiao Lou asked the Train Conductor if there were any vacant sleeper berths, only to be told that the entire train was full. He could only apologize and say, "No."
Zhou Quan frowned and said...
He thanked her and turned to go back.
Mo Jiaran turned her head to look out the window, her eyes red, clearly on the verge of tears. Her boyfriend, having been scolded by her, looked rather unpleasant and stopped trying to comfort her.
Zhou Quan said helplessly, "There are no sleeper berths left, Ranran, just bear with it. 72 hours in a hard seat is really tough. If you can't sit still, just walk around in the train. Tomorrow, maybe someone will get off midway. If there are any berths available in the sleeper car, we'll switch to one immediately."
Mo Jiaran nodded, but she and her boyfriend Zhou Zheng remained silent, seemingly locked in a cold war.
Because the couple suddenly started arguing, everyone else in the carriage was watching the commotion. After they stopped arguing, the carriage became extremely quiet.
Having not experienced the argument earlier, Jing Weiguang returned with a bowl of instant noodles and walked up to Zhou Zheng, saying, "Excuse me, could you please move aside?"
Zhou Zheng was already upset after arguing with his girlfriend, so he naturally wouldn't give him a friendly look. Jing Weiguang assumed that Zhou Zheng was unhappy about him coming and going, so he smiled awkwardly and walked past him with his instant noodles.
As a result, Jing Weiguang tripped over his own shoelaces because he hadn't tied them properly. The instant noodles in his hand spilled out, with chili oil, soup, and noodles all splashing onto Zhou Zheng's chest, staining his white T-shirt in all sorts of colors.
He fed the entire bowl of instant noodles to the dog on Zhou Zheng's T-shirt.
Zhou Zheng probably felt like he'd been electrocuted. He jumped up as if he'd been struck by lightning and yelled, "Are you fucking blind?!"
Jing Weiguang looked apologetic: "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry... I... I'll wash it for you? Or, I'll pay you back for these clothes..."
Zhou Zheng finally found an outlet for his anger, grabbing Jing Weiguang's collar and roaring, "This is a limited edition T-shirt! You can pay for it, but it'll cost 100,000 yuan!"
The tourists watching the play around them looked surprised when they heard this – how could a cartoon T-shirt that looks so ordinary be so expensive?
Xiao Lou was also skeptical. 100,000 gold coins was roughly 1,000 RMB. Could a T-shirt with a dog's head printed on it really cost that much? Was it a limited edition? There were no other markings, just a dog.
Yu Xinxin, a little girl watching the commotion from the front row, suddenly said, "Mom, I've seen that dress before. Doesn't it sell for 1000 in the supermarket?"
Everyone: "......"
The atmosphere inside the carriage instantly became incredibly awkward. Zhou Zheng's expression was about to crack.
The woman immediately covered the child's mouth and said, "Be good, don't talk nonsense."
Children don't lie. Clearly, Zhou Zheng was furious that his girlfriend had scolded him in front of so many people, but he couldn't retaliate against her. The guy next to him happened to be in the line of fire, so he deliberately made things difficult for him.
Jing Weiguang is no fool. It was wrong of him to get his clothes dirty with instant noodles, but demanding 100 times the price in compensation is just too much.
The situation reached a stalemate for a time.
Finally, Zhou Quan, who was sitting by the window, stepped forward and said, "Alright, Zheng, he didn't do it on purpose. You brought so many clothes with you this time, just come with me to the restroom to change."
He looked at Jing Weiguang and said, "I'm sorry, my brother is in a bad mood and didn't mean to extort you."
Jing Weiguang immediately waved his hand and said, "It's alright, it's alright. It was my fault first. I was so careless and dirtied your brother's clothes... Um, were you burned? I'll still pay for the clothes..."
Zhou Zheng said irritably, "No need!"
After saying that, he turned and left. His brother, Zhou Quan, took his bag from the luggage rack, grabbed a piece of clothing, and followed him.
Mo Jiaran glanced coldly at the culprit, Jing Weiguang, and said, "The instant noodles you spilled on the ground are disgusting. You'd better clean them up quickly, the whole carriage smells like your instant noodles."
Jing Weiguang hurriedly said, "I'm sorry, I'll pack it up right away..."
He turned to Xiao Lou and asked, "Hello, do you have a broom or mop? I've dirtied the floor over there, I'll go sweep it up."
Cleaning is the flight attendant's responsibility, and Xiao Lou, already in character, immediately smiled and said, "I'll go clean it up."
Jing Weiguang said, "No, no, no, don't trouble yourself, I'll take care of it myself."
He snatched the mop from Xiao Lou's hand and turned around to mop the floor.
The smell inside the carriage was indeed not very pleasant, but thankfully this luxury train had an air purification system, which Xiao Lou turned on.
Jing Weiguang went to cook a second bowl of instant noodles, and the two brothers who went to change their clothes also returned.
Zhou Zheng took off his matching couple outfit and put on a blue T-shirt with letters printed on it. Mo Jiaran gave him a cold look but didn't say anything.
Jing Weiguang returned with another bowl of noodles. Zhou Zheng simply stood in the corridor and let the other person carry the noodles in first, put down the small table, and sit down. Only then did Zhou Zheng pat his clothes with a sullen face and sit down next to him.
Xiao Lou looked at the couples thoughtfully.
Just now, Mo Jiaran and Zhou Zheng were arguing so loudly that they disturbed almost the entire carriage, but Yue Xiaoquan, who was sitting next to me, remained calm. She was wearing headphones, had picked up her phone, and was listening to music and reading a novel, completely immersed in her own world, and ignoring what was happening around her.
Zhou Quan is Zhou Zheng's older brother. He couldn't stand by and watch his younger brother argue with his girlfriend, so he stepped in to smooth things over.
When his younger brother got into a dispute with a stranger and was embarrassed by the child's inadvertent exposure, he stepped in to take charge, took his brother to change clothes, and politely apologized to Jing Weiguang.
Clearly, among the four, Zhou Quan, the eldest, is calm and composed, and his actions are quite "thorough." His girlfriend, Yue Xiaoquan, doesn't like to meddle in other people's business; even when those around her are arguing, she ignores them and continues reading.
Mo Jiaran has the typical spoiled princess temperament and comes from a wealthy family.
It should have been fine, but her boyfriend was indeed unreliable. He promised to buy sleeper berths but failed to do so, and ended up buying hard seats instead. He had to sit in a hard seat carriage for three days, which would make most people angry. But she lost her temper inappropriately, yelling at her boyfriend in front of all the passengers in the carriage, showing him no respect whatsoever. Zhou Zheng's pride was clearly hurt, and he lowered his head, sulking.
Zhou Zheng kept bowing his head and apologizing to his girlfriend like a grandson, clearly indicating that she held the upper hand in their relationship.
Having just been scolded by his girlfriend and lost face in front of the passengers, Jing Weiguang happened to spill instant noodles on him, which was undoubtedly adding fuel to the fire. However... it would be too much to kill someone over this. After all, the two had never met before. Anger aside, the soaked T-shirt only cost a few dollars, and he could wash it and still wear it. He probably didn't hate her enough to kill her.
There must be something wrong between these two couples.
Especially since their matching T-shirts got stained with instant noodles, Zhou Zheng was forced to change out of his and his girlfriend's matching outfits, which seemed to foreshadow... a breakdown in their relationship.
The author has something to say: This escape room plot will be a bit more complicated and interesting, since there are quite a few people on the train.
Two couples, Zhou Quan x Yue Xiaoquan and Zhou Zheng x Mo Jiaran, and Jing Weiguang who's a bit late, just remember these for now:)
Don't worry about the group of girlfriends for now; it's not their turn to shine yet.