The case involving carriage number 6 has now been solved.
To confirm, Yu Hanjiang called Liu Yuming over again and asked him if Shu Ping had stolen Li Zhemin's insulin from room number 2 in the early morning. Liu Yuming hesitated for a moment, probably realizing he couldn't hide it any longer, and had no choice but to nod and say, "Yes, I saw Shu Ping open the door, take Old Li's bag, rummage through it, and then leave..."
Yu Hanjiang asked, "Besides rummaging through things, did she touch Old Li's bed?"
Liu Yuming stated definitively, "No, she just took her bag from the luggage rack and put it back."
Yu Hanjiang asked, "Where is Grandma Mei? Has she been in room number 2?"
Liu Yuming remained silent for a long time before lowering his head and saying, "Yes."
Yu Hanjiang asked, "What did she come in for? Did you see clearly?"
Liu Yuming took a deep breath, his voice trembling slightly: "The light was too dim, I don't know what she was doing, but I heard a rustling sound. It seemed like she was pulling back Li Zhemin's blanket and clothes, searching for something on Li Zhemin's body..."
This testimony is sufficient to determine that it was Mrs. Mei who ultimately killed Li Zhemin.
Yu Hanjiang then called Zheng Weiguo over. The gambler, having accepted the IOU the previous night, seemed relieved and quickly fell asleep, unaware of the subsequent commotion. Niu Dapeng, from next door, also said he hadn't heard anything.
Grandma Mei killed Li Zhemin. Liu Yuming and Shu Ping are both witnesses. The syringe, insulin, and fingerprints on the syringe will become physical evidence. Although Yu Hanjiang knows that Shu Ping was also involved, they have already coordinated their statements. As long as Shu Ping insists that Grandma Mei asked her to buy the insulin and that she was unaware of it, the police will be unable to do anything about it.
After putting everyone back in their rooms, Yu Hanjiang frowned and fell into deep thought.
Xiao Lou asked softly, "How should we proceed with this case? Should we arrest Aunt Shu Ping as well?"
Emotionally, Xiao Lou didn't want to arrest Shu Ping. She had been wronged too much by Li Zhemin. Besides, at the last moment, Grandma Mei protected Shu Ping and took all the blame herself, keeping Shu Ping out of the mess... But objectively speaking, Shu Ping was the one who planned everything.
Yu Hanjiang said in a low voice, "We all know that Shu Ping is an accomplice, but there is no physical evidence. The testimonies of several witnesses are also very favorable to her. Little Yu Xinxin only saw her shadow, and she explained that she went to the restaurant to look for an earring; Zheng Weiguo heard her chatting with Grandma Mei, and she can explain that she was giving the old lady insulin; Liu Yuming testified that she went to room number 2 and stole insulin, but did not commit the crime."
Taken together, these testimonies can only prove that Shu Ping sneaked away to steal Li Zhemin's insulin in the middle of the night, but did not kill him.
The murderer was Old Lady Mei.
Xiao Lou asked, " Does Captain Yu mean we should only arrest Old Lady Mei?"
Yu Hanjiang nodded: "She is the one who directly caused Li Zhemin's death, and she is the murderer we need to catch."
Xiao Lou breathed a sigh of relief and said with a smile, "I thought you were going to arrest Aunt Shu Ping too."
Yu Hanjiang said, "Firstly, there is no actual evidence to prove that Shu Ping is the murderer. Old Mrs. Mei is a smart woman. Shu Ping's theft of insulin should have been instructed by her, because many people have already discovered Shu Ping's actions. Without a reason, it is difficult to explain what she was doing for so long in the middle of the night—stealing insulin sneakily is the best reason that can fill all the loopholes."
Yu Hanjiang paused for a moment and said, "Secondly, I also think it's not worth losing two lives for a scumbag like Li Zhemin."
Xiao Lou agreed, "Then let's let Aunt Shu Ping go. Anyway, there's not enough evidence to arrest her. Grandma Mei has already decided to take responsibility and bear everything, so let's just consider it... fulfilling the old lady's last wish before she dies."
Yu Hanjiang nodded.
A notification popped up simultaneously in the floating window in front of both of them—
The murderer who killed Li Zhemin in carriage 6 is: A. Grandma Mei; B. Shu Ping; C. Niu Dapeng; D. Zheng Weiguo; E. Liu Yuming. Please choose the murderer and lock them in the police station in carriage 9, and hand them over to the police after the train arrives at the station.
Yu Hanjiang and Xiao Lou both chose option A.
This option also proves that to clear the Red Heart 4 locked room, you don't need to catch everyone involved in the murder—catching only the one who actually did it is enough.
The two left the office and went to room number 1.
As Grandma Mei was packing her luggage, she saw Yu Hanjiang and Xiao Lou approaching, and the surrounding passengers made way for them.
Yu Hanjiang said in a low voice, "Aunt Mei, come with us."
Grandma Mei glanced at them and said, "Wait two minutes, I have some things to tell you."
She shared the food in her bag with the others in room 1, handed the treasured photo from her pocket to Shu Ping, and gently squeezed Shu Ping's hand. Realizing she was leaving, Shu Ping's eyes filled with tears, and she gripped her hand tightly, refusing to let go.
Grandma Mei smiled and said, "It's alright, your daughter will definitely get better, and you must live well too. You're only sixty now, and you look so young. You're the most beautiful old lady I've ever seen. You should live to at least eighty to make it worthwhile, you know?"
Shu Ping nodded, bursting into tears.
Liu Yuming turned to look out the window, fighting back tears; Niu Dapeng, a tall and stout elderly man, also had tears in his eyes. Others, unaware of the situation, asked in confusion, " Sister Mei, what's wrong?"
Why did you take her away? " Sister Mei?"
Grandma Mei waved to everyone and said with a smile, "It's alright. My legs aren't very good. The two flight attendants were kind enough to let me rest in a spacious place for a while."
She turned around and said to Xiao Lou and Yu Hanjiang, "Let's go."
Xiao Lou gently helped her up, and when others tried to stop her, they were all stopped by Grandma Mei.
Yu Hanjiang and Xiao Lou led her toward the police station in carriage number 9.
Behind her, a group of elderly people watched her leave—her aged figure gradually receded into the distance. Her steps were unsteady, but each step was firm and composed, because she knew that it was all coming to an end.
Shu Ping, Shu Ping's daughter Shu Xiaomeng, and Ruirui's child Li Mo will all begin new lives.
As for her, she was going to die eventually. Dying in the hospital from the pain of bone cancer was no different from being shot dead at the execution ground.
If you think about it carefully, being shot dead would be more satisfying.
The doctor said that chemotherapy is very painful for patients with bone cancer... She was afraid of the pain.
The sun shone brightly outside the window. Grandma Mei squinted her eyes, and a relieved smile finally appeared on her lips.
***
After Mrs. Mei left, the atmosphere in the tour group became somewhat oppressive. The elderly people stopped talking and silently watched as Yu Hanjiang and Xiao Lou took Sister Mei away, and then returned to the scene to take away Li Zhemin's body.
The train conductor ordered that keeping the body in the carriage would affect passengers. Since the case had been solved, Li Zhemin's body should be moved to carriage number 9 for temporary placement, and the police would take him away at the next station.
The train conductor contacted the police at the next station, and once the train arrived, the body, the murderer, and all suspects would be taken away by the police.
Originally, according to the escape room's setup, the police would only arrive after the train reached its final stop. However, since Xiao Lou and Yu Hanjiang completed their mission ahead of schedule, the police will come tonight to hand over the first case.
By the time everything was settled, it was already lunchtime.
The elderly people started eating, but none of them seemed to have much of an appetite.
Mo Jiaran finally fled back to carriage number 4. The door connecting the carriages had been sealed off, preventing her from leaving. She was in a state of turmoil, constantly texting her boyfriend to vent. As soon as the body was removed and the carriage was reopened, she immediately ran back.
Zhou Zheng held her hand and found it was terribly cold. He immediately comforted her softly, "It's okay, Ranran, don't be afraid."
Seeing that her face was pale, Yue Xiaoquan asked with concern, "What's wrong?"
Mo Jiaran lowered his voice and said, "An old man died in carriage number 6. The train attendant just moved the body away. The elderly folks in the senior citizen group said that the deceased seemed to have suffered a heart attack..."
Only a few people involved in the case knew the true cause of Li Zhemin's death; everyone else was still clueless. The official story was that Li Zhemin suffered a heart attack. So, the version Mo Jiaran heard was that an old man died suddenly of a heart attack in the train carriage.
Yue Xiaoquan paused for a moment, then asked, "An acute myocardial infarction?"
Mo Jiaran nodded with a grim expression: "Probably. I heard that the old man has had coronary heart disease and even had a stent procedure."
Yue Xiaoquan analyzed, "That could also be due to a sudden rupture of a coronary artery."
The two medical students actually started analyzing the cause of death of the elderly neighbor...
Zhou Quan interrupted them, saying, "It's not uncommon for people in their sixties or seventies to have accidents while traveling. Let's not talk about this anymore, let's go eat first."
Mo Jiaran didn't want to continue talking about it, so he nodded and said, "It's really unlucky to run into something like this so early in the morning. I didn't even have time to wash my face, and I didn't eat anything for breakfast. I'm starving..."
Zhou Zheng quickly took her hand and comforted her, "I'm sorry you had to go through that. I'll treat everyone to a good meal at noon."
The four of them set off for the restaurant together, ordered several expensive dishes, and enjoyed a delicious meal.
Jing Weiguang from 8F proactively ran over to carriage 6, looked at Xiao Lou, and asked, "I heard there was an accident in carriage 6. I'm a doctor, do you need any help?"
This doctor NPC seems to have been idle for a long time, and finally couldn't stand it anymore, so he took the initiative to run over and ask if he needed help.
Xiao Lou smiled and said, "No need, the matter has been resolved."
Jing Weiguang scratched the back of his head, looking a little confused: "Are you sure you don't need any help?"
Yu Hanjiang thought to himself, " Professor Xiao is more professional than you. He can determine the cause of death directly through on-site autopsy. There's no need for you."
He said casually, "Thank you, but no need."
Jing Weiguang said "Oh," turned around and went back to car number 4 to continue cooking and eating instant noodles.
**
Nothing happened in the afternoon. The passengers in carriage 6 stayed in their rooms and didn't come out. The entire corridor was empty. Yu Hanjiang was happy to have some peace and quiet. After lunch, he simply went to carriage 4 to stay with Xiao Lou.
Yu Hanjiang frowned and said, "The case in carriage 6 has been solved. There are so many people in carriage 4, they can't just be characters in the plot. I have a bad feeling... people might die."
Xiao Lou said, "You mean the next victim is likely in carriage number 4?"
Yu Hanjiang nodded: "The two couples are currently of no use. The five-member group of best friends, although they are connected to Aunt Shu Ping's daughter Shu Xiaomeng and indirectly acted as witnesses, allowing us to successfully deduce the clue about Shu Ping's daughter, I think... the five members of the best friend group will have a lot of screen time, and it might not be over yet."
Xiao Lou agreed with Captain Yu's point of view, saying, "Next, we need to focus on carriage number 4." He then proceeded to organize the previously prepared...
The list of passengers arriving at the destination was handed to Yu Hanjiang, who said, "There are only 12 people in carriage 4 who will be going to the final stop—a couple of four, Dr. Jing Weiguang, a group of five best friends, and two individual passengers going to a concert."
Yu Hanjiang reminded, "The train will arrive at the station at 21:30 tonight, and there might be new people boarding."
Xiao Lou nodded: "That's right, we'll keep a close eye on it then."
Nothing happened that afternoon, and nothing unusual was found at dinner time.
The familiar announcement didn't sound in the carriage until the clock on the train's LCD screen reached 21:20.
A gentle female voice announced, "Passengers, the train will arrive at [Cangzhou] Station in ten minutes. Passengers who need to disembark, please prepare your luggage in advance, take care of the elderly and children, and disembark through the right-hand door in the direction the train is traveling. The train will stop at Cangzhou Station for 15 minutes. Please pay close attention to the platform time. Have a pleasant journey!"
After the announcement, the passengers began packing their luggage, and Yu Hanjiang returned to carriage number 6.
At 21:30, accompanied by the roar of the train, the KP-7311 bullet train arrived at Cangzhou Station on time.
A group of police officers who received the message from the Train Conductor were already waiting at the station. They took away the deceased's body, handcuffed Mrs. Mei, and took all the members of the senior citizens' group back for investigation.
The lead officer walked over and shook hands with Yu Hanjiang and Xiao Lou, saying, "Thank you both for your assistance in the investigation."
Yu Hanjiang and Xiao Lou politely completed the handover procedures with them.
After the police left, the carriage doors opened, and passengers began to line up and disembark in an orderly manner. Little Yu Xinxin curiously asked Xiao Lou, "Uncle, did they catch the thief in carriage number 6?"
Xiao Lou smiled and said, "We've caught them."
Yu Xinxin waved happily at him: "Great, goodbye Uncle!"
Xiao Lou gently patted the child's head and said, "Goodbye."
The family of five turned and left, and many other individual passengers also got off at this stop.
Xiao Lou noticed that four people were queuing to board the bus: a smart and capable professional woman in a suit dress; two female college students dressed simply and neatly; and a young boy with a travel bag and clear eyes.
While checking tickets, Xiao Lou asked, "Are you going to Moon City for a concert?"
The professional woman said casually, "Going to a meeting."
The two female college students shook their heads and said, "We're going on a trip."
The young boy exclaimed in surprise, "You know about the concert too? Luo Yan is my goddess!" After saying that, he seemed a little embarrassed, scratched the back of his head, and said with a red face, "I've loved listening to her songs since I was little, for many years. I saved up my allowance for several months to buy the ticket for this concert, hehe, do you like Goddess Luo Yan too, big brother?"
Xiao Lou hadn't heard of this singer before, and smiled, saying, "I don't listen to music much, but there are many people in the carriage who are going to a concert."
The boy was very excited: "Really? It seems there are many like-minded people! My goddess is indeed incredibly charming."
Xiao Lou discreetly checked the tickets, paying particular attention to one of the names—Xu Junkai.
After the four boarded the train, Zhou Zheng, one of the couples, came over and said, "Hello, I see that all the senior citizens in carriage 6 have gotten off, leaving many beds available. Can we pay the difference to get a sleeper berth?"
For more great articles, please search.
*over*
*Book*
*god*
*stand*
If you like this website, don't forget to bookmark it and recommend it to more book lovers.
Xiao Lou turned and walked towards Yu Hanjiang, asking, "How many empty beds do you have over there?"
Yu Hanjiang said, "A group of university professors who were going to a meeting just came on. The train conductor said that many people in carriages 1 and 2 also want to change to sleeper berths. Currently... there is only one empty berth left, which is right opposite Mo Jiaran."
Zhou Zheng's eyes lit up: "Great! Let's pay the difference and get that sleeper berth."
Yu Hanjiang nodded and accepted the gold coins he was offered.
Fifteen minutes passed quickly. When the two returned to the car, Zhou Quan in car number 4 was helping his girlfriend Yue Xiaoquan carry her luggage, and Zhou Zheng was also helping Mo Jiaran carry a suitcase. The four of them chatted as they walked toward car number 6.
Yue Xiaoquan looked at her boyfriend and said, "I'm actually fine. I can sleep well even if I'm lying down in the hard seat carriage. How about we take turns sleeping? I'll sleep for the first half of the night, and you can sleep for the second half?"
Zhou Quan looked at her gently and said, "You're a girl, you don't need to change, just get some rest."
Upon hearing this, Mo Jiaran looked at Zhou Zheng and said calmly, "Do you need to change?"
Zhou Zheng immediately stood up straight: "No, no, no, the sleeper berths are for you two girls. My brother and I don't mind; we can manage to sleep in the hard seat carriage."
Mo Jiaran said unhappily, "Next time, remember to buy tickets in advance so you don't have to suffer like this."
Zhou Zheng replied with a fawning expression, "Yes, yes, I will definitely remember."
After escorting their girlfriend to carriage number 6, the two brothers gave her a few words of advice and then turned to leave.
Mo Jiaran and Yue Xiaoquan put their luggage away. It was still early, and since they couldn't sleep, they sat on the bed leaning against their pillows, not saying much and just playing on their phones.
Yu Hanjiang looked at them with a puzzled expression.
The two girls were moved to sleeper car number 6. Could it be that something bad is going to happen to them?
***
After the two girls in the adjacent car (car number 4) switched seats, the brothers Zhou Quan and Zhou Zheng sat together, while Jing Weiguang sat alone in seats 8D and 8F. The space was...
It is very spacious.
Xu Junkai, the young man who had just boarded the bus, happened to be seated in the row in front of his group of girlfriends. Hearing that the five of them were also going to a concert, the naturally outgoing Xu Junkai immediately started chatting with the girls. This guy's flirting skills were top-notch. He talked about everything from the goddess's debut single to her latest album, and the conversation got more and more lively. Soon, they had all added each other on WeChat.
Xiao Lou listened intently to their discussion.
Xu Junkai and her group of girlfriends chatted happily until 10 p.m. when the announcement came over the loudspeaker: "Dear passengers, it's late, and the lights in our carriage will be turned off soon. Please get some rest. Good night..."
Xiao Lou heard a familiar announcement: "Attendants of all carriages, please return to carriage 9 to rest as soon as possible."
If the challengers can't solve the case within a day, Li Zhemin's body will remain in carriage 9, and they'll have to sleep with the body overnight. Fortunately, they solved the case quickly enough; the case in carriage 6 is already closed. Since they haven't seen any completion prompts, it means there will be more events to come.
Yu Hanjiang and Xiao Lou weren't sleepy, so they chatted while lying on their bunk beds.
Yu Hanjiang said, " Yue Xiaoquan and Mo Jiaran, who were switched to sleeper berths, showed no abnormalities. They were watching TV series on their phones and went to sleep around 10 o'clock. The group of people who boarded the train recently, as well as the passengers who were transferred from other carriages, were all going to a meeting, and there was nothing suspicious about them."
Xiao Lou said, "There's a boy named Xu Junkai over there who's quite high-profile. He went to a concert and was chatting very well with his girlfriends. This guy knows how to charm girls and made his girlfriends laugh the whole time. The other passengers didn't seem to be acting strangely either."
Yu Hanjiang frowned slightly: "It's a pity that we are restricted from moving and can't get out from car number 9... Let's get some sleep and talk about everything tomorrow."
Xiao Lou smiled and said, "Okay, goodnight, Captain Yu."
Yu Hanjiang whispered, "Goodnight."
***
The next morning, the two were awakened by a familiar alarm clock.
After washing up and having breakfast, the two immediately went to carriage number 6—everything was normal in this carriage, and Mo Jiaran and Yue Xiaoquan were washing their faces together. Yu Hanjiang and Xiao Lou exchanged a glance and quickly went to carriage number 4.
Carriage number 4 appeared calm. Xiao Lou quickly glanced around; some people were queuing to wash their faces, and her group of five girlfriends were sprawled out asleep, still asleep. Xu Junkai, who had just boarded, was waiting at the toilet entrance, with several other people behind him in line.
The two restrooms at the end of the carriage were always marked as occupied (red light).
Early in the morning, there are many people using the restrooms, so it's normal to have a queue outside. However, on the left side, people are constantly coming in and going out, and each person is probably just urinating, taking no more than a minute.
But the restroom on the right...
Ten minutes have passed, and there is still someone there.
Xu Junkai was on the right side of the queue and was getting impatient. The young man gently knocked on the bathroom door and said, "Dude, can you hurry up? I need to pee!"
There was no sound inside.
Xu Junkai continued knocking on the door: "Dude, did you eat something bad? Hurry up, there are a lot of people waiting outside!"
Xiao Lou was startled and turned to look at Yu Hanjiang, meeting his gaze.
Something's not right.
Yu Hanjiang's sharp gaze swept across the carriage; the two brothers in row 8 were nowhere to be seen.
Xiao Lou immediately turned around and went back to the flight attendant's office. He pulled open a drawer and noticed that the key had been tampered with!
The bathroom key was still in the same place, but when Xiao Lou left last night, the key's gears were facing left, but now they were facing right.
Xiao Lou felt a chill run down her spine and immediately grabbed her keys to open the restroom door. Yu Hanjiang, on the other hand, cleared the area, saying, "You can use the restroom in carriage number 6. This restroom might be broken, so please make way."
He chased away all the people queuing nearby before Xiao Lou took out his key and opened the bathroom door.
The bathroom was covered in blood!
Zhou Quan was lying half-reclined on the ground, his clothes disheveled, and his body completely cold and stiff.
His death was extremely gruesome. He had been stabbed multiple times, leaving his body riddled with wounds, with hardly any intact skin. More importantly, his penis had been cut off and thrown into the trash can. His mouth was covered with a common white towel, and the boy's eyes were wide open, as if he couldn't believe... that his opponent had actually killed him.
Xiao Lou and Yu Hanjiang gasped in shock.
If Li Zhemin died peacefully, it means he died in his most beautiful dream.
Therefore, Zhou Quan's death was a cruel torture—the pain he experienced before his death was no less than that of castration plus slow slicing!
Author's Note: For those who still have questions about the group of elderly people in the six cars, please wait for the story card after completing the game, which will tell some stories from the perspective of the son, Li Mo.
The story of the four cars begins.