Chapter 137: The Frugal Miss Yali
"This way, please."
Yamason led King onto a sightseeing cart. It took over ten minutes to reach the villa. Needless to say, the villa was magnificent. Inside, a dozen maids were busy. A police officer was sitting on a large, cotton-soft sofa in the living room.
"Esteemed heroes, this is Officer Mei Lei. He is responsible for liaison work between the Yali Conglomerate and the Police Department. Regarding the young lady's disappearance, we hope you will cooperate fully to rescue her as soon as possible."
Bang smiled and stepped forward to greet him. "Hello, Officer Mei Lei. My name is Bang." He then introduced King and the others one by one.
"Hmph."
Mei Lei coldly looked at the members of the hero team, letting out a muffled grunt from his nostrils in response. He seemed to harbor a great deal of hostility towards them.
Well, almost all police officers probably harbor hostility towards the heroes of the Hero Association. After all, the appearance of heroes stole their rice bowls, leaving them with almost nothing to do. Citizens even once called on the government to abolish the police department, making them burn with fury and hate the Hero Association to the bone.
Of course, some of the Hero Association's higher-ups also intended to replace the police department and expand the association's influence. Therefore, many things were aimed at the police, such as heroes always arriving late whenever officers encountered Mysterious Beings.
Over time, the friction between the two organizations grew.
Yamason looked at Mei Lei's undisguised hostility toward the hero team, frowned, and scolded, "Officer Mei Lei, I hope you can adjust your attitude. Your task is to rescue our young lady as soon as possible, and the hero team is here to assist you. I know there's a rift between you, but I hope you can put aside your prejudices on this matter and cooperate fully. Otherwise, don't blame our Yida Group for being discourteous."
The saying goes, "Even a prime minister's doorman is a seventh-rank official." When the seemingly gentle old Yamason furrowed his brow, he exuded an unexpected authority that silenced the room.
Mei Lei retorted stiffly, "Mr. Yamason, do you think this group of guys who only know how to fight will be of any help to the case? Asking them to be bodyguards is a good choice, but asking them to be detectives... Tsk, it's simply a disaster."
King looked at Mei Lei with displeasure. *Did we feed you gunpowder or something?*
Yamason said faintly, "At least they provided an investigative scope for the Romantic Killer, unlike you people, running around like headless chickens."
"The Romantic Killer's investigation scope?" Mei Lei's expression changed slightly. "Hmph, Mr. Yamason, don't be fooled by them. Most of these so-called heroes are nothing more than street thugs with glib tongues."
"I can judge for myself." Yamason glanced at him coldly, then detailed Child Emperor's analysis, along with King's additions, to Mei Lei. He then said forcefully, "Officer Mei Lei, please notify the Police Department to investigate the Romantic Killer according to this scope. I need to see results within three days. Otherwise, hmph, a lot of people might lose their rice bowls over this."
"They analyzed all that?" After listening, Mei Lei looked at King and the others in disbelief. After a long moment, he reluctantly nodded. "I understand, Mr. Yamason. Our Police Department will do its best to give you a satisfactory result."
"Mr. Bang, my apologies for the wait. Please follow me this way. I'll show you the young lady's room."
King shrugged. "It's fine. We're the ones who snatched their rice bowls, after all. Cutting off someone's livelihood is like killing their parents. The fact that he isn't already screaming for our heads is a pretty good outcome."
"Haha, you have a peculiar sense of humor, Mr. King."
Yamason paid it no mind and led King and the others to the master bedroom on the second floor.
Surprisingly, compared to the luxuriously decorated living room, the master bedroom was quite simple and plain. A bed, a desk, a cabinet, a TV, and a computer. The walls were equally simple, with only a few posters of game characters on them and nothing else.
Yamason saw the surprise in their eyes and explained with a smile, "The young lady isn't fond of luxury."
"..."
*That's a weak explanation!* It was like the Daoguang Emperor of the Qing Dynasty, who was famously frugal and liked to wear patched clothes, but having one patch sewn on cost several taels of silver. Yes, extravagant frugality. Nothing wrong with that.
On the desk sat a bouquet of withered roses and a dazzling diamond ring.
Child Emperor walked up to the desk, which was taller than him, and jumped right on top of it. He squatted on the desk, examining the roses carefully, his small face serious. "Mr. Yamason, the police have already checked the roses and the diamond ring, haven't they? Did they find anyone else's fingerprints?"
Yamason shook his head. "The police have thoroughly inspected the young lady's room, inside and out. Aside from the young lady's fingerprints, no others were found."
Child Emperor nodded. "You said that Miss Yali drove away the day before yesterday and never came back, and that her phone is unreachable. No one knows where she went. Did you ask the police to check the street surveillance footage? It should give some clue as to where Miss Yali was heading, right?"
"Yes, I've seen that footage as well. The young lady drove out of the city, and the trail went cold near the border of Z-City. Because the traffic around the edge of Z-City is complex, with roads leading to various other cities, it's impossible to determine her destination for now. The Police Department is following up on this lead and will notify us as soon as they have any news."
"Oh, so right now we only have two leads. The first is the theory that the Romantic Killer is responsible. The second is that Miss Yali drove off and disappeared near the Z-City border. Until we find something new, we can only investigate along these two lines."
Child Emperor licked his lollipop and said helplessly, "In other words, we can only wait for news from the police investigation!"
Bang said calmly, "Among the hero team, only you, Child Emperor, have any experience with investigations. You take the lead. The rest of us will handle the eventual rescue."
King asked thoughtfully, "Mr. Yamason, could you take me to your game room to rest?" *The Yali Conglomerate's recreational facilities are so comprehensive, there must be a game room, right?* he thought. *Well, it's not like I'm any help with the investigation anyway. I might as well play some games.*
Yamason frowned. "There is indeed a game room in the villa. It's a place the young lady often visits. Mr. King, how did you know there was a game room in the villa?"
Child Emperor's eyes lit up, and he clapped his small hands. "That's right! Uncle King, you're so observant! Miss Yali is the head of a major conglomerate, and yet her room is so simple. But she has posters of game characters on her wall. That means Miss Yali must be an avid gamer. With her financial resources, she would definitely indulge her hobbies, so there must be a game room in the villa to suit her tastes."
He looked at King. "Uncle King, is my analysis correct?"
King looked at Child Emperor, speechless. *Yes, your analysis is perfectly logical, but it has absolutely nothing to do with what I was thinking! Besides, what does this have to do with solving the case? Child Conan, can you please be serious for a moment?*
(end of chapter)