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We discussed for over two hours but couldn't find any useful clues. According to Jenny, these sailors, including Gangzi, were introduced by the company. So how did the Bearded Man know that Jenny had the Nautical Chart? One thing is certain: it definitely wasn't through Gangzi. Now that the Bearded Man is dead, there’s no way to verify anything. I initially thought I could uncover some leads, but now I've hit a dead end, going in circles and returning to square one.
"That's strange. How did the Bearded Man know you had the Nautical Chart? Did you know Gangzi before?" I asked Jenny.
"I didn't know him; I hadn't even seen him," Jenny's response confirmed my suspicion. This meant that only someone who knew about the Nautical Chart could have leaked this information to the Bearded Man. But who could that be? What was their motive? Were they connected to that man in black? We still hadn't figured out who he was. Another layer of mystery had emerged; it felt like one problem after another.
"Jenny, who else knows about the Nautical Chart?" Jiao Ba asked again, voicing my curiosity.
Jenny furrowed her brow and thought for a moment before saying, "Not many people know. Besides you all, just my family. Now the sailors on the ship also know."
I scoffed, "Looks like we really have an insider on this ship."
"I think that insider is you. From the moment you boarded, I've suspected your character was questionable. You claim to be a soldier, but you act like a street thug. Now you're here accusing others—it's quite hypocritical," Li Xin chimed in sharply.
I wasn't angry; instead, I smiled at her and said, "I think your character is also questionable. Aren't you being hypocritical as well?"
"You..."
"Alright, alright! We agreed not to argue anymore, so why are we still bickering? Let's put these matters aside for now! Since everyone seems to be free at the moment, that's a small blessing amidst misfortune. We'll temporarily ignore these chaotic issues. Even if we discuss them further, we won't reach a conclusion tonight. It's late; let's all go rest! Tomorrow morning we'll focus on searching for the Wreck and handle the important matters first; everything else can wait," Mai Lao interjected decisively before Li Xin could respond.
We nodded and got up to head to our respective quarters. As I walked along the way, I continued pondering the origins of these events—the collective disappearance of the Bearded Man's subordinates remained a mystery. Were they dead or something else? I couldn't tell, but I had a nagging feeling that this situation was definitely related to someone on our ship. As for who that person was, I would eventually find out.
Just as I reached the door of our resting quarters, I suddenly remembered something I needed to ask. However, this couldn't be known by anyone else. I exchanged a quick nod with Jiao Ba and returned to Jenny's quarters. To avoid Li Xin, I discreetly called Jenny up to the deck.
"What's wrong? Why the rush? You had to come here and make it all mysterious," Jenny said, wrapping her arms around her shoulders, looking a bit cold as the night air carried a strong sea breeze.
I took off my jacket and draped it over her shoulders, speaking softly, "This can't be too public. Let me ask you, how long have you known Li Xin and Mai Lao?"
Jenny replied, puzzled, "It's been a few years. Why?"
"Who did you meet first?" I asked her seriously.
"I met Li Xin first, then Mai Lao. What's going on?" Jenny still didn't grasp my meaning.
"Nothing much. Just asking if Mai Lao was introduced to you by Li Xin?" I was eager to know this detail. If Mai Lao was indeed introduced by Li Xin, it would complicate matters. A proud woman like Li Xin wouldn't have any connection with an old man unless they shared some hidden secret—this was just my speculation.
"No, Mai Lao is a visiting professor at our school and quite well-known. Wait, what are you getting at? You can't seriously suspect them, can you?" Jenny's expression turned innocent as she questioned me.
I pretended to joke, "No, no, how could I? Just asking casually. Come on, let's head back! It's too cold out here."
We each returned to our respective quarters. Shunzi and Jiao Ba were playing poker with two other sailors. When they saw me return, Jiao Ba grinned and asked, "Want to play a couple of hands?"
I waved my hand dismissively, saying, "I'm not interested in that. You all keep playing! I'm going to sleep." Jiao Ba pouted but continued his game with the others.
Lying in bed with my eyes closed, I quickly drifted into sleep due to exhaustion. I slept soundly without dreaming and lost track of time until I vaguely heard someone softly calling my name: "Brother Yi, Brother Yi, wake up."
Then came a gentle shaking of my body. I suddenly opened my eyes and, illuminated by the moonlight outside the window, saw someone standing in front of me—it looked like Jiao Ba. My vision was still blurry. "Who is it?"
"Shh~~~ It's me, Brother Yi." It was indeed Jiao Ba; he had sat down on my bed.
I sat up and glanced at him, whispering, "Are you crazy? Why are you waking me up in the middle of the night?"
Jiao Ba pulled something from his hand and said, "It's not that I want to wake you up. Look at this."
I reached out and took it. It was a note. "What does this mean? I'm not into that kind of stuff." What was this guy doing sending me notes in the middle of the night?
"I swear, I'm serious here. Just read it," Jiao Ba's tone grew more intense, clearly not joking.
I quickly unfolded the note and moved closer to the window, using the moonlight outside to read it. As I finished reading the line, my head buzzed, nearly exploding. It boldly stated, "Take care of what’s in the mouth of the female corpse. If you lose it, watch your life."
"When did you find this?" I hurriedly asked Jiao Ba. I must have been sleeping too deeply to notice someone entering our break room; cold sweat instantly broke out on my forehead.
"I found it when I got up to use the bathroom. The note was right next to my bed. It seems this person has known all along that I had that thing," Jiao Ba's voice trembled slightly. Although he tried to hide it, I could still sense his fear.
I quickly took out the note that the man in black had left for me and compared it. My eyes lit up as I got the result I wanted; the handwriting was almost identical, with some obvious differences.
I showed it to Jiao Ba. "Look, Lao Ba, these characters are practically identical; it must be from that man in black."
Jiao Ba examined it closely and said, "On the surface, the handwriting does look similar, but... there are clear signs of imitation."
"Imitation? Are you saying this wasn't written by the same person?" I could only grasp a general idea; I had no understanding of these detailed identification methods.
Jiao Ba nodded. "Yes, while the handwriting looks almost identical at first glance, there are significant differences in how it's written. An outsider wouldn't notice them, but I've studied this before, so I know a bit."
"Are you saying that someone deliberately left this note to make us suspect that man in black?" I felt something was off, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it.
"Brother Yi, are you sure the first person who left you a note was that man in black?" Jiao Ba's question reminded me. I had always thought so, but I never actually saw who left the note. However, given the circumstances at the time, only the man in black should have known we had the jade pendant.
"I'm certainly not sure, but aside from the man in black, I really can't think of anyone else." This was true; there were only three people present at the time: Jiao Ba, myself, and that man in black. Was there really someone else?
Jiao Ba looked at the note again and said, "For now, let's assume the first person who left a note was indeed the man in black. Analyzing this leads us to two possibilities. The first is that the man in black left the note to mislead us into thinking there was another person involved. But the biggest question is, why didn't he just change his writing style? Instead, he made it so convincing that if we were both amateurs, we wouldn't be able to tell the difference."
"And the second possibility is that there really is another person hiding behind the scenes. By doing this, he could divert our suspicion away from himself. That's quite a cunning move," Jiao Ba's analysis was thorough; this guy's brain was definitely sharp.
After carefully considering everything that had happened, I said, "Yes, your analysis makes sense. But whether it's one person or two remains inconclusive for now. We should check everyone's notes to see if we can find any clues."
"I don't think it'll be that easy. Since he could leave a note, he must have anticipated that we would check the notes. But that's all we can do for now; let's look for an opportunity tomorrow," Jiao Ba replied softly.
I nodded and said, "Alright, it's settled then. We must keep this under wraps. You go and act as if nothing happened with Hatch."
After dealing with Hatch's affairs, Jiao Ba went back to sleep. Since the other party already knew that the Golden Key was in our possession, there was no need for us to feel unnecessary fear. I just couldn't shake off the thought of whether there were others involved besides the man in black or if this was all just a trap designed to confuse us...
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