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墨書 Inktalez
"Take this lipstick for testing; I believe we might find something," I said to Guan Zengbin.
Guan Zengbin nodded, took the lipstick, and placed it in an evidence bag. "If that's the case, I'll head back to the lab and take a closer look."
Liu Si glanced around and then said, "You know, that guy named Jesse doesn't have equipment as professional as ours. What will he do next? Can he even tell if there's something wrong with the lipstick?"
I looked at the business card Jesse had given me: Jesse Detective Agency, located in Nara City.
I shrugged. "I believe he can. It just takes a little thought to come to that conclusion. However, he didn't take the lipstick back for testing. Perhaps his investigative approach differs from ours. But we'll definitely encounter him again; there's no need to rush; we'll have plenty of opportunities to cross paths."
"We should check outside the villa. I think it's crucial to figure out how the murderer managed to take someone away," I said while walking out. "These kidnappers are quite professional. When they entered Liu Fei'er's room, aside from taking her, they hardly touched anything else. The bags in the closet could easily sell for thousands, yet no one bothered with them."
But that one lipstick had been tampered with—was it accidental or intentional?
Gu Chen remarked, "To avoid leaving unnecessary traces and for greater benefits, they disregard small gains. Those who can restrain themselves are capable of accomplishing great things."
Unexpectedly, Liu Yinyan was still standing at the staircase. Upon seeing us come out, she asked, "Any leads?"
I pondered for a moment while accompanying Liu Yinyan downstairs. "I suspect Liu Fei'er returned to her room after lunch. Then about an hour later, someone knocked on her door but received no response. After opening the door, they discovered she was missing, right?"
Liu Yinyan nodded. "I haven't heard this before; how did you know?"
"It's just a guess. If that's the case, I must be honest—the person who kidnapped your daughter is very professional. Judging by their methods, they were quick and left no trace. Aside from that one lipstick that was touched, nothing else in the room was disturbed. There were many valuable items in your daughter's room, yet they didn't take a single one."
As I spoke, Liu Yinyan's expression gradually hardened. "Yes, after seeing the room, that was my first impression too. You know my position; many people want to profit from me. I'm not afraid of those who seek easy money; I'd be willing to pay whatever they ask for. What I fear is encountering an opponent whose intentions are unclear."
I sighed. "I'm afraid your intuition this time is correct; your daughter has been missing for nearly two hours now. Yet there hasn't been any movement from the kidnappers. If I'm not mistaken, they won't be calling today either. But you don't need to worry too much; your daughter is unlikely to be in immediate danger."
A long sigh escaped Liu Yinyan's lips as he said, "There's nothing we can do now."
I helped the old man sit on the sand and said, "But I need to give you a heads-up. We're going to be staying at your place for a while, so if we cause any inconvenience, please bear with us."
"What are you talking about? There are plenty of rooms upstairs," Liu Yinyan waved his hand dismissively.
"Right!" I quickly added, "There's one more thing. If the kidnappers call, make sure to stall them. To be honest, your phone and line have been tapped. As long as someone stays on the line for three minutes, we can pinpoint their location. Please don't impulsively agree to anything they say because once they achieve their goal, the best way to escape is to eliminate the hostage. I hope you understand."
Liu Yinyan looked at me in silence. He sat quietly on the sand, far from the spirited man he appeared to be in photographs. It was evident that his daughter's situation had taken a heavy toll on him; otherwise, at this moment, he should be steering his company rather than sitting here looking exhausted.
Before being a venture capitalist, he was first and foremost a father.
"I'll head back to investigate the lipstick issue," Guan Zengbin said to us. "I'll come back with results, and if you find anything new, bring it along."
As Guan Zengbin went back to test the lipstick, the rest of us circled around the villa.
Standing beneath Liu Fei'er's balcony, I turned to Gu Chen and asked, "Do you have any way to climb up in five minutes?"
Gu Chen examined the wall and replied, "This wall is very clean and smooth; it seems like it's regularly maintained. However, there are no footprints on it, which means they were wearing shoe covers. And those covers are quite clean—just look at the ground beneath us."
Both Liu and I glanced down at the ground.
Gu Chen continued, "No matter how clean this floor is, people have walked here. So those shoe covers must have been worn when this person was airborne. They likely had tools—something like climbing claws—to grab onto the balcony railing and then used a rope to climb up."
"Won't that alert Liu Fei'er?" I asked with a furrowed brow.
"Liu Dao said, 'If Liu Fei'er is playing a game with her headphones on, she probably won't hear this sound. Gu Chen, you're the best at this here; how about you do a live simulation? Try to see if you can climb up using just a rope within a few minutes.'
Something still felt off. Even if Liu Fei'er couldn't hear anything, she would surely notice a person coming out onto the balcony, especially since she was facing that direction.
Criminal simulations are the most intuitive form of expression, and Liu Yinyan has many servants, so we hardly need to lift a finger; everything is almost prepared. Gu Chen threw the grappling hook upward and pulled on the rope with enough force to support his weight. He began to climb.
Climbing up using only a rope and one's own arm strength is no easy feat. Despite his efforts to ascend as quickly as possible, it actually took him far longer than five minutes. The wall was vertical and made of special materials that were very slippery, making it difficult to use his legs for leverage.
However, when it came time to descend, Gu Chen barely took a minute.
After conducting this experiment, it became clear that climbing up in five minutes is not an easy task. If someone like Gu Chen, who is all muscle, couldn't manage it, then I doubt many others could either. Could it be that they used a retractable ladder? That seemed unlikely; the target was simply too large.
I stood beneath the balcony, tugging at my hair and pondering how I would act if I were the murderer.
First of all, I would belong to a highly professional gang. This gang cannot afford any mistakes; if something goes wrong, it would be easy for law enforcement to trace back to everyone involved. Engaging in overly risky behavior is not an option, which is why this gang had been scouting for quite some time.
The best time to strike would be at night, but Liu Fei'er isn't home every evening. She only returns during lunchtime. Sometimes, the safest places can be the most dangerous ones. Liu Yinyan has hired numerous bodyguards for Liu Fei'er; they follow her everywhere except for one place—Liu Fei'er's bedroom.
People often let their guard down in places they consider safe. So actually, I had already come to the balcony at night and quietly slipped into Liu Fei'er's room, spending the night under her bed. During that time, out of boredom, I picked up a lipstick and examined it.
Around noon, after Liu Fei'er finished lunch and went upstairs to play games, I quietly approached from behind and used a sedative to knock her out before carrying her on my back. Using the rope, I quickly made my way down to the ground. With a tug, I secured the rope; at that moment, someone was already waiting below to assist me.
If this were the case, bringing a retractable ladder would definitely be easier than bringing another person along. Suddenly, an idea struck me: if I feared being discovered, it would be simple—bribe the security guard. If one could kidnap a billionaire worth tens of billions, then bribing a security guard would cost significantly less.
The security guard is employed by the property management and isn't specifically under Liu Yinyan's control. Therefore, it's time to investigate this matter."
However, we needed to check for any signs of someone hiding under Liu Fei'er's bed, so we hurried to her room. I pulled back the dragged-down bedsheet and looked underneath. The height of the bed was sufficient for a muscular man like Gu Chen to crawl under, possibly designed this way for easier cleaning.
I turned on the police flashlight and shone it inside, revealing fine dust that had fallen onto the bed slats. The left side and the middle were noticeably cleaner, indicating that someone had crawled in from the left side and then crawled out again. As they entered and exited, their clothes naturally brushed off the dust on the bed slats.
This confirmed my suspicion; they had chosen a cautious approach. It was likely they had bribed the security for double insurance. However, the security personnel were the most unreliable link in this chain and also the most prone to issues, so this security guard might be in danger.
“Liu!” I quickly called out to Liu Dao, “Get all the security personnel in the villa area here immediately. I need to ask them something.”
“Understood,” Liu replied.
I was about to search for useful information on Liu Fei'er's computer when Guan Zengbin called me: “Wu Meng, I just found a substance on the lipstick that you won't believe.”
“What else could it be besides a chemical? Liu Fei'er's skin?” I asked.
“Exactly, but there was also another person's skin present,” Guan Zengbin said.
My eyes lit up as a scene flashed through my mind. A kidnapper, bored during the night, had swiped Liu Fei'er's lipstick across their own lips or arm. This seemingly trivial act could be our significant breakthrough.
“There's more,” Guan Zengbin continued. “We found a bit of dog blood on it.”
“What kind of blood?” I asked again.
“Dog blood, as in blood from a pet dog,” he replied.
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