Chapter 47
By the time the 13th player arrived at the gate of Dong's house, all the players in the game had arrived.
After a while, the tightly closed red door opened from the inside, and a butler in a gray coat poked his head out.
"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting. Are you all invited by Master and Madam Hui to attend the eldest lady's wedding?"
The butler came out from behind the door and stood on the steps. Yitu saw the white flower on his chest.
The white flowers highlighted the sadness between his brows, making him look even more haggard.
Even though no one responded to his words, the butler continued:
"Yongle Street has been quite restless lately. A murder occurred this morning. The police are searching for any suspicious individuals..."
"For the safety of the Dong family, please show us your wedding invitations, gentlemen and ladies."
"Murder?" The man with curly hair standing next to the stone lion touched his pocket and actually took out a bright red wedding invitation.
"this?"
The housekeeper nodded quickly and said, "Young Master, please come in. There are servants in the courtyard who will take you to the guest room to rest."
"Other gentlemen and ladies, please show us your wedding invitations."
Seeing this, Yitu tried to touch his pocket and found the same wedding invitation inside.
The wedding invitation included the name of the inviter, Mr. Dong, as well as the names of the two newlyweds, but there was no name of the invitees.
"Let's go." Lu Nan shouted.
Upon hearing this, Yi Tu closed the wedding invitation and followed.
After the housekeeper read the invitation, he let all the players into the mansion.
As he turned to close the door, he muttered quietly:
"I've checked everything. There shouldn't be any more monsters sneaking in."
Although his voice was soft, almost all the players present heard it, and everyone's mood became tense in an instant.
At this time, there was no trace of festive red in the house. Instead, white cloth was hung everywhere, and the servants also wore white flowers on their chests.
Obviously, this family's red wedding turned into a sad funeral.
After the butler carefully closed the door, he turned around and found that none of his guests followed the servant back to the guest room. Instead, their eyes were all on him.
He was stunned for a moment, then said:
"Everyone is tired from the journey, and it's getting late. Please go back to your room and rest before it gets dark."
"Isn't the Dong family having a wedding? Why are they hanging white cloth and wearing white flowers everywhere?" Someone couldn't help but ask.
Hearing this, the butler sighed, "I really can't hide this from you all. Originally, this was indeed a happy event, but unfortunately..."
"But our eldest daughter passed away this morning!"
"A good happy event turned into a sad one. What a strange thing!" The housekeeper was heartbroken. After a moment's pause, he said:
"I know you're all shocked right now, and this matter is quite taboo. Once I've gotten over the pain of losing my daughter, I'll explain it to you all in person."
After the butler finished speaking, he signaled the servant to take them to the guest room and turned to leave.
Knowing that they couldn't get any more information by asking, the players had no choice but to follow the servant to their accommodation for the night.
Yi Tu and Lu Nan originally followed the same servant to the west wing.
Coincidentally, Jiang Hanyu and the young man were also going the same way as them.
Two servants were walking in front, and four people were following behind. The path was silent and quiet for a while.
Until a fork appeared in front, two servants, one on the left and one on the right, turned around and signaled the guests behind them to follow.
Yitu hurriedly followed. The atmosphere was really awkward. It would be better to separate as soon as possible.
However, before he could breathe a sigh of relief, someone grabbed Lu Nan's arm behind him.
Lu Nan was stunned and subconsciously turned his head to look at the man who was holding him, and couldn't help frowning.
"you....."
Jiang Hanyu gave him a faint smile and said without allowing him to refuse, "I'll trade with you."
After saying that, before Lu Nan could react, the two of them had already followed the servant to the wing room on the left.
Only he and the new lover that the man brought into the card room were left standing there looking at each other in bewilderment.
Song Jingchen was a little confused. He didn't know what the relationship between that person and Brother Jiang was. He had never seen him before.
When he saw that the two figures were about to disappear on the path, Jiang Hanyu finally remembered that there was such a person as him.
The man turned and looked at him. "I'll come back to you later."
Song Jingchen could only nod, "Okay."
On the other side, Yitu couldn't help but frown as he looked at the man who turned around with steady steps.
"If you are worried, why are you following me?"
Jiang Hanyu was stunned for a moment, then suddenly laughed.
"How can I settle accounts with my ex-lover if I don't come with you?"
The man's hot fingertips brushed against the back of Yitu's neck, and the two of them were so close that he had the illusion of being enveloped in this man's arms.
Yitu's body stiffened and he moved a distance to the side.
"you....."
"When you were making up stories behind my back, you didn't expect to meet me again, did you?"
Jiang Hanyu grabbed Yi Tu's arm and looked at his embarrassed face with a half-smile.
The human skin coat did not change his original appearance much, but even so, this man was pleasing to the eye and liked at first sight.
He grabbed Yitu's wrist, and the skin around it was hot.
Jiang Hanyu was still insistent, his laughter growing even more unbridled. "Why aren't you pretending to be ugly this time? I'm afraid only a fool would leave his handsome ex behind and look for a new lover!"
The man's voice was so intimate that it was almost like biting her ear, and it made Yitu's ears feel hot.
Half of it was because he was angry, and he couldn't explain the other half of the reason.
Before Yi Tu could wave the man away, Jiang Hanyu let go of his hand first, and the smile on his face faded a little.
"The other bastards in the team can't enter the card field anymore, so I have to lead Song Jingchen this time."
After the sudden explanation, it took Yitu a long time to realize what the man meant.
Song Jingchen was the young man who followed Jiang Hanyu into the card room.
Yitu nodded, and then asked:
"Is he your friend?"
"Not really. He's the younger brother of a member of my team." Jiang Hanyu didn't mind telling him this, and continued in a good mood:
"Originally, he wasn't going to come into the card room with us. Someone would take him."
"Who?" Yitu felt a little curious.
"His partner." Jiang Hanyu raised his eyebrows slightly. "He's a pretty good guy, but he hasn't been doing well lately."
"They are breaking up. Xiao Song said that the guy has a new love."
When Jiang Hanyu said this, he looked at Yi Tu with a half-smile in his eyes.
Yitu felt like he was going to choke to death. He was really the one who dug a hole for himself.
Jiang Hanyu is a bastard who will never let go of his grudges. I don’t know how many times I will tease him about this.
While the two were talking, the servant brought them to the corridor of the west wing.
"You two should go to bed early. It's not safe at night recently. Try not to go out." The servant kindly advised.
He wanted to leave after he finished speaking, but Yitu stopped him in time.
"Young man, I'm sorry to ask you such a question." Yitu said, "How did your young lady... die?"
The servant frowned, as if he was reluctant to speak.
Yitu was not in a hurry and just waited quietly.
The servant had no choice but to say, "Our young lady hanged herself. If the housekeeper asks about this, don't say I told you!"
"Sure, sure." Yitu smiled. "Were you there when your young lady died?"
The servant shook his head. "Our young lady died this morning. I was running errands for Madam Hui at the time. When I came back, everyone in the house was wearing white flowers."
The servant looked around and suddenly lowered his voice.
"Dear guest, please stop asking these questions. The current Dong family... is not clean!"
"Not clean?"
The servant nodded and smiled awkwardly:
"I can't tell you more. Anyway, I don't live in the house, so I just heard it from others, so it's not accurate."
Except for the housekeeper, all the other servants in the Dong family are hired temporarily or permanently from nearby jobs and will leave at a certain time.
In other words, at around seven or eight in the evening, in the huge Dong family mansion, apart from the master, mistress and the housekeeper, there were only the 13 guests who had just arrived.
Before leaving, the servant handed the key to the room to Jiang Hanyu.
After they opened the door, they found that the guest room in the house was very small.
Because no one had lived in the house for a long time, there was a lingering smell of dust in the house.
Yitu pulled open the quilt and dusted it off. Although there was an inevitable musty smell, he could still sleep.
Their only problem now was that there was only one bed in this small guest room.
Looking at Jiang Hanyu standing beside him with his arms crossed and a frown on his face, Yitu had no choice but to bite the bullet and ask:
"How are we going to sleep?" How about asking for a private room?
Jiang Hanyu glanced at him and suddenly smiled: "I don't mind squeezing in with my old love."
Yitu was almost vomiting blood because of him again, "I mind!"
"That's too late. If there are extra rooms, do you think the card room would be kind enough to let us sleep together?" Jiang Hanyu asked back.
"I..." Yitu was speechless.
If you think about it carefully, two people living together can help take care of each other.
If Dong's house were a little bigger, each person could have his own room, and the card room would never let the players take advantage.
Its malice is undisguised, and it wants to use the rules to kill every player present.
Thinking of this, even if living in a room with Jiang Hanyu was a little crowded, so what? In the end, he was still getting a great deal.
At least you don’t have to worry about losing your life at any time.
Thinking of this, Yi Tu felt instantly relieved, and his eyes turned friendly when he looked at Jiang Hanyu.
"You're right, let's squeeze in tonight."
Jiang Hanyu: “?” Friend, something seems to be wrong with you.
--
Their dinner was brought to the room by the servant. It consisted of two meat dishes and two vegetable dishes. The colors and presentation were very beautiful. At least it looked like Yi Tu had a slight appetite.
After delivering dinner, the servants in the house will leave the Dong family. At that time, the entire mansion will be quiet and not a single sound can be heard.
Yitu thought that after dinner, the day would be over.
Who knew that after a while, the butler came over in person.
It turned out that the master of the Dong family was feeling better and wanted to invite these distinguished guests to gather in the lobby in the front yard to apologize and explain the situation.
Yi Tu and Jiang Hanyu followed the same route they came from and found the only lobby with lights still on.
When they arrived, most of the other players in the lobby had also arrived.
Yi Tu was sharp-eyed and quickly found the locations of Lu Nan and Song Jingchen among these people.
After the four of them reunited, the awkward atmosphere changed. Lu Nan was an outsider to begin with, so naturally there was nothing for him to be restrained about.
However, Song Jingchen's eyes never left Yi Tu after he appeared.
That look of disbelief and a bit of admiration made Yitu wish he could find a hole to crawl into.
Lu Nan must have told Song Jingchen the nonsense he had said before, and now the misunderstanding is really big.
Jiang Hanyu didn't notice the eye contact between Yi Tu and Song Jingchen, and just asked the latter a few questions about the situation in the east wing.
The east wing is larger than the west wing, and most players live in the east wing.
This is why the more people there are, the more likely things are to go wrong.
But the game has just begun, so there is no need to be too cautious.
What's more, although Song Jingchen is not very smart, he has had his powerful partner by his side for quite some time.
If you earn enough points, you can still buy a few items that are enough to save your life.
Thinking of this, Jiang Hanyu didn't take it to heart anymore.
After all the players arrived, the butler helped Mr. Dong, whose temples were already gray, to sit in the main seat in the lobby.
Behind Mr. Dong followed a beautiful lady wearing a plain white koi cheongsam. She was Mr. Dong’s wife, Qiao Hui Niang, whom he had married not long ago.
When Master Dong sat down, Yi Tu saw his face and instantly understood why Hui Niang, who was only in her early twenties, was willing to follow this master who could be her father.
Although Dong Qingshan's face is already showing signs of old age, one can still imagine his handsome and strong appearance when he was young. He must be the kind of man that several daughters would be vying to marry.
As soon as Dong Qingshan sat down, he looked exhausted, and his deep eagle eyes were bloodshot.
Without the dignity of the head of the family, he looked even more haggard.
He looked at the guests present, smiled bitterly and apologized.
"I'm so sorry everyone. I originally wanted to invite everyone to witness the happy birthday of my beloved woman. Who could have known that my negligence today would become a lifelong pain for her?"
"Just this morning, my beloved daughter Dong Haoyue was found in her room by a servant..." When Mr. Dong said this, his voice was so low that he almost couldn't breathe.
"A piece of white silk hangs from the eaves. The person is gone. The red joy turns into white mourning. The old are sending off the young!"
Mr. Dong started coughing violently, and Madam Hui patted his back to help him breathe, her face full of worry and sadness.
"I'm fine. I apologize to everyone. I didn't intend to keep you at home for the funeral, but things have been uneasy in this town lately..."
"Why don't you all stay at the Dong residence for a few days and eat and drink well? I, Dong Qingshan, will cover all the expenses. Just consider it as my apology to you all."
After Mr. Dong finished speaking, the hall was very quiet.
At this time, someone asked:
"Master Dong, may I ask you a question?"
Everyone's eyes instantly fell on him.
"You say." Mr. Dong nodded.
Yitu didn't care about the others' stares, and then asked:
"When the servants found Miss Dong, did you see clearly whether Miss Dong's toes were pointing towards people?"
After he said this, Mr. Dong was stunned.
"What do you mean by that?" Master Dong stood up excitedly. "When Xiaoyue was found, her toes were indeed pointing towards people. How did you know that?"
After getting the answer he wanted, Yitu understood.
"Then it seems that Miss Dong didn't commit suicide by hanging, but was... murdered."
As soon as he finished speaking, Mr. Dong's expression suddenly changed, and the expressions of the other players became subtle.
"How can you make such a judgment at such a young age? Are you just talking nonsense without any reason?" Madam Hui asked suspiciously.
"People who commit suicide by hanging are hung for a long time, and their toes are drooping towards the ground when they die," Yitu explained.
"Miss Dong was murdered, and then she pretended to have hanged herself for a while. During this time, her body had already gone into rigor mortis, with her toes pointed towards people."
Hearing this, Master Dong fell back in a daze, muttering, "Who...who dares to do such a shady thing in front of me!"
"Master, we must avenge Xiaoyue."
Mrs. Hui, who suddenly learned the truth, covered her face and cried.
Jiang Hanyu looked at Yi Tu with interest, "Are you studying medicine?"
Yitu shook his head and whispered, "My friend is a forensic doctor, so he learned a little bit."
In fact, even if he didn't ask, everyone would know soon that Dong Haoyue was murdered, not hanged.
As long as Mr. Dong is no longer concerned about his face and reputation, and invites a coroner, the coroner will be able to see that something is wrong at a glance.
And it was only a matter of time before they knew this clue.
Originally, Yi Tu didn't want to stand out like this, but then he thought, Jiang Hanyu lived and ate with him, and with a man protecting him, no one should be able to do anything bad to him behind his back.
Just as Yi Tu guessed, someone asked Dong Qingshan why he didn't call the police when such a thing happened at his house.
Not only did they not call the police, but there was also a festive "囍" character posted on the wall outside the house. If it weren't for the fact that everyone in the house had white flowers on their chests, no one would have believed that someone had died in this mansion.
Dong Qingshan sighed deeply and explained:
"I've thought about calling the police, but they're just a bunch of idiots who take money but don't do anything. Nothing will get done, and it will ruin the Dong family's reputation."
"Who would come to do business with me, Dong Qingshan, then?"
"What's more, there have been frequent tragedies on Yongle Street in recent days. Every now and then, tragic news comes in from a family. There are men and women, young and old, all of whom have died from having their hearts ripped out!"
"In these times of great anxiety, there will be no peace until the perpetrators are found."
"If I report the case now, it will only add to the chaos."
Mr. Dong's original plan was to appease these guests first, and then find someone to investigate the strange death of Dong Haoyue.
But Yitu exposed the truth in advance, and Mr. Dong only became more determined to find someone to catch the murderer.
Starting tomorrow, it will become more difficult to enter and exit the Dong family mansion.
On the way back with Jiang Hanyu, Yi Tu was still thinking about the heart-stealing thief, but the man's focus was not on that.
"There is still one happy event that has not yet appeared."
Yitu was stunned, "What?"
Jiang Hanyu glanced at him and said, "This card game is a double happiness. Dong Haoyue is just one of them. There is another one."
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