Chapter 82
Usakabe Saiki first introduced to Hagiwara Kenji: "My colleague in the Mobile Investigation Unit, Koju Seijin."
Then he introduced himself to the world: "My friend, Kenji Hagiwara."
Clear distinction between close and distant relationships.
However, Jiuchong Shiren never considered himself a friend of Hanchuan Shenliu. He was just a little shocked that someone could call him that. Simply calling him by his name was one thing, but adding such a cute ending sound made it seem like he was calling out "Shizuka" to a girl!
Kenji Hagiwara extended his hand to Seijin Kokonoe: "Hello, I'm Shinryu from the Mobile Investigation Team. Thank you for taking care of me."
Although the son of a high-ranking official, Jiu Chong Shiren, had a bit of a spoiled brat attitude, he was also a straightforward person: "I didn't take care of him in any way. Are you a policeman too?"
Wow, hasn't anyone else ever asked such a blunt question?
Kenji Hagiwara had some guesses about Kokonoe Seito's background: "Well, I used to be in the explosives handling unit, and now I'm at the police academy. I'll be transferred to the First Investigation Division soon."
"I see." Kokonoe Seijin had a preliminary acceptance of Hagiwara Kenji, who was about to become a detective in the First Investigative Division.
Bo Yezhai asked coldly, "This is not a place for the young master to stay. What are you doing here?"
Having an acquaintance near your home who knows whether you've gone home after get off work is a bit unsettling, even though it might contribute to your suspicions.
"Don't call me Young Master. The previous apartment had an appliance that spontaneously combusted and burned the wall, so it needs to be repaired," Jiuchong Shiren said. "This is a friend of mine who is temporarily staying here. I'll be staying here for a while until the apartment is repaired."
Usoppei didn't bother to ask why he wasn't going home; he figured he was probably having a fight with his father, who had forced him into the Mobile Investigation Unit.
Although he was younger than these people, he understood how rebellious people who had just entered society could be.
"Not only that, there are clearly many other choices, why choose here?" Bo Yezhaiji keenly saw through the concealment of the Nine Heavens people and asked with a hint of coercion.
Using the guise of a deep, cold river to carry out this kind of deterrent action is extremely effective.
Nine Realms People leaned back slightly, as if startled, then quickly adjusted themselves, revealing a somewhat embarrassed expression. Their gaze unconsciously drifted towards Kenji Hagiwara, as if they were hesitating whether to say it in front of outsiders.
System: [Could it be that she's a fan of you and that's why she's here to follow you?]
[Impossible, but it's too much of a coincidence, so we have to find out.]
Usakabe Saiki took out his phone: "Can I call the police if I encounter a stalker...?"
"I'm not a stalker!" Jiu Chong Shi Ren quickly explained.
Kenji Hagiwara said helplessly, "Fukaru, don't joke around at a time like this..."
The people of the Nine Heavens were somewhat shocked that Han Chuan Shen Liu would actually joke. They weren't sure if it was a genuine joke or if he actually thought so. In any case, not wanting to be misunderstood any longer, they simply stepped aside and invited, "It's a long story, please come in."
There was no rush to tidy up the house, and Usui Seiki didn't feel it was a waste of time. In fact, she was quite curious, so she went in with Hagiwara Kenji.
Although there was still a box of things outside the door, the people from Jiuchong Shiren probably moved in yesterday. The house was already very tidy and organized, and they could even brew tea to entertain guests. To put it bluntly, this house, which had only been occupied for a day, was more lively than the house next door, Hanchuan Shenliu's.
After everyone sat down and tea was served, Jiuchong Shiren looked like he was having an internal struggle. After a while, he finally figured out how to start the conversation.
"It's true that the apartment caught fire, and it's true that it was under renovation, but there were definitely other reasons for choosing this location."
Usakabe Saiki looked indifferent and didn't seem to care. On the contrary, he had nothing to do with Kokonoe Seijin. Hagiwara Kenji, who was meeting him for the first time today, showed an expression of serious listening at the right time, which allowed Kokonoe Seijin to continue speaking with a little peace of mind.
"It's a case I handled before... about a group of students calling the police for a prank."
Kenji Hagiwara knew about the case: "Ah, it seems that someone in the track and field club of a certain school was involved in drug trafficking, which led to the disbandment of the track and field club by the school. Then, the energetic students, who had nowhere to vent their energy, went to make a false police report and raced against the police, right? It seems that their real identities were exposed at the time. Normally, the news of such cases involving minors should be kept under wraps."
Jiuchong Shiren nodded: "Yes, that's the case. Several students have been arrested, but the one I was in charge of... escaped."
As he spoke, he pointed to his window: "From this window, you can see the child's house... Because of the exposure, it seems that recently people have been coming to throw paint and write insulting words on it."
Bo Yezhai Mo didn't care: "This case has nothing to do with you anymore. The Mobile Investigation Team only works 24 hours a day. Even if that person hasn't been caught yet, the local police station is in charge now, right? There's no point in you moving here. He might not go home, and you can't stop people from graffitiing every time. If the person involved sees it, you might even alert them."
“I know, that’s what my partner told me too, but… have you heard of the Rubegoldberg Mechanism? It’s also called the Pythagorean Mechanism.”
Because of Matsuda Jinpei, Hagiwara Kenji actually knew about this interesting mechanical device: "You mean one of those interlocking mechanisms made up of a bunch of parts?"
"Yes, starting with throwing a small steel ball, the path it takes isn't straight. It will encounter obstacles. Sometimes you might dodge one, but another will push you onto a different track... Before you know it, you've veered onto the path of crime. If you trace it back, you'll find that you may have already gone astray at some switch, and there's no going back." (Note)
Kenji Hagiwara understood what Kokonoe was trying to say: "Are you saying that you're just a switch for that child?"
“Perhaps he was also my switch,” Jiuchong Shiren said. “Mr. Zhimo said, ‘What kind of person you meet, or what kind of person you don’t meet, can change a person’s life? No one knows until the event happens.’... Ever since I failed to bring him back, I’ve been thinking that if I hadn’t been in charge of hunting him down, if he had been brought back safely... I can’t rest easy until I find that child, and I might not be able to concentrate on my other work.” (Note)
"This is so heavy, so incredibly heavy!" Kenji Hagiwara exclaimed in surprise. "You've ruined yourself like this by messing up one thing. What are you going to do now?"
Jiuchong Shiren was taken aback, then smiled and said, "You said the same thing as my partner. Han Chuan-kun is so lucky to have a friend like you."
Usoppei interrupted him: "Is there any other reason? Even if you move here, you might not be able to find him."
The person from the Nine Realms honestly replied, "After the apartment needs renovations, I'm thinking of finding a place to stay temporarily. Several friends have houses they said they could lend me theirs. This address looks familiar, and I remember seeing it before when I was investigating the case Han Chuan-kun was involved in, and it happened to be near that child's house..."
Bo Yezhai: "…………"
Isn't this just stalking?!
Kenji Hagiwara's smile vanished: "Why did you suddenly decide to investigate Nagashiko?"
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. I was just chatting with someone and mentioned that I heard Han Chuan-kun had solved cases when he was still in police academy, and someone just showed me the case file." Jiu Chong Shi Ren looked completely innocent.
Kenji Hagiwara, expressionless, asked, "Little Fukami, just who is this person?"
"The son of the head of the Criminal Investigation Department of the National Police Agency."
"I see, no wonder the surname sounded familiar."
Jiuchong Shiren hurriedly explained, "I don't like being treated this way because of my father! Anyway, I found from the files that accidents seem to easily happen around Han Chuan-kun, and he seems to be good at spotting criminals..."
He became somewhat hesitant when he got to this point.
"Then, a detective I know told me a rumor... He said that if you follow Han Chuan-kun around, you can get results delivered to your door in half a day. If there are any cases where the culprit can't be found, just take Han Chuan-kun to the places where the culprit might appear, and the case might be solved... Isn't this place quite close to that kid's house? I couldn't help but want to try it... Please, Han Chuan-kun, if you find this kid named Cheng Chuan-yue, please be sure to tell me!"
As he spoke, the young master took a step back, held a photograph in both hands, and bowed deeply while still kneeling, handing it to Bo Yezhai.
Bo Yezhai: "…………"
Hagihara Kenji: "…………"
—How can there be such strange rumors?!
After finishing their conversation with Jiuchong Shiren, the two went out, turned left, and entered Hanchuan Shenliu's house.
Kenji Hagiwara finally dared to complain: "He's actually willing to try even these kinds of rumors, he really cares about that student who wasn't caught... But then again, it involves drug trafficking. If he ran away from home and had nowhere to go, and ended up with those people, the kid's future would be over. It's understandable that he's anxious; even a day's delay could have..."
Actually, if the apartment incident hadn't happened, the people of Jiuchong might not have believed the rumors. This time, everything was just too perfect, giving people a sense of destiny, so he thought it wouldn't hurt to give it a try. Moreover, for some reason, when he saw Hanchuan Shenliu, he felt that if it were Hanchuan Shenliu, he could definitely do anything.
There might be other channels that are not suitable for regular police officers to access... This kind of impolite speculation also exists among the people of the Nine Heavens.
Usakabe Saiki wasn't very interested in the case or the strange rumors; he was more focused on something else.
In short, as long as we find Cheng Chuan Yue, the one that the people of the Nine Heavens are looking for, they can move away sooner, right?
The damage to the original apartment of the person in the Nine Heavens should be repaired in a week. After the mobile search team's shift tomorrow, he can use the [Universal Navigation] to find that person...
Usaku Saiki remained silent, and Hagiwara Kenji didn't seem to care. After muttering to himself for a while, he suddenly remembered something.
"Speaking of switches, I feel like Shinryu is the switch for my life."
Kenji Hagiwara laughed and said, "If it weren't for Fukami Ryu, I'd probably be dead by now. Hmm, Jinpei Ryu must have been my switch, and then my parents... What about Fukami Ryu? Has he encountered a 'switch'?"
Bo Yezhai was taken aback.
Is it a life-changing switch...?
"……some."
Looking back now, if he hadn't met that person, even if he had died in his past life, it wouldn't have been because of his act of heroism.
Bo Yezhai opened the system shop and looked at the points required for [Permanent Residence] and [Resurrection Card].
Hmm... After deducting the points needed to survive until the target day, I'm still far from enough. I should really be more careful with my spending. Those substitute dolls are expensive and useless. Don't try to trick me into spending money!
Seeing that Shinryu Hagiwara's expression was indifferent and his gaze was somewhat vacant, as if he was lost in thought, Kenji Hagiwara didn't continue to ask, "Am I your switch?"
After all, it seems like Shinryu is thinking about something unpleasant... Switches can be good or bad. That guy who said Shinryu was more suited to crime when he was little—because of that, Shinryu became a policeman. I don't know if that's a good or bad switch.
Without disturbing the other person, Kenji Hagiwara went to get the cleaning tools as if he knew the way well, and then reached out and rubbed the dust off the headboard of the bedroom.
...He hasn't been back for at least a month. What has Xiao Shenliu been doing out there?
Should we ask for a complete answer? Should we continue to trust Xiao Shenliu...? It's like a switch, isn't it?
He has no way of knowing what the consequences of different choices will be until the moment they happen.
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Updated at 29 minutes past the hour, not late. The following is a typo correction. There will be an extra update tonight.
Next chapter preview: FBI makes an appearance
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Note: Quoted from the original work, with some modifications.
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I saw a comment from a cute person saying that the scene where they handed in the photo made me hallucinate some urban legends about finding lost cats by offering alms to stray cats...it cracked me up!
So Han Chuan is a stray cat with connections to everyone (?)
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The concept of a "switch on life" is very interesting, and quite important for Bo Ye as well.
A switch doesn't necessarily refer to a person; it can also refer to an event or something else.
P.S.: The cases involving the Mobile Investigation Unit won't take up too much space; they're just a starting point. I'm steering the conversation towards Detective Conan, since they're all related to the underworld.
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