Chapter 43
After verifying with the "bride", the door was opened successfully and several people walked into the next room together.
This room clearly wasn't furnished like a church; it was likely a servant's quarters. A plain, unadorned bedroom. The wardrobe held several identical maids' dresses, along with some worn, coarse clothing. The single bed had plain sheets and blankets. There was a nightstand beside the bed, and a dresser against the wall. That was all. Several people split up to search for clues, and Zhang Xiaotian headed straight for the dresser.
The dressing table was very simple, with scratches all over the surface, and the metal mirror made the reflection blurry and yellow, but the jewelry box on the table was out of place. Zhang Xiaotian touched the wooden jewelry box and opened it. Inside was a dazzling array of colorful items, all of which were glass products made to imitate precious jewelry.
The room was simple, and one could only enter after verifying the identity of the maid who was to be married off. So it was most likely the room of the maid who was to be married off. But if these jewelries were real, they were obviously not something a maid could own.
Zhang Xiaotian looked through the jewelry one by one, fearing that there might be some hidden mechanism inside. As he was looking, he heard Yin Li say, "There's a box here."
There was a wooden box hidden among the neatly folded clothes in the deep of the wardrobe. Yin Li opened it and found it was filled with miscellaneous things, such as buttons, dried roses, and a picture album at the bottom.
Upon hearing of the progress, the others stopped searching and gathered around Yin Li, examining the album. It contained both illustrations and text, but the maidservant, Vereta, was clearly not skilled in painting. The artwork in the entire album could barely be called graffiti, with pages often filled with text and only a few strokes of art. But one painting was different. After flipping through the entire "Girl's Heart," everyone unanimously returned to this unique painting.
Zhang Xiaotian examined it carefully. Even with the blurred face, it was easy to recognize that this painting by Viretta was of her daughter, Miss Colin. Miss Colin, dressed in a pale yellow dress, clutching a bouquet of yellow roses, sat relaxed on a stool. This painting clearly required all of Viretta's skill and talent. The brushstrokes, though clumsy, were earnest, making it difficult not to pause.
"Everything else in this box has appeared in the album, and everything seems to be related to the bride, Kelin." Yin Li picked up the box she had set aside and took out the contents for everyone to see. "Look, this is a ribbon that fell off the bride's dress, this is a handkerchief that the bride had half-embroidered and discarded, and these fake dried flowers are probably the bouquet the bride is holding in the painting."
It seemed she still cared deeply about her young lady, or at least didn't harbor any offensive intentions of replacing her. Zhang Xiaotian picked up the metal button from the box and pondered. He knew it was just a prop, but seeing that there wasn't even a scratch on it, he subconsciously felt that if it was really Vereta keeping it, she would surely protect it to this extent.
"I just found this in the bedside table." Lu Bai handed over a piece of paper in his hand. "I took a quick look and it seems to be a contract signed by Viretta and someone."
The contract stipulated that Vereta marry the Earl on Colin's behalf. Vereta's name alone was written on the contract; the other party's name was left blank, with only the Solemn family crest stamped on it.
Zhang Xiaotian didn't understand. From the album, it was clear that Veretta valued the lady who loved her, and those jewelry that didn't fit her status were most likely a gift from the kind-hearted Miss Colin. Why would she sign a contract to steal the identity of someone she respected so much?
"Who do you think Viletta signed this contract with?" Yin Li tilted her head. "Didn't the nun's diary say that the head of the Solemn family rarely leaves home, so all household affairs, big or small, are managed by the eldest daughter and her husband? So, was this contract signed by one of the two of them, Viletta?"
"It's very likely." Lu Bai nodded and then asked Yin Li, "Didn't you say you were the bride's sister's husband? What clues do you have in your notebook?"
"Hmm..." Yin Li hesitated, "My health started to deteriorate after I got married, so I don't know why..."
"Oh, henpecked? Marrying into the family?" Lu Bai laughed twice, then remembered something and asked her suspiciously, "Wait, you're not lying to me, are you? Do you have any hidden missions too?"
"Hehe," Yin Li smiled, "Guess."
"I'm so annoyed." Lu Bai scratched his head again and turned to ask Zhang Xiaotian, "Tian'er, do you have any too?"
Zhang Xiaotian didn't comment and smiled at him like Yin Li.
"Ahhhh, damn it!" Lu Bai held his head, "Am I the only one who doesn't have it?"
"Maybe you'll find it later." Zhang Xiaotian comforted him, "Isn't it said that some people's memories are incomplete and need to be supplemented later? Maybe you will find new tasks later."
But even if it is true, with Lu Bai's personality, he probably won't be able to hide it for long.
"Have you found any other clues?" Han Chengcheng reminded them when they saw the three of them starting to chat, "We still have to open another door."
The keyhole on the other door wasn't shaped like a normal key. It looked much wider and longer than a typical key.
"When you were looking for clues, did you see anything similar in shape?" Lu Bai asked.
Several people shook their heads.
"Then we can only infer it from the existing clues."
The four of them put together the things they had just found in the maid's room: the album, the bride Colin's belongings, the jewelry that didn't belong to the maid, Viretta, and the contract signed between Viretta and an unknown person.
"I think there is a connection between the owner of the room and the clues." Han Chengcheng spoke first again.
"What do you mean?" Lu Bai asked.
"For example, we just found clues about Viretta in the central hall, which is why we opened Viretta's room." Han Chengcheng said this, pointing to the jewelry box and the contract. "So in this room, we can't just look for clues about Viretta, we should also look for clues about the next key figure."
This idea was crucial. Zhang Xiaotian looked at the jewelry box and the contract. He examined each piece of jewelry in the box. There were no traps or inscriptions. The only clue was that they all had the Solemn family crest.
"Who do you think gave these jewelry to Viretta?" Han Chengcheng pondered.
Ordinary people couldn't carry jewelry with family crests, let alone sell them. Thinking of this, Zhang Xiaotian suddenly understood.
"The person who gave Viretta the jewelry is the same person who signed the contract with her!"
"Why..." Han Chengcheng was stunned and understood as she opened her mouth.
"Why?" Lu Bai asked.
"According to Colin's plan, even if a kind lady wanted to reward a servant, she wouldn't give them jewelry like this, which has the family crest printed on it and can only be displayed in the room for viewing without being spent." Zhang Xiaotian showed him the crest on the jewelry. "So the purpose of giving these jewelry is not to reward, but..."
"A temptation and a deterrent," Han Chengcheng added.
"If you do as I say, you can also have such identity and status, but if you don't do this, what awaits you will not only be nothing..." Zhang Xiaotian murmured.
"It's a bit scary..." Lu Bai shrank his neck and rubbed his arms.
"At the same time, a man usually doesn't own so many women's accessories," Han Chengcheng continued.
Yin Li clapped her hands and said, "So the one who signed the contract with Vereta is the eldest daughter of the Solemn family!"
After pushing it here, everything seemed to work, but they still didn't know where the key was, so they planned to look around for some things of similar shape and try them one by one, but after trying several times, nothing worked.
Tired of searching, Lu Bai plopped down on a bench and began to study the clues he had just analyzed. After a long while, he couldn't find anything new, so he shouted, "Are there no other new clues? If that doesn't work, let's pick the lock!"
"Go ahead and pry it out." Yin Li said without turning her head. "When you get out, you can just pay the price."
"Look, I've noticed you're quite the stickler." Lu Bai changed the subject and said, "If we don't open the lock, you're still locked up here. Let's all get out together. How can I be the only one to pay for it?"
"I don't want to listen. Lu Bai is reciting scriptures." Yin Li covered her ears.
"Tsk, talking to you is so boring."
Lu Bai made a face and went to find Zhang Xiaotian again.
As Zhang Xiaotian searched, he was still thinking about the clues he had just seen. If a door represented a certain person, then this door clearly represented the bride's sister. He was a priest, so one of Lu Bai and Yin Li must have this identity.
But who is it?
Anyone can tell a lie, and according to the clues at the beginning of the game, some people may not even know that they are not telling the truth.
Zhang Xiaotian was at a loss as to what to do in this direction, but he had a new idea. He could narrow the search for the key a little further, perhaps looking for something related to the bride's sister.
"But right now, there are too few things related to the bride's sister in these two rooms."
Zhang Xiaotian told Lu Bai about his idea. Lu Bai was also worried, but he said, "I don't have the object, but I do have a person."
Zhang Xiaotian was stunned.
"Brother-in-law?" Lu Bai waved at Yin Li, "Brother-in-law, come here."
"Who is your brother-in-law?"
Yin Li came over, and Lu Bai called Han Chengcheng again: "Han Cheng, search me."
"Ah?" Both girls were stunned.
"Tian'er said we could look for things related to the bride's sister. I thought, my brother-in-law is completely related to his sister, so the things on him must also be related to his sister."
Lu Bai said this casually, but there was some truth to it. Han Chengcheng then began to help Yin Li remove the jewelry from her body, testing each one against the door. Zhang Xiaotian and Lu Bai, the other boys, were having trouble getting started, so they stood by and watched.
Zhang Xiaotian was tired of standing and wanted to find a place to sit. He turned around to ask Lu Bai if he wanted to join him, but saw that Lu Bai looked thoughtful.
"What are you thinking about?" Zhang Xiaotian asked him.
"Hmm?" Lu Bai came back to his senses. "I was thinking, this keyhole looks more and more familiar after looking at it for a long time..."
Look familiar? Zhang Xiaotian also looked over.
"I seem to have seen it somewhere..." Lu Bai suddenly remembered, "Dagger!"
"What dagger?" Han Chengcheng also heard it.
Lu Bai strode towards them and said, "See if Yin Li has any daggers or knives on her."
It really does look alike! Han Chengcheng immediately searched for it, and Yin Li also began to search on her body.
"Don't you know what you brought with you?" Lu Bai couldn't help and could only worry.
"I couldn't put these clothes on myself, so the NPC helped me put them on." Yin Li moved her hands and kept talking. "I really don't know what I'm wearing."
"Here it is!" Han Chengcheng had already felt around her lower body and finally found a dagger with a crest on it, which was attached to the bandage on one of Yin Li's thighs. She took it off and tried to insert it into the keyhole, and it actually went in.
"Do we need to verify anything with the 'bride' this time?" Yin Li asked.
There was no sound on the radio. Han Chengcheng tried to turn the dagger, and with a "click", the door opened.
"It's open, it's open!" Four people came in one after another.
Although the new room was still a bedroom, it was completely different from the one next door. A massive four-poster bed stood at the front of the room, draped with heavy curtains inlaid with matching gemstones. A soft carpet sat beneath the bed, along with a luxurious dressing table, a large desk, and a wardrobe three times the size of the one next door. Luxurious decor abounded.
Such a room is obviously suitable for the person in charge of the family.
The group began searching for clues as usual. Yin Li walked along the wall, parted the curtains on one side, and immediately called the other three over.
"Come quickly!"
"What's wrong?" Lu Bai asked as he walked.
"Do you know why the broadcast didn't ask anything when the door was opened just now?" Yin Li waited until everyone had come closer before she mysteriously lifted the curtain to reveal what was behind it.
"...Depend on"
Not only Lu Bai, but also Zhang Xiaotian and Han Chengcheng had not expected that there was a door behind the curtain.
"This isn't over yet!" Lu Bai wailed. "Why is there still a door?!"
"Maybe this isn't the last one." Han Chengcheng smiled at him.
"There are doors everywhere!" Lu Bai walked to the closet. "Han Cheng, believe it or not, there might be a door hidden in this closet."
"Then open it and take a look." Han Chengcheng said.
"Open it, let me see what's inside..."
"What is it?" Han Chengcheng was still waiting for Lu Bai to continue, but heard Lu Bai shouting at the top of his voice:
“Oh my god! Aa ...
After Lu Bai finished shouting, he sat down on the ground. There was a dull thud as he hit the ground, followed by the screams of two girls.
Hearing the three people's reaction, Zhang Xiaotian was a little scared. He swallowed and slowly turned around.
The wardrobe was filled with numerous exquisite dresses and robes, made of everything from linen to velvet. And amidst the layers of intricately layered garments, a pale, wrinkled human face hung in the air!
Zhang Xiaotian was so frightened when he saw that face that he even stopped breathing. He thought it was just another model, so he bravely stood up and tried to help Lu Bai up. But as soon as he took a step, he saw a smile slowly forming on that wrinkled face!
Seeing that smiling face with wrinkles all over it, Zhang Xiaotian felt all the hairs on his body stand up. He froze in place, unable to move. It was not until Yin Li and Han Chengcheng bumped into him while running out with their eyes covered that he regained consciousness and immediately ran towards Lu Bai who was still sitting on the ground.
At this time, the white-faced man spoke.
"Dear ladies and gentlemen, although you have come uninvited and behaved in a number of unreasonable ways, as the steward of the Solemn family, I still want to extend my greetings to you all."
The pale-faced butler spoke in a calm and polite tone, but his voice was hoarse and unremarkable. He stepped out of the closet and bowed slowly to Zhang Xiaotian and Lu Bai who were still in the room.
"Welcome everyone to the Solemn family."
After a period of chaos, the four of them returned to the central hall, and the butler spoke again:
"Please allow me to introduce myself to you all again."
He smoothed his coat and bowed to the four people. "I am the steward of the Solemn family. Welcome everyone to the Solemn family. Originally, I should take you to see my master, but my master is not here now, so I cannot entertain you. Before my master returns, I can only ask you to explore the place on your own."
Lu Bai waved his hand, pulled Zhang Xiaotian beside him and said, "It's okay, we can just go shopping by ourselves." After that, he took Zhang Xiaotian to the luxurious bedroom.
Lu Bai got over the fear he had just experienced and could now speak normally again. However, he was still a little nervous when he saw the butler NPC's pale face that turned pink when he smiled, so he deliberately walked around him. However, when he was about to reach the door, he was stopped by the butler.
"Please stay," the butler said politely. "This is my master's private quarters. He doesn't like crowds. If you need to enter, please come in alone, accompanied by me."
"We can't go in together? Then why do you say we are honored guests?" Lu Bai asked in surprise.
Zhang Xiaotian suddenly remembered something and asked the housekeeper:
"You said you were the Solemn family's housekeeper, and this is your master's bedroom. Who is your master then?"
"My master is naturally the current head of the Solemn family."
The head of the family now is not the reclusive Viscount Solemn, but his eldest daughter or son-in-law.
But isn’t Yin Li’s character the son-in-law of the Solemn family?
Han Chengcheng brought Yin Li to the housekeeper and asked, "She is Caspar, the son-in-law of your Solemn family. Is he also considered one of the heads of the family?"
The butler bowed slightly.
"The Solemn family has only one head. Unfortunately, Mr. Casper, you are not the head."
Yin Li was shocked: "I'm not the head of the family?"
"I guessed it long ago. You are indeed a henpecked husband who married into the family." Lu Bai laughed at her.
"Even if Casper isn't the head of the family, he's still your master's husband. It's reasonable for him to have free access to his and his wife's bedrooms, right?"
The butler remained unmoved. "If the master were here, then of course you could. But now the master is not here. If you want to enter and leave the master's bedroom freely, please tell me my master's real name."
"That's no big deal." Lu Bai turned to Yin Li and asked, "Now I want your wife's name. Even though you don't know anything, you at least know her name, right?"
"Hehe..." Yin Li said embarrassedly, "I really don't know..."
"Huh?" Everyone looked at Yin Li, "Is this true?"
"I really didn't write anything in my notebook..." Yin Li curled her lips.
"In short, if you want to freely inspect the master's bedroom, please tell me his real name. If you can't tell me, you can only go in one by one under my escort."
Just now, they hadn't had time to collect clues before they were scared out by this pale-faced butler, and now they were not allowed to go in together. Zhang Xiaotian understood that this seemed to be a separate evidence collection link.
"Due to the special status of Mr. Caspar, please follow me in first," said the butler.
Han Chengcheng also showed great enthusiasm: "Then I'll be the second one."
Watching Yin Li follow the housekeeper into the room, Zhang Xiaotian looked at Lu Bai.
"Why aren't you going?" Zhang Xiaotian asked Lu Bai, "You were so eager to pull me in just now. I thought if you couldn't get the first one, you would choose the second one."
"Han Cheng is smarter than me, so let her watch first, and then we'll talk..." Lu Bai said this, and suddenly he seemed to feel guilty, and his voice became increasingly vague. "Her hidden mission has already failed, so the only thing left is to help me restore the truth, so..."
"So, you're sure that Han Cheng is on the same side as you now," Zhang Xiaotian smiled, raising his eyebrows to tease Lu Bai, "So you've been wary of Yin Li and me since the first gate?"
"No way!" Lu Bai quickly explained, "I just saw Yin Li asking questions without knowing anything, so I suddenly thought of this..."
Lu Bai has been playing all the way until now, and he has always believed in Zhang Xiaotian's words. He has never taken the fact that "Zhang Xiaotian may also have a hidden mission" to heart, because he has never been separated from Zhang Xiaotian all the way, and Zhang Xiaotian's every move has never missed his eyes, so he didn't even think about being on guard against Zhang Xiaotian.
But now we need to search for evidence separately.
Lu Bai had originally thought it was just a game, everyone having fun helping each other, and that was all that mattered. But for some reason, he suddenly felt a surge of competitive spirit.
Tian'er is also very smart.
Lu Bai felt a little contempt for himself, but he couldn't help but think, if Tian'er really had some personal mission that was hindering him from finding out the truth, and he lied to him after collecting evidence alone...
"This isn't a game...right, Tian'er?"
"Yeah." Zhang Xiaotian nodded and smiled even more happily.
Of course, you have to play the game seriously.
After the order of Yin Li and Han Chengcheng was decided, Zhang Xiaotian also took the initiative to propose to go in last.
Seeing the look of relief and confusion on Lu Bai's face when he heard he would be the last one to go in, Zhang Xiaotian felt inexplicably pleased. He even found a place a little further away from Lu Bai to be alone, giving Lu Bai and Han Chengcheng a chance to talk privately.
It was really interesting. Zhang Xiaotian felt that teasing Lu Bai was obviously more interesting than the ongoing game.
"Lu Bai, go."
Soon, Han Chengcheng also emerged from the search. Zhang Xiaotian sat not far away, watching Yin Li and Han Chengcheng huddle together. He hadn't planned on checking out what was in the room beforehand, so he just sat quietly fiddling with his skirt. But a moment later, the two of them came looking for him.
"Xiaotian, aren't you curious at all about what's in that room?" Yin Li asked him. "If it were Lu Bai, he would have come over to ask a long time ago."
"We'll know soon anyway," Zhang Xiaotian replied.
"Aren't you afraid that those of us who go in first will hide something?" Han Chengcheng said with a smile.
"With the housekeeper here, I don't think he'll allow anyone to bring any clues out. It's for fairness." Zhang Xiaotian glanced at the room, then turned and said to the two of them, "Hide it? You can't leave that room anyway. What if I find it again?"
"That's a possibility." Han Chengcheng smiled and nodded, and Zhang Xiaotian also smiled. He noticed that when he and Han Chengcheng laughed, Yin Li seemed a little slow to react.
Who knows, maybe Yin Li really got some hidden mission. Zhang Xiaotian figured Lu Bai should be out soon, so he stood up and walked towards the door.
Perhaps Lu Bai was really excited. As soon as he came out, he hurriedly greeted Zhang Xiaotian and then went straight to Han Chengcheng.
"Sir, please follow me." The housekeeper bowed slightly and led Zhang Xiaotian into the bedroom.
"Guests are welcome to look around the room, but they're not allowed to take anything out." The butler closed the door tightly and added, "There's one more thing I want to give you."
What is it? Zhang Xiaotian saw the butler take out a piece of cardboard from his inner pocket and pass it to him. He took a look at it and couldn't help but smile bitterly.
It seems that I am the guest who "lost part of my memory" mentioned in the precautions.
This piece of card contains all of his memories as "Father Loris", including the fact that he did not actually love the bride Colin. During his relationship with the bride Colin, he also maintained improper relationships with several noble ladies. He also kept the personal belongings of each lady in case the truth was revealed one day and someone wanted to expose him to the church, so that he could use these things to threaten the other party to shut up.
As for why she disguised herself as a nun, the reason wasn't simply to investigate the case. In fact, on the eve of Colin's wedding, she had come to Loris and said someone in her family wanted to marry her to the earl so she could elope with him under a different name, but Loris refused.
What a joke! The reason why Loris dated so many noble ladies was to get into those noble families, thereby gaining more power and climbing higher in the church. If he eloped with Colin, wouldn't all his hard work over the years be wasted?
So Loris rejected Colin, but Colin reacted violently, threatening to denounce Loris to the church, even at the cost of his own innocent reputation. Unable to resist, Loris accidentally pushed Colin during the struggle, causing him to faint. Fearing that Colin would still denounce Loris upon waking, Loris impulsively struck Colin on the head with a rock. Believing Colin to be dead, he hurriedly left the church. However, the next day, Loris received no notice from the church cancelling the wedding, and Colin and the Earl's wedding proceeded as planned. Fearing the church's retribution and retaliation from the Solemn family, Loris disguised herself as a nun and hid in a corner, waiting to see what would happen. Everything was ready, but when the church doors opened, she discovered that Colin, the bride, was not on her way to the church, but hanging from the altar.
What a scumbag! Zhang Xiaotian sighed and turned the card over. On the back was written his new task:
Before opening the last door, please disguise yourself as a nun, hide your identity as "Father" Loris, and preserve your reputation as a priest.
"To confirm that you understand your mission, you can ask me a few questions."
The butler's voice brought Zhang Xiaotian back to his senses, and he nodded: "Does preserving my reputation mean that I should conceal the fact that I seduced Ke Lin and several noble ladies?"
"Yes." said the butler.
"I have another question." Zhang Xiaotian pointed to the secret door behind the curtains, "Is that the last door?"
The butler was stunned, then seemed to smile slightly.
"No," he said.
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