03 Hong Kong Island Amusement Park
The group quickly arrived at the Ferris wheel, which was slowly turning.
The park manager, sweating profusely, stormed into the control room and yelled, "What's going on? Why is the Ferris wheel running? You're letting tourists go up? I've already told them on the walkie-talkie to suspend all rides in the park!"
The operator looked terrified. "It wasn't me, it was the machine! The machine started moving by itself!"
The scenic area manager was furious: "Power off! Power off immediately! I refuse to believe it can function without electricity!"
The operator quickly went to the back of the small room to turn off the power.
**
At this moment, Fang Cheng stared thoughtfully at the slowly rotating Ferris wheel. He liked to observe, and especially liked to remain silent.
The Ferris wheel sits amidst a vast patch of pale purple flowers. The sunlight gently illuminates it, making each rising section resemble a budding yellow-orange blossom—a beautiful and vibrant sight. A breeze carries the delicate fragrance of flowers… and…
Fang Cheng glanced at the topmost small wheeled compartment, his eyes flickering slightly.
Zhou Yun's expression changed slightly, "Could it be... that the murderer intends to kill people at every location in this folk song?"
Fang Chengjin: "So we need to be fast."
"Quickly?" Zhou Yun and Lin Long both looked at Fang Chengjin, seemingly still not understanding.
Fang Chengjin: "In serial murder cases, the perpetrator's psychology must follow some self-defined rule, and this rule will not be easily broken. The modus operandi will also follow the same pattern. The corpse in the haunted house was killed an hour ago, and it will be killed again later. To save people, you have to be faster than them!"
Zhou Yun looked around: "But no one has died here yet..."
Fang Cheng watched the top wheel slowly descend, his confident voice slightly hoarse as he pointed to the very top wheel.
"It's too late. Right here, I smell death."
**
Lin Long instructed the operators to cut off the power when the wheel fell, so that the top wheel would be stuck on the ground.
The wheel slowly descended, its surface a semi-transparent glass window through which the silhouettes of people lying inside could be vaguely seen. Lin Long and his men opened the wheel door.
Inside the door, a female corpse was starkly revealed. She was slightly plump, slumped in a chair, her head drooping, with long hair and a pale face covered in a thick layer of foundation.
Forensic pathologist Pan Xiaoxia immediately carried her toolbox inside and examined the body. "There was a fatal wound on the neck, just like the previous one. Both were strangled to death. The time of death was also no more than an hour, or even less, possibly within half an hour," Pan Xiaoxia reported methodically.
Upon hearing this, Lin Long immediately looked around. The area was empty, and most of the tourists had already been dispersed.
Who? Who killed someone? The killer can't have gone far. How could they kill someone in half an hour...?
Lin Long turned around and returned to Fang Chengjin's side. "Was the murderer indiscriminately killing people?"
Fang Cheng nodded cautiously. "Judging from the two murder cases so far, it seems indiscriminate. In fact, the killer was even following the rhyme in his killings. He arrived at the scene, then began selecting his easy prey, and struck with the final blow. However, something is missing..."
Zhou Yun interrupted, "Time!"
Fang Cheng cast a praising glance at her, as if to say that she was indeed a student he had chosen, and that she wasn't stupid after all.
He walked closer to the wheel, near the corpse, closed his eyes, and sniffed carefully.
**
Outside the door, Zhou Yun explained to Lin Long.
"Didn't you notice? The killer chose to kill with songs, so every time a song plays, someone will be killed. This is a very bold thing that requires precise timing. Rather than a thing, it's more like the killer is playing a game. Games always have a time limit, and only time can keep this game going."
Lin Long seemed to understand: "So you mean the folk songs are subject to time constraints?"
Zhou Yun took a deep breath. "The song lasts for ten minutes. Within those ten minutes, the murderer has to commit a killing without any choice. In my opinion, that's incredibly dangerous. The murderer must be extremely shrewd and intelligent to do that. Of course, this is just my guess. As for whether it's true..."
Zhou Yun turned to look at the figure in the Ferris wheel, "It depends on Professor Fang's opinion."
**
Fang Cheng opened his eyes, turned to the side, and looked back at the two people outside the door. "The song is a death knell. If I'm not mistaken, it will kill as soon as it starts playing. We need to get to the next location before the song ends, otherwise..."
Although the words were not fully spoken, both people present understood what they meant.
Lin Long looked at the scenic area manager and held out his hand: "Map."
The manager, who was already standing by with a map, immediately handed it over upon hearing this and even helped unfold it.
Lin Long looked at the map with a serious expression, his wheat-colored skin making him appear even more somber.
"There are ten attractions in the scenic area. The first place where a murder occurred was the haunted house, and the second was the Ferris wheel. According to the lyrics of the folk song... does anyone remember the whole lyrics?" Lin Long looked up at the people present and asked.
Damn it, Lin Long hadn't even consciously memorized the lyrics before.
Zhou Yun's eyes flickered, and she read it aloud without thinking.
Hide and seek, hide and seek, let's play hide and seek. Close your eyes, count to ten, quickly find a place to hide. One, two, three, four, five. Little friends, hide well. Six, seven, eight, nine, ten. I'll find you, don't make a sound. Behind a tree, in the grass. Every corner is possible. In the garden, in an old wooden box. Where are you hiding? I'll look and look. Hehe, laughter echoes. I found you, it's your turn. Hide and seek, it's so much fun. Until the sun sets. Hide and seek, hide and seek, let's play hide and seek. Happy times, never forgotten.
Lin Long was delighted, "Zhou Sir has a good memory; it's true that even at his age, he can still continue his studies!"
Zhou Yun rolled her eyes at the man; straight men really do have a hard time speaking.
Lin Long looked at the map and muttered to himself, "The first one is in the bushes, because there are many trees around the haunted house. The second one is the Ferris wheel, because the Ferris wheel here is surrounded by a garden. The third one... could it be an old wooden box? This location... is the bumper cars!"
"No." Fang Chengjin's tone was colder than usual in his denial.
Lin Long raised an eyebrow and looked up at Fang Chengjin, who was standing under the Ferris wheel. What kind of riddle was this guy playing now? Wasn't that box-like thing just a bumper car?
Zhou Yun glanced at the map and pointed to a spot on it, "Roller coaster."
Lin Long rubbed his chin. "That seems to make sense too. It's segmented like a box, but bumper cars are too, so which one is it?"
Zhou Yun persisted in her conjecture: "The roller coaster here is made of wood, but the bumper cars are made of alloy and look like old wooden boxes, which means they should be made of wood."
Lin Long shook his head: "I think it's still bumper cars. These cars are old, it's not necessarily about the material."
Fang Cheng stood with his hands in his pockets under the backlit Ferris wheel.
His voice was cold as he interrupted their discussion: "The next stop is the roller coaster. We need to be quick and get there now."
Lin Long exclaimed in surprise, "Could the murderer already be at this location?"
Fang Cheng remained calm and composed, his eyes flashing slightly: "He must be here; choosing his prey will take time."
**
The roller coaster wasn't far from the Ferris wheel; the two attractions were even very close. With the park manager's directions, taking a shortcut, the group arrived at the roller coaster in just five minutes. Just then, the song started playing again. The eerie melody echoed in the air, reaching everyone's ears.
Fang Cheng glanced around and looked at the small control room next to him. He went straight to that small room.
The roller coaster is a long, winding track that begins with a thrilling vertical ride at a 90-degree angle, offering an extremely exhilarating downward plunge. It then extends continuously, passing through numerous tunnels before finally returning to the exit, which is itself a two-story structure suspended in a square space. To board the roller coaster, you must climb stairs from the ground floor to the second floor, embarking on an adventure through a series of tunnels.
The control room is located at the far end of the second floor. The roller coaster passes by the control room every time it departs, and the staff inside check on the passengers sitting in their chairs.
The roller coaster is currently in operation.
The equipment rattled and clattered past incessantly in the passageway. The park manager, standing below, let out another groan of distress, "What's going on? I clearly told them to stop the equipment!"
Fang Chengjin was the first to arrive at the control room. There was no one inside at the time, but the door was open. As he entered, a familiar smell suddenly wafted into his nostrils.
A glint of light flashed in Fang Chengjin's eyes. This scent...
The fragrance—what kind of flowers are they? It turns out to be a mixture of more than a dozen different floral scents.
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