Chapter 049 Birthday Party (Part 3)
Maori Kogoro took a detour and pretended to walk casually to the side of Inspector Megure, then asked in a low voice: "Inspector Megure, are you on duty?"
Inspector Megure was startled by him. He turned around and saw the person coming. He said speechlessly, "Why are you here again?"
Kogoro Mouri asked in confusion, "You guys?" He turned around and saw two little tails following him.
Edogawa Conan and Amuro Toru smiled at him.
Maori Kogoro: "...How did you catch up?"
Conan Edogawa did not answer this question, but asked directly: "Officer Megure, why are there so many police officers at the scene? Is something going to happen tonight?"
Inspector Megure explained, "The Tono family received news that someone would cause trouble at the banquet, so they called the police just to be on the safe side." However, if Brother Mori were here, something would have happened tonight.
"I see." Maori Kogoro nodded. "The rich are always cautious."
Amuro Toru frowned slightly.
He had already confirmed the identities of Jialianlu and Di Sano. The former was a recently popular singer who had been invited to perform. Her figure and appearance were both stunning, and she certainly had the potential to be a beauty trap. The latter was an ordinary worker, the kind who would instantly disappear into the crowd upon entering—the ideal profile for an intelligence agent.
However, with so many police officers on the scene, and the Tono family not knowing what had happened, they were all wary and probably wouldn't be alone with strangers. Rum's ridiculous plan was likely impossible to implement.
Around 6:30, all the invited guests have arrived and are chatting as they wait. At 7:00, the head of the Tono family, Tono Kai, will come out with his wife and sons to express his gratitude and hold a cake-cutting ceremony.
At this time, Dong Yelang and Dong Yeman's family had already appeared and were waiting with the guests.
Dong Yeman was a little surprised to see someone in the corner. She walked over to that person and asked with a smile, "Didn't you say you wouldn't come to attend the younger generation's birthday party?"
Dong Yetao straightened his sleeves and said, "I'm here today as the president of Xinhe Group."
"Then do I still have to call you Mr. Dongye?" Dongye Man said.
Dong Yetao put his hands in his pockets and said nonchalantly, "Whatever you want."
Dong Yeman couldn't help it, raised his hand and pulled his ear, saying: "It's been a while since we last met, have you become more capable? You actually talk to your sister like this!"
"Ah, it hurts! Let go, let go, my ear is going to fall off! I was wrong!" Dong Yetao immediately begged for mercy.
"Hmph!" Dong Yeman retracted his hand. "It's fine if you pretend in front of others, but you're pretending in front of me?"
Dong Yetao rubbed his burning ears and said aggrievedly, "There are too many people at the party today. What if someone sees us?"
"Oh, you still care about your image?" Dong Yeman teased.
The brother and sister exchanged feelings in the corner for a while, and it was already six fifty.
At this time, Fujitsuka Tian took the microphone and walked to the stage in front of the venue.
He first thanked the guests present, and then asked the masters of the Higashino family to come on stage and speak one by one.
However, both Higashino Xu and Higashino Xi spoke very briefly, as they weren't the main characters anyway. The microphone was then handed over to Higashino Xiajiang, who had always had a strong desire to perform and had no problem speaking the entire thing on her own.
When Higashino Xi appeared, Mao Li Ran covered her mouth in surprise.
Suzuki Sonoko pointed at him and turned to look at Mao Lilan: "Senior Tono is actually your cousin?!"
Mao Lilan said in a daze: "I didn't expect it..."
Edogawa Conan was also very shocked.
Maori Kogoro thought of Higashino Hiroshi's previous statement that he was his fan. He touched his chin and said in a deep voice, "My nephew has good taste."
Amuro Toru, the only one who knew the inside story, wasn't paying attention here. He observed the positions of Jialianlu and Disano with his peripheral vision, keeping track of their movements at all times.
Upstairs, after Higashino Natsue finished speaking, Tian Fujizuka took the microphone and said, "Now, please welcome the Chairman of the Higashino Group and the protagonist of today's birthday party!"
Accompanied by the roar of applause from the crowd, the lights dimmed and a spotlight shone on the second-floor staircase. However, after waiting for a long time, no one appeared at the staircase.
Everyone was a little confused, and the guests began to whisper.
Higashino Hiroshi standing on the stage and Edogawa Conan in the crowd suddenly had a bad premonition.
Fujitsuka Tian looked at Higashino Natsue in confusion, and seeing his wife also looking bewildered, he could only bite the bullet and smooth things over. When he was about to invite her out for the second time, a sudden burst of hurried footsteps could be heard from upstairs.
Higashino Teru ran to the stairs in panic, his face pale as he said, "Dad, Dad... is dead..."
Everyone:!!!
Dong Yexi subconsciously looked at the countdown.
He died in less than four hours.
Higashino Teru's words were like a bomb dropped among the crowd, leaving everyone dizzy.
At this time, Dong Yexu immediately took the microphone and said, "Due to an accident, this banquet is cancelled. However, please wait a moment. I will inform you again after confirming my father's condition."
Then, the people from the Tono family, the police, Kogoro Mori and others came to the study on the second floor together.
The study door was wide open. When everyone walked to the door, they saw Dong Yehai sitting in front of the desk, leaning back in the chair, with blood all over his chest.
Higashino Natsue cried out in shock, tears welling up in her eyes. She wanted to rush in, but was stopped by Officer Megure: "Madam, I understand you are sad, but please don't destroy the scene."
Dongye Xiajiang cried and choked up, saying: "Mr. Police, please catch the murderer!"
"Please trust us." Inspector Megure nodded.
He stepped forward to examine the body and said, "Preliminary diagnosis shows that the deceased died from excessive blood loss due to a bullet wound to the chest. The body is still warm and the face has not yet stiffened. The time of death should be within an hour."
"When and how did you find the body?" he turned and asked Higashino Teru.
Higashino Teru stammered, "Just now. Dad and I were supposed to go out together, so I was waiting at the corner of the stairs. But when Fujitsuka called us, Dad hadn't come yet. I was afraid that Dad had forgotten the time, so I ran over to call him, but when I opened the door, I saw..."
"The door was opened easily?" asked Toru Amuro.
Higashino Teru nodded. "Yes. It's unlocked."
"You didn't go into the house?" Amuro Toru asked again.
Dong Yezhao swallowed hard and said, "No. How could I dare to go forward when I saw my father like this? I immediately ran to find someone."
"Then how do you know that the person is dead?" Conan Edogawa asked immediately.
Higashino Teru said, "He lost so much blood, is he still alive?"
Edogawa Conan choked: ...
"The windows in the room are all locked, which means the murderer walked out of the front door." Kogoro Mouri walked to several windows and took a look.
"There are no signs of fighting in the house. It can be confirmed that the crime was committed by an acquaintance." said Conan Edogawa.
Inspector Megure: ...
"Hey, the forensic department hasn't arrived yet. Can you please not destroy the scene?"
When Maori Kogoro heard this, he grabbed Conan by the collar and said, "I'm talking to you! I told you not to run around. Look, you got scolded!" Then he threw him into Amuro Toru's arms and said, "Both of you get out and don't ruin the scene."
Inspector Megure: "You too."
Maori Kogoro: "...I also want to help you!"
Inspector Megure glanced at him and compromised, "Alright then."
Dong Yexu heard their reasoning, lowered his eyes and thought for a moment, then said, "This way, the scope of the murderer can be determined. It is someone who can meet with my father alone."
Inspector Megure nodded: "Yes."
Dong Yexu asked, "Did you bring test strips? Can we do a smoke reaction test?"
Shiratori Renzaburo said, "Yes. But the murderer may have made some preparations, so it may not be detected."
"It's okay," Dong Yexu said. "I'm just giving an explanation to the guests downstairs. Anyone who doesn't respond and hasn't seen my father alone today, please let them go back first. There are too many people, so it's inconvenient for you to investigate."
Afterwards, Dong Yexu took several policemen downstairs to comfort the guests.
Dong Yexi leaned against the wall with his arms folded over his chest, wondering who the murderer was.
Now he needed to confirm whether the person who killed the old man was the same person who wanted to kill him. If so, then he had already identified the murderer; if not, then things would be a bit troublesome.
Conan Edogawa and Toru Amuro were driven out, and seeing Higashino Hiroshi's deep expression, the two looked at each other. Conan Edogawa went up and asked, "Brother Higashino, what were you doing before you appeared?"
Dong Yexi glanced at him and said, "At three o'clock in the afternoon, after my eldest brother came back, I went to look for him. After five o'clock, he started to get busy, so I went back to my room and didn't go downstairs until six forty. So I don't have an alibi."
Edogawa Conan didn't expect him to be so cooperative, and said awkwardly: "Is that so..."
"Let me put it this way. In fact, there were many people who could have acted alone within an hour," Dong Yexi said. "My eldest brother shouldn't be a suspect, because he had to discuss the layout with the police and handle company affairs, so there were people around him the whole time. Although my wife was socializing downstairs, she went upstairs to rest at 5:30, so this period of time was blank. The same was true for the third brother. My second uncle, aunt, and uncle all went downstairs around 6 o'clock, and other guests can testify to this. Besides us relatives, the housekeeper, security captain, and servants all had the opportunity to be alone with the old man."
Edogawa Conan was overwhelmed when he heard this. That's right, not counting the guests, there were many people in this house who could be alone in a room with the owner.
At this time, Amuro Toru asked: "Didn't you say you were in the house? How do you know so clearly?"
Dong Yexi: “Guessed.”
Edogawa Conan & Amuro Toru: ...
"I was just kidding~" Dong Yexi said with a smile, "I heard it from the servants. If you don't believe me, you can go and confirm it again."
Actually, it was Tono Hanasaki who said that. The little girl kept running up and down the stairs, like a carrier pigeon, reporting everyone's whereabouts to him. Because she didn't want to contact the third child and his mother, she paid special attention to their location and shared the news with Tono Xi.
Dong Yexi didn't want to participate in banquets or hear others talking about him, so he kept hiding upstairs. He didn't know that he would become one of the suspects.
If he had known this, he should have run up to Conan immediately after he arrived.
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