Chapter 115: An Appointment
Dong Yexi pretended to read a book for a while. After finishing his snack, he closed the book, put it on the table, and stood up to leave.
When he was checking out, the barista handed him a small paper bag and said, "This is a small gift for new customers. Welcome to come again next time."
Dong Yexi smiled, said thank you, then turned and left.
I didn't notice my second uncle in the corner the whole time.
Dong Yelang observed for a long time, and after his nephew left, he wrote a long string of letters and numbers on a memo and put it between the pages of the book. He put the book back on the bookshelf before leaving.
Higashino Xi walked out of the alley and into a random ramen shop. While waiting for his noodles, he opened a small paper bag and took out the contents. It was an individually wrapped handmade chocolate, beautifully presented and clearly delicious. There was a number printed on the bottom of the box, but it didn't look like an expiration date.
Higashino Xi: ...Don't tell me this is another password.
Ever since he got the small iron box, he seemed to have trouble with the password. He pinched his brows in distress and sent the string of numbers to Edogawa Conan.
This kind of thing should be left to professionals.
Conan: [...I haven't even untied the one you gave me before.]
Higashino: [It’s okay, let’s solve this first.]
Conan: [Okay.]
Ten minutes later...
Conan: [I figured it out.]
Conan: [It means: Tomorrow morning at 10 o'clock, Beika Park.]
Conan: [Who would ask you out using a password?]
Higashino Hi: [This is a new way of playing that our club came up with.]
Conan: [...Then aren't you using me to cheat?]
Higashino Hi: [Shh.jpg]
Higashino made up an excuse to fool Conan. He finished his ramen in a few bites and called the driver to pick him up.
Elsewhere, after the café closed, the waiter cleared the tables and chairs and went back home, leaving the barista alone. He walked over to the bookshelf, pulled out the book that Dong Yelang was reading, took out the note, and put the book back in its place.
He did not read the contents of the note carefully, but put it in a small iron box. After locking the store door, he put the small iron box in the locked mailbox at the door.
It was not until about four o'clock the next morning that the newspaper delivery guy arrived on time. He used his key to open the mailbox very naturally, put a few newspapers in, took the small iron box, and then rode away on his bicycle.
This slightly old-fashioned method of communication has never aroused anyone's suspicion.
The newspaper delivery boy quickly finished today's task, walked to a remote corner, opened the small iron box, and sent the contents to his boss.
After receiving it, the other party quickly decodes the content.
[Just let me assist you, don't get him involved.]
He folded his hands to support his chin and looked at the words deeply.
\\
At 10 o'clock in the morning, Dong Yexi arrived at Mihua Park on time.
He didn't know why he was so obedient. Logically, he should have pretended he hadn't figured it out, but he was genuinely curious about the other person's identity.
but……
It was a weekday, so why were there so many people in the park? Who was he looking for?
Dong Yexi walked around the park in a daze. When he reached the walking path, a familiar figure ran towards him from a distance.
"The kid from the Dongye family." He breathed slightly and slowly stopped in front of Dongye Xi.
Dong Yexi pursed his lips and nodded, "Good morning, Manager Kuroda."
So the person who sent him the gift box was Officer Kuroda? By the way, isn't he supposed to be working today? Did he take time off just to see him?
Kuroda Beibei looked like he had been running for a while. He wiped the sweat from his temples with the towel around his neck and said, "Run with me for a while." Then, without waiting for his answer, he took a step forward and ran.
Dong Yexi had no choice but to keep up.
He never expected that the person he wanted to meet was actually Kuroda Heibei. He had heard from his roommates that this big boss was Furuya Rei's boss, and some even speculated that he might be Akai Shuichi's father.
Regardless of who Kuroda Bei is, it does not affect his position. He and the Black Organization are definitely hostile.
If my mother is really related to him, does that mean she is also a public security officer?
Thinking of this, Dong Yexi began to have a headache and his steps became a little unsteady.
"Sakura, did you receive it?" Kuroda Bei said while running.
Higashino: ...Are you playing your cards straight now? No need to test the waters again?
He nodded randomly and said, "I received the dried flowers. I also received the latte art."
Kurodabei laughed and said, "That bouquet of cherry blossoms was actually intended for your mother. For various reasons, I can't go to pay my respects to her."
Dong Yexi comforted dryly: "She must have received your kindness."
Kurodabei was silent for a while, then asked, "Don't you want to know the relationship between her and me?"
Dong Yexi pursed his lips. What other relationship could there be besides superior and subordinate?
However, he still said, "To be honest, I'm a little curious. But as a lawyer, it's normal for my mother to know a criminal police officer."
Kuroda nodded. "Indeed. I met her during her internship as a senior," he recalled. "At the time, she was interning at the District Court. I often escorted criminals to court, and we got to know each other over the years."
Dong Yexi couldn't help but say, "I'm afraid it's not a coincidence?"
Kurodabei was silent for a moment, then said, "You're right. I approached her for a purpose." He explained, "She had already accepted your father's advances, and we were planning on having a wedding after graduation. At the time, I was tracking a criminal organization that had set its sights on the Tono Group. Not only had they sent many people to infiltrate, they had also bribed some of the higher-ups, hoping to take over the Tono Group. I needed someone to work with me to collect evidence of their crimes, so I chose your mother."
Dong Yexi's eyes darkened slightly. "At that time, my mother loved my father deeply and her heart was full of justice. She must have agreed to help you without hesitation."
Kuroda Heibei chuckled, as if remembering the student's resolute gaze. He continued, "Indeed, she quickly agreed to assist me. Initially, I didn't expect her to provide much useful intelligence, but after marrying into the Higashino family, the intelligence she gathered became increasingly valuable. Thanks to her, we were able to prevent that criminal organization from taking over the Higashino family and protect this medical group, which has national influence."
Dong Yexi stared at the ground with his head down and ran silently.
Kurodabei asked: "Don't you blame me?"
"What?" Dong Yexi didn't react at once.
Kuroda Bei said in a deep voice: "Although there is no evidence at the moment, your mother's death is probably related to that organization."
Dong Yexi was silent.
Kurodabei continued, "If I hadn't gotten her involved, she might not have died."
Dong Yexi said, "But without your help, the Dongye Group would be gone. That would affect more than just our family." He said slowly, "Mother certainly never blamed you. She protected our little family and this country in her own way."
Kurodabei was leading the way, and after a long moment he said, "What about you?"
Dong Yexi curled his lips and muttered softly, "I'm not as noble as my mother. I just want to be a lazy bum who eats and waits for death."
Kurodabei smiled slightly and did not scold him. Instead, he said, "That's good too."
Dong Yexi looked at his gray hair and blind right eye, feeling quite uncomfortable.
"Actually, I shouldn't have looked for you," Kurodabei explained. "However, the question you asked Hakuba was the code for my secret communication with your mother, and I had to pay attention. Seventeen years ago, after my last contact with your mother, I went to the United States on a mission. Unexpectedly, I encountered an accident and was in a coma for a full ten years. After I woke up, I learned that your mother had passed away long ago. I had no reason to pay tribute to her at that time. In order not to draw attention to myself, I could only temporarily distance myself from the Tono family. I didn't expect that your mother had left behind something."
Kuroda Bei stopped, turned to look at Dong Yexi, and asked: "Are you willing to hand over the information to me?"
Dong Yexi blinked and said, "If you are willing to show me, I will give it to you."
Kuroda Heibei raised his eyebrows. "It might contain information about a criminal organization. Do you still want to read it?"
Dong Yexi nodded firmly.
"It's not a good thing for you to know the existence of that organization," Kuroda Bei reminded.
Dong Yexi tilted his head: "I know now. As long as I don't take the initiative to cause trouble, they won't target me, right?" In fact, they have already come to the door.
"I just want to know what my mother did before she died," he said.
Kuroda Heibei pondered for a long time and agreed.
Then, Dong Yexi took out a floppy disk and a piece of paper from his pocket. "Where should we watch it?"
Kuroda Heibei: ...This kid actually carries it with him!
"Come with me, my car is nearby."
Higashino Hiroshi followed Kuroda Heibei into the car, put the floppy disk into the laptop drive, entered the unlocked 36-digit password, and read the contents.
Is this password too long?
Dong Yexi complained silently, then stared at the computer screen carefully and wrote down everything on it.
The information from seventeen years ago has certainly lost some of its timeliness, but it can still be used as a reference, especially since Kiyohime collected a list of officials and businessmen who may have had transactions with the Black Organization, which gave Kuroda Heibei a direction for his investigation.
The two also discovered that as early as seventeen years ago, Hime Xiyu had suspected the relationship between the Black Organization and the Karasuma Family.
Forty years ago, shortly after Karasuma Renya's death, the Twilight Annex tragedy occurred. Although the case had been suppressed, she heard about it from others after marrying into the Higashino family. Curious about the case, she sought to investigate, and discovered something unusual.
At that time, not only did this tragedy occur in Nagano Prefecture, but a village was also burned down by a fire and all the villagers died.
However, this is no ordinary village. All the people here have the surname Karasuma.
This is the ancestral land of the Karasuma family.
When Fei Xiyu investigated this case, it took her a long time to find photos of the scene from an old reporter.
An on-site investigation revealed over a hundred dead, all men and women, with no children. Traces of blunt force trauma were visible on the unburned remains. Also left at the scene were some exquisite cuffs, likely from a valuable dress.
The veteran reporter had a hunch that something was amiss. But the police quickly closed the case, clearly trying to hide the truth, so he had no choice but to secretly hide the photos.
After Fei Xiyu got the photo, she analyzed it carefully and came up with a horrifying guess.
It wasn't the villagers who were burned to death, but the celebrities who died tragically in the Twilight Villa. All the members of the Karasuma family were relocated!
Under what circumstances does a family need to migrate and even abandon their clan land?
Back then, the Karasuma Group was as wealthy as a country. Where did all that wealth go?
If the Karasuma family really moved away with this money, what did they want to do?
Is it just money that allows the Black Organization to bribe so many officials and businessmen?
Kisame speculates that the Karasuma clan, to prevent the patriarch's death from being divided, killed a number of members as a deterrent and then faked their own deaths to go underground. They subsequently engaged in illegal crimes to profit, using bribes to bribe people at all levels to ensnare them and make them accomplices. Perhaps their ultimate goal was to control the nation's economic lifeline, as they infiltrated more than just the Tono clan.
After reading it, Dong Yexi thought to himself: Mother guessed most of it right. After all, few people would have thought that a 99-year-old man could live another 40 years, and few people would have thought that someone was researching such a seemingly impossible topic as immortality.
Kuroda Bei was silent for a long time and said, "Your mother really gave me a great gift." There are many things on the list that he has not found out, and he can verify them later.
Dong Yexi smiled slightly: "As long as it's useful."
Kurodabei turned to look at him and asked, "What do you want?" He now wanted to thank her eagerly, but she was no longer around, so he could only repay her through her son.
Dong Yexi shook his head: "No, I don't need anything." He paused and said, "If possible, I will keep it for now."
Kurodabei said seriously: "As long as it does not affect morality, I will help you."
Dong Yexi lowered his eyes slightly and whispered, "I will definitely not make things difficult for you."
As he was about to open the car door and get out, Kurodabei asked again, "You really don't want to join us? The fact that you're here on time today shows that you're very good at decoding."
Dong Yexi scratched his cheek embarrassedly and said, "Conan helped me crack the password. He is much smarter than me."
Kurodabei: "...That kid is indeed smart."
Dong Yexi said: "Even if I don't join you, I will find a way to tell you if I find anything."
"Thank you." Kuroda Bei said, "That cafe is one of our bases. If you have any news, you can pass it there."
"Okay!" Dong Yexi got out of the car, leaned over with his hand on the door, looked at him, and said, "Don't worry, that organization will definitely not survive for long!"
So much has happened in the world of science in just six months, so it won't drag on for much longer! They're the protagonists, so the end result is bound to be good!
Kurodabei smiled and said, "Thank you for your good wishes."
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