Chapter 145 Ferry Incident

368.

The Esrona, last day, returning home.

"Officer Matsuda, do you want to go to sleep for a while? You seem to be in a bad condition."

At the dinner table, Mao Lilan expressed her concern for Matsuda Jinpei at the next table. She said with some concern: "Don't press on the wound on your arm when you sleep at night. It will easily split open!"

The curly-haired police officer who was stopped rubbed his brows and smiled reluctantly: "It's okay."

He said he was fine, but the dark circles under his eyes, his unkempt hair, and even his unshaved stubble showed that he was not that fine.

He just...is having insomnia.

As soon as he fell asleep, he saw Chiyodani Toru leaping down in front of him. It was as beautiful as a painting under the sunlight.

But soon, the sunlight faded, twisted into a gloomy mist, and the sea water surged, turning dark and dirty. The soaking wet colleague leaned against the side of the boat. He was wearing a police uniform, with black hair sticking to his pale skin, and he looked at him quietly.

Then he said, "Jinpei Matsuda, can't you find me?"

He soon woke up from his dream. The wound on his arm was torn by his own strength and the gauze was stained red. However, Matsuda Jinpei had no intention of dealing with it.

After searching for nearly two days, they found nothing. Not even a piece of clothing could be found. It was as if Chiyodani Toru had truly merged into the sea. Nothing was left of him.

All that was left for him, apart from the USB flash drive that he was destined to hand in, were two wounds.

Jinpei Matsuda didn't really want the wound to heal. He even thought a little crazy, how great it would be if the pain could prove that he was still alive, just like it did to Sora Wasao?

It was as if after the pain disappeared, he could no longer feel Chiyodani Toru.

So he stayed up all night, driving the yacht alone on the sea along the route all night...even though it was in vain.

Hagiwara Kenji found him at sunrise in the early morning, looked at the repeated injuries on his hands, and said, "Then take a rest."

Matsuda Jinpei grinned: "Let's get back to work after that guy Toru returns to search for a lesson."

…

Next to him, Conan Edogawa, who was having breakfast, saw the phone, took a few sips and wanted to run out. Seeing Ran Maoli looking at him, he smiled and said, "Sister Xiaolan, I'm going to find Huibara. She doesn't seem to have eaten either!"

He ran away in a hurry, leaving Mao Lilan alone and confused: "She didn't eat... but Conan, you left empty-handed?"

"We'll leave first, Xiaolan."

Next to them, two police officers also quickly stood up and left, and the atmosphere became tense.

——They didn’t know what would happen next.

369.

In the room, Shensuo, who had been sleeping for more than a day, finally woke up. His grey eyes opened and fell unconsciously towards the sea.

She changed her clothes. The black dress made her look even paler. She sat upright on the chair, like a mural hanging in an ancient castle.

Haibara Ai was sitting next to her, talking about something. When she heard the door open, she just glanced at her.

Conan Edogawa and the two adults behind him walked in. The former quickly rushed to their side, first calling out "Haibara" and then "Sister Saori".

"Toshi..."

There was a moment of confusion on Shinsuo's face, as if he didn't even react to what he said.

The slightly happy smile on Edogawa Conan's face froze instantly. Before he could open his mouth, he heard Shinsou apologize, "Sorry, Conan, I was a little sleepy, I'm sorry."

"Is anyone else coming?"

Jinpei Matsuda and Kenji Hagiwara quickly introduced themselves, but they only got a faint nod from Shinsou, who didn't say much.

This was not their first meeting with Shinsou, but it felt like the first time.

When the two of them saw this familiar face, it felt like there were termites gnawing madly at their hearts. Just by looking at it, they could feel the lingering pain.

They didn't know why they followed along. Although they wanted to escape and delay in their hearts, their bodies moved honestly as if they wanted to accept the final judgment.

"Ah..." Edogawa Conan said with some difficulty, "Do I sound similar to Tetsu-nii when he was a child?"

"I just happened to dream about him." Shensuo's gentle eyebrows curved, and she stretched out her hand to compare, "We were only seven or eight years old at that time, and he was this tall-"

"Toru only calls me sister with a heavy accent when he's angry, usually he calls me Saori."

As if distracted by the dream, Shinsou spoke a lot: "But I like him to call me sister, so I often make him angry."

"Brother Che is actually angry?"

Shinsou's eyes seemed to be filled with mist. She smiled and said, "Of course I would be angry. At that time, I was in poor health and had a big appetite. I would feel uncomfortable if I ate one more popsicle in the summer, but I wanted to eat it anyway... Every time I didn't finish it, he would find out, and then he would get so angry that he would chase me."

"He would get angry if I secretly read picture books at night; he would get angry if I went out without an umbrella on a rainy day; he would even angrily call me a stupid sister if I fell on the road."

"…Obviously, he's also a fool, and he stumbles and falls just as many times as I do."

Shinsou's voice became increasingly hoarse, and it was even more obvious in his sweet natural voice: "Come to think of it, the last time he called me sister, he was about the same age as Conan..."

This brother and sister have been separated for nearly twenty years and have never seen each other properly until now. It is as if they were cursed by twins, destined to endure the longing for each other but unable to be together.

Conan Edogawa felt a lump in his throat. He didn't know how to tell Shinsou that Toru was beaten badly and taken away by the police. But according to Haibara Ai, it would be better to keep it a secret if he didn't want her to be upset again.

He subconsciously turned his head to look at the two adults behind him and found that Jinpei Matsuda and Kenji Hagiwara were just standing there with pale faces, not saying a word and not moving.

It was as if he came here just to stand as punishment.

But soon, the "teacher" called the name.

Shinsou opened his lips slightly and said, "Speaking of which, Officer Matsuda and Officer Hagiwara were classmates of Toru in the police academy, right? Can you tell me about him?"

The two men's faces suddenly turned pale, they clenched their fists, and opened their mouths but no sound came out.

After a while, Matsuda Jinpei spoke: "Toru... is so kind and gentle, everyone likes him... like a warm fire."

Because it was too warm, despite being splashed by freezing water again and again, it still managed to retain some hope in the dark embers. Only when it sank completely into the cold seabed of unknown depth did the last ray of light dissipate.

…

The two of them could not refuse any of Shensuo's requests. As long as she sat in front of them, it was like a mountain pressing their feet down.

They could only talk to each other to empty out the memories in their minds and repeatedly chew on that brilliant and warm time in the police academy.

The more they talked, the more they realized that a huge gap had appeared unknowingly, not between them, but between Chiyodani Toru and the world.

When he first entered school, Toru Chiyodani was still a warm and friendly person. He had the most sincere kindness to everyone around him. Regardless of whether they knew him or not, he would always lend a hand when they had difficulties.

If Chiyodani Toru had not been hospitalized at the beginning of the school year, it would have been unclear who would be the class monitor.

But later on… Chiyotani Toru’s relationship with them became better and better, and his social circle became smaller and smaller, until in the end, there were only five of them he had a good relationship with, and the others were just casual acquaintances.

Invisibly, the warm sun turned into a small warm lamp placed in the center of them. Although it was also warm, it would be easily blown out by the wind without a barrier next to it.

But one day, the small heating lamp was taken away and replaced with a black cover. After it was brought back, they couldn't recognize it anymore.

…

Shinsou listened to the two people talking a lot, Edogawa Conan and Haibara Ai were also listening, and for a while, only the two people's hoarse voices were echoing, becoming lower and lower, as if those bright people had turned into stories in history.

The five people present had different thoughts, and no one could guess who else was thinking. The only thing they knew was that it was related to the police officer who was not present.

The white-haired girl had been holding a piece of candy wrapper in her hand. She carefully rubbed every notch on the paper with her hands, memorizing every part of it by heart. The braid beside her cheek swayed with her movements and brushed against her cheek.

"I still miss him a little bit." She murmured, "I want to see him."

The faces of the people in front of him suddenly turned pale, and even the corners of their eyes twitched violently. They didn't know whether to open their eyes or close them, whether to speak up and find an excuse, or remain silent.

The scalpel hanging above their heads, about to fall, brings restless days and nights to the people below, but no matter what, they are still alive.

"...Forget it. I've said that I'll leave these matters to you." Shinsuo just sighed slightly and said, "Wait a little longer."

Matsuda Jinpei's fingers were cold. He clenched them twice, and finally put them on his injured shoulder and replied, "Okay."

He understood what Shinso meant.

As a member of the Public Security Bureau who knew Granmani's identity, Shinsou knew that a conflict would inevitably break out between them and Chiyodani Toru, so she remained silent from beginning to end.

But no matter what, in her opinion, their relationship and interests meant that they would not kill Chiyotani Toru.

As long as they can get through this most difficult time, they will eventually have a chance to reunite.

So...she could wait a little longer.

The two people who knew the truth were speechless again. The bell in their minds kept ringing, directly shattering all their thoughts.

Just turned into a blank.

How are they going to compensate Chiyoya Saori for having a younger brother?

"You all go out, I want some quiet time."

Shensuo rubbed the candy wrapper and lowered her eyes slightly. She looked like she was still sleepy, and even the corners of her eyes were slightly red.

Conan Edogawa dragged the two stiff adults and walked out after saying goodbye.

The door closed again, and Haibara Ai, who had been silent all this time, breathed a sigh of relief. She wanted to say something, but she heard Shinsou, who had been silent for a long time, calling her.

She said, "Shirley, you should go out for a walk too."

Shirley. Huihara Ai's breathing stagnated, and her hand rolled over the corner of her clothes inch by inch, and finally she stepped out almost mechanically.

When closing the door, she turned her head to look at the silent but reserved elder sister, and saw her stand up and walk slowly to the window where she could see the sea without any bumps.

Shinsou did not tell her about the dream she had while she was sleeping.

Her beloved brother hugged her in the blue sky, his body wet as a puppy wading through puddles in the rain, and called out "sister" in a wronged tone.

Of course, Chiyodani Toru doesn't only call her sister when he's angry, he also calls her when he's sad and wronged.

But Zaozhi couldn't bear to do so. She didn't want to see him sad.