Soon, when the studio door opened, a tall man walked in. Behind him was excessively bright sunlight, which, when it fell down, seemed to dye his hair golden.
Jiang Shihe's features were exceptionally handsome. He was probably of mixed race, with slightly long, curly hair, fair skin, and a tall stature of nearly 1.9 meters, giving him a strong sense of imposing presence.
The combination of Eastern physical features and Western bone structure is like a collision of strength and beauty, making the person so handsome that they seem unreal, more like a work of art sculpted from marble.
"Team Dragon, are you in trouble?"
The man spoke in a deep voice, his tone as beautiful and melodious as a cello.
Long Qi's attitude towards Jiang Shihe was clearly friendly, but also subtly respectful. He immediately stood up and said, "Mr. Jiang, you've finally arrived."
Jiang Shihe nodded slightly. Just before he was about to speak, he suddenly felt a gaze, focused and serious, even... a little sticky, but it quickly disappeared.
It was so fast that even he thought the gaze was just his imagination.
He subconsciously turned his head and saw Ruan Qing'an sitting to the side: "Captain Long, who is this?"
"Oh, let me introduce you. This is Ruan Qing'an, a student in the dance department of F University. The deceased, Zhang Wu, was her suitor and came to help with the investigation."
With Long Qi's help in making the connection, Jiang Shihe softened his tone: "I see. Hello, Miss Ruan. My name is Jiang Shihe. May I ask you a few questions?"
Upon hearing this, Ruan Qing'an clasped her hands in front of her, lowered her head somewhat awkwardly, appearing uneasy, and nodded cautiously: "Okay, okay..."
That's how the original owner of this body was designed. Even the gaze she gave just now was something Ruan Qing'an did intentionally. After all... she couldn't really hide herself completely until later on and become a parallel line with Jiang Shihe, never to intersect.
Since that's the case, why not subtly reveal a little bit to attract his attention? As long as it's done just right, then—
As she was thinking, 037 in her mind seemed to have noticed something and let out a soft "Eh".
"What's wrong, little system?"
The male lead's behavior... is so strange, something's not right, it's really not right. Could it be that he is—
The next moment, 037 abruptly stopped, as if the call had been forcibly cut off, leaving Ruan Qing'an somewhat bewildered. But before she could ask, Jiang Shihe had already sat down in front of her.
The man was polite and gentlemanly, and his smile was full of respectful kindness towards Nguyen Thanh An, a member of a vulnerable group.
"I've noticed you're very scared. Is it because of Zhang Wu's death?"
"yes……"
"It's alright, no one will hurt you. As for the person who killed Zhang Wu, I will find him as soon as possible. Please trust me, okay?"
Jiang Shihe soothed her in a low voice, as if she were a fragile porcelain doll. His long, slender hands, with their distinct knuckles, were holding Ruan Qing'an's hand and even patting it gently.
After Ruan Qingan's face, which had been pale from shock, regained some color, he asked, "Did Zhang Wu contact you yesterday?"
Ruan Qingan nodded and handed over his phone: "This is my chat history with him. He told me last night around midnight that he would help me draw a picture, but he hasn't replied since."
"Okay, I understand."
Jiang Shihe nodded, took the phone, glanced at the chat history, and then handed it back to her.
As the girl sat down and nervously fiddled with her phone after taking it, Jiang Shihe noticed that she seemed to have become restless ever since he walked in.
And without her even realizing it, the manicure on her rounded nails became uneven and unsightly due to her unconscious picking at it.
After a brief inquiry, Jiang Shihe said, "Thank you for your cooperation, Miss Ruan. We will now proceed with the investigation. Please go back now. If you remember anything, you can contact me."
"Yes, I understand, Mr. Jiang."
He watched as the girl, who was much shorter than him, nodded, looking as delicate as a flower on a branch, and obediently exchanged contact information with him.
Jiang Shihe only withdrew his gaze from Ruan Qing'an after she left the studio.
As for the gaze that had just given him what seemed like an illusion...
Could it be her?
Just then, Long Qi, who was standing nearby, asked, "What's wrong, Mr. Jiang? Was Miss Ruan acting strangely just now?"
"But before you came, Mr. Jiang, I had already spoken with her briefly and even showed her the portrait drawn by Zhang Wu. However, she was only frightened and nothing seemed amiss."
“I know she’s acting normally for now, but… she’s probably hiding something.”
Hearing this, Long Qi couldn't help but say, "Speaking of which, I also feel that she seems to be afraid of something, especially after I showed her the portrait, she suddenly screamed in terror."
Inside the art studio, Jiang Shihe lowered his head and pondered for a moment before saying, "I understand. I'll keep an eye on things on her end, so don't worry."
Meanwhile, outside the cordon, Ruan Qingan, carrying a bag in one hand, left the school with the flow of people.
In fact, in the original story, the original owner had nothing to do with this incident. To be precise, apart from harassing Jiang Shihe and killing him countless times, the original owner did nothing else.
But the strategy is to pique Jiang Shihe's curiosity. What else could be related to the case that would draw his attention here?
037: [Sigh, after so many worlds, I've never managed to learn even one of our ancestors' strategies.]
"Huh, the little system is back again?"
【Yes, my lord, it seems there's a problem on my end. The Affection Points system isn't working properly. It's been sent back to the main system for repair, and it should be fixed soon.】
But even if it happens quickly, this little world will probably be over by then. I'm so sorry, my ancestors, I'm so sorry, so sorry—
This sudden malfunction startled Ruan Qing'an: "It's malfunctioning?"
037: [Yes, that's right. But if the affection level is full, it means you've completed the mission, and you can still leave this small world.]
Ruan Qingan nodded, seemingly believing 037's statement: "Then what did you say about Jiang Shihe being unusual?"
037: [Oh, I've realized the male lead has probably already awakened to the death loop, so you'd better be careful, ancestor, don't expose yourself.]
"Won't we get caught and get punished?"
Ruan Qing'an suddenly asked, and 037 replied: "[How could that be—well, after all, ancestor, you're so powerful, why not just kill the male lead directly!]"
Upon hearing this, Ruan Qing'an nodded, but when he lowered his head, the emotion in his leaden gray eyes deepened.
It suddenly malfunctioned; even the affection value system is unusable...
Shouldn't 037 be complaining about being useless? This time, he seems to have come to terms with it.
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