Stay away from Conan.

When Gao Yuan casually uttered these words, directly linking "Shinichi Kudo" and "Conan Edogawa" in this way, it was nothing short of a thunderclap to "Kiyonaga Matsumoto"!
"Shinichi Kudo who hasn't fully grown up yet?"
An absurd yet insane conjecture, perfectly fitting certain points of doubt, flooded his mind like a burst dam:
The exact timeline of Shinichi Kudo's mysterious disappearance...

The timing of that kid named Conan Edogawa's appearance was just right...

Conan's extraordinary intelligence allows him to offer brilliant suggestions in various cases...

If everything is explained in this way, then Shinichi Kudo not only did not die, but turned into a child and lived under everyone's noses?
The idea was so terrifying that Matsumoto Kiyonaga's breath hitched almost imperceptibly for a moment.

But soon, Matsumoto Kiyonaga quickly regained his composure, maintaining his cold and serious expression, and merely nodded slightly, as if he had only heard an insignificant metaphor.

"A child's potential is indeed immeasurable."

Somewhat casually, "Matsumoto Kiyonaga" brought the topic to a close:

"Thank you for your time, Detective Akechi. Please continue to assist me in the future."

"Of course."

Gao Yuan nodded, then turned around and walked steadily toward the stairs.

Meanwhile, Matsumoto Kiyonaga, who remained in the same spot, stood by the window, gazing out with one eye, his inner turmoil far from subsided.

Once that crazy conjecture took root, it grew rapidly.

He needs to verify it, he absolutely must verify it!

If this is true...

That would be the most important gift to that man, and also his best weapon to deal with Gin!
As he thought of this, his hand instinctively reached for his phone in his pocket, but he immediately stopped himself.

We mustn't alert them; we need to plan even more meticulously...

First, we need to find solid evidence from that kid named Conan Edogawa...

After calming himself down by the window, "Matsumoto Kiyonaga" began to think about what to do next to verify his conjecture.

But at that moment, he didn't notice that at the corner of the corridor leading to the stairs, Gao Yuan was hiding behind the corner, secretly watching Matsumoto Kiyonaga's reaction through his phone's camera before finally choosing to leave.

After all, his words just now were deliberately meant for Matsumoto Kiyonaga to hear...

……

Meanwhile, at the same time, outside a somewhat old apartment building in Hachioji City, Tokyo—

A young woman carrying a backpack, wearing a sun hat and sunglasses, was dragging a small suitcase out of the building.

She had fair skin and a gentle demeanor; it was none other than the painter, Shindo Sumire. At this moment, her face wore a relaxed, even slightly joyful expression, and she clutched tightly in her hand an envelope with a beautifully printed cover: "Luxury Three-Day Hot Spring Resort Tour"—

This was a lucky surprise that the postman delivered it to her door this morning.

I participated in a lucky draw on social media on a whim, and to my surprise, I won! After filling in my mailing address, the organizers delivered the prize ticket, along with a series of tickets, train tickets, accommodation vouchers, and more, to my door the very next morning.

The speed at which the prize was redeemed surprised Shindo Sumire. She wondered if there might be any problems, but looking at the solid, tangible receipts in her hands, she was quickly overwhelmed with joy. Moreover, the destination of the trip was a famous resort, not some unknown little place, which further reduced her doubts.

The only problem is that the timeframe for this trip is a bit tight; if we don't leave immediately today, we might miss it.

Therefore, after receiving these items, Sumire Shindo thought for a moment and then immediately packed her things to leave.

Having already endured a period of intense deadlines, this unexpected stroke of "luck" felt like a godsend, allowing me to finally relax.

And so, having tidied everything up, Sumire Shindo walked out of the apartment and stood by the roadside, looking around as if wanting to soak up the free air of a trip. She stretched her body and then walked happily toward the subway...

However, just about 100 meters away from the apartment building where Shindo Sumire lives, under the shade of a roadside tree where vehicles can temporarily park, there is an inconspicuous dark-colored sedan parked.

In the driver's seat of the car, a man wearing a baseball cap, ordinary-framed glasses, and headphones, with an unremarkable appearance, was calmly observing Shindo Sumire's every move in the distance through the rearview mirror.

On the back seat of the car was a postman's uniform, identical to the one worn by the postman who delivered the lottery tickets to Sumire Shindo this morning.

Clearly, this is the same postman who delivered the lottery tickets to Shindo Sumire this morning.

Seeing Sumire Shindo smoothly dragging her suitcase and starting to move, the man in the car subtly curved the corners of his mouth upwards beneath his baseball cap—

The plan is going smoothly.

Shindo Sumire is about to temporarily leave this position that could become the bullseye.

The killer needs time to reposition their target, while the police and the organization may be led in the wrong direction or become stuck in a wait due to the lack of new leads.

That's right, the man hiding in the car right now is Gao Yuan himself. In order to lure Xin Tang Jin away as soon as possible and avoid any uncontrollable risks from dragging things out, Gao Yuan came here directly and watched Xin Tang Jin leave.

But if that's the case, and Takato takes the initiative to deal with Shindo Sumire's situation, what about the Metropolitan Police Department, which was invited to participate in the case discussion meeting?

Moreover, Gao Yuan's figure did indeed appear at the Metropolitan Police Department's meeting.
Thus, Takato watched Shindo Sumire depart, then drove after her, finally seeing her board the subway and arrive at the Shinkansen station. Only after confirming her safety did Takato remove the earphones he had been wearing. Seemingly relieved, he let out a long sigh of relief.

There's no immediate concern about Sumire Shindo's situation, but as for the Metropolitan Police Department...

Just now, through the earpiece he was wearing, Gao Yuan had been listening to the situation around that "Gao Yuan" on the other side, and then directly giving orders to the other party, telling them how to respond.

It has to be said, it's a good thing Miyano Akemi was willing to make the trip, otherwise I would have had to consider having Kuroba Kaito take action... (End of this chapter)