The unscrupulous detective in Conan

Chapter 1290 She's at least over fifty, isn't she?
Upon hearing this, Sonoko's face fell, and she looked a little unhappy.

She couldn't understand what was wrong with Hondo Eisuke, why he kept going to the hospital to see his sister.

Do you know that this has seriously affected my ability to go out and date with my senior?
She strongly protested this behavior of monopolizing her seniors.

However, finding one's relatives is a very serious matter.

She didn't know what to say.

Then, a brilliant idea popped into her head.

Finally, a bright smile appeared on her face, and she suggested, "Well, how about Xiaolan and I help you find your sister too?"

"Huh?" Hondo Eisuke was taken aback by what he heard.

Xiao Lan, who was standing next to her, had not expected that her best friend would get involved in this matter.

Sonoko is indeed a kind-hearted person, but she rarely takes the initiative to help others; at most, she will step forward if she can't stand something.

The division of labor is as follows.

She's usually the one who takes the lead in these kinds of situations.

She never expected that Sonoko would take the initiative today.

Well, my best friend has spoken up, so of course I have to show my support.

As her best friend, she immediately chimed in, "Yeah, I think it's a good idea. After all, there's strength in numbers!"

"We can go to the hospital separately to look for them..."

Hondou Eisuke looked at the two kind-hearted girls and said with an embarrassed smile, "No need, Mori-san and Suzuki-san, thank you..."

"However, I still think it's better for me to find it myself."

"Because I wanted to see my sister as soon as possible."

Xiaolan smiled and said, "I see..."

Sonoko narrowed her eyes, sensing that something was off about Hondo Eisuke's words.

But she couldn't tell what was wrong.

…………

"Still haven't found it..."

After finishing her afternoon hospital visit, Sakura Hondo, dressed in women's clothing, reluctantly sat back in her car, looking somewhat lost and dejected.

Fujino wasn't surprised. While driving, he said to him calmly, "That's normal. If we go by the previous guesses, if she's been recruited into some organization, it will indeed be very difficult to find her. In fact, the news of her hospitalization might even be hidden."

"yes……"

Hondo Sakurako nodded and pondered, "To put it another way, it's like the TV station called her when they heard she had taken leave, and it was even her voice."

"But she had already been hit by a car, how could she still be making a phone call?"

"I think someone must have impersonated her voice!"

Fujino imagined Conan secretly using a voice changer to impersonate Rena Mizunashi: "Hmm, very likely."

At this point, concerning her older sister, Hondou Sakurako's tone turned serious, her eyes seeming to hold a lion's fury: "It's also possible that someone kidnapped her..."

"Um……?"

Fujino looked puzzled upon hearing this.

Hondou Sakurako explained, "My sister and I definitely have the same blood type. A bone marrow transplant is possible, but I think the chances are extremely slim..."

"The only possibility is that my sister has been kidnapped by them!"

"Then, I had plastic surgery to look like my sister!"

Fujino: "..."

So how exactly does your brain work?
Has it come full circle back to kidnapping?

After a moment of silence, he asked, "What's the motive?"

"I'm not so sure either……"

Hondou Sakurako shook her head slightly: "If she is my older sister, that would be best. If not, then perhaps only by finding Mizunashi Rena can we truly confirm what is going on!"

"So, you were too reckless, weren't you?" Fujino retorted.

"But there's no other way now," Hondou Sakurako said with a hint of helplessness.

Fujino paused for a moment upon hearing this, then continued, "By the way, you should be staying at your dad's friend's house right now, right?"

"yes……"

Hondou Sakurako replied, "It's Dad's friend."

Fujino then suggested, "I think you could ask your dad's friend, the family you're currently staying with..."

Hondo Eisuke was a little confused: "Why?"

He didn't quite understand what Fujino meant, after all, in his opinion, his father's friends were just his father's friends.

How could he possibly know where his sister is?
Fujino pulled the car over to the side of the road: "Have you forgotten what I said before?"

"Before?"

"It's about your father's identity."

Fujino looked at Hondo Eisuke, whose mind was somewhat impaired, and said in a deep voice, "Don't you think this is very unreasonable?"

"unreasonable?"

"Your dad has been missing for so long without any contact, and your dad's friend is actually kind enough to let you stay at his house. Is that normal?"

He continued, "I think at least this friend knows your dad very well, and might even be your dad's colleague."

"Your sister and your father have both disappeared; there must be a connection between them."

"I think you should ask around; you might get some unexpected insights."

"Anyway, it doesn't cost any money to ask."

"Yes!"

"and many more!"

"what happened?"

"Why don't you find a place to secretly change your clothes first, okay?"

"Oh oh oh!"

…………

After sending Sakurako Hondo, who had returned to her original form as Eisuke Hondo, back home.

Fujino went straight home.

It was getting dark, around six or seven o'clock in the evening.

The Fujino family was preparing dinner. As soon as he got home, he smelled the aroma of food and heard the sound of stir-frying.

Akemi was finishing up the shop's last bit of work at this time, planning to come over for dinner around 7 or 8 pm. The Shimokasa sisters started preparing dinner after dinner time, with Ai Haibara helping out.

The TV was a bit noisy, and outside the window was the sound of car tires.

The breath of life was palpable, giving Fujino a dreamlike feeling.

Having lived here for so long since transmigrated, Fujino had long since adapted to this place. Yet, a sense of unreality still lingered.

It's like a dream core in a hazy memory, both blurry and real.

Ai Haibara came out of the kitchen, spotted Fujino, and greeted him:
"You're back?"

"Did you go to see Hondo Eisuke's sister today too?"

Fujino took off his coat and hung it on the coat rack in the entryway: "Hmm, that child seems determined to find her sister."

Ai Haibara narrowed her cat-like eyes, her gaze seemingly filled with some concern and worry, but in the end, she didn't say anything.

She said with a hint of helplessness, "Fujino is now going to find Mizunashi Rena with Hondo Eisuke, which could very well lead to contact with the organization..."

"If we get in touch, it will probably be troublesome."

"But what reason can we give to prevent him from making contact?"

"Ugh……"

Life is tough, Haibara sighed helplessly, unable to think of any good solutions.

Just then, a phone rang.

Fujino took out his phone and saw that it was a mysterious encrypted software called OICQ.

User B (Vermouth): "Shall we meet up?"

User A (Fujino): "What kind of meeting?"

User B: "..."

Vermouth paused for a moment, her delicate golden eyebrows curving slightly.

Then, a screenshot was sent directly to me:
"So what kind of reward do you want? How about going out for dinner, to chat? No way, if you're going to poison me, I'll just send it to you. For a big star like me to invite you, and you refuse and even have suspicions, that's really inhuman... I'll choose the place. OK, wait for my good news..."

The screenshot shows a previous chat log.

Fujino: "Oh, so that's what it was. I almost forgot."

Belmode: "..."

With your memory, how could you forget this?

Are you just deliberately giving me the runaround...?

The older woman was slightly dissatisfied with this matter: "I'm a big star from Hollywood, a mother-daughter duo admired by thousands, and countless people want to be intimate with me, the one playing the mother and daughter. I invited you to dinner, and you refused, but you were even afraid that I would poison you. And now you've even forgotten!"

Is this even humane?
Fujino: A beauty over fifty, huh? That's not how a middle-aged woman ages!

If Fujino heard what Vermouth said, he would definitely say the same thing, and Vermouth would definitely explode with resentment upon hearing that.

Fortunately, both of them were shrewd and would never say such a thing.

So Vermouth took the initiative to break the deadlock, saying, "We've gathered enough intelligence, and we're about to take action... As we agreed last time, since you're worried about poisoning, you choose a restaurant, and we'll talk."

Fujino looked at the text message on the screen, then glanced at the Shimokasa sisters who were making dinner.

Thinking to myself, "This old lady really came at the worst possible time. You invited her out to dinner while she was having dinner, didn't you? Dinner's already taken care of..."

Ai Haibara kept her eyes fixed on Fujino, and when she noticed a slight change in his expression, she seemed to understand something.

This feeling is like that of an old married couple who have been together for many years.

It's a feeling of telepathy.

He then said calmly, "Have you received another request?"

"That's it."

Faced with Haibara's help in fabricating all the reasons, Fujino nodded and explained, "A client came to ask me to have dinner."

"Then hurry up and go there, don't keep them waiting."

Ai Haibara said this with an expression full of understanding and tacit agreement, just like a young wife who trusts her newlywed husband. She quietly and gently reminded him, "Remember to come home early, don't come back too late, and don't drink and drive."

"kindness……"

Fujino responded and patted the cat's head. It was soft and smooth, and looked like it had been washed and conditioned that morning, with a faint scent of conditioner.

…………

After asking the all-knowing Hiroki, a high-end hotel was recommended after Hiroki's吐槽 (tu cao, a Chinese internet slang term for sarcastic or critical comments).

Fujino wanted to complain: I want a restaurant, why are you giving me a hotel? Even if I'm going to a hotel, I can't spend the night with some old lady who's at least fifty or who knows how old she is.

But in reality, in addition to staying overnight, you can also eat at the hotel.

Accommodation seemed to be just a side benefit.

Well, hotels have always been like this since ancient times.

Fujino sent the hotel address to Vermouth, then drove off in his old Taurus. He parked the car near the hotel, disguised himself, and then drove to the hotel's reserved location.

This hotel looks very upscale, with many floors.

The restaurant is located on the 21st floor of the hotel. As soon as you step out of the elevator, you can see the décor, which is both luxurious and tasteful. There is a black patterned carpet and an antique style. The interior is furnished with scattered sofas and chairs, which, judging from the spacing, seem to effectively prevent the guests at the next table from hearing each other's conversations.

Fujino disguised himself as a man who looked to be in his twenties.

After giving the receptionist my fake name, I was led to a window seat and they patiently asked if I needed any other services.

It can be said to be very professional.

Of course, it's also very expensive.

Fortunately, Hiroki managed to get a lot of money from Tokiwa, which was more than enough to pay for a dinner.

I heard that Hiroki has been talking to Tokiwa about OICQ recently.

If a deal can be reached, more money will be deposited in the future, but it can only be deposited into overseas accounts. Fujino cannot touch this money, at least not into his own bank account.

Otherwise, the Japanese tax authorities would come knocking on our door.

Moreover, there is a risk that one's identity will be exposed.

A white tablecloth and a small flowerpot were placed on the table, with what looked like daffodils in the vase.

Fujino looked around and felt that the service in this high-end place was really attentive, but he was not used to it. Bored, he looked out the floor-to-ceiling window and saw the brightly lit Tokyo city night view.

A short while later, the dull clatter of high heels on the carpet could be heard.

Vermouth, dressed in a black evening gown and high heels, walked over and gracefully sat down opposite Fujino: "You have quite the taste?"

Fujino said calmly, "My friend found this place. I was originally planning to take you to eat sukiyaki or some street food stall, but I thought about it and decided against it."

"I see. Then I really have to thank your friend..." Vermouth's lips curled into a smile that was hard to decipher. "Otherwise, I would have worn this outfit for nothing."

"Yes, you really should thank him."

Fujino glanced at her, feeling that she had become somewhat presumptuous.

Going out dressed like this, without even bothering to disguise yourself, as if you're afraid no one will know you're in contact with people outside the organization, right?
But considering the older woman's influence within the organization...

There seems to be no need to consider these things.

As a veteran member of the organization, and a cadre with a reputation for drinking, who would bother to keep an eye on him?
If they were really monitoring him, that dark-skinned guy codenamed Bourbon, using the alias Amuro Tooru, and whose real name is Furuya Rei, would probably be found out on the spot to have connections with the Japanese Public Security Bureau, and would be arrested and subjected to a severe beating from the brewery.

Fujino didn't want to discuss the middle-aged woman's dress or the location of the hotel restaurant.

He asked the other party in a deep voice, "So, your plan is ready?"

(End of this chapter)