Traveling back thirty years to Conan, intercepting Princess Eri

Lin Xiuyi slowly got out of bed, her hair disheveled and her face weary as she walked to the door and opened it.

Standing outside the door was Lingzi, a little girl wearing a pink dress, her hair tied into two cute little braids, with a hint of dissatisfaction on her face.

As soon as Lin Xiu opened the door, Lingzi puffed out her cheeks and asked, "Onii-chan! Why did you lock the door? I wanted to scare you when I went in!"

Looking at his younger sister's adorable appearance, Lin Xiuyi's morning grumpiness dissipated considerably.

He reached out and gently pinched Lingzi's chubby cheek, his tone amused: "Little girl, you always know how to play pranks on me."

"I went to bed late last night and locked the door so I wouldn't be disturbed. Okay, I'm very sleepy and I'm going to sleep a little longer."

After saying that, he turned around and went back to his room to catch up on his sleep.

Just then, Reiko suddenly reached out her small hand and tugged at his sleeve, her eyes filled with a mysterious look. She stood on tiptoe, lowered her voice, and cautiously asked, "Onii-chan, did Chikage-neechan go out last night?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Xiuyi's body stiffened slightly, and his heart skipped a beat.

He didn't expect Lingzi to suddenly ask about this. Did Lingzi see them returning home late last night?
Lin Xiuyi forced herself to remain calm: "Why would you ask that? Wasn't Sister Qianying sleeping in her room all night?"

Reiko was completely unaware of the fleeting tension in her brother's eyes.

When Lin Xiuyi responded, she immediately perked up, her little face full of excitement at sharing gossip, but she tried to lower her voice as if she were conveying some important information: "This morning, I got up early because I wanted to go play with Sister Jinghua, but I happened to hear her on the phone in the corridor!"

Lingzi described it vividly: "It was the policeman uncle who is Jinghua's sister who called! He said that someone found a strange card at the exhibition hall of the festival. It said that he would steal the Chinese terracotta warriors in the exhibition hall within three days! It was signed by the Phantom Thief Lady!"

Lin Xiuyi's drowsiness vanished instantly, as if doused with cold water.

"This……"

He frowned, the lingering sleepiness on his face replaced by a solemn expression. The news came too suddenly and was too illogical.

The fact that Tomizawa Chikage is the "Phantom Thief Lady" is no secret to Hayashi Shuichi and the girls he is close to.

Therefore, it's not surprising that Reiko's first reaction upon hearing that the Phantom Thief Lady had sent out a notice was that Tomizawa Chikage had gone out to work again last night.

The problem is, Lin Xiuyi spent almost the entire night with Tomizawa Chikage!
From infiltrating the Mito family home, encountering Kuroba Toichi, to retrieving the painting and being caught by Ikenami Shizuka, Tomizawa Chikage was with him the entire time.

Where did she get the ability to be in two places at once, or the extra time to go to the exhibition hall of the festival to deliver some kind of announcement?

Furthermore, and most importantly, Chikage Tomizawa, as a phantom thief, has always had very clear principles and motives.

She primarily targets individuals or organizations that accumulate wealth through illicit means and are ruthless and heartless. The proceeds from her ill-gotten gains are mainly used to help vulnerable groups, making her a chivalrous thief with her own moral code.

The Chinese terracotta warrior in the celebration exhibition hall is an exhibit of cultural exchange between the two countries and belongs to public property. Its existence does not violate her principles.

Why would Chikage Tomizawa suddenly target an exhibit with international influence that is both extremely difficult and risky to steal?
This is completely out of character for her.

Therefore, the only explanation is that someone is impersonating him!

Just like what happened before in the Beika Shopping Street, someone deliberately used the name "Phantom Thief Lady" to issue a fake notice.

Their purpose is either to take advantage of the chaos to commit theft and frame the Phantom Thief Lady, or to have other deeper conspiracies, such as interfering with the police's investigation, or simply to tarnish the reputation of the "Phantom Thief Lady".

Regardless of the possibility, this is a very dangerous signal for Tomizawa Chikage.

If this imposter succeeds or causes any major trouble, all the blame and the police's all-out investigation will fall on the real Lady Thief.

Seeing that her brother, after hearing her words, was not as surprised as she had expected about Tomizawa Chikage's whereabouts the previous night, but instead frowned and fell into deep thought, Reiko couldn't help but gently tug at his pajama sleeve.

"Onii-chan? What's wrong?"

Lin Xiuyi was pulled back to reality by his sister's call. He shook his head: "Qianying didn't do this. Let's go find Miss Chibo and find out what really happened."

……

Lin Xiuyi, holding Lingzi's hand, hurriedly arrived at the living room of the Chibo family mansion.

The place was already quite lively, except for Chikage Tomizawa, who was still catching up on sleep, and Kogoro Mouri, who always slept in.

The other girls, Eri Kisaki, Yukiko, Midori Orikasa, and Ruri, who had just woken up, had already gathered here.

They were gathered around Ikeba Shizuka, who was sitting on the main sofa, talking all at once, the atmosphere was a little tense and excited.

The television in the living room wasn't on, but the air was thick with the feeling that "big news is coming."

As soon as Lin Xiuyi and Lingzi entered, everyone's eyes immediately turned to them.

"Shuichi! Have you heard? The Terracotta Army! A pre-announcement!"

Yukiko was the first to jump up, rushing to Hayashi Shuichi and shouting excitedly, her pretty face full of exaggerated shock and gossip.

"It's the Phantom Thief Lady! Her target this time is actually a Terracotta Warrior from China! That's too... too audacious!"

Although she knew Tomizawa Chikage's identity, the sudden announcement still made her feel incredulous and excited.

Eri Kisaki also looked over, her brows furrowed slightly, clearly finding the matter suspicious as well.

Midori Orikasa and Ruri looked on with a mixture of curiosity and worry.

Lin Xiuyi patted Yukiko on the shoulder, signaling her to calm down, and then nodded to everyone: "I've heard the gist of what happened from Reiko. But I feel that something is very wrong with this."

Lin Xiuyi walked to the center of the living room, his gaze sweeping over every girl present, finally settling on Chi Bojinghua.

At this moment, Ikeba Shizuka was holding a cup of hot tea, sitting elegantly, but when her gaze met Lin Xiuyi's, she clearly looked away coldly, as if she had only glanced at him casually.

Today she was wearing a light gray Japanese-style casual outfit, her hair was neatly tied up, and she looked even more aloof and distant than usual.

Lin Xiuyi ignored the subtle change in her attitude and continued, "It's very likely that, just like what happened in the Beika Shopping Street, someone deliberately impersonated the 'Phantom Thief Lady' and issued a false notice to frame her or achieve some other ulterior motive." (End of Chapter)