I'm in Detective Conan, and I start with the Grand Theft Auto system.

Lin Shen sat in the coffee shop for the entire afternoon.

The sunlight outside the window gradually changed from the brightness of midday to the warm orange of dusk, slanting across the dark wooden floor and casting a long shadow on the wall.

The shop was quiet. Occasionally, you could hear the sounds of cars and people from the street, but most of them were blocked by the heavy wooden door, and by the time they came in, they were already blurry.

The "Last Case Coffee" on the bar had long been finished, leaving a ring of light brown coffee stains at the bottom.

Lin Shen had to admit that Mingmei's coffee was indeed quite good.

Of course, whether it's worth 21 yen is another matter entirely.

However, the coffee shop's business is... indeed rather dismal.

In one afternoon, about seven or eight groups of customers came into the store.

The first group was a young couple. The girl stood in front of the bar looking at the menu. When her eyes fell on the number "2.21", the smile on her face froze for about three seconds.

Then she tugged at her boyfriend's sleeve and whispered, "It's so expensive," and the two of them quietly left.

The second group consisted of a middle-aged man in a suit. He pushed open the door, glanced at the price list, his brows furrowed so deeply they could trap a fly, and muttered, "Is this selling coffee or gold?" before turning and leaving.

The following groups of guests had a similar reaction.

Upon entering, seeing the price, their expression froze, they hesitated for a few seconds, and then left.

By 3 p.m., Mingmei was getting a little impatient.

She simply found a small blackboard, wrote the price list clearly on it with chalk, and then hung it on the wall by the door.

Since then, no new customers have come into the shop.

Lin Shen sat by the window watching Mingmei finish all this and couldn't help but chuckle: "You're basically telling her to quit."

"So that they don't come in, ask the price, and then leave, and I don't have to wipe the bar," Mingmei said, taking off her apron and hanging it aside before sitting down opposite Lin Shen.

She picked up her now-cold Americano and took a sip.

The two of them sat in the shop, with a TV hanging in the corner above the bar, playing an afternoon variety show, the volume filling the quiet shop at a moderate level.

The two chatted casually, and the atmosphere was very relaxed.

Mingmei took a sip of coffee, then, as if remembering something, put down her cup and looked at Lin Shen: "Mr. Lin, I was wondering if we should ask Miss Xiaotong to come over and help out at the shop?"

Lin Shen, who was leaning back in his chair, moved slightly upon hearing this and looked at Mingmei.

Akemi continued, "Isn't she just lounging around in her hotel suite right now?"

"All I do every day is watch TV and work out. After a while, I get really bored."

"And it's true that she's a wanted criminal now, but as long as she puts on makeup and wears a mask, and usually helps out in the kitchen or behind the bar, basically no one will recognize her."

"Anyway, we don't have many customers in our store, so the risk is actually very small."

Lin Shen shook his head almost without hesitation: "No. Better safe than sorry. It would be troublesome if someone recognized me."

His tone was calm, but resolute.

Because Conan lives right across the street!

If you put Hitomi in this shop, with Conan's keen observation skills, he'll notice something's wrong in just a few days.

Moreover, this is a detective-themed café, and Conan will find an excuse to come in and take a look sooner or later.

"I'll arrange for her to do something else," Lin Shen said. "We'll see when the time comes."

Mingmei didn't press further, nodded to indicate she understood, and then changed the subject: "So, I'm planning to hire an employee for this shop nearby."

"Actually, there's not much going on at the shop most of the time. Mainly, we just make sure to open on time every day, do some cleaning... Most importantly, we have a strong sense of confidentiality and have signed confidentiality agreements!"

"You can make the decision yourself," Lin Shen said.

Mingmei nodded and stood up: "Then I'll go prepare the job postings. I'll show them to you when they're done."

She had just turned around and hadn't taken two steps when the coffee shop door was pushed open.

The bell on the door rang once.

A high school girl wearing a dark blue school uniform walked in, carrying a black backpack.

When she looked up, Lin Shen recognized her.

Ran Mouri!

Xiaolan stood at the door, her eyes scanning the store. When she saw the coffee machine behind the bar and the decorative paintings on the wall, her eyes lit up.

But he quickly revealed an expression of wanting to find someone yet hesitating, his two hands unconsciously clasped together in front of him.

Akemi immediately switched to business mode, donning a standard professional smile and greeting customers in a gentle tone, "Welcome to Cafe 221B. What would you like to drink?"

Xiaolan quickly waved her hand and smiled somewhat embarrassedly: "No, no... I didn't come here for a drink."

She paused for a moment, then asked, "I wanted to ask... do you hire part-time workers here?"

Akemi was stunned for a moment; this was too much of a coincidence.

She was just about to write a job posting when the person came to her door.

She laughed and said, "Oh? What a coincidence! I was just saying I was looking to hire people."

Xiaolan's eyes lit up immediately, and she took half a step forward: "Really? Then... then do you think I can do it?"

Mingmei looked Xiaolan up and down. Her hair was neatly tied up, her features were regular, and her smile carried a sincere kindness, giving a very good first impression.

But her gaze fell on the school badge on Ran's chest—the four words "Teitan High School" made her hesitate for a moment.

"This is... you're still in school, right?" Akemi said somewhat awkwardly, "If you're a high school student... this might not be a good fit for us."

The light on Xiaolan's face dimmed slightly.

She lowered her head, her voice becoming softer: "Oh, I see... then I'm sorry to have bothered you."

She turned around, her hand already on the doorknob, ready to push the door open and leave.

Just then, a voice came from over.

"No, I think you're quite suitable."

Xiaolan stopped what she was doing, turned around, and looked in the direction of the sound with some surprise.

A young man was sitting by the window, wearing a simple dark gray casual shirt, leaning back in his chair with a relaxed smile on his face.

Xiao Lan was taken aback. She had glanced at him when she entered and assumed he was just a regular customer. She hadn't expected him to speak up.

"My name is Lin Shen, and I'm the owner of this shop," Lin Shen nodded to her, his tone relaxed, "Our shop targets the high-end market."

"The most important qualities we look for when hiring shop assistants are temperament and appearance, and you meet both of those criteria."

Although Mingmei didn't fully understand why Lin Shen suddenly wanted to keep this high school student, she reacted quickly.

She immediately picked up where Lin Shen left off, smiling as she said, "Ah—that's true! Students represent youth and vitality, they have a unique charm!"

"Moreover, young people are more approachable when communicating with customers, which is indeed very suitable for our store's brand image."