Conan: The Romantic Daily Life of a Ghost Detective

If Conan were present at this moment, he would definitely wonder why the kidnappers specifically requested Sachiko Ezaki to go, whether Sachiko Ezaki was also involved in the kidnapping case, or whether the kidnappers had other plans, and whether the driver's look at Wen Shui earlier was related to this matter... and so on.

Unfortunately, the person who was kidnapped this time was Conan.

Since Wen Shui didn't speak up, the detectives from the Metropolitan Police Department simply assumed that he felt women were less dangerous.

After obtaining the location for the ransom delivery, the Metropolitan Police Department immediately began close surveillance of the area around Daikin Park without alerting the kidnappers.

Wen Shui and the others also took the elevator down.

He had just left the hospital when he received a call from Ran, asking how Conan was doing and saying that Kogoro Mouri had also turned down a request and was on his way.

It has to be said that although Uncle Mori always uses Conan's food money to buy beer, he is still very reliable when it really matters.

Wen Shui comforted Xiao Lan for a few moments on the phone, then saw Sato Miwako standing by the car waving at him. Just as Wen Shui was about to put his phone away, he received another call from Kudo Yukiko.

Wen Shui hesitated for a moment, gestured to Sato Miwako to wait a moment, and then walked to a quiet spot near the hospital entrance to answer the phone.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Wen Shui tried to keep her voice calm.

Yukiko Kudo: "Is Conan... alright?"

"It's alright, I'm here. Besides, Shigeru Kataoka has already decided to use the ransom to exchange for Conan, and the Metropolitan Police Department is keeping a close watch on him, so you can rest assured," Wen Shui reassured her.

On the other end of the phone, Yukiko Kudo seemed hesitant to speak. She was Conan's mother, but because of her connection with the Black Organization, she couldn't reveal her identity. Even when she called to check on him, she could only act as an observer, which made Yukiko Kudo feel like an incompetent mother.

When people lose control of things, they often subconsciously seek help from deities.

Yukiko Kudo had just prayed to every deity she could think of, but she still felt uncertain. However, after hearing the familiar voice of Wenshui, her unease lessened slightly.

"Please, please don't let anything happen to Conan, I beg you!"

Overwhelmed with self-blame, Yukiko Kudo didn't care that Nuwa might notice something was wrong, and started pleading on the phone.

Wen Shui tried to relax her tone and said with a smile, "I told you not to worry. Don't you trust my reasoning skills? They're just a few kidnappers. I can pinpoint their location in no time."

Yukiko Kudo remained silent on the other end of the phone.

Wen Shui sighed, "I promise you, I will definitely rescue Conan alive, even if it means I die..."

"No!" Yukiko suddenly interrupted Wen Shui. "You have to come back alive too. Neither you nor Conan can be hurt. I... I can't do without you... your help. Otherwise, the movie can't be made."

"I know, but you're still as dishonest as ever," Wen Shui said helplessly, then hung up the phone.

Miwako Sato's subordinates had already driven to the scene. Miwako looked at Wen Shui expectantly, as if she thought he had come up with a way to rescue Conan and catch the kidnappers.

Wen Shui looked up at the sky. Cotton candy-like clouds floated in the azure sky, and an airship bearing the Suzuki Foundation logo slowly passed over Beika Town.

At this point, Conan should already be using a steel pipe to pry open the protective netting of the underground water pipes, right?

Wen Shui originally wanted Conan to escape on his own, since rescuing Conan wouldn't yield any results, and it would be better to catch the criminals instead. However, after hearing Yukiko's helpless pleas on the phone, Wen Shui's heart was deeply touched.

If you want to bring happiness to Yukiko, how can you let her be sad and shed tears?

Wen Shui felt it was time for him to demonstrate his sense of responsibility as a "stepfather".

.

"What, a new discovery?" Sato Miwako asked immediately as she watched Wen Shui approach.

Warm Water: "Hmm, has the Kataoka family's driver arrived yet?"

"The driver? It seems the car that took Sachiko Ezaki to deliver the ransom was driven by the driver. What, is there something wrong with him?" Miwako quickly guessed what Numizu meant.

Wen Shui: "Okay, but don't alert them yet. Have someone check if any cars parked near the hospital for a long time this morning. Focus on vehicles that wouldn't attract attention even if they were parked on the side of the road."

“Takagi seemed to have mentioned to me earlier that a White Horse Express van was parked across the street for a long time this morning,” Sato Miwako said, her eyes lighting up.

“That’s great. If it’s the family’s driver working with outsiders, they won’t go too far,” Wen Shui analyzed. “I guess there’s a high chance they’ll lock Conan up somewhere and release him after they get the money. That way, there will be no casualties, and the police investigation will be much less intense.”

The detective system in this Detective Conan world is basically designed based on the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. Although there are cases that are still being pursued even though they are more than 20 years old, the Metropolitan Police Department usually puts its limited police resources into cases with a high probability of being solved, because it can lead to promotion.

Generally, cases like this, where an entrepreneur with no significant background is extorted for money but no one is injured, quickly become unsolved cases.

Only one detective was left to handle the case, but he didn't actually investigate it intentionally on a regular basis.

The investigation will not be restarted unless a criminal is caught several years later and leads to clues related to the case.

In addition, since the statute of limitations in this country is not permanent, many criminals take advantage of this loophole, steal a sum of money, disappear without a trace, and then come out to enjoy life after the heat has died down.

Cases in Detective Conan often revolve around the statute of limitations.

For example, the murderer that Wenshui caught at the Aoi-ya Hotel a few days ago had the same idea.

Sato Miwako trusted Wen Shui and didn't ask any questions. She drove Wen Shui directly to the suspicious factories he mentioned.

In truth, Wen Shui himself wasn't sure either, since all he remembered was that Conan was locked in an abandoned factory in the original story, but he had an assistant.

After getting into the car, Wen Shui sent a message to Ai Haibara. Ai Haibara was afraid that those kids would act impulsively, so she accompanied them in a police car to the scene where the ransom was to be handed over.

Ai Haibara quickly identified several suspected factories for him based on the route and the time the kidnapper made the phone call.

When Conan was kidnapped, his glasses fell out in the hospital room during the struggle with the kidnappers. In addition, he was wearing Jun Kataoka's hospital gown, so he did not have any communication devices that could be used for location tracking.

Wen Shui originally thought it would take some effort to find Conan, but unexpectedly, as soon as he and Miwako parked their car at the gate of an abandoned factory, they saw a little boy in a hospital gown walking unsteadily from the ruins of the collapsed factory.

"Conan! Are you alright?" Wen Shui rushed over and hugged Conan, fully demonstrating his not-so-excessive fatherly love.

Conan's eyes widened: "Brother Wen Shui, what brings you here?"

"Of course we're here to rescue you. The police already know you were kidnapped, and you... uh, Ran and Ms. Kudo are very worried about you." Wen Shui almost let slip.

Conan: "Has the culprit been caught?"

"Not yet. Ms. Sachiko Ezaki is currently negotiating with the kidnappers with the ransom. We might still make it there in time if we head over now." As Wen Shui spoke, Miwako Sato was already contacting Detective Takagi.

Since Conan has been rescued, the kidnappers no longer have any leverage. The Metropolitan Police Department can act without too much restraint, and if necessary, they can even use firearms to take down the kidnappers.

However, Miwako shook her head at Nuwa after hanging up the phone.

It seems we were a step too late; the kidnappers had already taken the money and driven away. Now the police are quietly following the van.

Considering that Detective Takagi was with the kidnappers, and fearing that Yukiko Kudo might worry about Conan's safety, Nukumizu took Conan to meet Mrs. Kudo and the others first.

Miwako Sato drove to a station about 5 kilometers away from the abandoned factory.

Ran and Mrs. Kudo were already waiting by the roadside, their faces full of anxiety.

After Conan got out of the car, he saw the anxious expressions on Ran and his mother's faces and couldn't help but feel a little sentimental. After all, he was still a child who had just grown up, and after experiencing the kidnapping incident, he still longed to be comforted by his mother and childhood friend.

"Conan! (Conan-kun!)"

Yukiko Kudo and Ran shouted together.

Then, just like the typical ending scene in a movie, they ran towards each other.

If nothing unexpected happens, Conan will be hugged tightly by his mother, who will first scold him and then hug him while she cries, saying that she didn't protect her son well.

Conan even mentally prepared himself to remind his mother not to let anything slip at the crucial moment.

However, to Conan's surprise, Yukiko Kudo brushed past him and rushed straight into Wen Shui's arms.

The two hugged each other tightly, as if the kidnapped person was actually lukewarm water.

Ran, who was about to rush over to check if Conan was injured, saw this and nimbly dodged around Conan, saying, "Ms. Kudo... that's not allowed!"

Chapter 297 I want to see Mrs. Kudo without clothes

Wen Shui never expected that what should have been a heartwarming and touching reunion between mother and son would suddenly turn into a scene of carnage.

That's way too exaggerated.

However, he could somewhat understand Yukiko Kudo's feelings. Faced with one of the most important people in her life in danger and being helpless, she could only place her hopes on him. It was understandable that she was a little emotional when she saw Conan being rescued.

Warm Water gently patted Yukiko's shoulder, about to say a few words of comfort.

With a dark expression, Ran and Sato Miwako teamed up to pull the lukewarm water away, one on each side.

Officer Sato, with a stern face, lectured, "Warm Water, don't try to steal the spotlight at a time like this. Conan's been kidnapped, isn't he?"

"Exactly, and it's sticking way too tightly," Xiaolan said, glaring at Wenshui.

At this moment, Yukiko Kudo realized that she had lost her composure and quickly tried to salvage the situation: "Oh dear, I got a little too excited. Conan, I'm so glad you're alright."

Yukiko Kudo wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes and went over to carefully check Conan for any injuries.

Conan had completely detached himself from the feeling of wanting to be loved. He looked at Wen Shui warily, not understanding why his mother had run over and hugged her just a moment ago.

He was clearly kidnapped by the kidnappers!

Conan felt that the love that originally belonged to him had been stolen by Wen Shui. Although that guy had been treating him quite well recently, the more he did so, the more uneasy Conan felt.

On the other side, Kazuha Toyama, as an outsider, witnessed everything in its entirety. Although she didn't have Heiji Hattori's keen detective sense, she was still able to detect something amiss from the details.

However, Kazuha Toyama herself is not the kind of girl who understands love very well, otherwise she wouldn't have confessed to Heiji Hattori repeatedly for 30 years in the original Conan manga without success.

She hesitated whether she should find an opportunity to talk to Xiaolan about this.

Just as everyone was immersed in the joy of reunion, doubt, and the feeling of loss, the clear and pleasant ringtone of the telephone came through.

Yukiko Kudo took out her phone, her expression immediately turning icy cold, and hung up the call. Soon after, the person on the other end called again, and under everyone's curious gaze, Yukiko reluctantly answered.

"This is the Fujimine Film Preparation Department. May I ask what brings you here?" Yukiko's voice was as cold as a robot's.

The person on the other end of the phone seemed to say something, and Yukiko Kudo became even angrier after hearing it.

"You don't need to worry about that. I've already found someone more reliable. That's all. You can continue with your novel publishing and social engagements."

After saying that, Yukiko Kudo hung up the phone.

Facing everyone's puzzled looks, she smiled and explained, "I originally wanted Shinichi's dad to help deduce the truth about Conan's kidnapping, but that bastard was out drinking and socializing again, damn it..."

Yukiko Kudo grew increasingly angry as she spoke, and her expression became quite terrifying.

Conan couldn't help but roll his eyes, thinking to himself that his dad was too unreliable. He was still his son, after all. Now his mom was going to start giving him the silent treatment again.

To ease the tension, Conan changed the subject, saying, "By the way, Wen Shui, has the culprit been caught yet? Shall we go to the scene and take a look?"

Wen Shui looked at Sato Miwako, who took out her phone and glanced at it before slowly saying, "Not yet. The criminals chose routes with heavy traffic. If we rashly make an arrest, it may cause casualties among unrelated people."

So after careful consideration, we decided to wait until the car reached a deserted, open area before making the arrest.

Wen Shui nodded: "Then let's go and see what's going on. I have a feeling that these kidnappers' plan isn't so simple."

Afterwards, the group got into Sato Miwako's car. After getting in, Kudo Yukiko deliberately lagged behind and whispered to Nukumizu, "You're actually quite reliable, aren't you? Conan is always going against you. I thought you wouldn't get involved in this troublesome matter."

Wen Shui: "How could that be? Actually, I quite like Conan."