Ke Xue: Xiaolan delivers goods to your door at the beginning

"The car you guys are talking about parked at the back door should be mine. I didn't feel any explosion at the back door when I went to the kitchen to get food, so I think it shouldn't have been destroyed yet. If you need it, I can borrow it."

"That's great! Let's go check out the back door!"

After saying that, Mogi got up and walked out of the restaurant first, and the rest of the group followed.

As Chima Kazuyo followed the group to the back door, Lin Xiaofeng subtly reached out and took the ten-yen coin from Gunta Ikumi, then handed it to Conan, who was "just passing by," raising his eyebrows and giving the latter a knowing look.

Ten minutes later, the only surviving vehicle in the entire villa sat quietly in the open space at the back entrance.

It was an ordinary family sedan, not particularly comfortable or high-performance; it was simply a means of transportation.

However, at this critical juncture, they can't afford to be picky.

“Hey~ This car definitely can’t accommodate all of us, it’s too crowded.” Mogi looked around. “How about we flip a coin to decide? Whoever gets heads goes together.”

"I'll provide the coins!"

Conan eagerly took out his small wallet and scattered the coins inside onto the hood of the car.

There were exactly six, no more and no less, one for each of Lin Xiaofeng, Kogoro Mouri, Harufumi Mogi, Ikumi Yata, Saguru Hakuba, and Kazuyo Senma.

"On your marks, get set—throw!"

At a command, all six coins flew upwards together, then spun and fell back down.

Lin Xiaofeng caught the coin precisely with the back of his hand, then removed his hand from the coin and looked at it.

"I am positive."

Soon after, Mogi's voice rang out.

"I'm also positive."

Next up is Kogoro Mouri.

"Me too."

Finally, there was Senma no Kōdai.

"And I."

There were exactly four people, enough to fill the small car.

Harufumi Mogi took the lead, opening the car door and getting into the driver's seat. He then expertly reached for his seatbelt to fasten it.

"Alright, then I'll drive... By the way, would you like to sit in the front, Chiyo-nee?"

"Oh my, Mogi, you really know how to take care of the elderly."

Chima Kazuyo smiled and sat in the passenger seat.

Soon, as all four people got into the car, the sound of the engine broke the tranquility of the back door of the villa, and the car slowly started up and drove towards the broken bridge.

Perhaps because the dark clouds hadn't completely dissipated after the rain, the forest was even more secluded and dark at night than it had been at dusk. Mogi took almost ten minutes to drive a road that should have taken only five minutes.

When they arrived, the sturdy wooden bridge they remembered had completely collapsed, with more than 70 percent of the bridge missing, leaving only charred marks from the fire.

And the Audi that Lin Xiaofeng had the foresight to not drive over to was still parked intact next to the bushes on the other side of the bridge.

"Let's go down and check the situation."

Mogi didn't turn off the car, but simply turned off the headlights. Then, using his phone's flashlight, he pulled Kogoro Mouri and Xiaofeng Lin out of the car to check.

Only Senjō-dai remained on the train.

The elderly man, left alone in the car, looked up through the windshield at the group of people surveying the broken bridge in the dim light ahead. He reached into his clothes and pulled out a small time bomb.

Just as Chima Kazuyo was about to detonate the bomb, a face quietly emerged from the darkness outside the car window next to her and pressed against the glass.

"Hey, what are you doing?"

Ten minutes later, the team that went to investigate the situation at the broken bridge returned, all four of them safe and sound... no, to be precise, the three of them, who were temporarily imprisoned, escorted Senma Kazuyo back to the villa.

Inside the familiar restaurant, Chizuru sat down alone at a table, flanked by Lin Xiaofeng and Mogi Harufumi, who appeared to be constables from some government office.

Yukiko and the others who hadn't participated in the coin toss were naturally completely bewildered, having no idea what had happened.

Chima Kazuyo didn't intend to explain anything, but simply looked up at Lin Xiaofeng to her left.

"When did you realize it was mine? Was it when you flipped a coin?"

“No, actually it was even earlier than that.” Lin Xiaofeng shook his head. “It was probably when you, the previous generation’s grandmother, suggested going to the Broken Bridge to investigate the situation.”

"You deliberately said 'Let's all rest early today' just so I would be exposed?" Senma Kyoudai suddenly realized.

That's basically it, no doubt.

Lin Xiaofeng recalled.

“Actually, I initially thought there was only one organizer for this dinner, but as I watched Da Shang Zhushan’s performance during the recording and his subsequent death, I realized there was another issue.”

"The story told in the tape is indeed false; it was merely a prelude to reveal the clues to solve the mystery. However, the bloodstains found throughout this annex are real."

"Furthermore, according to my investigation, there are no reports online about the tragedy that occurred at this Twilight Villa. In other words, it is highly likely that, just as Da Shang Zhushan analyzed at the time, all the news was suppressed back then."

"Then the question arises: since the news was suppressed back then, why was this treasure hunt banquet organized? Only those who were involved in the tragedy that occurred in this villa back then would know these things. Judging from Da Shang Zhu Shan's behavior at the time, he clearly did not know what happened back then."

"So the result is quite obvious. It must be that Da Shang Zhu Shan has another accomplice, and one who knows much more than him and is just as eager to unlock the secret of the treasure."

Lin Xiaofeng paused here, his gaze falling on Senma Kazuyo.

Senma Kazuyo: "..."

“Well, I can probably guess what Granny Senjang’s plan is.” Lin Xiaofeng continued, “You plan to detonate a bomb in the car to fake your own death, using your death to create a sense of crisis and urgency for the remaining detectives, imprinting them with the idea that ‘only by solving the code can they leave alive.’ This way, you can sneak back into the shadows and observe the movements of the others through the pervasive surveillance system in the villa until someone solves the mystery.”

"What a pity, I'm still a cut above the rest." Lin Xiaofeng shrugged.

Senma Kyoudai was speechless; she truly had nothing more to say, only letting out a soft sigh.

"...Forty years ago, those summoned to this villa were not the celebrities of the political and economic circles of that time, but experts and scholars from all walks of life." She began to slowly recount the past.

"They were hired by Karasuma Renya, who was ninety-nine years old at the time, to find the treasure left to him by his mother. An archaeologist named Senma Kyosuke was also among them, and he was my father."

"Karasuma Renya promised them a high commission, but day after day, the treasure was still not found. Feeling that his time was coming to an end, Karasuma Renya began to kill the scholars he had invited one by one in the villa until no one survived. It is said that Karasuma Renya himself also died in the incident."

"Didn't you tell the police about this?" Kogoro Mouri pressed.

"No."

Senjōdai shook his head sadly.

"I didn't discover this until twenty years later. I found it by chance while sorting through the letters my father left behind. My father had used a needle to poke countless holes in the letter paper, which was how he conveyed the truth to me."

"I thought this matter would just pass, but I didn't expect that after I accidentally mentioned it to Da Shang Zhu Shan during a meal, he showed great interest. He quickly found the Twilight Villa and bought it with a large loan, and then actively launched a treasure hunt."

"But unexpectedly, several months have passed, and Da Shang Zhushan's loan is about to be overdue, while the treasure is still nowhere to be found. In order to avoid the bank taking back the villa he bought with the loan, he told me that he had thought of a last resort."

“‘Go find a detective to find the treasure,’ that’s what he told me.”

"Actually, if it were just that, it wouldn't be a big deal."

Chima Kazuyo clenched her aged fists.

"But the extent of his madness is still beyond my imagination. He even plans to retaliate for the tragedy that happened ten years ago, intending to kill you all one by one after you find the treasure, including that maid and me. I had no choice but to resort to this desperate measure and strike first to eliminate him."

"But if that's all there is to it, then you didn't need to put on this whole show, did you, Senma-sama?" Mogi asked, puzzled.

"Actually, this is just like what that young man Lin Jun said."

Chima Kazuyo's expression and tone were like those of an old man on his deathbed summarizing his life.

"Perhaps deep down I also hope that one of you can solve the mystery and see the treasure that my father was willing to give his life for... Maybe the person possessed by Karasuma Renya's ghost is actually me."

After hearing Senma Kazuyo's explanation, everyone fell silent.

The harrowing night at the Twilight Villa passed by without incident.

The next morning, as the golden sunrise slowly rose from below the horizon, illuminating the rolling mountains, the roar of police helicopters echoed through the forest.

In front of the annex, a black and white helicopter bearing the words "Gunma Police Station" was parked in an open space, and Kogoro Mouri and the others were lining up to board it one by one.

"Hey? Mom, aren't you and Brother Xiaofeng taking the helicopter?"

"Xiao Feng's car is fine. I rode in Xiao Feng's car when I came here, and I will ride in Xiao Feng's car back."

Smiling, Yukiko waved to her son and pointed to the boy beside her.

Gunma Police Station was very well prepared. For a simple mountain rescue operation, they not only brought all the rescue supplies, but also some repair tools, and repaired the wooden bridge that was blown up by a bomb last night.

Although it cannot be fully restored to its original sturdiness, it is still suitable for temporary use and can be used by traffic.

It might sound a bit exaggerated at first, but upon closer inspection, the fact that the son of the esteemed Superintendent General of Police, White Horse, was among those trapped makes this level of treatment seem quite reasonable.

"Oh……"

Conan looked at his mother, who had been stolen by Lin Xiaofeng, and could only sigh softly. He glanced back at Kogoro Mouri, who was calling him to board the plane not far away, gave him a perfunctory reply, turned to give Lin Xiaofeng a warning look, and then boarded the police helicopter and left together.

As the helicopter flew further and further away until it shrank into a black dot on the horizon, Yukiko reached out and patted the boy on the shoulder.

"Alright, shouldn't we be heading out soon?"

"Okay, let's go."

403. When they went, they had feet; when they returned, they had mouths.

Lin Xiaofeng nodded, took a step down the steps in front of the entrance of the Dusk Villa, and walked towards the main gate.

However, before he could take two steps, a hand grabbed him from behind.

Interlocking their fingers, they turned their heads and looked back, and what came into view was a middle-aged woman with a mischievous smile on her face.

"Hehe, that's right, let's go, let's go~".

As she spoke, Yukiko took the lead, pulling Lin Xiaofeng along as they jogged ahead.

Just like when the two of them arrived at the villa last night.

After leaving the villa, we walked along a mountain road and crossed a temporarily repaired wooden bridge. The black Audi was parked quietly by the roadside, exactly the same as when we got out of the car last night, except that there were more fallen leaves and dew on the roof after a night of rain.

"Get in the car."

Lin Xiaofeng opened the car door and sat in the driver's seat, while Yukiko sat in the passenger seat.

The car door closed again, and with a soft engine sound echoing throughout the car, the Audi, which had been silent all night, started up again.

Yukiko skillfully reached for the seatbelt, but before she could fasten it, she glanced sideways at Lin Xiaofeng, who was also fastening his seatbelt in the driver's seat.

"By the way, did you manage to decipher the code from last night?"

"perhaps."

Lin Xiaofeng spoke the truth.

Yukiko was clearly not satisfied with the answer and couldn't help but pout.

"Probably? Couldn't you have been a little more certain?"

"This... I really can't."

Lin Xiaofeng shifted into reverse and slowly reversed the car by maneuvering the steering wheel.

"I say 'probably' because I truly understood all the information in the code and knew how to open the mechanism to find the treasure, but I also say 'probably' because I only knew it in my mind and hadn't verified it through actual action."

"However, I can now explain the meaning of that poem. First of all, the first line, about two hurried travelers looking up at the sky at night, actually refers to the hour and minute hands of the only clock in the restaurant. Because it is nighttime and they are looking up at the sky, they are both vertically pointing upwards to zero and zero."

"If you look closely at the following sentences, you'll find that they are actually talking about playing cards."

"First, the king abducted the baby. In playing cards, the diamond represents the treasure, and the king is the king, which is the king of diamonds."

"Then the Queen wept and fell on the Holy Grail, begging for divine mercy. The Queen is Q, and the Holy Grail is the heart, which is the Queen of Hearts."

"In the end, the soldier breathed his last, drew his sword and committed suicide, and the earth changed color. The soldier was J, and in playing cards, only spades have the meaning of death, so it is the Jack of Spades."

"Of these three cards, the figures on the King of Diamonds and Queen of Hearts are facing left, while the figure on the Jack of Spades is facing right. This means that you need to move the minute hand thirteen spaces counterclockwise, then twelve spaces counterclockwise, and finally eleven spaces clockwise to unlock the mechanism of the annex."

"Oh--"

Yukiko listened with an expression that said, "I see."

"What will happen after the mechanism is solved?"

"I don't know, since I didn't actually open the mechanism," Lin Xiaofeng said honestly. "Besides, I'm not interested in the secrets of the villa anyway."

"Really? I thought you came because you were interested in the secrets of the villa, Xiaofeng?" Yukiko asked in surprise.

"No, I came because I had no other choice... It's all for you." Lin Xiaofeng freed one hand to touch his forehead.

The only thing that could pique Lin Xiaofeng's interest during the entire trip to the Twilight Villa was learning that the villa's original owner was Karasuma Renya, a former Japanese tycoon.