Chapter 2 The Stage

  "Hello, I'm Yuan Li." Yuan Li elegantly extended her hand, accompanied by a warm smile, and Zheng Hanfei couldn't help but think that this was the most lethal weapon to captivate millions of girls.

  "Zheng Hanfei!" Zheng Hanfei shook his hand and smiled warmly as well, "Nice to meet you."

  "It's probably better if we skip the small talk for now." Ou Yang Xiu suddenly said, his tone neither hot nor cold, "What's most important right now is to get us inside first."

  "Sorry." Yuan Li smiled and made a welcoming gesture with his hand. "Then, please follow my footsteps inside."

  Everyone nodded and followed Yang Li into the yard from the back door, but it made Zheng Hanfei feel a little uneasy. He always felt that there was something not quite right in his heart, as for what it was, he believed that apart from him, others also had this feeling.

  "Look!" Qu Menghan's voice attracted everyone's attention, and as they looked in the direction she was pointing, three towering buildings came into view. The middle building was the highest, a clock tower, while the two buildings on either side were of equal height, giving people a sense of a "mountain".

  "These are the Shadow Tower, the Time Tower, and the Pupil Tower." Yuan Li introduced to everyone, "Among them, the Shadow Tower is a venue for exhibiting gems, while the Time Tower doesn't need me to introduce it. From its appearance, you can tell that it's a clock tower, and this clock tower is always accurate in time, never having been inaccurate. As for where we are going now, it's the Pupil Tower, which is specifically designed to receive guests."

  "Isn't there a room for lodging here?" Zheng Hanfei suddenly asked this question after half a response.

  "Yes! Actually, the clock tower is where we live, except for the clock on top, all the other parts of the building are rooms, which are also where we usually sleep and let guests sleep."

  "So that's how it is." Zheng Hanfei nodded, "By the way, why did you give these three buildings such strange names? I can understand Shi Zhilou, but Ying Zhilou and Tong Zhilou are beyond me."

  "Let me answer that." Ouyang Xiu stretched out his hand to interrupt Yuan Li's opening, "The Shadow Tower is named so because the exterior of the building is black. In the daytime, this building is like a shadow of the other two buildings, hence its name. As for the Pupil Tower, it's because only that tower's windows can be opened, while the rest of the windows cannot be opened at all."

  "I didn't expect you to know so much." Zheng Hanfei said with some surprise.

  "The other party is a master thief, Shadow. We must understand all the information about the destination in advance." Ouyang Xiu looked at Zheng Hanfei with a silly gaze, as if saying I'm not like you.

  "You..."

  "Not satisfied?" Ou Yang Xiou said with a proud and arrogant tone, "Then tell me, what have you understood."

  "This is it." Zheng Hanfei scratched his head, looking at the entrance of Tianyi Building in front of him, and said, "Ordinary people take 5 minutes to get here from the back door, and 5 minutes to get here from the front door. As for the distance between the three buildings, it takes about 3 minutes."

  "You......" Yuang Liming was visibly surprised, "How did you know?"

  "Elementary!" Zheng Hanfei said in a casual tone, as if he had only done something insignificant. "When I came in through the back door, I took a look at the time, and it was exactly 6 o'clock. Then when we arrived at the Tower of Eyes, I took another look at the time, and it was 6:05, so I knew how long the trip had taken."

  "It's not that I'm asking," Yu Li shook his head, looking somewhat urgent. "I want to ask you why you know the distance between these three buildings is the same."

  "This is even simpler. To make the three buildings present a 'mountain' shape, first of all, they need to be close in distance. Secondly, I found that the trees around the building are spaced at equal intervals, about 1 meter apart. The spacing between the three buildings also has trees that are completely equal, so I came to this conclusion."

  "Awesome!" Yuan Li applauded, with a look of admiration on her face. "No wonder Grandma said you're a famous detective, it's indeed well-deserved. I think someone will be very interested in seeing you."

  "Huh? What?" Because of the softness of Yuan Li's last sentence, Zheng Hanfei didn't quite catch it.

  "Nothing." Yuan Li shook his head and immediately changed the subject, "Zheng Hanfei, I'll make you my master. I also want to become a detective."

  "Detective? I advise you not to do it." Zheng Hanfei smiled, "Compared to a detective, you are more suitable as a reasoning expert. Isn't writing your hobby?"

  "How... did you even know this?" Yuan Li looked somewhat flustered.

  It's no wonder that when talking to someone you've just met for the first time, your secrets are completely known by the other person, and whoever it is wouldn't be calm.

  "Your middle finger has a noticeable callus, which must be left by long-term pen-holding." Zheng Hanfei said, "Of course, this may have been left from elementary school to high school, but the name of the small notebook on your chest tells me accurate information: 'Inspiration', this is the small notebook you prepared to prevent sudden inspiration and can't write it down, so I inferred that you love writing very much, and it's very likely that you're a writer."

  "Writing is indeed a hobby." Yuan Li smiled, he thoroughly admired Zheng Hanfei, "As for the family, I don't dare to be, that's just my spare-time hobby, I'm still in college now."

  "Don't be so modest." Zheng Hanfeng shook his finger, "I've seen your reasoning, a case of misplaced resentment."

  "This... I..." Yuang Li was at a loss for words, he only now felt that in front of Zheng Hanfei, it was truly too terrifying, he could even be compared to Holmes.

  "Don't tease him anymore." Ouyang Xi said from the side, "Yuan Li, your handkerchief is exposed from your pocket, with 'Lost Heart's Grievance' embroidered on it. He must have seen that and spoken up."

  "Haha, you found out!" Zheng Hanfei scratched his head in embarrassment, "Sorry, Yuan Li, I accidentally revealed your secret."

  "It's alright. Only you guys know about it here, so it doesn't matter. And I still appreciate your reasoning, ah, after saying all that, I forgot to invite you in, come on in, please!"

  As she spoke, Yuan Li quickened her pace and walked to the entrance of the Tower of Eyes, leading everyone inside. At this moment, a resplendent and magnificent hall gradually appeared before everyone's eyes.

  Magnificent chandeliers, exquisite red carpets, and white walls adorned with numerous famous oil paintings and landscapes. Even a small cabinet is filled with aged red wine, surrounded by precious gems.

  It's really a rich man, the decoration is different. Zheng Hanfei couldn't help but smack his lips, he felt that he and Wang Bo came this time, dressed more shabbily, at the same time, there was also some curiosity in his heart, what did Dilo and Katie's home look like?

  "Haha, young man, I didn't expect you to come so soon." At this time, a familiar voice entered Zheng Hanfei's ears, and when he looked up, a kind face appeared before his eyes.

  "Grandma!" Yuan Li hastily ran to Yuan Cui's side and scolded, "How can you come out now? The exhibition hasn't started yet."

  "Less noise!" Yu Cui scolded with a smile, "Let me tell you, Xiao Li, my body is fine, no need for you to worry! Besides, I'm here to take a look at the young man, and I thought he would have forgotten about this old man who gave him a hint."

  "What's wrong, Granny Yu Cui?" Zheng Hanfei smiled awkwardly. "I just don't have time."

  "I get it! Detectives are always busy, let alone famous ones."

  Zheng Hanfei smiled awkwardly, he understood that Yuan Cui's words didn't have any other meaning, just simply praising him, but hearing this in his heart still felt a bit strange.

  "Grandma, why don't you show that invitation letter to Zheng Hanfei first?" Yuan Li said, "You don't know, his reasoning just now was perfect, I even hope he can provide some inspiration for my own reasoning."

  "Right! Right!" Yuan Cui patted his head, "As people get older, they can forget things. Young man, I'm counting on you this time."

  After finishing, Yuan Cui took out an ordinary letter from her pocket and handed it to Zheng Hanfei. Wang Bo, Ouyang Xiu, and Qu Menghan slowly approached, waiting for Zheng Hanfei to open the envelope and read out the contents of the letter.

  However, Zheng Hanfei did not quickly open the envelope as they had imagined, but instead held it still, his body trembling nonstop, his eyes staring blankly at the envelope, as if he had been stunned.

  "What's wrong with him?" Yuanding asked aloud.

  "Hush..." Ouyang Xiou made a silencing gesture, his eyes fixed intently on Zheng Hanfei, his sharp gaze seeming to want to discover something from him.

  Why? Zheng Hanfei's heart kept shouting, why did this letter give me an extremely familiar feeling, although it was pitch black and cold, why did I feel extremely comfortable.

  At this time, the letter was like a leech, slowly devouring his soul. His empty eyes gradually regained their former darkness, but with a hint of coldness in them. The corners of his mouth slowly curled up into an unusual arc, a smile that wasn't quite a smile, making everyone feel uncomfortable.

  "The ceremony, it seems to have begun......" Outside the Tower of Pupils, a black shadow looked towards the inside of the tower. After seeing Zheng Hanfei's transformation, he smiled slightly and said a sentence that seemed only he could understand.