Conan: The Man Behind the Romance

Chapter 399 The yellow-haired firefly was extremely arrogant in front of the victim!
3:40 p.m.

On the way out of the school, after Xiaolan finished her phone call with Kisaki Eri, she shook her head at Hotaru.

"We'll talk about it after the visit, but mom has agreed to take over Ms. Yuko's case, so how about Hotaru come with me to the Mori Detective Agency?"

"Okay, what's the specific situation with Miss Yuko?" Yingsheng asked while lowering his head and reading the message.

"It started with Yamagishi Sakae. She was a little dazed after killing someone and running away. She was recognized by someone in a nightclub and threatened to call the police, so she did some bad things." Xiaolan sighed, "In just a few weeks, her whole spirit and energy completely dissipated."

"Can she point out who threatened her?"

"Given her mental state, it's not possible at the moment. Does Hotaru want to use trauma therapy? Ms. Aida said that it's hard to find the right balance and it will only make her more stressed if we're not careful."

"Ran, have you forgotten that we are the bad guys? Of course we found that person so that Miss Yuko could vent her anger."

Yingsheng called Kenta Nakamichi and after learning about the situation, he assigned the task of going to the Ginza nightclub to look for the suspect as an assessment task.

“Make a table and give quantitative scores for each person’s abilities and personality.”

"You can decide the detailed classification and evaluation criteria yourself. Just send it to me before the exam tomorrow."

Yingsheng simply said this before hanging up the phone and continuing to chat with the person via text messages.

Xiaolan was a little hesitant, "Is this okay? Hotaru, you are basically letting Nakamichi-san do whatever he wants."

"He now needs to score other people, and I will naturally score him based on his performance. Whether he can find the person who hurt Miss Yuko is secondary." Yingsheng said.

"Hmm...it turns out that Hotaru is not training Nakamichi-san, but screening him. It seems that I am really lucky."

Xiaolan now realizes that making a choice is far easier than trying to change others, since there are seven billion people in the world anyway.

"I still have hope for him. At least we are classmates, which means we are closer than others. I'll give him a friendship coefficient of 1.05 when evaluating his grades."

The way ahead was suddenly blocked, and Yingsheng looked up.

Sonoko held a super strawberry cup in her right hand, and handed over a bag of two cups of milk tea with her left hand, looking at Yingsheng with disdain.

"Can't you be more serious when talking to Xiaolan? Are you still chatting with other women now?"

"Thanks." Yingsheng took out a cup of snow-topped matcha from the bag and showed his phone to Yuanzi. "What a coincidence, this person is your mother. She is discussing with me a new proposal on protecting the interests of enterprises in cross-border operations. She is a very capable person."

"ah?!!!"

Yuanzi's eyes almost popped out of her head. She flipped through the chat history and saw that they were all about business. Only then did she barely suppress the strange feeling in her heart.

But he still said awkwardly: "Why is mom talking to you? Where is dad?"

"Mr. Suzuki went to have tea with several Aso faction members. They are completely cut off from the signal. They will take a hot spring bath afterwards." Yingsheng put away his phone and continued chatting. "Didn't you hand in the paper ten minutes early? What's the matter with you waiting for us here?"

"I'm just waiting for Xiaolan, you're the light bulb." Yuanzi took Xiaolan's hand, "Lan, let's go shopping. Fusha has released new products, and it is said that the founder will return to China soon."

"I want to go too, but I'm sorry, I have something to do at home." Xiaolan drank the same fruit tea as Sonoko and told her about Ikezawa Yuko's situation.

"Is that so...so what method are you going to use?" Sonoko looked at Hotaru again.

"Let's go over and take a look. I'm not omnipotent." Yingsheng waved and stopped a taxi on the side of the road.

In less than ten minutes, the three arrived at the Mori Detective Agency, and Hotaroo and Suzuki Tomoko said they would talk next time.

As a result, a message came from the other side, causing him to pause slightly and look up at the garden.

"Your sister is getting engaged this Saturday?"

"What do you want to do?" Yuanzi's eyes immediately became alert, "I'm warning you, you..."

"What are you thinking about? It's your mother who invited Xiaolan and me to attend the ceremony." Yingsheng followed the two upstairs. "The school trip will gather at the school at 10 am and take the bus to Kyoto. Can we drive ourselves?"

"Why did mom invite you..." Yuanzi muttered softly, holding Xiaolan tighter, "Humph, you are a minor, do you still want to drive yourself?"

"I have a motorcycle license." Yingsheng replied to the message, accepted the invitation, and put away his phone.

"Haha, your motorcycle has a displacement of more than 400cc, so you need to be at least 18 years old."

"Um……"

Yingsheng looked up at the ceiling. Why is this staircase so long and so quiet? I wonder if it will give the client room to hesitate? This will affect business too much.

Yuanzi was a little confused at first, but suddenly he remembered something, his body stiffened slightly, and he slowly turned his head to look at Xiaolan.

Xiaolan didn't react at all. She walked to the door of the office on the second floor and knocked.

"We're back."

After saying that, she pushed the door open and walked in.

Yuanzi quickly explained: "I just happened to see his car, and I have never ridden in it."

"Yeah, Sonoko, don't react so strongly, otherwise I'll have to punch that guy to ease the embarrassment." Xiaolan clenched her fists and looked at Yingsheng.

"I'm very sorry, that car was actually a gift from Miss Ayako to me the last time. Sonoko really couldn't have ridden it." Yingsheng held Xiaolan's wrist and hit his forehead with her little fist. "Come to think of it, I haven't driven it for a while."

"Well, you are like an onion, with too many secrets. When you peel off one layer, there is another layer." Xiaolan looked at Aida Masayo who came out after hearing the sound, "Is Miss Yuko okay?"

"Stay alone in the upstairs room. Mr. Maori will be on guard outside to prevent any accidents."

Masayo Aida was still wearing the same outfit as yesterday, a thin white shirt and black linen trousers. He went to the water room to pour tea for a few people. He looked more like a home detective than Kogoro Mouri.

"I have asked an expert in special attacks on female psychology to come here. Please ask Ms. Aida to explain the situation to him in detail."

Xiaolan pulled Yuanzi to sit on the guest sofa in the living room.

Yingsheng went to the water room to serve tea to Masayo Aida, and came back to sit on the single sofa on the side.

Masayo Aida took a white notebook from the desk by the window and handed it to Hotaru, "This should be clearer."

Yingsheng indeed prefers this feeling of putting it into words, which is more concise and efficient.

However, when he opened it and took a look, he found that there was nothing special. Yuko Ikezawa just developed PTSD after experiencing some things, and she would have panic attacks when she saw a man.

Aida Masayo didn't say it, probably because she considered that Sonoko was here and didn't want the news to spread.

Although Yuanzi already knew the general idea.

After reading it, Yingsheng closed the notebook and handed it back to Aida Masayo.

"I have a question. How did she communicate with Mr. Maori in this situation before at the Ginza nightclub?"

"She must have been drugged by someone in the nightclub to make her feel more relaxed." Aida Masayo leaned over slightly and whispered in Hotaru's ear, "During this period, the restaurant used her as a secret sign. Mr. Maori was a regular customer, so he was introduced."

"Is there anyone she trusts?"

"Probably not. The police contacted her family before, and after they learned about what happened to her, they did not come over and just asked the police to handle it according to the law."

"Did she mention Rena Mizunashi's name? After all, we helped her here." Yingsheng asked again.

"In fact, Rena Mizunashi and Ms. Yoko are friends, and her relationship with Ms. Yuko is just average. It is not clear why she helped, but Ms. Yuko is not grateful to her," said Masayo Aida.

"Then there is only one way I can think of." Yingsheng opened the address book on his mobile phone and dialed Qingzi's number in front of everyone.

As a result, the call could not be connected.

Sonoko immediately noticed Hotaru's expression.

But Yingsheng remained calm and dialed Kuroba Kaito's number again, waiting for about half a minute before the call was connected.

"Suiyue, what's going on?"

"Is Qingzi on your side?" Yingsheng asked.

"Yes, she just solved a murder case and is comforting the victim's family. She is much better than me." Kuroba Kaito ruffled the hair of the little kid next to him. "Is it urgent? She may need a few more minutes."

"Just wait a moment. Have you confirmed it in Chiba Prefecture? Regarding Nakatani Fumizumi."

"We just made sure he was still alive and didn't make contact with him. That's the end of it, isn't it?"

"Is he divorced?"

"...Of course, I'll go call Qingzi, wait a moment."

Although Kuroba Kaito felt that everything Hotaru said was performative, it still sounded quite strange.

Is this some kind of sad drama?
After a moment, Qingzi's voice came from the receiver.

"Hina, what's going on?"

Yingsheng asked her to come to the Maori Detective Agency because he had a commission that required her help, and didn't say anything else.

After the other party agreed, I hung up the phone and continued drinking tea.

In less than three seconds, he stood up again and walked to the desk by the window and asked Xiaolan if he could take a look at the detective commission files here. He wanted to understand the normal operating mode of this industry.

Of course Xiaolan nodded in agreement.

So Yingsheng buried himself in the archives.

Masayo Aida sat on the sofa and read quietly. This time the book had nothing to do with psychology, it was just a fairy tale.

Xiaolan held the teacup, leaned back on the sofa, and looked out the window for a long time without moving.

Sonoko guessed that she was thinking about something, but after looking at her phone for a few minutes, she couldn't stand the quiet air anymore, so when she heard the sound of shuffling papers again, she looked towards the source of the sound.

"Hey, what's going on between you and Kiyoko?"

"Don't be love-brained, miss."

Yingsheng picked up a file. "There's something wrong with the way this client described it. He asked Mr. Maori to help track the target along a fixed path, but he didn't specify the precautions. According to the photos Mr. Maori took, the man was wrapped up very tightly even in the hottest weather. It's very likely a trick."

"Hey, don't change the subject!" Sonoko ran over, "You and Kiyoko used to be neighbors, and your relationship afterwards was definitely..."

"Hello, Officer Megure, my name is Mizuki, and I want to consult you about a suspicious incident..."

Hotaru has already dialed Megure Juzo's number using the landline.

Yuanzi could only swallow the words in her throat and wait at the table with her arms folded across her chest.

She just didn't believe that Yingsheng could really find anything from the archives in such a short time, and was definitely diverting the subject.

If Hotaru hadn't turned on the speakerphone and heard Megure Juzo's voice, she would have suspected that Hotaru was pretending to make a call.

However, what she didn't expect was.

"Brother Shuiyue, you are amazing. This involves a murder case that happened last week." Megure Jusan's voice was extremely excited in the loudspeaker: "Because of the shortage of police force at that time, brother Kudo and many of your detectives went to Singapore. This case has not been solved yet."

"According to what you said, there is something wrong with that client?"

"But Brother Maori testified for him and even produced photos, saying he had an alibi."

"The client overlooked two... no, many details." Yingsheng said calmly, "First, there was a mirror at a corner on that road that expanded the field of vision. Mr. Maori reflected himself in it for three consecutive days. It is impossible for him not to notice it."

"Second..."

Yingsheng simply couldn't imagine why these people could come up with so many inexplicable ways of killing people.

Don't add entities unless necessary. Don't you understand this simple truth?
Even if the crime was committed by an acquaintance and the police cannot rule out a motive, the simplest way is to get the target out and shoot or stab him, and there is no need to deal with the body.

As for the alibi, it doesn't matter whether you have it or not as long as you are not stupid enough to leave pointing evidence at the scene.

Damn.

When he thought of pointing evidence, he came up with this. When Megure Jusan was about to hang up the phone, Hotaru said, "There is another case. A doctor named Ogawa has been receiving toys from an anonymous person every month since two years ago. He believes that the person has bad intentions. Please ask Mr. Maori to investigate."

"This was a request from yesterday. Mr. Maori thought that Dr. Ogawa was over-concerned and wanted to investigate again when he had time."

"But based on the outdated nature of the toys and the scratches on them, it's very likely a premonition of a crime."

"Of course I can't be completely sure, but to prevent it from happening, I would like to ask the police to contact them immediately and ask them to take their children home immediately."

Megure Juzo quickly agreed and borrowed the cell phone of his wife who was taking care of him to inform his subordinates.

While waiting for the results, Yingsheng told him about two more suspicious incidents.

Megure Jusan was excited but also had some cold sweat on his forehead, "Brother Shuiyue, these cases...did you find the suspicious points in brother Maori's office?"

"Excuse me, Mr. Maori, who is so confused, is not qualified to be a detective." Hotaru looked at Maori Kogoro who was standing stiffly at the stairs, and said calmly, "It may be okay to find a cat or a dog, but if it involves a murder case, it would be confusing right and wrong."

Everyone in the room looked at Kogoro Mori with different expressions.

Kogoro Mouri's face was pale, without a trace of blood. When the doorbell rang, his body could not help but step backwards, and he fell on the stairs with a "bang".

Xiaolan stood up silently, went to the door, opened it, and welcomed Qingzi in.

Kiyoko greeted Sonoko, ignored everything else, and looked at Hotaru.

"what's up?"

"Wait a moment." Yingsheng said to Qingzi, and continued on the phone, "I hope I was talking nonsense before. Goodbye, I have other things here..." "No, brother Shuiyue." Megure Jusan said bitterly, "Just received news that Dr. Ogawa contacted the school teacher and his son has been taken away by a stranger."

"I'm sorry to hear that. Contact Kudo. With his talent, he can definitely solve the case." Yingsheng hung up the phone, stood up and looked at Qingzi, "Let's talk upstairs."

Kiyoko nodded and followed Hotaru upstairs. The two passed by Kogoro Mori without stopping at all.

Masayo Aida and Xiaolan walked over, helped Kogoro Mouri up, and sat him down on the sofa without saying anything.

Sonoko looked upstairs, then at the stunned figure of Kogoro Mouri, and finally looked at Xiaolan.

"Can I go up?"

"...Forget it, I can probably guess what Hotaru's method is, so it's best if we don't go up there." Xiaolan went to her desk to sort out the files, "I'm sorry, Sonoko, but I probably won't be able to go shopping with you this afternoon, how about..."

"Hey, hey, I know I'm in the way here." Sonoko pouted, "But I can at least tell you something you don't know. Remember what Officer Megure entrusted us with two weeks ago? I found a clue about the theft of the Toyo Arsenal."

"...So that's what you were waiting for us to say." Xiaolan held her forehead helplessly, "Yuanzi, for something like this involving arms, speed is the essence of war no matter how you look at it."

"Because those things are still piled up in a warehouse, I have someone watching over there, so it's okay." Yuanzi grabbed Xiaolan's arm and shook it pitifully, "Let's go over there together after we finish things here."

Xiaolan shook her head, "It's very dangerous, let's call the police."

Sonoko curled her lips, "The performance of the police is totally unimaginable. Just like what Suigetsu-kun told Officer Megure just now, the police are just going through the motions."

Xiaolan's heart moved, and she glanced at Maori Kogoro's back. Seeing that he had no reaction, she continued: "Let's talk about it later. This is not a joke..."

"what--!!!"

Suddenly, a high-pitched scream from Yuko Ikezawa was heard from upstairs.

Yuanzi's expression suddenly became dull, "Hey, hey, that scumbag can't possibly be..."

Kogoro Mouri also looked up suddenly and ran towards the stairs quickly, but stopped halfway and looked at Hotaru going downstairs with a confused look on his face.

The sound from upstairs continued.

But gradually, Ikezawa Yuko's screams turned into crying, louder than ever before, as if all the pain had turned into a flood and rushed out.

Unprecedented, complete release.

Maori Kogoro turned around blankly and looked at Yingsheng who was already sitting on the sofa, "What did you do?"

"I didn't do anything. It's all Qingzi's work." Yingsheng took a sip of tea. "Qingzi... has a very strong heart and can bring peace to people."

Maori Kogoro listened to the voices upstairs for a few breaths, and suddenly thought of something, "Could it be that Xuesong Kiyoko was also..."

"No one will think you are dumb if you don't speak, Mr. Maori." Yingsheng said lightly.

Kogoro Mouri felt an inexplicable chill on the back of his neck. After noticing Xiaolan's disappointed look, his heart ached even more. He wanted to shout something, but he couldn't speak.

When he thought of the phone calls between Hotaru and Megure Jusan, and the cases and even lives that he had delayed, he felt a chill all over his body.

"Mr. Maori, you have some shortcomings in detective skills. I hope you can take Kudo as your teacher and study hard. Can you do it?" asked Yingsheng.

"This this……"

Maori Kogoro hesitated and was tongue-tied for a long time. Finally, he sighed and said, "I think what you said more than a month ago was right. I don't have the talent to be a detective. I should change my career."

"After I was discharged from the hospital last week, the firm suddenly received more commissions. I thought people finally discovered my excellence."

"Now it seems……"

"Ha, maybe it's just because all the reliable detectives are away, and because of my previous experience in Ginza, everyone thinks I have very close ties with the police."

"The guy who used me as an alibi might have done it because I'm a fool."

Yingsheng tilted his head to look, "It seems that you have performed well in Miss Yoko's case. After training with Kudo for a while, you should be able to grow into an excellent detective."

"Forget it. I don't want to be an apprentice to a high school student. It's too embarrassing."

Kogoro Mouri returned to the sofa and sat down. Not finding any extra teacups, he got up and went to the water room.

"Let me add that my pride is only part of the reason. More importantly, I have clearly realized that I am not suitable to be a detective."

"You, the Kudo family boys, including Xiaolan and Sonoko, are more suitable than me."

Kogoro Mouri took a large glass of water and started drinking it at the door of the water room. For some reason, he laughed twice.

"Boy from the Shuiyue family, you are so powerful that you are like a monster. Do you have any job you recommend for me?"

"detective."

Yingsheng said: "Where you fall, there you must get up. Running away is a cowardly act."

"...Then can't we change someone else?"

"Kudo is the best detective I've ever seen. If you don't want to be his apprentice, then go be his father's apprentice."

"This... I mean, I really don't want to be a detective anymore. Even if I learn from him, I will still change my career in the future." Seeing Hotaru raised his eyebrows, Maori Kogoro quickly added, "This is definitely not an excuse. Although Kudo is good at solving cases, he has also encountered many dangers because of this."

"Not only himself, but also the people around him."

"If I become like him in the future, it might bring danger to Xiaolan and Eri. Wouldn't that be terrible?"

"I will never forget that day ten years ago. That's why I quit being a police officer."

Reasonable and well-founded.

Convincing.

Hotaru smiled slightly, "Then may I ask how Officer Megure managed to take care of both ends? He and his wife have a very harmonious relationship, and there is no danger over there."

Maori Kogoro was silent for a moment, "Of course, it was mainly because of me that Eri left me, but I have to consider her safety after what happened before. I can't take risks."

"Hehe, if I say you are a coward, do you think there is a problem?" Yingsheng asked.

"No, because no matter what the reason is, I'm always looking ahead and behind," said Kogoro Mori.

"I mean, you actually want to attribute all your decadence in the past ten years to Lawyer Wu Fei. Can it be more ridiculous?"

"!!!"

With a "pop", the cup of water fell to the ground.

Kogoro Mori looked stunned and opened his mouth, but no words came out.

Yingsheng said, "Listen to what you said before. You clearly realized it. Being a detective to the extreme is far more likely to bring risks to your family than when you were a police officer in the past."

"So you make yourself half dead every day to reduce other people's attention and keep your family safe."

"This must be the excuse you used to comfort yourself and deceive yourself so that you could live like a puddle of mud."

"but."

"You just said it yourself, you can change your career, why do you have to be a detective?"

"Besides, if you are afraid of danger, just don't take that kind of big commission. Is there any necessary connection between it and your daily eating, drinking, whoring and gambling in the past?"

Kogoro Maori lowered his head deeply and said nothing.

Yingsheng took a sip of water and continued to ask, "In the past ten years, in the Ginza nightclub, have you really just been drinking and not dating anyone?"

Kogoro Mori remained silent.

Yingsheng asked again: "How did you and Ikezawa Yuko meet? Did you have sex?"

"I... I was... drunk at that time." Kogoro Mouri said in a dry voice.

"You won't have that ability if you're completely drunk. The alcohol at most makes you let go. Let me think about it. You've changed a lot before, but suddenly you're back to your old ways... Yes. Did the guy who took advantage of you flatter you and invite you to go?"

Maori Kogoro looked at him as if he were a monster, "You really are totally out of standard."

"It's mainly because you're too shallow. Then, when the people at the nightclub took you to meet Ikezawa Yuko, she was in a very confused state." Yingsheng sighed, "And then you let your mind run wild with a revengeful mentality?"

Kogoro Mori hesitated again.

Yingsheng narrowed his eyes slightly, "After all, you are also a die-hard fan of Miss Yoko. I say, you didn't use some things to liven up the atmosphere at that time, did you? Stamps? Or small candies?"

"You!" Maori Kogoro trembled all over, "You! No! I didn't, I just drank a little too much, I..."

"OK, I don't care about this kind of thing. At worst, I'll break your legs and find someone to take care of you." Yingsheng pointed to the top of his head. The crying sound upstairs had gradually weakened. "I think Miss Yuko is very good."

"Or rather, if it weren't for fate, with your previous character, you wouldn't be worthy of her at all."

"No matter what she went through before, the pill can heal her body, and Qingzi can heal her mind. She will definitely return to a healthy body and mind."

"Mr. Maori, what do you think?"

Maori Kogoro lowered his head and clenched his fists tightly, "You mean, you want me to divorce Eri and marry Ikezawa Yuko?"

"Even if this incident didn't happen, your divorce with Lawyer Hime is inevitable. Whether you can marry Miss Yuko depends on your future performance." Yingsheng said lightly.

Kogoro Mouri was shaking all over, and people thought he was going to rush over and pin Hotaru to the ground and beat him.

But as a gentle lullaby sounded upstairs, Yuko Ikezawa's crying completely stopped, and Kiyoko's melodious and beautiful singing filled the entire room.

He finally loosened his fists slowly and smiled miserably.

"you are right."

"I... am not worthy of Eri at all."

Everyone in the room had complicated expressions.

Yingsheng's tone remained calm. "I have to make it clear again. It's not your appearance, wealth, lifestyle, etc. that are the problem. At least, these are not the main issues. The most important thing is your heart. You said you love her, and then what?"

"What are you doing?"

"Are you sure, that's really love?"

"Could it be that it's just a habit of life, and you haven't really thought about this kind of question at all?"

Maori Kogoro shook his head. "I don't know. It doesn't matter. I will divorce her. From now on, she and I will never have anything to do with each other again."

"You have known each other since childhood. Even if you are not husband and wife, just from the perspective of friends, she will definitely want you to become better." Yingsheng said.

"Ah... Indeed, Eri is very kind and good. I am the one who let her down."

"Become Kudo's detective apprentice."

"…………No, since I have decided to divorce her, this is totally unnecessary." Maori Kogoro smiled, "Mr. Monster, you are a big shot now, please arrange a suitable job for me."

"I heard that you are a good shooter. After drinking for so many years, are your hands starting to shake?" Yingsheng asked.

"It's still a little short. To be honest, I beat the zombies in the arcade every time and I broke the record." Maori Kogoro gestured with his hand, "You know, the kind that uses a wireless gun-style handle and turns off the infrared aiming assist."

"I need to test you. If you pass, I will hire you as a shooting coach for the security company. The specific salary will depend on your performance, but it will definitely be at the top level in the industry."

"Looks like I should call your boss in advance."

Kogoro Mouri took out a cigarette, put it in his mouth, and fumbled around on his body for a long time but couldn't find one.

"Don't be so stubborn, just cry if you want to."

Hotaru picked up the lighter on the coffee table and threw it at Kogoro Mori.

Kogoro Mouri raised his hand to take it, lit the cigarette, took a deep puff, exhaled a long breath of smoke, and shrugged.

"How could I possibly want to cry?"

"Then go outside and smoke, go farther away." Yingsheng took out his headphones and put them on.

"That's right, smoking in the room is not good."

Kogoro Mouri straightened his yellow shirt, held a cigarette in his mouth, and left the room with a nonchalant look on his face.

Less than three seconds after the door closed, a burst of wailing was heard.

Xiaolan hurried to the door, "Dad, Miss Yuko is sleeping."

The crying stopped.

Yingsheng rubbed his eyebrows and began to reflect on whether he was being too inhuman.
"Thank you, Hotaru." Xiaolan said, turning back.

"...Lan, come here and give me a knife." Yingsheng fell on the backrest and pointed at his heart.

He feels...

When he goes to hell, Satan will give him his seat.

(End of this chapter)