America: I came here to study, not to show mercy.

Chapter 206 Clues Lead to Our Door (Seeking Monthly Tickets)

Snowflakes fell softly, shimmering like golden grains under the distant lights. Before they even reached the garden, the sound of loud music reached their ears.

After parking the car and walking around a hedge of bushes, the two finally saw the lively scene of singing and dancing in the garden.

"It seems other tourists have arrived as well."

After shifting his gaze away from the several groups of people inside who were clearly from out of town, Li Xiaoen teased Su Feier, "Should we say that we were just really unlucky to run into that kind of thing alone in a suite?"

"The matter is resolved, and safety has been confirmed."

Sophie looked over, seemingly unsure of what to say. "Let's go in and take a look."

Countless wisps of white mist rose from all around the garden, making the spacious park feel somewhat crowded with people coming and going.

A stage was set up facing all the ovens, and people were already singing and dancing on it. The cheerful music filled the air, and the tourists below would occasionally shout enthusiastically, making it a very lively scene.

The garden was clearly divided into two groups of people. It was hard to describe, but Li Xiaoen could tell the difference between tourists and locals at a glance. Excluding the tourists who were clearly separated in front of the barbecue grill, the same was true for the tourists who went on stage to sing and dance with the locals.

After exchanging a few words with a middle-aged woman wearing an apron who approached them, Li Xiaoen and his companion were seated at a table near the lake.

"Sophie, what would you like to eat?"

The charcoal and skewers were quickly prepared. Turning away from the performance on stage, Li Xiaoen nodded at Su Feier and said with a smile, "You should feel lucky to be able to eat barbecue made by this chef himself today."

"For my safety, please be sure to cook the food you are best at."

Suffol brushed the snowflakes off the table in front of him and nodded, saying, "Also, just bake it until it's cooked through; you don't need to add any seasonings."

"Hey, are you questioning my cooking skills?"

Li Xiaoen raised an eyebrow, picked up a few fresh lamb skewers that had been served and placed them on the grill. He also had chives and eggplants that he had specifically asked him to prepare.

"Wow……"

It was the same middle-aged woman from before. She brought out slices of beef brisket that had been grilled on the communal grill. Seeing Li Xiaoen's skillful movements and smelling the enticing aroma, she stopped in her tracks and exclaimed, "Young man, you really know how to grill over charcoal!"

"It's alright. I've done it myself before, so it's not difficult."

They were cooked quickly. Li Xiaoen took a few skewers of lamb, sprinkled them with seasoning, and handed them to Su Feier, giving an extra skewer to the woman.

"Oh, thanks."

Overjoyed, the woman opened her mouth wide and clutched her chest, quickly accepting the gift. "Thank you! You're not only an excellent cook, but also incredibly generous."

I hope I didn't disappoint you.

Li Xiaoen nodded and seized the opportunity to strike up a conversation, "Do you have a moment? I'd like to ask you a few questions."

"ask questions?"

Taking a bite of mutton, the woman's eyes widened in surprise. She was about to praise him when she heard this and paused for a moment. She quickly nodded and gave him a friendly smile, "If it doesn't take long, I'd be happy to help."

"Don't worry, it's just a few simple questions."

Li Xiaoen smiled and nodded, gesturing for the woman to sit down opposite him. Then, Su Feier handed her a can of juice and put down a plate of lamb skewers, pushing it to the center.

"Oh, thanks."

The woman exclaimed in surprise, flattered, and nodded quickly, looking around with a smile. "You two are such a perfect match, you have such great chemistry."

"Hehe, thanks for the compliment."

Li Xiaoen chuckled, put the eggplant and various vegetables he was holding onto the plate on the table, picked up some grilled sausages and chicken legs and placed them on top, before speaking, "There aren't many people in your town. We wanted to ask, about ten years ago, did a Catholic named Mengkel Green move here?"

"Monkel Green?"

The woman, biting into a lamb skewer, tilted her head back and fell into deep thought.

Li Xiaoen watched silently, casually fiddling with the food on the grill. Suddenly, a skewer of lamb was extended from the side in front of him. He paused for a moment, then turned his head to look at the girl beside him.

Sophie's expression remained calm, seemingly unaware of his gaze, as she silently kept looking at the woman opposite her.

Is it her turn to feed them now?

Amused, but not wanting to tease him, Li Xiaoen opened his mouth and took a bite.

The skewers in front of her were then removed, and Suffer took a bite of the last piece before placing the skewer on the table.

"Oh……"

After pondering for a while, the woman exclaimed as if suddenly realizing something, "You mean the Green family?"

"They're having a really tough time. Do you know them? You'd better go and help look after those two poor kids."

"I'm sorry, we are not familiar with the Green family. We are only here to ask Mengkel and their father for some evidence."

Li Xiaoen had already inquired about the two children with the part-time girl at the restaurant that afternoon, and forced a smile with a helpless expression.

You mean their father?

Upon hearing this, the woman's face immediately turned disgusted. She waved her hand and said, "At first, that person was alright, but after a few years, his true nature was revealed. He became an alcoholic and degenerate, even getting involved with drugs. He was neither human nor ghost all the time, never in a sober state."

"What did you say?"

Li Xiaoen felt a chill run down his spine, held his breath, and couldn't help but exchange a glance with Su Feier. "You said Meng Kaier is a poisonous insect?"

After saying that, he quickly grabbed a pen and paper from the menu and began sketching it, drawing a rough outline and features before handing it to the woman.

"Yes, that's him."

After just one glance, the woman nodded quickly, "Although I haven't seen him in a long time, I can still recognize him at first glance."

"..."

With a furrowed brow, Li Xiaoen took a deep breath, unable to recover for a long time.

"Can I ask you about the priest in town?"

Exhaling, Li Xiaoen quickly composed himself.

"You mean, Father White?"

The woman paused for a moment, then, recalling the precedent of Li Xiaoen questioning Meng Kaier earlier, she quickly waved her hand, "White doesn't have any bad habits, and he treats the people in our town very well."

"It's nothing. I'm not asking because I think there's something wrong with him. I just want to know."

Li Xiaoen waved his hand helplessly and offered an explanation.

"is it?"

The woman frowned slightly, her expression hesitant, until she saw the two hundred dollars that Suffer pushed over the table. Her frown immediately disappeared, and she broke into a bright smile.

"Let me tell you, these are definitely some little-known secrets of Father White..."

Taking the two bills, the woman quickly crumpled them into a ball, pretended to stuff them into her pocket, and then smiled and said, "I suspect White is gay..."

"Stop, please wait a moment..." Ignoring the contemptuous and smug look the girl next to him gave him, Li Xiaoen quickly raised his hand to stop him, "Just say the facts, please specify anything you've guessed or heard from others."

"That's it..."

The woman smacked her lips, somewhat uninterested, but then a banknote was pushed towards her, and she immediately nodded in agreement.

……

The information about the priest that Lee Shawn learned from the woman was actually similar to what Sophie had previously gathered. It was only after Lee Shawn asked her separately that he learned that over the decades, due to the frequent scandals involving Catholicism, the people in the town and the police had harbored suspicions.

White was unusual and bold in allowing others to enter the church and even his house to search for clues. He found no suspicious traces, and that wasn't enough. He also invited others to accompany him in the ceremony, trying not to spend too much time in the same room with other children.

As for the reason for suspecting that White was gay, it was the speculation that they often saw colleagues going to his house to discuss church matters, because he was devoted to his clergy work and was about to be promoted to archbishop of the region.

Watching the woman leave, Li Xiaoen lowered his head in thought, looking around at the garden. He activated [Eye of Insight], its detection range encompassing the entire Catholic church not far away. Finding nothing unusual, he then deactivated it.

"Sean, have you noticed something's wrong?"

Seeing the young man's expression, Suffer quickly asked.

"nothing."

Letting out a long breath, Li Xiaoen shook his head and replied, "Mainly, it's just too much of a coincidence, don't you think?"

"The witness named Mengkel fired shots outside our suite and was arrested, just like he delivered himself to our doorstep."

"You mean our current investigation might involve other things, and those people, afraid of being exposed, didn't want us to continue investigating, so they sent that person over?"

Sophie was clever; she frowned slightly and asked tentatively.

"Sophie, you're so smart."

Li Xiaoen smiled as he looked at the girl in front of him. He really felt that he and the girl had some kind of telepathic connection. Unfortunately, when he looked at her like that, he received a beautiful eye roll in response.

"Suffolk, it might really be the kind of crime I told you about before?"

With his smile fading, Li Xiaoen picked up a grilled sausage and put it in his mouth.

"I know."

Sophie took a deep breath.

"Let's go buy some clean clothes."

Not planning on eating too much for a late-night snack, the two ate a little and then got up to leave. Li Xiaoen gestured to Su Feier, "There aren't any in town, so let's go outside. I remember there are some commercial areas and shops still open to the north."

Suffer gave the young man a strange look, then nodded in agreement.

Driving north, Li Xiaoen slowed down considerably in the dead of night until he reached the vicinity of the long-abandoned Catholic church. Through the Eye of Insight, he displayed all the scenes in his mind, and his mind suddenly froze in shock.

"Sean, what's wrong?"

Keeping a close eye on him, Sufi quickly called out when she saw the young man seemed to be lost in thought.

"No...nothing."

As his body gradually relaxed, Li Xiaoen shook his head...

The commercial area here clearly doesn't have as many brands and categories as luxury stores in big cities, and the two of them weren't in the mood for a shopping spree. They each picked out an apartment and went straight back to their suite at the resort.

"Suffolk, what's wrong?"

Suffer seemed uninterested in shopping in the commercial area. Seeing her open the door and head upstairs on her own, Li Xiaoen quickly asked her what was wrong.

“We already know that the person who fired the shot wasn’t arranged by your uncle. We’ll go to the police station tomorrow and see the witness to get to the bottom of the truth about the fire.”

Suffer did not react and turned to go upstairs alone. Li Xiaoen couldn't help but pull her back, wrap his arms around the girl's slender waist, and hold her in his arms.

"What are you worried about? Aren't we about to accomplish all the objectives of this trip?"

Li Xiaoen cupped the girl's cheek in his hands and solemnly emphasized, "You can just say whatever you want. This is tiring for both of us, isn't it?"

I'm really worried about you.

"is it?"

Looking up, staring blankly at the young man's face, meeting his bright, dark eyes, Sufi saw her own reflection and spoke meaningfully, "Your words only apply to me, and not to you, is that right?"

"What do you mean?"

Li Xiaoen paused for a moment.

"I know you already know something about what's going on in town, but you just won't tell me."

With her head held high in pride, Sophie stared intently at him.

"..."

"Sophie, can't you be a little dumber?"

With his shoulders slumped, Li Xiaoen gave a wry laugh and a sarcastic remark. Facing the girl's rapidly turning cold gaze, he couldn't help but explain, "I was thinking of calling the police tomorrow and revealing the truth before telling you in detail. I was afraid you would worry."

"Humph……"

Gritting her teeth and sneering, Su Feier shoved the young man away abruptly. "Afraid I'll worry? Do you take me for some innocent, naive little girl?"

As she spoke, she continued to approach, and Li Xiaoen pushed him down on the sofa, sat on him, and looked down at him condescendingly. "You're the one who's called me evil, the daughter of a black-hearted capitalist, all these times, aren't you?"

"You're the one who called me a bad woman, aren't you?"

Gritting her teeth, Suffer shouted, grabbing the young man's neck with both hands, pretending to tighten her grip, "Have you forgotten how I treated you at the beginning of last semester?"

Lying on the sofa, staring blankly at Su Feier's pretty face as she straddled him with gritted teeth, Li Xiaoen suddenly came to her senses, her heart filled with mixed feelings.

"Say it!"

Sophie glared at him, her fair cheeks puffed out, her rosy lips slightly upturned, her expression the opposite of what she was saying—aggrieved.

"Um……"

Li Xiaoen pondered for a moment, then looked at the girl with amusement before speaking slowly, "Suffolk, I think you could hang something on your mouth."

"What do you mean?"

Sophie frowned, watching the young man look down at his lips. After thinking for a while, she realized what he meant and angrily punched him, "How dare you say such a thing?"

"Ha ha……"

Amused by the girl's cuteness, Li Xiaoen laughed twice and pulled her into his arms. "Okay, I'll tell you now."

A simple sentence was enough to stop Suffer from struggling immediately.

(End of this chapter)