He's in Detective Conan, and he's the mastermind behind everything.

Tsk, is this what they call reaping what they sowed?

"Senior, if you want to vent your frustrations, go find a telephone pole. My little body can't handle it."

"Hurry up, there's chocolate!"

"Heh, are you trying to fool a child?"

"Just tell me if you want it or not."

"..."

Helpless, Ying Sheng got up and picked up his full set of equipment.

"Remember to hold back a bit."

"Never."

The two left the classroom side by side, and the students looked at each other in bewilderment as they watched their backs as they talked as if no one else was around.

Is there something wrong with this situation?

What about Kudo?

Come quick and save them!

"Kacha!"

The clear sound of a pencil breaking echoed through the quiet classroom. Everyone turned to look at the source of the sound. Sonoko Suzuki, her face grim, got up and left without saying a word.

This fueled everyone's gossip-loving spirit, and they began to discuss what exactly was going on with these three people.

Only Kenta Nakamichi calmly slung his backpack over his shoulder and went out to sell lottery tickets.

Kudo, you have to do your best!

In assisting the police in solving cases.

On the other side, after leaving everyone's sight, Ying Sheng, who had been chatting and laughing with Xiao Lan, immediately shut his mouth, quickened his pace, and turned towards the back gate of the school.

Xiaolan froze, staring at Yingsheng's retreating figure, her eyes trembling slightly, but she didn't say anything.

She wanted to catch up and apologize properly, but her legs seemed to be nailed to the spot, unable to move an inch.

"Xiao Lan, Shui Yueyingsheng is a scumbag, don't be fooled by him!"

Behind them, Sonoko Suzuki chased after them aggressively.

Xiaolan turned around stiffly, glanced at her best friend, and then looked at Yingsheng's back. He didn't slow down at all, nor did he turn around.

"He's gone? Hmph, at least he has some self-awareness."

Sonoko walked to Ran's side, glanced at Hotaru's back, and then tried to pull Ran away.

But it didn't move.

Sonoko pursed her lips, making up her mind, "Ran, I didn't want to tell you about this."

Chapter 24 Xiaolan Wants to Know the Truth

After Sonoko Suzuki revealed what she knew about Hotaru Mizuki's true nature, Ran remained silent for a long time.

"Xiao Lan, let's go shopping," Yuanzi said.

“We haven’t gone shopping together in a long time. Let’s relax today. There’s a really delicious dessert shop that opened in Ichome.”

She gently tugged at Xiaolan again.

Xiaolan finally turned around, looked at the garden, and smiled slightly.

"Thank you for the invitation, Sonoko. I'd love to go shopping too, but the competition is in just seven days. Even if I don't train extra, I need to maintain my competitive form."

"Oh yeah, hehe..."

Sonoko grinned mischievously, "Ran is working so hard, she must have other motives."

"What?" Xiaolan asked, puzzled.

"Hmph, didn't someone say before that they would make a bet with a certain mystery fanatic that if they won the championship, they would go on a date with him at Dorobiga Park!"

Sonoko clasped her hands to her chest, her face full of anticipation. "This is my Ran taking the initiative, she'll definitely win him over!" She suddenly clenched her fist heavily. "If that guy doesn't know what's good for him, Ran, you'll teach him a lesson!"

"Oh... about that..."

Ran smiled and nodded, "I definitely will, Sonoko, just wait for my good news." She picked up her pocket and shook it, "I'm going to practice now, see you later, Sonoko."

"Eh?"

Sonoko was a little stunned. Teasing her best friend with this was her specialty. Ran would always turn into a blushing steam girl, super cute, just like a shy white cat, making people want to hug her and knead her.

But isn't today's reaction a bit off?

Yuanzi gritted her teeth and grabbed her best friend's clothes.

"Xiaolan, I was serious about what I just said. Don't get too close to that scumbag Shuiyue Yingsheng. He's definitely up to no good when he approaches you. No matter what kind of person he is, he'll only hurt you in the end!"

Xiaolan turned around and smiled, "Okay, thank you for your concern, Yuanzi. I'm off now."

She took a step forward, and Sonoko slipped from her grasp, leaving her standing there stunned for a long time...

"You must be extra vigilant, Xiaolan!"

"Okay, I understand." Xiaolan waved her hand behind her.

Stay away from scumbags!

"Hey~~ I definitely will."

"..."

At six o'clock in the evening, Xiaolan returned to the Maori mansion. The room was empty and pitch black.

She turned on the light, walked to the window, and drew back the curtains. The room brightened, illuminating the clean floor and the tidy furnishings. A note on the refrigerator door swayed gently.

It looked exactly the same as when she left this morning.

After placing the groceries she bought on her way home on the counter, Xiaolan reached for her apron, but found nothing. Turning around, she saw that the wall was empty; the apron wasn't in its usual spot.

Yes.

Last night, my mother came over and said she would comfort her and cook for her herself.

As it turned out, the one who was most upset was clearly the mother herself. She almost cut her hand while cutting carrots and ended up eating out.

Xiaolan looked at the sofa, and sure enough, the apron was draped over it.

She went to get her apron, but all she saw was a lifeless television screen. She picked up the remote from the coffee table, and inexplicably found herself sitting on the sofa.

The TV was turned on, and it was a prank-themed variety show.

In the three circular windows at the top right, three middle-aged men who look like hosts are pointing at the exaggerated pranks below and laughing exaggeratedly.

very noisy.

Does Dad like watching this kind of show?

Xiaolan turned off the TV, leaned back on the sofa, and after a long while, she suddenly noticed that her beige ceiling had turned slightly yellow over the years.

She took out her phone, and it was only 6:20 PM; there were no new messages.

I opened my contacts and started scrolling through them.

The cursor paused briefly on the name "Shinichi Kudo," then sped up and finally stopped above "Sonoko Suzuki."

Her fingertips had already touched the dial button, and the words Sonoko had said to her that afternoon seemed to echo in her ears again.

So she couldn't press it down anymore.

Scumbags and stuff...

Is Mizuki-kun really that kind of person?

Approaching her proactively, harboring ill intentions... Clearly, Shuiyue-jun has always been keeping his distance from her; it's she who's been clinging to her.

Even if there are problems, it's her own fault.

I've decided, I'll just ask him directly. Anyway, he's always been so blunt that it can be a bit annoying.

Thinking this, Xiaolan scrolled through her contacts and realized that she had never kept his contact information.

Where should we look?

Mizuki-kun's relationships with everyone in the class were lukewarm at best. The only person he could be considered relatively close to was probably Nakamichi.

But she didn't have this person's phone number either.

If we go a little further down the line, it's not impossible to trace the source, but that would cause too much of a commotion.

What she did this afternoon has undoubtedly aroused Shuiyuejun's disgust. If she adds fuel to the fire again, they may really lose their friendship.

Huh?

Are they friends?

probably……

perhaps.

Ran suddenly got up, went downstairs to the detective agency on the second floor, turned on the light, walked behind Kogoro Mouri's desk, opened the drawer, and looked through the contact list.

Sonoko was very serious; she definitely wouldn't lie to her.

If you can't get a phone number from your classmates, you might be able to find it in this direction.

Xiaolan took out her contacts, and the first page showed the target number. She dialed it with her cell phone, but no one answered. After thinking for a moment, she switched to the landline next to her and dialed. It rang three times before being answered.

"Hello? Who is this...?"

The female voice was rather cool and clear, giving off a strangely motherly feeling, but softer.

"I am Ran Mouri, Kogoro Mouri's daughter, Towako. I have something I'd like to ask you." Ran got straight to the point.

Across the street is the madam of a nightclub in Ginza, the one Kogoro Mouri frequents.

That's also the reason why the fight broke out.