Chapter 18 Analysis

"That's settled then, everyone split up and look for clues. Don't return directly to the Wu mansion after finding a clue. The Wu family is not to be trusted. We'll meet back at the tea stall."

Everyone naturally agreed with Luo Tianhe's words, and they dispersed.

Jiang Cheng chose a direction and was about to leave with Fatty when a hand grabbed him. Then, Lin Qianqian's pretty face came close. "Jiang Cheng-gege, I want to be with you."

Lin Qianqian's voice was pleasant, and her attitude was meek, making it difficult to refuse. However, she still met with a closed door in front of Jiang Cheng. After decisively refusing Lin Qianqian's request to join them, Jiang Cheng quickly left with Fatty.

Watching the backs of Jiang Cheng and Fatty as they left, a hint of coldness flashed in Lin Qianqian's eyes.

"Doctor, does this Lin Qianqian have a crush on you? Why does she always want to be with you?" Fatty bumped Jiang Cheng with his shoulder, asking with ill intent.

He didn't have any particular liking or disliking for Lin Qianqian. He just wanted to liven up the atmosphere, as it was too oppressive.

Jiang Cheng readily cooperated, shrugging his shoulders and feigning helplessness. "What can I do? I'm also under a lot of pressure. If it weren't for you being a third wheel, I might have gotten a girlfriend this time. You know my qualities, as a high-quality man..."

Seeing that the topic was getting out of his control and heading in an uncontrollable direction, Fatty interrupted the doctor's speech in time. "Stop! I'm not going to chat with you anymore, Doctor. I just feel that this Lin Qianqian is strange. She seems very interested in you. Offering courtesy for no reason is either treachery or stealing. Doctor, you have to be careful."

Nodding, Jiang Cheng also put away his nonchalant attitude, his tone becoming serious. "This Lin Qianqian is indeed strange. I suspect she knows me."

"You mean she knows our true identities?" Fatty had once had this guess, but he never expected it would be this inconspicuous Lin Qianqian.

"Yes, and I also suspect something else, that alarm clock..." Jiang Cheng paused. "It's very likely she set it off."

"Her?!"

Fatty's expression froze completely. In the next second, his thoughts instantly returned to that night in the Su mansion. When the alarm rang, Fatty felt like he was going to die. The fear of being dominated by that ghost steed all came back at that moment.

"Is there... is there any evidence?" Fatty looked at Jiang Cheng with a terrified gaze.

After a moment of silence, Jiang Cheng shook his head. "There's no direct evidence. I just suspect it. Ding Zhendong was discovered by you eavesdropping, and Yao Shunyu had an unpleasant incident with us because of Li Shannv. It seems that these two are more suspicious, but think about it, the ghost steed can only kill one person at a time, so one of us will definitely survive. And the first people the survivor will suspect are them, so they don't need to take such a big risk and face the survivor's crazy revenge. So it wouldn't be them. They're not that stupid."

"Although Li Bai is relatively cold, she doesn't seem like the kind of person who would stab someone in the back. When facing the imprisoned Li Shannv, she also showed a certain kindness, which is a bit like you," Jiang Cheng commented.

"What about Luo Tianhe, Yuan Shanyuan, and Bai Yu? They are all cunning and resourceful. Creating such a thing shouldn't be too difficult for them, right?" Fatty couldn't forget Li Shannv's final words. A ghost mixed into the crowd was like a wolf in sheep's clothing, a threat lurking among them, more terrifying than the ghosts in the mission.

Shaking his head, Jiang Cheng sighed and looked at Fatty. "It wouldn't be them, because there's no need. Those who want to harm us mostly want Li Shannv to survive, as a scapegoat for the next stage. So this person wouldn't be very strong, and Luo Tianhe and the other two don't have such a need. They have their own means of self-protection."

"Another point is that Lin Qianqian knows about our conflict with Yao Shunyu. The day we went to Yao Shunyu to demand people, she came over and saw this scene. So that night, she took advantage of it, thinking of framing others. This also makes sense."

After listening to the doctor's analysis, Fatty felt even more suspicious of Lin Qianqian. That seemingly harmless face gradually became demonized in his mind, and his tone became gloomy. "In that case, we..."

"We just need to be wary of her. There's no need to give her too much face. She's not worthy," Jiang Cheng shrugged indifferently. "Besides, I've already rejected her several times. I think she probably guessed that we've started to suspect her, so she'll be much calmer next."

"The really tricky ones are Luo Tianhe, Yuan Shanyuan, and that Bai Yu, especially Bai Yu. If we don't figure out what's going on with her, we're probably going to die here."

"Relying on just the two of us is not enough for this mission. We need to contact others. Yao Shunyu is not bad, ruthless enough and smart enough, with clear likes and dislikes, and a guy who can see the situation clearly. That Li Bai is also not bad, we can consider bringing her in as well." Jiang Cheng analyzed in a calm tone, obviously he had been considering these things for a long time.

Fatty knew that the doctor was very wary of unfamiliar people and rarely suggested forming alliances with teammates. Even in the Grand River Maiden (Da He Niang Niang) instance, Chen Hao and Du Moyu had taken the initiative to approach them. This showed how tricky this mission was.

"Newspapers!"

"Selling newspapers!"

"Newly arrived newspapers!"

...

A burst of shouts attracted the attention of Jiang Cheng and Fatty. It wasn't just the word "newspaper" that was important, but the shouts of selling newspapers were strangely familiar.

Following the sound out of the street corner, they saw a child with his back to them, carrying a tattered cloth bag filled with newspapers, and holding a newspaper high in his hand, enthusiastically promoting it to passersby.

Fatty blinked and suddenly recognized him. "Doctor, isn't that the kid who cursed you to never eat more than four hot dishes in your life?"

Jiang Cheng naturally recognized him too. They had bought the newspaper from this child last time, thus learning about the Ghost Steed Picture (Gui Jun Tu), but he couldn't understand why this child wasn't in Shanghai, but had run here.

When the boy saw Jiang Cheng, he obviously recognized him too. He turned around and was about to run, but Fatty blocked him from behind. Jiang Cheng squatted down, touched the boy's head, and asked with a smile, "Do you still recognize me?"

The boy nodded repeatedly, his attitude very good. "I recognize you, I recognize you. You are the handsome, dashing, charming, and beloved guest from last time. I've been thinking about you ever since we parted."

"Thinking about me never eating more than four dishes in my life?" Jiang Cheng pinched the boy's face, his attitude quite kind.

"Yes, I'm sorry, don't hold it against me. I know I was wrong. I couldn't stay in Shanghai anymore. They were going to catch me. I... I fled all the way here. Can you... can you not hit me?" The more the boy spoke, the more aggrieved he became, and finally his eyes turned red and he cried.