There was a clatter. Their conversation was interrupted. Shang Sirui took a look and saw that Fang Juexia had accidentally dropped the book he had just taken out from the safe on the ground.
Fang Juexia quickly squatted down and groped around on the ground. His vision was completely dark. Suddenly, he felt something, but it was not a book. It was the texture of a cold leather glove.
His vision was deprived in exchange for a profound sense of touch.
"This book is quite thick." Pei Tingsong calmly picked up the book before him and glanced at the cover. "North..." As he spoke, he held Fang Juexia with his warm hand without the glove and pulled him up. He complained, "Get up, or your legs will go soft again."
Fang Juexia looked calm, but Pei Tingsong's words echoed in his heart again and again.
Pei Tingsong put the book on the table and continued to chat with Shang Sirui.
Zhou Ziheng, Xia Xiqing, and Zhai Ying finished looking at the clue map on the wall and were still discussing.
Out of a rigorous way of thinking, Zhou Ziheng always felt that this clue map was not necessarily complete evidence. Xia Xiqing also felt that his resistance to this map was a little too high. "You're very strange. If you were a good person, you wouldn't play like this."
"Of course, my opinion is only for reference." Zhou Ziheng did not give in. "But we can't always judge based on the players' gaming habits. This is considered outside of the game information."
"So," Zhai Ying said while the two were arguing, "In your eyes, my character is a detective who suddenly broke in. According to the conventional plot line, I am the provider of clues. But as Zhou Ziheng said, if these clues are not valid, the detective character can instead create a reversal of the plot."
While speaking, she unbuttoned her coat and put one hand into her pocket. She continued, "Based on this, can the seemingly weakest female high school student also create a reversal of the plot? There is also the psychiatrist, who seems to be the most positive character. Of course, if the lead singer of the band is involved in a murder case, he can also create a sensational plot. "
Her logic was clear and her words were organized. After listening to her, Fang Juexia added, "I agree with Zhai Ying. In fact, in addition to this, the two characters, Teacher Yan and the college student, are easily forgotten because they are not obvious enough. This kind of inconspicuous character is often linked to a reversal. So, I think everyone's suspicions are more or less the same. "
Xia Xiqing nodded. "That is reasonable and cannot be refuted. But I want to ask, if the production crew really wanted to create a reversal of the plot, why did they connect the seemingly weak female high school student with almost everyone else? Isn't that very suspicious? "
Zhou Zihang smiled and countered with Xia Xiqing's previous logic. "Perhaps the production crew knew that you were going to act. If they didn't make things a little more confusing, they wouldn't be worthy of your playstyle."
The others and.....
Pei Tingsong leaned on the table and flipped through the book on the table out of boredom. "I want to take a look at your room."
Shang Sirui nodded. "Go ahead." Then he said, "Do you want me to go with you?"
Pei Tingsong glanced at Fang Juexia. He happened to be looking at him too, but he was not sure if Fang Juexia could see him or not.
"Up to you," Pei Tingsong said.
Fang Juexia turned his face away.
Oh, so he can see.
"I won't go." Shang Sirui hugged Fang Juexia's shoulder. "I've seen enough. I'm already traumatized. You can go take a look yourself. I'll stay here. Maybe there will be more clues in this room. Isn't that right, Juexia? "
"Yes." Fang Juexia did not look at Pei Tingsong.
"Okay." Pei Tingsong stopped flipping through the book and threw it on the table. "Is there anyone else who wants to go with me?"
Zhou Ziheng turned around. "I want to take a look. Let's go to the consulting room." As he spoke, his hand touched the back of Xia Xiqing's neck. Xia Xiqing turned around and said, "Go ahead. I'll be right here."
Pei Tingsong tilted his head and signaled to Zhou Ziheng. The two of them left together.
Xia Xiqing was left behind. She carefully sorted out the relationship chart and went through all the parts of the room that might contain clues, including the mattress in the detective's room.
Fang Juexia could not see clearly. He had lost the advantage of being a detective in this room.
However, his hearing was very sharp. Amidst the noisy discussion and the loud rumbling, he heard a very subtle sound. It was music, but it was very, very soft. It was almost at the lowest volume and was completely drowned out by the noise in the room. If it were not for the fact that he could not see at all and could only rely on his hearing, he would have missed it.
Just like an auditory hallucination, he could hardly confirm the authenticity of the music. However, the darkness gave him the inertia to explore. Following the guidance of his hearing, he followed the sound bit by bit.
The edge of the table, the cold wall, the wooden shelf, the single sofa, and the soft sofa cushion. The constantly changing touch guided his footsteps.
Sitting on the sofa, Fang Juexia took a deep breath.
The music was getting closer and closer to reality. He reached his hand into the gap of the sofa cushion behind him.
Suddenly.
"What's wrong with you, Juexia?"
When Fang Juexia heard Xia Xiqing's voice, he calmly pulled his hand out and shook his head with a smile. "My waist hasn't been very good recently. I'm a little … I can't stand for a long time. I want to sit down."
He struggled in his heart for a long time and finally gave a tentative invitation. "Do you … want to come over and sit down?"
After waiting for a few seconds, he heard an answer. "Forget it. I'm uncomfortable in here. I'm going out."
Xia Xiqing left the dark room and held onto the hidden door. Suddenly, he noticed the wall and the paintings on it. It seemed to be a collection of a series of paintings. They were all famous abstract paintings. One of them caught his attention. It was "The Death of Marla."
He stared at this world-famous painting and felt that something was not quite right. So he reached out and took the painting down.
Shang Sirui and Zhai Ying were still looking for clues. Zhai Ying seemed to be a person of few words and did not respond to Shang Sirui's words. Perhaps it was because of the avoidance of suspicion between idols of the opposite sex, the two did not communicate much. Sitting in the darkness, Fang Juexia pondered for a moment. He took out his hand from under the sofa cushion and clenched it tightly. He leaned back on the sofa and put his hand on his forehead.
There was a button on the small recording pen. Fang Juexia pressed it and the faint music stopped abruptly. After three seconds of silence, the crackling sound of electricity was heard and became clear.
It was a girl's voice.
"I'm calling because I hope that we can work together. You don't want this to happen either, right?"
"Only by getting rid of him, only by getting rid of him …"
Zhou Ziheng first took Pei Tingsong to Shang Sirui's room. It was indeed very simple. He sat on the sofa and picked up the guitar to play. "The sound is not bad."
"I don't know much about music." Zhou Ziheng asked, "What kind of guitar is this?"
"A hollow body guitar." Pei Tingsong put the guitar back. While chatting with Zhou Ziheng about music, they went to the psychologist's room. Zhou Ziheng's attention was attracted by the large table. "This should be the place where your main clues are gathered."
Pei Tingsong had just walked out of the connected waiting room. He stood in front of the large bookcase and looked at the various books on it. He nodded and added, "It was quite difficult. At the time, we were all wearing masks and couldn't see anything. We even had our hands and feet tied."
"We also wore masks. The square ones were very funny." Zhou Ziheng sat on the chair that Pei Tingsong was initialized in. He checked if there were any traps on the chair while chatting enthusiastically. "The audience will find it very funny when they see it. All of us have square heads."
He heard the sound of the piano and looked up to see Pei Tingsong holding a pocket-sized ukulele. He swept the strings and played a tune.
Zhou Ziheng raised his eyebrows and expressed his appreciation. "This is the theme song of our movie."
"The production team is very careful. It's all good instruments." Pei Tingsong turned around and put the instrument back.
At that moment, they heard the production team's announcement.
"Players, please pay attention. There is still half an hour before the first public voting for the execution. Please brainstorm and discuss the suspect in your mind in the remaining time."
So soon? Fang Juexia calculated the time. It had indeed been a long time, but the production team had not announced the identity of the Knight. It seemed that they wanted to execute a player first before announcing it publicly.
The six of them came out of the room and sat down in the reception room at the beginning.
"How do we discuss it?" Pei Tingsong bent down and flipped through some clues on the coffee table. "It seems that we haven't figured out much yet. We can't just cast a vote."
Unexpectedly, his words immediately attracted Xia Xiqing's attack. "Xiao Pei, aren't you going to tell everyone that you and I jumped to the Knight in the consultation room?"
Fang Juexia actually wanted to tell everyone long ago so that they would suspect the Knight to be the two of them. However, he could not find the right time to do so. If he was not careful, he might get himself into trouble.
He did not expect that Xia Xiqing would be the one to say it first.
Pei Tingsong remained calm. "That's right, I almost forgot." He briefly explained the situation to everyone. Of course, it was from his standpoint and logic. "Brother Xiqing teamed up with Juexia Ge and revealed that he was the Knight. Coincidentally, he met me, so I jumped out and exposed him on the spot. I said that I was the real Knight."
Xia Xiqing laughed. "To be honest with you, I can't confirm that you're Killer in a knight's outfit. If you admit that you're not a knight now, I can still believe that you're taking a bullet for a real knight. You choose. "
Pei Tingsong was not afraid of his words at all. Instead, he raised his eyebrows. "Are you hinting something to me? Sorry, I don't understand. The real Knight never retreats. "
It was such a good show. Shang Sirui was dazzled. "Did the production team make a mistake? This is not the double-faced Knight. This is the real and fake Knight. "
Zhou Zihang observed the two of them. "What's wrong? Are they going to be Knights this round? But they haven't revealed their Knight factions yet. "
Zhai Ying crossed his arms and watched the show. "Since they dared to openly challenge us, their factions are obvious. They should both say that they are White Knights."
Fang Juexia knew that he had to speak now, but he could not speak casually. The conflict in this round was between Xia Xiqing and Pei Tingsong. If he accidentally got involved, things would only become more complicated.
The best thing to do now was to pretend to be an ordinary player.
He tried to think from a different perspective. If he was a normal player now, what would be his highest priority?
It would be to look for Killer. That was right.
"I don't think this round is the Knight's round. Our chance to vote is very precious. It's the only way we can get ahead of Killer. Because Killer has the right to kill. Don't forget this. "
Xia Xiqing looked at him and smiled. "That's right. But in my opinion, the person who jumped the Knight was definitely not a good person. "
The one who jumped the Knight was you, right? Fang Juexia complained softly in his heart.
Pei Tingsong retorted, "I think so too. If you hadn't taken the initiative to self-destruct, I might still be hiding and not dare to reveal myself. But I can't watch Killer wear the White Knight uniform. So I have to stand up. "
Fang Juexia blinked.
You really know how to talk. If I wasn't a real Knight, I would have really believed you.
The situation fell into a chaotic stalemate. Everyone was silent for a while.
Zhou Ziheng thought about it and felt that things were not that simple. "I guess the production team won't expose the Knight's camp at this time. To be honest, I agree with what Juexia said just now. This round is not the Knight's round. If we want to vote, we should vote for Killer. However, "he changed the topic." I don't really believe that one of you is real and the other is fake. Maybe both of you are fake and the real Knight is still hiding. "
Fang Juexia secretly clenched his fists. He heard Shang Sirui's analysis. "Just now, Xi Qing said that he was a White Knight. Then, he told Xiao Pei that if you were a fake and took the bullet for me, you should quickly retreat. I will believe that you are a good person. If you don't retreat, you are Killer. At first glance, this logic doesn't seem wrong. It does seem like the logic of a White Knight. "
"But do you remember what Xiao Pei said just now? Xi Qing self-destructed in order to win over Juexia. This is a little strange. If a White Knight self-destructed at the beginning, wouldn't it attract a fatal disaster? In order for a good person to win, he shouldn't use his Knight card in exchange for an alliance. "
Shang Sirui's logic was quite clear. This was also why Fang Juexia had always felt that there was something wrong with Xia Xiqing. However, it was not appropriate for him to say it. Shang Sirui's words were very appropriate.
Zhai Ying continued to add, "There's another point. Isn't it strange that Killer didn't kill Xi Qing after he revealed his identity for so long? But there's another point that's very strange. If Xi Qing was a member of the Dark Faction, when he revealed Pei Tingsong's identity, wouldn't he have taken action? No, he hasn't done anything yet. "
After listening to her, Fang Juexia thought for a moment and continued, "Perhaps one of them is a killer, but I'm afraid we can't determine whether a player is a killer based on their performance in the game. Don't forget, a killer who escapes from the game is related to the plot." He paused and continued according to the normal players' train of thought. "Of course, the goal of this vote is to try our best to kill Killer. Therefore, even if I can't see the situation clearly, I might choose to vote for one of them to ensure that the good person's vote won't be wasted."
His words seemed to have gained the approval of the players in the room. Everyone nodded.
At this point in time, the biggest beneficiary of this vote would be Killer. Their execution rate would be greatly reduced. Therefore, even if they wrongly killed a good person, they had to fight for the chance of killing Killer.
Soon, the voting announcement came from the room.
"All players have thirty seconds to vote. Please fill in the name of the Killer in your mind. The countdown starts now. "
Everyone scattered further away and took out the cell phones that the program team had given them to vote. Fang Juexia walked to the display wall with the hidden door. He faced the wall and took out his phone. A premonition lingered in his heart. It was even more so after he left the black room.
"Five —
"Four —
"Three —"
Fang Juexia typed in a name.
"Two —"
"One."
Send.
After unlocking the screen, Fang Juexia's heart raced. He shoved the phone into his pocket and waited anxiously for the announcement. The battle between Xia Xiqing and Pei Tingsong was still ringing in his ears. He didn't know if his decision was crucial or correct.
"Players, please take note. The result of this vote is …"
When the announcement came again, Fang Juexia's heart skipped a beat.
"A tie. We won't execute any players. The game will continue. The next round of voting will take place in half an hour. Please use this time to find the dark side hiding among you and escape. "
He sighed in relief.
Raising his head, he analyzed the possible voting preferences of each person in his mind. As he thought, Fang Juexia unexpectedly found that a painting seemed to be missing from the wall. The missing part of the wall was empty. For someone with OCD like him, it was really unfriendly.
He looked around and saw that the painting was placed next to a cabinet near the door. There was a tea set on the cabinet. Fang Juexia walked over and picked up the painting. It was a dead person in a bathtub, holding a letter and a pen in his hand.
His OCD forced him to hang the painting in the empty space and straighten it. Fang Juexia looked at his work with satisfaction. However, he found that the painting in the frame was a little off. There was a white edge.
It was too uncomfortable. He felt uncomfortable no matter how he looked at it.
"What's wrong?" Xia Xiqing appeared behind him and put her hand on his shoulder. "Are you interested in this painting?"
Fang Juexia turned around and smiled at her. He was about to say that he just wanted to hang the painting up, but the moment he saw Xia Xiqing, he suddenly thought of something.
His hand holding the painting frame began to sweat. Fang Juexia adjusted his breathing. "Well, although I don't really understand it, I feel that there should be a story behind this painting."
Xia Xiqing nodded. "You guessed it right. It's quite artistic. This painting is of a leader who was assassinated during the French Revolution. His name is Marat. "He shrugged and complained," But this is not a very good imitation. "
"Is that so?" Fang Juexia smiled. "I can't tell either."
Marat...
Leader.
He stared at the painting on the wall and felt that something was wrong.
Zhou Ziheng walked over. "What are you guys talking about?"
"Art." Xia Xiqing smiled at him.
Seeing the two of them approaching, Fang Juexia automatically moved away and tried not to disturb them. He turned his head and saw Zhai Ying standing next to him.
"Juexia Ge, I heard that you study mathematics."
Fang Juexia nodded. "Why?"
"I found this in the psychiatrist's room. It looks like a piece of draft paper." Zhai Ying handed him the paper in his hand. "Do these formulas have any meaning?"
Fang Juexia took it and looked at it carefully. "These formulas are the calculations of a problem. They don't have any meaning. They are just ordinary double integrals." There were some sets written on the side of the formula.
"Is the answer to this problem correct?" Zhai Ying asked.
Fang Juexia's attention was drawn back. "Let me do the math." So he took the paper and the pen that Zhai Ying handed him. He leaned over the cabinet where he had just found the painting and did the math.
"Okay, I'll come over in a bit." Zhai Ying left directly, leaving Fang Juexia alone. He was very absorbed in his calculations and soon got the result. It was the same as the one on the draft paper. Fang Juexia turned around to look for Zhai Ying, but he almost bumped into another person who was approaching him.
"Did you also stumble outside?"
His arm was held. Fang Juexia held the paper in his hand. He looked up and saw Pei Tingsong's face.
His words were always full of multiple hints, one after another, and only the two of them knew the riddle.
Pet, one-sixth, little master...
He was too good at playing word games.
"It's fine as long as you don't know how to dance." Fang Juexia's tone was calm. He broke free from Pei Tingsong's hand and stood still. He folded the paper and draft paper and stuffed it into his trouser pocket. But Pei Tingsong did not seem to give up. "You didn't hurt yourself inside just now, right?" He put his hands on Zhang Zian's shoulders and flipped him over and over again. He almost touched him all over. "Let me check."
Fang Juexia felt that it was inappropriate to be like this in front of the camera. It was too intimate. He tried to push Pei Tingsong away. Back and forth, the two of them were like two entangled cats. But in the end, he could not win against Pei Tingsong. He gave up struggling and was forced to accept the "check."
"You look quite energetic. I heard from my senior that your waist hurts." Pei Tingsong patted Fang Juexia's chest. "You look quite energetic. I'm relieved."
This action made Fang Juexia freeze.
The initiator left the spot and walked towards Shang Sirui. The two of them gathered together and jested again. Fang Juexia stood motionless and looked at Pei Tingsong's back.
He adjusted his breathing and turned to face the cabinet that was half his height. He stood there silently for a long time.
Feeling the camera in front of the cabinet turn to face him, Fang Juexia came back to his senses and focused his gaze on the cabinet. On the cabinet was a set of exquisite differences. A beautiful European-style white glazed teapot and a few teacups were placed horizontally along the cabinet in a straight line.
But this straight line... was not straight enough.
His OCD made him reach out and adjust the position of the teacups until they were on the same level.
"Done." Fang Juexia whispered to himself.
Unexpectedly, in the next moment, he suddenly heard a click. The previously locked drawer automatically unlocked and opened a gap.
There was actually such a way to open it?
Fang Juexia was a little surprised. He moved closer to see what the mechanism was, but found that there was an X written on the teapot with a silver pen.
Fang Juexia put the teapot away and opened the drawer.
Zhou Ziheng and Xia Xiqing, who were standing not far away, also noticed. They turned their heads to look and saw Fang Juexia take out a white checkered handkerchief.
"Is this a new clue?" Zhou Ziheng asked.
Fang Juexia nodded. "It should be related to the answer on the display screen on the door. It's all checkered." He looked down at the handkerchief in his hand. There were a few lines of numbers embroidered on it.
15.41.23.14.33
14.24.12
34.23.14.32.15
51.24.43.22.55.54
"Is this the password..."
Zhou Ziheng walked over and touched the inside of the handkerchief. He felt something, so he picked up the teapot and shook it. There was water inside, so he poured it over and flattened the handkerchief.
After the white checkered handkerchief was wet, it became translucent, revealing a piece of plastic paper hidden inside. The words printed on it became clear.
___1__2__3__4__5
1__q__w__e__r__t
2__y__u_i/j_o__p
3__a__s__d__f__g
4__h__k__l__z__x
5_c_v_b__n_m
"This is..." Fang Juexia felt that it looked familiar. After thinking for a while, he had an answer.
"I got it." Zhou Ziheng subconsciously took out his phone to confirm if it was the one. After unlocking it, he remembered something and smiled. "I forgot. This is the program team's phone."
Fang Juexia also smiled.
Suddenly, the program team's announcement sounded.
"Attention, everyone."
"Player Pei Tingsong is dead."