Iren quickly stood up and walked towards the kitchen. A moment later, Chioujen and Iren came out of the kitchen carrying trays of dishes that Chioujen had just finished preparing.
"It smells great," said Iren after he sat back down. His eyes sparkled. "Shyongge, how about you? I don't think you're going to take a shower."
Yihshyong glared. "The food is ready. Instead, you tell me to take a shower! Later, after I finished eating, then I would take a shower."
Iren chuckled. "Alright! Eating until we're full is the most important thing we should put first."
Yihshyong smiled. Suddenly, he felt so hungry.
"Please, Sir. Don't hesitate." Iren got rice for Gongshi.
"Mr. Pyngher, you don't have to be shy," said Yihshyong.
Pyngher smiled. "Thank you." He then took the bowl.
"Jinqkang hasn't come back yet?" Chioujen asked.
"Maybe the police also feel the need to ask him some questions," said Iren.
"Although it is only today that he becomes involved with our business, the things that happened in one day are indeed very complicated. It's only natural the police feel the need to question more people." Chioujen's voice sounded more like a mutter.
"Let's start eating now. If it's true that he has to give statements to the police, we don't know how long it will take," said Yihshyong.
As they were just starting to eat, they heard the gate opening. The sound was quite loud.
"Ah! Here he comes," said Iren. "Let's just ask him about what happened."
"No need." Yihshyong shook his head. "If he really wants to talk, we'll listen carefully. But if he doesn't, that's fine. We don't have to press him."
The front door was unlocked, so Jinqkang could go straight into the house. He then approached those sitting in the dining room right away. He was carrying a black plastic bag in his hand.
"Sorry it took so long," Jinqkang said.
"It's okay. We also just started eating," Chioujen said. "Please, sit down. Here's a plate and a bowl for you."
Jinqkang took the rice and side dishes. "There was an incident there."
"What happened?" Iren asked. His eyes remained fixed on the bowl and plate in front of him.
"Someone fell. Ah, actually two people."
"Inside the grocery store?" This time, Iren turned to Jinqkang.
"No, Sir. Outside the grocery store."
"Wait a minute." Yihshyong interrupted Jinqkang's words. "What about your personal belongings? Have you bought your underwear?"
Jinqkang smiled. He pointed to the plastic bag he had placed on his lap.
"Then what about the note? Have you given it to the police?" Yihshyong asked with a smile.
"Yes, Sir! Take it easy," said Jinqkang. "I have also briefed Mr. Mingju."
"Then how can people fall outside the grocery store? The sky is still light." Iren asked.
"We'll talk about the people who fell later," Yihshyong said. "Now you eat first." Yihshyong was worried that Iren would drag the conversation so long that Jinqkang wouldn't be able to eat dinner quickly.
Jinqkang and Iren complied. The six of them then ate voraciously. After eating, Pyngher started to do his job. He sat back down in the living room to start drawing. Chioujen got the first turn.
"Now you can start talking about the men who fell," Yihshyong said to Jinqkang.
"It was an accident, Sir! There was a collision between a car and a motorbike. The driver and passenger of the motorbike fell." Jinqkang started his story.
"Did the car stop right away?" Iren, whose face already looked impatient, immediately asked.
"Yes, Sir! The driver of the car also got out of the car. I think the car is okay. Maybe it's just a minor scratch. So, the policeman and I immediately got out of the grocery store and helped the two people."
"Are their injuries serious?" Chioujen shouted from the living room.
Jinqkang did tell the story with such enthusiasm that perhaps unconsciously the volume was too loud. As a result, Chioujen could hear clearly.
"No, Sir! Maybe they're just bruises. But the police won't let them leave right away. So they rested in the grocery store first."
"Wait a second! Did the cop you met introduce himself as a cop?" This time it wasn't just shouting from the living room, Chioujen had also moved from there. With a serious face, Chioujen appeared in the dining room. Apparently, he left the living room to hear Chioujen's story more clearly.
<
"No, Sir! So the policeman I met earlier borrowed the phone at the grocery store to call the police. And, in just two minutes, two uniformed traffic cops arrived. They were the ones who told the people involved in the accident to stay there."
"Why are you even here?" Yihshyong looked at Chioujen. "You haven't finished the sketch yet, have you?"
"Jinqkang's story, I think, is very important. What if Mr. Pyngher also moved to this dining table?" said Iren. Yihshyong nodded. They asked Pyngher to continue what he was doing in the dining room. Without saying a word, Pyngher got up from the sofa in the living room and walked into the dining room. He then sat at the dining table and continued his drawing activities. Chioujen immediately sat down beside him to give descriptions of the girl they saw.
"Then, what happened next?" Yihshyong asked.
"The driver and passenger of the motorbike hastily stated that they were both in the wrong. Those people wanted to leave quickly. They said that they had very important business at the moment."
"What about the driver of the car?"
"The police asked the man some questions. It turns out he is your neighbor here!"
"Our neighbors?" Yihshyong said.
"He lives next door." Jinqkang pointed to the house to the right of their house.
"You mean Mr. Horngshi Gauchyh?" Iren asked.
"Yes, Sir! He introduced himself by that name," said Jinqkang.
"I didn't know he had a car. I've never even seen him drive a car," Yihshyong said.
"He said earlier that it was a rental car. Tomorrow he wants to go out of town," said Jinqkang.
"Before you came, no cars stopped at the house next door," said Iren. "I don't know when he brought the car home."
"Then what next?" Yihshyong asked.
"After getting the affidavit he needed from the police, right away, he went to return the car to the car rental. He was afraid the accident had caused some damage that might get him into trouble if he took the car out of town. So, he wanted the car rental company to replace it with another car. He didn't want to take risks," said Jinqkang.
"Then did the two people who rode the motorbike also leave immediately?" asked Chioujen.
"Yes, Sir! The motorbike wasn't damaged either. Since both parties didn't want to prolong the problem, the police let both parties go."
"What are their facial expressions like?" Gongshi, who had been silently enjoying his meal, suddenly made a sound.
"They seemed relieved when the police let them go," replied Jinqkang.
"Is it really the motorcyclist's fault?" Gongshi asked another question.
"I don't know, Sir! I was talking to the police when it happened. We were just looking outside when the clerk at the grocery store screamed."
"Are those two wearing orange and purple jackets?" Gongshi's constant questioning made Yihshyong feel that there was something else Gongshi knew. It seemed that Gongshi wasn't just curious about the incident.
<
"Right, Sir! How did you know?"
"Earlier, when I entered this housing complex, I did not immediately find this house. I circled this housing complex four times before finally arriving in front of this house."
<
"When I was driving around in circles, I saw a motorbike being ridden by a person in an orange jacket. He was riding with someone wearing a purple jacket. They were also circling the roads within this housing complex. I didn't know they were lost or, like me, were looking for a house here."
<
Yihshyong cast a glance at Pyngher. The man didn't say anything about what Gongshi just said. He had finished drawing. He put the sketch on the table.
"It's finished!" Chioujen shouted so loudly. "This is exactly what I remembered!" He pointed to the picture on the table.
<
Iren, Jinqkang, and Gongshi turned their heads towards Chioujen.
"Mr. Pyngher is great. Can draw so fast." Iren gave a thumbs up.
"Is there something missing?" Chioujen asked for Iren's consideration.
"It's similar to the girl we saw earlier. But I think there are a few things I should add," said Iren.
Yihshyong inched to see the mysterious girl's face painted on the paper.
"Shyongge, what do you think?" Iren asked.
"So this is her face. So beautiful!" Yihshyong nodded. He rubbed his chin. "Iren, now it's your turn. You switched places with Chioujen."
After changing places, Iren immediately gave the girls's descriptions to Pyngher. Because previously he had managed to draw the girl's face, this time there was a flash of confidence in Pyngher's eyes.
<
This time, they all stopped conversing. Everyone noticed Pyngher, who was drawing with such a swift movement. Every few seconds, Iren gave information about the details of the girl's face. In less than ten minutes, the sketch of the girl's face was finished.
Yihshyong then compared the two facial sketches. He smiled.
<>
"Mr. Pyngher, you are very talented! This is very good," said Yihshyong. The two sketches were lifelike. Yihshyong seemed to see the expressions on the faces of people who were happy in the picture.
"Thank you, Sir! This is probably because I practice a lot."
"I think, next time, we should all ask Mr. Pyngher to make portraits of each of us," said Iren.
"That's right. But we have to wait until we solve all the problems. So, the lines of anxiety will not be painted," said Chioujen.
Pyngher just smiled. He did not comment.
"Now, Jinqkang, please continue your story again!" Iren sat back in his previous place. Turned out he was still very curious.
"Yes, Sir!" Jinqkang laughed. He also seemed happy that Iren told him to tell the story.
"Wait a minute!" Suddenly Chioujen interrupted. "Did you see the license plate number of the motorcycle that was involved in the accident?"
"Yes, Sir! I even remember the number." Jinqkang replied with a very confident facial expression.
"Can you write it down?" asked Chioujen.
"What for?" Iren asked. "The police must have recorded everything."
"But we don't know yet," said Chioujen. "Besides, if it wasn't hastily noted down, two hours from now, Jinqkang would have forgotten."
Yihshyong smiled. He also did not understand what Chioujen really meant. But he said nothing.
<
From his shirt pocket, Chioujen took out a piece of paper. After giving the piece of paper to Jinqkang, he looked around for stationery.
"No need, Sir! I have a pen," said Jinqkang. He quickly took out a pen from his pocket.
"Hah?" Iren shouted.
Yihshyong turned to Iren. His housemate seemed to gasp. Iren quickly snatched the pen from Jinqkang's hand. "Where did you get this pen from?"
Jinqkang was surprised. Iren did that so suddenly. Jinqkang's face turned pale.
<
Yihshyong patted Jinqkang on the shoulder. "Don't worry. Iren is just a little surprised. Now, please explain briefly."
"I found it on the side of the road, Sir. Right in front of the grocery store. I think one of the people on the motorbike accidentally dropped it."
Iren showed the pen to Yihshyong. "Shyongge, take a good look at this pen."
"This is...." Yihshyong said.
"What is it?" asked Chioujen.
"This is the pen that Shinnshiow brought with him yesterday morning when he left the house!" Iren said in a trembling voice.