A group of people rushed into the writer's room to check. The tightly locked window showed nothing; outside the glass was an endless night and ocean. The lighthouse at the top of the castle shone its beam, and in the light, the raindrops looked like thick meteor trails, swirling chaotically. From the room, they could see the steep rocks and jagged branches on the island, bent low by the stormy sea winds.
Wherever they looked, there was no sign of the race car driver.
The model crossed her arms, looking at the writer with disdain. "You didn't just scream to scare us for your novel, did you?"
This time, the actress joined the model's side, huffing, "Or are you just scared again? You don't look much like a man!" She cast a flirtatious glance at Yan Su, who was lost in thought, staring at the swaying branches outside.
The host, taking a very masculine stance, patted the writer on the shoulder. "Are you too nervous? Don't worry, we'll leave tomorrow."
Seeing that everyone thought he was crazy, the writer panicked, his eyes wide with fear. "No, really! I saw the race car driver! He floated past the glass, swaying like a ghost."
"Enough!" The lawyer frowned, scolding him. "Are there ghosts in this world? Besides, even if he were real, he's outside on a cliff; how could he fly in the rain?"
The writer's face turned red with urgency, insisting he saw the race car driver pass through the glass, but no one believed him.
Suddenly, a gust of cold wind swept through the room with a creaking sound.
Everyone fell silent, shivers running down their spines.
Turning around, they saw Yan Su had opened the window, looking up at the torrential downpour, with lightning flashing outside.
Zhen Ai rushed to pull him back. "Stay away from the window with the lightning!"
He patted her hand reassuringly, indicating it was fine, then turned back to the writer. "You said he was swaying?"
"Yes, yes! I really saw it!" The writer quickly moved to Yan Su's side for support.
"Get the butler right now!" Yan Su's face suddenly darkened, his voice quickening with urgency. "The cable from the island passes through the writer's window; someone has opened the cable car! The driver you saw is likely sliding down the rope like the cable car."
Everyone felt a surge of anxiety and hurried after him down the corridor.
The host habitually chimed in, "But when did the race car driver arrive on the island?"
The lawyer furrowed his brows in his usual manner. "Is this the time to consider that? Is he hanging on the rope or is he dead?"
The actress quickly caught up with Yan Su, seizing the opportunity to ask, "Why are we looking for the butler?"
Yan Su pulled Zhen Ai along the curved corridor, speaking in a low voice, "While it could be just the wind making him sway, we can't rule out the possibility that he's struggling on the rope!"
His words sent chills through the group.
On this stormy night, the race car driver was hanging on the moving cable car rope?
"So we must stop the cable car immediately and save him!" His voice was unusually low and restrained, calm yet somehow exuding a compelling anger.
Zhen Ai quickened her pace to keep up with him, feeling a pang of sympathy for him.
She could guess Yan Su's thoughts: he should have immediately gone to look for the race car driver when he saw the wax figure destroyed; perhaps at that moment, he was still alive. Because of his negligence, the killer struck again right before his eyes.
Zhen Ai held his hand and stole glances at him. He bit his jaw with an unclear expression, his profile handsome but holding back a simmering anger. Suddenly, she inexplicably thought that if only Yan Su hadn't been with her, perhaps these things wouldn't have happened right under his nose.
Just then, he tightened his grip on her hand and said in a deep voice, "It's not your fault; don't think too much." His words carried a cool anger directed at himself, yet there was a gentle warmth towards her.
Zhen Ai felt a pang in her heart. How could he know what she was thinking?
When they rounded the corner to the dining room, they saw the maid moving the wax figure of the kindergarten teacher.
The kindergarten teacher exclaimed, "What are you doing?"
"This is a crime scene, so we're moving the wax figures to the small dining room and living room."
The writer hurriedly said, "Where's the switch for the cable car? Stop it immediately! Someone is hanging on it!"
The maid looked completely confused but sensed the severity of the situation. "It's right next to the hall." She was about to lead them there.
Yan Su paused, staring at the white cloth in the center of the carpet. "Who moved this?"
Under the white cloth were two still figures, looking no different from before.
The maid replied, puzzled, "No one moved them!"
Yan Su shook his head. "No, this is wrong. The distance between these two figures was closer before. And... the race car driver was short, but the figures under this cloth are not that slim."
He felt a bad premonition rising within him. Leaning over, he swiftly lifted the white cloth—Zhen Ai's wax figure lay motionless next to the doctor's corpse. Zhen Ai's eyes widened in confusion.
The maid gasped, covering her mouth. "Impossible! I didn't touch it, and neither did the butler!"
Yan Su, usually calm under pressure, felt his heart nearly leap out of his chest at the sight of Zhen Ai's wax figure. He scanned the figure carefully and, finding no injuries, he let out a slight sigh of relief. He stepped away toward the hall, subconsciously tightening his grip on her small hand.
She wouldn't come to harm; he wouldn't let anything happen to her. Never.
When they reached the hall, the butler was arranging the wax figures in the adjacent living room. After hearing the maid's explanation, he hurried to shut down the cable car. The group grabbed umbrellas and flashlights and quickly ran down the cliff.
The only sounds echoing on the long, winding stone steps were the splashes of rain and the sounds of their footsteps.
Upon reaching the bottom of the cable car, they saw the race car driver's body hanging crookedly, feet touching the ground, with his head tangled in the cable, his face unrecognizable. Just one glance, and everyone's hearts sank.
This familiar and rigid posture was undoubtedly that of a wax figure.
Yet in the pale blue lightning, the wax figure resembling a real person swaying on the dark rope was truly terrifying.
The torrential rain drenched everyone, and the boxer, cold and irritated, kicked a nearby branch, shouting at the crowd, "Who's so bored as to pull pranks at a time like this?!"
Zhen Ai was also soaked to the bone. She hadn't had time to put on her jacket when she rushed out of the room, and now the howling sea wind chilled her to the bone. All she could think of was comforting Yan Su. "Dear, it's just a wax figure."
Don't blame yourself.
But it seemed Yan Su didn't hear her. Stubbornly, he turned to look towards the small bay by the cable car station. At this moment, the sea was a miserable storm, and the small boat they had arrived on was violently rocking in the turbulent waves. The flashlight beam pierced through the chaotic rain, illuminating the white boat with its darkened windows.
Yan Su said slowly, "Perhaps someone wants to tell us that the race car driver is on that boat."
The boxer was the first to voice his skepticism. "That guy hasn't shown up; how could he be here?"
Yan Su ignored him, taking several strides to jump on the boat, turning on the light to search. Zhen Ai immediately followed him, and others soon joined.
After checking around, they found no sign of anyone on the boat.
The boxer couldn't help but complain, "Aren't you supposed to be smart? Earlier, when the race car driver's wax figure disappeared in the dining room, you should have guessed that the one hanging on the rope wasn't a person but a wax figure. I told you the driver wasn't here, and yet you managed to make everyone feel like they'd fallen into the water like drowned dogs!"
Zhen Ai gritted her teeth in frustration. How could Yan Su not consider the possibility that the one hanging on the cable was just a wax figure? He was just thinking that if there was even a one-in-a-million chance that it was a real person, he would do his best to save them.
She felt a mix of anger and sympathy, and just as she was about to say something, Yan Su grasped her wrist and shook his head at her, his face cold but his gaze gentle.
He didn't mind; but her heart felt like it was being pricked by needles.
The actress defended Yan Su, immediately snapping at the boxer, "How can you lack any compassion? What if it isn't a wax figure but a real person? Who can guarantee that while we were in the castle?"
Though the boxer was irritable, he wasn't one to argue with a woman. After holding back for a while, he repeated his earlier statement, "The race car driver never came to the island!"
"I suspect he might have sneaked onto the island earlier," the actress retorted. "Otherwise, who would be so bored as to mess around with his wax figure?"
"I find that strange too," the writer said, wringing the rainwater from his clothes, trembling slightly. "Think about it, the doctor died, and the wax figure is exactly the same; but the race car driver's wax figure had its head smashed to pieces. It can't be that...," the writer lowered his head, not daring to finish.
The cabin, which was rocking violently, fell into a deathly silence, only interrupted by the huge waves crashing against the boat outside.
Zhen Ai felt dizzy from the swaying of the boat, clutching Yan Su's arm and unconsciously continuing the writer's words, "So you mean the race car driver is dead like the wax figure?"
Everyone present shuddered.
The model, in disbelief, exclaimed, "But there's no sign of the race car driver here!" She turned to the butler. "He's not hiding in the castle, is he?"
"Impossible!" the butler shook his head. "The castle only has one entrance; I only opened the door for you once today."
The maid also quietly added, "My boat only made one round trip today."
Yan Su silently listened to everyone's words, his eyes flashing as he suddenly said, "I know where the race car driver is."
He turned and led everyone to the control room, which was empty. Yan Su looked around, finding no signs of struggle. He walked over and touched the air conditioning unit, which still had some residual warmth.
The maid said, "We searched here earlier; there's no one."
Without replying, Yan Su walked to a small square platform in the center of the floor and stepped lightly on it. Below was the location of the ship's engine. He then moved to the control panel, glanced around, and pressed a button.
The square floor slowly opened.
The crowd shone their flashlights, and several beams of intersecting light pierced through the dark, turbulent sea, revealing a mass of hair that was either red or black, floating on the rushing water above the white turbine blades.
As the waves surged, the object shifted, and a pale arm floated lifelessly on the surface of the sea.
The race car driver's body was quickly retrieved, lying wet on the floor, his head bloodied and mangled, just like the wax figure they had seen before. The seawater was cold, making it impossible to determine the time of his death.
The host stared in shock at the rope around the driver's neck. "How did he end up tied under the boat? Why would the murderer smash his head? How cruel…"
Before he could finish, everyone instinctively looked at the boxer, as he was the only one present who could be connected to the term "smashed."
The boxer froze and panicked, "What are you looking at? It wasn't me!"
The butler coldly interjected, "Didn't you see he was tied to the engine?"
Zhen Ai also nodded. "You can't suspect the boxer like that. The murderer just had to secure him under the turbine, and once the engine started, it would've smashed his head to pieces."
The kindergarten teacher covered her mouth, feeling nauseous just hearing that. She trembled as she said, "Are you saying the race car driver was tied under the boat from the moment we boarded, dragged through the water?"
At that moment, everyone turned to look at the writer. "You were the first one on the boat!"
The writer panicked, glancing around before suddenly pointing at the maid. "I was the first passenger to arrive, but she was already on the boat."
The maid trembled, waving her hands frantically. "I don't even know you; why would I kill anyone? Plus, I can't swim, and he's a man—I don't have the strength!"
"He was killed after reaching the shore," Yan Su's cold voice interrupted the commotion. "He arrived alive in Silverland."
At that moment, he crouched down, inspecting the race car driver's neck and nails. Although some of the marks were washed away by the seawater, there were clear signs of struggle. He also pulled out a small piece of red fabric from the driver's collar.
Zhen Ai recognized it immediately. "That's the scarf I dropped in the sea."
"Do you all understand now?" Yan Su stood up, straightening his posture. "After we disembarked, the engine was restarted, and that scarf was shredded."
Everyone was left speechless.
The writer grabbed his hair, muttering in disbelief, "It's impossible. There's only this one boat; how could he have come here?"
"Then you should ask the maid," Yan Su tilted his head, his gaze calm yet sharp. "Earlier, you said, 'It only made one round trip today.' Why didn't you say, 'It only received you'? Because you know that when the boat left Weiling Island, the race car driver was on it, alive."
The maid froze, her face pale as she fidgeted with her hands, saying nothing.
The others looked on suspiciously, and before they could voice their doubts, Yan Su suddenly asked, "Maid, were you fooling around with the race car driver in the control room?"
Everyone's eyes widened in shock, seemingly more surprised than when they first heard the news.
The maid's pale face flushed.
Seeing she wouldn't answer, Yan Su said coldly, "At six twenty, when you entered the cabin, you had put your clothes and stockings back on." He spoke with a hint of annoyance and anger. "I thought you might have left Silverland for the first time and seized the chance to meet with your friend. Now it seems that person should be the race car driver."
The butler's face darkened as he scolded the maid, "What on earth is going on?"
The maid trembled violently, almost crying, "He was charming and funny, I... I just... But I didn't kill him, I swear. Because... because we had plans to meet on the boat tonight…"
She lowered her head again, trembling uncontrollably. "I don't even know how he ended up dead."
The men and women in the cabin fell into silence, the race car driver's freckled face and crooked mouth hardly seemed charming at all…
Several men felt extreme regret, realizing that had they known the maid was so desperate and clueless, they should have tried to board the boat first.
The model looked at her coldly, and the actress cast a glance at the expressions of the men around her, sarcastically commenting to the maid, "They say women with your figure are unprofessional!"
The maid, blushing, dared not speak.
The model wasn't pleased to hear that. "Who are you talking about?" She also had an attractive figure, just more conservatively dressed compared to the actress.
The actress seemed to believe her appropriate sexiness was truly perfect, scoffing and ignoring the model.
Just then, the waves intensified, causing the small boat to sway even more violently. Nearly ten long shadows were flickering in the cabin. Zhen Ai felt a bit dizzy and wondered how Yan Su could stand so straight, seemingly unaffected by gravity.
Another massive wave crashed over, and Zhen Ai lost her balance, nearly stumbling backward. Yan Su swiftly stepped forward, wrapping her in his embrace, and she felt instantly steadied.
The actress watched, squinting her eyes. After a moment, she smiled slightly, "Looks like we do have some good men here!"
But it seemed that Yan Su, the good man, hadn't heard a word.
With no further clues to be found, everyone decided to leave the race car driver's body on the boat and return to the castle.
Once back, Yan Su suggested that it would be safer for everyone to stay together in the living room. However, everyone was unwilling; some said they were soaked and needed a shower, while others complained they were exhausted after such a terrifying night.
Staying with the murderer through a long, dark night is not as good as locking oneself in a safe room.
Among the group, only the writer, the housekeeper, and the maid supported Yan Su's decision.
The writer said he was afraid, the housekeeper maintained a stern expression, claiming it was his responsibility to ensure everyone's safety, perhaps genuinely worried that if more people died, the tourism development plan would fall through. The maid argued that this was her chance to prove she wasn't the murderer.
However, no matter how they persuaded, the others insisted on returning to their rooms, believing that locking the door was safer.
In the end, everyone returned to their own rooms.
Zhen Ai was the first to finish her shower and come out, and then it was Yan Su's turn.
She changed into her pajamas and nestled into the soft bed, which was surprisingly reminiscent of the style she experienced at the S.P.A base. She touched her forehead, feeling a bit dizzy.
Was the motion sickness really this severe?
Then she remembered the string of cases from today, unable to discern who the murderer was. She had asked Yan Su, who told her that there was too little evidence and no forensic means available; he was just speculating and doubting, temporarily undecided.
But he said, "From the time we left the room to when we returned, a few words spoken by several people were quite interesting!"
Yet as Zhen Ai recalled, she still had no clue.
Not wanting to dwell on it, she decided to think about the password left by her brother instead of the murder case, which had nothing to do with her.
Staring vacantly at the gauzy curtains of the four-poster bed, she didn't know how long she had been gazing when she suddenly recalled something, rolling over, tilting her head on the pillow and looking at the fluffy white quilt on the couch, her brow suddenly knitting together.
The couch was not long enough; Yan Su would probably have to curl up to fit on it!
She looked up at the ceiling, silently thinking about a bundled-up white Yan Su… how lovely O(∩_∩)O.
The room was quiet; it seemed she could no longer hear the howling wind and rain outside, only the steady and ambiguous sound of flowing water from the bathroom, gently coursing through her heart.
Hmm, Yan Su was washing up over there, separated by a wall.
Her heart raced uncontrollably, and she gently patted her head, telling herself to stop and not to think about it.
But then her mind suddenly flashed back to that time at Yan Su's home when she accidentally walked into his bedroom, the next morning seeing him getting out of bed, his beautiful and toned back on display.
Now, he was standing under the shower, his tall figure with water droplets cascading over his fair and toned skin…
No more thinking about that!
Zhen Ai blushed and buried herself under the quilt, nearly rolling over from embarrassment. As her mind wandered, she suddenly froze; oh no, when she was showering, he was sitting outside—he must have been thinking about her too…
Face down in her pillow, Zhen Ai felt herself burning up and couldn't help but kick the bed frame, moaning, oh, just let me die of shame!
Inside the quilt, all she could hear was the thunderous beating of her own heart.
There was no air, no air—she felt dizzy and hurriedly poked her head out to take a deep breath.
Just then, the bathroom door opened, and Zhen Ai quickly closed her eyes, pretending to be asleep.
There were almost no footsteps on the carpet.
Soon, he turned off the light.
Zhen Ai felt a bit disappointed—didn't he come over to check on her?
As she was feeling let down, the other side of the bed suddenly sank. Zhen Ai's heart skipped a beat, and the next moment, he lunged at her, enveloping her in his embrace, bringing the fresh scent of soap from the bathroom.
Zhen Ai was startled, "Why did you come to my bed?"
"Um, I was scared of the thunder."
He pressed his warm cheek against hers, his tone unexpectedly lazy and spoiled, as if in that moment, the eerie castle and the murder case had vanished, and he could finally relax.
Hearing his tone made Zhen Ai's heart sweetly soften.
She moved, wrapping her arms around his waist, but accidentally touched his hot and firm skin, seemingly grazing the subtle curve of his bottom with her fingertips.
Zhen Ai's heart raced; she cautiously withdrew her hand and swallowed hard, "Dear... why aren't you wearing clothes?"
"The room is too dark, and I was scared," he explained seriously, "so I didn't have time to get dressed."
Zhen Ai blinked in the darkness, pointing out, "But you turned off the light yourself!"
"Oh, is that so?" He showed no shame, seeming perfectly at ease. "I just want to quietly hold you to sleep, so don't talk, just go to sleep, okay?"
"Oh!" she responded softly, closing her eyes.
After a few seconds of silence…
"But," she snuggled in his arms, hesitating, "Dear, it's not thundering outside anymore."
The man beside her fell silent for a moment, then said, "Cough, did you notice?"
She tilted her head to look at him, "Dear, your logic is suddenly all over the place."
He didn't care at all: "If it's chaotic, let it be. I just want to sleep now; who cares about logic?"
"Oh!" she again softly replied, closing her eyes.
After a few more seconds of silence…
Yan Su cleared his throat,
"Ai…"
"Hmm?"
"Don't you like sleeping naked?"
"…"
"Ah!"
What an insatiable person; he deserved a beating!