Cat 250: The Clever Ninth Master

Chapter 250: The Clever Ninth Master

Why is it that there’s no sound when Ninth Master walks?

Yan Jiyun remembered that when he’d once hidden in Liu Rongzhi’s room, he could still hear Ninth Master’s footsteps; but now, there was nothing. He couldn’t help but grow anxious.

After all, there was still a slight difference between Ninth Master and Qi Feng. Since he was Ninth Master, he possessed some NPC traits—such as making no sound while walking. At times, even Liu Jingxi moved without a sound.

He understood now: Ninth Master, too, was made of paper.

Ninth Master picked up the black cat. “Did you sneak onto my car and follow me here?”

Except for this reason, he couldn’t think how his Caramel could possibly have shown up here. He’d been with Yan Jiyun all morning searching for Wei Liu, visiting several places; why had the cat run here, especially as their home was not nearby? He also understood feline habits—a cat typically has its own territory, and it was quite far to roam in a single morning.

He calculated; home and the police station were at least three or four kilometers apart. Caramel was never a housecat to begin with, so perhaps this was still within its usual territory.

Yan Jiyun didn’t know that, in the process of picking him up, Ninth Master had sifted through many thoughts. He was still shocked at how Ninth Master discovered him, but as a cat, he could not ask. Still, perhaps Ninth Master was equally curious to see if any useful information would come from questioning him.

As an NPC, did Ninth Master have any duties beyond playing his role here? He surely wouldn’t be an antagonist to the players… would he?

Yan Jiyun had no intention of opposing Ninth Master; from the time he’d learned about him, he’d never seen Ninth Master do anything evil.

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“Did anyone see how Ninth Master appeared?”

“We’re always seeing from the kitten’s point of view. Even in third-person, you can’t catch Ninth Master. The kitten didn’t even hear his footsteps. That’s so strange.”

“It’s not strange. Ninth Master’s footsteps never made much noise.”

“But we know that, not the kitten! His ears are much better than a human’s—he could always hear, but this time he seems to have failed.”

“Yeah, right, a cat’s hearing is dozens of times sharper than a human’s.”

“Maybe no one in this instance is really human? I recall a detail: last night, when the kitten returned to the Liu house, Liu Jingxi suddenly appeared behind him, and he didn’t notice.”

“Now that’s creepy! Ahhhh, is this really a supernatural instance? I always thought you needed a ghost for that!”

“No wonder it’s a new instance—so eerie it slips by unnoticed. Bet some players are still totally clueless, like all this exploration is for nothing.”

“Has no one noticed how few players have died in the new instance?”

“Tsk tsk tsk. Just got back from another stream, another one just dropped dead. No one has a clue how these players die in this instance.”

“How do they die?”

Yan Jiyun knew there was no chance to escape from Ninth Master’s grip for now, so he obediently lay quietly in his arms, listening to the conversation inside.

When Old Man Liu was brought in, he was much calmer than Old Man Cheng next door. Old Man Cheng had narrowly escaped death last night; it was only natural that he’d be agitated.

Old Man Liu, otherwise known as Liu Jingxi’s father Liu Yuansheng, sat up straight in the interrogation room.

“I wonder what business brings the officers to summon an old man like me?” Liu Yuansheng opened with the same polite denial as Old Man Cheng.

Officer: “Boss Liu, we wouldn’t be calling you if there was nothing. You must have already heard about the two skeletons unearthed beneath your restaurant.”

Liu Yuansheng: “People at the restaurant told me Ninth Master wanted to dig for treasure, and ended up digging beneath my place. My second son wanted to get in on the excitement, so I didn’t stop him. Had I known this thing was down there, I’d never have let Ninth Master dig.”

His words rang true, answer flawless, immediately shifting the responsibility onto Ninth Master.

Officer: “So you’re saying you don’t know anything?”

Liu Yuansheng undoubtedly inquired after the morning’s events before coming: “I truly don’t know. My son said those two bodies might have been buried more than forty or fifty years ago. Back then I was just a child, ten or so at most.”

The classic she-said, he-said; the dead were from Liu Jingxi’s grandfather’s era, so it was reasonable for Liu Yuansheng to plead ignorance. The police were only questioning him to follow procedures; even if he knew the victims or how they’d been murdered and buried—there was no evidence proving the Liu family responsible.

Yet, the fact remained that the skeletons were found beneath his restaurant, though who buried them was a mystery.

Task three for Yan Jiyun remained unchanged; he still needed to find Wei Liu and unlock the next part of the game.

He glanced at Ninth Master. Could he help find Wei Liu?

They were at the very threshold, yet nothing had been discovered. Yan Jiyun, too, felt discouraged.

What should the next step be?

The officer got nothing useful from Liu Yuansheng. These bones, buried forty years ago—even if anyone wanted to revisit the case, the statute of limitations had passed.

Ninth Master, holding Caramel, looked toward the restroom and muttered softly, “Why aren’t they out yet—an upset stomach?”

Yan Jiyun guessed he was speaking of himself, silently nestling deeper into Ninth Master’s embrace, desperately hoping no one would connect the black cat to Yan Jiyun.

Liu Yuansheng was sent away; no progress was made on the identities of the two unidentified skeletons.

However, thanks to the police being drawn in by the discovery, more items—shreds of clothing, perhaps more clues to the victims’ identities—had been unearthed from the pit.

The male skeleton carried no further identifying items, but the female had: various jeweled rings that clearly indicated she was someone of wealth and status.

Once Ninth Master’s attention was diverted from “Yan Jiyun,” Yan Jiyun jumped from his arms and made a beeline for the forensic autopsy area where the bodies were kept.

Ninth Master followed Caramel in resignation, reminding his subordinates to let him know if Yan Jiyun hadn’t left yet.

Yan Jiyun was just a cat who wandered about freely, “accidentally” ending up in the forensics workroom.

On the workbench lay the two reassembled human skeletons—male on the left, female on the right—both nearly complete.

All physical evidence found with the remains was organized nearby in clear plastic bags.

The forensic report lay open beside them.

Male skeleton: approximately 175 cm tall; around thirty years old.

Female skeleton: approximately 160 cm; about twenty-five years old.

…

At that moment, the forensic specialist was consulting with an investigating officer.

Forensic Specialist: “Forty years ago in Jiangnan Town, there couldn’t have been many women who could afford gemstones, right?”

Officer: “Not many—you could probably count the families on your fingers by asking around the elders.”

Forensic Specialist: “Were there any unsolved missing-person cases? If a wealthy family’s daughter went missing, it ought to have been officially recorded.”

Officer: “Forty years ago, not necessarily. Some families would keep silent to avoid damaging their reputation. But you’re right—families that cared for their daughters would have reported them missing.”

Yan Jiyun hid under the table, watching the officer leave with a fresh line of inquiry.

Aside from clothes, the nameless male skeleton had not a scrap of personal effect—no pocket-watch, no clues. If the woman could be identified, the man’s identity should follow naturally.

Yan Jiyun turned and followed the officer on his way out.

When Ninth Master arrived, he saw Yan Jiyun darting about stealthily and had no idea what he was up to. This time, instead of scruffing his cat, he quietly trailed after him.

Now Yan Jiyun was aware that Ninth Master followed just behind, for the police officer walking ahead recognized Ninth Master and even greeted him.

Ninth Master said, “I’m quite curious about the identities of those two skeletons, Captain Hu. Have you discovered any key clues?” He was, in fact, prompting Captain Hu with his own knowledge.

Officer Hu took no issue with Ninth Master’s attention to the case; after all, he’d been digging for treasure and unearthed two skeletons.

Officer Hu’s surname was Hu, given name Wan. Hu Wan was the captain of one unit at the station, holding significant authority, and had solved many strange cases.

Captain Hu was quick on the uptake. “Ninth Master, how did you come by the treasure map?”

Yan Jiyun perked up—finally someone who actually knew how to investigate! Only a local NPC could connect the case and the people involved!

He felt as if he’d just figured out how to complete this instance.

Ninth Master looked around and suggested, “Let’s sit down and talk.”

Soon, they headed to Captain Hu’s office, with Yan Jiyun pretending he was just following Ninth Master, curling up nicely in his arms.

Ninth Master said, “The treasure map consists of four pieces, obtained from four families: the Lius, the Chengs, the Chens, and the Lins.”

Captain Hu took out a photograph provided by Liu Jingxi, pointing at the five people pictured. “These five—four of them came from those four families, correct? The other is named Wei Liu, his name written on the back.”

Ninth Master nodded. “Can you confirm that the man is Wei Liu?”

Captain Hu had already sent someone to check on the missing-person case. “We’ll probably have an answer soon, but a photograph doesn’t prove anything.”

Ninth Master said, “True enough.”

Captain Hu asked, “Does Ninth Master know anything else?”

Ninth Master replied, “Nothing in particular. Only—I find this Wei Liu intriguing. I looked into the records before; he used to be from a prominent family. Isn’t it strange that a man of means should disappear without a trace? We went by the site of the former Wei family charity house; it really has become a charnel house.”

Captain Hu: “It is strange, indeed.”

Yan Jiyun thought, Then hurry up and investigate! This was enough to drive a cat crazy.

Captain Hu poured tea for Ninth Master, who in turn provided plenty of useful information. In less than half an hour, one of Hu’s team found a relevant missing-person case connected to the female skeleton.

“Captain Hu, forty years ago, there really was a missing-person case reported!”

As Captain Hu reviewed the files, Yan Jiyun was so anxious for the result he reached out a paw to snag the report—only for Ninth Master to catch the outstretched paw.

Ninth Master squeezed his soft pad. “Caramel, that’s not food.”

Yan Jiyun: …Did he really look like a gluttonous cat that wanted to eat everything?

Captain Hu opened the old file, and the family of the missing person matched the clues from the female skeleton.

Ninth Master asked only, “Which family made the report?”

Captain Hu glanced at it. “Ouyang Nu.”

Yang Er, previously invisible, chimed in, “Ouyang Qing of the Ouyang family is Liu Jingxi’s fiancée.”

Ninth Master remarked, “Now that’s interesting.”

Yan Jiyun agreed—it was indeed intriguing.

Captain Hu immediately ordered someone to stop Old Cheng, who was about to leave.

Old Cheng had just stood up when the police came over and began questioning him for further details.

Captain Hu returned with plenty of useful new information. “Wei Liu’s wife was a daughter of the Ouyang family and went missing forty years ago. Old Cheng remembers well: back then, Ouyang Nu’s daughter married Wei Liu with a dowry of hundreds of items.”

Ninth Master: “So Wei Liu was very wealthy then?”

Captain Hu shook his head, “Not quite. He was on the verge of bankruptcy, but the Ouyang girl insisted on marrying him despite her parents’ objections. Afterwards, life was good—until one day he and the Ouyang girl both vanished without a trace.”

Ninth Master, accustomed to being in control, asked, “Does anyone in the Ouyang family still remember it?”

Captain Hu was clearly well-versed in local affairs. “Though the Ouyang family isn’t large, it’s still prominent. Among the younger generation, there is only Ouyang Qing. Liu Yuansheng’s wife also comes from the Ouyangs—she took a liking to her niece.”

Yan Jiyun: …What a complicated Jiangnan Town; just these relationships were enough to give one a headache.

Suddenly, Ninth Master studied the photograph of the five people. “Is it possible that the male skeleton died in place of Wei Liu? Wei Liu in the photo stands at least 185 centimeters, taller than Old Cheng, yet the male remains are shorter than Old Cheng.”

Yan Jiyun’s eyes widened. Yes—why hadn’t he compared that before? That meant the male skeleton’s identity was clear—he was not Wei Liu.

He put his hind paws on Ninth Master’s thigh and front paws on either side of his neck, licking his face in admiration: So clever!

Ninth Master: … This cat’s tongue, so wet.