Beika City, Where Talent and Beauty Abound

You're probably referring to that cold attitude, right?

"After all, they are a loving young couple, so normally they would definitely remind each other."

Fujino opened the can. "Instead of reminding you, you even looked back. There's definitely something fishy going on."

Ran agreed with Fujino's analysis, "Actually, that's what I thought too, so it feels a bit strange. Sonoko doesn't believe me yet..."

Sonoko was stunned for a moment upon hearing this. "Really?"

"I saw it too!"

Conan said in a childlike tone, with a hint of teasing, "Sonoko -neechan, you were chatting so enthusiastically with Chie-san that you didn't even notice."

"Haha... After all, we hit it off really well."

Sonoko scratched her head sheepishly and gave Conan a resentful look with dead fish eyes.

I'm starting to dislike this brat more and more; he's just like that lousy detective...

But then she thought about it again and said seriously with doubt, "But why would he do that... We mean, after all, they seem to be such a loving couple."

Even loving couples can be unpredictable in their private lives.

Conan recalled the last case where a car exploded in front of him, and he wanted to switch wives, and said in a deep voice.

However, after a long silence, Conan sensed that something was amiss.

Looking up, he saw three people with six eyes staring at him curiously, as if they were looking at a wild animal.

Conan: "..."

Damn it, another account has been exposed!

Clearly, those words were not something someone who usually pretends to be a good-for-nothing elementary school student should say.

Realizing this, Conan quickly reverted to his usual self, offering an example to excuse his illogical behavior. "Uncle Mori always says the same thing, and that's how it was in the last case too."

"Dad..."

Ran's eyes narrowed slightly upon hearing this, and the corner of her eye twitched slightly.

She clearly naively believed Conan's explanation.

It must have been that Dad, that big drunkard, said something bad about Mom when he was drunk, and Conan overheard it, which is why Conan rattled it off like a parrot.

"Ha ha..."

Seeing Ran's imminent anger, Fujino couldn't help but feel a cold sweat break out on Uncle Mori's palms.

Uncle Mori, danger!

Hopefully, Uncle Mori can make it through tonight.

Ran Fish's memory will probably be forgotten in less than two days.

Yeah, once I remember, I'll get another beating.

"But, it can't be that bad, can it?"

Sonoko was somewhat helpless. What was wrong with everyone around her?

Why are they all starting to resemble that goofy detective?

This makes it hard for the timid and timid Sonoko to keep up with the pace, doesn't it?

"I think Conan has a point."

Ran had made up her mind. After calming herself down, she said, "In that case, let's go to Chie's house together tomorrow!"

Conan glanced at Ran was about to take the initiative, and felt a bit curious.

At the same time, he also felt that this matter was not simple.

It's perfect timing; he can go with them tomorrow and see what's really going on at Yoshinoya.

Fujino agreed to Ran's decision.

He felt there was something fishy about this.

That night.

"Dad, did you say something weird to Conan again after drinking?!"

"What?! Which time was it...?"

"The doctor clearly told you to drink less alcohol, but you still drank so much!"

"Lan! Lan! Let me explain... Ah!"

Fujino leaned against the balcony of his bedroom, listening to the shouts echoing through the neighborhood from the Mori family across the street, and his lips twitched slightly.

The Mori family is truly full of martial spirit...

This has been going on for quite some time.

That's only because it's Mouri-niisan. If it were an ordinary person, Ran would probably have beaten him up and put him in the hospital by now.

"That Conan brat, he's really done a lot of harm!"

Fujino sighed inwardly, and taking advantage of the darkness, he glanced at his system character interface, pondering the events of Yoshino Chie during the day.

Detective Profession Mission: Designing a Murder Case

Mission objective: Find out the method by which Yoshino Chie will be killed, and the murderer who premeditatedly murdered Yoshino Chie.

Mission Reward: One million yen, fifty Detective Reputation points

Right after returning from the pool, he triggered a System Task.

Based on the System Task prompts, Fujino felt that Yoshino Chie's coma was definitely not as simple as it seemed.

His goal this time is to find out how Yoshino Chie was murdered and to find the premeditated killer.

The primary suspect for now is Yoshino Akio.

Based on his suspicious behavior during the day, Fujino felt that he was the prime suspect.

However, I believe that one should not speak recklessly without evidence.

The principle is that fiction is not nonsense, and adaptation is not random fabrication.

This matter cannot be concluded prematurely...

Some things should wait until tomorrow when we gather more information before discussing them.

The next day was still a day off.

Early in the morning, after making a phone call to confirm that the other party was at home, Fujino drove Sonoko Ran, and the Grim Reaper to Yoshino's house.

Yoshinoya is located in a bustling chome in Haido Town, which is within the Tokyo metropolitan area and not too far from Beika.

"Lan Sang!"

Having received prior notice, Yoshino Chie waited at the door, wearing a purple short-sleeved top with tapered cuffs and a pink apron-style long skirt, and greeted the group.

"Ms. Chie."

Ran chuckled softly and responded tactfully, "I'm so sorry to bother you on my day off. I'm really sorry to cause you trouble."

"It's no trouble at all. I'm the one causing you trouble, since I almost bumped into you yesterday."

Yoshino Chie smiled and waved her hand, subtly revealing the demeanor of a married woman. "By the way, you must be thirsty and tired after coming all this way. Come in first, I'll go prepare some juice..."

Yoshinoya's land area is very large. In addition to the two-story villas that are cut in half, there is also a garden next to it. The garden is filled with various flowers and trees, giving it a cozy botanical garden feel.

"It's so beautiful!"

Sonoko and Ran couldn't help but exclaim, "Ms. Chie, your home is really nicely decorated!"

"Thank you for the compliment!"

Yoshino Chie was mixing juice in the open kitchen of the living room. "To be honest, this house was actually built a month and a half ago. The decoration style is the latest, so it is really nicely decorated."

"So that's how it is..."

Ran looked at the brand-new furniture around her, then slowly walked back to the sofa and sat down. "No wonder all this furniture looks so new."

"In other words, this is truly a new home."

Sonoko followed behind, glancing around as well. "It's really nice, a new house and all that..."

"However, although the house is beautiful, there is still a loan of 40 million to be repaid."

Yoshino Chie brought the sofa out of the kitchen, saying, "The pressure is quite considerable."

"Does this house cost forty million?"

Upon hearing this, Fujino also glanced around.

Is your house made of gold or silver?

Given his financial resources, he could probably only build five or six buildings at most.

Moreover, he didn't know whether the 40 million was the total value or just a loan portion.

It always felt like it was much more expensive than his family's small house.

That makes sense, considering it's a loan, and a large portion of it is taken by the bank.

But since this is Tokyo, this is quite common.

"Yes, that is indeed a considerable sum."

As Chie placed the juice on the coffee table, a faint smile of happiness appeared on her face, "However, if the couple works together, these loans should be able to be paid off in ten years."

"You two must have had a really tough time."

Fujino nodded, understanding the label of a corporate slave burdened by mortgage payments.

The housing prices in the Tokyo metropolitan area are just like those in Beijing and Shanghai; every inch of land is incredibly valuable. Although it's expensive, there's no hope of a future. If ordinary people save money and work hard for ten or twenty years, they might still be able to build a home there.

However, the ideal is often far from reality, and most people find it difficult to earn five or six million a year.

No money, but plenty of time?

Let's take out a loan for thirty years then.

We'll pay off the debt together when our son grows up...

It must be said that the evil banks and real estate developers are mortgaging the future of young people.

Pulling himself out of his thoughts, Fujino placed the brown paper bag on the coffee table. "By the way, Ms. Chie, this is the Chinese medicine prescription I mentioned yesterday. You should have asked me to buy a copy on the phone earlier."

"Well, I don't know either, so I can only ask Fujino for help."

Chie nodded slightly. "How much do these medicinal herbs cost? I'll go get them..."

"Forget it, these medicines aren't expensive."

Fujino waved his hand. "It's too much trouble for you to come to my house today, so consider this a gift."

"Then I'll really have to trouble you, Fujino."

Yoshino Chie smiled and said, "Even though it's only our second meeting, you're already helping me with prescriptions and buying medicinal herbs."

"By the way, Ms. Chie, I've always felt a bit curious."

Ran suddenly asked, "By the way, why do you go so far away to work in Shizuoka, going there in the morning and coming back at night?"

"To be honest, it's all because of the loan."

Chie didn't hide anything from Ran's curiosity. "To be honest, I used to teach at a flower arrangement school in the city. Not long ago, through my husband's friend's introduction, I found a school in Shizuoka, mainly because the salary is much higher than before."

Ran hesitated and said, "Miss Chie, aren't you very tired? You have to drive so far every day."

Sonoko nodded in agreement. "If we take the tram, we can even sleep on the tram."

"Actually, I've always enjoyed driving. It's not far from here to the highway, and I usually need to carry some teaching materials and luggage, so driving makes it more convenient."

Yoshino Chie smiled gently, "Besides, my husband is already working very hard to support the family. If I don't work harder, all the pressure will fall on him. I have to share some of the burden."

"By the way, do you guys have insurance?"

However, she paused halfway through her sentence, then awkwardly covered her mouth and smiled, saying somewhat embarrassedly, "I'm so sorry, actually it's like this, because my husband works for an insurance company... I often help him with sales to boost his business, and it just slipped out without my knowledge."

"So that's how it is..."

Sonoko smiled and said, "Ms. Chie, you really are a wonderful wife."

Fujino nodded in agreement.

He had met the insurance agent in his previous life.

They won't leave your house unless you buy insurance, which is very annoying.

But such a sensible and family-oriented lady...

To be honest, it's quite enviable.

"Hehe, it's nothing."

Yoshino Chie clearly took Sonoko's praise to heart. "However, if I just talk the talk but don't walk the walk, it won't be very convincing. I just took out a 100 million yen accident insurance policy a while ago."

"One... one hundred million yen?!"

Ran and Sonoko were both surprised.

Conan also narrowed his eyes and sensed that something was wrong.

Fujino, on the other hand, rubbed his chin together, as if it were already confirmed.

The suspect has been basically identified, so what was the method of the crime...?

Suddenly, Fujino had a flash of inspiration and realized the truth of the matter.

Damn it, that little bastard, he's trying to kill his wife for insurance money...

It's no wonder that Beika City is a place of outstanding people and beautiful scenery.

In the past, there were perverts Swinging Wife Murder for insurance money; now there's a Breaking Bad guy who murdered his wife for insurance money.

Isn't an honest, virtuous, and beautiful wife good enough?

I have to find something to do to get myself in...

Fujino complain.

"Actually, my husband asked me to do this. Anyway, it doesn't cost much money to pay for insurance. When the term expires, the insurance company will refund the money."

Chie didn't seem to care too much about the others' surprise. She simply explained, "After all, my husband is the salesman. If I can help him with some business, it's a sure-fire way to make money."

"Um!"

Sonoko nodded. "She's practically the epitome of a Yamato Nadeshiko (ideal Japanese woman) wife."

"Hey-hey."

Yoshino Chie smiled and said, "You found out."

"Speaking of Chie-nee!"

Conan suddenly asked in a childlike manner, "When did your headaches start?"

"It probably started about a month ago..."

Yoshino Chie rested her chin on her hand and thought for a moment, "I had just transferred to a school in Shizuoka at that time, so I remember it very clearly."

A month ago?

Conan pondered for a moment upon hearing this.

If it started a month ago, then it would be about two weeks after the house was completed.

Thinking about this, he guessed, "Could it be the so-called Sick House syndrome?"

Ran thought for a moment after hearing this, "So it's Sick House syndrome..."

What is that?

Sonoko seemed a bit clueless, resting her chin on her hand as she pondered, "Four sufferings and eight sufferings, could it be some kind of code?"

"I meant sick house syndrome!"

Conan glanced at Sonoko speechlessly. "It's a symptom that causes discomfort to the body when building a house. Sonoko -neechan, you haven't heard of it, have you?"

Fujino quietly added from the side, "Actually, it's just that the formaldehyde level is too high."

"So it was formaldehyde exceeding the standard... I've heard about this kind of thing more or less."

Sonoko was speechless for a moment, then looked at Conan: "If you say the formaldehyde is too high, just say it is. Why use all that foreign language?"

"But I don't think that's the case."

Chie listened silently to everyone's speculations and explained, "The construction company that helped us build this house is one that my husband knows. They specifically instructed us not to use any materials that might cause health problems."

"But that doesn't mean..."

Ran wanted to say something more, but Fujino interrupted her, "I also think it shouldn't be a formaldehyde issue. If it were formaldehyde poisoning, it should be detectable at the hospital. Even if it's just excessive intolerance, it shouldn't be just Chie who has symptoms."