A Special Sightseeing Route / Inquiry and Suspicion

Ryuen clasped his hands together and explained to Jiang Hang and the others. After hearing this explanation, the eyes of Jiang Hang and the others seemed to look a little strange.

Instead of reporting the loss to the police, the abbot places his hopes on what seems like an unrealistic destiny. Is this a true Buddhist master, or is he simply being delusional?

Jiang Hang, Conan Heiji Hattori even exchanged glances. It was a national treasure-level antique and the temple's own prized possession. After it was lost, they never thought of actively looking for it. Instead, they told the other people in the temple not to call the police and to patiently wait for fate to come. As a result, they waited for eight years... This always gives people the feeling that the abbot is the mastermind behind it all.

However, it is obvious that such reasoning is untenable, because if the abbot was really a member of the Genji Fireflies, he would never have touched the Buddha statues in his own temple in order to avoid suspicion.

Of course, to find out the specifics, we should first check the strange letter that was sent a few days ago.

After learning Heiji Hattori's identity, Ryuen did not hesitate for long. After inviting Jiang Hang and his group into the inner room, he took out a letter addressed to "Sannō Temple" from a drawer.

"There's no stamp and no sender's name. It looks like that person just threw it in your mailbox," Jiang Hang glanced at it with his Eagle Eye. There were no clues left on the envelope, and the criminal obviously wouldn't leave any flaws here.

Heiji Hattori opened the letter and began to read its contents.

"Once the mystery of this painting is solved, the location of the Buddha statue will be known..." The letter contained only this sentence, and a simple photocopy of the drawing was attached at the end.

The picture showed several rows of cabinets, with strange symbols drawn on the top, second, and fourth shelves from top to bottom.

Upon seeing this picture, Jiang Hang had essentially given up trying to figure it out, since deciphering codes was not something he was good at.

And to be honest, this thing has a really strong Detective Conan vibe.

As long as this isn't a prank by that gang of thieves, based on Jiang Hang's impressions from watching Detective Conan when he was a child, this thing is most likely real. It's very likely that it's Treasure Map left by the leader of the gang or the person guarding the treasure. They probably studied it for several years but couldn't figure it out, so they had to find someone else to help them solve the mystery.

It's likely that the murder within the group Genji Fireflies is related to this coded image.

Jiang Hang glanced at Conan and Heiji Hattori, who were deep in thought about the cipher map. Eagle Eye was still useless at this moment, so he might as well just slack off on the side.

Chapter 352: Chapter 350: A Special Tour Route

This seemingly simple cipher diagram not only made Conan and Heiji Hattori frown, but even Shizuka Sakaki temporarily joined the team to decipher the cipher.

"What do these patterns mean?" Heiji Hattori muttered to himself.

Conan shook his head. "I'm not sure, but since the letter says that as long as we solve the mystery on this map, we can find out the location of the Buddha statue, then I think this coded map must be related to the location."

Heiji Hattori nodded in agreement, agreeing that Conan's analysis was probably on the right track.

But he soon found himself in new doubts.

"But what exactly does the drawing on it refer to?"

It seems they all want to decipher the code directly to find out the location of the Buddha statue and what Genji Fireflies's gang of thieves is up to.

In comparison, Jiang Hang's attention only lingered on the cipher map for a short while at the beginning; he didn't think about solving the mystery at all afterward.

As a self-aware person, Jiang Hang knew very well that he should not dabble in things he was not familiar with.

It's like playing a game where you're just a bronze player but you like to use someone else's diamond or master account. The result is obvious.

When it comes to solving puzzles, Jiang Hang is probably not at the Bronze level yet; being at the Iron level would already be considered quite good.

While Conan and the others were pondering the mystery, Jiang Hang went directly to the monk named Ryuen and inquired about the temple.

"Master Ryuen, may I ask how many people know about the theft of the Buddha statue since it disappeared eight years ago? And how many people know about this letter being sent?"

Jiang Hang is quite concerned about this matter.

After all, it's quite puzzling that the prisoner suddenly sent this inexplicable letter after eight years.

Eight years is a long time; most thieves would have already sold the stolen goods by now. But this letter indicates that the Buddha statue is still in their possession, and that if the people of Sannō Temple can solve the riddle, they can find the location of the Buddha statue.

Coupled with this code and routine that felt particularly familiar to Jiang Hang, a picture involuntarily appeared in Jiang Hang's mind.

For some reason, the leader or manager of the Genji Fireflies gang of thieves hid all the stolen goods and money they had made over the years in a hidden place.

The result was that this person suddenly passed away some time ago, and before his death, he did not tell anyone the location of the treasure he had placed. As a result, internal strife broke out within his gang in order to monopolize the treasure.

As for this letter, it is highly likely that someone within Genji Fireflies's organization wants to use the power of others to solve the mystery, and Sannō Temple, which chose to let things take their course instead of reporting it to the police eight years ago, is a very good choice.

The prisoner who sent the letter probably planned to follow them as they solved the riddle, and then eliminate them after learning the answer to achieve his own goal. After considering it, Jiang Hang felt that this was quite likely.

If the prisoner's thoughts are truly as he imagines... then he will inevitably keep a close eye on the situation at Sannō Temple to avoid missing the "helpers" they have found.

Thinking of this, Jiang Hang's gaze involuntarily fell on Sakura Masazo was not far away and was preparing to drive back to his shop.

It was clear that before Sakura Masazo brought them here, Master Ryuen was still debating whether or not to find a detective. Sakura Masazo, on the other hand, was enthusiastically recommending Heiji Hattori, the famous detective from Osaka, to Ryuen. His earnest recommendation was even more earnest than when he recommended the antiques and curios in his own shop to them, which was quite intriguing.

If we're talking about suspects, then Sakura Masazo is certainly a suspect, and quite a suspect at that.

In the antique market, they asked the owners of more than ten shops. The owners either knew nothing or might know something but were unwilling to say it. Only Sakura Masazo asked Jiang Hang and the others with suspicion. After learning that Heiji Hattori was the famous detective, he showed great enthusiasm.

It might be because Jiang Hang paid for the items, but after scanning the area with his Eagle Eye, he found no other strange people nearby. The only one worth suspecting at the moment was Sakura Masazo.

Of course, besides the deduction Jiang Hang just made, there is another possibility: the person who sent this letter was actually the one who was killed a few days ago. Knowing that he might not be able to escape death, he deliberately gave the letter to the monks of Sannō Temple, hoping to use their power to avenge himself.

However, if that's the case, then he can only place all his hopes on Conan and Heiji Hattori deciphering the code on the picture.

After hearing Jiang Hang's question, Ryuen didn't quite understand what Jiang Hang meant, but after thinking for a moment, she gave a reply.

"The theft of the Buddha statue is the biggest secret of the temple. Apart from the other monks in the temple, only a few regular patrons know about it," Ryuen replied. "As for the letter, even fewer people know about it. Apart from Sakura Masazo, there should only be four or five other people who know about it, and they all know each other."

Ryuen named several people. They all seemed to have trained in swordsmanship at a dojo over the past few years and were usually quite close to each other. Among them was naturally the antique shop owner, Sakura Masazo.

Fortunately, Ryuen had photos of the group practicing swordsmanship together. In addition, there were photos of the stolen Buddha statue in the album. Jiang Hang took out his phone and took pictures of these photos. He also noted down the names of the suspects so that he could investigate them later.

They had trained in swordsmanship together... Jiang Hang remembered that in the cases where members of the Genji Fireflies were murdered, the murderer was someone who was proficient in archery and swordsmanship. It seemed that this should be a relatively important clue.

"That letter appeared in the temple mailbox a few days ago, right? Has anyone suggested to you that you go and ask a detective for help?" Jiang Hang continued to ask. If someone suggested asking a detective for help instead of calling the police, then that person would be more suspicious.

Ryuen pondered for a moment, "Yes, after receiving the letter, they asked me to find detectives to help with the investigation. Sakura Masazo also suggested this, and another benefactor recommended a famous detective in Tokyo. I contacted him a few days ago, but unfortunately, the detective's assistant said that he was busy recently and could not go out to handle the case."

"Because that famous detective couldn't spare the time, I didn't contact any other detectives. I never expected that the young man who occasionally came to the temple to pray was actually a famous detective from Osaka. Perhaps this is what the abbot meant by fate," Ryuen sighed.

Hearing what Ryuen said, Jiang Hang's lips twitched slightly.

There are quite a few famous detectives in Tokyo, but the words "assistant" and "has been busy recently" make him wonder if the famous detective that Master Ryuen had contacted before was himself. Because he was going on a trip, Jiang Hang did ask Koharu Yoshino and Shizuka Sakaki to turn down the calls to the agency for the next few days.

He coughed lightly, then asked softly, "Master Ryuen, if I may ask, who was the famous detective from Tokyo that you were originally looking for?"

"It's that Eagle-Eyed Detective from Tokyo. I heard he's a famous detective who has helped the police solve many mysteries, and he's been on TV and in newspapers more than once. Since you're from Tokyo, you should know this famous detective, right?" Ryuen seemed a little regretful as he said this, as if he felt that if Eagle-Eyed Detective were here, he would definitely be able to find the Buddha statue that had been missing for eight years.

Seeing the regretful look on the other person's face, Jiang Hang wiped his forehead. Perhaps this was what they called fate.

He declined the offer over the phone, but eventually, he couldn't avoid the offer.

However, it seems that the call was answered by Koharu Yoshino. If Shizuka Sakaki had answered the phone, she should have some recollection of this matter.

Jiang Hang was thinking that he would ask Koharu Yoshino if she remembered this matter later. At this moment, Ryuen seemed to have thought of something and suddenly asked Jiang Hang, "Esteemed benefactor, I do not know your Your Name yet. I am very sorry."

Jiang Hang observed the expression on Ryuen and knew that the other party probably didn't mean anything by it, but simply wanted to ask his name.

But he was too embarrassed to reveal his real name, so he directly used his old pseudonym "Jiang Xiaobai," which he hadn't used in a long time.

Upon hearing this name, Ryuen seemed somewhat puzzled, wondering what connection Jiang Hang had with this Jiang Xiaobai.

However, after giving his name, Jiang Hang returned to Conan and asked the two famous detectives if they had made any discoveries.

Heiji Hattori shook his head. "I don't have any clues. I think we still need to go out and investigate."

Conan chimed in, "Since the members of the Genji Fireflies are all named after Minamoto no Yoshitsune and his retainers, besides the leader Minamoto no Yoshitsune, there should also be someone with the name Musashibō Benkei, Minamoto no Yoshitsune's number one retainer."

"Since none of the members killed in the Genji Fireflies have implicated these two people, this cipher map is very likely something left behind by Mōkei or Minamoto no Yoshitsune. Perhaps a trip to Kyoto to a place related to Minamoto no Yoshitsune and Mōkei will yield some results."

Conan's idea was not wrong. The group did not stay at the temple any longer. After exchanging phone numbers, they set off again.

After escorting them to Sannō Temple and saying goodbye to Ryuen, Sakura Masazo returned to his shop. Therefore, the group could only walk to the places in Kyoto related to Minamoto no Yoshitsune and Mōkei.

Neither Conan nor Jiang Hang were familiar with Kyoto, but Kyoto and Osaka are adjacent, and it doesn't take long to travel between the two cities by train. Therefore, Heiji Hattori had been wandering around Kyoto since he was a child. In addition, as a detective, he would always pay attention to the things around him, so it wouldn't be wrong to say that Kyoto was Heiji Hattori's second home.

Now that we're heading to those locations, Heiji Hattori will naturally lead the way.

Conan and Heiji Hattori discussed the case along the way, while Jiang Hang saw that Shizuka Sakaki was still frowning and thinking about the code, so he patted her on the shoulder.

"If you don't have any inspiration, don't force yourself to think about it. Just stay on the sidelines and learn from experience," Jiang Hang wanted Shizuka Sakaki to learn from him. Knowing that he couldn't solve the code, he simply stopped thinking about these things. However, he naturally couldn't say this to Shizuka Sakaki.

Upon hearing Jiang Hang's words, Shizuka Sakaki also sighed slightly. She knew very well that even after thinking about it for so long, she still didn't know how to proceed with that code.

She knew that her detective skills were not as good Koharu Yoshino's, so after hearing Jiang Hang's words, she hesitated for a while and decided to temporarily give up thinking about it.

Her little assistant shouldn't try to be a hero; she should just stay on the sidelines and watch Jiang Hang and the other real detectives solve the mystery.

Thinking of this, she curiously turned her gaze to Conan and Heiji Hattori were walking ahead and discussing the case.

"But Conan is too amazing. He's just a kid, yet he knows so much. I feel like I, an adult, don't even know as much as Conan, who's only in first grade," Shizuka Sakaki muttered to Jiang Hang.

It would be strange if you could surpass Conan, okay? Heaven knows how much his father taught him in Hawaii.

Driving, flying planes, speedboats, defusing bombs, shooting—these are all things Jiang Hang still vaguely remembers. In short, Conan probably learned a little bit about anything that could be used at the necessary time in Hawaii.

Although Jiang Hang has mastered quite a few skills, in terms of breadth of knowledge, he is completely outmatched by Conan Jiang Hang.

"Conan is an exception; you don't need to compare yourself to him," Jiang Hang replied.

"Just think of yourself as a tourist and Heiji Hattori as your tour guide. The only difference is that all the places we're going to are related to Minamoto no Yoshitsune. To be honest, this is a 'special tour route' that you can't get even with those travel agencies."

Chapter 353: Chapter 351: Inquiry and Doubt

Minamoto no Yoshitsune and Mōkei left quite a few traces in Kyoto, and Heiji Hattori led Conan and Jiang Hang through Kyoto.

According to legend, Musashibo Mōkei would snatch swords from pedestrians on Gojō Bridge. Whenever he saw a pedestrian carrying a sword, he would challenge them to a duel, a practice known as "sword hunting." When he had snatched his 1,000th sword, he encountered Minamoto no Yoshitsune.

He took a liking to the treasured sword that Minamoto no Yoshitsune carried and challenged him to a Minamoto no Yoshitsune. In the end, Minamoto no Yoshitsune defeated Musashibo Mōkei on the bridge, and Musashibo Mōkei was convinced and willing to become Minamoto no Yoshitsune's retainer. Gojō Bridge is where the two first met.

After hundreds of years of history, the Gojō Bridge have now undergone modern renovations, with only statues at the bridgeheads representing the stories that took place here in the past.

Heiji Hattori then to Jiang Hang and Shizuka Sakaki, while Conan looked around with the cipher map in his hand.

After looking around, Conan shook his head at Heiji Hattori: "It doesn't look like this place."

The images in the top row of the cipher map are a cicada, a tengu, and a goldfish. The second row has a rooster and an earthworm. There is a dot between the first and second rows, and a flower, a tengu, and Mount Fuji between the third and fourth rows.

To the right of Mount Fuji, outside the cabinet in the coded map, there is an acorn.

"Then let's go to the next place. It just so happens that the place where the two first met, as recorded in that Gikeiki, is not this Gojō Bridge, but a temple nearby." Heiji Hattori also looked around the area and found no clues, so he led the group to the next place.

However, just as Jiang Hang had initially thought, if clues could be found anywhere, the thieves wouldn't have bothered to send this coded map over.

They went to several places, such as a rock where Mōkei used to sit, a park with a statue of Yoshitsune, and finally they found the place where Minamoto no Yoshitsune was said to have studied military strategy with Tengu. Unfortunately, they found nothing in these places.

"Tengu..." Conan looked around, also without any particular thoughts. But since there were two images of tengu on the cipher map, perhaps the secret of the map would be related to this place.

Unfortunately, they searched from afternoon until night but found nothing that provided any clues.

Meanwhile, Jiang Hang received numerous phone calls during the search for clues.

For example, Koharu Yoshino tells them that their trip for the day is over and asks them when they will be back that night, and Professor Agasa calls to ask if Conan is with him.

Among these events was an inquiry from Sakura Himeshiro, the eldest daughter of the Himeshiro Group.

She seemed to know that Jiang Hang was wandering around Kyoto today, as if investigating some case, and called to ask if Jiang Hang needed any help.

"The Himeshiro Group still has some influence in Kyoto, so if we need to find someone, I think they should be of some use," said Sakura Himeshiro on the other end of the phone.

"Then I'll trouble you," Jiang Hang said without refusing. He paused for a moment, then told Sakura Himeshiro the names of a few people, "Sakura Masazo, Saijō Taiga, and Mio Harutarō. There might be members of 'Genji Fireflies' among these people. You can investigate in this direction. However, it's best to tell your Himeshiro Group to be careful. The other party is a master of swordsmanship and archery, and he already has five lives on his hands."

These people had trained at the kendo dojo with Ryuen from Sannō Temple, and they knew that the Buddha statue at Sannō Temple was stolen eight years ago. Furthermore, the people who received this letter recently are all highly suspicious.

After listening to Jiang Hang finish his phone call with Sakura Himeshiro, Conan looked at Jiang Hang with a strange expression. He knew Sakura Himeshiro's identity and that it was she who took the initiative to suggest that Jiang Hang successfully acquire Eito Studios.

However, he didn't know why the other party was so fond of Jiang Hang.

After spending a lot of time with Jiang Hang, Conan never noticed that Jiang Hang had a Foundation worth hundreds of billions behind him, except when Jiang Hang was spending money. He also couldn't figure out what was going on in Sakura Himeshiro's head.

Could it be that the woman has also taken a liking to Jiang Hang? Conan muttered to himself, seemingly thinking that this was a possibility.

However, compared to the woman Sakura Himeshiro, Conan was more concerned about the names Jiang Hang had just mentioned.

He knew that Jiang Hang had asked Ryuen some questions while they were thinking about the coded diagram, and these names were probably the ones Jiang Hang asked at that time.

But has Jiang Hang already narrowed down the suspects to just a few of them?

"Do you have any reason to suspect them?" Conan asked Jiang Hang in a low voice.

Jiang Hang simply shrugged at this.

"It's just a feeling, I'm not very sure, but those thieves couldn't possibly be really kind-hearted and deliberately created a riddle for Sannō Temple, and that solving the riddle would lead to the return of the missing Buddha statue," Jiang Hang held up an eight. "The Buddha statue disappeared eight years ago. Although that Buddha statue was the most valuable and hardest to sell among the things they stole, in eight years, everything should have been sold by now. From this point of view, it just doesn't make sense."

"Either the thieves themselves didn't know where the Buddha statue was hidden, or they had other plans. I asked Ryuen, and he told me that on the day he received the letter, those people happened to be in the temple and were the first to know about it. They were all suggesting that Ryuen find a famous detective to help investigate."

Jiang Hang mentioned that Koharu Yoshino had received a commission from the other party. If it weren't for this trip, Jiang Hang, who had monthly outings for commissioned tasks, might actually have taken on this case.

After listening to Jiang Hang's analysis, Conan rested his chin on his hand, seemingly pondering what Jiang Hang had just said.