Newbie Scenario: Class Reunion (15

All that could be said was that Second-generation Zhao had really... gotten far too immersed in his role.

Lawyer Jin had indeed given the deceased Class A Poison, but that was before his conflict with the deceased that night. He had not wanted to kill because of that conflict; he had come prepared with poison from the start, with premeditation. The conflict with the deceased had been the accident. Before that accident, the poison had already been slipped into the deceased's drink without anyone noticing.

Lawyer Jin's reason for staying in the living room had not been to deal with the footage, either. He had wanted to make sure the moment he poisoned the victim had not been recorded.

He had not put the drug into anything. He had dissolved it in water, then smeared it along the inside of the cup.

...A very

palace-intrigue

style of poisoning.

Those wineglasses Zhen Liu had found strange when they suddenly appeared had been brought out by Lawyer Jin. After the deceased drank from one, Lawyer Jin had diligently washed the glasses, preventing anyone else from being poisoned and destroying the evidence.

In short, if Lawyer Jin had truly succeeded in poisoning him, then the deceased's time of death would have been around two in the morning. But if someone else had caused the deceased's death, then his time of death had to be before two. Anyone who acted after two was temporarily safe.

Newbie Scenario: Class Reunion (15

Zhen Liu had yet to sort out who might have acted after two, but based on everyone's introductions at the beginning, when they had been least guarded, Basketball Qiao was very likely the last person to make a move.

No matter whether Basketball Qiao was truly scheming or not, his level of suspicion would inevitably decrease.

Of course, everything still had to be based on facts. Until clear evidence emerged, Zhen Liu would not completely set aside his suspicions of anyone. Including himself.

There were two kinds of poison in the deceased's body. One was a sleep-inducing drug. It was unknown who had administered it, but it was certain that Lawyer Jin had given him Class A Poison, while Doctor Zhen... had given him Class B Poison.

Like Lawyer Jin, Doctor Zhen's actions this time had also been premeditated.

Doctor Zhen had drawn inspiration from a foreign crime drama and applied the poison to fabric. Yes, fabric. Or, more accurately, he had soaked the clothing in poison beforehand. Once the material had fully absorbed the toxic liquid, he had express-delivered it to the deceased on the day of this Class Reunion.

That was also why Doctor Zhen had deliberately photographed his trunk. Before he even arrived, he had been laying the groundwork for his future self. He wanted to prove that he had not brought that piece of clothing.

Doctor Zhen's original plan had been this:

Class B Poison took a long time to take effect. After all, it had to seep through the skin and into the body. Theoretically, if the deceased did not exercise strenuously or sweat much, he would die at the breakfast table the next day, collapsing in full view of everyone. Everyone in the villa would become witnesses that Doctor Zhen had not acted.

That was why Doctor Zhen had arrived at the villa so early. He needed to make sure the deceased had really worn the clothes he sent.

Unfortunately, plans could not keep up with changes.

Lawyer Jin had given the deceased Class A Poison on that same night. The combined effect of the two poisons had accelerated the onset of Class B Poison. It was like a race: whichever poison was faster would make the person who administered it the murderer. But as for which poison would take effect first when the two interacted, even Doctor Zhen could not guarantee it.

The only thing Zhen Liu could be certain of was that the deceased had died no later than around two in the morning. If someone had killed the deceased before two, then Lawyer Jin and Zhen Liu were not the murderers.

As for which situation it was, that would depend on the timeline they pieced together next.

Three hours later, the long Black Room session finally ended. Second-generation Zhao immediately initiated an Early Referendum, his impatience written all over his face. Still, he was not entirely confident about what the final outcome would be. He kept looking toward Zhen Liu, hoping Zhen Liu's crucial vote might undergo a miraculous change.

But miracles were called miracles precisely because they were almost impossible.

Zhen Liu would not change his mind. He avoided meeting Second-generation Zhao's eyes as much as possible, only wondering inwardly why Second-generation Zhao was so certain Professor Lu would vote in favor. Had they discussed something when Second-generation Zhao visited Professor Lu in the Black Room?

Still, it did not matter how Professor Lu voted. Zhen Liu and Lawyer Jin would definitely not agree. This was doomed to fail.

After the proposal for an Early Referendum was made, an option button visible only to each person and the audience appeared before everyone. Green meant agree, red meant refuse, and the results were announced on the spot.

Three to two.

Zhen Liu had just been about to say that he was not surprised by the count at all when he realized he really ought to be surprised. Because the "three" here was not three votes in favor, but three votes against. In other words, only Second-generation Zhao and Basketball Qiao had ultimately agreed to the Early Referendum.

Professor Lu had returned to Zhen Liu's side, just as he had promised.

Lawyer Jin was stunned. Had the fight he had with Professor Lu earlier knocked the other man's brains loose?

Second-generation Zhao also looked utterly incredulous. He had visited Professor Lu after Doctor Zhen had, and the two of them had been getting along splendidly at the time. He had thought there would be no further complications. How could this...

Professor Lu shrugged and said to Second-generation Zhao, "Sorry, I'm just the kind of person who lets love cloud my judgment."

His expression did not look remotely like he truly felt sorry.

He was in love, and he was proud of it!

Once Lawyer Jin confirmed that Professor Lu had truly refused, his whole body started trembling with excitement again. He felt absolutely exhilarated, as though he could break into song on the spot. Though he knew perfectly well that Zhen Liu and Professor Lu had made that choice not because they had taken his side, he still felt fantastic.

Seeing Second-generation Zhao, who had "betrayed" him, experience a similar "betrayal"—was there anything in this world more satisfying?