Guns and Coffee in the World of Science

The next morning, Chen Shuo woke up next to Mao Lilan. Of course! He had done nothing last night except accompany her back to the detective agency and lull her to sleep. However, even in her dreams, Mao Lilan still held his hand tightly, and he could only helplessly accompany her as she fell into a deep sleep.

Looking at Mao Lilan lying in front of him with a peaceful smile on her face, Chen Shuo couldn't help but smile slightly. He bent down and kissed her forehead lightly. Then he tiptoed down to the second floor and put on his coat while casually looking at the furnishings of the detective agency. By the way, Mao Li Kogoro had known him for so long, but he had only been to his office a few times.

On the counter, he suddenly found a signed photo. The person in the photo reminded him of the professional baseball player they had met at the "Flowers" restaurant. What was his name? Chen Shuo looked down at the signature. Yes, it was Hiroki Tsuji.

"...!"

Chen Shuo's heart trembled. Tsuji Hiroki! Could this be "Ten"? Compared to Towako, wouldn't this person be an easier target?

Thinking of this, Chen Shuo immediately called Maori Kogoro. After the call was connected, Maori Kogoro's voice sounded exhausted, and it was obvious that he had hardly slept last night.

"Hello? Chen Shuo, calling so early, do you have any clues?"

"Kogoro, do you still remember your professional baseball player friend?"

"Hiroki Tsuji! Yes, how could I forget him! Thank you, Chen Shuo, I will go find him right away and tell you as soon as there is any news!"

Maori Kogoro finished speaking and hung up the phone in a hurry. Chen Shuo listened to the busy tone on the other end of the phone, his eyes fell on Tsuji Hiroki's photo again, and his mind was full of thoughts.

---

Chen Shuo and Mao Lilan were sitting in a cafe enjoying lunch. After last night's comfort, Xiaolan's mood had obviously improved. She temporarily suppressed her doubts in her heart and chatted and laughed with Chen Shuo about family matters.

Just as they were chatting happily, Chen Shuo's phone suddenly rang. He picked up, and Towako's charming voice immediately rang out: "Mr. Wuchen, a helicopter just crashed on the playground of Beihua Elementary School, but fortunately, there were no casualties. On board were Megure Juzo of the Metropolitan Police Department, Detective Maori, Conan Edogawa, and the helicopter's pilot, professional baseball player Hiroki Tsuji."

"During the investigation, a playing card with the 10 of spades was found at the scene. This basically confirms that this incident and the three incidents yesterday were all committed by the same person."

Chen Shuo's eyes glared. "So, was it Murakami-sama who did it?"

"This is also a very interesting point." Towako chuckled and said, "We've mobilized almost every intelligence network in Tokyo, but we haven't found any clues about Murakami Takeru. He was last seen a few days ago, when he went to the Mori Detective Agency, but the Mori family was out, so he left. According to the intelligence, he seemed to have met with someone after he left, but we currently don't know who that person is."

Chen Shuo sneered: "Even you can't find him... then..."

"Yes!" Towako continued, "I'm not bragging, but if even we can't find him, then there are only two possibilities. First, Murakami Takeru has already left Tokyo, but considering what happened today, this possibility is unlikely; then the second point..."

"Murakami-sama is dead!" Chen Shuo frowned slightly, with a hint of uneasiness in his tone.

"Yes."

"Is that so... Then please do a thorough investigation to find out who Murakami-jo was last seen with."

"We're working on it," Towako promised, her tone firm.

"Please." Chen Shuo hung up the phone and thought to himself that things seemed to be getting more and more complicated.

At noon, Mao Lilan saw Chen Shuo frowning and lost in thought. She felt a little worried and asked softly, "Brother Shuo? What did the phone call just now mean..."

"Yeah." Chen Shuo nodded, his tone slightly heavy. "It's basically impossible for Murakami-jo to be the murderer. Now things have become more complicated."

"How could this happen..." Ran Mao Li looked a little dazed, muttering softly, with a hint of uneasiness and confusion in her eyes.

Chen Shuo held Mao Lilan's hand and smiled at her gently: "Don't worry, Xiaolan, nothing will happen. I will definitely find out the truth about this matter."

Seeing that Mao Lilan was still a little depressed, Chen Shuo glanced at the empty coffee shop and waved to Enomoto Azusa, asking her to come and chat with Mao Lilan to relieve her mood. He walked to the bar, picked up the phone, and dialed Mao Li Kogoro's number.

"What's the situation?" Although he learned from Shihezi that there were no casualties, Chen Shuo was still a little worried.

On the other end of the line, Maori Kogoro was in a hospital room, working with the police to identify "Number Nine," the next potential target. He heard the phone ring, walked out, and answered it, his voice a hint of fatigue. "Everyone's fine for now. It's just that someone switched Hiroki Tsuji's eye drops with mydriatic medication, so he was temporarily blinded in the sunlight on the plane."

"Is that so..." Chen Shuo frowned, his thoughts turning rapidly, and suddenly he figured something out: "Kogoro, Murakami Jō may not be the murderer!"

"What?" Kogoro Mouri was obviously shocked by this sentence and was stunned.

Chen Shuo paused, organizing his words before continuing, "Towako contacted me just now. With her abilities, she still hasn't been able to find any clues about Murakami Jō. Don't you think that's strange?"

Maori Kogoro was silent for a moment, then hesitantly said, "You mean...Murakami-jo is dead?"

"That's right!" Chen Shuo's voice was firm and decisive. "A dead man can't possibly continue committing crimes. There must be something else going on. And according to my judgment, Tsuji Hiroki was one of the targets from the beginning, perhaps even the main target. The other attacks were just a smokescreen to confuse the public."

Maori Kogoro asked in confusion, "Why do you say that?"

Chen Shuo explained calmly, "Whether it was Megure Jusan, Dr. Agasa, or Eri, the injuries they suffered were not fatal. You could even say that those attacks seemed like casual pranks. But Tsuji Hiroki's situation today is completely different. If you weren't on the helicopter, he would have had almost no chance of survival. This is why I believe the murderer's target has always been Tsuji Hiroki."

On the other end of the phone, Maori Kogoro clenched his fists after hearing this, and a surge of anger surged in his heart: "Asshole..."

After hanging up the phone, Maori Kogoro walked to the end of the corridor. Regardless of whether this was a hospital or not, he silently lit a cigarette, took a puff, and said in a calm but helpless tone: "Boy, you heard everything, right? We adults are useless. We can only rely on you. Please."

Conan, standing behind Kogoro Mori, had been there silently for some time. He lowered his head slightly, his glasses reflecting a cold white light under the light, obscuring his eyes. But it was clear that Conan had made up his mind at this moment - he must solve the mystery behind this and find the real culprit hiding in the darkness.

---

That afternoon, Chen Shuo's phone suddenly rang, and Maori Kogoro's name appeared on the screen. When the call was connected, Kogoro's deep and solemn voice came over: "Chen Shuo, I just received an invitation from my old friend Zemu Kohei to go to a newly built underwater restaurant."

"Underwater restaurant?" Chen Shuo raised his eyebrows, feeling a little strange. Maori Kogoro would not call him for such a trivial matter. The matter sounded complicated.

"The problem is that the people invited all have numbers in their names." Maori Kogoro continued, his tone becoming more serious.

Chen Shuo suddenly became alert, his brows furrowed slightly. "This isn't good. Haven't you found any clues about the mastermind behind this?"

Maori Kogoro's voice suddenly deepened, his tone becoming exceedingly serious. "Chen Shuo, I think there's something fishy going on here. I need to personally meet the mastermind behind this and find out what he's up to." He glanced at the few people who had already entered the restaurant, a hint of uneasiness flashing in his eyes. "You must protect Xiaolan well. I'm a little worried about this place."

"Don't worry, Kogoro, I will take good care of Xiaolan. But you have to be careful too." Chen Shuo's tone was firm, but he was a little worried in his heart.

"Yeah, I know. You should pay attention too." Maori Kogoro hung up the phone, but Chen Shuo still frowned, lost in thought. It seemed that this matter was far more complicated than he had imagined.

Mao Lilan, who was standing by, noticed Chen Shuo's expression and couldn't help but gently hold his hand, with a hint of worry in her tone: "Brother Shuo, is Dad really okay?"

Chen Shuo looked down at her, squeezed her hand, and gently comforted her: "Don't worry, Xiaolan. He is the sleeping Maori Kogoro, he will be fine."

Mao Lilan's eyes were still a little worried, but when she saw Chen Shuo's determined expression, her uneasiness seemed to be relieved a little, and she smiled slightly: "Well, I hope so."

Chen Shuo chuckled and patted her head, trying to appear relaxed, but deep down he was already planning for any unexpected events. This undercurrent of conflict wouldn't end so easily.

---

Time slipped quietly in the tense atmosphere, and the emotions of Chen Shuo and Mao Lilan grew increasingly solemn with the ticking of the second hand. Suddenly, the phone rang, interrupting Chen Shuo's thoughts. He answered the call, and a familiar voice came from the other end. Towako's clear and charming voice rang out: "Mr. Wuchen, we have found the person who last met with Murakami Takeru."

Chen Shuo's eyes instantly turned cold, and his aura became fierce, as if the air was filled with an undeniable sense of oppression. "Who is it?" His voice was low and murderous, and it was clear that Chen Shuo had lost his patience.

"Sawaki Kouhei, the sommelier at the 'Flower' restaurant." Towako's tone was calm, but the weight of the information made it all complicated and difficult to ignore.

"Zawaki Kohei..." Chen Shuo muttered, his mind rapidly searching for the familiar name. He was an old friend of Maori Kogoro, and there seemed to be nothing unusual about Zeki Kohei, whether in terms of background or identity. But all of this connected together, and Chen Shuo was puzzled.

He stood up and walked to the window, gazing through the glass at the night street. A cold wind blew past, bringing a chill to his spine. An inexplicable sense of crisis suddenly surged in his heart, as if the truth about to be revealed was even more dangerous than he had imagined.

"Towako, why did Sawaki Kohei do this? What's his relationship with Murakami Takeru?" Chen Shuo's voice was a little hurried. He knew that things were far more complicated than they seemed.

"We are stepping up our investigation, but judging by the current clues, Sawaki Kouhei is highly suspected and is very likely the mastermind behind this incident." Towako continued, a hint of caution in her tone, "I have sent you the relevant information. You can take your time to study the details."

Although Chen Shuo appeared calm on the surface, his inner anger was growing stronger and stronger: "I understand. Thank you for your hard work."

Towako's voice once again revealed a hint of charm: "It is my honor to serve you, Mr. Wuchen."

After hanging up the phone, Chen Shuo frowned and repeated in a low voice: "Zemu Gongping..."