Model worker and his little darling

With Gin present, Taira felt much more relaxed and entered the detective agency.

Hearing that the uncle had received a commission to go to Gunma, Pingqing quickly followed. It was a good place; after being busy for so long, he wanted to go out for a stroll.

"The air here is so fresh; we should get out in nature more often." Xiaolan walked briskly ahead. "By the way, Dad, why are you wearing sunglasses?"

"It's my fault for getting bitten by a mosquito on my eyelid. Besides, if there are any of my detective fans at that hotel, I'll be so embarrassed."

Pingqing, who was following behind, blinked, not expecting that the uncle would have such a serious idol image.

Uncle Mori was very pleased with himself at this moment, but then he tripped and fell face-first into the mud.

The middle-aged man glared at the stone that had tripped him. "Which scoundrel put the stone here?"

"This is a Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva statue. I don't know why it's lying on the ground. We need to straighten it up."

Just as Xiaolan was about to help it up, a car pulled up beside her, and a man shouted, "Hey hey hey... if you help that Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva up, you'll all be cursed!"

Pingqing looked in the direction of the sound and saw Yamamura Misao, a monster hunter. This guy is interesting.

Conan was speechless; how did he end up with this rookie policeman from Gunma Prefecture?

Yamamura Misao greeted Uncle Mori warmly, and was even happier after learning that the group was going to the Aoi-ya Inn.

An employee of the Aoi-ya Inn recently discovered a body in a forest called 'Head God Forest'. Both of them share the same goal: to investigate the truth.

"The Head God is a plague god that causes headaches. It is said that people who usually suffer from headaches will get lost in the forest if they go deep into it, so this place is a suicide hotspot."

"That Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva is used to suppress evil spirits. If you lift him up, you'll only attract evil spirits."

Hearing this, Pingqing was full of praise; the rumors about these horses were really interesting.

However, no matter how powerful Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva is, he cannot subdue the Grim Reaper.

Hearing this, Xiaolan felt terrible and moved closer to Pingqing. "Brother Pingqing, don't you feel a little cold?"

Pingqing looked up at the sun in the sky. "It's not cold."

Yamamura Misao was very attentive, suggesting that since it was on the same route, they could ride together to the Aoi-ya Ryokan.

Uncle Mori was just about to refuse when he saw that Hirai and the other two were already sitting in the car. He glanced at them speechlessly.

On the bus, Yamamura Misao recounted the details of the case. It turned out that the body found by the employees of the Aoi-ya Inn while picking wild vegetables had become a skeleton.

Police found car keys on the body, but no driver's license. There were cigarettes, but no lighter. The deceased should have died in the summer, as he was wearing a sweater.

Inside the body's backpack, a bottle of milk and a bag of bread were found, both with expiration dates from four years ago, in the summer. A rope was found around the body's neck, and a broken tree branch was nearby, leading police to conclude that the deceased committed suicide by hanging.

Hearing this, Pingqing glanced at the forest. No wonder the trees were growing so well; they had plenty of nutrients.

This shows that Inspector Megure's abilities are commendable; at least he discovered the body quickly, rather than letting it remain undiscovered for four years until it had turned to dust.

Heronma is truly a perfect place to kill and dispose of bodies.

Uncle Mori recounted what he knew: five years ago in October, a long-haired man in a red coat came to the Aoi-ya Inn.

The man offered 100,000 to store a letter and a suitcase, saying he would come back in a year to collect them, and that he would just give him the suitcase then. If someone else came to collect it, he would only give them the letter. Five years passed, and the man never returned.

The day after the boss accepted the suitcase, a man with sunglasses and a beard came to collect it. The boss only gave him the letter, but after reading it, the man with sunglasses and a beard suddenly became furious, tore up the letter, and left.

Curious, the boss pieced the letter back together. It read, "May you die a cursed death."

"Ahhh-"

Ping Qing was listening with great interest, and was just about to complain that the curse should have been written as encountering Conan when he heard Ran scream, followed by Yamamura Misao's scream, and then he slammed on the brakes and crashed into the glass.

Turning my head, I saw Conan being held tightly in Ran's arms.

"Sister Xiaolan, don't worry. Once Uncle has seen what's in the suitcase, he'll be able to solve the mystery."

Yamamura Misao's face was filled with terror, and his voice was trembling. "Could it be that the suitcase contains that guy's long hair?"

"Ahhh-"

The little car flew away in fright! (*^▽^*)

Yamamura Misao and Ran screamed again. Hirashi covered his ears; Ran's voice was too penetrating.

Ping Qing sighed. He had originally wanted to hear about plague gods and evil spirits, mountain demons and old women, and kappa...

He's quite interested in these things; who knows, he might be able to use them to scare Conan someday.

Seeing the disappointed look on Hirai's face, Conan was speechless. Could it be that Hirai had been watching too much supernatural stuff and that's why he'd become so neurotic?

Upon arriving at the Aoi-ya Inn, Yoshiji Kamakawa, who had discovered the body, came to greet them.

Seeing Uncle Mori and his group, Eiji Kamagawa was a little curious.

Yamamura Misao proudly introduced, and Uncle Mori struck a pose, "This is the fearsome detective that villains tremble with fear..."

"Oh~~, you must be Kogoro Mouri's henchman, right? Mr. Mouri has already arrived and is waiting for you in the room."

Upon hearing this, the group was extremely shocked.

Just then, the shopkeeper came over and said that Mr. Mori had taken the box, and then showed the group a fake Mori signature.

"Don't get it dirty, I need to find someone to frame it."

Pingqing glanced at the uncle, then at the staff, somewhat bewildered.

These people idolize the older man so much, yet none of them know what he looks like. Don't they watch TV or read newspapers?

Well, people in the world of Detective Conan don't have very good eyesight.

However, that counterfeiter was quite bold, daring to impersonate an older man.

Xiaolan was furious and turned to punch someone, but the uncle stopped her.

"Xiao Lan, don't worry. We'll play along. When that fake comes up with some ridiculous reasoning, I'll reappear and scare him out of his wits."

Xiao Lan was speechless. She looked at Ping Qing and asked, "Ping Qing, what do you think of Dad's plan?"

Pingqing clapped his hands and said, "Uncle, you're amazing! This plan is brilliant!"

This is just like the daily routine between the old man and Conan: first, let the old man embarrass himself, and then solve the case.

Yamamura Misao also agreed and said he would help as well.

The three of them conspired together, and Xiaolan left in a huff.

When the boss asked for his name, the man adjusted his sunglasses and said, "My name is Echigo Mitsuemon, an insignificant nobody."

Pingqing suppressed a laugh, and the uncle began his performance.

Just then, Masao Jinbo parked his car and came in, handing the man Ran's phone with him. "This is your daughter's, right?"

The uncle took the phone and left with Pingqing and Yamamura.

Back in the room, the uncle pulled Pingqing and Yamamura Cao together for a drink. Before long, the uncle was already tipsy, his face flushed red.

After drinking Yamamura Kosuke under the table, Uncle Mori got up, opened the door, and looked around.

"Why hasn't that imposter made a move yet? Could he have run away?"

"Uncle, no one has left this hotel yet."

Upon hearing Conan's words, the group went out to check on the fake Mori, only to find him hanged in the room.