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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter Two
The torrential rain continued to rage outside, but the atmosphere inside the clock tower was even more suffocating than the storm. I stood at the staircase, watching Xu Kai's trembling hands, a sense of alertness rising within me. As a forensic expert, I was all too familiar with bloodstains; that faint dark red hue was definitely not an ordinary smudge. The air was thick with the smell of rust, mingling with the earthy scent brought in by the rain, causing an inexplicable wave of nausea to wash over me.
"Mr. Xu, could you please elaborate on the meeting this afternoon?" Old Li asked calmly, his gaze fixed intently on Xu Kai's changing expressions. He adjusted his glasses, a glint of determination flashing in the lenses as if he aimed to see through all of Xu Kai's facades.
Xu Kai took a deep breath, struggling to compose himself, but the movement of his Adam's apple betrayed his anxiety. "It was a discussion about the South Bank Development Project. President Chen… he has been pushing this project forward, but…" He suddenly paused, his eyes flickering as if he were avoiding something. He instinctively rubbed his hands together, leaving a faint mark of sweat on his suit pants.
"But what? Mr. Xu, please continue," I urged in as calm a tone as possible while observing his subtle movements. His gaze darted around, seeming to reminisce yet also fabricate.
At that moment, a commotion erupted downstairs, breaking the tense standoff. A middle-aged woman in a black trench coat strode in briskly, her high heels clattering against the wooden floor with sharp echoes that pierced through the silence of the clock tower. Her face was pale, lips pressed tightly together, but her eyes were strikingly sharp—like a knife piercing through one's heart. I recognized her as Fang Wen, the financial director of Yongxing Group, known for her iron-fisted approach within the company.
"When was the deceased found?" Fang Wen's voice was cold and devoid of emotion, as if she were inquiring about an unrelated case. She scanned the room before her gaze finally settled on the evidence bag in my hand, a flicker of confusion crossing her features.
Old Li was about to respond when suddenly a loud crash echoed from upstairs, shaking the entire clock tower slightly. Everyone jumped at the sound; I instinctively looked up to see strange grinding noises coming from the direction of the Mechanical Room, eerily amplified by the howling wind and rain outside.
"Is that… the clock tower's machinery operating on its own?" Xiao Zhang's voice trembled slightly, his face pale as he gripped my sleeve tightly, fear evident in his eyes.
My heart raced faster at that moment; a chill ran from my feet straight to my head. This clock tower had been abandoned for years—the machinery had long ceased functioning—how could it suddenly come to life? Could it be...
I hurried upstairs to investigate, my heart pounding violently in my chest. Inside the Mechanical Room, massive gears were slowly turning, emitting an agonizing metallic grinding sound as if a sleeping giant were awakening. In the dim light, shadows of the gears twisted and contorted on the walls like clawing demons. Amidst the gaps between the gears, I spotted an inconspicuous object—a blood-stained cufflink reflecting a faint glow in the dim light.
"Interesting," I crouched down for a closer look. The cufflink had a unique design with an odd emblem engraved on it that resembled some kind of mysterious totem. Countless thoughts raced through my mind: Who did this cufflink belong to? What connection did it have to Chen Mingyuan's death?
At that moment, Fang Wen suddenly spoke up, "Those are custom cufflinks made for the company's executives; each person's design is unique." Her tone remained calm, but a flicker of something unnoticeable passed through her eyes, as if she were hiding a secret.
I carefully put away the cufflinks and turned to ask, "Ms. Fang, can you tell us if there have been any unusual occurrences within the company recently?" My gaze was fixed on her, trying to glean any hint from her expression.
Fang Wen met my eyes for a second before looking away, staring out at the raging storm outside. "If you mean unusual... then it's the South Bank Development Project. This project involves a huge amount of money, but..." Her voice dropped to a whisper, laced with hesitation.
"But what?" I pressed on, sensing that this was the crux of the matter.
"But there are some issues with the accounts." Fang Wen's voice suddenly became very soft, as if afraid of being overheard. "I discovered that a large sum of money has gone missing, and I was about to report it to President Chen."
As soon as she said this, Xu Kai's expression changed drastically. He jumped to his feet and pointed at Fang Wen, shouting, "Fang Wen, what do you mean by that? Are you accusing me?"
Just as the tension between them escalated, an old and hoarse voice came from downstairs. "Let me tell you the truth."
Everyone turned toward the sound and saw an elderly man leaning on a cane, slowly making his way up the stairs. In the dim light, his figure appeared particularly imposing, as if he had stepped out from another world. He was Zhang Shoucheng, one of the founders of Yongxing Group and a retired figure with absolute authority in the company.
"Behind the South Bank Project lies a secret from twenty years ago," Zhang Shoucheng said in a raspy voice tinged with age. "And this secret may very well be the true reason for Chen Mingyuan's death tonight."
Before he could finish speaking, the entire clock tower plunged into darkness. The power went out. In the darkness, I heard someone gasp sharply and another let out a low cry of surprise. Fear surged like a tide, wrapping around me tightly.
When I pulled out my phone to illuminate the surroundings, I was shocked to find that Zhang Shoucheng had vanished. And where he had just stood, a line of blood-written words appeared on the floor:
"The truth lies within the chime."
A sudden cold wind swept in from an unknown corner, causing the light from my phone to flicker erratically. In this dim and shifting illumination, I felt as if I glimpsed something, yet it also seemed like I saw nothing at all. But one thing was certain: within this clock tower, surrounded by a storm, everyone was lying, and the truth was buried beneath layers of deception.
Suddenly, the clock tower emitted a deafening roar, and the massive pendulum began to swing on its own. Amidst the symphony of machinery and thunder, I thought I heard a faint scream, or perhaps it was just an illusion. Yet I knew that this night would unveil more secrets.
And I found myself unable to withdraw.
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