The Detective of Noble Boys' Academy 23

23

Campus BBS

Hot Post/HOT....

Subject: Ran into the school beauty on the street tonight...

0L: [Photo] This outfit today is still missing a pipe, little detective.. (Hot) (Hot) (Tongue)

1L: Oh my god, why is everyone in the city running into the school beauty?? Am I the only one who can't? (Crying)

2L: Am I the only one who hasn't met him? Hmm? Bean-bun, please send me this school beauty's itinerary, right now, immediately! (Crying) (Fist)

3L: The British style today is too cute, school beauty, you look just like a detective~ (Heart)

4L: Ever since the school beauty returned to the Upper City, he has been wearing new clothes every day. There are so many more colors and styles than before! I never see him like this usually (Hot)

5L: Dressing plainly at school is just to appease the F4 and the elite students.. (Crying) (Vomit)

6L: So I ask, what on earth did those people do to deserve this! (Anger) (Anger)

7L: By the way, school beauty, it is almost midnight, why are you out dressed like this? A late-night murder mystery game?

8L: Hmm... this area is a super wealthy district; I do not need to say who lives here (Eye-roll)

9L: Holy crap, it really is a midnight date with one of the F4.. I cannot accept this!! (Crying)

10L: Now I am truly furious! Which F4 is he meeting tonight?? How could they let a school beauty walk on the street all alone? What if he gets snatched away by someone else??

11L: [Photo], I cannot go any further inside, I do not know whose mansion this is, it is scary

12L: This neighborhood is beyond my knowledge.. are you rich people too rich? (Tears) (Tears)

13L: I guess the school beauty has changed targets again, one a day. Some F4 must be home throwing a tantrum right now (Covering mouth to laugh) (Covering mouth to laugh)

14L: I understand now.. one of the F4 is planning to play a detective-suspect game with the school beauty tonight.. God, I cannot even imagine.. (Hot) (Hot) (Tongue)

-------------

Before Li Xihe went downstairs, the servant had already described the guest: a very beautiful young man, long-haired, fair-skinned, with blue eyes, though there was no expression on his face. He stood quietly at the door without saying a word.

'I know who it is.'

Li Xihe smiled slightly after hearing this.

He had not expected him to actually come.

Though he would say 'You are such a bother' and act distant, being cold most of the time and appearing or disappearing like a ghost, the moment the holiday started, this person was already ringing his doorbell.

Truly...

Very cute.

'Didi (younger brother), please come in.'

Li Xihe stepped aside with a smile, signaling his welcome.

Ji Yue nodded and stepped into the foyer.

He unbuttoned his Black Coat and took it off.

As the servant hurried over, Li Xihe had already taken the Black Coat before the servant could reach out, hanging it on the rack himself.

The servant watched him with surprise—was this some kind of big shot?

'It is so late, are you staying the night?'

Li Xihe did not ask why he had come; he leisurely opened the door, intending to keep him here first.

There was no answer.

He turned his head, but the foyer was empty. Ji Yue had vanished.

Only a corner of his clothing flickered past the corner of the spiral staircase, like butterfly wings, vanishing instantly from sight.

[Detective, what are we investigating tonight?!]

The System rubbed its hands together.

'Let us look around first and see if there are any suspicious details.'

Suspects would not reveal their flaws voluntarily.

Moreover, Li Xihe was a man with a suspicious nature.

Servants stood in the hallway, their eyes following the strange guest.

A beautiful youth with hair reaching his waist; the color was deep, lustrous and soft like animal fur, draped over his back and swaying lightly with his movements.

He wandered through the mansion, looking here and there, walking almost without a sound.

The servants looked at each other, unsure if they should stop him, but Li Xihe seemed not to mind.

Ji Yue stopped in front of a walnut door.

He reached out to push it; the door was heavy.

Once opened, it revealed a media room.

Unlike the Chinese architectural style of the rest of the house, this room was modern and minimalist. The shelves on all four walls were densely packed with discs, some looking very old with yellowed covers.

In the center was a dark gray soft sofa, with a glass of wine on the side table.

Ji Yue went over to look; the ice had not yet melted.

Clearly, Li Xihe had been watching a movie here just moments ago.

Ji Yue straightened up. The screen was still lit, frozen on the face of a middle-aged actor.

He had some impression of this; it was a science fiction film about a protagonist who constantly traveled through time until his death. The movie was very long, giving the audience an immersive feeling of time travel.

Did Li Xihe like this type of movie?

'Why did you wander in here, Didi?'

Li Xihe walked in through the door, holding a glass of water.

Ji Yue stood before the screen, hands behind his back as if nothing were the matter.

'Just wandering around,' he explained.

Wandering into someone else's media room?

Li Xihe did not call his bluff. He knew Ji Yue had a cat-like curiosity about him, which was quite interesting.

He sat on the sofa and handed Ji Yue a glass of water, asking, 'Did you come to see me for something today? Is your assignment missing an interview subject?'

'Can I not come to see you without a reason?'

Ji Yue questioned.

'I did not mean that. It is just that I am not used to it if you do not find an excuse.'

'...'

Ji Yue held the glass, saying nothing, just like the lemon slice soaking in the water, floating coldly.

Facing such ambiguous words, he had no reaction at all, even souring his face—did he think this was a provocation?

Li Xihe laughed: 'Your personality is truly hard to grasp. Has anyone ever told you that?'

'I do not know.'

'Even if they told you, you would not take it to heart, I suppose. But that is fine.' Li Xihe studied the screen and switched the page. A tiger appeared on the screen. 'Do you want to watch this, or should we watch Animal World?'

Ji Yue thought to himself, I prefer suspense thrillers.

He checked the time and said to Li Xihe, 'I want to tour your house. You keep watching; I will come back later.'

'Do you not need me to show you around?'

'No need. Bye.'

He took a sip of lemon water and set off.

Some servants were cleaning and asked where he was going when they saw him.

'Just wandering around,' he said.

They were currently on the second floor, which had eight rooms in total and was very spacious.

One room seemed to be used for developing film, filled with many photos. He walked closer to look carefully; they were all landscape photos—mountains, the sea, sunsets—taken with great care.

Pushing open the door to the next room, Ji Yue discovered many framed finished works, hanging on the walls one by one, with some leaning against the corners.

[So that is it, Li Xihe is a photography enthusiast. The original work did not mention this either. A good harvest today.]

Li Xihe’s works seemed to be themed around cities, with few landscapes or portraits. There were many buildings from the Upper and Lower Cities and some temples from the ancient Earth era, likely photographed at restoration sites.

Thinking about it, aside from when he was at the school infirmary, one could not tell that Li Xihe was a medical student.

Besides photography, what else did he like?

The room was vast and empty. Ji Yue continued to observe in all directions.

Walking further in, the photos on the wall changed, and a portrait appeared.

This person looked somewhat familiar.

[This is... you from before!]

It was not him from the Boys' Academy period, nor was it recent; it was likely even earlier.

The person in the photo was not looking at the lens. With people coming and going in the background, he sat alone on a street bench, wearing bright red over-ear headphones, his long hair with dyed gold and pink highlights blown by the wind. The expression on his face was not as cold; he looked like he was daydreaming, waiting for someone.

Li Xihe walked into the room behind him.

He looked at the photo and smiled: 'You are surprised that I have photos of you from before? I mailed a few to you yesterday... you did not even open my gift, did you?'

Gifts or whatever were not the point.

Ji Yue did not understand: 'I have no impression of you. We have never met. Did you take this photo?'

'I just saw you unilaterally. I took the photo and developed it, finding you sitting there wearing headphones and listening to music. The composition was good; it had a great atmosphere,' he said. 'So, when I saw you again not long after, I was truly a bit surprised... how did you walk out of the photo?'

Li Xihe did not often take portraits. He had taken many landscapes and still lifes, rarely pointing his lens at people. The results were not good; he could not capture the emotional traits of people, perhaps because he lacked talent in that area. This photo was the only one he had kept.

If he had not met him at the Noble Boys' Academy, he probably would have sought him out to be a photography model.

Ji Yue looked at his own photo, the strands of hair blown by the wind mixed with a few highlights of gold and pink. Back then, he was still studying in the Upper City, had not yet transferred, and had not begun his investigations as a great detective.

He felt, vaguely, that he had grasped a clue...

Li Xihe knew me before, and so did Si Jing.

He let out a breath.

Was it a coincidence?

Because he had found key information, Ji Yue became slightly more pleasant toward Li Xihe—which meant sitting together to watch a movie and chatting with a cold face. Chatting for more than three sentences was already quite difficult; most of the time, he could barely say more than ten words to others.

Through Ji Yue’s few words, Li Xihe could tell he was in a good mood.

Was it because of that photo, or for some other reason?

'Are you hungry? Shall I make you a midnight snack? I can boil some noodles.'

I do not want to eat.

Ji Yue shook his head.

The sofa in the media room was very soft, giving the illusion of sinking into sand.

The actor on the screen was traveling through time for the fifth time, trying to change the future again. A flash of light and shadow passed before his eyes, and Ji Yue’s eyelids became heavy as lead.

Before his head could drop, a hand steadily supported his face.

A face the size of a palm, a pointed chin, and curved cheeks. During their first official meeting, Li Xihe had already been thinking that he wanted to reach out and touch his face... it was indeed as soft as sun-melted milk candy.

The flesh of his cheek was pressed by his fingertips, instantly leaving a pale red mark.

His cool, smooth long hair spilled down with his movements, brushing against Li Xihe’s knees.

His eyelashes trembled, and he woke up.

After a few seconds, Ji Yue sat up straight.

'Did I... fall asleep just now?'

'You are tired. Should we find a place for you to sleep?'

Li Xihe’s voice also became soft and low.

'Where?'

'This is not a good place to sleep. I will find a room for you.'

Only later, when Ji Yue was lying on the bed and Li Xihe had said goodnight and closed the door, did he realize that this bedroom was decorated with great care.

It was not a standard guest room configuration but contained many things with personal traces.

There were several photographic works on the wall with clean compositions.

The desk had a physiology-related book spread open, with curled pages and folded corners.

The wardrobe door was not closed tightly, revealing the sleeve of a black turtleneck sweater.

...This must be the bedroom where Li Xihe himself lived.

Ji Yue lay on the strange bed, wondering why this person had given up his master bedroom to him?

[There are clearly many guest rooms here! The house is ridiculously large!]

'I do not know.'

[How strange! He wants to sleep in the bed you slept in?]

'...'

Never mind that for now.

Ji Yue turned over.

No, that is not right!

...The place where Li Xihe lived must hide some information.

He quickly threw off the quilt and got out of bed.

[The host is too dedicated!!]

First, the cabinet.

He pulled open the drawer; inside were some documents, mostly related to identity verification, nothing particularly noteworthy.

Ji Yue turned to the bookshelf and desk.

The books on the shelf were normal, with nothing tucked inside.

The desk drawer was very deep, almost large enough to hide half a person. Upon opening it, there were several folders. These files were very thick, and the covers were not labeled.

The first folder was a thick stack, all containing content related to Yuwen Qing, from his birthplace and time to his various experiences from childhood to adulthood, photos, records, and private information. The attached documents were of a type that could only be obtained through non-public channels.

[Huh, why is Li Xihe collecting these?]

Ji Yue closed the first folder and picked up the remaining three.

The second, third, and fourth files were for Yan Min, He Yuanxi, and Si Jing, respectively.

Private information on four people in total, detailed to an abnormal degree.

How strange.

The files he had pulled out were scattered all over the carpet; the black and white text looked quite eerie in the moonlight.

[The F4 cannot be detectives! He is indeed very suspicious.]

'Do you not think it is strange? There is no file on me here. If Li Xihe just had a severe case of suspicion, he would have checked my information too. He even checked the ancestors of the elite students he was not familiar with.'

[That is true...]

[What on earth is going on?]

'Li Xihe is investigating these people for some reason.'

Ji Yue closed the files one by one and put them back into the drawer.

Clearly, this was related to the event that Si Jing said was 'almost over.'

What kind of relationship did they actually have?

Ji Yue was still thinking about this until the next day.

'How did you sleep last night?'

Li Xihe was still wearing a turtleneck sweater, and a long cross necklace dangled before his eyes.

The two met in the courtyard. Ji Yue had woken up late, and Li Xihe had just finished his morning run and changed his clothes. As soon as he went downstairs, he saw him at a glance—the beautiful youth stood alone in front of the fountain, like a statue of an angel in the morning light, motionless, lost in thought.

After a long while, he finally turned his face.

'Your bed is too hard. I do not like it.'

'A soft bed is not good for your back.' Li Xihe smiled. 'Did you realize that was my bedroom?'

'Because the other bedrooms do not have this kind of decor.'

'I wanted you to sleep more comfortably.'

'Hmm, I am ready to go home. Thank you for your hospitality.'

'Leaving already? Why not stay a few more days?' Li Xihe wiped his glasses and called the servant to arrange the departure time.

[The F4's first sentence just now, I thought he was not planning to let you leave. It seems he is in a very good mood?]

'...'

Why is he in a good mood?

I do not understand.

They walked side by side to the car. The driver opened the door, and Ji Yue got in and said goodbye to him.

Li Xihe bent down and said to him: 'When will you come next time? I do not know... next time, I will go to your house, or we can visit each other on the island?'

The car door closed.

The vehicle moved slowly.

[This guy’s fantasies are quite nice, but it is a pity—once we get the truth, we are leaving immediately! He can forget about meeting us!]

Precisely because of this, Ji Yue never made promises about future events.

When he got home, he changed his clothes, had lunch, and read a short mystery novel, frowning at the plot where the detective suddenly turned into a murderer.

The butler thought he was like the Princess and the Pea from last night: 'It is better to sleep at home. The beds outside are not comfortable; the young master should not suffer such hardships.'

[The butler uncle cannot imagine that the hardship you suffered outside was tracking the F4, and possibly suffering in your rear.]

'...'

'I will not be sleeping out anymore.'

Ji Yue put down his coffee and ordered the driver to head out.

'The Madam said some relatives are coming today, so do not go out to play,' the butler called out to him.

'Relatives?'

'It is the Seventh Aunt’s second cousin, a friend who used to be very close to the Madam. I heard they made up recently and decided to bring the children from the family over to renew their friendship.'

[Sounds like a friendship game for high society, where the children are dragged in as part of their comparison ritual.]

Ji Yue did not ask more about the relatives; he had always been indifferent to these things. The social occasions at home were not enough to make him show his face; he always found a place to hide quietly and only appeared after everyone had left.

Unfortunately, just like having to perform piano or show off academic results to relatives during the New Year, Ji Yue was hiding behind the rockery reading a comic book for the afternoon when he was caught by his parents and ordered to go see that aunt.

'You do not understand at all,' he was dragged forward, his mother’s voice lowered in his ear, 'my battle with her is not over yet.'

'...'

Why does that sound like they are about to fight?

When the people arrived, he was still flipping through his comic, completely unconcerned. Anyway, the other party’s child was probably just like him—a tool forced to come along.

Upon meeting, the two ladies simultaneously let out 'ah-ha-ha' old-money laughs.

'It has been over a decade, your child has grown so much!'

'My child is also on break; they are stuck in traffic and will be here later.'

Ji Yue was like a marionette, pressed onto the sofa, forced to participate in the relative pleasantries, opening his mouth to say 'Hello, Auntie, nice to meet you.'

Not long after, the Seventh Aunt’s second cousin’s child arrived.

This person walked into the living room against the light, his hair shining with golden radiance, tanned skin, tall stature, and dressed in a way that still showed off his pectoral muscles. He bowed to the two elders, his tone polite and his flattery impeccable, praising the Madam for looking so young, like she was twenty-five, and asking how she maintained it. At a glance, he was the kind of sweet-talking junior that the elders would love.

The Madam laughed, then began to introduce her own child.

'My child just does not like to talk! Ji Yue, look at you, why are you not even looking up?'

Ji Yue’s gaze had to move from his comic book, colliding in mid-air with the gaze of the other 'child.'

Ji Yue: '...'

Yuwen Qing: '...'

[Is this 'child' a bit too big?! This is a scam!]

Ji Yue had thought a 'child' in the true sense was coming; now he looked at the other’s muscular build and fell silent.

The two ladies ignored them and began discussing their art and charity work. One of them suddenly remembered something and said, 'You two are in the same school, right? Do you know each other?'

'We are good friends.'

'I do not know him.'

Yuwen Qing and Ji Yue answered simultaneously.

Yuwen Qing raised an eyebrow: 'Auntie, Xiao Yue is just a bit shy, you know him.'

'I knew he had this personality at school! You should take him out to play more often.'

'Sure, I would be very happy to play with him.'

'...'

I would not.

The lady from the Yuwen family looked at Ji Yue and remembered a past event: 'When we had not fallen out, before your child was born, we even agreed that your child would marry my son in the future. It is a pity that he is a boy.'

'Yes, I did not expect him to be born a boy. It was not meant to be, maybe in the next life.'

His mother smiled faintly, though there was no sign of regret that the marriage would not happen.

[What?! You have a dark history of being betrothed at birth?!]

'...I did not know at all.'

[Then it is not strange, then it is not strange! You already had a bit of a twisted fate!]' the System shook its head and shouted.

Yuwen Qing’s reaction was similar to his; he was stunned for a moment upon hearing this.

But immediately after, Yuwen Qing glanced at him with a complex expression for a few seconds, then turned to laugh with the two ladies: 'So there was such a thing? No wonder. He kept it from me; I did not even know.'

'...'

What did this person imagine this time?

Ji Yue could not be bothered to argue. He closed his comic book and walked straight out of the living room.

Yuwen Qing followed behind, making excuses to the two ladies, saying they planned to walk around the courtyard and would be back later.

'Why are you suddenly angry? Your temper is really strange.'

Yuwen Qing followed two steps behind him.

Along the way, he neither saw him turn back nor received an answer.

Ji Yue sat down under a tree, leaning his back against the trunk, and continued flipping through the horror-themed comic book. The breeze was light, brushing past them and blowing away a few fallen leaves.

Yuwen Qing sat down as well.

...He had not paid much attention to the details of Ji Yue’s family before, only knowing that after his parents remarried, they had many children, and Ji Yue was the eldest. No wonder that lady’s name sounded familiar.

Betrothed at birth.

...No wonder Ji Yue was hot and cold toward him at school; it was because he knew they were almost betrothed.

So that is it.

Yuwen Qing was having an internal struggle under the tree, glancing at Ji Yue from time to time.

Meanwhile, Ji Yue was busy reading. He turned a page heavily, his brow furrowed because he was angered by the suspect in the comic, wishing he could jump in and punch him.

'Do you not have anything you want to say to me?'

Yuwen Qing asked him out of the blue.

'Yes.'

'Go ahead.'

'Get lost.'

Ji Yue ignored him, stood up, patted the grass clippings off his pants, and walked back.

[Hahaha, Yuwen Qing’s expression is so speechless. Did he think you were going to give him some romantic speech?]

[But then again, how could a detective and an F4 almost have an engagement!]

Because this is a BUG.

Settings that should not have appeared and affected the plot were the reason for the deviation from the original work.

Ji Yue thought, he needed to contact the other F4 members.

The two returned to the living room one after the other. The two ladies were touching up their lipstick, preparing to go out for dinner.

Ji Yue slid past them silently.

'Are you not coming?' his mother glanced at him.

'No.'

His mother was used to it and signaled that he could go wherever he wanted.

Ji Yue saw her to the door. At the car, he said 'Mommy, bye-bye' outside the window.

He kept his head down, looking uncharacteristically well-behaved.

Yuwen Qing acted as the driver for the two ladies. He walked around to the driver’s seat but did not get in immediately, instead grabbing Ji Yue’s wrist and pinning him against his body.

The blonde man was tall and broad-shouldered, completely blocking the view of the two ladies in the car. No one noticed what the two children were doing outside.

'If your parents agree, it is not impossible,' Yuwen Qing said in his ear.

The warm breath lingered by his ear, making his skin itch.

Ji Yue turned his head and walked away.

The wind lifted his long hair, cold, brushing across Yuwen Qing’s face strand by strand, like a series of cold slaps.

Yuwen Qing stared at his retreating back and twitched the corner of his mouth. For some reason, he wanted to get angry, but at the same time, he inexplicably felt a strange, contradictory sense of satisfaction, wanting to be slapped a few more times.