Rebirth: Spoiling the Obsessive Film Emperor Chapter 44

Chapter 44: Hidden Away  

"I really am not the killer," Yin Chengjue continued, casting his vote for Hua Yun. "Although I didn’t find definitive evidence proving Hua Yun is Jiao Yu, I did notice nail polish stains on the back of his collar—the exact same color as the victim’s."  

"It’s as if a woman who had just painted her nails, before they dried, hugged someone she knew, only to be struck hard. In her struggle, she grabbed their clothes, leaving the marks."  

"The clothes we’re wearing now were all prepared by the props team. To stay in character, it’s normal for them to leave clues on the outfits."  

Xiao Xiao exclaimed in surprise, "Such crucial information—why didn’t you mention it before we voted?"  

Yin Chengjue shook his head, frowning. "I felt like something was still missing. I wanted to see what answers you’d come up with."  

"Well then, now it’s clear we should vote for Brother Hua, right?" Rong Yu chimed in. "I believe Brother Yin isn’t the killer."  

With that, Rong Yu cast his vote for Hua Yun.  

Now, Hua Yun had two votes. Even if Xiao Xiao insisted on voting for Yin Chengjue, it wouldn’t matter anymore, so he simply voted for Hua Yun as well.  

"Beep!—" After the final vote, a sweet female voice echoed throughout the hotel: "The detectives have cast their votes. The detectives have cast their votes."  

"Now announcing the detectives’ voting results."  

"The three detectives’ voting results are—incorrect!"  

"The detectives have failed. The real killer has escaped."  

Yin Chengjue listened to the broadcast, stunned for a moment before suddenly realizing: "So that’s it! The killer isn’t Jiao Yu! Jiao Yu only struck Xi Xi, but the fatal wound was suffocation!"  

Someone strangled Xi Xi after Jiao Yu had struck her!  

Who was it? Who else? There were too few clues—nothing connected!  

"Too few clues…" Rong Yu sighed, then suddenly raised his hands in a praying gesture. "That’s because the first one to find the clues… was me."  

"Sorry, Brother Yin, Brother Xiao…" Rong Yu tilted his head, as if reluctant to say it. "After I found the clues, I hid them away again."  

"Hidden them? Why would you do that?" Xiao Xiao, still reeling from the shock of voting wrong and letting the real killer escape, couldn’t quite process Rong Yu’s apology.  

"Because he is the killer."  

"Because I am the killer."  

Yin Chengjue and Rong Yu’s voices overlapped, echoing in Xiao Xiao’s ears.  

Three staff members in black appeared out of nowhere, covering the trio’s mouths and dragging them away.  

It was likely to conceal Rong Yu’s identity as the killer from the others still in the game, buying him time.  

After all, next, Rong Yu would be facing the remaining six players alone.  

"Mmmpf!" Xiao Xiao, after being dragged out, happened to run into Wei Shu coming from the other end of the hallway. He tried to speak but was ruthlessly silenced by the staff.  

"What’s going on? The game has this kind of twist? Who’s the killer? Who did you vote for?" Wei Shu asked rapidly.  

Xiao Xiao: "Mmmpf!"  

The staff member in black explained, "No information can be revealed."  

"Oh, alright then…" Wei Shu nodded in understanding.  

The three were taken to Qin Linlin’s area, where refreshments had already been prepared. Qin Linlin had Rong Yu change into a black hooded outfit before sending him back into the hotel. Yin Chengjue and Xiao Xiao, now eliminated, could only sit and watch.  

Xiao Xiao bit into an apple, frustrated. "Young Master Yin, is he a new signing at your company? His speed at finding things is insane!"  

Qin Linlin, who had been observing off-camera, laughed. "Once the episode is edited, you’ll see—Xiao Yu practically combed through every inch, leaving no clues behind! You really didn’t stand a chance, especially since he hid the key evidence pointing to himself so well. Even our staff couldn’t hide things as thoroughly as he did."  

"Where did he hide them? I remember the rules said clues couldn’t be destroyed," Xiao Xiao asked curiously.  

"Well… I’ll keep some suspense for the show, but I’ll mention one thing—Xiao Yu manually disassembled a toilet and hid the contents of the treasure box inside the plastic casing of the pipes."