Polly is Professor Lao's most beloved "youngest son". He always wears a children's backpack, and he wears a different outfit every day. He is so proud of it.
Jian Jing remembered that yesterday morning, it changed into a red and blue patchwork outfit and showed off in front of the knight. She was so angry that she immediately changed her dog into a suit.
And now, the gray cloth falling to the ground was Polly's new dress.
She picked it up and shook it, and a silver anklet fell out.
This is also Polly's thing. The name of the observatory is engraved on the surface and the phone number is on the back. It is also equipped with a GPS positioning chip to make it easier for Professor Lao to find it.
I looked around but saw no trace of monkeys.
"It was taken away," Chen said.
Jian Jing carefully put away the evidence: "That's what it means. The murderer took Polly away in advance, apparently knowing that it would ruin his plan. But he didn't kill the monkey directly. Why?"
Chen closed his mouth tightly, his expression showing some confusion.
Jian Jing said: "Knight, look again and see if you can find the monkey."
The knight lowered his head obediently and sniffed around the grass.
It seemed to discover something but was very confused. It circled twice, twitched its ears and returned successfully.
"It's okay, it's already very good." Jian Jing took out some dried meat and fed it.
The knight's horse became happy, and he lay down beside the horse and started to nibble on the dried meat.
"Chen, how long does it take for someone familiar with the road conditions to get from the hotel to this observation point?"
"50 minutes."
"Take me to the place where you separated."
The place where the four people split up was not very far from No. 3, about 20 minutes away, and maybe only 15 minutes for someone who walks fast.
"How many gunshots did you hear?"
Chen was very sure: "Yes."
"Professor Lao's gun fired at least 10 bullets, and he suffered three bullet wounds on his body." She thought, "and you only heard one gunshot."
Chen: "The other party is pretending to be stupid."
"From the current perspective, this is the only one." Jian Jing said to herself, "They are well prepared. The gun at point 3 and the gun left at the observation post both have 10 bullets, not a single one is missing."
To be honest, if Chen hadn't insisted that there were no outsiders and the police's information had not confirmed this, it would have been an intruder with malicious intentions.
After a difficult survey of the scene, Jian Jing and others returned along the same route as last night.
"This road is so bumpy, it's not comfortable, right?" After stubbing her toe for the nth time, Jian Jing couldn't help but feel uncomfortable.
Chen said: "GPS only tells you the location, not the height. We just go this way."
"..." She couldn't help but ask, "How long will it take to get back to the hotel directly?"
"30 minutes. For you, 45 minutes." Chen gave an affirmative answer.
Jian Jing held her waist and sighed depressedly: "Okay."
You have to complete the recovery route you choose, even if you have to kneel down.
It took two hours to finally see the hotel's tent.
President Kang sent pancakes and iced coconut milk to ask, "How is the situation?"
Kang Mucheng: "The monkey is gone."
"Didn't find the criminal?"
Jian Jing blinked and said: "To paraphrase an old line, the murderer is among us."
President Kang is knowledgeable and experienced. He shrugged and said, "It seems that this is something we don't know." Then he brought a glass of coconut milk and went on with his business.
Jian Jing took off her sneakers, rubbed her toes and complained: "The road is hard to walk on. I have to go soak my feet."
She jumped off the terrace and ran to the puddle to soothe her toes while it was still light.
The knight leaped down and followed closely.
"Don't you want pancakes?" Kang Mucheng asked her.
She said, "Give it to me."
Kang Mucheng was dragged into the water.
I have to say, the stream water is icy and cool, and it is very comfortable to soak your feet in the transparent water after walking all day. She took the muffin and ate it with relish, and did not forget to feed half of it to the dog.
Kang Mucheng looked at her face and suddenly asked, "Do you really think the murderer is here?"
"Intuition." She chewed the sweet pancake and said vaguely, "If they were smugglers and poachers and met Professor Lao at point 3, their first reaction would definitely be to run away instead of killing, right? Their goal is to hide from the spotlight, and a dead body would attract the police to search the mountain."
After swallowing the food, he asked again, "Besides, the observatory has been open for so long, they are familiar with the terrain, how could they not know about this person?"
"Why did the murderer want to kill the professor?" he asked.
"I don't know." Jian Jing took a sip of coconut juice and scooped out the coconut meat at the bottom with a straw. "There are a lot of things that don't make sense here. I have no direction. I must check it carefully again."
Kang Mucheng sighed.
She was curious: "Why are you asking this?" He had never been interested in the case before. Could it be that President Kang was involved and his good son had to pay more attention to it
“I’m worried.”
"What are you worried about?"
"Like you said, if the murderer is someone like this, he must hope that everyone recognizes him. The person who fired the gun is an unknown criminal, but you said it's not." Kang Mucheng looked at the dense forest in the distance and said, "Aren't you afraid that he will kill the first one and then the second one?"
Jian Jing: "Are you afraid that the murderer will sneak into my room in the middle of the night and shoot me?"
Kang Mucheng asked back: "No?"
"Yes." She admitted, her eyes falling on the knight. "You reminded me that I have to prepare the knight's dinner myself, so as not to make the other party desperate and attack my dog."
The knight shivered and looked at his master with his dark eyes.
Jian Jing couldn't help laughing and hugged it: "Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, look at me."
"Woo." The knight hummed twice and rested his head on her arm, feeling warm.
The sun sets over the mountain.
The rainforest sheds its lush greenness during the day and turns into mystery at night.
Lao didn't cook, and dinner was just sandwiches and ice milk.
Jian Jing dealt with the two bites casually, fed the dog some raw meat and bones, sent it back to the room to guard the house, and then found Fina and said she had something to ask her.
Fina was very sorry: "I said I would take you to catch alligators, but I..." Her eyes were red and she choked up, "I still can't believe that he just left me like this... Oh my God... I really..."
Jian Jing patiently comforted her for a long time before slowly telling her the reason.
"Would you like to talk to me about Dr. Charlie?"
"Doctor?" Fina didn't know why she asked this, but at this moment, she was willing to talk to someone instead of shutting herself up. The image of her father covered in blood appeared in her mind. "I don't know much about him."
"Anything is fine. For example, how did he get to know you?"
Fina replied: "He is Vanilla's friend. You know, my father has been working here. He doesn't leave the observatory for several months when he is busy, but Vanilla doesn't stay here all the time. She has her job and has to go to school when she is not on vacation."
Jian Jing knew that Lao Tzu was a university professor and his schedule was probably the same as in China, and he would only go home during the winter and summer vacations.
"I heard that he used to work at the university, but resigned. Vanilla invited him to stay with us for a while. One time, another guest happened to be bitten by a snake, and he helped to treat the wound. Vanilla asked him if he would like to work part-time, as we need a doctor here."
"Why don't you just ask a doctor to come here? It's very dangerous in the wild."
"It's expensive. It costs a lot to maintain the observatory." Fina explained, "To be honest, I think it's a good idea, but my father doesn't like Charlie."
Jian Jing was surprised: "What?"
Fina said: "Men's jealousy."
"ah?"
"Because Vanilla often praises Charlie, saying that he is smart, humble, and serious." Fina shrugged, "You have to admit that Dr. Charlie is a charming man."
Jian Jing thought: Charm is real, but it's a bit old.
"And your father was jealous?" she asked.
"Vanilla spends more time with Dr. Cha than with Dad. They used to be colleagues, and they probably drink coffee and chat every day." Fina said, "She only stays with us during holidays."
Jian Jing heard her calm tone and couldn't help but be curious: "You don't seem angry."
"A few years ago, before Vanilla got her job at the university, she stayed with us all the time. At that time, she always told me that her father didn't pay enough attention to her. Every day he either watched rhinos or crocodiles, and he spent more time with these animals than with her."
Fina smiled and said, "Isn't that the same kind of complaint? So, I support her to fight for a job at the university. It is really interesting for her to stay here forever."
After a pause, she pretended to be relaxed and said, "My boyfriend and I broke up this way, too."
Jian Jing asked: "So, are they on good terms now?"
"I think it's better than before. There used to be a lot of complaints and arguments, but now, Vanilla doesn't get angry because her father doesn't accompany her at work. They don't quarrel except when she goes to see a doctor."
Fina was very sensible.
Jian Jing liked her even more, and she still had to ask, "To what extent is the conflict between your father and Doctor Cha?"
"It's like the competition between little boys." Fina said distressedly, "If Dr. Vanilla prepares coffee, Dad will insist that they make a pizza by themselves - men are really childish, right?"
"That's right." Jian Jing laughed, "So, what about Doctor Cha? What does he think of your father?"
Fina spread her hands and said, "Dr. Cha is just a workaholic. I mean, he probably doesn't know why my dad hates him. But he hates my dad, too."
"What is this?"
"Vanilla got a rare opportunity to study abroad, but she gave it up," said Fina. "Dr. Cha was very angry and felt that my father was hindering her development. So, although he accepted Vanilla's invitation, they seldom talked to each other."
Jian Jing nodded, and she understood the Shura field of middle-aged and elderly people.
"Let's talk about reporter Li."
"Mr. Reporter? He is just an ordinary person, very curious about everything here. In the past few days, he kept asking me to take him around, take a lot of photos, and ask a lot of questions. Maybe he is a good reporter?"
There are always some subtle feelings between girls. Maybe it's the words they use, or the expressions, but in general, it's not difficult to see the other person's true feelings through careful observation.
Jian Jing went straight to the point: "You don't seem to like him?"
"He is so enthusiastic, just like my friend in the United States." Fina said distressedly, "I have become accustomed to the tranquility of the forest, and he makes me feel uncomfortable."
Jian Jing said calmly: "Do you like Chen?"
Fina almost jumped up: "What?" She spoke in her native language in surprise.
Jian Jing: “Isn’t it?”
"Uh." After all, she was an American girl, so Fina hesitated and smiled in agreement.
"What kind of person is Chen?" she took the opportunity to ask.
Fina said: "He works very hard. When he first came, he could only say 'hello' and 'bye', but now he can communicate with us in daily life. He is very reliable. He grew up in the countryside and is as familiar with the forest as his back garden. I feel safe staying with him."
"How long has he been a ranger?"
"Five years. Two years earlier than me." She said, "I heard from my father that there were only three forest rangers at the beginning, but the other two couldn't stand the hardship and resigned one after another. Only he persisted. Jane, do you know? He loves this forest. We are the same."