Trafford's Trading Club

Chapter 1227: Chapter 68: The Taste of Memories

“Mingming? Mingming?”

“…What’s up?”

After calling out several times, Chen Mingming finally responded… The colleague didn’t pay much attention, just assumed Chen Mingming was too focused on the materials.

He chuckled and asked, “Everyone’s saying to get some late-night snacks. What do you want to eat?”

Unconsciously, it turned out to be this late… After checking the time, Chen Mingming shook his head saying he didn’t need any. The colleague nodded and turned away, while Chen Mingming took a deep breath and looked at the documents and materials at hand.

One was the time and place where Wang Liang posted photos in his friends circle after his death. Another was the time and place Wu Rong posted updates in her friends circle after her death.

And the last one was the time and place he copied from the ticket booking software, from his own past travels.

“They all match up…”

Chen Mingming slowly exhaled. His travel records perfectly matched with Wang Liang’s and Wu Rong’s friends circle updates… This was no mere coincidence.

He suddenly had trouble deciding if these travel records were real, or if they simply formed part of the backdrop of this evaluation—like the harmonious relationship of his parents now, as if everything was fictional.

But there was one thing he could confirm, which was that he indeed forgot something… He tried to recall memories from the days of those travel records, but it was mostly a blank.

Were the real memories of these travels erased, or was it merely a blurring of these memories to confuse his thinking?

Half an hour ago, Chen Mingming had tried to call upon that miraculous shop once again—but this time, he didn’t receive a response like the previous two times.

A call into a sea of silence… Chen Mingming understood in his heart, the other party had no intention of providing more hints.

Today has passed by more than half an hour, with at most 48 hours remaining until the evaluation ends.

Yet now, the real murderer still hasn’t been found, and his own travel records have further complicated matters…

“Sure enough, should I start with Zhao Le…”

Chen Mingming subconsciously furrowed his brow.

He’s already had contact with Zhao Le, and from Zhao Le’s reactions, he deduced that Zhao Le knew things beyond what his testamentary statements revealed, possibly even pointing directly to the core truth of the matter.

Zhao Le might be the true culprit.

But if he was the true culprit, there might still be the vague silhouette of another person behind this matter… Is this person an accomplice or the main culprit? And with what identity did they participate in this matter.

Stepping back, assuming an entire person, assuming this person might even be himself… Why did Zhao Le that night say nothing, and merely use ‘that person’?

Or perhaps ‘that person’ really was himself, but Zhao Le, like his parents and his colleagues in the police department, had parts of their memories altered, hence knowing about ‘that person’s’ existence but ignorant of ‘that person’s’ identity?

“By what means can the identity of ‘that person’ be proven…”

Chen Mingming had to admit that given all current conditions this puzzle was the hardest he’s ever encountered in his life…

“I want to go out for a bit.”

Too many doubts in his heart made Chen Mingming unable to continue staying in this conference room where nothing could be done, thus he applied to Zhou Yusheng to go out decisively.

“Reason?”

“I want to prove some things.”

Zhou Yusheng pondered for a while, finally nodded, then added, “Go to the gun room and get a gun before you head out.”

A gun.

Subconsciously, Chen Mingming remembered his silver handgun… He nodded slowly, after getting Zhou Yusheng’s approval, went to the gun room to retrieve a gun, then went out alone.

Not long after, a colleague came over and delivered a puzzle.

This was a memory puzzle created by the boss of the appliance repair department, regarding the mysterious person who purchased the freezer—it had been a long time ago, probably the puzzle wouldn’t be of much use.

Zhou Yusheng glanced at it casually, the man in the puzzle was wearing a mask and a peaked cap, leaving only his eyes exposed… Just by these eyes, really could not serve much purpose.

Yet it felt somewhat familiar…

Zhou Yusheng was slightly stunned but indeed couldn’t recall anything, so casually set the puzzle down, “I’m going to the forensics department.”

…

…

In the past, Zhou Yusheng remembered Chief Qin was almost always on duty, he was a man who, whenever needed, could be found in this icy cold office.

“Where is Nan Fayi?”

But at this time, Zhou Yusheng only saw Xiaobao… Since Chief Qin took leave and vanished, Xiaobao’s presence here was as if he practically lived here.

“Her, oh, she took a leave today, said she wasn’t feeling well.” Xiaobao said casually, then minimized some… Hmm, screwed up another team strategy mission, sorry…

“Hmm…” Zhou Yusheng nodded, walked into the office and sat down casually without saying anything, seemingly thinking.

Xiaobao, impatiently, asked helplessly: “Team Leader Zhou, anything the matter?”

Zhou Yusheng said: “No, just wanted to ask you, have you discovered any new findings regarding Wu Rong and Wang Liang’s bodies.”

Xiaobao shook his head: “Absolutely nothing, same as before, just know Wu Rong was killed by a fatal stabbing, and Wang Liang’s cause of death is still unknown.”

The police, since discovering Wu Rong’s body, were already clear on Wu Rong’s cause of death, as a knife plunged into her chest, fatal.

Regarding Wang Liang, since the body was so severely damaged, even pieces left in the freezer couldn’t piece together a complete body.

“Speaking of which, what was Wang Liang’s body missing again?” Zhou Yusheng asked subconsciously.

Xiaobao opened a computer file, reading as he looked: “Left arm part missing, right thigh part missing, left rib missing, liver shaped missing, head missing, that’s about it… Based on existing body parts, haven’t found the fatal wound… The fatal wound might be in those missing parts.”

As no toxic reactions were found in other internal organs, poisoning has been mostly ruled out.

“Could it be dismembering while the person is anesthetized, causing death from excessive blood loss?”

“No traces of anesthetic components were found in the body.” Xiaobao shook his head.

“What about suffocation?” Zhou Yusheng suddenly recalled a simulation he and Chen Mingming did on site.

“This is hard to say… Body fragments like that, plus frozen for several months, almost no surface characteristic marks left.”

Xiaobao pondered for a bit, then added: “Or perhaps, the dismemberment seems to be meant for covering up the real cause of death… Actually, this method of dismembering, no, should say handling of body parts is very good, basically left us no useful information. I’ve participated in many autopsies, this kind of body is still the first time encountering.”

“You mean the killer is familiar with human anatomy?”

“Hmm… how should I put it.” Xiaobao thought for a bit and said: “Certainly not professional, sort of amateur, but the skill level is already quite good.”

Zhou Yusheng nodded, took a close look at the drug reaction test on Xiaobao’s table about Wang Liang and examined it closely.

“Isobutylphenylpropionic acid… Xiaobao, what’s this isobutylphenylpropionic acid?” Zhou Yusheng asked curiously: “Found slight incompletely dissolved residue in the stomach?”

“Oh, it’s actually ibuprofen, just a painkiller.” Xiaobao said: “Headache, toothache, gland pain, actually can all be taken, available at pharmacies, very common drugs.”

“So Wang Liang took painkillers before he died?” Zhou Yusheng frowned and said: “Why would he need painkillers…”

“Maybe toothache?” Xiaobao said helplessly, “Besides, a few painkillers don’t kill anyone.”

Zhou Yusheng shook his head… Apparently, there were no new discoveries from this visit, “Thanks for your efforts, I’ll head back.”

“Team Leader Zhou, take care!”

Xiaobao didn’t see him off, and at the moment Zhou Yusheng stepped out the door, he opened up the game interface, “Sure enough… screwed another team…”

Watching the frantic screen spamming curses in the team chat, Xiaobao chose sadly to ignore it… One avatar even turned gray directly.

“Could he have logged off out of anger… Is it really necessary?”

Xiaobao shook his head, chose to leave the team, then started shouting in the global chat: High Rank Holy Light Priest, professional Milk God, abundant milk supply, ensuring you won’t die from milk… Seeking team ahhh!!!

…

…

Just as she stepped out of the elevator, Mammy Ren saw Nan Xiao Nan squatting in front of her own door, her hair slightly damp, seemingly having sweated quite a bit, as if she had just climbed ten flights of stairs.

At the moment they met, Mammy Ren blurted out, “Eh, why are you squatting here?”

At the same moment, Nan Xiao Nan incredulously asked, “How did you manage to take the elevator up here? Isn’t the elevator…”

But seeing the elevator suddenly working again, Nan Xiao Nan cast a rather unhappy glance… Is the world really this biased?

“What’s wrong with the elevator?”

“No, nothing…” Nan Xiao Nan looked up, feeling rather troubled, “I actually just went downstairs to buy something and then realized… I forgot my keys.”

Of course, even without keys, getting inside wasn’t really difficult—the real issue was that Nan Xiao Nan didn’t dare to use any illegal means to open the door of this house.

Who knows if your ‘son’ has done something, and entering illegally might result in death?

“Oh no, I forgot about this, I’ll give you a spare key next time.” Ren Ziling slapped her forehead, “Why didn’t you call me… Eh, it seems we didn’t even exchange numbers, my memory is terrible!”

Nan Xiao Nan gave a couple of awkward laughs, thinking at least you know…

“By the way, have you eaten?” Mammy Ren asked casually as she entered the door, “I packed some food for you in case you haven’t eaten.”

“No need, I’ve eaten,” Nan Xiao Nan declined the offer, but noticing Luo Qiu didn’t return with Ren Ziling, she curiously asked, “By the way, where is Mr. Luo Qiu? Why didn’t he come back with you?”

“He… went to see his girlfriend off,” Ren Ziling chuckled, “It’s actually better if he doesn’t return tonight.”

Girlfriend…

What kind of woman would attract the interest of this super powerful person or be acknowledged as a girlfriend?

Nan Xiao Nan was always one to analyze situations—judging by how men tend to take care of women, a woman who can be with someone so powerful must at least be protected by world will like Ren Ziling…

Hmmmm…

Should I throw away my dignity and offer myself…

But my current appearance as Nan Xiao Nan’s body isn’t particularly dazzling, though in my true form…

Lost in thought, Nan Xiao Nan couldn’t help but laugh at herself, realizing it had been too long since she had felt so weak, causing her mindset to become imbalanced.

She took a deep breath, then pushed these unrealistic thoughts aside… A being of such caliber wouldn’t be interested in women approaching with ulterior motives—and besides, it’s unknown if they’re even interested in women at all!

I, Olga Wiltaris, have never relied on men nor lowered myself before one!

Taking a deep breath, Nan Xiao Nan entered the room and started pondering her future plans.

The ‘compressor’ star spirit has been brought back and should return to being an ordinary compressor by this time tomorrow… And the culprit has already been identified.

“Hmm… I think I’ll have to maintain this forensic doctor’s identity for a while,” Nan Xiao Nan mused, nibbling on chocolate chips one by one.

These help replenish the energy her body expends when she accelerates her thought processes.

“The downside of soul fusion is that it often carries the obsessions of the original soul; if they can’t be eliminated, they will always affect me… But what exactly is Nan Xiao Nan’s obsession? Perhaps I can start from her original work.”

“Now that the culprit who used the freezer has been found, the key is how to refocus the police’s investigation on Zhao Le… That’s simple, I’ll fabricate some clues later to point the suspicion back at Zhao Le… Helping to solve the case will earn some credit, making future operations easier. That’s human nature; people start to respect those with abilities. I’ll go to work tomorrow morning…”

“The matter of being hunted will only continue once I leave this place… And my time to leave should be after I finish writing the Star Creation Technique. But I can’t delay finishing it too long, so as not to dissatisfy this super powerful person, I should actually finish writing it quickly… At least before I completely regain my strength, I shouldn’t leave any negative impression on this super powerful person; I might need their assistance in the future…”

Having thought of it, Nan Xiao Nan immediately opened her laptop and began writing the Star Creation Technique she knew… Her thoughts accelerated frantically, and in the blink of an eye, several hours had passed.

The general outline and the first major chapter of the Star Creation Technique were thus completed.

Taking a deep breath as she was about to continue, her stomach suddenly cramped, her head felt dizzy, and her body went weak.

“Damn… I’ve over-accelerated mentally, and my body has no surplus energy left to burn…” Nan Xiao Nan swallowed, discovering that the chocolate chips she had just bought were already eaten up.

“So hungry…”

Nan Xiao Nan reluctantly opened the door, the outside was incredibly quiet, the lights were off, but she could hear Ren Ziling snoring.

This woman really is…

Shaking her head, Nan Xiao Nan thought about the food Ren Ziling had packed and put in the fridge… At this moment, she was famished and just wanted to eat something, paying no mind to whether it was cold.

Thinking of the time when she was a slave, she couldn’t recount how many times she’d eaten much worse food than this.

Opening the container, Nan Xiao Nan quickly stuffed a dessert into her mouth, trying her best to be cautious so as not to wake Ren Ziling… Who knows if waking her might bring some misfortune upon herself?

“You can turn on the light, it’s okay.”

At the moment the living room lights came on, Luo Qiu’s voice sounded beside Nan Xiao Nan’s ear… Not loud, just clear enough to be heard.

Startled, Nan Xiao Nan nearly choked on the dessert wedged in her throat… Painfully pounding on her chest yet unable to make a sound.

“Water.”

Seeing this, Luo Qiu flicked his hand, and a cup of warm water appeared right in front of Nan Xiao Nan. She didn’t hesitate, taking several gulps to wash the food down her throat, easing her expression.

“Sorry for scaring you,” Luo Qiu looked at Nan Xiao Nan apologetically, “I’m used to coming back directly at this time, usually without turning on the light.”

“No… it’s my fault for being careless,” Nan Xiao Nan forced a dry laugh.

Living at someone else’s place and caught red-handed in the kitchen while sneaking a bite; even as someone supposedly immortal, she wanted to hide her face in the universe.

“Why didn’t you heat it up?” Luo Qiu looked at the container in Nan Xiao Nan’s hand and asked.

“Uh… it’s edible as it is, I don’t have too many requirements for food.” Nan Xiao Nan shook her head, glancing in the direction of Ren Ziling’s room, “Besides, I’m afraid of starting a fire and waking Ms. Ren.”

Luo Qiu then smiled lightly, “She sleeps quite soundly, not easy to wake. No need to be this careful next time if you’re hungry.”

“Yes, I’ll remember that next time,” Nan Xiao Nan nodded… This super powerful person, was surprisingly easy to talk to?

“Hmm…” Luo Qiu thought for a moment, “Actually, these packed foods don’t taste quite as good after being refrigerated, don’t eat them. I’ll cook something else for you.”

“Ah, no need, how could I trouble you!” Nan Xiao Nan was shocked.

“No need to be so formal,” Luo Qiu waved his hand, took the container from Nan Xiao Nan’s hand, and walked into the kitchen, turning on the light and the stove.

Nan Xiao Nan found herself in a dilemma and had no choice but to let it be, resigning to the fact that this super powerful person’s nature was truly unpredictable.

“By the way, did you say you came from Sub-world 0124?”

“Yes!”

“Do you still remember where your hometown is?”

“The Kingdom of Luo Anyue Si, Evernight Province, City of Paqi Yasi, Full Moon Village.” Nan Xiao Nan answered instinctively, with a tinge of nostalgia in her heart.

Hometown, since venturing through time and space, these had become distant names in her memory… she could no longer return.

Moreover, even if possible, after the battle with the Sub-world Will, the world was destroyed, and Full Moon Village no longer existed.

Nan Xiao Nan… Olga Wiltaris fell into the streams of memory.

Time slowed.

A trace of familiar aroma slowly wafted through her, bearing an irreplicable taste from memory, causing Olga Wiltaris to pause…

“This… is…” Her voice trembled slightly.

“I gave it a try, see if the taste is right.” Luo Qiu replied.

“Thank you…”

The throat clamped as if hunger, yet it wasn’t; the lump in her throat made her eyes blur with tears.

“Just leave it in the sink after eating, I’ll wash it tomorrow,” Luo Qiu smiled slightly, then returned to his room.

Seated at the table, slowly savoring the perfect recreation of that remembered taste, thinking of her long space-time exploration journey, she unknowingly shed tears.

It’s the taste of home.