No.14 Disciple: Death Puzzle

Chapter 66 The Tragic Past
dinner?Zhuo Qingshan asked An Youlin what kind of dinner it was.But An Youlin's answer was very vague, saying that it was a very important and interesting dinner.

An Youlin drove the car and drove Zhuo Qingshan to a residential area on the outskirts of the city. The streets in the residential area were spacious, and there was a clear halo of rainwater around the bright street lights.The houses in the residential area are very far apart, and each house is equipped with a large yard surrounded by low fences.

An Youlin drove the car into a yard where many cars had been parked.The rain outside was getting heavier and heavier, An Youlin glanced at the open door of the house, and complained: "These guys, it's raining so hard, they won't come out to greet you..."

Zhuo Qingshan secretly glanced at An Youlin's handsome side face, her heart was pounding.

As he spoke, An Youlin honked the horn twice, and saw a man in a tuxedo holding a black umbrella coming out of Zhuo Qingshan's car door.Holding an umbrella, the man brought An Youlin and Zhuo Qingshan to the entrance hall of the house. Another car drove up, and the man waited in front of the hall.

An Youlin habitually wanted to pull the bow tie, but he immediately controlled it: "I really don't like wearing such stiff clothes..."

You look handsome in a dress!Zhuo Qingshan wanted to blurt it out, but what she said was: "Since this is a gathering of friends, you can also dress casually!"

"There are many kinds of friends." An Youlin smiled and waved at the woman in a red evening dress at the entrance of the hall in the corridor, "Xiao Zhuo, remember, try not to let yourself become a different kind, and as a different kind will The best way to hide yourself is to look like most everyone else."

Zhuo Qingshan followed An Youlin to the hall inside. There were already more than 30 people present, and everyone was wearing formal attire without exception.Zhuo Qingshan looked around the hall. There were almost no decorations here, except for the chandelier, there were long tables and a few chairs standing around the hall.

There are drinks and food on the table, no one wants to sit on the chair, everyone is chatting with wine glasses.An Youlin picked up a glass of pale pink wine from the table and handed it to Zhuo Qingshan: "You don't need to drive, why don't you have a glass of wine?"

Zhuo Qingshan shook her head and picked up the drink: "My car is parked in the parking lot near the clothing store, I'd better drive back later!"

An Youlin also picked up a drink casually, and led Zhuo Qingshan towards the crowd.Zhuo Qingshan found that almost everyone here knew An Youlin.Zhuo Qingshan also unexpectedly felt that the people who came here had a weird aura.

For example, the old man in his sixties has bushy eyebrows, two mustaches, and his hairline is almost at the top of his head. He has a special liking for cherries on the table, holds a wine glass in one hand, and One hand kept picking up the cherries on the plate.

There is also a woman in her fifties, wearing a black evening dress and black gloves, with blond hair and reddish lips, looking at the people around her arrogantly.And the people around her don't seem to care about her arrogant attitude, and they still joke with her from time to time.

"Miss Zhuo, are you interested in this banquet?"

Zhuo Qingshan turned around and found Lizi, a bald man wearing a tight evening dress, standing beside Zhuo Qingshan.

Zhuo Qingshan seldom saw cross-dressers, but Lizi's behavior was generous and decent without any affectation.

Zhuo Qingshan glanced at An Youlin who was chatting with others, and decided to take the initiative: "Lizi, are Miss Candy and Gilles here?"

Lizi pointed to Candy who was laughing and chatting with others not far away, and Gilles who was drinking with others.

"Can you talk to me about An Youlin and the two of them?" Zhuo Qingshan asked, "Gilles said he owed An Youlin a favor?"

Lizi picked up the wine glass casually: "Youlin helped solve some big troubles..." "Not a little trouble? Is it related to the case?"

Lizi took a sip of wine and nodded meaningfully: "Yes, a very weird murder case. But it happened in the United States."

United States?Zhuo Qingshan looked at Lizi suspiciously, and wanted to ask more questions.But a bloated woman ran over and grabbed Lizi's arm and said, "Beauty, save my eyebrows!"

Lizi was pulled away, Zhuo Qingshan turned around again, and An Youlin disappeared again.In desperation, Zhuo Qingshan had no choice but to wander between the tables, but everyone was very enthusiastic. Wherever she went, no one would ask her identity, and they would let her participate in the conversation to the fullest.

The banquet was just as An Youlin said, everyone was very casual, and they were all discussing their respective fields of interest, and some of them were discussing psychology.It's just that Zhuo Qingshan knows almost nothing about other schools except psychoanalysis.Even Margaery Mahler, Victor Frankl and others were unknown, and Zhuo Qingshan's idea of ​​understanding An Youlin from the psychological aspect was completely shattered.

Zhuo Qingshan wandered among the crowd looking for An Youlin's figure, and Candy also saw her distress, so she dragged Zhuo Qingshan to a corner to chat.Zhuo Qingshan curiously asked about the origin of the banquet, Candy took the drink cup from Zhuo Qingshan's hand and replaced it with a glass of wine. "The origin of the banquet? Everyone here has some connection with Youlin, everyone knows him!"

"Is there a reason?" Zhuo Qingshan was puzzled, "Or it's because we haven't seen each other for a long time, so we found a chance to get together..."

Candy shook her head, smiled and clinked glasses with Zhuo Qingshan: "Of course not, isn't that too boring? Every banquet has a game-like puzzle for everyone to have fun. But you said There is nothing wrong with it, and it also gave everyone the opportunity to meet often..."

Candy introduced several guests at the banquet to Zhuo Qingshan, including painters, composers, writers, and the few people Zhuo Qingshan had met just now. They were experts in psychology.In short, these people are all geeks from all walks of life and fields.

"Xiao Zhuo, I'm looking for you everywhere!" An Youlin appeared behind the two, "Come on, I'll take you to meet someone!"

An Youlin smiled at Candy, and took Zhuo Qingshan away.Zhuo Qingshan followed An Youlin through the crowd in the hall, and came to a glass door on the side of the hall, where there was a long corridor built along the edge of the first floor.

On the promenade, there are a few people talking to each other sporadically.An Youlin led Zhuo Qingshan to two women who were chatting, one of them had a tall bun, which Zhuo Qingshan had seen before.The other is wearing silver ornaments, shining brightly.

After An Youlin introduced Zhuo Qingshan, he first introduced the woman with a tall bun to Zhuo Qingshan: "This is my senior sister, Pan Jing! She is one of the founders of the psychological mutual aid group in Xijing!" When Zhuo Qingshan heard An Youlin's introduction, she was taken aback for a moment, then looked at An Youlin's senior, and didn't come back to her senses for a long time. "This is the host of the banquet, Luo Tong..."

"Don't be ridiculous, I'm just an idler who provides a place, the owner is you, right." Luo Tong laughed.

"How can I be the master? The drinks and food are also provided by your Queen Luo!" An Youlin responded.

"I'll go first, the others should look for me." Pan Jing smiled at Zhuo Qingshan, "But this Miss Zhuo is really beautiful!"

Pan Jing walked gracefully into the open door, and Zhuo Qingshan looked at her back, feeling an indescribable sense of oppression in her heart.

"Xiao Zhuo, Ms. Luo Tong, is a famous architect and a low-key philanthropist. Every year she helps children in orphanages by herself." An Youlin said, "She also founded the Lonely Angel Fund Yes, to help children who have been abused.”

Zhuo Qingshan already knew that the guests at the banquet had different identities, so she was not surprised by Luo Tong's experience. "But Queen Luo, I think Xiao Zhuo is more interested in your tragic past."

An Youlin's words did not cause Luo Tong's embarrassment or dissatisfaction. Luo Tong smiled warmly at An Youlin: "You Lin, I still understand your thoughts very well. Do you want me to be a positive teaching material?"

Before Zhuo Qingshan understood the situation, Luo Tong slowly took off the long gloves on her arms.Borrowing the light from the corridor, Zhuo Qingshan's eyes widened. There was not only curiosity and surprise in her eyes, but also deep fear.

(End of this chapter)