chapter 16

Jian Fan didn’t explain much to Qin Nan, and Qin Nan soon got his answer anyway.

After separating from Jian Fan, Qin Nan went back to his room.

The moment he closed the door, it was as if something invisible shifted. A line of text appeared before his eyes.

The night of the murder.

What did that mean? Had he returned to the day the murder happened? Qin Nan was a little confused by this development, but vaguely, he seemed to realize something.

Jian Fan had said they hadn’t made a choice yet.

There was a knock at the door.

“Who is it?” Qin Nan called out.

A woman’s voice sounded from outside: “Second Young Master, it’s me, Xiao Cui.”

Xiao Cui?

Qin Nan was full of questions, but after a moment’s thought, he still opened the door. Since she dared to give her name, she was probably someone this identity of his knew.

As soon as the door opened, Qin Nan saw a young woman standing there in a cyan ancient-style dress, looking about the same age as Mu Xin.

Seeing Qin Nan open the door, Xiao Cui immediately stepped into the room, grumbling as she did: “Second Young Master, the Master’s getting muddle‑headed again. This family business was Madam’s to begin with, of course it should be left to you, Second Young Master. And that person, what is he even? A bastard, and he wants to take over the family business? And the Master too-he’s a mud‑leg at heart, no vision at all.”

Qin Nan blinked and tried to piece what she said together with the information he currently had.

On the night the victim was killed, the victim had wanted to hand part of the business over to the Eldest Young Master. Xiao Cui, clearly on the Second Young Master’s side, must have gotten wind of it, felt upset on his behalf, and rushed over to tip him off.

Add in all the grudges between the Second Young Master and the victim over his birth mother… Tsk. It really was possible he’d storm off in the middle of the night to confront the victim and then accidentally kill him.

“Second Young Master, what are you spacing out for?” When Qin Nan didn’t respond, Xiao Cui called to him, a little displeased.

Qin Nan came back to his senses, thought for a moment, then said, “He’s been muddle‑headed for more than a day or two. I’m used to it.”

When Xiao Cui heard that, she sighed. “If this keeps up, the family business will end up in that bastard’s hands sooner or later. Second Young Master, you really have to be more on your guard. This is your mother’s property.”

“I will,” Qin Nan answered carefully. Then, cautious, he added, “You’re saying all this-did something happen again?”

“I just heard the Master tell someone to go call the Eldest Young Master. He wants to explain some business matters to him. As soon as I heard that, of course I felt wronged on your behalf, Second Young Master, so I hurried over to let you know,” Xiao Cui said.

Qin Nan immediately locked onto the key point.

So, before the victim died, there was a very high chance he had also met with the Eldest Young Master.

“There’s nothing else, really. I just came to give you a heads‑up, Second Young Master. It’s getting late, so I’ll head back first.” As she spoke, Xiao Cui turned to leave. When she reached the doorway, she suddenly stopped. “Oh, right, Second Young Master, if you want to go see the Master, wait until after the Xu hour.” With that, Xiao Cui finished her errand and left straightaway.

The Xu hour.

Qin Nan had to convert it in his head for quite a while before matching it up to eight o’clock in the evening.

Time had been rolled back to before the murder. Time was flowing backward, but they probably couldn’t change certain fixed facts-like the victim’s death. Otherwise, if they saved the victim, wouldn’t this Murder Mystery Game fall apart?

Wait-

A thought suddenly flashed through Qin Nan’s mind. If they could save the victim, would that break this game world and clear it instantly? Just like in the previous one-when they destroyed the camera, they seemed to step out of the movie itself.
The moment that possibility occurred to him, Qin Nan’s heart leapt.

But he quickly forced the excitement down.

What if they couldn’t save them? The “solution” felt a little too simple. And looking at it from another angle-if the victim was fated to die no matter what, then whatever they did on the night of the murder… what kind of ripple effects would that trigger afterward?

He couldn’t be sure what the rules really were. That meant he had to act even more carefully.

If he stayed put in his room, then he definitely couldn’t be the killer, and it would be hard to leave behind any evidence that could point back to him. That would be an advantage during the upcoming search and discussion. But doing that would also mean giving up any chance to gather information-and giving up a possible shortcut to clearing the game.

Should he wait for his teammates to carry him to a win-or to death? Or should he gamble, take the risk, and go listen for clues?

Qin Nan chose the latter.

There was an hourglass in the room that was supposed to show the time, but Qin Nan couldn’t make heads or tails of it. Luckily, the Points interface in the System displayed real-time updates.

It was 7:48 p.m.

Qin Nan thought for a moment. That was more than ten minutes earlier than the “eight o’clock” Xiao Cui had mentioned. He left his room.

Following the route he remembered, Qin Nan headed straight for the victim’s courtyard.

The road was pitch-black, but the ground was even. He made it there without too much trouble. And once he stepped into the courtyard, he could see from a distance that there was light in the victim’s room, casting shadows onto the door and window paper.

Two shadows.

One was the victim. So the other-was it the killer?

Qin Nan quickened his pace. But when he neared the room, he slowed again and moved carefully. He slipped into a small corner, hiding himself, then studied the surroundings and did something straight out of a TV drama.

He reached out and poked a tiny hole in the paper window. Then he pressed his face up to it and peered inside.

From this angle, the victim faced him directly, while the other person stood with their back to him.

Qin Nan couldn’t see the person’s face, but judging by the clothes, they were wearing the same outfit as Xia Zeqin. Only… they seemed shorter.

Qin Nan’s gaze flicked between their heights.

Xia Zeqin was tall-around 180 centimeters, give or take. As for the victim, it was hard to judge when he’d been lying on the ground, but he probably wasn’t over 180 either. Right now, though, this person was standing face-to-face with the victim, and their height difference was minimal. If anything, the victim looked a bit taller.

This person probably wasn’t Xia Zeqin.

Qin Nan came to that conclusion.

“Second Young Master, what are you doing?”

Qin Nan was still trying to figure out who this Xia Zeqin lookalike might be when a voice suddenly sounded at his ear.

He froze, then turned.

An elderly woman had appeared in the courtyard out of nowhere, a lantern in her hand, staring at him with an unfriendly expression.

“The Master is discussing important matters with the Eldest Young Master,” she said flatly. “Second Young Master, please come back later if you wish to see the Master.”

Qin Nan’s scalp prickled. He had to worry about how much trouble these actions might cause him later. And there was another issue: the person inside couldn’t be Xia Zeqin, yet this old woman was saying the Master was inside discussing matters with the Eldest Young Master.

Why? Why was she calling the person inside the Eldest Young Master?