The weapon by the pillow

Chapter 52 Let's bet on him... out of curiosity!

"nosebleed!"

Lin Qian exclaimed in surprise, and everyone's eyes instantly focused on Cheng Tan's face.

In the dim light, a dark red streak of blood snaked down from Cheng Tan's left nostril, across his pale skin, and dripped onto his dark clothes, spreading a small patch of dark color.

Cheng Tan was taken aback, and subconsciously raised his hand to wipe his nose, his fingertips immediately becoming sticky and warm.

Only then did he feel a stinging pain deep in his nasal cavity. This time it wasn't a hallucination; it was the real smell of blood.

"I..." He opened his mouth, but a wave of dizziness hit him and made him sway.

"The air here is off!" Shadow immediately sniffed alertly. He had also smelled that sweet, fishy smell earlier, and now it was even stronger. "This smell... there might be something wrong! Everyone, get out of here! Back to the cave entrance! Quick!"

Everyone hurriedly retreated, and Lin Qian took out a pack of tissues and pressed it against Cheng Tan's nose to stop the bleeding.

"What happened? Poisoned?" Lynx looked around nervously.

"It doesn't look like poison gas." Shadow frowned. "It's probably some kind of chemical volatiles. The concentration isn't high, but Cheng Tan might be more sensitive, or he might have inhaled too much because he was too close."

"We don't have time!" Li Kai growled, pointing to the door. "The police could storm in at any moment! Then we'll all be taken away as suspects! The crime scene will be compromised, the clues will be blocked, and the truth might be covered up again! I've waited thirteen years! We can't wait any longer!"

"So we need a plan! We need a countermeasure!" Cheng Tan struggled to his feet, the dizziness subsiding slightly, but the nosebleed was still slowly seeping out. He stuffed a tissue into his nose, his gaze sweeping over everyone before finally settling on Lin Qian's face. "You just said that Liu Li's death wasn't long ago, and her body still had some elasticity, right?"

Lin Qian nodded: "Judging from rigor mortis and body temperature, the time of death should be within one hour."

"One hour..." Cheng Tan's mind raced, calculating, "That's roughly between 2 and 3 a.m. And what time was that lipstick thrown in with the words 'She's dead too' written on it?"

"It was around 2:40," Shadow recalled.

"Yes! They could only have targeted Liu Li after the lipstick information surfaced! The mastermind deliberately dropped the lipstick at that time to create the illusion and sense of urgency that 'Liu Li has been murdered' or 'she died because of us.' He didn't wait until Liu Li was dead... but 'announced' her death to the outside world." Cheng Tan analyzed, "Now, the mastermind has most likely already made Liu Li's death and our 'crimes' public through the internet. Just like he did with our every move before."

"Then we..." A-Zhe's voice trembled, "Won't we be in a situation where we can't clear our name even if we jump into the Yellow River? Everyone will think we killed Liu Li!"

"Unless," Cheng Tan looked at Lin Qian and asked softly, "we can prove that Liu Li 'didn't die,' or at least that her death was unrelated to us, but rather part of the orchestrator's 'performance.' Can you... do that?"

"Me?" Lin Qian was taken aback, then understood Cheng Tan's meaning. "You mean... staged the scene? Create the illusion that Liu Li is still alive? Or... film a video to prove that she is still 'accusing' the real murderer?"

"But Liu Li is already dead!"

Li Kai pointed to the corpse in the center of the room, which was swaying slightly in the dim light.

"Even if you die, you can 'come back to life.'" Cheng Tan's voice was low. He wiped the blood from his nose and turned his gaze to Lin Qian. "At least, you can 'come back to life' on camera."

Lin Qian met his gaze, and a hint of understanding flashed across her usually calm eyes.

"You want me to impersonate Liu Li..." She paused, her brows furrowing slightly, "but I don't have any makeup tools. Besides, the difference in body shape and facial features is too great, and I'd be easily recognized under a clear camera lens."

"It doesn't need to be a perfect resemblance, just an 'impression,' a 'feeling,'" Cheng Tan said quickly, pointing to the corpse. "The key is the 'accusation,' not the 'acting.' We need to create a scene, a scene where 'Liu Li is not dead and is pointing the finger at the real culprit,' and then... find a way to get it out. If the mastermind is really paying attention, he will definitely see it, he will definitely react! As long as he moves, he might reveal a flaw!"

"Makeup tools..." Shadow had already started moving. He checked Liu Li's old handbag again. In the hidden compartment, he pulled out a slightly chipped metal makeup box, an eyebrow pencil, half a tube of lipstick, and a small box of loose powder.

"She has it." Shadow handed the makeup box to Lin Qian.

Lin Qian took it and opened it.

The mirror was a little blurry, but the powder puff and the remaining foundation were still there.

She looked at Liu Li's corpse, then touched her own face, her eyes quickly assessing the situation.

"The light is dim, and the angle can be controlled. If it's just a side profile or a blurry outline... maybe I can give it a try." Lin Qian squatted down and, using the light reflected from a patch of ground with less dust, began to quickly apply the product to her face.

Her movements were practiced and swift; she darkened her complexion with foundation, deepened her eyebrow contours with eyebrow pencil, and applied lipstick slightly beyond the lip line, creating a sickly sense of weakness, fear, or even impending death.

She also messed up her hair, took off her coat, and put on a dark cardigan that she had carefully taken off Liu Li's body.

The whole process took less than three minutes.

When she looked up again, in the dim, flickering light of the flashlight, her once delicate and calm face had become pale and haggard, her eyes filled with panic, and her lips trembling. She looked quite like a middle-aged woman who had narrowly escaped death due to extreme fright.

"Does it look like it?" she asked in a low voice, her voice a little hoarse.

As everyone watched, amidst the flickering light and swirling dust, they were momentarily disoriented.

"In low light... it looks about 50 or 60 percent like him." Wu Wenbin pushed up his glasses.

"The key is her expression and movements," Shadow reminded her. "If Liu Li 'didn't die,' she should be extremely terrified, possibly injured, speaking haltingly, and pointing in a certain direction..."

"I know." Lin Qian nodded. She took a deep breath, adjusted her breathing and body posture, her shoulders slightly hunched in, her eyes flickered, and her hands unconsciously twisted together.

"But how do we film it? And how do we send it out?" Lynx asked. "Our cell phones have no signal, the camera is covered by the sheet, and it's definitely been discovered."

"Use that." Cheng Tan pointed to the hole in the wall. "We'll set up the 'scene' near the opening. Lin Qian will stand on the 402 side, with her back or side to the 403 direction, making an accusatory gesture and mouthing the words. From the 403 side, we'll use... something to reflect light, simulating the effect of a camera lens. Then, we need someone on the 403 side to lift a corner of the sheet, only revealing a tiny bit of the lens, to ensure this 'image' can be captured and transmitted!"

"That's too risky!" Li Kai objected. "We don't know who's behind that camera! What if it's remotely turned off or sabotaged?"

"Then let's bet!"

Cheng Tan's nose started bleeding a little more. He wiped it haphazardly and pointed in the direction of the camera:

"I'm betting on his... curiosity!"

I bet he wants to see what we're up to!

We're betting on him... that he's unwilling to accept that we've changed the script!

I bet those cops aren't that stupid!

Even if the video transmission lasts only a few seconds, as long as it can be broadcast live, our goal will be achieved!