Chapter 4117: When the Pumpkins Ripen (10)

It was another night of howling gales. Those hiding in warm dwellings only remembered that the sound of the wind that night was exceptionally piercing. It wasn't until they woke up in the morning that they realized those sharp cries were not just the sound of the wind, but also the sound of police sirens drifting through the night.

When Arrogance woke up, he saw the dazzling bright yellow of the police cordon from the bedroom window, cutting the dust mist rising from the lake in half, looking as blinding as something from another world.

When he got up, Greed had already added wood to the fireplace. He asked while walking down the stairs, "What happened last night?"

"You just woke up?" Greed said with some surprise, "The police came in the middle of the night yesterday. I heard the kidnappers were hiding in that house with the chestnut tree. The children have already been rescued. However, among the three culprits who carried out the kidnapping, only one remained here, and the other two are nowhere to be found. They will definitely commit crimes again."

Arrogance walked to the telephone and said, "I have to make a call to Victor and Ron; they both have children at home. We must be careful."

"I'm afraid that's difficult; after all, Wan Shengjie is almost here. The children have been looking forward to this day for a long time. You can't stop them from going out to ask for candy."

"Then send some people to follow behind them. We can't just let them walk into streets that might hide kidnappers. Many children nowadays don't even know what crime is."

Arrogance sighed helplessly: "Brainiac has basically eradicated global crime. This has indeed provided a good living environment for the children, but it has inevitably caused them to lose their vigilance."

It is hard to imagine that in this city of Cat Getan, children would be born who think there is nothing wrong with wandering around on the road after dark. In just a short year, they actually dare to dress up in strange costumes and knock on strangers' doors in groups, then ask them for candy. What is even more bizarre is that the people being knocked on also dare to open the door, and even have candy ready.

Arrogance made the call and inevitably gave a few more instructions. Although Victor and Ron both understood the importance of the matter, their children—one is too active, and the other is too introverted. No matter who encounters danger, it will be very troublesome.

Arrogance put on his coat and walked to the door, wanting to take the newspaper delivered this morning from the mailbox. The strong wind last night had blown away all the clouds, and the sky was cloudless. The sun had just risen, and the distant sky looked like a whole block of pink-blue jelly, transparent, cool, with some sweetness flowing.

The street not far away was noisy; the police seemed to want to turn that house upside down. Watching that side for a while, Arrogance still chose to walk over, just in time to see Gordon leaning against the police car drinking coffee.

"Professor, good morning." Gordon smiled at him and said, "It's truly a nice morning. The children have returned home safely. You should also be going to see the thank-you performance tonight, right?"

"Yes. Bruce gave me tickets. We plan to finish dinner at a restaurant near the theater before going to see the performance."

"Barbara and I are planning to go too."

"What about your daughter? I heard she had a fever a while ago?"

"Yes. Unfortunately, she caught the flu, but it's not a big problem. She is now at her grandparents' house in Chicago. They sent me a video of her playing ball; she runs like a tornado."

"Children always grow up fast. That the victims can return home safely is the best news I've heard recently. Is there any other news about the culprits?"

Gordon shook his head and said, "According to our understanding, they hid here because there are few people here. And that house happens to have two levels of basement. They hid at the very bottom, so no matter what sounds they made, it was hard for anyone to notice."

"Do you think they found this place by accident?"

"Isn't it?"

Arrogance shook his head and said, "That chestnut tree didn't grow this big just yesterday."

"Do you think they had premeditated this?" Gordon asked tentatively.

"It might be sooner than you think. Using chestnuts to lure small animals, and then using the sounds of those animals to mask the strange noises coming from inside the house. Even in Cat Getan, this criminal method can be considered clever."

Gordon thought for a moment and then asked, "Before you moved in, were there chestnut trees here?"

"I think there should have been. This proves that their idea was good, but their luck wasn't very good. They just happened to encounter me moving in and becoming their neighbor."

"Are you not denying that the solving of the case is related to you?"

"I can only say it has nothing to do with this 'me' standing in front of you." Arrogance shook his head and said, "If I hadn't happened to move in, this place would have become their perfect criminal base. With the cover of animal sounds, it would be almost impossible for anyone to notice that they were hiding kidnapped children in the basement."

"But this is seasonal. What about in winter when there are no animals?"

"Winter is too cold, the animals will hide, so what about people?"

Gordon patted his own head. He didn't turn the corner for a moment. Indeed, this trick only needs to work in seasons other than winter. Because after winter comes, although the animals hide, people don't go out much either, so it's even harder to discover.

"And if they had such an idea, then their target from the beginning was children, and children before the voice-change period." Arrogance continued, "Before the voice-change period, whether boys or girls, the voice lines are relatively sharp and thin. That way, it's not easy to be discovered."

Gordon felt it made a lot of sense, so he nodded, but still said, "We didn't find any criminal tools in the basement. The children were sent to the hospital for physical examinations, and the injury report hasn't been sent yet. However, according to my visual inspection, they shouldn't have suffered any abuse, so why would they scream?"

"It could also be mental abuse." Arrogance thought for a moment and said, "If you can find the mastermind, perhaps you will know what they wanted to do by controlling this group of children."

"The only culprit caught has already been sent for interrogation. But honestly, he doesn't look much like a culprit. If he were walking on the road, I would never believe he would kidnap three children."

"What kind of person is he?"

"He looks like a very ordinary clerk. He also has a very kind face. The specific identity information is still being verified and investigated. However, if we cannot get more clues from his mouth, I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you to step in again."

"This time's matter is probably not that simple. But no matter what, we must catch the escaped culprits as soon as possible. The children still want to ask for candy on Wan Shengjie. By the way, whose house is this?"

"You mean the one where the culprits hid? It originally belonged to a real estate developer from the West Coast. But he moved to the Inner World. This house has also been taken under Brainiac's management. There are no surveillance cameras inside the house. However, from now on, the entire community should have a surveillance system installed."

Arrogance nodded and continued, "Then what about this tree?"

Gordon turned back to look at the huge chestnut tree in the courtyard. He said, "This should have been bought by that real estate developer and planted in the courtyard; it's not certain whether he was in collusion with the culprits. If so, then this tree can also be considered evidence."

"Will you take it away?"

"Yes, this is an invasive species and is not on the local tree protection list. It will probably be chopped down."

"I think it's a bit of a pity. If possible, I would like to transplant this tree to my courtyard."

Gordon raised his eyebrows in surprise and said, "You want this tree?"

"Yes. The chestnut yield of this tree is quite good, isn't it?"

"That's true. When I was a child, there was a chestnut tree in my grandmother's courtyard; every time I went, she would bake chestnut cake for me. However, chestnut trees on the East Coast are becoming fewer and fewer. It's truly rare for this one to grow so big. I will send a report to Brainiac."

After exchanging a few more pleasantries with Gordon, Arrogance returned to his front door and took the newspaper from the mailbox. When he opened the door, a rich fragrance drifted from the kitchen.

"There is good news." Arrogance took off his gloves, placed them on the cabinet to the side, and said, "That house with the chestnut tree is not private property, but belongs to Brainiac's management, and so far there is no surveillance equipment."

"You don't want to go steal chestnuts, do you?"

"Not me, but us. Gray Mist is following you. You just need to go over for a turn and collect the chestnuts on the tree."

"This counts as wool-gathering from Brainiac. I don't want to be caught."

"Rest assured, it won't happen. He is busy catching culprits. Besides, you also had a hand in exposing the culprits this time. He shouldn't mind you eating a few chestnuts."

"Alright, I'll go for a turn in a while."

"Are you baking a cake?"

"Yes. You don't want to go to the thank-you performance empty-handed, do you?"

"I will bring black tea and wine."

"An old-fashioned choice." Greed adjusted the oven temperature, went to get a measuring tape, and said, "The community atmosphere on the East Coast has always been more inclined toward community and family friendliness. For this kind of formal occasion that isn't exclusively for the upper class, bringing some small desserts to eat while watching the performance is perfect."

"Then you should go get some chestnuts even more. I think chestnut cake would be good. What are you making now?"

"White chocolate shell with lemon ganache, cream cheese, and crispy wafers."

"I'm asking for the name, not the ingredients."

"That is the name of the dessert. Don't Western desserts all just list the ingredients?" Greed paused and said, "But you have a point. Perhaps I can stuff a little more chestnut puree inside. This dessert does lack some solid texture. I originally wanted to use nut brownies."

"Alright. Perhaps I can help you fold the packaging paper."

"The finished product will be shaped like a chocolate ball. There are ready-made paper liners, but I do need a piece of cardboard to fix the paper liners and a basket to hold things. The materials are next to the coffee table."

Arrogance walked over and sat on the sofa, glancing at the material kit. It looked entirely brought by Greed; the community stores here couldn't buy such complete materials.

Arrogance first took out the cardboard, then found the paper liners in the kitchen, and punched out circular holes in the cardboard according to the size of the liners, so that the liners could be placed on top.

"How many do you plan to make?"

"Maybe over a hundred. I bet most people will bring their children. These can definitely be finished, maybe even not enough."

Greed had already started tidying up. He put the utensils away, then directly transformed into the form of gray mist and flew out from behind the window. A few dozen seconds later, Arrogance's mobile phone rang.

"Reminder, please do not steal public property. Repeat, please do not steal..."

Arrogance didn't even look and flipped the phone over.

A minute later, Greed flew back, found a large box from the backyard, and poured the chestnuts into it with a clatter.

"You plucked all the chestnuts?"

"Not at all, I still left some for the small animals."

"What about Brainiac?"

"He doesn't eat chestnuts anyway. To hell with him." ===== CHAPTER 4118 =====