Chapter 25: A Lighter Purchase

Chapter 25: Bought Too Little

Crack!

Su Chen brought his knife down, slicing through the pork in front of him and separating a palm-sized piece of meat.

"Your technique... is not exactly great. Look, you’ve even chipped the blade."

Gu Yutong leaned in and whispered to Su Chen. After chatting along the way, the two had become quite familiar, even though she was, for all intents and purposes, a "corpse" now.

Hearing this critique, Su Chen gave a helpless smile and pushed her head away. "If you know my technique is poor, why are you standing so close? Move back, lest I accidentally cut you."

According to the cold case file, the murderer had dismembered the body into over a thousand pieces and cooked them. This indicated that the perpetrator possessed a certain level of butchery and anatomical knowledge, as well as decent anti-reconnaissance skills. Su Chen had to simulate the entire process. However, this pig was proving difficult to handle, so he had first asked the shopkeeper to do a rough cut before he performed the secondary processing.

Watching Su Chen’s clumsy technique, the viewers in the live stream couldn't help but laugh.

[Hahahaha, so even you have things you're not good at, Su Chen! Looks like I’m not entirely useless compared to you.]
[To the one above: Can you butcher a pig?]
[...No.]
[Su Chen’s stamina is impressive, though. Even if his technique is bad, the kid has strength!]
[Brute force works miracles!]
[He is a police academy graduate, after all. His physical fitness is top-tier among ordinary people.]
[Honestly, I’m a bit envious of Su Chen. Having such a pretty girl by his side—sigh, she’s even better looking than my goddess. Anyway, never mind, I’m off to deliver food to my goddess and her boyfriend.]
[The guy above is out of his mind, right?]
[Hahaha, even with a beauty by his side, all Su Chen has eyes for is the pig!]

Clang, clang, clang...

With his eyes only on the pig, Su Chen worked diligently. Soon, he had completely broken down the pig into a pile of meat chunks. He then used black plastic bags to pack the "remains."

"Miss, you... go weigh yourself," Su Chen said, turning his head toward Gu Yutong.

"Alright, Mr. Murderer," Gu Yutong replied with a smile. Ever since she realized Su Chen was about the same age as her, the awkwardness had faded. She took off her shoes, stepped onto the digital scale barefoot, watched the numbers flicker, and announced the result.

"Sixty kilograms."

Su Chen’s hand, which was busy packing the pork, paused slightly. He turned his head and looked at the short-haired girl in surprise. "That heavy?"

"You think that’s heavy?" Gu Yutong’s pretty eyes widened in disbelief. She crossed her arms over her chest and said, "I’m 1.7 meters tall; this weight is actually on the lighter side. Besides... isn't a little meat a good thing?"

"That’s not what I meant." Su Chen rested his chin on his hand, falling into deep thought.

"Ah, then what was that about just now?" Gu Yutong hopped off the scale, walked over to Su Chen, and waved a hand in front of his face.

"I just didn't expect..." Su Chen looked up, "that you are heavier than the pig I bought. I can't make up your weight."

Gu Yutong: "..."

Hearing this, the audience in the live stream burst into laughter.

[Hahaha, damn, why does Su Chen’s comment sound so weird? It sounds like he’s calling the girl fatter than the pig.]
[Seriously, she’s really not fat at all. I’ve never liked the "stick-thin" aesthetic; a bit of meat is the ultimate look!]
[Fun fact: A pig’s body fat percentage is actually less than 15%, much lower than a human’s...]
[Damn, I’ll never dare to call myself a pig again, sob.]

Meanwhile, in an apartment outside Jinling University, Gu Yutong’s best friend, Zhao Xiaoyue, was lying comfortably on her bed in loose pajamas, giggling at the 2D heartthrob on her tablet.

"Hehehe, finally got the favorability up to 99% today! I’ll be able to capture him soon. Such great news, I have to tell Tongtong. I should get her into this game too..."

She picked up her phone and sent a WeChat message. However, she waited for a long time without a reply.

Hmm?

Zhao Xiaoyue was a bit confused. Usually, her best friend replied instantly. What was going on?

Suddenly, a trending topic popped up on her tablet:
#Weibo Top Trend: Shocking! Su Chen kidnaps a girl in the middle of the night; is her identity the daughter of the Police Chief?

Seeing this news, Zhao Xiaoyue jumped up from her bed! This sounded like...

She hurriedly opened the live streaming app and clicked into the "Manhunt Live" stream. When she saw the situation, her eyes widened in an instant! The broadcast showed Su Chen packing bags of pork, while the girl sitting next to him, chatting away, was none other than Gu Yutong!

"It really is her! Was Tongtong kidnapped by Su Chen?"

Zhao Xiaoyue rubbed her eyes, confirming it again and again. She hadn't mistaken her. At that moment, the girl in the stream looked down at her phone and began typing, seemingly replying to someone.

*Ding!*

Zhao Xiaoyue’s phone vibrated. She hurriedly looked down.

[Gu Yutong: Xiaoyue, I’m busy right now. I just signed a confidentiality agreement, so I can't tell you anything yet. I’ll chat with you when I’m finished. PS: You won't believe what I have to say when I do!]

I believe it. I totally believe it.

Zhao Xiaoyue looked at Su Chen and Gu Yutong together in the stream and suddenly wanted to punch herself. I should have gone with Tongtong! Then I could have been kidnapped by Su Chen too! Why did I have to stay here to celebrate a virtual character's birthday, ahhhhhhh...

...

As the buzz around Su Chen’s live stream continued to ferment, the viewership for "Manhunt Live" climbed once again! The total number of viewers reached 45 million—arguably the most popular live program in the country, second only to the New Year’s Gala.

And it had only been seven or eight hours since the show began. This terrifying growth rate naturally caught the attention of neighboring countries. The first to extend an invitation was the island nation of Sakura across the sea.

At the "Manhunt Live" studio:

"Chen, my friend, how have you been?" The national treasure-level director of the Sakura nation, Nan Ye Wu, bowed slightly to Chen Qiming. Beside him stood a young man. Chen Qiming recognized him—a rising detective novelist from the Sakura nation, Lanshan Gangchang, who was also an external member of the Jintian Detective Agency. His presence here likely meant he was on a mission for the agency.

"Mr. Nan Ye, please, no need for such formalities," Chen Qiming said politely, gesturing for the two to sit.

As Nan Ye Wu sat down, his eyes were already drawn to the live stream of Su Chen on the big screen. He nodded slightly as he watched: "Mr. Chen, I truly admire your innovative capability. To take a historical contest and present it through such a novel live variety show format... As far as I know, the 'Divine Deduction Exam' of the Dragon Kingdom dates back two thousand years, appearing alongside the first batch of unsolved cases."

Chen Qiming nodded slightly. Nan Ye Wu was always well-prepared; it seemed he had done his homework.

Nan Ye Wu continued: "Moreover, the results of this innovative attempt are unprecedented. Mr. Chen must be very proud."

*Proud, yes, but it’s making my blood pressure rise...* Chen Qiming thought to himself before getting straight to the point: "So, what brings you two here today?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the older and younger men from the Sakura nation exchanged glances and laughed.

"We came to observe and to discuss with the Dragon Kingdom side about licensing this variety show, as I’m sure you’ve heard. Of course, it depends on whether the program is suitable, as the public in the Sakura nation is already quite familiar with detective-themed content."

The young man, Lanshan Gangchang, seemed to have found success at a young age and was somewhat arrogant. This was related to the fact that detective literature in the Sakura nation had started earlier; they already had many famous detective novelists, with one even rivaling the creator of Sherlock Holmes. The Dragon Kingdom had started a bit later and was currently catching up; there were some notable names, like Qin Ming, but they were still developing.

Lanshan Gangchang added: "Mr. Chen, as a detective novelist, although not the top-tier, I am a professional. I can say that I have already learned enough about case methods in this world while gathering materials. I can also state with certainty that if the case-solving process in this variety show is too cliché, it may not suit the tastes of the Sakura people."

Although Nan Ye Wu had signaled him multiple times not to interrupt, Lanshan Gangchang finished his sentence without hesitation. The message was clear: he was skeptical about the content of this live variety show.

*Is every external agent from the Jintian Detective Agency this prickly? They are really not easy to deal with...* Director Chen Qiming wore a smiling face. He waved his hand, and a staff member immediately brought over a computer, placing it in front of the two guests.

"This is the fast-paced edited version of tonight's show. You two can take a look at the content," Chen Qiming said leisurely.