十天结束

Chapter 7: The Odds

"Police officer, you're lying," Joe Jin said coldly.

"Hmph, I knew you would say that, but what evidence do you have to prove I'm lying? Just because someone attacked me?" Officer Li responded.

"Of course not," Joe Jin smirked slightly. "Although we don't know the reason, all the stories told before are more or less connected. Many of these stories share common characters. If we set aside the geographical locations, everyone's stories are reasonable."

"And what does that mean?" Officer Li asked.

"The problem lies here," Joe Jin pointed to the lawyer, Zhang Chenze. "You and the lawyer's stories share a common character, the 'scammer who cheated two million'. But your stories contradict each other, which indicates that one of you is lying."

Officer Li paused, then asked, "Where's the contradiction?"

Joe Jin shook his head, looking at Officer Li. "Lawyer Zhang is already preparing for a trial, indicating that in her story, she has 'caught the suspect', while you are still on surveillance duty, indicating that in your story, the 'suspect is still at large'. Isn't that a contradiction?"

Officer Li pondered for a moment before speaking. "I have to admit, your words make some sense, but I think you're being influenced by this 'game.' First, you have to understand a key premise: none of us are in the same city as the others. In other words, even if our experiences are similar, what we're talking about can't possibly be the same thing. Since they're different, there will naturally be different outcomes."

Qixia quietly watched the ongoing debate between the two, choosing not to intervene.

Yes, let them argue. The fiercer the better. As long as one of them gives the other a vote, the liar wins. After all, the rules are absolute. Except for the liar, if anyone casts the wrong vote, they'll all be doomed.

Although Officer Li provided an explanation, Joe Jin's words still lingered in everyone's minds. This was the first time they had discovered conflicting plots in two people's stories.

Qixia couldn't help but give a glance of respect to this ruffian named Joe Jin. Although he seemed reckless, he was smarter than imagined.

"Um... it's my turn..." a girl spoke up.

Everyone shifted their attention to her.

This girl had screamed intensely at the beginning when the person died. Now, she seemed to have calmed down, but her gaze never strayed from her side.

"Hello, everyone. My name is Ringo, and I'm a psychologist."

Qixia paused slightly because "Ringo" was an interesting name. Before the Tang Dynasty, "Ringo" meant "apple". These two characters were full of poetic meaning, leaving a deep impression.

Perhaps this Miss Ringo's parents wanted their daughter to have a unique name, but this name would obviously kill her here.

Among the people present, there were writers, teachers, lawyers, doctors, and police officers. They all might know the meaning of "Ringo". Just let this name linger in their minds a few times, and Ringo's story would leave a deep impression.

Ringo noticed the lack of response from everyone, so she continued, covering her mouth and nose with her hand. "I'm from Ningxia. Before coming here, I was waiting for a client, who is a kindergarten teacher."

Everyone gave a somewhat strange look to Xiao Ran, the kindergarten teacher. This time, the stories seemed to be connected again.

"According to her, being a kindergarten teacher nowadays is tough. You can't hit or scold the children. Parents treat kindergarten teachers like nannies, and the children treat them like servants. Every classroom is equipped with surveillance cameras, and parents monitor them in real time. If your tone is slightly harsh, the parents will call the principal right away."

"But isn't the purpose of sending children to kindergarten to cultivate their values?"

"If teachers can't discipline them strictly, how will children realize their mistakes?"

"She felt she had been in a state of confusion and depression for a long time."

"So, I prepared a treatment plan for her for about a month."

"But for some reason, the client never showed up for the appointment, so I've been waiting in the studio."

"When the earthquake struck, I had no chance to escape. After all, my studio was on the twenty-sixth floor."

"The higher the floor, the stronger the shaking. I felt the entire building swaying."

"Before, I never knew Ningxia could also have earthquakes. This time, I experienced it."

"I vaguely remember the ceiling collapsing, and then everything went black."

After hearing Ringo's story, everyone seemed to think of something again.

Joe Jin was the first to speak. "I have two questions."

"Go ahead," Ringo said, covering her mouth and nose.

"You said every classroom has 'surveillance.' What does that mean?" Everyone didn't expect Joe Jin's focus to be on this, but Ringo, being a psychologist, patiently explained, "I think the reason for installing 'surveillance' is to allow parents to see the classroom from anywhere."

"It's closed-circuit television... Is it a prestigious kindergarten?" Joe Jin mumbled to himself before asking again, "So, the kindergarten teacher you made an appointment with, is it this Xiao Ran?"

"I don't know," Ringo shook her head, "I only added her on WeChat. We planned to discuss the details when we met."

"WeChat?" Joe Jin was puzzled for a moment, seeming not to understand.

Officer Li interrupted the two, saying, "Hooligan, you're at it again. Xiao Ran is in Yunnan, and this Miss Ringo is in Ningxia. Who would cross such a long distance to find a psychologist?"

Joe Jin didn't back down. "I just think there's something suspicious. This is the first time someone's story mentioned other participants."

This time, Doctor Zhao felt that Joe Jin made sense, nodding and asking, "Xiao Ran, is your reason for seeing a psychologist the same as Miss Ringo described?"

"Um..." Xiao Ran hesitated timidly before saying, "Not exactly... I'm feeling depressed because I've been accused by a parent for a long time..."

"That just proves it's a coincidence," Dr. Zhao nodded. "After all, it's two different regions' matters, and we don't need to forcibly link them."

At this point, everyone fell silent for a moment, but Lawyer Zhang suddenly spoke up, "Miss Lin, isn't it against the rules for half of your story to be about that 'kindergarten teacher'?"

"Huh?" Ringo blinked in surprise. "I talked about the kindergarten teacher to help you better understand my work..."

"Don't misunderstand me; I didn't mean anything else," Zhang Chenze smiled. "What I meant was, if the experiences of that kindergarten teacher were fabricated by you, it would naturally differ from Xiao Ran's story, which would prove that you're lying."

"You...!" Ringo didn't expect the woman in front of her to be so aggressive. All she could do was defend herself, "Just now, Dr. Zhao and Officer Li both said that our provinces are different. It's all just a coincidence!"

"A coincidence, huh?" Zhang Chenze crossed her arms and continued, "Think about it carefully. Why were only the nine of us chosen to gather here? Don't forget, we are nine strangers. If we're supposed to find flaws in each other's stories, we need a clue. And that 'clue' is that everyone's stories are interconnected. After listening to each person's story, I feel like we were deliberately selected. Only then can we successfully find flaws in everyone's stories and uncover the liar. Otherwise, this game would be too absurd because the 'liar' has a huge advantage."