# Chapter 7: Winning Hand
"Officer Li, you're lying." Qiao Jiajin said coldly.
"Hmph, I knew you would say that. But what proof do you have that I'm lying? Just because someone attacked me?"
"Of course not." Qiao Jiajin gave a faint smile. "Although I don't know the reason, all the stories everyone told earlier were more or less connected. There were many shared characters in these stories. If we set aside geographical locations, everyone's accounts were reasonable."
"So what?"
"The problem is right here." Qiao Jiajin pointed at Lawyer Zhang Chenze. "Your story and the lawyer's story share a common character — that 'swindler who cheated two million.' But your stories contradict each other. This means one of you is lying."
Officer Li paused for a moment, then asked, "Where's the contradiction?"
Qiao Jiajin shook his head and looked at Officer Li as he spoke. "Lawyer Zhang was about to go to trial, which means in her story, the 'suspect has been caught.' But you were still staking out, which means in your story, the 'suspect hasn't been arrested yet.' Isn't that a contradiction?"
Officer Li thought for a moment, then said, "I have to admit, your words carry some weight. But I think you've been influenced by this 'game.' First, you need to understand a major premise — none of the previous storytellers were in the same city as the others. In other words, no matter how similar our experiences seem, they absolutely cannot be the same event. Since they're different events, naturally there will be different outcomes."
Qi Xia watched the two arguing quietly, not intervening.
Yes, argue. The fiercer the argument, the better.
If either of them cast a vote for the other, the liar would win.
After all, the rules were absolute. Aside from the liar, if anyone voted incorrectly, everyone else would be buried with them.
Although Officer Li had given his explanation, Qiao Jiajin's words had still left an impression on everyone.
After all, this was the first time everyone had discovered contradictory plots in two people's stories.
Qi Xia couldn't help but take a second look at this thug called Qiao Jiajin.
He seemed wild and unrestrained, but he was smarter than expected.
"Um... my turn..." a young woman said.
Everyone withdrew their thoughts and looked at her.
This girl had let out a piercing scream when the person died earlier.
Now she seemed to have calmed down, though she still didn't dare to look at the body beside her.
"Hello everyone, my name is Lin Qin, and I'm a psychological counselor."
Qi Xia paused slightly, because the name "Lin Qin" was quite interesting.
Before the Tang Dynasty, "Lin Qin" meant "apple."
These two characters were rich in poetry, making them memorable.
Perhaps Miss Lin's parents wanted their daughter to have a unique name, but this name would obviously harm her here.
Among those present were a writer, a teacher, a lawyer, a doctor, a police officer — any of them might know the meaning of "Lin Qin."
If they turned that name over in their minds a few times, the story Lin Qin told would become unforgettable.
Seeing that everyone had no reaction, Lin Qin covered her mouth and nose with her hand and continued, "I'm from Ningxia. Before arriving here, I was waiting for a client. She was a kindergarten teacher."
Everyone glanced at the kindergarten teacher named Xiao Ran without much surprise. Another connection in the story.
"According to her, the kindergarten teacher profession is very difficult these days. You can't hit the children, you can't scold them. Parents treat teachers like nannies, children treat teachers like servants. Every classroom has surveillance cameras installed. Parents monitor in real-time. If your tone is a little strict, a parent will call the principal immediately."
"But isn't sending children to kindergarten supposed to help them establish their values?"
"If teachers can't be strict in their guidance, how will the children recognize their mistakes?"
"She felt that for a long time, she had been in a state of confusion and depression."
"So I prepared a treatment plan for her that would last about a month."
"But for some reason, that client never showed up for her appointment. I kept waiting in my office."
"When the earthquake came, I had no chance to escape. After all, my office was on the 26th floor."
"The higher the floor, the stronger the tremors. I felt like the whole building was shaking."
"I never knew Ningxia could have earthquakes before. This time I experienced it."
"Later, I vaguely remember the ceiling collapsing. My vision went dark, and I didn't know anything else."
After hearing Lin Qin's story, everyone seemed to think of something.
Qiao Jiajin spoke first. "I have two questions."
"Go ahead," Lin Qin said, covering her mouth and nose.
"You said every classroom has 'surveillance cameras' installed. What does that mean?"
No one expected Qiao Jiajin to focus on this point, but Lin Qin, being a psychological counselor, answered very patiently. "I think the reason for installing 'surveillance cameras' is to allow parents to see the classroom from anywhere."
"So it's 'CCTV'... an aristocratic kindergarten..." Qiao Jiajin muttered to himself, then asked again, "That kindergarten teacher you were meeting — is that Xiao Ran over there?"
"I don't know." Lin Qin shook her head. "I only added that person on WeChat. We were going to discuss the rest when we met."
"WeChat?" Qiao Jiajin was stunned, as if he didn't understand.
Officer Li raised his hand to interrupt them and said, "Thug, here you go again. Xiao Ran is in Yunnan, and this Lin Qin is in Ningxia. Who would travel across such a long distance to find a psychological counselor?"
Qiao Jiajin didn't back down either. "I just think there's something suspicious. This is the first time someone's story has mentioned another participant."
This time, Dr. Zhao felt Qiao Jiajin had a point and nodded from the side, asking, "Xiao Ran, the reason you went to see a psychological counselor — is it the same as what Lin Qin described?"
"Um..." Xiao Ran hesitated timidly for a moment, then said, "Not exactly the same... I was being criticized by a parent for a long time, so I was somewhat depressed..."
"Then that just proves it's a coincidence." Dr. Zhao nodded. "After all, these are two different regions. There's no need for us to force a connection."
Everyone fell silent for a moment, but then Lawyer Zhang suddenly spoke. "Miss Lin, half of the story you told was about that 'kindergarten teacher.' Isn't that against the rules?"
"Huh?" Lin Qin was slightly stunned. "I told the story about that teacher to help you better understand my work content..."
"Don't misunderstand. I don't mean anything by it." Zhang Chenze smiled slightly. "What I'm saying is, if that teacher's experience was made up by you, it would naturally differ from Xiao Ran's story, which would prove you're lying."
"You...!" Lin Qin hadn't expected this woman to be so aggressive. She could only defend herself. "Both Dr. Zhao and Officer Li just said that our provinces are different. This is all just coincidence!"
"Coincidence, is that so?" Zhang Chenze crossed her arms and continued, "Think about it carefully. Why were the nine of us specifically chosen to gather here? Don't forget, we're nine strangers. If we're supposed to find flaws in each other's stories, we need to be given some clues. And this 'clue' is that everyone's stories are connected. Listening to each person's story, I feel like we were deliberately selected. Only then can we smoothly discover flaws in everyone's stories and find the liar. Otherwise, this game would be too absurd, because the 'liar's' winning hand would be just too great."