Chapter 2097: Sunshine Tree No. 12
Time quickly arrived at 8 PM, but "Dr. Wu," who was still in the studio, showed no signs of coming out. Kong Ying repeatedly checked the time and, taking advantage of staff coming in and out, looked inside again to confirm that "Dr. Wu" was still there. He couldn't help but say, "Is he planning on never leaving the company?"
"Could the information be fake?" Shen Liang looked at Xu Huo. "Did you get tricked?"
Xu Huo didn't think it was fake news. After all, there was still over an hour between 8 PM and 9:17 PM. Whether it was true or false could be easily verified, especially since it was before the time reset. There was no need for deception.
As for the possibilities, either Tang Ming had been deceived by Little Star Company, or the venue had changed because someone was guarding the company. Either way, it seemed unlikely they would meet Dr. Wu before 9:17 PM.
Xu Huo left one recorder inside the company and one outside, setting the first to shut down at 9:17 PM and the second to start recording at 9:17 PM. Then he left Little Star Company with Shen Liang and the others.
On the other side, Tang Ming, Wang Ling, Long Jianfeng, as well as the later arrivals Yue Rui, Hong Chen, and Meng Wenguang, were already waiting inside and outside Sunshine Tree.
Tang Ming, Wang Ling, and Meng Wenguang guarded the outside of Sunshine Tree No. 12, while Long Jianfeng, Yue Rui, and Hong Chen guarded the outside of the villa district. Considering the robber might not enter the residential area through the normal entrance, the latter three only chose weak surveillance spots around the villa district. This might not stop the robber, but the main defense relied on the three inside.
After Xu Huo and his group arrived, they increased the manpower, maximizing the ability to guard all entrances to the villa district.
Xu Huo entered the villa district and met up with Meng Wenguang.
"I did run into someone, but they ran faster than anyone," Meng Wenguang said. "I figure they'll end up here sooner or later."
In fact, besides them, a few other players who had noticed the commotion nearby had also gathered. There were four or five of them, lurking in other parts of the villa district, not approaching them.
"Someone might mess things up. How about we clear them out first?" Tang Ming suggested. "You have enough people to help."
"We're all in a cooperative relationship. If you can get them to leave, go ahead and talk to them yourself," Xu Huo said.
Having reached a key location in Pumpkin City, no one wanted to back out midway. Besides, who knew how many players were here? Causing a bigger commotion and attracting more players would only make things worse.
No one was that stupid.
Tang Ming chuckled at that and dropped the subject. Instead, he said, "No luck at the company?"
"Dr. Wu didn't leave the company," Xu Huo said.
Wang Ling and Meng Wenguang both looked at Tang Ming.
Tang Ming twirled a small prop in his hand and said nonchalantly, "No one can guarantee that nothing here will change. Maybe it's one state when you're not looking and another when you are. After all, this is Dr. Wu's test for the players, and the time limit here is only one day. Can you really see Dr. Wu's future whereabouts and life plans in just one day?"
He added with a smile, "I'm saying, don't take Dr. Wu's whereabouts too seriously. As long as he's not here when the home invasion happens, that's enough."
There was some logic to his words, and since they had no room for trial and error, they had to focus on Sunshine Tree No. 12 for now.
Xu Huo then looked at the mother and daughter inside the house. It was already past dinner time, and the mother was reading a picture book to her child. The two were snuggled on the sofa, a very warm scene.
Several players were stationed at the door and by the windows, guarding all possible entry points. They watched coldly and intently, waiting for time to pass.
Soon it was 9:15 PM, and the doorbell suddenly rang.
"Daddy's back! I'll get the door!" The girl immediately looked up and slid off the sofa excitedly, but she tripped over a toy that hadn't been put away yet.
The mother quickly put down the picture book to check on her, shouting "Hold on" toward the door. After confirming the child wasn't seriously hurt, she pulled her up from the floor and said, "Daddy has the keys, remember? It might be the new neighbor."
The person at the door was indeed the new neighbor. To show he had moved in, he had been walking around the villa district for the past two hours, giving a local specialty to each household.
Xu Huo moved from inside the house to outside, confirmed that the new neighbor wasn't carrying any dangerous items, and watched as the hostess opened the door and came out.
After a few pleasantries, it was already 9:18 PM.
The hostess, holding the specialty, closed the door. Seeing fresh fruit inside, she went to the kitchen to wash and arrange it. But just as she stepped inside, the cabinet door by the wall suddenly burst open. A man was wedged inside at an unexpected angle, swinging a knife at the hostess who had just walked nearby... His speed was so fast that even the players inside barely reacted. Fortunately, Xu Huo used a space barrier to block the knife, and Wang Ling, who appeared immediately, dragged the man out of the narrow cabinet.
The hostess screamed in fright. Meng Wenguang, looking righteous, quickly appeared, pretending to be a government worker sent to protect her.
Whether the hostess believed him or not, she rushed out of the kitchen, grabbed her daughter, and frantically tried to call the police. Finding the security system under maintenance, she picked up a communicator. Just then, the new neighbor returned, holding pruning tools he had taken from the yard.
"Don't open the door," Tang Ming appeared and warned Meng Wenguang. "We don't want any more accidents."
Time-travel TV shows and movies where the outcome remains the same regardless of the process were common in every district. If the neighbor came in, misunderstandings might create new trouble. The best way to reduce danger was to eliminate as many potential risk factors as possible.
"Who are you people! Where were you hiding before!" The hostess hugged her child and stared at them in terror, frightened by these people who had suddenly appeared in her home. "Have you been here all along?"
"Bang! Bang! Bang!" The new neighbor started pounding on the door, shouting, "Ms. Lin, are you okay? Did you fall? Should I call an ambulance for you?"
"Tell him you're fine..." Tang Ming said coldly to the hostess, but before he could finish, a black device suddenly fell from the restrained robber. A blinding light erupted in the room, blinding almost everyone. Then footsteps were heard rushing toward the hostess.
Xu Huo had already used a defense item to shield himself and the mother and daughter behind him. When he opened his eyes again, the robber who had charged forward was already dead, killed by Tang Ming.
Blood splattered everywhere. The new neighbor, who had been peeking through the window, covered his mouth and turned to flee. Wang Ling said angrily, "Couldn't you just catch him? We still had questions for him. How are we supposed to clean this up now?"