Chapter 1 A Slight Detour

As Dennis drove, he chatted with Feng Bujue, who was in the backseat. It was impossible for him to completely drop his guard against a stranger he had only met five minutes ago. Therefore, this conversation was a kind of probing.

Having limited information, Feng Bujue clearly felt out of his depth during the conversation. He had no idea about the era or location in which the script was set. He also couldn't say anything about himself, such as his birthday, home address, or whether he had any relatives – the most basic information.

Fortunately, Brother Jue was very clever. Not long after the conversation started, he said, "I might have suffered a slight concussion in the car accident. My memory seems to have been affected."

With this statement as a foundation, he could simply answer, "Sorry, I can't remember," and then clutch his forehead in feigned pain whenever he was stumped by a question.

Thus, during this not-so-long journey, the only information Feng Bujue revealed was his name, gender, and occupation. On the other hand, he managed to extract quite a bit of intelligence from the Dennis couple...

First, the script was set in 1985, in a small European country called "Yassaly," which sounded fictional.

Second, Dennis Lovecraft, radiating the aura of a wealthy and handsome man, was a businessman mainly dealing in industrial pipes. Although his wife, Carol, now used his surname, it was evident from their words that she came from a very prominent family, even more so than her husband.

This alone gave Feng Bujue a lot to speculate about... A handsome and impressive man marrying a not-so-pretty but well-connected wife. This kind of setup in detective novels often leads to murder cases. For example, the man having an affair, or planning to swallow the woman's assets before finding another woman... These are all very convincing motives for murder.

In addition, after observing them carefully, Feng Bujue noticed that the couple seemed uneasy about the prospect of this trip. It seemed that the so-called "family gathering" was not just a simple meeting of friends and relatives, but something much more significant...

"Look, we're here," Dennis's voice pulled Feng Bujue back from his thoughts.

After the car turned a corner, a mountain villa came into view.

The road ahead split into a fork that led directly to the driveway in front of the villa. Dennis drove in and stopped in front of the villa gate. He didn't get out of the car, but simply honked the horn twice.

Soon, a man in a traditional black tailcoat came out and opened the gate. He looked to be around sixty years old, his hair already gray, but his hairstyle was still meticulously combed, and he stood ramrod straight.

"Oh! It's young Master Dennis, welcome back!" the man said as he came forward.

"We were slightly delayed on the road. Are you well, Henderson?" Dennis replied.

"Don't worry, Master, my old bones are still strong," Henderson said as he reached the car and opened the door for the lady. "Good day, Miss Carol."

"Thank you, Henderson," Carol said as she stepped out of the car.

Dennis had also gotten out of the car and noticed Henderson looking at Feng Bujue with a puzzled expression.

"Oh, let me introduce you," Dennis said. "This is Mr. Henderson, the butler... This... is Mr. Feng Bujue."

"Hello."

"Pleased to meet you."

Feng Bujue greeted him politely.

"Mr. Feng encountered an accident on the mountain road. His car and luggage are gone, but fortunately he's unharmed," Dennis explained. "If it's convenient, please have Oliver (the maid) prepare a guest room and a set of clean, suitable clothes for him."

"Yes, Master, I'll take care of it right away." Henderson replied, already lifting two large suitcases from the trunk of the car. He panted and turned back towards the house.

"You're really going out of your way for me, Mr. Lovecraft," Feng Bujue said politely on the surface, but in his mind, he was thinking: *Two middle-aged people watching an old man carry such heavy luggage without any offer of help, acting as if it's commonplace... this could also become a potential motive for murder...*

"Not at all. Now that you're here, you're a guest," Dennis replied. "This is the proper way to treat a guest."

As they were talking, a short man in a white shirt and suspenders came out. He was in his early forties, with a full beard and a ruddy face, looking very energetic. "Young Master Dennis, Mr. Henderson asked me to park the car in the garage for you."

"Okay, good." Dennis casually handed the car keys to the man and turned to Feng Bujue, saying, "Oh, this is Barton, the gardener." He paused for a moment, then continued, "Please come inside with me, Mr. Feng."

Feng Bujue responded and followed the Dennis couple through the villa gate.

[Current quest completed, main quest updated] The system notification sounded at this moment, but Feng Bujue was not in a hurry to check the menu.

After entering the house, he naturally observed the surroundings. The foyer on the first floor was very spacious, the furniture was neatly arranged, and the wallpaper and furnishings were mostly in cool colors, seemingly hinting at the owner's personality. Above was an oak ceiling, incredibly high; below was also a wooden floor, covered with a gold-threaded carpet with intricate patterns. The windows were made of Venetian glass, and the frames were painted in a bluish-gray color. Looking ahead, seven or eight meters away were the stairs leading to the second floor.

At this moment, a beautiful woman was slowly descending the stairs.

She looked to be at most thirty years old, wearing a green, low-cut long dress. She had a charming appearance, skin as white as snow, a voluptuous bust that seemed about to spill out, and a waist that was incredibly slender.

"Dennis, Carol," the beautiful woman greeted the Dennis couple warmly. "Oh! Are you two doing well?" She walked over and gave them each a formal hug.

"Oh, Odette, it's so good to see you," Carol replied.

Her words and tone sounded convincing, but Feng Bujue didn't see a trace of joy in her eyes.

Dennis said calmly, "How is Father's health?"

Odette's expression immediately dimmed a lot. "Uh... well... let Dr. Powell tell you about it later." She seemed to want to change the subject, so her gaze naturally fell on Feng Bujue and she asked, "And this is...?"

Dennis briefly told Odette about Feng Bujue, and it was worth noting the term he used when introducing Odette to Feng Bujue – "my father's third wife."