Escape From the Library

【Phantom in the painting-09】

The wedding scene was extremely romantic. There was a long red carpet on the floor, and the crystal chandelier above the head cast light like broken diamonds. There were a lot of white roses on both sides of the red carpet, and the fragrance of roses floated in the air.

Yue Xingwen looked around and found that the entire wedding venue was already full of guests, but the bride and groom could not be seen.

Jiang Pingce asked in a low voice, "Where's the newcomer?"

Yue Xingwen said: "The wedding probably hasn't started yet, the bride and groom will not show up until later."

Ke Shaobin noticed a familiar face in the guest seat with sharp eyes. He pointed to the front row and said, "Look at the mother and child, are they the woman and child with parasols we saw in the garden before?"

Yue Xingwen followed his gaze, and sure enough, he saw the woman with a gentle smile and the little boy sitting beside her. Behind the mother and child was the nanny, still holding a snow-white baby boy in her arms. kitten.

The appearance of the 13 of them did not attract the attention of all the guests, as if they were a mass of air.

Yue Xingwen said: "There is an illusion in the painting, people in the world in the painting can't see us, everyone can look around for clues."

Everyone looked at each other and split up to find clues.

Yue Xingwen and Jiang Pingce walked across the red carpet side by side, listening to the conversation of the guests on both sides.

A woman gossiped to a friend next to her in a low voice: "I heard that Miss Alyssa's husband is the heir to the Brown family. He looks very talented. This couple is really a match made in heaven!" "Yes, they were childhood sweethearts together It's really enviable to grow up and get married smoothly in the end."

Yue Xingwen and Jiang Pingce looked at each other, then continued to walk, and came to the side of the mother and child.

The little boy asked: "Mom, why isn't Auntie coming out?"

The woman smiled and said, "The bride needs to touch up her makeup, and the wedding doesn't start until exactly 5 pm."

The little boy looked aggrieved: "I'm so hungry, when can I have dinner?"

The woman said softly: "After the wedding, there will be a buffet dinner, including your favorite steak."

Hearing his favorite food, the little boy's eyes lit up, and he immediately sat upright on the seat.

Yue Xingwen leaned into Jiang Pingce's ear and asked in a low voice, "The little boy called her auntie. It seems that the bride is this lady's own sister?"

As soon as the words fell, a new couple appeared at the end of the red carpet.

A young and beautiful woman, with an off-white veil on her head, took the arm of a handsome young man and stepped onto the red carpet. The guest seats immediately burst into warm applause.

Yue Xingwen said vigilantly: "Her wedding dress is very similar to the dress in that painting."

Jiang Pingce nodded and said, "It seems that she represents the painting "Girl in Light Veil". We have found all the heroines in the three paintings."

The two looked at each other, and looked at the couple on the red carpet together.

The combination of a handsome man and a beautiful woman was very well matched. The young man smiled gently, and the bride seemed a little shy, with her head slightly lowered. Amid the cheers of all the guests, they walked side by side on the red carpet and came to the oath platform in the church.

A priest said gently: "Today, under the watchful eye of God, we gather here to witness the wedding of Mr. Brown Jack and Miss Roland Alice. Excuse me, Mr. Brown Jack, would you marry Roland Alice?" Miss Liz is his wife, cherish her from now on, protect her, regardless of life, old age, sickness, death, health and wealth..."

The priest's voice echoed in the auditorium.When the young man on the stage said "I do", his voice was clear and his smile was gentle, and the bride also looked happy. The two exchanged rings amidst the blessings of their relatives and friends, embraced and kissed.

The whole auditorium is full of romantic and sweet atmosphere.

Yue Xingwen looked at Jiang Pingce and found that the latter looked serious and kept his eyes on the guest seats.He followed Jiang Pingce's gaze. Among the guests, the bride's parents were sitting in the first row with smiles on their faces; The nanny was expressionless, clapping along with the others like a machine.

Yue Xingwen asked softly: "That nanny is not in the right mood?"

Jiang Pingce said: "From the beginning to the end of the wedding, she never smiled. Moreover, the nanny is usually not invited to attend the wedding. Her relationship with this family is definitely not simple, and she may even know the bride."

At this moment, Liu Zhaoqing typed on the research group channel: "I heard the guests in the corner discussing that Roland's family is a well-known local wealthy businessman. There are two daughters in the family. The youngest daughter is today's bride named Alice, and the eldest daughter That is the lady with the child, named Daisy. Both sisters married rich people."

Yue Xingwen asked, "Where's the nanny Leah?"

Ke Shaobin followed up and said: "I heard some people gossip that Leah used to be a lady from a rich family, but because her family went bankrupt, she was adopted by the Roland family. She grew up with the two sisters of the Roland family, and they love each other like sisters."

adoption?

Jiang Pingce glanced at Yue Xingwen and said, "Two of them are sisters, and the other is a girl adopted by the family. The relationship between the three is definitely not simple."

Yue Xingwen agreed: "Lia used to be a rich lady, and there might be a secret behind her family's bankruptcy. If her family's bankruptcy was actually caused by the Roland family, then she might come back for revenge after knowing the truth?"

Liu Zhaoqing said: "The elderly couple sitting in the first row, have you noticed? They are the parents of the bride, and they may be the elderly couple among the three corpses we found."

The wedding ended with applause, and the guests were invited to the cafeteria for dinner.

The parents of the bride who were sitting in the front row were helped to leave the scene. They passed by Liu Zhaoqing. Liu Zhaoqing looked carefully and found that one of the couple had weak legs and feet, and the other had a slight hunchback.

Liu Zhaoqing said: "The mother of the bride has symptoms of mild hunchback, which is consistent with the mild deformation of the spine of the corpses we found, and features such as osteoporosis and intervertebral disc herniation are also consistent with their age."

Ke Shaobin said excitedly: "It seems that two of the dead buried in the garden are the bride's parents?"

Liu Zhaoqing said: "There is a high probability that it is them. The body of the third young woman is still unknown."

There are currently three young women, corresponding to the three paintings in the studio.

The girl in a light veil is the youngest daughter Alice at today's wedding scene; the woman with the parasol corresponds to Daisy, the owner of the castle, and her son Dean; the woman holding an ermine corresponds to Leah, who lives in the nanny's room.

Who is the deceased?Who is the murderer?

Yue Xingwen feels that Leah is the most suspect at present. If the murderer is Leah, it is more in line with the clues and themes in the current painting. She used to be a rich lady. After the family went bankrupt, she was adopted and stayed in the Roland family as a nanny. It is possible to be jealous, kill the hostess Daisy, and replace her.

But this is just their subjective reasoning based on the clues in the painting, without any substantive evidence.

Leah stared at Daisy mother and child sharply in the garden, and stared blankly at the bride at the wedding...these performances were all abnormal.Moreover, no matter where she goes, she always hugs the cat, but the woman in the painting is hugging a mouse. Does this have other meanings?

Yue Xingwen couldn't figure it out for the time being, he said, "Continue to look for clues."

The romantic wedding scene soon became empty, the phantom in the painting disappeared, and everyone returned to the studio.

There were three paintings hanging on the wall, and the inside of the castle was pitch black. Such a change of scene made everyone feel like a dream.Yue Xingwen looked at the three paintings with a frown, and said, "We have found the corresponding characters in the three paintings. After the wedding, there should be something happening. Where is the next illusion?"

Jiang Pingce said: "Dinner. Just now, the little boy asked his mother when he could have dinner. Daisy said that there will be a buffet dinner after the wedding."

Yue Xingwen's eyes lit up: "That painting "The Last Supper" next door?"

Jiang Pingce nodded and said, "Well, that painting should also have a mechanism."

Yue Xingwen said: "Go back the same way, go to the right room on the second floor, and find the mechanism in the painting."

Everyone exited from the studio on the left and returned to the studio on the right through the porch. There was a huge oil painting "The Last Supper" hanging on the wall. In the painting, Jesus and the twelve apostles were lifelike, with different expressions on each face.

Yue Xingwen walked over to move the painting, but the painting seemed to be fixed on the wall, motionless.

Jiang Pingce frowned and said, "Can't it be moved?"

Yue Xingwen was helpless: "The mechanism is opened in a different way."

The three paintings in the studio just now can be moved, and the illusion in the painting will appear when the order is changed. What should I do with this painting?Everyone stood in front of the painting and observed carefully. Suddenly, Xu Feixue said, "Look, there seems to be a gap between the person on the second right side of Jesus and the people around him."

Yue Xingwen brought the alcohol lamp closer and took a closer look. Sure enough, the little figure seemed to have been painted and installed on it alone, and it was not completely integrated with the surrounding paintings.

Xu Feixue's eyes lit up: "I see! The theme of the painting "The Last Supper" is betrayal, and the traitor is Judas who is the second to the right of Jesus. We only need to find the traitor, and the mechanism of the illusion in the painting will be opened. !"

Yue Xingwen nodded: "It makes sense!"

Xu Feixue took a step forward, lightly placed his finger on the "Judas" in the painting, and pressed down firmly.

Sure enough, there was a bang on the side wall, and a door appeared.

Yue Xingwen led everyone in without hesitation.The picture in front of me is indeed the dinner scene after the wedding banquet. The bride and groom have changed their outfits. The bride took off her wedding dress and wore a silver evening dress with diamonds. She sat at a long table with her sister, parents, Leah and others. superior.

There are 13 people sitting on this long table, which is consistent with the 13 people in "The Last Supper".

The bride, the groom, the parents of both parties, Daisy's family of three, Leah, and 3 strange faces, dressed in sharp suits, looked like the groom's brothers.

Yue Xingwen and Jiang Pingce looked at each other, and said in a low voice: "13 people, the last supper, there should be a traitor on this table."