Tokyo Police

"Excuse me, when did you find out that Mr. Asai was missing!"

After dinner, in the living room of Xiwu Village, Lin Xiuyi asked Mr. Shibata, the housekeeper here, about the disappearance of Mr. Asai.

"This, about a week ago, the master left me a message on his mobile phone, saying that he had something to leave for a while. I didn't pay special attention to it at the time, so I didn't pay attention to it. But after that, one after another For a few days, the master never came back."

"Do you think Mr. Asai is missing because he didn't come back?"

Lin Xiuyi recorded the situation described by the housekeeper Shibata in the notebook he carried with him, and then took the initiative to ask Shibata.

"Ah... No, it's not that I have doubts because the master hasn't come back for several days. The master's job is an art dealer who specializes in the trade of Western paintings. If you encounter any work matters, it will be like this. I left here suddenly. But the master has a habit, that is, once he has an appointment with someone else, he will never break the appointment for no reason. And on the third day after the master suddenly left, the west side who also lives nearby. Mr. Nishino, a foreign painter, suddenly visited and said that he had agreed with the master to meet on that day. At that time, I felt that something was wrong, so I wanted to ask the master himself what was going on. Unfortunately, at that time, the master himself could not be contacted by phone. …”

While recalling, Mr. Shibata introduced the situation to Lin Xiuyi at the same time. Regarding Mr. Asai's habit of keeping promises, Genzhizhu also confirmed this to Lin Shuichi. However, this kind of customary thing, the police will not be used as the basis for confirming the disappearance. And the missing Mr. Asai was a wealthy collector of Western paintings, so it was really impossible for Steward Shibata to seek help from Gen Chitake, who was an inspector at the Metropolitan Police Department.

"Then... After Mr. Asai disappeared, have you received any news or messages like a ransom demand?"

After Lin Xiuyi understood the situation, he immediately consulted Mr. Shibata about other possibilities based on past experience.

"No! Neither the villa nor the office has received a similar message. I have also confirmed this to the staff in the office!"

Yuan Zhizhu confirmed to Lin Xiuyi on behalf of Shibata butler.

After getting a general understanding of the circumstances surrounding Mr. Asai's disappearance, Lin Xiuyi got up immediately and asked Steward Shibata curiously about the cursed Western painting.

"Is that the "Love Letter" you're talking about? It's hanging in the master's study now. Why, is Mr. Lin interested in tasting it?"

"If it's not troublesome, of course it's the best. In fact, for people like me who are not familiar with art, maybe the legend of the curse has a new attraction to me!"

"There, Mr. Lin is too modest. Then, please ask Mr. Lin and Mr. Yuan to follow me upstairs!"

Butler Shibata stood up and made a gesture of invitation to Lin Xiuyi and Yuan Zhizhu, and then the two of them also stood up and followed Shibata, and went up the stairs together.

Lin Xiuyi followed behind the housekeeper Shibata and went upstairs along the stairs on one side of the hall. Different from the marble decoration on the first floor, the second floor was more decorated with wood. The walls on both sides of the corridor are neatly divided into blocks by wood, and each block is hung with colorful Western paintings. Although Lin Xiu is not familiar with a pair of artworks, he can still feel that these works should be made by famous artists.

Butler Shibata took Lin Xiuyi and Yuan Zhizhu to a room at the end of the corridor, and then opened the door for the two of them. After they both entered the room, Mr. Shibata followed.

This is a well-decorated study room, except for one window, bookshelves are occupied on the surrounding walls. A variety of beautifully bound books are neatly listed on the shelves. It seems that there is a taste of classical learning.

The window of the room was blocked by thick curtains. On the wall next to the window, there was a painting hanging on the wall, covered by a cloth. It seemed that this was the "Love Letter" that Lin Xiuyi wanted to see. Come on!

"Mr. Lin, this is the "Love Letter" you mentioned, please wait a moment!"

While speaking, Steward Shibata slowly walked towards the painting, and then saw that he raised his hands and carefully removed the mask covering the painting. The moment the veil was undone, a lifelike young girl suddenly appeared in front of Lin Xiuyi, holding a bouquet in her hands as if smiling like everyone else. This painting is simply too real, so real that Lin Xiuyi feels that the girl's hair seems to be flowing in the wind.

"It's so beautiful! That... can I?"

Lin Xiu always motioned to Butler Shibata to ask if he could get closer. After getting the permission of Butler Shibata, Lin Xiuyi stepped forward a few steps. Carefully looked up and down this painting.

The girl in the painting should look like a mixed-race beauty, with long black hair and a delicate face, obviously with Asian characteristics. However, the girl's breathtaking blue eyes showed that the girl should have European genes.

The girl's clothes were mainly black, and it looked a bit like a nightgown. The girl was holding a bunch of flowers in her hands, and she seemed to be smiling at her sweetheart. Maybe that's why this painting is named "Love Letter"!

Lin Xiuyi looked at the oil painting from the side, and could see the uneven traces of the paint on the surface of the canvas. At the same time, Lin Xiuyi also noticed the border of the painting. The border is engraved with a knot-like pattern. The varnish on top is rubbed off to sparkle. UU reading www.uukanshu.com looks like it should be well maintained.

"It's a fascinating work. Although I'm just a layman, I think I can still feel the external beauty of this work!"

Lin Xiuyi said sincerely to Steward Shibata, Steward Shibata smiled and did not respond too much to Lin Xiuyi's remarks. He just stood there, quietly waiting for Lin Xiuyi to appreciate the work.

"Excuse me... Where did you get this painting from?"

"Well... if I remember correctly, it should have been taken from the Rose Palace Gallery."

Butler Shibata replied to Lin Xiuyi without hesitation, listening to the tone, the uncertainty in the words just now seemed to be just a courtesy.

"Rose Palace?"

Lin Xiuyi asked with some puzzlement, "Rozen Palace is a high-end art collection company headquartered in the United Kingdom. They also have a annex in Tokyo, and Asai-kun has a lot of business dealings with them."

Yuan Zhizhu promptly added to Lin Xiuyi.