Tang Tang waved her phone, looking solemn yet a bit playful. "Maybe those who are careful might have missed a small detail."
She opened her phone, scrolled through it, and then showed it to Zuo Mu and Huang Xiaoli.
Zuo Mu had an expression of "just as I expected".
Huang Xiaoli looked shocked, both surprised and delighted. "How could I not have thought of that?"
She was so excited that she almost jumped up.
Tang Tang quickly held Huang Xiaoli down before she could move. With a sly smile, she said, "Maybe the other side didn't think of it either."
What they were looking at was the sender information under the message.
A series of numbers became the death warrant for the murderer.
"But there are so many people. How can we find out whose number this is?" Huang Xiaoli was a bit puzzled.
"It's not urgent. I have some friends in the technical department of the police station. Giving this clue to them should yield results quickly." Zuo Mu always looked calm, as if nothing in the world could anger him.
"That's even better. The murderer might think this is not important information, but he didn't expect that although I don't have many other skills, I'm very sensitive to numbers. It's hard for me to forget after just one look." Tang Tang tilted her head and looked at Zuo Mu, as if showing off. Look how great I am.
Zuo Mu couldn't help but smile and motioned for her to continue.
"I'm not familiar with this number, but I've definitely seen it. Once, I saw Wang Lin slide open her phone, so I also remembered the content in her message inbox. I've seen this number. I'm absolutely sure it belongs to Wang Lin herself."
Tang Tang's deduction made Huang Xiaoli shiver.
It was very likely that Wang Lin had already met with misfortune. The murderer was blatantly showing off with the victim's phone.
How crazy could a person be to take pleasure in the pain of the victim's relatives and friends?
"This murderer is incredibly cruel. He not only tortures the victim but also the relatives and friends in the victim's contact list." For the first time, a hint of killing intent appeared on Zuo Mu's usually calm face.
This was also what Tang Tang was most worried about. "Huang Xiaoli, you'd better not go out unless it's necessary during this period."
Anyway, Huang Xiaoli's parents would pick her up and drop her off.
Zuo Mu was right. If Tang Tang hadn't noticed the clue about the sender, there might be a second Huang Xiaoli in the future.
Maybe the murderer was already looking for the next target to harass or even harm.
"Brother Zuo, how will knowing this number help you?" Tang Tang put away her phone and returned it to Huang Xiaoli. Then she looked at Zuo Mu with bright eyes.
The girl's bright eyes made Zuo Mu a bit distracted. He forced himself to focus on the case. Today's clue was really unexpected.
Zuo Mu took out his phone and walked towards the balcony. He told the two of them, "You two stay here obediently and don't run around."
Tang Tang felt like she had an over - protective nanny. She stuck out her tongue at Zuo Mu's back.
Huang Xiaoli didn't know why she felt that the scene in front of her was a bit embarrassing.
On the balcony, Zuo Mu dialed a familiar number.
"Really?"
"Yes, the situation is roughly like this. I guess it will be useful, but how much it can help depends on you."
After briefly reporting the situation to the person on the other end of the phone, Zuo Mu hung up.
Looking at the twinkling stars in the night sky, Zuo Mu suddenly felt very tired. He leaned against the railing wearily and took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket.
Inside the room, Tang Tang and Huang Xiaoli were concerned about the progress of the matter. Especially Huang Xiaoli was so nervous that she didn't even dare to breathe loudly, for fear of missing any information.
They watched Zuo Mu make the call, couldn't hear what he said, and then saw him calmly hang up.
Tang Tang was waiting for him to come in and explain the situation, but unexpectedly, Zuo Mu slipped to the lounge chair in the corner of the balcony, blocking their view from inside the room.
What did Zuo Mu mean?
Tang Tang was puzzled. Curiosity got the better of her, and she tiptoed over.
"Click"
The balcony door opened, but Zuo Mu didn't pay attention.
Tang Tang was shocked by the second - hand smoke on the balcony.
Although Zuo Mu had opened the window earlier, he smoked so fast that it had little effect on air circulation.
Tang Tang's heart sank.
It was normal for men to smoke, but Zuo Mu usually boasted that he was a doctor, a surgeon no less. So it was very important for him to keep a clear mind and sensitive nerves.
Zuo Mu hardly ever smoked on weekdays.
Since they met, Tang Tang had hardly seen him smoke.
But the man sitting there, looking out of the window with a lonely look in his eyes and puffing out clouds of smoke, although his features were very familiar, the aura around him made Tang Tang dare not approach.
Noticing someone coming, Zuo Mu looked towards the balcony door and showed an understanding expression.
Apart from this young lady, probably no one else would dare to come in.
This Zuo Mu made Tang Tang feel very uncomfortable.
Maybe she was still young and didn't understand the occasional sense of loneliness of adults.
It wasn't until later that she understood that it was a feeling of heartache for Zuo Mu.
Tang Tang was choked by the smoke and coughed continuously.
Zuo Mu was well aware of the commotion on this side.
He sighed, extinguished the half - burned cigarette butt in his hand. When he turned around again, he was still the gentle and reliable Brother Zuo.
As smart as Tang Tang knew it was better not to say a word at this time.
Sure enough, Zuo Mu glanced at her and then continued to look at the starry sky silently with his back turned.
His back looked so lonely.
"Why did you come in?"
"I'm worried about you."
Zuo Mu didn't say a word.
He lowered his head, thought for a while, and when he looked up again, the hesitation and doubt from before had disappeared without a trace.
"What's wrong with you, Brother Zuo?"
"I don't know if it's right to involve you two kids in this." Rarely, Zuo Mu looked a bit uncomfortable. He extinguished the cigarette butt and explained, "Judging from today's clue, the murderer is obviously premeditated, organized, and acts cruelly and decisively."
Tang Tang tried to look relaxed and walked up to Zuo Mu step by step. She didn't know how to comfort this man in front of her.
"You can't control the murderer. If we don't get involved, won't there be more victims?" Tang Tang took the cigarette butt from Zuo Mu's hand, walked to the trash can, and threw it away.
She came back and continued, "Whether voluntarily or passively, at least our goal is the same, which is to catch the real murderer as soon as possible."
By the end, Tang Tang was clearly emotional, and her eyes were a bit moist.
"Since that's the case, can you promise me one thing?"
"Tell me."
"Promise me that no matter what happens, always put your own safety first."
Obviously, Zuo Mu had anticipated the worst - case scenario.
"Okay, I promise you."
Tang Tang promised very readily.
So readily that it made him suspicious.
Zuo Mu looked at Tang Tang hesitantly, and Tang Tang tried to look cute.