Chapter 504: Chapter 22: The Earring Case (Part 2)_2
“It’s pretty badly damaged, isn’t it?” Gongsun Ce said, “A few minutes ago I heard a description of this earring. It made me suspicious because I couldn’t match it up with what was in my hand. Do you remember how Huang Qi described it?”
—That evening Kova bought a pair of new earrings. They were uniquely shaped, quite large, and very conspicuous.
“This contradiction can’t be ignored. The little thing I found isn’t particularly distinctive, nor is it large. Would it really stand out? That’s when I thought of another possibility, maybe it’s just too badly damaged…”
Gongsun Ce pinched the shorter end of the “crescent” and twisted it outward. This time, the short arc rotated 180° from left to right and flipped over to the other side of the earring, forming a shape like a crown.
“Ah! Yes!” Huang Qi exclaimed.
“Of course, this is the correct shape of the earring. We can imagine the scene at that time, poor Kova was struck down by a tremendous force, this earring being directly pressed into a fold by his head, resulting in its current appearance.”
“You’re stalling.” Budman Avis said coldly, “This thing is meaningless now.”
“I think it’s quite significant; it’s essentially the crux of the case.”
Gongsun Ce stood with his hands behind his back, like a detective, moving into the center of everyone’s sight, his laugh growing more cheerful.
“Pay attention, everyone! This earring was smashed and folded, changing its appearance. Not even the lady who chased Kova yesterday recognized it, and not even Huang Qi, who was with Kova, understood it immediately. So here’s the question…”
Gongsun Ce stopped laughing and looked coldly at the man before him, speaking slowly and deliberately.
“Why did Budman Avis recognize this earring instantly among my pile of junk?”
For a moment, no one spoke; most of the gangsters didn’t grasp it, only a few veteran members changed their expressions.
Budman pulled at the corner of his mouth, his look one of viewing a lunatic. He impatiently shouted, “You fucking mind clogged with shit? I just saw them last night—”
“That’s a poor excuse. Let’s align the timeline.” Gongsun Ce raised his voice, “This earring was only purchased last night. And if my guess is right, it was bought between 7:30 and 8:10 PM, after you and they had parted!”
“How do you know?” Huang Qi asked, glaring.
“You eight spent more than half an hour on Commercial Street. Were you not shopping, just strolling? Your group of six are societal men, not high school girls who love aimless wandering.” Gongsun Ce organized his thoughts, “Most importantly, if the earring was acquired before 7:30, Budman would’ve described it differently. Remember what he said? ‘That crescent thing!'”
—It’s in your right hand, that crescent thing!
“That description is too specific, virtually a confession. If he had seen it before, he might have called it something else, like ‘that broken thing’ or ‘that tattered earring.’ But however it was, he shouldn’t have recognized it immediately, because even Huang Qi and the lady didn’t see it! But Budman did recognize it. Why?”
Gongsun Ce casually tossed the crucial piece of evidence, delivering his final conclusion.
“Because Budman Avis only saw this earring once, precisely when he personally smashed Kova’s head!”
“Now, let’s look at the whole course of the incident! Last night, while the lady was confronting your group, Budman was busy elsewhere, unknown to his comrades within the organization, personally killing three veterans who had been with the organization since its foundation!”
“He picked a good opportunity. There was a power outage across the area last evening, naturally causing gaps in the surveillance, and few could notice his actions. The three old fellows would never dream that the organization’s second-in-command gathered them to take their lives.”
His tone was sharp, his words flew quickly, yet his language seemed imbued with magic, vividly projecting the images into everyone’s minds.
“Anyone is aware of his capability, the notorious Plunderer is one of the city’s strongest Superpower Users! He used his favorite ability, Green Ghost possession, and in an instant, shattered his old friends’ hearts. The experienced Budman then tore apart the bodies and finally smashed their heads with his massive hammer, ensuring no chance of revival.”
“Last night was dark and cloudy, clouds obscured the moonlight, providing a convenient setting for his deeds. Yet an unexpected incident followed: a Superpower User skilled in Earth Tunneling Skill mistakenly entered the crime scene while fleeing and witnessed it all.”
“Poor Kova was tremendously shocked, unbelievably so; he couldn’t have imagined that an underboss he had just met an hour earlier would be here killing old seniors of the organization! Discovered, Budman was terrified and immediately chose to silence the witness. Then the hammer fell, the earring folded, and poor Kova died a terrible death. By the time the lady and I arrived, all we saw was a ground littered with gruesome corpses!”
Budman’s face turned crimson, veins bulging on his arms, “You f*cking idiot! Look closely with your dog eyes, I wasn’t there at all! As you say, it was only seconds; where could I have hidden?!”
Gongsun Ce raised his thumb, pointing downward to the ground.