At this moment, Li Bu had returned. He walked to Wen Bai's side and informed him of everything he had inquired about.
"Mr. Wen, the woman who had the accident is named Li Meili. She was a freelance model, without an agency, occasionally taking small advertisements and clothing shoots. Her social circle was relatively simple; she didn't have many friends, and her contact with people in her professional circles was limited to work-related exchanges. She was married. Her relationship with her husband started well, but later, for reasons unknown, they grew distant, according to what their neighbors said. Her husband owned a company engaged in logistics and transportation. However, he was recently on a business trip, and the male party bore all the household expenses. He was also extremely generous to her, and there were no debt disputes in the family."
Wen Bai asked expressionlessly, "Did they have a household service robot?"
Li Bu immediately replied, "Yes, several years ago, they purchased a female-looking household service robot from the XX mall nearest to their home. However, after less than a year of use, Li Meili gave that household service robot away. Of course, that's what she told people, and what her neighbors believed."
Speaking of this, Li Bu's voice carried a hint of pride. "However, all household service robots, whether purchased, gifted, or traded, have related registration records, unless they are directly discarded. According to my investigation, this household service robot was not registered for disposal, nor was it given to someone they knew. Li Meili directly sold that household service robot on the black market. I had a friend in the black market check it, and the black market has the registration records for that household service robot. It was sold to a merchant involved in the sex trade."
As Wen Bai listened, he felt as if he had heard something similar somewhere before.
System 001, as if it were Wen Bai's inner sprite, chimed in, "Host, do you find that a bit familiar?"
Wen Bai, with a blank expression, confirmed, "Yes, a little."
System 001 continued, "I find it familiar too, because one of the runaway robots you bought last night in that red-light district was a female-looking runaway robot, sold off by its female owner."
Now, with System 001's reminder, Wen Bai immediately recalled.
Household service robots, if they had nowhere to go, would directly return to their owner's side.
However, for runaway robots, it was unpredictable.
Still, Wen Bai asked Li Bu, "What is her home address?"
Although Li Bu didn't know what Mr. Wen intended to do, he still stated the address. He then thoughtfully informed Wen Bai, "Mr. Wen, I've sent it to your phone. Regarding Li Meili's specific situation, her home address, and her husband's information, I've sent them to your phone in separate messages."
Wen Bai was satisfied. "Good. When does her husband's business trip end?"
Li Bu immediately replied, "Today. If nothing unexpected happens, it will be tonight."
Wen Bai nodded. The timing was perfect.
-
In the evening, in a medium-sized villa area.
Wen Bai was currently standing on the balcony of the house next door to Li Meili's.
This was an empty house that seemed to have been unoccupied for a long time, exuding an unpleasant, stale odor.
With the assistance of System 001, all surveillance was blocked.
System 001 unlocked the doors one by one, and Wen Bai entered and exited as if he were in his own home, without any obstacles.
Wen Bai stood on the balcony, waiting.
The considerate System 001 immediately exchanged points for an air freshener and sprayed it directly into the air, replacing the damp, moldy atmosphere with fresh air.
Beside Wen Bai, the tall robot naturally followed its master.
Actually, Wen Bai had hesitated for a second when he came over, wondering whether to bring 575.
But the moment he considered leaving 575 at home, he couldn't help but recall the fate of the runaway robots he had bought last night.
Wen Bai sighed and decided it was better to bring it along.
Everything was silent, save for the chirping of insects.
In this villa area, everyone slept very early.
Many houses had no lights on.
Wen Bai lowered his head slightly and checked the time.
According to Li Bu's information, he should be returning soon.
Indeed, after waiting for a while, a faint car light shone from the distant gate.
A few minutes later, a car appeared within Wen Bai's field of vision.
Wen Bai stood on the balcony of a dark house, watching below with a blank expression.
The car drove directly and smoothly to the entrance of the villa next to Wen Bai's without hesitation.
The rear passenger door was opened, and a young man in a suit stepped out of the car.
After parking the car, the driver immediately jogged to open the trunk, took out the luggage inside, and handed it to the man.
The man said a few words, the driver nodded, and then drove the car away.
Afterward, the man returned home with his luggage.
Wen Bai prepared to go downstairs to wait outside the neighboring villa.
Suddenly, a faint "click" sounded in Wen Bai's mind.
System 001 felt a slight loosening of its restrictions, and a new, lit-up item appeared on its exchange list.
System 001 immediately spoke, "Host, we don't need to go down. For some reason, the restrictions have loosened. Has the plot of this world deviated?"
Wen Bai: "?"
He hadn't even done anything yet.
System 001 continued, "That's not the most important thing. The most important thing is that I've unlocked an item that we can use right now. I'll exchange it for you immediately. You can see what's happening across the way while standing here, and we won't have to go over."
Could it be like this?
Although unsure what it was, Wen Bai still replied, "Okay."
Then, System 001 immediately exchanged for "Give me a pair of wall-piercing eyes" and threw it directly onto its host.
Wen Bai slightly turned his head and found that the wall opposite him, in his sight, slowly began to warp from its solid state, then became semi-transparent, then increasingly clear, until it was completely transparent.
He clearly saw the young man opposite him place his luggage to the side of the door and then slump onto the sofa.
He was hunched over, holding his head, and seemed to be in great pain.
"It seems he already knows about Li Meili's death," System 001 commented, watching the scene unfold through Wen Bai's eyes.
Wen Bai was more concerned, "Can't hear the sound?"
System 001 immediately replied, "Logically speaking, Host, I shouldn't have obtained this item. I don't know what went wrong, but it suddenly became available for exchange. Other items in the same series, I will be able to obtain after this world is successfully completed."
Wen Bai expressed slight regret, "Okay."