S.C.I Mystery Series Volume 6 Chapter 115

New Year Special – Food Competition 3

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In front of the giant aquarium at the Bai Group's food city, several ladders had been set up. Contestants from each team climbed the ladders with nets in hand, preparing to catch the ingredients themselves.

Issel picked out a particularly "fine-featured" lobster and instructed Eleven to scoop it up.

The giant aquarium was assembled from several smaller tanks. At first glance, it looked like an undersea world, but each tier held different kinds of seafood.

The lower tanks were larger and wider, while the upper tanks were narrower and taller.

There were many varieties of lobsters, all kept in the middle section.

Uncle Chopsticks wielded a net, chasing after that lobster... For some malicious reason only the twins knew, the handle of the net was especially flimsy, making it hard to control.

Eleven tried twice, both times he had clearly had the lobster in the net, yet halfway through the scoop, it managed to wriggle free.

Other teams fared about the same. In short, the catching was not going very smoothly.

But the spectators were thoroughly entertained, and those watching the livestream online were delighted too, filling the comments section with jokes.

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang came out of the surveillance room and joined the crowd of onlookers.

While Bai Yutang got in touch with Zhao Hu, Ma Han and the others, Zhan Zhao tilted his head back and stared at the massive aquarium, lost in thought.

Although Zhan Zhao had a liberal arts background, his IQ determined his mental arithmetic ability... He couldn't help but calculate the volume of water contained here, how the glass structure bore the load, which tier might collapse if a hole was smashed in, and if the aquarium cracked, how many swimming pools' worth of water would come pouring out...

After finishing his calculations, Zhan Zhao arrived at a conclusion – This is very bad!

Inside the surveillance room, Big Brother Bai was rubbing his temples. The twins were telling the security guards to drop the manhunt and to hurry up and cordon off the aquarium, under no circumstances could they allow it to leak!

The aquarium guy, however, was rather calm, saying that the glass was bulletproof! Never mind smashing it with a hammer, even with a Gatling gun blasting at it, it would take at least five minutes to crack.

The twins, one on each side, slung their arms around the aquarium guy's shoulders to enlighten him: "In this world, there's a thing called fortune! If the hardness of your tank is Gatling level, then our Big Brother's bad luck is an RPG."

Big Brother Bai kicked the pair of jinxed brothers, telling them to stop talking nonsense and get downstairs to guard the tank. Today, if the tank stood, they would stand, if the tank was destroyed, they would die with it!

The twins remotely instructed the security team to surround the aquarium, but there were too many spectators, and quite a few people didn't understand why so many men in suits and dark glasses were encircling the tank. Was it some kind of performance art?

The twins had no choice but to tell the security guards to relax their expressions a bit, no need to look so serious.

The security guards looked at one another – Professional training required them to keep a serious face, how were they supposed to relax?

Mia, who was watching from the sidelines in Bai Ye's arms, saw a group of security guards baring their teeth, wearing forced, twitchy smiles as they stared at the customers in front of the aquarium. She quietly lifted her little arms to cover her face and glanced up at Bai Ye - These people look so suspicious!

Quite a few parents with children pulled them away and ran off. Big Brother Bai stood at the edge of the upstairs corridor, sighing helplessly...

Just as he was shaking his head, Xu Lie suddenly dashed over, shoved Little Yumi into his arms and said, "Big Brother, look after her for a bit!" Then he shot off, clearly in the direction of the toilets.

Big Brother Bai and Xiao Yumi, who was sucking on her pacifier, stared at each other for a moment. He held up a finger in front of the child's eyes. Xiao Yumi promptly went cross-eyed, staring foolishly at that finger.

Big Brother Bai felt his mood lighten considerably, finding it rather therapeutic!

......

Downstairs, five long minutes had passed, and Uncle Chopsticks still hadn't managed to catch that lobster. Issel was growing impatient, waving the list at Eleven – There's a whole pile to catch, you know. Can you do it or not? If you can't, come down and I'll do it myself!

Uncle Chopsticks's competitive spirit flared instantly. Gripping the handle of the net with both hands, he started twirling it as though he were spinning a bamboo dragonfly.

At once, a whirlpool formed in the water...

"Whoa!"

The crowd erupted in gasps, even drawing the attention of Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao, who were in the middle of looking for Wang Yong.

That lobster had probably never seen anything like a sudden waterspout in its life and seemed completely bewildered... In a flash, it was sucked into the vortex, spinning round and round the net.

Eleven shifted the net slightly to the side and scooped the lobster up in one smooth motion, executing a textbook golf swing...

The crowd lifted their heads at once, just in time to see a lobster soaring overhead.

Bai Jintang had been wiggling his finger to tease Xiao Yumi when he suddenly noticed the child's eyes drifting away from his hand and staring ahead.

Out of the corner of his eye, Big Brother Bai spotted something hurtling towards him. Instinctively, he reached out and caught it. With a wet, slippery splat, something landed in his hand.

Big Brother Bai frowned and looked down at the large lobster in his hand. It was lively and thrashing its tail, the fishy smell...

Big Brother Bai was so disgusted that he was about to explode, but when he looked down, he saw Eleven perched on the ladder, waving at him. His meaning was obvious – Throw it to me!

Bai Jintang sighed in resignation, flicked his hand and tossed the lobster down.

Uncle Chopsticks raised his hand, catching it neatly in the net and handing it straight over to Issel.

Issel put the lobster into a bucket, and the crowd burst into applause.

Issel urged Eleven to hurry up and catch the rest, time was short!

Bai Ye held his little mortar and pestle for spices, glancing around as he worked. He also noticed that Bai Yutang and the others seemed to have all their attention fixed on the aquarium...

At that moment, Mia tugged at Bai Ye's sleeve, then raised her paw-like hand to point ahead, signalling to him in the ten o'clock direction.

Bai Ye looked over and saw a man in a hat holding a net, standing at the side of the aquarium, blending in with the contestants scooping for seafood.

Bai Ye turned back to Mia, who was showing him on her phone the photo of Wang Yong that Zhan Zhao had sent her, it was the same man.

Bai Ye gave a subtle signal towards Bai Yutang.

Mia pouted – Shouldn't we tell Mom first?

Bai Ye couldn't help but laugh. "If your mom gets overexcited and flings a throwing knife over, puncturing the aquarium, we'll end up paying more in damages than we'd ever earn."

Mia tilted her head and thought about it. She felt that it made sense, so she ran to Bai Yutang.

Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao were standing not far away, right beside Issel.

Issel was holding a bucket, catching crabs that Eleven tossed down. Finding Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao too close for comfort, getting in his way, he muttered helplessly, "Bai Ye says ten o'clock, in the crowd."

Both Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao froze, then turned their heads to look.

Mia happened to run up just then, skidding to a halt, and pointed back.

Bai Yutang also spotted Wang Yong, who was scooping at the water with his net, and was about to signal Zhao Hu and the others to make the arrest.

But Zhan Zhao tugged at him, whispering, "Don't arrest him yet, wait until he scoops the thing up."

Bai Yutang agreed that it made sense, but then heard Issel mutter, "He's been scooping for ages, trying every compartment. Looks like even he doesn't know where it is."

Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao both stared at him speechlessly – So you noticed already and didn't say anything earlier?

Issel waved them off, as if to say – Oh, just hurry up and arrest him, don't hold up my business venture!

When Bai Yutang saw Wang Yong circle round to the back of the aquarium, he thought it was the perfect chance for an arrest, so he signalled Ma Han and Zhao Hu to flank him.

The twins also directed the security team to block off all escape routes.

Upstairs on the second floor, Bai Jintang was flicking his hand dry.

Just then, Xu Lie came hurrying back, scooping Xiao Yumi into his arms. He heard Big Brother ask him, "Got any tissues?"

Xu Lie blinked and patted his pockets. "Aiya, I'm out, I used up the last two just now. Big Brother, did you get an upset stomach too?"

Bai Jintang gave him a disdainful look, then motioned with his hand.

Xu Lie raised his hand, a bit puzzled. Big Brother Bai promptly wiped his wet hands, still damp from catching the lobster, on Xu Lie's sleeve.

"Whoa!" Xu Lie leapt up, sniffed his sleeve, let out a "yuck," shoved Xiao Yumi back into Big Brother's arms, and dashed off to the restroom again.

Big Brother Bai raised his own hand to sniff, there really was a faint fishy smell. He held his finger under Xiao Yumi's nose, the child wrinkled her nose and turned away with exactly the same expression Xu Lie had just made.

On the other side of the aquarium, Wang Yong, who was furiously stirring the starfish section with a scoop net, was caught by Zhao Hu and Ma Han.

The bodyguards quickly formed a ring, blocking the view of onlookers. Since the contestants were busy on the opposite side of the tank, there weren't many spectators here, so it didn't cause a commotion.

Handcuffed, Wang Yong was still in a manic state, his face twisted in agitation.

Bai Yutang glanced at Zhan Zhao, slightly surprised. So easy to catch? What's up with this guy?

Zhan Zhao observed Wang Yong, then clapped a hand a few times by his ear.

But Wang Yong was dripping with sweat, looking as though he'd been struck by some sudden illness. It was strange, and it didn't seem like an act, his complexion was completely different from when the surveillance had caught him entering the room earlier.

Zhan Zhao felt something was wrong and told Ma Han and the others to get him to the hospital as quickly as possible.

Ma Han and Zhao Hu also noticed Wang Yong trembling all over, as if in convulsions, and hurried along with the bodyguards through a fast passageway, driving him straight to the hospital.

Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao didn't know whether they should go to the hospital or keep searching. Just as they were hesitating, they saw Mia holding something and waving at them.

They hurried over.

Mia glanced at Issel.

Issel pointed towards one of the tanks, leaving the two of them baffled.

That tank held hermit crabs, with lots of children crowded round to watch.

Hermit crabs counted as seafood too, but there wasn't much meat on them, they were a rather obscure choice, so no one was catching them.

Moreover, all these hermit crabs were carrying glass shells, so their internal structures could be seen very clearly. A group of children were pressed up to the glass, studying them, watching some of the hermit crabs changing homes.

Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao narrowed their eyes, leaning against the tank with the children for a closer look. Then both cried out "Ah!" at the same time.

Amidst the pile of glass shells was a tiny glass bottle, sealed with a cork and wrapped in a waterproof pouch, perfectly hidden amongst the shells.

And inside that bottle was a dark grey USB stick.

Bai Yutang borrowed a small net and scooped the glass bottle out.

The two of them turned together to look at Issel – Is this what Wang Yong had been searching for?

Issel shrugged – How should I know? It's the only thing in the tank that isn't seafood.

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang quickly grabbed the USB stick and rushed to the lounge.

Jiang Ping had already prepared everything there, letting Zhan Zhao use Big Brother Bai's laptop.

When they plugged the USB stick in and opened it, there was nothing inside.

Zhan Zhao tilted his head.

Bai Yutang was also puzzled and asked Jiang Ping, "What is it? A hidden folder?"

Jiang Ping tapped on the keyboard for a while, looking just as confused. "No, this is a new USB flash drive, never been used before."

"Could it be that files were deleted?" Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang were unwilling to give up.

But after Jiang Ping worked on it for quite a while, he shook his head firmly. "No! It's just a new USB stick, never used."

Both of them felt that it was strange. Was this the thing that Wang Yong was looking for? Could there be something else in the tank?

Just as they were puzzling over it, Bai Yutang's phone rang.

When he answered, he heard Zhao Hu shouting, "Chief! Wang Yong's dead!"

Bai Yutang hadn't even put it on speaker yet, but Zhan Zhao could hear Zhao Hu shouting through the phone.

"Did you guys get to the hospital?" Bai Yutang asked.

"Just arrived, but the man is already dead. Preliminary diagnosis is cardiac arrest. We've notified Gongsun and the others." Zhao Hu went on, "Chief, he spoke before he died!"

"What did he say?" Bai Yutang quickly switched to speakerphone and leaned in with Zhan Zhao to listen carefully.

"Ma Han and I heard two versions, both numbers. I heard 201, while Ma Han heard 2011."

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang were baffled – What 201, 2011... three digits or four?

"Boss!"

At that moment, Jiang Ping, who was still connected, suddenly called out, "That USB stick, try prying it open?"

"Pry it open?" Bai Yutang took a closer look at the USB stick and found that there really was a seam down the middle. He grabbed a pair of scissors and pried at it a few times. With a click... it actually opened.

Inside the USB stick was a very small memory card.

Zhan Zhao found a matching card slot on the tablet, slid the card in, and found that it fit perfectly.

Once it was inserted, a number box popped up, asking for a seven-digit password.

Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao exchanged a glance, then entered 2012011...

And it actually unlocked.

A spinning icon appeared on the screen... After two rotations, the memory card opened, and inside was a single folder. The name of the folder was – Yellow Raincoat Killer.

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵

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Translator Notes

Hello! This case has been super long and I have been quite busy, so I don't have the EPUB ready just yet. I should be able to share it on my Discord by the end of the weekend though.

Please feel free to comment any mistakes I made so I can improve and do better as I go through the book.

Translated: September 15, 2025 by Angel

Edited: November 21, 2025 by Angel