Chapter 104
Nangong Iren
The room was enormous. Iren and Yihshyong exchanged glances before they started exploring the place. Since they had no idea about how the people there put things away, it took them quite some time to find what they were looking for. It wasn't until half an hour later that they got the iron cuffs.
The iron handcuffs, complete with the key, were in a box which turned out to be the container for the handcuffs. Iren looked at the box made of high quality wood. There were three similar boxes. After going through all the boxes, Iren found each box contained the same object. So, in total, there were three pairs of iron cuffs that were exactly that shape, size, and color. Since they only needed a pair, they only took one box. Iren then put the box in the plastic bag he brought. They both came out of the room and immediately approached the guard of the house.
Without saying a word, the guard ushered them into another room. This time, the room they were headed for was on the third floor. Luckily, the box containing the iron handcuffs wasn't that heavy, so Iren was still able to walk around casually while carrying the plastic bag.
Just like before, the guard also refused to come into the room. He just waited outside the room. In contrast to before, there wasn't a couch that was quite flashy outside the room, which was also no less spacious. There was only a chair that looked so old. Even though it still looked quite sturdy, it might be a bit uncomfortable to use as a seat.
This time, they didn't stay inside too long. Yihshyong quickly found what they were looking for. He looked at Iren with a face so bright.
"Here is the box." Yihshyong smiled broadly. The box was much smaller than the previous box. On the outside of the box was attached a photo and a description of the specifications of the item in the box.
"Come on, let's check the contents first." Iren was so excited.
But all was not finished. There was another surprise. Upon opening the box, they found it was empty.
"Eh?" Yihshyong stared. "Nothing inside?"
"Let's see! Are there any other boxes that look exactly like this one?" Iren looked around them.
Apparently, there was no other box like it. There was only one mustache trimmer box left. They took the empty box and then walked out of the room. Iren immediately approached the guard to ask about it.
"Are there any other rooms in which the same items are stored as the items in this room?" Iren asked in a friendly but firm tone.
The guard thought for a moment before shaking his head. "I don't know, Sir! I haven't been working as a guard here long."
Haven't worked here long? Is he not lying?
"Is there anyone else we can ask?" Iren did not want to give up so easily.
There must be another way!
"There are some employees working during the day. But I don't know how to contact them," said the guard.
"Are you sure you can't contact them?" Yihshyong asked.
"Actually, if there is something that is an emergency, for example, there is a thief breaking in or something like that, then I have to contact my superiors. But I don't know if something like this can be classified as an emergency."
"How about we go downstairs first?" Yihshyong said.
They then walked towards the stairs.
"Isn't that an elevator?" Yihshyong pointed at a corner to the left of the corridor they were walking down. It was a bit indented, so they couldn't see the elevator when they came from the opposite direction.
"That's right, Sir! It's an elevator. But we can only use it between eight in the morning and six in the evening. The elevator connects three floors above ground and two floors underground," said the guard.
When they got to the ground floor, they saw there was another person there.
"What's the matter, Sir?" asked the guard to the person who just came.
"This gentleman, Mr. Shernhuh Gueykuang, is the deputy manager here. He works here every day. But his working hours end at four in the afternoon." Shiuander explained to Iren and Yihshyong.
"Earlier, someone called my house. That person asked me to come here immediately," said the person.
"Who called you, Sir?" The guard looked surprised.
"I don't know. I wasn't home when my wife got the call. The person who called said I had to come here immediately because it was an emergency."
"What kind of emergency is that person referring to?" The guard frowned.
"I don't know. My wife said the guy didn't go into details."
"You didn't try to call here to see what was going on?" asked the guard.
"No. This has happened several times before. So when there is something urgent, I really have to come here. You don't know because you haven't been working here long."
"You said something like this had happened several times," said the guard. "What kind of emergencies usually happen?"
"It would take me a long time to explain that." Shernhuh Gueykuang sighed. "The bottom line is that this is part of my job."
The guard nodded.
"But don't you already know that you have to contact me if anything happens?" Shernhuh Gueykuang looked at the guard with such a sharp gaze.
"I know, Sir! But it wasn't me who called your house."
"Okay! Maybe just a prankster. Or some of our colleagues are playing a trick on me," said the person. "Mr. Shiuander, have you found the things you are looking for?"
Shiuander looked at Iren and Yihshyong.
"There's one thing we haven't managed to get to," Yihshyong said.
"What things, Sir?" Shernhuh leaned forward.
Yihshyong showed them the empty box they got from one room on the third floor.
"Oh! This mustache trimmer," exclaimed the deputy manager.
"Do you know about this stuff?" Iren cheered in his heart.
"Yesterday, someone called us to buy this item," said the person. "If I'm not mistaken, we still have five of these items. Since they are rare items, they are quite expensive. So we were a bit surprised when he said he would buy them all."
"He bought them all?" Yihshyong gaped.
"He also bought something else. I forgot what the other stuff was." Shernhuh Gueykuang tried to remember.
"Who was on the phone at that time?" asked Shiuander.
"One of the employees here. But we can't reach him right now. He's been out of town this afternoon. The person said a member of his immediate family is sick. He won't be back here in three days at the earliest."
"Are there no sales records, Sir?" Yihshyong asked.
"I'll check first, Sir!" Shernhuh Gueykuang said. "Let's go to my office."
Iren, Yihshyong, and Shiuander then followed the man to the room where he worked every day. The guard did not follow. He returned to the place where he should be guarding.
Shernhuh Gueykuang opened a folder and checked its contents. "That's right, Sir! He bought five units of that stuff. Apart from that, he also bought five units of iron handcuffs. Of course, we sent those things complete with boxes. That's our specialty here. I also don't know why there's still one empty box above."
"Iron handcuffs like this, Sir?" Iren opened his plastic bag and showed him the box they took from the room on the second floor."
Shernhuh Gueykuang looked again at his notes. "That's right, the handcuffs are like this. What is this, Sir?" That person looked towards Shiuander.
Shiuander just smiled, shrugging.
"Would he be willing to sell us a unit of the mustache trimmer he bought from here yesterday?" asked Iren.
"I don't know, Sir! Since he bought several units, it is possible that he intends to resell them to someone else."
"When the person came here, did you see him?"
"The person never came here. He asked us to send the goods directly to his house," said the person.
"How about we just ask for the address?" Shiuander said. "Let us go straight to him."
Shernhuh Gueykuang nodded. He then wrote down the person's address and telephone number.
"Shouldn't we call him first?" said Iren.
"Then let me contact him first, Sir." Shernhuh nodded. He then called the person. No answer. Shernhuh tried two more times. Still no answer.
"Let's just go there now," Shiuander said.
"It's already a quarter to eight. We have to hurry," Yihshyong said.
After that, they immediately left the place. The car was running at moderate speed. Iren thought it wasn't that Shiuander didn't want to drive the car at high speed, but it was very dangerous to do such a thing in the city. The situation in the car was quiet. No one opened their mouths.
"So they don't specifically provide tools or objects used in film production?" Finally, Iren broke the silence about twenty minutes later.
"That's right, Sir! They sell things to anyone who wants to buy them," said Shiuander.
"Do they have some kind of shop?" Yihshyong asked.
"Yes, Sir. But it's only a small kiosk. People who know about it usually come straight to the big house."
"Is it okay for people who make movies to buy stuff from them? I mean, their stuff looks expensive," said Iren.
"Not everything is expensive, Sir," said Shiuander. "Those things that are just replicas or knock-offs made of cheap materials are usually very reasonably priced. The handcuffs and trimmers we're looking for aren't replicas. They're real things that were manufactured years ago. So, of course, expensive."
Iren didn't understand why Songfei would use such expensive things. The things he used for everyday needs like a mustache trimmer or the things he used to play detective like handcuffs were clearly too expensive. Songfei should only use things that were reasonably priced.
"But if they have to buy it, and then don't use it after shooting, isn't that a loss?" Iren was still concerned about it.
"They can still use those goods for shooting other films. Or we can also sell those items," said Shiuander.
"Ah! Movie fans really like to hunt for items used in film shootings," said Yihshyong.
"Even if no one wants to buy, the supplier I know is willing to buy back the goods they previously sold," said Shiuander. "Of course, at a price below their previous selling price."
"So it's like the film company only rents those things," said Yihshyong.
"That's right, Sir! If there is no damage, usually my acquaintances are willing to buy back the goods."
The traffic was a bit congested. Therefore, they arrived at their destination a bit later than they expected. Shiuander's car stopped in front of a house that was no less grand than the house they had just left. The fence of this house was very high. Iren was worried that the owner of the house belongs to those annoying bourgeoisies. Negotiating with people like that was definitely not easy.
There was a bell button stuck to one side of the fence. After pressing the button three times, there was a voice from behind the fence. A few seconds later, the gate opened. Someone appeared from behind the fence.
"Are you the people mentioned by that person called Shernhuh?" asked the person.
"That's right," said Iren. It turned out that after they left the warehouse earlier, the deputy manager named Shernhuh tried to call this place again.
"Please come in. But please don't park the car there." The man pointed at their car. "I "It will get in the way of cars coming in later."
"We understand, Sir!" Iren nodded respectfully. Their car actually did not stop right in front of the gate. However, because the gate was wide enough, the front of the car was still in front of the part of the gate, which may still be considered as the entrance to the big house's courtyard.
Shiuander immediately got back in the car. He backed away from the gate. After that, the three of them entered the house. The guard invited them to sit in the living room.
After five minutes, the man came out again with a tray of drinks and snacks.
"The owner of this house has many other houses. Today he is in another house. He is on his way here. But because the distance is very far, he will be here in about ninety minutes at the earliest," said the person.
Iren looked at his watch. It's almost half-past nine now. Ninety minutes to ten at night. That was if the owner of this house could come on time.
"Okay! We will wait," said Yihshyong.
"If gentlemen want to use the restroom, it's here." The guard pointed at a corner behind the living room. Iren rose from his seat to see more clearly about the location of the toilet.
"Thank you, Sir," said Iren.
"I'll go inside first. I have things to do."
"Please, Sir!" Shiuander said.
"Now what, Sir?" Yihshyong opened his mouth after the house guard disappeared from their sight.
"Of course we are waiting for the arrival of the owner of the house."
"Has Mr. Shiuander eaten dinner yet?" Iren couldn't help but ask that.
"I'm sorry, Sir," Shiuander said. "Earlier, when gentlemen went upstairs to look for the iron handcuffs and mustache trimmer, I took the opportunity to get out of that house. It turned out that I didn't need to leave the house because just as I was leaving the gate, a food vendor was passing by there. Because I was starving, so I immediately bought the food."
"That's all right, Sir." Yihshyong smiled. "Eating is very important."
Shiuander nodded.
"What did you eat?" Yihshyong continued his words.
"I bought fried rice, Sir! The side dish is several types of dry-fried fresh-water fish."
"Ah! That must be delicious." Iren suddenly felt hungry. His saliva almost dripped at the thought of the dish.
"The owner of this house has taken a long time to get here. If gentlemen want to go out for a while, that's fine," said Shiuander. "I'll wait here. If what the housekeeper says is true, then we'll still be here a long time. I think one hour should be enough to find food."
"If we leave you alone here, will you be all right?" Iren felt a little bad about having to treat their kind-hearted neighbor in such a way.
"I won't be alone here. Isn't that guard still there?" Shiuander smiled.
"Do you really not mind?" Iren still doubted.
"It's okay, Sir! After we leave here, we still have to go to the police station. So, we still have a long way to go. I'm afraid you will faint if your stomach is empty."
"All right, Sir! We're going out first now." Iren cheered again in his heart. He was sure Yihshyong also had the same thought.
Right away, Iren and Yihshyong came out of the very luxurious living room of the house. They came out over the fence and stopped in front of their car.
"Where are we looking for food?" Yihshyong looked confused. "It looks like this place is far from the food stalls. The traveling food vendors don't seem to pass through here either.
Iren nodded. Yihshyong's words were quite reasonable. They were in a luxurious residential complex. Yihshyong stood facing Iren. Behind Yihshyong was a long street lined with luxurious houses on either side. Behind Iren was also the same. Most likely, they had to walk quite a distance to be able to find food stalls.
Iren's gaze drifted to the children who were walking towards them. The children were about thirty meters away from Yihshyong. Yihshyong had his back turned to them, so he couldn't see the children. About twenty meters behind the children, two people were standing at the gate of a house. One of the two people was opening the gate. After the gate opened, the two of them immediately disappeared inside.
Iren was stunned. He knew both of them.
What are they doing there? I have to talk to them.
Iren looked straight at Yihshyong. Yihshyong looked thoughtful. Maybe he was still thinking about how to find a food stall in a short time.
I have to find a way to get to those two people! But I have to be careful. I can't let Shyongge know about this!
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