The afternoon hours passed quickly.
Jian Jing briefly met and exchanged a few words with a few guests, but she didn't notice anything out of the ordinary. As she said, speculating who might be the culprit before the case occurred was meaningless.
At 7 p.m., filming of the prelude began.
--
The cruise ship sailed into the vast Pacific Ocean, lights ablaze, illuminating the night sea.
Dan the billionaire's birthday celebration commenced.
He was in his seventies, with completely white hair and wrinkly, sagging skin covered in dark age spots, resembling a mangy dog.
Yet the woman on his arm was merely thirty years old—young, beautiful, and graceful, as if from another world. Standing together, they gave an absurd sense of displacement.
"Uncle." Speaking before anyone else was Dan's nephew. He was the only son of Dan's late sister, and after graduating he began working at his uncle's company. "The matter you asked me to handle is done."
The handsome young man obediently said, "Everything is as you wished."
Dan flashed a satisfied smile, turning to the man in his forties beside him. "Compared to Bai, my few children really don't give me much peace of mind."
Brother-in-law Wu pretended dissatisfaction, "He's only obedient in front of you. He's given me no shortage of trouble otherwise."
Dan laughed heartily, but the strain caused him to cough violently. "Cough, cough, cough, children, children are all like that, they're still young."
His gaze swept over his nephew Bai, his two sons, and many others, his eyes flickering.
"Young... how nice," Dan seemed to mutter wistfully.
Brother-in-law Wu didn't respond.
On the other side, Miss Lan Er, the sister of Kumiko's sister-in-law, was whispering to her sister, "If we didn't know better, we'd think the nephew was the son."
Lady Kumiko said, "After all, he's the child of a blood-related sister. Blood ties are an unbreakable bond."
"If that's the case, then what about him?" Miss Lan Er tilted her chin, indicating the attentive Russian man. "Your sister has passed away, yet he still acts like family, shameless."
Lady Kumiko cast him a glance.
After the niece's husband and son, the next to eagerly fawn was the younger brother-in-law and his son. Andrei, the late wife's brother, made an opening before indirectly complaining about his difficult life.
"Brother-in-law, how enviable your life is," Andrei bluntly said. "With just a word from you, everyone is willing to attend your birthday celebration. As for me, even my own son looks down on me."
"Father, that's enough," Nephew Wataru rudely interrupted him, seeming embarrassed. "Uncle, please disregard his words. I'm angry with him because he went gambling again."
Andrei was unapologetically shut down by his son. "So what if I gamble a bit? I've won quite a lot before. Where do you think your tuition came from?"
"Uncle paid for it," Nephew Wataru refused to back down.
"Alright, that's enough." Seeing the father and son arguing in front of everyone, Kang Na, Dan's eldest son, spoke up. "Today is Father's birthday, let's not say anything unpleasant."
Dan smiled faintly, brushing it off, "There are no overnight grudges between father and son. You two talk it out."
Nephew Wataru stiffly said, "We have nothing to discuss."
The atmosphere grew tense.
"Dad." At that moment, the second daughter Xue Er arrived, arm-in-arm with her husband Sau-chi, smiling brightly. "Happy birthday."
Dan's expression softened as he gently said, "You're pregnant now, so you can't drink today. Sau-chi, you'll need to keep an eye on her."
His son-in-law Sau-chi nodded and smiled, "Don't worry, Dad."
The second daughter Xue Er asked, "By the way, where's Min-cheol?"
"Don't mention him," Dan coldly laughed. "Let him be."
The second daughter seemed surprised, glancing towards her elder brother.
The elder brother Kang Na shook his head.
"Dan, we're late." The next to arrive was Dan's friend Ishikawa. He was in his sixties but still carried himself with elegance, a charming woman on his arm. She smiled coyly, looking lovely as she said, "Oh, Dan wouldn't mind us at all."
Dan quickly adjusted his expression, smiling. "Ishikawa, Linnaer, I'm so glad you could make it."
"We've been friends for thirty years, how could we miss this?" Ishikawa then greeted another young man. "Raj, you really resemble your father."
"Thank you for the kind words," Dr. Raj smiled. He was the son of Dan and Ishikawa's mutual friend, Dr. Sharma, and had followed in his father's footsteps to become a doctor as well.
Linnaer added, "You look just like Sharma when he was young. Time really flies."
"Indeed," Dan mused. "In the blink of an eye, we've all grown old."
As the old friends reminisced, the second daughter Xue Er didn't forget her earlier question, asking her elder sister-in-law Liya, "Did Min-cheol upset Father?"
The graceful, blonde sister-in-law Liya said, "Yes, he brought back his fiancée. But Father doesn't approve of their marriage."
The second daughter Xue Er, hand on her belly, was very surprised. "His fiancée?"
"She really is a dreadful girl," Liya lifted her chin, gesturing towards the last couple to arrive.
The third son Min-cheol wore an expensive tuxedo, but it couldn't conceal his casual, unkempt air. And his fiancée was even more excessive - a gold backless mini dress, gaudy diamond ring, feathers and flowers in her hair, heavily made up with bright red lips and shimmering eyeshadow.
"Oh, you're absolutely right," Xue Er lightly gasped.
"Hi there." Speak of the devil - Min-cheol's fiancée, Miss Jian, sashayed up, her eyes flickering as she appraised their jewelry.
"I'm Jian," she affectedly said. "I'm sure you've all heard of me. Soon, we'll be family."
Sister-in-law Liya coolly averted her gaze.
The second daughter Xue Er wrinkled her nose in distaste.
However, the men present couldn't help but surreptitiously look her over.
A flirtatious girl, but also a beautiful, young one. Her skin was smooth as silk, her eyes bright as gems, her body fresh and alluring like a lamb.
Once all the guests had arrived, the banquet began.
Seated at the long dining table beneath a crystal chandelier, servants brought out delicious dishes. Dan sat at the head, quietly observing everyone.
His gracious wife Kumiko conversed with Xue Er about pregnancy restrictions.
The eldest son Kang Na and son-in-law Sau-chi discussed stocks in hushed tones, later joined by nephew Bai. The younger brother-in-law Andrei complained to the youngest nephew Min-cheol about lacking funds, hoping to go into business together.
Sister-in-law Liya and younger sister-in-law Lan Er chatted about fashion.
Nephew Wataru ate in silence, ignoring others.
Friends Ishikawa and Linnaer reminisced about youth with Dan.
The flirtatious Miss Jian made overtures to Dr. Raj, bluntly probing.
"I heard Dan is ill. Will he be making a will?"
Raj said, "I'm not certain, Miss."
"Oh, he must have told you something," she batted her lashes. "Tell me, has the old man threatened Min-cheol at all?"
Unshaken, Raj replied, "I don't know anything about that."
Jian Jing tried repeatedly but failed, and she was furious.
At 8 PM, the dinner ended.
Dan was tired and left early to rest in her room, while others didn't plan to disperse yet.
Someone suggested playing mahjong.
But many didn't know how to play, so eventually one table played mahjong, and another table played poker.
The remaining people went to the deck to enjoy the breeze, wandered around, or chatted and drank with others.
At 10 PM, the games ended.
A close-up shot of the clock.
--
The filming was over.
Next was editing and post-production. Tomorrow, or rather the third day in the afternoon, the preview would be aired to introduce the opening of the story to the audience.
Everyone was exhausted and quickly returned to their rooms downstairs to wash up and sleep.
Jian Jing slept until past 10 AM the next day before eating lunch with a fatigued look on her face.
"Jian Jing, you look so tired," Bai Yang said with an exaggerated tone, leaning closer. "Those dark circles are so prominent."
Jian Jing became alert. "Really?"
He nodded.
"Alas." She rubbed her face and complained, "Acting is much more tiring than filming a reality show."
She had a knack for acting and could usually get it right in one take, but the co-stars who weren't professional actors kept messing up, and by the end, her face went numb.
Bai Yang smiled and said, "This is my daily routine. I'm used to it."
Jian Jing raised her eyebrows and reached out to pinch his face.
He laid there and let her pinch.
A cat that doesn't resist isn't fun to pinch.
She reluctantly let go. "You're no fun anymore."
"That's because you haven't unlocked the new gameplay yet." He made a silly face.
Jian Jing: "..."
After lunch, the crew asked them to hand over their phones. For the next few days, they wouldn't be able to contact the outside world, further preventing any possibility of cheating.
They were also informed that from now on, they would start the game on floors 7 to 10.
Today's content would be to recreate yesterday's storyline according to the script. The production team would also provide real food (the props used in yesterday's filming), and all guests must strictly follow the script's schedule.
This information had been mentioned before, so it won't be repeated.
At 10 PM sharp, the time on the screen matched the real time.
The game officially began.
At 10:20 PM, the landline in Jian Jing's room rang.
"Hello," she answered.
It was Dan's voice. "I need to talk to you."
Jian Jing: "There's nothing for us to talk about."
But Dan completely ignored her and coldly delivered her lines: "12:30 AM, come to my study. Don't tell anyone, or I'll throw you into the sea to feed the fish. I mean what I say."
Jian Jing: "..."
Alright then. She agreed, "I understand."
After a while, the call ended.
She found it fascinating and studied the landline for a bit. It was a cordless landline with a small screen displaying the current date: 19821116.
The time was: 10:22 PM.
The phone had buttons for speakerphone, auto-answer, and playback, but no caller ID.
It was indeed Dan's voice, but there was no way to prove it... Well, it was probably part of the setup. Otherwise, if there was evidence of absence, what would be the point of the game?
Jian Jing put down the phone and, out of boredom, opened the tape recorder, which surprisingly still had a cassette tape inside.
Pressing play, Teresa Teng's voice floated out: "Sweet, sweet, you smile so sweetly..."
Suddenly, she had a feeling of the 80s.
--
12:32 AM.
Jian Jing stood in front of Dan's body, feeling conflicted.
Truthfully, she had anticipated this scene, thinking that with her knowledge of forensic medicine, she could seize the advantage by identifying clues first.
However, the production team didn't give her that opportunity.
The body was a dummy.
Time of death? Sorry, with your persona, you can't tell.
Cause of death? Sorry, you can only guess.
Well... she could only examine the scene then.
12:40 AM, Jian Jing left the study and returned to her room to sleep.
--
The next day at 8:30 AM, she woke up, changed into clothes fitting her persona, and applied makeup using the sponsored cosmetics. Just as she wondered when the production team would notify them to start, she heard a commotion outside.
"Something happened!" The NPC butler rushed over and announced loudly, "Something happened."
Jian Jing tidied her hair and opened the door.
The camera following her almost hit her face.
"What happened?" she recited the universal line.
The butler said anxiously, "The master is dead!"
Jian Jing feigned a shocked expression (her acting skills had improved significantly compared to her first reality show), repeating, "Dead?"
"What happened?" Min-cheol Park (Third Son) also pretended to be surprised from the next room. "Did something happen to Dad?"
The others also emerged, some dressed, some in robes, but all very immersed in their roles: "Who died? Oh my god, that's impossible!"
The butler: "You all go and see for yourselves!"
The camera focused on everyone's faces.
The live broadcast had begun.
