Chapter 159 The Secret inside the Coffin (1/2)

An hour later Ning Tao and Qing Zhui arrived at the Two Dimensions Bookstore, where Jiang Tingting was last seen. It was located in a remote place, mainly dealing with books and comics related to the two dimensions, as well as animation peripheral products. The bookstore was well decorated, but its business was slow.

“You go in the bookstore first and I'll go in later,” Ning Tao said, leaning into Qing Zhui's ear. “Try to pretend we don't know each other when I go in.”

“Why?” Qing Zhui asked curiously.

“Jiang Fuquan said that surveillance here happened not to work the day his daughter disappeared. I have a vague idea that it is a bit too coincidental,” Ning Tao explained. “We go in and pretend we don't know each other so as to make the people inside pay less attention to us. Then we can split up to look for clues. We'll talk after we get out there.”

Qing Zhui gave a nod and stated, “Good, shall I go in first or you go in first?”

“You go in first and I'll wait outside and come in later, as I said just now,” Ning Tao answered.

After that, Qing Zhui walked into the Two Dimensions Bookstore.

Instead of rushing in, Ning Tao stood outside the door and looked around. It was several minutes before he entered. When he walked in, Qing Zhui was chatting with a young salesman.

“Miss, you are so beautiful and graceful. You'll be famous if you play cosplay. Would you like to try it?” The young salesman was quite warm-hearted and looked at Qing Zhui with a twinkle in his eyes.

“Cos… what is it?” Qing Zhui obviously didn't know what “cosplay” meant.

The young salesman explained patiently, “Put simply, cosplay is imitating characters from anime. Don't move and I'll see who's best for you…”

Ning Tao didn't continue listening to their conversation. He walked in past Qing Zhui and the gallant young salesman. Being blocked by Qing Zhui, the young salesman didn't notice him.

There were dozens of bookshelves in the bookstore, on which were all books, comics, discs and garage kits related to two dimensions, as well as costumes and props for cosplay. It was a large bookstore, but there were only two small customers reading comic books at one table.

Ning Tao took a look at the corner and found two corners were equipped with surveillance cameras, and they were working. He pretended to look for disks, walking along the shelves, and then coming to the end of the store. There was a staircase with a red carpet leading to the second floor.

Ning Tao woke up his nose to enter the state of smelling. Immediately, thousands of odors flooded into his nose. He silently recalled Jiang Tingting's odor in his mind, and then compared it with the smell here in order to look for the scent that Jiang Tingting might have left behind.

A minute later, he recognized the “familiar” odor, which was the smell Jiang Tingting left in this bookstore.

This bookstore was a relatively closed s.p.a.ce, so the odors released by the person who came here would remain for a long time. Ordinary people couldn't smell it at all, but it was a piece of cake for Ning Tao to smell it. In the state of smelling, his nose was more sensitive than a dog's, and a dog could smell people hundreds of meters away in the open. It was conceivable that in this relatively closed s.p.a.ce, the smell left by Jiang Tingting who came here three days ago was very strong for Ning Tao.

Jiang Tingting's scent was scattered throughout the bookstore. In some places it smelled strong, and in others it smelled thin. In this case, Ning Tao had a “sidewalk” of odors in his brain, which pointed in one direction.

He went in the direction indicated by the locked odors and soon came to the end of the bookstore. It was the red-carpeted staircase in front of him, with a sign saying “No Visitors Allowed” beside it. Jiang Tingting's smell ran up the stairs. Ning Tao hesitated for a second before he stepped over the sign and up the stairs.

The young salesman at the front desk of the bookstore was still trying to persuade Qing Zhui to join a cosplay club, and didn't notice Ning Tao on the monitor walking up the stairs.

Qing Zhui noticed, and she knew exactly what Ning Tao was doing. She cooperated with Ning Tao's action to distract the young salesman's attention. “Can I make money by cosplay? I'm really short of money these days, but I want to buy a good bag. I'd like to try if I can make money with it.”

An imperceptible smile played across the young salesman's lips. “Of course you can make money with it. I can introduce you to my boss. With your figure and appearance, I promise he will sign the contract with you as soon as he sees you. Then he'll take you to Comic-Con. It's a piece of cake to earn tens of thousands of yuan with a single show.”

“Really? It sounds great. What's your boss's name?” Qing Zhui asked.

“My boss's name is Zhang Weibiao,” replied the young salesman. “I'll give you his card.” Then he took out his wallet, pulled out a business card and handed it to Qing Zhui. “I'm Zhang Lei,” he added. “If you want to partic.i.p.ate in cosplay, you can stop by anytime. By the way, may I know your name?”

“My name is… Li Xiaohong.” Qing Zhui dropped a random name.

Ning Tao had gone up to the second floor just as she said the common name.

The second floor was dedicated to cosplay, with weird costumes and props, mirrors and dressing rooms.

Jiang Tingting's scent extended to the front of a prop coffin, and ended in it.

It was an imitation of a vampire's coffin. It was made of solid wood, painted black and leaning against the wall, wide in the top and narrow in the bottom. Besides, the coffin was engraved with the words “True Blood”.

Ning Tao walked over to the vampire's coffin and sniffed the smell in it. He smelled not only Jiang Tingting's scent, but also a little of the anesthetic. The smell was so familiar to a doctor like him that it was easy to recognize.

The coffin, however, had apparently been cleaned because the smells of both Jiang Tingting and anesthetic were so weak that even in the state of smelling he had to sniff hard to find it.

By this point, Ning Tao had already guessed the general truth—Jiang Tingting's disappearance was related to this store which dealt with the two dimensions.

Ning Tao went to a leather sofa in the corner, sniffed at it and remembered some odors. Then he turned back.

Qing Zhui was still talking nonsense with the young salesman.

The salesman, who identified himself as Zhang Lei, said, “Miss Li, you really don't need to worry. My boss is a big shot in this circle. He is familiar with a lot of great directors. As long as you are willing to come, you may have the chance to become a big star. I'm not lying. With the level of your looks and your figure, it will only take you two or three years to become an list celebrity.”