Late at night, Rover and Zhezhi head back to the Exile Camp to investigate further
Zhezhi: “I hear people talking.”
Rover: “We can eavesdrop on their conversation.”
Zhezhi: “OK, I'll use my Terminal to record it, just in case.”
Rover and Zhezhi sneak through the entrance and listen to the “Exile” Member’s conversation
Candid “Exile”: “Ugh, Mr. Baici stopped by again, grumbling about the delay in getting Mingyan's paintings to the Shanyun Art Exchange…”
Cryptic “Exile”: “If Yinfeng hadn't pushed her, she wouldn't have gotten hurt. Now she can't even paint, and our order is gonna be late.”
Yinfeng: “Hey, watch yourself. I just did what I always do. She's been rebellious and a bit too smart for her own good lately. I just wanted her to keep her head down and work. Who knew she'd crack and cause that mess. Luckily, I slipped away, and the Patrollers didn't suspect me... No big deal. I pinned it all on Mingyan, so we're in the clear.”
Cryptic “Exile”: “Someone was here earlier asking about her case. No Patrollers, but... Do you think they could find out what we did?”
Candid “Exile”: “Doubtful. They might notice we're making pigments here, but that's it.”
Yinfeng: “It doesn't matter if they find out. We pose as Exiles, and what doesn't an Exile do?”
Candid “Exile”: “But we should be careful. Remember what Mr. Baici warned us about? Keep these things on the down low, and if anyone finds out, they can't be allowed to trace it back to the Shanyun Art Exchange.”
—-
[Different Dialogue Option, Enter Combat] Rover: “Let's beat the truth out of them.”
Zhezhi: “OK, I'll use my Terminal to record it, just in case.”
Yinfeng: “Who the hell are you?! Coming at us like this... Think you can just push around Exiles, huh?!”
Candid “Exile”: “It's them! They were here asking about Mingyan earlier today!”
Rover: “What were you saying just now?”
Cryptic “Exile”: “Who do you think you are?! We don't need to tell you a thing!”
Rover draw their sword in a threatening manner
Yinfeng: “W-wait a second! Things don't need to get violent! We'll talk, okay?”
Rover: “We just want the truth of Mingyan's case.”
Yinfeng: “About Mingyan... Didn't my men answer your questions already? That's everything we've got on her, I swear. What more do you want?”
Rover threatens further with their sword
Rover: “Spill the truth or we won't let you go.”
Yinfeng: “Alright, alright! I'll tell you everything!”
Cryptic “Exile”: “Yinfeng! We aren't supposed to…”
Yinfeng: “What? Can't you see that we're no match for them? Go ahead and pick a fight if you want, but I'm not risking my life for this. Now what else do you want to know? Just ask!”
Rover: “Did Mingyan get hurt because of you?”
Candid “Exile”: “If Yinfeng hadn't pushed her so hard, she wouldn't have gotten hurt. Now, she can't even pick up a paint brush, much less finish this batch of paintings.”
Yinfeng: “Oh, quick to sell me out, huh? All I did was remind her to focus on her paintings. She's been rebellious and a bit too smart for her own good lately. I just wanted her to keep her head down and work. Who knew she'd crack and cause that mess.”
Rover: “Why are you really making pigments and ink sticks?”
Yinfeng: “To cut our costs and keep our cooperation with the painters going. What else could it be?”
Rover: “Are you with the Shanyun Art Exchange?”
Yinfeng: “We... we're with the Shanyun Art Exchange. We're only pretending to be Exiles because our boss, Mr. Baici, wants this business kept quiet.”
Candid “Exile”: “You shouldn't have told them! Mr. Baici said no one can find out about the Art Exchange's involvement, no matter what!”
Yinfeng: “You just can't stop talking back, can you?”
Rover: “I've nothing else to ask.”
—-
Rover and Zhezhi discusses their plan with the new information they have
Zhezhi: “So the Shanyun Art Exchange has been involved in Mingyan's case right from the start. No wonder they got all shifty when we brought up Mingyan earlier…”
Rover: “Masquerading as Exiles is indeed cunning. / Yinfeng... the name sounds familiar.”
Zhezhi: “Yinfeng... Yes…” / “It was his signature on Mr. Shilang's transaction record.”
Rover: “We spoke right where it happened. When I asked him about the incident, he put all the blame on Mingyan, saying she had ulterior motives. The Exiles we questioned during the day did the same, trying to divert attention and cover up their own involvement at the scene in the first place. These distractions led us to concentrate solely on Mingyan, ignoring other possible angles.”
Zhezhi: “I have a theory... but we need that "batch of paintings" they mentioned to test it…”
Rover: “Let's give the area another sweep.”
Zhezhi: “But there are so many more people in the camp now! How will we get in?”
Rover: “We'll walk right in.”
Zhezhi: “They might hide all the evidence if we barge in like that…”
Rover: “Then we'll just have to blend in.”
Zhezhi: “Okay.”
[Different Dialogue Option] Rover: “We'll disguise ourselves as Exiles.”
Yinfeng: “Huh? Why are you staring at me? Wait, I've told you everything I know! Aaargh—”
With the Exile clothing in hand, the two of them quickly change into their disguises
In their disguises, Rover and Zhezhi enter the “Exile” Camp to investigate for more clues
Rover: “This should do the trick. Now let's see what information we can find inside the camp.”