Chapter 14 first quarter

When she heard about that, Mochi, who was returning to the courtyard, was eating chestnut rice. "A leafless oak tree?" Mao Qi asked such a rhetorical question, and Wen Ci nodded solemnly.He is one of Mao Qi's subordinates. He is as slender as a little girl. He obviously doesn't know how to drink, but his nose is always red. Today's Wenci, the red nose is even redder, the eyebrows are drooping sadly, and the hand resting on the kneeling knee is as white as a woman. "You mean the oak tree in the mansion of the Matsuura feudal lord?" After crossing the Honjo Mikura Bridge, it is the main house of Matsuura Bungo Mori. Inside the house, there is a Chinese oak tree with branches and leaves spreading freely outside the wall.It is said that this tree will not drop even a single leaf during the fall of leaves in autumn, so it is called "the tree without leaves" and is listed as one of the seven strange things in this institute.

However, when you think about it, this legend is very strange.Because the storage tree will not lose its leaves in autumn and winter.In the garden of the Matsuura feudal lord's mansion, there are not only Chinese oak trees, but also many other trees, including ginkgo, oak, maple, etc., which tend to lose their leaves.But these fallen dead leaves were not seen around the mansion.Exactly when it was cleaned up—these rumors have become the current legend after adding fuel and vinegar, and this is the truth of the matter. Having said that, I have not heard of anyone having an opinion on one of the Seven Strange Things, the "leafless Chinese oak tree".Generally speaking, there are many similar stories in the past legends, and it is not wise to go to the bottom of the story, and there is no such kind of leisure time-people at that time probably held this view.

Shigeru Shigechi, the catcher in charge of the head office, of course also held this view. "Does anyone have an opinion on that legend now?" Mao Qi handed the big rice bowl that he had eaten to his wife Ali and asked, Ali took it lightly and lifted the lid of the rice bucket. Wenci shook his head repeatedly and said: "It's not that anyone has any objections, but that a new non-deciduous Chinese oak tree has appeared. It is the small original house of a grain wholesaler in Ishihara Town, which is near the place where the murder happened a few days ago." Mao Qi was chewing chestnut rice, and Ali asked on his behalf:

"Is that the murder case? But why is the murder case implicated in the oak tree?" "It's all the boss's fault." Seeing that Wenci said something seriously, Mao Qi and Ali looked at each other. The murder mentioned by Wenci happened three nights ago. A business owner was brutally murdered in an unmapped alley in Ishimoto Town on the way back from the rally. The back of the deceased's neck was pierced with something like a long needle, and he died after only one needle. The deceased showed a shocked expression on his face, and the wallet in his arms was gone, and he was holding something like a thin strip of cloth in his right hand.The lantern candle he was holding on his way home from the rally was only half burned, next to the body.

The killer has not been caught yet.However, Mao Qi has some confidence in the case and believes that it will not be long before the case can be solved.Therefore, when he heard Wenci's accusation, he was taken aback. "That's a bad statement. What's the matter with me?" Wenci lowered his head slightly to moisten his lips, and said: "Boss, when you inspected the corpse, didn't you say this: 'It's bad luck. If there weren't so many fallen leaves, there should be footprints of the murderer on the ground. At least we can know where the murderer came from and where he went.' "

Mao Qi did complain like this at the time. "Oh, yes. So what's the matter?" "More than that, didn't you say: 'This alley is really unlucky. There was a murder here before, but the murderer was never caught, and the case was closed.'" Wenci was right, he had indeed said so. "Hey, Wenci, I mean what the hell are you trying to say?" "The leader may have forgotten that the alley where the murder took place is behind Xiaoyuan House. In other words, the fallen leaves under the body fell from the trees in the backyard of Xiaoyuan House. Their yard is huge, and there are There are pine trees, ginkgo trees, etc., and there are also storage trees among them, and the branches of these trees are all stretched out to the alley. Speaking of this, does the boss understand?"

"understood." "Ohara House's daughter has an eighteen-year-old girl named Axiu. The girl suddenly said something strange the night before. She said: 'It's all because of the tree over there. I can't catch it because of the fallen leaves. To the murderer, in order to prevent the same thing from happening again, I will be in charge of cleaning, so that no one can see a fallen leaf at any time.'” Ali opened his eyes wide and said: "That's a very commendable girl." "The people in Oharaya didn't take what Axiu said seriously at first. When everyone saw Axiu cleaning outside with a broom at 3:00 a.m., they realized that Axiu was not joking. Everyone was very surprised."

Mao Qi put down her job and said: "And then? What happened next?" "The owner of Oharaya, his wife, and his son Chitaro, the three of them dissuaded Axiu together. They said, your thoughtfulness is commendable, but you can't do this kind of thing in the middle of the night. If something happens to you, it will be a disaster. " "That makes sense." "Especially Chitaro, he tried his best to dissuade him. Because after the Chinese New Year, Axiu will be his wife." Although Axiu is a servant girl, she did not enter Ohara House through the helper agency.She was originally the daughter of a bean-cooking shop in a neighboring town, and she went to Xiaoyuan House to help out in the name of learning etiquette.

Mao Qi pondered and asked: "It's said to be learning etiquette, but it's actually a trial marriage, right?" Before formally marrying a certain girl, even if the period is short, live together first, to see if the other party fits in with the family tradition, and to observe the other party's attitude and temper, that is, to arrange a trial period first, which is exactly "trial marriage". Mao Qi himself does not agree with this trial marriage.He believes that it would be fine if the two parties get married smoothly, but if the husband's family refuses the marriage on the grounds of their behavior, the girl will suffer too much psychological and physical trauma.

"In the end, you will send people back for various reasons, right?" "I... I don't know about this. However, everyone knows that Oharaya and his wife are very strict with the helpers, but the couple never complained about Osode. Besides, the point is that Chitaro loves Osode very much, and there is no She can't live on at all, even if Ohara House thinks that the daughter of the boiled bean shop is a bit improper, there is nothing she can do about it." Wenci sighed, and continued: "But, no matter what that Sentaro tried to persuade, Axiu just didn't listen. Ask her why she insisted on doing this, and she just kept crying."

"That's really difficult." "However, she seems to say something like 'remembering the murdered father', which seems to have something to hide... Besides, it's all Fallen Ye's fault, and it's not what Ah Xiu thought of first." "So, after all, it turned out to be my fault, isn't it?" "No, it's not the strange boss. It's just that if the boss who said this told Axiu that the murderer would be caught and reassured her. By the way, ask Axiu why he insisted on doing this, then Oharaya would feel relieved. The matter is so." Maoqi grinned and said: "That's okay. Where is Axiu now? Did you cry last night and say you have to clean it?" "I heard that there is nothing to do with her, so Sentaro and a few helpers have to clean up with her." "That was really hard work for him." "Therefore, everyone in Ishimoto Town knows about this matter. Even if I don't come to report it, it will definitely reach the ears of the boss soon." Mao Qi patted her knee, stood up and said: "Okay, you go to Ohara House with me. I'll prepare it, you wait for a while. Are you hungry? Chestnut rice is delicious." "The boss just ate so much, and when spring comes, there will probably be sprouts on the top of his head. Ah Wen, don't you think so?" Wenci didn't laugh, he said: "No matter how much chestnut rice you eat, it won't grow sprouts, Mrs. Boss." After the two went out, Ali thought to himself while washing the dishes, it would be better if Wen Ci didn't speak so rigidly.

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