Chapter 19 Chapter two

The demobilized soldier followed the position of his finger and looked at a smooth courtyard stone opposite him. There was a moment of silence, the two sides looked at each other, each lit a cigarette and smoked.The demobilized soldier smoked a few puffs, stubbed out the cigarette butt, put it back in his pocket, looked at Saeki and said, "According to Mr. Kawachi's last words, before talking about this case, please talk about Yumiko's situation. He Said that Yumiko was the fuse of this case, and the case happened on her anniversary Buddhist event." Saeki, who had just calmed down, became agitated again. He tried his best to control himself and said sarcastically, "Is that what Kawaji-kun said?"

"yes." "I don't know why Mr. Kawaji thinks this way, but..." Saeki took a drag on his cigarette.Then he said, "If you talk about Yumiko, I won't get tired of talking about it for many days, because I have been deeply missing her. The purpose of my coming here today is to recall the happy time when I lived with her." Hahahaha!...Look at me, at this age, you won’t laugh at me if you still say this! However, it doesn’t matter, because she was once a jewel in my palm, no! It should be said that she will always be a pearl in my palm, and she will always live in my heart! Just now I saw that the hundred-day mangrove tree she loved miraculously bloomed after the war, I was so excited that I cried. It was when you first came up and talked to me, I was crying. Hahahaha!... You can make fun of me, an ignorant and cowardly man, I don't care anymore!"

Saeki let out a sweet laugh from his heart, his face was flushed, his eyes were wet, and crystal tears flowed down again.He closed his eyes, put away his tears, and continued: "Yumiko was raised by me alone. I brought her home to raise her when I was nine years old. I was 24 years old and just graduated from university. I am determined Raise her to be a future lover or wife. Because I have gynophobia, when I see a young woman, I will feel nervous all over my body, and I will be too shy to lift my head. This forces me to pay such a high price, which is contrary to common sense. To choose a wife or a lover. In college, I read it, and maybe it was influenced by the protagonist in the book. When I graduated from college, I had an idea in my mind—to imitate Genji-kun’s practice, adopt a girl, and treat her carefully. Cultivate yourself into an ideal lover. Although I have phobia, I have never had an attack in front of girls under the age of ten. At this time, I met Yumiko."

There was a hint of nostalgia for the past in Saeki's eyes.His behavior is indeed beyond the norms of people's love, but from his expression, there is no sense of deviance, which seems normal. Listening to his narration, the demobilized soldier secretly swallowed a mouthful of saliva. "Yumiko is the most ideal girl in my mind and the image of my future wife. I have searched hard for many girls and finally got her. As I said just now, she was just 9 years old when I adopted her. She was a poor girl. No, it is an orphan to be precise, because her mother is still alive: she is a flamboyant woman who eloped with her lover when Yumiko was 3 years old. Afterwards, her father raised her, but after her When she was 8 years old, her only family member also abandoned her and passed away. She was sold to a geisha parlor as a trainee geisha—maybe the boss bought her because of her beauty. Once, I met her by accident, and I felt pity for her, and fell in love with her at first sight."

Speaking of this, Saeki took another breath, wiped the sweat off his forehead, and continued slowly: "For her, I did go through a lot of hard work, but in this society where money is omnipotent, I used a large amount of property left to me by my parents to clear the way and finally bought her out of the geisha house. In the early days of my life, my aunt brought me up. The year before I graduated from university, she also went to hell. There are no relatives around me to interfere with my affairs, so the plan went smoothly. I am determined to make her Cultivate a noble, elegant, and charming woman. This goal can be said to have been basically achieved. After bringing Yumiko back, I sent her to school to study. After graduating from junior high school, I did not send her to a higher school. Keep studying because I can't stand the debauchery of the young schoolgirls at that time. In her second year of high school, when she was 15, she had her first period and I have possessed her ever since."

The demobilized soldier looked at the ground in surprise, Saeki's expression was still very calm, lost in narcissism, his thin face flushed again. "You may think my behavior is animalistic. But you also have to think about me. For this day to come, I have kept my virginity and endured it for six years! I can't bear it anymore. At first, she was very Surprised, out of a girl's shyness and instinct, she tried her best to refuse, and begged me hard. But I am full of confidence: as long as there is the first time, she belongs to me, and I can wait for her physical and mental maturity in the future. But I didn't expect that she would mature very quickly after experiencing it for the first time. I felt like I was in a flower bed full of flowers..."

The more Saeki talked, the more excited he became, he was completely intoxicated. "If we are young people of the same generation, the flowers of love may not be so fragrant. Although young men and women of the same age are emotionally close, but out of shyness and affectation, their sexual life is mutually restricted. Because I Yumiko is 15 years younger than Yumiko. Although she has already had sex, she still calls me uncle. Like a child acting like a baby to an adult, she can act at will. She is like a clear spring that can never be drained. When I hug her, the same Hungry and thirsty, she satisfied all her demands and spent those ecstasy nights together. The joy of our sex life was beyond the reach of ordinary couples. At that time, I was still young, full-blooded, and in the period of exuberant energy. Muscles are plump, and there is endless energy in the whole body, but it is not like before, a shriveled little old man, and the night life is never tiresome for us."

He was obsessed with the happy memories of the past, a pair of dark gray eyes shot out the light of happiness. After a short pause, he wiped the saliva from the corner of his mouth, and said forgetfully: "We have not indulged in the joy of nightlife, and I have not forgotten to educate and train her, as I said just now, I want to train her to be a stunning woman , cultivated to be a beautiful woman in the Western idiom who is an uncle and niece outside, and a husband and wife indoors. My painstaking efforts were not in vain. When she was 20 years old, she was beautiful and charming, like a flower, exuding a youthful spirit. Vitality, any man will be overwhelmed by her demeanor. Therefore, she provoked a group of men and surrounded her like perverts, and Mr. Kawachi was naturally one of them."

Saeki Ichiro, who was intoxicated by the beautiful memories, suddenly returned to reality. He looked at the demobilized soldiers and said angrily: "You are Mr. Kawachi's comrade-in-arms. You should know his situation. As for his situation on the battlefield, I don't know, but before he joined the army, he was known as a whore. He is three years younger than Yumiko, and he is also very handsome. He has a special charm for women. This guy is also an orphan. He grew up in Yokohama. He began to play with women at the age of 14. Whether it is girls in brothels or girls from good families, countless women have been raped by him. You may ask: How do I know that when he first came into contact with Yumiko, I hired Private detectives have investigated him, not only him, this is my practice, whenever someone approaches Yumiko, I have to conduct a detailed investigation to understand his conduct, you may ask, then, Why don't I drive these perverts away from Yumiko's pomegranate skirt? I firmly believe that Yumiko has a charming side, but she also has a noble and proud side. Don't worry that she will be deceived by the sweet words of those swingers. She believes Only I can make her get the greatest satisfaction in life and body. On the other hand, out of vanity, I turn those coveted men around the back of the beautiful woman I cultivated with my own hands. , the unattainable anxiety and troubles are regarded as one of the great joys of life, and I want to show off the greatest satisfaction that I have monopolizing the oiran. If it hadn’t been for that cursed war, we would have been in love for a long time. live on."

Speaking of this, Saeki's face was covered with a shadow, his mood was also depressed, and he seemed a little reluctant to speak.He raised his head, gazed aimlessly into the distance with dull eyes, and said weakly: "Whenever I think of this incident, I feel heartbroken and in pain. The general process of the incident is as follows: In the early summer of Showa 16 (1941), I I received the notice of enlistment. I was 36 years old and Yumiko was 21 years old. Due to the tense situation on the battlefield and the shortage of soldiers, it is very common to enlist untrained men around the age of 36. I have already prepared for this. I just can't let go of Yumiko. I found four friends and entrusted Yumiko to their care. These four friends are: Gomi Konosuke, Shiga Jiuhei, Onitou Junichi and Kawaji Kenyuki. Mr. Gomi is me An alumnus in middle school, after graduating from university, worked in a commercial company in Tsukiji. He was cared for by me in many ways when he was in college, and he was three years younger than me. Shiga Jiuhei was my classmate in college. Yumiko was born very beautiful, and suddenly he traveled frequently. At that time, he was a teacher in a private university and liked to write poetry; Talent, only 30 years old; the last is Mr. Kawaji Kenyuki, he is your comrade in arms, I will not introduce any more. These four people are crazy admirers of Yumiko, and they happen to be celibate. You may not understand, Why did I choose these dangerous people to take care of Yumiko? This is a bitter strategy I adopted, using their jealousy to restrain each other, so as to protect Yumiko. Before I joined the army, I specially held a reception , invited them to see me with Yumiko. After I arrived in the army, I hardly received any training and was sent to the front to fight. In only 6 months, my leg was injured and I was transferred to the rear hospital for treatment. I had an amputation operation, put on this prosthesis, and became a disabled person. After being discharged from the hospital, I retired from active service. I returned to my hometown in Showa 17 (1942), and finally reunited with my beloved Yumiko after a long absence. But I never thought that, In less than a week, poor Yumiko committed suicide by taking poison, and I feel sorry for the loss of a treasure in my hand..."

Saeki let out a long sigh, wiped the tears from his face, and fell into deep thought of pain. The demobilized soldier was infected by his sorrow, and felt sorry for his loss of Yumiko.In the valley of the city under the afterglow of the setting sun, the water in the canal glowed with red lights, and I don't know what kind of bird was flying over the woods. "Do you know the reason why Mrs. Zun committed suicide?" "I don't know. She didn't leave a suicide note or any last words." The demobilized soldier gave him a puzzled look, but didn't delve into it, and suddenly changed the subject: "Didn't that tragedy happen on the anniversary of Yumiko's death?" Saeki nodded sullenly. The demobilized soldier took out the half cigarette from his pocket, lit it up and smoked it slowly, until the cigarette butt burned his fingers, then threw it on the ground, stamped it out with the sole of his shoe, stared at Ichiro Saeki and said, "We are about to touch the problem." The core of the case, let us recall together, the process of this case, will you talk about it first or I will talk about it first?" "Anyone can talk." "Then, take a break first, let me talk about it, you are already tired. I have heard Mr. Chuandi talk about this matter repeatedly, and I have asked him many times about the things that are not clear, and I have basically grasped the situation , if there are discrepancies, please boldly make corrections." Like a child, the demobilized soldier tilted his head and recalled while talking: "A few days before the Buddhist ceremony, you sent invitations to those four people, inviting them to discuss the preparations for Yumiko's anniversary Buddhist ceremony. These four people are Gomi Konosuke, Shiga Jiuhei, Onitou Junichi and Chuan Kenzhi, they are the protectors of Yumiko that you entrusted when you were enlisted in the army. After receiving the invitation, they came to your house one after another within two days before the Buddhist ceremony. He lived elsewhere, and he came after noon on the day of the Buddhist ceremony, which cast a shadow on the occurrence of the case." Saeki nodded. "However, before the incident, there was one thing worth noting. I thought it was a precursor to the incident. This incident happened while Mr. Chuanji was out. According to what Chuanji told me: he heard someone talk about Arrived. On the morning of the Buddhist ceremony, your favorite police dog suddenly barked in pain and died shortly after vomiting blood. At that time, people were very surprised, but because it was only an animal that died, it was ignored by people I didn’t expect it to be a case of food poisoning, but after the case happened, everyone realized that the death of the police dog was used to ask for directions.” Saeki grimaced and nodded again. "This touches on the theme of the case. It is said that the purpose of your invitation is to do Buddhist work for your wife. But the strange thing is that you didn't invite monks to do the dojo, and this arrangement, completely according to your intention, is canceled All rituals with Buddhist meanings were held, and everyone was encouraged to drink to comfort Yumiko’s spirit in heaven. As soon as the sun set, the reception began, and Japanese wine, beer, and champagne were placed on the table. At 8 o’clock in the evening, the five guests of honor drank Drunk, and now you take out the brandy again..." "No, not brandy, but gin." "By the way, it's...it's gin. At that time, the reception was held in a western-style living room. According to your arrangement, the reception was in a corner of the living room. There was a silver tray on the table, and five wine glasses were placed side by side on the tray. You filled the gin yourself. Just as you were picking up the silver tray and distributing the glasses, the old servant called you from outside the drawing room, and you put down the silver tray and went out. Excuse me, what can the old servant want from you?" "It's nothing important. She asked me how to deal with the police chief who died in the morning." "Ah, I see. How long did it take from the time you went out to the time you came back?" "It's only two or three minutes. I just gave a few simple instructions and came back in a hurry." "It turned out to be like this. Afterwards, the poet Shiga Jiuhei said: After you left the living room, he was impatient to wait, so he approached the silver plate, first brought a glass of wine, drank it all, and then poured the remaining four The position of the cup was changed, and other people also saw this scene. Shiga Jiuhei drank a glass of wine and returned to his seat. Kito Junichi also wanted to go to the silver plate to pick up a glass of wine and drink it. When he was about to beep Hou, I saw you coming back. He hastily put the wine glass back on the silver tray, shrunk his neck, and sneaked back to his seat. Go to the table, pick up the tray, and pass the wine to the four guests present." "However, when I broke the silver tray, I noticed that one of the glasses was empty, so I refilled the gin while saying: What a glutton." "Yes. Just after you handed out the wine to everyone, this tragedy happened. Mr. Kawachi gave a very detailed account of what happened at that time, roughly like this: You first picked up a glass of wine and handed it to the ghost on the left Zhunichi, then Shiga Jiuhei, the third cup was given to Gomi Kinnosuke, and finally there are two glasses of wine left on the plate, you stretch out the silver tray to Mr. Kawaji, and ask him to choose one..." "Yes, since Mr. Kawachi was sitting across the table, his hands were out of reach, so I had to reach out to him with the tray." "At this time, Gomi Konnosuke, who was sitting between you and Kawaji, took out a glass of wine from the tray and put it in front of Mr. Kawaji." "Yes, I don't think Mr. Kawaji still remembers this very clearly." "Because the police in charge at that time focused on questioning this suspicious point during the on-site investigation. After the wine glasses were divided, everyone raised their hands and clinked glasses. I don't know who shouted: 'Air strike!' Excuse me, who is this person?" "It's Junichi Oni. He is a daredevil and often makes mistakes. This time, he mistook the tram horn for an air raid siren." "Because the war situation was tense at that time, when everyone heard 'air strike!', they immediately put down their glasses and stood up nervously, and some people ran to the window. Soon, everyone came to their senses, knowing that they had made a mistake, and taunted the ghost Zhunyi. , went back to his seat, sat down, picked up the wine glass and drank. After a while, Gomi Konnosuke suddenly clutched his stomach, moaned in pain, vomited dirty blood, died of breath, may I ask, Gomi Kinnosuke drank it About how long does it take for the alcohol to attack?" "It's... about two or three minutes. However, besides Gomi Kinnosuke, I am the one who drank the gin, and Mr. Kawaji didn't touch his lips at all!" "Chuandi-kun also said the same thing. Due to the sudden death of Gomi Kinnosuke, the situation and atmosphere on the scene changed suddenly. Someone hurriedly invited a doctor. According to the doctor's reminder, everyone just called the police. After an inspection, it was determined that Mr. Wuwei was poisoned to death by drinking gin mixed with potassium cyanide. Therefore, who is the poisoner has become the focus of the investigation.” Speaking of this, the demobilized soldiers turned their eyes to the ruins where the setting sun was like blood and the night was approaching. All kinds of remnants drew strange shadows on the slope.With a heavy heart, he paused for a moment, and continued: "The first person to be suspected is naturally you, because you poured these 5 glasses of wine yourself, and you served them to everyone. When he was in a daze, he secretly poisoned the cup, and then served the wine to someone according to the target. Therefore, five wine cups were tested at that time. Of course, neither Mr. Wuwei nor your cup needed to be tested, because Your wine has been drained, and if it was poisonous, you would have died like Mr. Wuwei. The test results of the other three wine glasses were not found to be poisonous. Therefore, you have become the main suspect." Saeki nodded.The demobilized soldier went on to say: "If you admit that you are the poisoner, the case will be over quickly, but the problem is not that simple. You argued that after pouring the wine, you were called out by the servant. During this time, Shiga Jiuhei from the bank I drank a glass of wine on the plate, and changed the position of the other wine glasses. If you were the one who administered the poison, you would have no idea which glass contained the poisoned wine. Besides, you have noticed that the wine glasses are placed The location of the glass has changed, if you don’t pay attention, you will reap the consequences, but when you handed the wine, you didn’t show any hesitation. The criminal police then visually inspected all five wine glasses, and there was no difference at all with the naked eye Therefore, they ruled out their doubts about you. Sorry, I forgot to say something: When you returned to the living room and refilled the wine glass that Mr. Shiga Jiuhei had drunk, Guitou Zhunichi sat next to you, and he proved that you No chance of poisoning." Saeki nodded silently again, looking at his toes expressionlessly. "After excluding you as the person who poisoned, Shiga Jiuhei and Kito Junichi became the second and third important suspects. Because both of them were close to the silver plate and touched the wine glass, so there is The opportunity to poison. But if one of them is the murderer who poisoned, who can be sure that the poisoned wine glass will be handed to Gomi Kinnosuke... This is impossible, because it is not them who made the wine glass but It's you, if you don't make it right, they will eat their own fruit. In this way, the suspicion of the two of them is eliminated. The police also imagined that the poison may have been poisoned after the drink was finished. The key is that the ghost yelled 'air strike!' , thus causing the moment of commotion." Saeki lowered his head and said nothing.Night is coming. "Therefore, Kawaji Kenyuki became the fourth suspect. When he shouted, everyone hurriedly put down their cups and looked out of the window. Maybe someone took advantage of the chaos and threw poison into Gomi Kinnosuke's cup. In this way, the police investigated in detail where the people were sitting. I also noticed this problem very quickly. According to Kenyuki Kawaji, the situation at that time was like this. Leaning on the table in the middle of the living room, when he heard the shout, Gomi Kinyusuke jumped up from the chair, but Mr. Kawaji didn't move at that time, and Mr. Onitou Zhunichi ran to the window while shouting, Mr. Shiga Jiuhei held the drinking glass and sat down on the sofa in the corner of the living room. In this way, the person closest to Gomi Konnosuke was naturally Kenyuki Kawaji, and only he could drink Gomi Kinnosuke into the wine glass Moreover, Shiga Jiuhei also proved afterwards that he saw Kenyuki Kawaji take advantage of Gomi Konnosuke to stand up in a panic and look out, and secretly exchange his cup with Gomi Kinnosuke's cup Yes. Under the severe interrogation of the criminal police, Mr. Kawachi also admitted to changing the wine glasses. In this way, Mr. Kawachi has become an inescapable poisoning suspect.” "However, Kawaji Kenyuki explained to me that when he changed the wine glass, he didn't know that there was poison in the glass, but when he picked up the wine glass and was about to drink, he found a short hair floating in the glass. Although he picked it out with his fingertips and threw it on the ground, he always felt disgusted. Just as he was hesitating, Mr. Onitou Zhunichi suddenly yelled "air strike", and the people commotion. So he stood up with the help of Gomi Kinnosuke Come, when I looked out, I secretly exchanged wine glasses with him." Having said that, the demobilized soldier shut up and looked around.The sun had already set, and darkness enveloped the wilderness. The zinnia flowers lost their brilliance and turned into a black mass. "Of course, Mr. Kawaji's defense is unbelievable. However, in accordance with legal procedures, he accepted his defense and re-investigated and analyzed it. It is worth noting in Kawaji Kenyuki's defense that he and Gomi The reason why Mr. Jinzhisuke changed the wine glass was because there was a small piece of hair in the glass. The criminal police wondered at the time: Is this hair cut used as a mark of the poisoned wine glass? If so, it should be considered , has already been poisoned, so the focus of the problem will return to the person who handed the wine glass." Having said that, the demobilized soldier took a peek at Saeki, but he still frowned and bowed his head in silence. "Therefore, you have once again become the main suspect. If that hair is the mark of the poisoned cup, it has nothing to do with Kawaji Kenyuki changing the wine cup. The murderer can also follow his own plan and skillfully avoid the cup with hair. Beginning with Mr. Junichi Kito, pass the wine to Shiga Jiuhei and Gomi Kinnosuke in order. If you handed over the wine glass of Kawaji Kenyuki, you cannot shirk your responsibility. But the problem is, you When the tray was extended to Mr. Kawachi, he was asked to take one of the remaining two cups, which further complicated the problem. It is conceivable that if the cup that Kawachi brought was a wine glass without hair, the result would be What should I do...According to people's habits, people usually use their right hand to pick up things, and you can put the poison cup where he can easily pick it up. However, according to Kawaji Kenyuki's recollection: because of the distance, it was inconvenient for him to pick up wine. Mr. Gomi Kinnosuke took a glass and handed it to him. Gomi Konnosuke was on the left of Mr. Kawaji Kenyuki, and the glass he took was the one that Mr. Kawaji was not comfortable with. The results of the analysis have shaken your suspicion again, and at this juncture, the criminal police suddenly discovered a small bottle of potassium hydride with a capacity of one ounce from Mr. Kawaji's handbag." The demobilized soldier glanced at Saeki and continued, "Shiga Jiuhei, Kito Junichi and you knew about the fact that there was a small medicine bottle in Mr. Kawaji Kenyuki's purse. Two days ago, when discussing Buddhist affairs in the living room, when Mr. Kawachi took out a handkerchief from his purse to wipe his sweat, he accidentally brought out a small medicine bottle and rolled it on the ground. Mr. Kawachi suddenly looked very embarrassed. It left a deep impression on everyone. Kawachi lied that it was stomach pain medicine, but the criminal police found that it was potassium cyanide. The doubt moved to Mr. Kawaji. At this time, Kawaji Kenyuki hurriedly changed his words: because At that time, the society was in turmoil and the war situation was tense. This drug was prepared for suicide in an emergency. Of course, no one would believe this illogical explanation. If the police dog hadn’t been poisoned that morning, Kenyuki Kawaji He must be charged with guilt." "..." "It was the police dog that was poisoned and became Kawachi's savior. Since Gomi Kinnosuke had been poisoned and died at that time, people thought of the police dog poisoning incident in the morning. Fortunately, neither the dead dog nor the dog food were disposed of, and the criminal police conducted an investigation. Laboratory tests proved that the police dog died after eating food mixed with potassium cyanide. However, Mr. Kawachi never returned from the night before to noon of the same day, and the small bottle and leather bag have been kept with you, the police dog It is impossible for him to poison him to death. When Kenyuki Kawaji's small medicine bottle fell from his purse to the ground, the people present felt suspicious when they saw his distressed appearance. Maybe someone took him out, The powder in the bottle was secretly mixed into the dog food for testing. After confirming that it was poison, he tried to use it to kill Mr. Gomi Kinnosuke. According to the old servant’s recollection, after he mixed the dog food in the morning, he suddenly remembered something. I put the dog food at the door of the kitchen and took the opportunity to go out for a while. When I came back, I met Gomi Konosuke coming out of the kitchen, but Mr. Gomi happened to be the victim again." The demobilized soldier looked at Saeki, smiled meaningfully, and said: "According to the testimony of the old servant, the question of whether Gomi Konosuke committed suicide has arisen again. This is something that people have never imagined. He conducted an investigation into the situation at that time. The trading company where Gomi Kinnosuke was employed closed down during the war, and he had become an unemployed citizen, and he was seriously ill. Poverty and illness made him lose confidence in life. People joked that the dead are the happiest people in the world. As a result, Kinnosuke Gomi committed suicide and closed the case. The conclusion was that after Kenyuki Kawaji exchanged wine glasses with him, Kinnosuke Gomi poisoned himself. Died of drinking. Shiga Jiuhei also said at the time: Although he saw Mr. Kawaji and Gomi Konnosuke exchanged wine glasses, but because of the commotion of the "air raid", he was already frightened out of his shell. He didn't pay attention to the move. Moreover, the relevant personnel at the time also believed that this was the most ideal solution. Of course, if it was not in the war years, this kind of hasty closing of the case would not be satisfactory. In addition, the incident occurred Shortly thereafter, the main suspect, Kenyuki Kawaji, was conscripted into the army and dispatched to distant overseas battlefields, so the police followed suit and closed the case with the help of Gomi Kinyuki who committed suicide by taking poison."