Chapter 5 Chapter V Warning Line

When two detectives from the Nagano Prefectural Police Station arrived at the Kamizhidaira ski resort, the bodies of Tsuji and his wife were already surrounded by a black wall of skiers. "Get out of the way!" The two criminal policemen separated from the crowd and entered the wall of people.The person who asked to guard was killed, and the two couldn't help but feel very angry. The older Maejima detective squatted on the snow to examine the two bodies. "Both were shot dead. Immediately contact the police headquarters and immediately set up a cordon." Maejima shouted to detective Yoneyama who was traveling with him.

Detective Mishan struggled to pull his feet in the thick snow, and staggered towards the office with the telephone. The Maejima detective who stayed behind picked up the blood soaked in the snow and looked at it. The blood had dried up. "Did any of you hear the gunfire?" Maejima stood up and looked around the wall of people. "I heard." A tall, slender young man immediately raised his hand and answered.The young man looked to be in his mid-twenties, and was wearing the latest spacesuit-style ski suit. "Can you tell me more about it?" Maejima detective looked directly at the other party.

"I, I—" The young man felt that all the skiers were looking at him, so he couldn't help but feel restrained, and he stuttered a bit when he spoke. "I rode the chairlift behind these two people. During the slide of the chairlift, the two people kept talking. Then, when the chairlift slid to the middle or so distance, I suddenly heard a 'beep' gunshot It went off. Immediately afterwards, another shot. At this moment, the two people who were riding on the chairlift in front of me fell headfirst." "Where did the gunshot come from?" "Probably to the right."

The young man pointed in the direction of the birch forest. In addition, four or five male and female skiers also reported hearing two gunshots.They also confirmed that the gunshots came from the birch forest on the right. Detective Maejima waded through the snow and walked in the direction they pointed.The people next to him also cheered and followed in a large group.Maejima hurriedly shouted "Don't come over", preventing these spectators from coming over.Never damage the scene. In the birch forest, there were no traces of skis or people, but on the slope from top to bottom, deep footprints were clearly printed on the snow.Take a closer look, the footprints stopped for a while in the middle, and then extended down to the middle of the slope, each footprint is clearly visible.But the footprints from the middle down are messed up.There is also a shallow ditch about one meter wide and five or six meters long, which may have slipped and fallen.It seemed to be running down in a panic.

Maejima walked towards the recess in the middle of the slope.A pit was clearly seen there, and it can be considered that this is where the shooter hid. Maejima opened his eyes wide and searched around. In the nearby snow, he found two bullet casings.Maejima took out a handkerchief and carefully wrapped the shell case. It is very clear that the criminals played cold shots here.Detective Maejima imagined what it would be like when the criminal was attacking him, so he crouched down in the recess and looked up at the slide of the chair lift. He immediately understood that this should be said to be the best position to shoot at the person riding the chair lift.

With the low-lying position, the body is concealed, and the hanging chair can be seen well.Moreover, now the sun is shining from behind, and the person riding the chairlift can be clearly seen from here, while the other party is against the light, but cannot see this side clearly. What's more, the nearby slopes are uneven and exposed everywhere. With the tip of the mountain white bamboo, there is no need to worry about skiers approaching here. When the Maejima detective returned to the corpse, the Mishan detective also called and kicked the snow all the way. "The headquarters said to set up a cordon immediately."

"If only I can catch up." "No problem. It seems that the detectives from Tokyo have arrived at the headquarters of the prefectural police station. If they hear the news that the couple are dead, they will be unhappy." As soon as Totsukawa arrived at the Nagano Prefectural Police Headquarters, he heard the news that Secretary Tsuji and his wife Kinuyo had been shot dead while on a hanging chair. For a moment, Totsukawa's water snake's waist seemed to bend even more. The cold seemed to come back again, Totsukawa took out a handkerchief to wipe his nose, and the scar on his left hand also started to hurt.

"And what about the criminal?" Totsukawa asked the Chief of the First Investigation Section of the Criminal Division of the Prefectural Police Station. "Unfortunately, we didn't catch them. Near the scene, there were nearly 2,000 skiers, and it was impossible to ask them one by one. And about the criminal, let alone his name, he didn't know anything about his physical characteristics." In the last sentence, Totsukawa sounded like he was blaming himself.Indeed, as the head of the first search section of the county police station said, how could he question nearly 2,000 people without knowing the criminal's face or name?

"But don't worry." The section chief smiled at Totsukawa and Detective Kamei. "While the report was sent from the scene, checkpoints were set up on all roads leading to Nozawa Onsen, and he cannot escape." The Chief of the First Search Section drew a map of the Nozawa Onsen area on the blackboard. "As you can see, there is only one county road going out from Nozawa Onsen. Nozawa Onsen is located in the middle of this road, so criminals can only flee south or north. If they go north, they are in Shangjing , in the direction of National Highway No. 117, and if it goes south, it is in the direction of Iiyama City. Now, all police cars and 30 police officers from the prefectural police station have gone to these two exits, and checkpoints have been set up there.”

"Is there no way to get out of Nozawa Onsen if you don't take the county road?" The reason why Totsukawa asked this is because Iiyama City and National Highway No. 117 are on the west side of Nozawa Onsen, while the east side is a blank space. The section chief of the prefectural police station seemed to see Totsukawa's uneasiness. "On the east side are mountains with an altitude of about 1,000 meters, and there is no road that can be opened to traffic." "If you don't need a car, can you go over the mountain on foot?" "It's impossible. There is more snow this year than in previous years, and the snow in this area is more than two meters. If you don't have sufficient equipment, you will die if you try to climb the mountain. So I said that except for the county roads going north or south Besides, there is no way to get out of Nozawa Onsen."

The section chief said in a confident tone.This is the situation introduced by people who are familiar with the local conditions, probably not wrong. "How about time?" Totsukawa looked at his watch. "What do you mean by timing?" "When was the exact time when the Tsujis were shot?" "9:32. I don't think this time is wrong. Even if it is wrong, it is only two or three minutes before and after. We asked the office of Kamizhidaira Ski Resort to greet Mr. and Mrs. Tsuji on the radio, but it was too late. The radio crew looked at the watch and then broadcast the search for someone. It was 9:32. According to the skiers at the scene, the sound of the search for someone sounded immediately after the two were shot. It should be said that the shooting time was 9:32. The score is probably right." "So, when are the checkpoints set up in Iiyama City and National Highway 117?" "Iiyama City, which is close to the south of Nagano City, is at 10 o'clock in the morning, and it is farther away, and Shangjing to the north is 10:20." "Is there any room for criminals to drive away before a checkpoint is set up?" "No, first of all, from Iiyama City in the south, the distance from Nozawa Onsen to here is about 12 kilometers. Due to the snow and traffic jams, it takes at least 40 minutes for criminals to drive to Iiyama City. So in Before we set up checkpoints, I thought there was no possibility of escaping from this intersection. The problem is the exit on the north side. It is less than three kilometers from Nozawa Onsen to Kamijing. Even if you add the factor of traffic congestion due to snow, if there are 20 You can also drive to Shangjing in minutes. Therefore, when we were notified of the incident, we asked the police from the Shangjing Police Station to block the north exit and ordered all vehicles coming from Nozawa to stop there for inspection. ...until the checkpoint was set up at 10:20, not a single car forced it through. That is to say, the criminal and the car are still in our net." The chief of the first section of the county police station said with complete confidence. However, Totsukawa's worries have not disappeared.If a criminal tries to flee by car, the two checkpoints can intercept him.The problem is, the criminal's appearance is still not grasped, so of course there is no basis for the inspection. If the M16 rifle is found from the car, there is no problem.But what if the criminal throws the gun near the scene?I don't know the license plate number, I don't know the person's appearance, I don't know what clothes I'm wearing, it's hard.It is too vague to say that it looks suspicious.There won't be just one semi-new black Corolla. It's so hard. Totsukawa thought to himself, but didn't say it out of his mouth.Because he was afraid that the police officers in Nagano Prefecture would interpret it as distrust of them. When it was just him and Detective Kamei, he said: "Kamei-kun, what do you think? Do you think things will go well?" There was concern in Totsukawa's questioning. Detective Kamei thought about it. "According to the terrain near Nozawa, as the section chief said, it is impossible for criminals to abandon their cars and walk across the mountains in the deep snow. If they do that, they will only end up freezing to death. Therefore I think the criminal has to drive through the checkpoint. But whether he can be caught there is a question. If he throws away the rifle, there is hardly any criminal credentials." Kamei's worries were the same as Totsukawa's. At the Iiyama City Inspection Office, Chief Inspector Ogasawara of the First Investigation Section of the Prefectural Police Station directed the inspection. It is said that Ogasawara, who is on the same page, grew a beard just after he was 35 years old. Coupled with his majestic face, he looks like an ancient warrior. Three police cars lined up in a zigzag. 12 policemen are checking, and if there is a car trying to force it through, he must cross the zigzag road. Inspector Ogasawara also felt that the inspection was very difficult.Finding the culprit without photos is like finding a needle in a haystack. However, Ogasawara is also confident.The other party was planning to escape after killing two people. No matter how vicious the murderer was, he would definitely show suspiciousness in his words and deeds. In the 13 years of criminal police life, Ogasawara caught 8 vicious murderers.Even though he was a cruel and cruel guy, when he met Ogasawara, he couldn't help sweating on his forehead.Ogasawara firmly believed that this gun murderer would of course reveal suspicious points during the interrogation. On the prefectural road from Nozawa Onsen to Iiyama City, the snow that has not seen the sun for a long time began to melt, and it flowed from south to north, which caused serious traffic jams, and the traffic jams were even worse because of the establishment of inspection stations. . It's the ski season, so there are a lot of cars coming from Nozawa Onsen.Ogasawara ordered his subordinates to inspect not only cars, but all sightseeing buses, motorcycles, and large trucks.He also received information that the criminal was traveling in a black semi-new Corolla car.But Ogasawara thinks only an idiot would think criminals drive the same car all the time.Anyone with a sophisticated mind is aware of the dangers of driving in the same car, and it's common sense for getaway criminals to keep stealing and swapping cars along the way.The black used Corolla may have been the stolen car. Ogasawara stood by, watching the inspection of each vehicle. The first was a racing car driven by a young couple. "driver license!" shouted the young policeman.It wasn't that he was angry, but because he heard that the criminal he was arresting was a murderer with a rifle, he was very nervous and his tongue was a little stiff. The young woman seemed amused, while the young man grumbled and grumbled. Checked the driver's license, and then looked at the vehicle inspection certificate.After looking inside the car, he opened the trunk and checked. Even the driver, who was helping with a smile at the beginning, looked unhappy when he checked the trunk. The leather bag containing the skis must also be opened and checked, so it takes a certain amount of time for a car.The queue of vehicles waiting to be inspected is getting longer and longer.Anxious motorists honked their car horns from time to time.The young police officers felt this, and some even got into an argument with the impatient driver. 16th car.The moment the driver's key was shown, the car rushed out and hit the police car parked beside it, but it still managed to break through the checkpoint. The policeman who hurriedly moved away was so angry that he drew his pistol and was about to fire it. Ogasawara yelled to stop the shooting, but ordered a police car to chase after him, and the inspection continued. As a result, the car that broke through the checkpoint was overtaken by a police car about 500 meters away, and the three young people in the car were arrested.These three people are all young people aged 18 to 20 years old.Because they wanted to ski, they stole a car parked on the side of the road and came to Nozawa Onsen 3 days ago.Of course, the rifle will not be found from the car. It was past eleven, but no suspects had been caught, and no rifles had been found in any cars. No trace of the criminal was found at the inspection office at the Shangri-La. Gradually, as time went by, the restlessness became more and more intense.Even the experienced Ogasawara even doubted, wouldn't there be criminals in those cars? The county police station also kept calling and asking, "Is it still there?" It seems that there is also very anxious. It's 12 o'clock.Ogasawara asked his subordinates to eat lunch in rotation, but he still did not rest and directed the inspection.Because as long as there is a car that doesn't pass by his eyes, he doesn't feel at ease. More than fifty cars drove up to Xiao Benyuan.His eyes suddenly lit up.Because this car has a Tokyo license plate, it is a black Corolla car, and it is half new. The driver of the car was a man in his mid-twenties. "driver license." Ogasawara scanned the inside of the carriage.There was nothing suspicious on the assistant's seat or the back seat. With a cigarette in his mouth, the man handed over his driver's license expressionlessly. "Is that Mr. Takao Yoshida?" Ogasawara compared the photo on the driver's license with the man's face, and yes, it was the same person.Then, I looked at the vehicle inspection certificate, and the address and name were consistent with those on the driver's license. Isn't this one too? Ogasawara couldn't help feeling a little disappointed, and looked at the ski bag on the roof of the car.The vehicle inspection certificate is the same as the driver's license, which can prove that this is not a stolen car. Finally, the trunk at the rear of the car was opened. The first thing that catches the eye is the spare tire and sleeping bag.When the sleeping bag was opened, a long and thin thing wrapped in gray cloth was revealed underneath. When reaching for the object, the heavy weight made Ogasawara tense. Slowly opening the wrapping cloth, the first thing I saw was the gleaming gun body.Not a shotgun, apparently the frame of an M16 rifle from a photo taken by County Sheriff's Headquarters to help with reference. He glanced at the man in the car, who was smoking a cigarette calmly. Ogasawara swallowed involuntarily, and signaled the policemen to come over with his eyes. Three police officers approached Ogasawara. "arrest!" Ogasawara ordered in a low voice. "Take off the car keys first." A policeman approached the driver's seat, poking his head through the open window. "It will be over soon." the policeman said with a smile.The moment the man nodded, the policeman suddenly reached out and pulled out the key in the car. At the same time, another policeman on the side of the passenger's seat also opened the car door suddenly and shouted: "Hold on. You're under arrest!" Totsukawa, who had been waiting anxiously at the prefectural police station, was ecstatic when he heard the news that the criminal had been arrested. This is not because they don't trust the Nagano Prefectural Police Department, but because it is said that the possibility of a murderer who commits robbery and homicide can only be traced is at most 50%. Inspector Ogasawara immediately returned to the police station.His flushed face seemed to harmonize with the beard on his chin. "Ah, congratulations." The chief of the first section of the county police station expressed his condolences to his subordinates. Ogasawara put the rifle wrapped in cloth, gloves, and a small cardboard box on the table one by one.Totsukawa and Kamei watched. "The prisoner was taken to the interrogation room." Ogasawara said. "what kind of person?" Totsukawa asked. "The name is Takao Yoshida. According to the driver's license, the address is Setagaya, Tokyo, and the age is 25 years old." "Did he confess to the killing at the ski resort?" "No, he's still obstinately denying it, and pretending not to know why the rifle was in the trunk. But the evidence is solid." Ogasawara sneered, and took the seized items one by one. "This rifle was hidden in the trunk of the car under the tires and the sleeping bag. Beside it, there was this little cardboard box and this pair of military gloves. As you all saw, there were 10 rounds in the box. Smelling the gloves, you can still smell the gunpowder faintly. It must have been fired while wearing these gloves." Totsukawa took the white gloves and sniffed them. It did smell like gunpowder.The rifle was indeed an M16 rifle. Putting on the gloves and holding the rifle in his hand, he could feel the unique weight of the real thing in his hand. The M16 rifle can be used for single-shot or burst-fire.Check it out, 4 bullets have been fired.That was the first-class crew member on the Oigawa Iron Bridge and the Tsuji couple today, who only used 3 bullets in total.The other round might have been consumed during a trial shot. "So, have the inspections stopped?" Hearing the section chief's question, Ogasawara shook his head. "As a precaution, the two checkpoints in Iiyama City and Shangjing are still checking." Ogasawara raised her chest and replied. "It's good to do that." Totsukawa continued.Of course, it cannot be confirmed that there was only one criminal in this incident.If there is an accomplice, stopping the inspection means letting the accomplice go. However, until the evening, no suspicious person or vehicle was found at the two checkpoints. After the interrogation by the criminal police of the prefectural police station, Totsukawa walked into the interrogation room to meet this man named Takao Yoshida. After sitting down face to face, Totsukawa remained silent for a while, looking at the other party. A tan leather jacket over a fitted black sweater.The necklace with the cross hanging on the chest probably has nothing to do with faith, but it is just an ornament.This is a tall man.He seemed to be smoking a cigarette very restlessly. "You guys," he said to Totsukawa in a rough voice, "what do you think of me? You ask how the rifle was put in the car, but I have no idea. Let me go back quickly. I have to go in the morning. The company is going to work. So, I have to rush back to Tokyo today. That guy was wrong to arrest a good guy." "Hey, don't worry." Totsukawa himself took a cigarette in his mouth and lit it. "Can you not be in a hurry, in this kind of place." Takao Yoshida pressed the cigarette butt out vigorously in the ashtray. "Your name is Takao Yoshida, you are 25 years old, and you live in Section X, 〇〇 Street, Tagan Ward, Tokyo. Are these correct?" "Ah, yes. Mr. Policeman said it just now, why repeat it?" "The main thing is that the criminal is so bad. We have to be more careful. So, the M16 rifle found in the trunk of your car..." As soon as Totsukawa said this, Yoshida Takao blushed. "I've never seen that kind of thing before, and I haven't taken that kind of thing. How did that thing get into the trunk of the car? Even I want to ask." "But the gun won't get into the trunk by itself, and there are gloves and bullets." "Then, someone set a trap for me. It seems that I have an enemy too. Maybe it's the boyfriend of the woman I met in Nozawa Onsen." "Meet a woman?" "Yeah, it's a girl from Nagoya. It's with her boyfriend. But that guy's skiing skills are terrible. The girl has a cute face, so I taught her how to ski." Getting started. That's a cute girl with well-developed buttocks." Yoshida Takao grinned.Suddenly, Totsukawa became uneasy.Is this man wrong?Looking at his dazed look, how could this M16-style rifle easily get into the hands of this kind of person.But in any case, the gun and bullets were indeed found in the man's car, as well as the gloves that smelled of gunpowder. "Are you going to admit that you went to Nozawa Onsen?" "Of course I do. I went there for the skiing." "Do you know what happened today?" "I didn't see it, I just heard somebody got shot. But that ain't me. I never fired a blowgun." "What were you doing at 9:32 this morning?" "I was asked this question just now, but I don't remember it. But today I didn't go to the Kamizhidaira ski resort once. I have already said that because I have to go back to Tokyo today." "Then tell me about what happened after you got up this morning. Which hotel are you staying in?" "Why do you stay in a hotel? I just slept in a sleeping bag in the car. It was about 10 o'clock when I woke up this morning. Because I was too tired from playing with the girl I just mentioned yesterday. I am no longer a child. After getting up, I went to a nearby restaurant to have breakfast. At that time, the owner of the restaurant was talking about someone being shot to death in Shangzhiping, but I didn't pay much attention to it. Does it have anything to do with me? After dinner, I was driving back to Tokyo, but I was caught here." "Which restaurant did you eat at?" "I don't remember the name of the restaurant. I only remember that there is a big pigeon cart in front of the restaurant. The owner is a bald man around 60 years old." "Do you remember the exact time for breakfast?" "It was about 10 o'clock when I got up, that's true. Therefore, it was about 10:30 when I went to the restaurant. This just proves that I was not at the scene of the accident. The owner of the restaurant can fully prove it." "The main thing that needs to be proved is that you were not at the scene at 9:32. You stated that you were at a restaurant in Nozawa Onsen at 10:30, but there is no evidence that you were not at the Kamizhidaira Ski Resort at 9:32. If you said that you were at 9:32 After killing someone at the Uenodaira Ski Resort at 32:00, it’s okay to go back to Nozawa Onsen and go to a restaurant.” "Then, what should I do?" Saying that, Takao Yoshida narrowed his eyes.Totsukawa became uneasy again.The man in front of him looked like a simple, impulsive, ordinary young man.Can such a person kill serially?Whether it is the murder on the Oigawa Iron Bridge or this incident, it can be seen that the murderer is a ruthless and calculating person.Is there a corresponding coolness in this young man? Totsukawa hurriedly asked Kamei Interpol to interrogate him on behalf of Gu, while he ran out of the interrogation room. "What's wrong?" In the corridor, Chief Inspector Ogasawara, who came to meet him, asked, maybe he saw Totsukawa's hurry. "Is the intersection inspection still going on?" Totsukawa asked. "Yes. I plan to stop the inspection until that Takao Yoshida confesses. Did he confess?" "No, there isn't. I'm always a little worried." "worry about what?" "I can't tell. Excuse me, can you take me to the checkpoint?" "That's all right. But what exactly are you going to do?" Ogasawara smiled wryly. With the M16 rifle raided and the murder suspect apprehended, what is there to worry about?It's strange. "Anyway, please take me there." Totsukawa said stubbornly. Inspector Ogasawara personally drove Totsukawa to the Iiyama City Inspection Office in a police car. Although he was not interested, there was nothing he could do.The afternoon sun shone on the white snow, dazzling white. "Has the man confirmed his alibi?" Ogasawara couldn't help asking while driving. "No. He himself has no means of verifying that he was not there at 9:32." "If that's the case, shouldn't it be considered nine out of ten that he's a criminal?" "But I always felt he didn't fit the image of a criminal." Totsukawa said in a low voice.He also understands that this is an unscientific judgment.And, of course, there is no specific image for a murderer.Often after a murderer is arrested, people who know him will say in amazement, "Why did he kill someone!" But this time Totsukawa felt a little different.For that young man named Yoshida Takao, it is impossible to imagine that he can kill such serial killers.This should be a criminal who waits for his prey with great stamina, shoots calmly, and hits the mark with a single shot. "The rifle and cartridges have been sent for appraisal." Inspector Ogasawara always spoke with an optimistic tone. "I think that must have been the murder weapon used in this incident." "I also agree with this view." Totsukawa nodded.That's why he was worried.If checkpoints are set up, even children will expect to check the trunk of the car.But wrapping the murder weapon in a cloth, just hiding it under the sleeping bag, and allowing him to be inspected nonchalantly, if you think about it carefully, can't you have a little doubt about his brain?Or by chance, maybe they won't be checked at the same time, so they ventured in, but when they encountered the inspection, they couldn't escape even if they wanted to, so they had to pretend that they didn't know.If Takao Yoshida is a criminal, that's all he can think of.But Totsukawa still felt something was wrong. "The two corpses have been sent to the medical school for autopsy. I heard that two bullet heads were found in the snow. Because they were shot at close range, the bullets passed through the body. The bullets have also been sent for identification." Ogasawara said to Totsukawa, stroking the beard on his chin while waiting for the signal light to indicate the passage. "Have you asked Yoshida Takao's identity?" "Of course. I have already contacted the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. We will have news soon. I also told them that you are here." "thanks." Totsukawa thanked him while looking at his watch. It is already 2 o'clock in the afternoon.If Takao Yoshida is the criminal, it doesn't matter what time it is, because that means the murder case has been solved. But what if that person is not a criminal? What if the real criminal finds a semi-new black Corolla with a Tokyo license plate in order to find a substitute for himself, and puts the murder weapon in the trunk of the car? It's not just a matter of criminals getting away. This is a matter related to the life of another remaining survivor, Bosun Kojima.If a double is used to deal with us, he is likely to take the next step before he can. At 2:25, I arrived at the Iiyama City Inspection Office. As Inspector General Ogasawara said, inspections are still ongoing. However, Totsukawa could already see that the police inspectors were not so nervous anymore.This is not incomprehensible either, since both the murder weapon and the car containing the murder weapon were found.Subsequent inspections are presumably also ancillary.Besides, checking and questioning on the muddy road is also a hard job.Every policeman was splashed with mud and water.The weather is cold, and it must be even colder wearing the muddy clothes. "Have you found any suspicious people or cars?" Ogasawara asked. "Not one has been found since that car. So far, 116 cars, 13 buses, 98 trucks, 57 motorcycles, and 369 bicycles have passed. No problems have been found. " A policeman in a steel helmet looks at a logbook report.Ogasawara nodded, and Totsukawa interrupted and asked: "Is there a black Corolla with Tokyo brand?" "Yes. There are a lot of Tokyo brand cars, and there are also a lot of Corolla cars." "What about the other checkpoint?" "I've been in touch with the Shangjing Office, and nothing unusual has been found there." "Should I be relieved this time?" Ogasawara asked Totsukawa.Frankly speaking, Totsukawa was not only worried, but even more worried.Criminals who are not carrying a murder weapon are less likely to be caught at a checkpoint. "Going back to police headquarters?" Ogasawara asked again. "If possible, I would like to go to Nozawa Onsen to see the scene of the crime." Totsukawa said while stroking his unshaven beard and rough face. The two drove to Nozawa Hot Springs again. Totsukawa closed his eyes in deep thought.Ogasawara seemed to be affected by Totsukawa's uneasiness, and he suddenly stopped talking. On the county road where the snow keeps melting, traffic is still blocked.It was past 3 o'clock when we arrived at Nozawa Onsen.After parking the car, Ogasawara asked: "In the car, what are you thinking about?" "Consider time." Totsukawa replied while walking. "The time you said?" "I mean are we using our time productively now, or are we wasting it in vain?" Totsukawa's words seemed to make Ogasawara puzzled, he tilted his head and said nothing, and Totsukawa didn't say anything more. When I came to the hot spring street, I saw a restaurant decorated with a big pigeon cart in front of the door.Sandwiched by the gift shop, the plaque on this restaurant reads "Pigeon Cart Restaurant."It is said to be a restaurant, but it is just a public restaurant. Looking into the store through the glass window, there is a fat boss who is cooking.As Takao Yoshida said, he is a bald boss in his 60s.From the situation of the restaurant, it seems that Takao Yoshida has not lied. The two went to the Shangzhiping Ski Resort. Looking into the office at the entrance of the ski resort, detective Maejima from the prefectural police station was questioning a young student who looked like a student. Detective Maejima greeted the two of them and said: "This is the little XX who manages the lifts." He introduced the young man. "I'm a working college student. I've met the guy you think is a criminal." "yes?" Totsukawa and Chief Inspector Ogasawara asked almost simultaneously.The student said to the two: "I don't know if he is a prisoner, but it was past 8 o'clock this morning. I saw a man riding a lift used by intermediate skiers. After he came up the mountain, he walked towards the birch forest in the opposite direction from everyone." "The bullet came from the direction of the birch forest." Maejima detective explained. "Do you remember the man's clothing, age, and appearance?" Totsukawa's series of questioning made the student wave his hands and say, "Please wait a moment." "Because he wears big sunglasses, his face can't be seen clearly. He is about 25 years old." "What clothes are you wearing?" "Looks like he's wearing a tan jacket, maybe a ski suit. And a backpack for the skis." "Height?" "It's about the same as me, about 1.75 meters." "Can I stand up for a moment?" Totsukawa made the student stand up and compared himself.It's so much taller than me, but it's probably considered the average height among today's young people. "Did you hear the gunshot?" "Oh, I hear you." "After that, did you see that man again?" "No, never again. Is that man a criminal?" "Probably." Totsukawa replied. The brown jacket and height are the same as Takao Yoshida, and the same age.But aren't there many young people with the same three conditions?And I heard that brown is a popular color this winter. Then, Totsukawa asked Maejima Interpol to take him to the chair lift at the scene.He put on his boots, took the chairlift, and went to the birch forest and the place where the shell casings were found. However, no evidence of Yoshida Takao as a criminal has ever been found.On the contrary, there is no counter-evidence that he is not a criminal. In the evening, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department sent a report about Takao Yoshida.Totsukawa, who returned to the Nagano Prefectural Police Station from Nozawa Onsen, also saw the report, but it did not alleviate his inner anxiety at all. "Not too good." Totsukawa thought so, but he didn't say it out loud. The detectives at the prefectural police station must have felt the same as him when he reported this.There is no need to discourage them any further. "Kamei-kun!" Totsukawa called Detective Kamei in a low voice. "Entrust the matter here to the prefectural police station, let's go back to Tokyo." "You still think that Yoshida Takao is a stand-in." "Yes. As he himself said, the murder weapon was in the trunk of his car. That's the truth." "You mean the criminal escaped from the checkpoint." "A criminal without a murder weapon can't be helped at the checkpoint. Other things will be entrusted to the county police station for the time being, and we will look for clues again. If the prisoner escapes from the checkpoint, the next target will be Captain Kojima. In that case, I don't want to stay here anymore." Totsukawa thanked the Chief of the First Search Section of the Prefectural Police Station and Chief Inspector Ogasawara, and walked out of the Prefectural Police Station. After getting into the car, Detective Kamei drove to Tokyo. Totsukawa sneezed again in the car.When I came to Nagano, the world of snow, I had a relapse of a cold, but judging from my face, I looked extraordinarily energetic.Maybe that explains his Badger nickname. Detective Kamei, on the other hand, was frowning, as if confirming another failure.At this time, a gust of fine snow blew, and Kamei pressed the button of the windshield wiper. "It's infuriating that nothing is known about the offender until now." "No, it's not exactly like that. The criminal left a lot of clues too, and that's the clue." Totsukawa took out a cigarette and reached out his hand to Kamei who was driving the car. "However, I still don't know the name, address, and occupation." "Instead of thinking about what you don't know, think about what you know." Totsukawa said.In adverse circumstances, it is better to adopt an optimistic attitude.Only in this way can we observe the situation calmly. Totsukawa took out the notepad and wrote it down habitually while talking about his thoughts to Kamei: (1) Criminals are skilled in marksmanship. At the Kamizhidaira ski resort, the criminals shot and killed Tsuji and his wife with just one shot each.Shooting in the car on the opposite side of the Oigawa Iron Bridge, it only took one shot before hitting.At that time, the speed of the car was 80 kilometers, and he had to wait for the car to approach. It can be seen that the criminal is quite confident in his marksmanship, at least he must be a person who is proficient in using a gun. (2) The criminal has a tenacious character. The criminals wait for Tsuji and his wife in the snow at the Kaminohira Ski Resort.In order to prevent the M16 rifle from freezing, he probably needs to use both hands to warm the body of the gun.而且，是在对于辻夫妇是否乘坐上山吊椅还不能完全确定的情况下。由此可以看出罪犯的顽强性格。 ⑶罪犯性格冷酷残忍。 宫本船长的情况另当別论，而另外两次杀人事件中，都是连同家属一起枪杀。 ⑷罪犯汽车是黑色半新花冠牌，东京牌号。 到目前为止，这黑色的半新花冠牌，车南属推测，没有确证，但是，从罪犯将凶器藏于吉田孝夫车中，为自己找寻替身这一点来看，这一推测还是可以肯定的。应该说，在此之前，罪犯驾驶的汽车就是黑色的半新花冠牌、东京牌号的汽车。但是，罪犯现在仍使用这辆车的可能性已经很小了。如果能在野泽温泉周围找到这辆被遗弃的汽车，我们也许会获得一点线索。 “根据以上情况，我们可以作出多方面的思考。” 十津川看着记事本，用肯定的语气说。 “关于第⑶点，除了罪犯的性格冷酷残忍外，也可以认为罪犯存在着必须连同家属一同杀掉的理由，因此憎恨之心更烈。” “可是，大井川铁桥的事件中，也可以认为佐藤之妻仅仅是受牵连而死啊。” “但在上之平滑雪场，罪犯可是对辻芳夫的妻子单独开了枪的。” “那是不是因为她看到了罪犯呢？” 龟井刑警话音未落，十津川笑了，“这不对。”立刻否定了他的看法。 “当自己的丈夫被枪击时，妻子首先会去看丈夫。而且，我去了现场，当时从吊椅处向罪犯方面看正是逆光。所以，即使看见罪犯也只是轮廓而已。也就是说，罪犯是要连同辻芳夫的妻子一起杀掉的。” “可宫本船长的妻子却平安无事啊。” “是啊，只有那次特别，很有必要考虑。而且，我想知道，罪犯出于什么动机要把'第一日本号'的6名余生者一个一个地杀掉呢？” "yes." 龟井刑警目不转睛地望着眼前不断扩展的夜幕，驾驶着汽车。猛然间，他闪过一个念头： “罪犯会不会是小岛水手长呢？” "Oh?" 十津川好像觉得可笑，又不紧不慢地问： “你为什么这样想呢？” “是否在6人中间发生了什么争执。比如，关于'第一日本号'沉没，致使多数船员失踪的责任由谁承担这样的事情。这时，是不是想出人头地的小岛水手长与其余5人之间暗中产生了争斗。因为除去船医竹田良宏之外，其余5人都有可能成为船长。” “也就是综合情结杀人。” “船医竹田良宏之所以能脱离危险，是因为他的船医地位不能成为小岛的嫉妒对象。而其他的人一个又一个地被杀却不寻求警方的保护，正如我刚才所说的那样，他们之间互相推托罪责而产生杀人动机。这样推测可以吗？” “很有意思，但我不赞成。” “还是不妥吗？” 龟井用一只手挠着头。十津川看他那副样子笑了。 “首先，如果是推托责任引起的杀人，没有必要连同家属一起杀掉。再说，小岛水手长现在正带着妻子和孩子，驾驶着本田思域车，在日本的什么地方。残忍的杀人狂带着家属到处杀人，不是有点儿太不正常了吗。而且在上之平滑雪场打工的学生所见到的那个男子是25岁左右。小岛水手长的实际年龄是45岁。无论他长得怎么年青，也不会像25岁吧。” 第二天一大早，十津川他们回到了天空阴沉沉的东京。 辻夫妇的解剖结果也好像是追着他们似的，紧跟着他们一到，长野县警署就打来了电话。 辻芳夫（43岁）子弹从左胸部射入，穿过后背。推断由于失血过多身亡，妻绢代（35岁）同样，子弹从左胸部射入，穿过后背。推断失血过多身亡。 由此推断，辻夫妇二人是扭转身体，在吊椅上说话时遭到枪击。 没有新的发现。打电话来的县警署小笠原检查长可能也意识到了这一点，向十津川说： “对不起，没有任何进展，我们也没有办法。” 电话里传来了与他那武士般面孔极不相符的软弱无力的声音。 “吉田孝夫怎么样？” “还在继续调查。但好像如您所说，越调查越感觉他是无罪的。” “检查哨怎么样了？” “今天上午零时停止检查，没有收获。如果吉田孝夫是清白的，很遗憾，这就说明罪犯已从我们的网中溜走。” “在野泽温泉周围，有没有找到被遗弃的汽车？” “我们也曾想到罪犯是否会弃车乘公共汽车逃走，所以在野泽温泉一带仔细搜查过了，没有一辆被丢弃的汽车。” “有没有汽车被窃的报案？” "No." 奇怪啊，十津川在想。没有丢弃的汽车，也没有人举报丢车，这不意味着罪犯依旧驾驶着黑色的半新花冠车吗？为什么罪犯要继续乘用容易被发现的同样汽车呢？ “被害者的携带物品也检查过了。” 小笠原检查长继续报告。 “经过检查旅馆中的携带品没有能够了解罪犯的物品，被害者的汽车中也同样。” “有没有与巴西有关的书和航空公司的宣传小册子什么的？” “巴西吗？没有啊。” 十津川谢过之后挂断了电话，又命令小川刑警到被害者一级船员佐藤和辻事务长家里去，征得遗属同意，查看遗物。倘若在二人家中发现许多与巴西有关的书，虽不明原由，但可以认定“第一日本号”的余生者们都是同样考虑，到巴西去。这其中也许会在什么地方发现罪犯的线索。 小川刑警又叫上今西刑警出去之后，十津川让龟井刑警先打个盹儿，自己则走进了搜查一科科长办公室。 科长正叼着香烟，面露难色地看着巴西地图。十津川为在野泽温泉眼睁睁地看着辻夫妇被杀之事向科长道歉。科长摆着手打断了他的话。 “这个不怪你，是因为雪大。我正在思考竹田船医的情况。” “知道了他在巴西的什么地方吗？” “不，外务省方面一直没什么消息。驻国外的大使馆和领事馆对于寻找一个日本人的事情也不那么热心吧。所以，我在考虑采取什么办法找寻竹田船医。” “有什么办法了吗？” “我的一个朋友，是《中央报》的特派员。他去了圣保罗。我已给他打了国际电话，拜托他帮助寻找竹田船医。他听说是大型油轮的余生者，也很感兴趣。” “那可省事多了。如果找到船医竹田，从他口中也许会得到罪犯的线索。即使得不到罪犯的线索，也许会了解到余生者们为什么都打算去巴西。要是那样可帮了大忙了。” “照说调查已经开始了。他叫日高，人高马大，那家伙长得有点不像日本人！”

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