Chapter 11 Chapter 10 The Administrator's Narrative

The next morning, Tao Zhanwen got up early as usual. When he was practicing boxing in the courtyard, Kojima rushed over. "The administrator came out, just late last night... No, it should be said early this morning." Kojima immediately began to report the situation.His eyes were bloodshot and he was visibly sleep deprived. "Really? Come and listen. Come, come in!" After being ushered into the living room, Kojima couldn't wait and began to speak quickly: "As soon as the administrator Shimizu came out, I grabbed him and asked him, and got a lot of information."

"Let's talk about it in order. First, let's talk about the situation when the body was found." "According to Qing Shui, because he wanted to discuss with Xu Mingyi about taxes, he knocked on Xu Mingyi's door twice yesterday morning. Since there was no answer, he thought Xu Mingyi was sleeping late, so he didn't pay any attention. He knew Mr. Xu He is cautious, even if he feels a little cold, he will make a fuss and fall asleep, so he doesn't care. However, at around 3:30 in the afternoon, someone called the management room and said that he could not answer Xu Mingyi's countless calls If so, let’s inquire about it.”

"Who is calling?" "It's the president of Wuxing. He said that he had made an appointment with Xu Mingyi at three o'clock in the afternoon, but after waiting for half an hour, no one came, and the phone still couldn't be connected, so he asked the administrator to pass the news on his behalf." "Tell me what?" "He asked the administrator to tell Xu Mingyi that if he can't come by four o'clock, he can't do it today, and we can only talk about it another day..." "So that's why Qing Shui went into Room 5?" "That's right. At first he knocked on the door, but there was still no answer, so he went straight into the room, and then saw that Mr. Xu was dead on the bed. At first he thought that Mr. Xu was sleeping, but he found that the meticulous Old Mr. Xu didn't even change his clothes or cover him with a quilt, he thought it was abnormal, so he took a closer look..."

"I know, so he called the police. But what happened if the phone couldn't be connected? Could it be that the receiver was not put properly?" "Yes. According to the investigation at the telephone office, the receiver has not been in place since the night before. According to the police, the telephone office stopped the power supply because it was worried that it would be burnt." "Oh? Will it burn? Forget it, it doesn't matter. When Zhu Hansheng and I left the apartment, Shimizu seemed to be behind the window of the management office. He may have seen us."

"Yes, he said he saw it. In this way, neither you nor Mr. Zhu are suspected." "The president of Wuxing can also prove my innocence...By the way, what happened to that president? I heard that he was investigated in another room yesterday." "He is also innocent. The administrator saw him leave with his own eyes. Moreover, after the president left, many people have entered and left Mr. Xu's room." "Oh? Xu Mingyi has so many guests? Usually no one goes to his place!" Xu Mingyi clearly divides business and personal life, which shows his meticulous character.The financial industry and real estate transactions are all carried out on the second floor of the shoe store where he acts as an office. If it is not important, he usually does not bring it to the fifth room of "Gull Village" for processing.When it comes to important matters, it may include the secret work related to Yoshida... In short, Tao Zhanwen has never met Xu Mingyi's business guests in "Gull Village".

"Having said that, but for some reason, it seems that only that night was full of guests." Kojima said. "Has anyone gone to Room 5 of 'Gull Village'?" "It is said that as soon as Wuxing's president left, a short man walked in, but he came out quickly and didn't linger much." "Do you know who that person is?" "According to the administrator, he never saw the man." "The management room is next to Xu Mingyi's room. Since it's on the same side, no one should be able to see anyone entering Xu Mingyi's room from the sending and receiving window."

"It seems to be judged by the sound, because Xu Mingyi's room is next door." "I see. The footsteps stopped in front of the next door...or maybe it was the door opening..." "Probably so. It is said that the little man left the apartment at eight forty-two in the evening." "The time is so accurate?" "Shimizu is a fan of reasoning. He will definitely watch "Only I Know" on Sunday night, so he will always pay attention to the time. The show started at 8:45 in the evening. At that time, his attention may be all focused on the clock."

"Is the TV set in the room where the sending and receiving window is?" "No, put it in the back room." "That is to say, from about 8:45 p.m., there was no one at the window. Qingshui lived alone, so there was no one to change shifts. In this way, after the little man left, no one should know who went in pass." "However, Xu Mingyi later went to the 'White House' for coffee. Not long after Qing Shui started watching "Only I Know", he received a call from the waitress." "In this way, almost as soon as the little man left, the next guest came."

"Yes, it's really complicated..." "The waitress is just as usual, just carrying the coffee pot..." Tao Zhanwen temporarily closed his eyes, imitating the scene in his mind, and murmured. "It is said that Mr. Xu was playing chess at the time." "What? Play chess?" "The waitress can see clearly, and Mr. Xu made a sound." "Where were the guests at that time?" "Unfortunately, the guests were blocked by the wall and couldn't see clearly. Of course, the waitress didn't pay attention, she just glanced in through the half-open door while pouring coffee at the living room table. I also went to see it , the distance is indeed a bit far.”

"Playing chess..." Tao Zhanwen fell into deep thought. "As a result, as far as we know, the waitress became the last person to see Mr. Xu." "In this case, the most suspicious person is the chess opponent." "No, there's something strange! The woman who lives in the room opposite Mr. Xu said that someone entered the opposite room just before 9:30... It was also judged by the sound of footsteps." "Hey, everyone came with such grandeur and made no secret of their footsteps. Is this the end of the visitor list?" "As far as we know, there are only a few people. However, it is not impossible to sneak in without being noticed by anyone. The administrator was watching TV at the time, and most of the people living in the apartment were barmaids. I wasn't home at that time..."

"That's right!" "As for the woman mentioned just now, she was hanging a rag on the door while waiting for her husband to come back, so she paid extra attention to the sound of footsteps and time, otherwise she would not have noticed." "What time did the man she spoke of leave?" "According to her account, she did hear someone whistle and open the door and go in, but she went to clean the kitchen afterwards, and even if the person made a sound when he left, she couldn't hear it." "Whistling killer? Sounds like something out of a cheap video." "Basically that's all." Kojima took out a cigarette, as if announcing "the report is over." "Mr. Tao." Kojima lit the cigarette.Although there was no one around, he still lowered his voice and said, "Although you are opening a shop now, I heard that you used to be a detective? It was Mr. Zhu who told me yesterday on the bench in the police station." "Zhu Hansheng is a daredevil, no matter what that guy says, he can't believe it." Tao Zhanwen crossed his arms and said rudely. After a while, Kojima asked again: "Have you found any clues to solve the case?" "I didn't find anything." Tao Zhanwen said, "The information you provided makes me feel at a loss." "Can't even a famous detective solve it?" Kojima seemed a little disappointed. "Don't be so impatient. Although you don't know anything now, you will gradually find clues. All tangible things are conceived from the invisible nature." "As long as you wait patiently, there will always be opportunities, right?" "How can you explain it so vulgarly, but that's basically what it means." After Kojima left, Tao Zhanwen still folded his arms and thought for a long time. Kojima's report is only a rough outline, and Tao Zhanwen needs to get more information to supplement it, even if it is only a little bit.He intends to collect intelligence through his own power. When leaving, Kojima also expressed his determination, saying that he would continue to investigate the relationship between Yoshida and Xu Mingyi in depth.At present, the case is still completely hidden in the dark, and there is no ray of hope in sight. Naturally, it is not known whether it is related to Yoshida, but it is necessary to trace this line.As long as it is related to Xu Mingyi, no matter what aspect it is, it must be thoroughly investigated. "The matter of Mr. Xu has appeared in the newspaper." At some point, Yu Rong came over and spread the newspaper in front of his father.Tao Zhanwen ordered three kinds of newspapers, and he compared the three kinds of newspapers and read them. "The Killing of a Chinese Loan Usury" - this is the headline used by the first newspaper, the other two newspapers did not use the word "usury", but replaced it with "management apartment", among which the headline of "Central Newspaper" It is "Murder of an Elderly Chinese Who Runs an Apartment". Last night, when Tao Zhanwen proposed this suggestion to newspaper reporters regarding Xu Mingyi's title at the "Taoyuan Pavilion", Kojima was probably not there.Maybe he heard it from someone else later. The content of the report is extremely simple, only the headline is huge.Since the administrator was still locked in the back room of the police station when the report was written, none of the newspapers mentioned the complicated visitor situation on the night of the tragedy. "This newspaper went too far. It even said that Mr. Xu, who was murdered, was a usurer and that he used vicious means of collecting interest, so he was hated by the debtor... That old man is not such a person, is he?" Yu Rong pouted. Said. "That's right." Tao Zhanwen said calmly, "He is just meticulous. No matter what he does, he will not stop until he is accurate. It is really pitiful to be said to be vicious." The phone rang, and it was Mrs. Wang, the founder of the Huashang Club.He wanted to discuss with Tao Zhanwen about Xu Mingyi's funeral and inheritance, and asked him to come in the afternoon. While eating breakfast, just as Tao Zhanwen was chewing on toast, the phone rang again.This time it was the police station. "Excuse me, please come to the police station again in the morning." Futian detective said in a respectful and serious voice. "It finally became urgent." Tao Zhanwen took a sip of black tea as he said.