Chapter 6 third quarter

February 12th, Sunday. Shui Sui woke up at six o'clock this morning, and last night he tossed and turned in bed until two o'clock before falling asleep. The total sleep time was no more than four hours.Thanks to it, her head felt as heavy as lead, but her eyes were clear and she did not feel sleepy.Yesterday's excitement does not seem to have cooled down. And the biggest culprit of Sui Sui's insomnia was the button.Why would the buttons that were on the shelf in the corridor that night be found at the back door the next day? The first explanation that Mizuho can think of is that this button is not that button.But this is just her wishful thinking, and she has to face the reality that this possibility is very low.After all, the button that fell out of the back door was basically the same shape and color as the button that Mizuho saw, and only one button on Zong Yan's pajamas was missing.

Thinking this way, an unacceptable assumption formed in her mind. The murderer was someone who lived in the mansion that night. After sorting out, Mizuho came to the following point of view. First, when the murderer killed Zong Yan, the button on the pajamas was torn off due to some circumstances. The button happened to fall somewhere on the murderer's clothes, but the murderer didn't notice this and fled back to his room.On the way back to the room, the button happened to drop on the shelf.Mizuho, ​​who came next, saw the button, but didn't take it away.Then came the next morning—whether it was before or after the commotion—it is unclear—anyway, the murderer found the buttons on the shelf, and in order to pretend to be an outsider, he found the right time to throw the buttons outside the back door.

Mizuho thought this view was the most appropriate.At this stage, there is no other reasonable explanation for why the button moves. Is the murderer really someone from this mansion? Mizuho changed her clothes and left the room as simple as washing her face.The corridor was still silent.She took the elevator to the living room, and Suzue had already gotten up early to clean. Auntie Suzueda couldn't be the culprit—Mizuho's brain was racing.Suzue lived in a small room deep in the kitchen.The buttons of Zong Yan's pajamas are on the shelf on the second floor. If the murderer is really someone from the mansion, he must be the person who lived in the room on the second floor that night.

"Good morning, Auntie Suzue." Mizuho's sudden greeting seemed to startle her. "Good morning, there are a lot of people who got up early today." Ling Zhi seemed to be forcing a smile. "Is anyone else up yet?" "Yes, Mr. Qingjiang is also up and running in the morning now." "Morning run? Does he have this habit?" "No, he said he just woke up too early this morning and went for a morning run when he had nothing to do. He doesn't usually have this habit." "That's it..." What kind of wind is this?Or is he also sleepless at night like himself?

Mizuho sat down on the sofa and saw a newspaper on the table.The newspaper was turned to the social column, maybe Qing Jiang or Suzue had just read it.Mizuho picked up the newspaper, and the weak head of Zong Yan came into view, and the head of Rieko Mita was beside him.Then there are the cheesy headlines.Since Lai Zi had just committed suicide less than two months ago, the newspaper's notes believed that Lai Zi had some kind of secret connection with the murder.Mizuho only read a few lines and couldn't help closing the newspaper roughly.Suzue pretended not to pay attention to her, and wiped the shelf diligently.

"By the way, Aunt Lingzhi..." Shuiho asked, "What time did you get up yesterday morning?" Suzue's hand that was folding the rag stopped abruptly. "I remember it was around 6:30, that's what the police and I said." "At that time, is anyone already up?" "No, everyone seems to be sleeping." "You found Uncle and the others around the starting point, right? Before that, what were you doing?" "Just like this morning, I'm doing some simple cleaning. Then I'm preparing for breakfast." "Did anyone get up during this time?"

Suzue raised her head and thought for a moment. "Ms. Kazukako and Mr. Katsuyuki came downstairs. After a while, Mr. Nagashima and Mr. Aoe also came down. They sat on the sofa and talked about baseball. Mr. Matsuzaki came down after them." "Has Aunt Suzueda ever gone upstairs?" "After these five people went downstairs, I went upstairs to hand in the master and the old lady. The old lady gave a reply in the room, but there was no response in the master's room. I think the master should be in the music room, so I went to Go to the first floor underground. I didn't expect..."

She seemed to remember the shock when she found the body, and swallowed heavily. "Did you notice anything when you went up to the second floor?" "What are you referring to..." "For example... did you pick up anything..." Not knowing how to ask, Mizuho clicked his tongue in his heart.She also wanted to ask Suzuki directly if she saw the buttons on the shelf, but it seemed inappropriate to be so direct. "Did you drop something?" Suzue asked suspiciously. "Well, yes. I dropped a coin. I brought it back from Australia, probably somewhere near the shelf by the stairs."

Shui Sui couldn't find a more suitable explanation in his mind, so he told a lame lie. "I didn't see it. I'll try to find it next time I clean." "Then please." If the button was still on the shelf at that time, it is impossible for Suzue to not notice it.Even a speck of dust on the furniture cannot escape her eyes. —So, when exactly did the murderer throw the buttons out the back door? In Mizuho's mind, the scene of going to the basement with everyone and finding the bodies of Zong Yan and the others reappeared in Mizuho's mind.As far as she could remember, no one went to the back door at all.After that, everyone waited in the reception room until the police arrived.

That is to say, the killer disposed of the buttons before the riot.Namely, he found the buttons on the rack after waking up in the morning and threw them out the back door before the body was found. ——If my reasoning is correct, the murderer is Uncle Kondo, Aunt Hanako, Mr. Matsuzaki, Nagashima, and Aoe. Mizuho couldn't help stretching out his hand to stroke his hair, scratching in distress. About ten minutes later, Qing Jiang came back.Wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt and a towel around his neck, he enters the living room. "Looks like they watched us all night." He sat across from Mizuho who was reading a newspaper.

Mizuho looked away from the newspaper. "Who?" "Police." Qing Jiang took it for granted. "The police are monitoring our actions, and the possibility of the murderer being an insider is still very high. It seems that they will not be able to withdraw in a short while." "Did you go out for a morning run just to observe this?" "Well. As I expected, a car has been following me. But I just ran around the walkway and came back. They must be disappointed." "Why do you care what the police do?" "Don't you care?" "I care about it, but it's not enough to confirm it." Qing Jiang's expression regained a little seriousness: "I care very much." He said. "I want to know how much they suspect that the crime is inside. In other words, I want to analyze from their actions how likely it is that the murderer is one of our own." "Judging from your tone, it seems that you hope that the murderer is one of us." Shui Suo said with irony. "How is it possible..." Qing Jiang rolled his eyes exaggeratedly, "No one would want the person around him to be a murderer, right? However, whether it was the inquiry yesterday or the follow-up just now, it clearly shows that the police are suspicious of us. It is just to monitor this The mansion is fine, but they may not be so simple with Kondo-san and Matsuzaki-san." "That's interesting. Why should the police pay special attention to uncle and the others?" "Isn't this obvious? If Uncle Zhugong dies, the two of them will benefit the most, right?" Qing Jiang said loudly without hesitation.Mizuho looked at the kitchen scruples, Suzue didn't seem to have heard what she just said. "Your mouth is really unscrupulous." "Liao Zan." He sank deeply into the sofa, his slender legs crossed. "First of all, Mr. Kondo, he obviously regards Uncle Takemiya as a thorn in his side. He always thinks that his ability is superior to Zong Yan, but Zong Yan controls the entire company with the help of his son-in-law and adopted son. With Mr. Kondo's character, you say he Is it tolerable?" "But this is something that can't be helped. When my grandfather retired, it was precisely to make Uncle Kondo the right-hand man of Aunt Raiko that Aunt Hanako married him. Even if my aunt died and my uncle inherited the company, his position is still not good. It will change." "The sad thing about human nature is that it's hard to give up. As far as I know, Mr. Kondo is really convinced that Aunt Laizi's management ability is not inferior to that of men, so he is willing to retreat to the second line. But if the object becomes Uncle Zongyan, It’s time to say something else.” "You mean, he doesn't recognize his uncle's ability?" "This is probably one of the reasons. But his resentment towards Uncle Takemiya is far more than that." Shui Sui didn't understand the meaning of Qing Jiang's words, and looked puzzled.Seeing her reaction, Qing Jiang raised the corners of his mouth triumphantly, and leaned towards her. "Don't you know? Grandpa Koichiro actually wanted to choose Mr. Kondo as his son-in-law." "I thought you were going to say something..." Mizuho had heard about this kind of thing from Kotoe. "But Auntie Laiko chose Soma Sohiko who is not proficient in work. Of course, Grandpa Koichiro objected at first, but in the end he was persuaded by Auntie Laiko. Do you know how she persuaded Grandpa Koichiro?" Mizuho shook his head. "That's what Auntie Laizi said—that man has no ambitions. Soma Zonghiko is a man who is more interested in art and fun than work. Naturally, he will not betray his wife to usurp the position of president. As long as he is properly given to a director The job can satisfy him. And she feels that her mind has only been working all the time, and she seems to be about to lose her human sensibility and warmth. If there is a man who is completely different from her type by her side, maybe this can be avoided The situation.——How? It looks like Aunt Lai’s thoughts, right? Grandpa Koichiro told me these things, and grandpa seems to be very proud of his daughter’s thoughts.” Qing Jiang seems to like to talk about such anecdotes, describing them with bright eyes. Shui Sui has always regarded Lai Zi as a gentle transformation, after hearing these words, he was somewhat shocked by his city.But she still looked directly at Qing Jiang and said: "So that's the thing. But don't forget one thing, Auntie loved Uncle deeply before she was alive. This is the biggest reason for choosing Uncle." "Love..." Qing Jiang scratched his ears, he seemed not very good at dealing with such words. "Aunt Lai Zi is a perfect woman, no matter what her motives are, she will spare no effort to fulfill her role as a wife." "..." Shui Sui had no words to answer, and could only fall into silence. "We seem to have strayed a bit." Qing Jiang sat back on the sofa and said. "In short, the reason why Auntie Laizi chose Soma Zonghiko is because of this background. Of course, Mr. Kondo also knows about this matter. Therefore, he thinks that after Auntie Laizi passes away, the position of president can fall into his own hands. But The reality is not so good. Uncle Monghiko actually inherited the position of the president. The man who became the son-in-law and adopted son for that reason has gained real power just by chance. It is not surprising that Mr. Kondo is dissatisfied. " "I already know what you want to say." Mizuho said with a sigh. "But no matter what, I won't kill my relatives just because of this reason." "Whether Mizuho can understand it or not, this is absolutely valid as a motive for killing. Besides, they are relatives on the surface, and the two of them are not related by blood." Shui Sui looked at Qing Jiang Duan's unruffled expression, and slowly shook his head.Indeed, as Kaori said, she couldn't feel the warmth and warmth of human feelings from this man. "That is to say, the police suspected Uncle Matsuzaki for this reason?" "Mr. Matsuzaki's hatred probably comes from other sources." Qing Jiang said with certainty. "He always has a kind of arrogance in his heart, thinking that this company was founded by his father and grandpa Koichiro from scratch. It is said that when Aunt Lai Zi was in power, there was a Matsuzaki faction in the company. Aunt Lai Zi also The government acquiesced in the existence of this camp. But Uncle Zongyan forcibly dismantled the Matsuzaki faction. Not only that, but recently he seems to be talking about assigning Mr. Matsuzaki to be the president of the branch. To put it bluntly, he just wants to push him out of the company .” Mizuho stared blankly at Qing Jiang's opened and closed lips, she basically didn't know anything about Zong Yan's company.Besides, she has been away from home for a year and a half, and many things have changed. "So, even if Mr. Kondo and Mr. Matsuzaki have murderous intentions towards Uncle Takemiya, it's not surprising." "I really don't want to think about it." "I didn't like to say these things either. But if these secrets are discovered by the police, the two of them will definitely be suspected." Mizuho also agrees with his statement. "However, it's not just the two of them who are suspicious." Seeing that Suzuki had already started to set up tableware in the dining room to prepare breakfast, Qing Jiang lowered his volume. "The motive doesn't have to be something so specific. Sometimes, pure hatred can drive someone to commit a crime." "how do I say this?" Hearing Mizuho's question, Qing Jiang stared in surprise. "Didn't Jiazhi tell you? Everyone in this family hates Uncle Zongyan without exception. For example..." He secretly pointed to Suzuki who was working hard, "She is no exception. She has served in this mansion since Auntie Laizi was a child." "..." Mizuho's mind recalled what Kaori had said to her—everyone loves mom— "And Mr. Yongshima." Qing Jiang seemed to see through Shui Sui's thoughts, and continued. "Has Jia Zhi told you what kind of feelings he has for Aunt Lai Zi?" Shui Sui looked up at him, he was calm and composed, with a slight smile on his face.Mizuho stared at him in astonishment, and nodded. "It's a good thing you can think of this. As long as it is in your mouth, anyone can be qualified to be a prisoner." "It's not everyone. In my reasoning, the only one who is not suspected of murder is Kaori." "That is to say, I am also suspected?" Rice asked, and Qing Jiang seemed to be asked about his difficulties. "I don't know much about you, and I can only make a judgment by observing you in the future. But in my opinion, you should not be the type who would risk killing people." "Thank you so much for your compliment." Mizuho thanked him artificially and respectfully: "Then, can you allow me to add a little bit of my reasoning by the way?" Qing Jiang looked a little surprised. "Please teach me." "My reasoning is—you are the murderer." "Hey!?" As calm as Qing Jiang, he couldn't help showing a stiff expression, but the next moment he returned to a relaxed expression, "Interesting, let's continue." "You want to marry Jiazhi. Indeed, grandfather seems to want the two of you to do good things. But now that grandfather has passed away, uncle has become your obstacle. Because, he has no intention of marrying Jiazhi to you. Intend." "I see." Qing Jiang still crossed Erlang's legs and scratched his right earlobe, "This kind of argument does make sense. It seems that the police will follow me sooner or later. By the way, what's your point of view? I look like someone who will kill people ?" "picture." Mizuho nodded sharply: "Very similar." Hearing Mizuho's answer, Qing Jiang still kept the posture of being integrated with the sofa, and laughed dryly. "You're right, as long as it's for Kaori, not just killing people, I can do anything."