Chapter 33 third quarter

"There is only one possibility. The caller was near Ms. Mitsui's apartment at that time. You should understand what I want to say, right?" Being asked a question suddenly, Tamiko was a little flustered for a while, but she immediately understood. "You want to say that the caller knows where Mineko lives?" "Exactly." Kaga nodded in satisfaction, "Even Ms. Mitsui's ex-husband and son don't know where she moved to. You don't know why she chose Kodenmacho, do you?" "Well, she said it was inspiration." "That is to say, Ms. Mitsui had nothing to do with this place in the first place, and the murderer couldn't have come here by accident. Therefore, it can be concluded that the murderer knew that Ms. Mitsui lived here a long time ago, and he could pay a temporary visit without saying hello. In this way, isn't it Can it be said that they are very close?"

The criminal police's analysis made sense.It turns out that the investigation has also made progress little by little.Tomiko sighed inwardly. "I understand everything you said. It's only natural for you to come to me, but I can't think of anything right away, can you give me some time?" "Of course, if you think about it slowly, it's okay. Do you still keep the business card I gave you a few days ago?" Seeing that Tamiko didn't know how to answer, Kaga quickly took out a business card and put it on the table. "If you remember anything, please contact me." He said and stood up.

Tamiko sent Kaga to the door.He held the handle, turned around and said, "As I said, you don't need to blame yourself. And thanks to you, the investigation has sped up and the case has become clear." Tamiko understood that Kaga's words were not just comforting, but she still couldn't nod her head.She looked away and tilted her head. The policeman said "Excuse me" and walked out. Mitsui Mineko is one of the few college friends with whom Tamiko still keeps in touch.She used to have many friends, but they got married and had children one after another, and the contact became less and less.Maybe those friends communicated with each other, but Tamiko who was single was left alone.

Mineko was the one who got married earlier and was pregnant at the time.During the days when she was busy taking care of the children, they almost lost touch with each other.But precisely because she conceived and had children at a very young age, Mineko was freed from the hardship of raising children very early.When her only son entered the upper grades of elementary school, she called Tamiko more often, mostly complaining about her inability to enjoy life.Tamiko said that she didn't know how to be blessed while she was in the blessing, but she really got angry when she heard it, and said to Tamiko: "You can't understand my feelings." She even cried and said that there is no meaning to live.Her husband seemed to be indifferent to the family, and the relationship between husband and wife had broken down.

Mineko is very envious of Tamiko for having her own business, especially her job as a translator.This point can be understood by Tomiko. She remembers that Mineko wanted to translate foreign folklore and fairy tales as a career since she was in college. Tamiko once said to her: "Then you can do it. If you have time, you can do housework when you are not busy." But Fengzi was very distressed and said that things were not that simple.Her husband objected to her working, even a side job at home. Since it is a problem between husband and wife, Tamiko has no choice but to listen to Mineko's complaints.

But things have changed recently.Fengzi began to consider divorce when her only son ran away from home.But Fengzi faces a difficult problem-the problem of livelihood after divorce. "Can you help me?" Tamiko said lightly.She's often juggling several jobs at once, and her like-minded assistant has quit, and she's looking for a replacement. Mineko doesn't look very confident.Tamiko tried to get her to translate a few things, and she did a good job with few problems.Tamiko asked the reason, and she said that she had never given up studying all these years. Probably because of the security of her livelihood, Fengzi made up her mind and soon filed for divorce from her husband.Surprisingly, her husband, Naohiro Kiyose, agreed very simply.It's just that when the property was divided, taking into account Naohiro's family property, the amount Mineko got was quite low.Tamiko told Mineko that it should be more important, Mineko just smiled and said: "It doesn't matter, I want freedom more than money."

When she started living alone, Tamiko decided to give her the job of translating.She still needs a little time to translate on her own, so Tamiko decides to help her before then.Tamiko is also very happy to be able to do the same job as her old friend. When she first divorced, Mineko temporarily lived in a friend's apartment in Kamata.About two months ago, she moved to Kodenma-cho in Nihombashi.Tomiko still doesn't know why.Mineko said it was inspiration, but Tamiko thought there must be a reason for it, and it was by no means a bad thing.Because whenever Fengzi talked about that incident, she always looked happy, and there must be something for her to look forward to.Dumiko thought that one day Mineko would tell herself, so she didn't ask much.

Everything seemed to be going well, but an accident shook their friendship.It was not Mineko who had the accident, but Tamiko. Tamiko and Tachibana Koji met about a year ago.She went to Chidorigafuchi to enjoy the night cherry blossoms with the people from the publishing house, and an editor brought Tachibana Koji with her.He is three years younger than Tamiko, is also single, and is a video director.He came to Japan two years ago because of a contract with a company. They fell in love shortly after they met, dating often, testing each other's ideas, but never mentioning marriage or living together.They work hard in their respective fields and only live together when they want to relax.They all like this kind of life.

But recently, Koji came up with something surprising.He said that he wanted to go to London to develop, and he hoped that Tamiko could go with him. For the sudden marriage proposal, Tamiko doesn't know what to do, and feels very confused.But after all kinds of emotions are intertwined, what remains is joy and happiness. She has no family to take care of in Japan, nor a long-term contracted job, so she can leave with Koji at any time.She was only worried about one thing, and that was Fengzi. Mineko believed in what Tamiko said to her, "I will help you until you can translate independently", and only then took the first step in a new life.If she were to be left alone now, Tamiko would feel bad conscience.

But it was impossible for her to refuse Koji's marriage proposal.He is now an indispensable existence in her life. After some painful thinking, Tamiko explained the situation to Mineko, and she felt that Mineko should be able to understand. But she was thinking too naively.Fengzi's expression stiffened after hearing this. "You said you would help me, that's why I decided to divorce..." She spoke with resentment. Dumiko feels that Mineko cannot be blamed.If it were me, I might be angry too.No, not so much anger as worry. They separated after this unpleasant conversation, three weeks ago.Later, they made an appointment to meet again, which was on June 10th.

The two were supposed to meet at seven o'clock, but Tamiko called again to change the time.Because Koji suddenly called and said he wanted to see her, saying that he was waiting for her in Ginza. When Tamiko came to Ginza, Koji took her into a jewelry store and held a diamond ring in front of her. Koji said that as long as Tamiko likes it, all that is left is to sign.Although Dumiko is quite old, she was moved to tears.If there was no one around, she really wanted to throw her arms around his neck. Walking out of the jewelry store, Tamiko handed the ring to Koji for safekeeping, and took a taxi to Kodenmacho by herself.This is her second visit to Mineko's apartment.She thought in the car, don't tell Mineko about the ring yet. It was four or five minutes before eight o'clock when I arrived at Mineko's apartment. Tomiko took the elevator to the fourth floor and rang the doorbell, but there was no response.She pressed it again, but with the same result.She felt strange, so she twisted the handle and found that the door was unlocked. As soon as she entered the room, she saw Fengzi fell to the ground.The word stroke first came to her mind, because her grandpa had passed out in the shower. But when she checked Fengzi's face, she found that Fengzi had strangle marks on his neck, and then saw Fengzi's eyes open. With trembling hands, she dialed the phone and called the police.Now, she has no memory of what she said to the police at that time.After hanging up the phone, she went to the corridor and waited for the police to arrive.Maybe the police told her to do it. The police arrived shortly after, and they put Tamiko in a police car.She originally thought that she would be sent somewhere, but unexpectedly, a criminal policeman came up and began to ask her questions.At first, Tamiko couldn't answer at all, but thanks to the patience of the detective, she gradually calmed down.That detective is Kaga. But ironically, after gradually calming down, Tamiko realized that she had made a big mistake.If the agreed time is not changed, Fengzi will not be killed. The events of tens of minutes ago began to revive in Tamiko's mind.She was taken to a jewelry store by Koji, and when she received the ring from him, she was so happy that she almost jumped up, her heart was full of happiness, and she completely forgot about the existence of others.But at that time, Fengzi was being strangled by the murderer, suffering hellish pain. Sadness, regret and self-blame swelled rapidly in Dumiko's heart, out of control.She shouted in front of Kaga: "It's my fault! If I didn't change the agreed time... If I didn't only care about myself, so selfish... It's me, me, I killed Mineko. It's my fault!" In the evening, Koji called and invited her out for dinner. "Sorry, I'm not in the mood." "Then I'll go to your place to buy something to eat. What do you want to eat?" Tamiko held the microphone, shook her head and said, "Forget it tonight. I don't wear makeup. The room is also messy." "It's okay, I'm worried about you. Did you eat well?" "I ate, you don't have to worry. I just want to be alone." Probably because of Tamiko's blunt tone, Koji stopped talking. "I'm sorry," she apologized to him, "I want to see you too, I want to see you, and act like a baby with you. If I'm with you, maybe I can forget my troubles." "Then—" "But I can't. Mineko must have been in so much pain at the time, I wouldn't allow myself to escape to you. Forget about Mineko, even for a little while, for the sake of a little bit of happiness, I feel despicable." Koji was silent again.He probably wanted to understand how Tamiko felt. What she said was true, but she didn't say it all.She always thought that Mineko would not have been killed if she hadn't gone to see Koji that day.If she meets Koji with this mood, she won't be able to interact with him as before, and even happy memories may become painful. She can't tell him this trouble, otherwise he will definitely blame himself.After all, it was him who made Tamiko change her plans. "Is there anything I can do for you?" "Thank you. It's enough for you to have this kind of heart." She heard Koji sigh deeply. "I hate the murderer, I hate it. She killed your friend, committed a great crime, and what I can't forgive is that he hurt you like this. I even wanted to kill him." Tamiko pressed her temple with her free hand. "Please, don't mention the word 'kill' now." "Ah, I'm sorry..." "My pain doesn't matter, I just want to know why things have become like this. She is so kind... The police asked a lot, but I couldn't answer. I am really useless." "You don't have to beat yourself up about it. I think it's normal not to be able to answer." "But I always considered myself a good friend of hers." "I have friends too, but I don't know everything about him. It's like that." Tamiko was silent.She understood what Koji meant, but saying it made her feel uncomfortable. "Actually, the criminal police came again today." Koji said, "It's not the one from last time, it's a man surnamed Kaga." "I know him. I've seen him several times." "He's weird, right? He even brought me a present, which is a fried egg." "Eggs?" "He said it was a specialty of Ningyocho. He brought me that kind of thing, but asked me if I usually eat with a knife and fork. Isn't that a silly question? I told him that I can use chopsticks better than ordinary people." "Did he ask you anything about the case?" "First he asked me if I had seen Fengzi, and I replied that the three of us had dinner together twice. He then asked me if I still remember what I said at that time, and I said I don't remember the details, it should be about how I know it or something. The detective said he wanted to hear it too." "About how we met? Why did he inquire about that?" "I don't know. I asked, but he cleverly changed the subject. Anyway, he is a very strange person. Later, he asked me if I had a mobile phone. I said of course I did, and he asked me to show him." Tamiko was taken aback when she heard this, and remembered what Kaga had said in the daytime. "Then did you show him?" "Yes. He also asked me when I started using this phone. Weird!" "Yes." Although Tamiko answered like this, she already understood Kaga's purpose in her heart.Kaga suspected that the person who contacted Mineko with a public phone might be the murderer, so he wanted to make sure that Koji had lost his phone.In other words, Kaga was suspicious of Koji. How stupid, Tamiko thought.She was with Koji until the discovery of Mineko's body.A little investigation by the police will tell that Koji has a perfect alibi. or…… Is Kaga suspicious of Tamiko, or does he think that Koji arrived at Mineko's room one step earlier than Tamiko? Indeed, Tamiko had told Kaga that her relationship with Mineko had become awkward because she was going to London.But in the eyes of ordinary people, this will not be a motive for killing.Did he suspect that Tamiko had other motives? Tamiko's first impression of Kaga was not bad.He is a person who thinks about others, which makes Tamiko feel trustworthy.Although it was the first time they met, she still told him everything.But Tamiko wasn't sure if he had opened up, too.Maybe he was just pretending to be kind, but in fact he suspected that Tamiko's tears were not from her original intention, and observed carefully. "Hey, Tamiko, did you hear that?" Koji called out. "Ah, um, I heard that. What else did he ask?" "That's all. He shows up and leaves so quickly, which is kind of unpleasant." "You don't have to worry, you must be confirming something." "I think so too." Koji said lightly. "Sorry, I'm a little tired and I need to rest." "Ah, I'm sorry, I've been on the phone for too long. You should have a good rest." "Thanks, good night." After hearing Koji say "good night", Tamiko hung up the phone.She put down her phone and lay down on the bed. Tamiko is imagining the days to come.Will there be a day when the sadness will fade away and you will be able to live happily with Gengji as before?Even so, how should the Fengzi matter be settled?How does she see me?Should I tell myself that thinking too much is useless, or will I just forget about it even if I don’t tell myself? Tamiko closed her eyes.She tried to fall asleep, but she didn't feel sleepy, only dizzy. "Have you made up your mind?" Suddenly, Fengzi's voice sounded beside her ear, and her frowning face appeared in front of her eyes.She rarely showed that expression. That was when Tamiko told her that she planned to go to London with Koji. "Well... I want to go." Tamiko hesitated. "What about your job? What about translation?" "This... After finishing the work at hand, I may not do it anymore. When I arrive in London, no publishing house will ask me to translate." There was confusion and wandering in Fengzi's eyes. Seeing this, Tamiko hurriedly added: "Of course, I'm thinking about your matter. I will introduce you to a translation company, and there will be someone from the publishing house to help. Don't worry." Fengzi turned his face away. "You said you would help me, that's why I decided to divorce..." Tamiko was speechless. "I'm sorry." She could only apologize, "I didn't expect this to happen either." Fengzi put her hand on her forehead and said, "This is troublesome. If I had known this, I should have asked for more money." She seemed to be talking to herself, as if referring to the distribution of property during divorce. "It doesn't matter. With your current level, you should be able to find a lot of translation jobs, enough to support a person's life." Fengzi looked at her coldly and said, "Don't say irresponsible words, things are not that simple." "I'm serious." "Okay, I don't want to blame you. The person you like proposes to you, and the agreement with your friends is usually forgotten." "It's not like that. I'm sorry too, please understand." "If you feel sorry..." Fengzi shook his head again when he said this, "Okay, it's my own fault. I shouldn't rely on others in the first place. I have to do my own things." "Fengzi..." Fengzi put the money for the drink on the table, turned around and left the cafe without looking back. That was the last time Tamiko saw Mineko alive. Tamiko regretted that she didn't talk to Mineko more.She should catch up with Fengzi and say a few more words until they understand each other.Fengzi is a smart person, as long as she is sincere, she will definitely understand. But for the next two weeks, the matter has been shelved.Mineko may have been disappointed with Tamiko, and it was very difficult to meet her, but Tamiko was unable to arrive at the appointed time and was delayed by an hour.When calling, Fengzi only said, "Then it's eight o'clock, I understand."She was probably angry. This hour took Mineko's life. Sorry, Mineko!After the case happened, Tamiko said something that had been lingering in her heart for a long time.She will probably talk to herself like this often in the future.But no matter how much he apologized, the other party couldn't hear him. As soon as the glass door was opened, the sweltering air rushed in.Tamiko felt sweat seep out of her pores instantly, but she put on her slippers anyway.She is not in the mood to go outside yet, but staying in the dark air-conditioned room all day has made her uncomfortable.Even though the outdoor air was mixed with all kinds of exhaust fumes, she still wanted to leave the room. How long has it been since you came to the balcony?I chose this room because I could overlook the small park from the balcony.But after moving in, Tamiko went to the balcony very few times, and she always used the dryer or hung the clothes in the bathroom to dry after washing. She wanted to put her arms on the railing, but immediately dismissed the idea.Grease and dust all over the railing. When she went back to the room to get the dishcloth, the email notification on her mobile phone rang. It was from Koji, and the content was as follows: I'm going to start making plans to return home. How's your time?wait for your reply. Tamiko closed the phone and sighed.Koji must be in a hurry.Without knowing when to return to London, it is impossible to determine work plans.The wording of such an email should not have been so gentle, but should have emphasized the urgency of the matter, but Koji did not do that.This is where he is considerate. Tamiko returned to the balcony with the rag, wiped the railing and thought about Koji.She can't always be ignorant because Gengji treats her well, and she also understands that people cannot be resurrected after death, so she must let go of Fengzi's matter.But if she went to London like this, everything would really be fine?Don't you regret it? The railing has finally returned to its original luster.She exhaled lightly, but accidentally saw a familiar figure walking towards the apartment.It's Kaga.He was carrying a white plastic bag. Tamiko stared at him, and he suddenly looked up, as if he felt her gaze.Tamiko's room is on the third floor, maybe he saw it by accident.He smiled at Tamiko, who also nodded slightly. It's just in time, Tomiko thought to herself, I want to ask him the real purpose of going to Koji. About two minutes later, Kaga came to the door of the room. "Today is not sweets, but senbei." He handed over the plastic bag. Tomiko smiled wryly. "Do you always bring gifts when you investigate?"