Chapter 19 Chapter two

After dinner, Satsuki returned to her room, picked up a novel, but couldn't read it at all. In order to calm down, Satsuki played the piano, but stopped immediately.The "Bells of Sitter Island", which is usually played, sounds full of hostility today. In order to change her mood, Satsuki walked out of the room and came to the balcony. The heavy snow that had started to fall suddenly in the evening had stopped, and a ray of light revealed from the room reflected the snow-covered courtyard, like pearls sprinkled all over the ground.Satsuki was attracted by this scene.Along the river bank in the distance, Katsuo City was brightly lit.

The world outside is so peaceful and full of charm.However, the home is like a battlefield, making people restless, breaking through the iron cage and flying to the sky...Suddenly, the call of the devil passed through his mind.However, thinking of the lonely Yayoi, Satsuki immediately regained her composure. "It's so late, why are you standing here alone?" A familiar voice came from behind.Looking back, I saw the detective appearing on the balcony, and there was an unknown man standing beside him.The man was about fifty years old. He wore a tuxedo over a stand-up collar shirt and a bow tie.Judging by his attire, he looked like the detective's butler.

"Oh, who is this gentleman?" "He's the housekeeper, Yamamoto. He was supposed to be waiting at home, but he forgot to bring something, so I asked him to bring it—because I need to extend my stay." "Hello! Miss Gaoyue." "Oh, great work!" "No, thank you!" Yamamoto bowed respectfully. Including the maids I met during the day, everyone was polite and well behaved.These days, such well-trained employees are uncommon.In Sakuragawa's house, the housekeeper Aichigawa knows how to be polite, but the rest of the people are lazy whenever they have the opportunity.

The servant is like a mirror of the master. From the speech and behavior of the servant when dealing with people, Gao Yue can know that this detective is definitely not an ordinary wealthy young master from a wealthy family. "Are you here to watch the night scene?" "Yes. Not in a good mood." "However, it's best not to come out in such cold weather. A thin coat may damage not only your mood, but also your body." The detective took off his coat and put it on Gaoyue.Satsuki accepted the other party's kindness. "Don't you think the scenery here is very beautiful? Katsuo is a quiet town, and the scenery is endless. There seems to be a special sense of transparency here. I not only observe with my eyes, but also like to feel it with my body. .I feel like I'm trapped in the changing seasons. I like to go out and it worries my parents. I never thought about escaping the four seasons. Instead, I want to feel the seasons forever. My brother goes to Australia in winter , going to Canada in the summer, he and his friends are busy all day long. It is difficult to experience the change of seasons in this kind of life now, and it seems to be very inappropriate for my personality.”

"That made me feel harsh. Actually, like your brother, I have no sense of seasons. I went to Adelaide last week, saw kangaroos, and played boxing. However, I understand Miss Satsuki's It means that I have taken what you said to heart. From now on, I will try my best to listen to the voices of the four seasons." The detective said in a pretentious manner, but it didn't make people feel bored. "I'm in a bad mood, or is it because of Ms. Yayoi's affairs?" "Yes. What is my grandfather's plan? He posed a difficult problem for Yayoi." "Are you worried? I wonder if Ms. Yayoi can make a decision within these three days."

"Yayoi's temperament is gentle, but it doesn't mean that she will only be indecisive. She also has a firm side. Therefore, as long as there is someone who can satisfy her, she will not be so embarrassed." "It's not so much difficult to make a decision, it's better to say that none of them are fancy, is that true? Yes. Indeed, in my opinion, these three people are simple-minded, shallow-sighted, and difficult to rely on. I worry that they will only be able to Discredit the Sakuragawa family." The unabashed speech was surprising.However, Satsuki also felt the same way.

"Grandfather should have chosen better young people. I also feel that those three people who inherited the family business of the Yingchuan family seem to be insufficient. Grandfather should understand this. Could it be that he is already a little old and confused..." "The old man Yingchuan's legs and feet are not flexible, but he is not old enough to be confused. Through the two days of contact with him, I feel that he can live to be a hundred years old in good health. If not, I will go to the grave before him "The detective joked and said, "As long as the old man Sakuragawa gives an order, the engagement can be terminated at any time. Perhaps the important thing is that only in this case can Ms. Yayoi make her own choice. After all, It is not the son-in-law of the old man who inherits the blood of the old man, but Ms. Yayoi. Of course, the Sakuragawa family may think that even if a son-in-law is recruited, the Sakuragawa family must be supported by Ms. Yayoi. It can also be believed that Ms. Yayoi contains infinite talents. The old man Yingchuan firmly believes that he can completely overcome this difficulty."

"I don't think Yayoi is the kind of strong-willed person. I think grandfather and you expect too much from her." "You get along with Ms. Yayoi day and night like your biological sister. In your eyes, you will always think that Ji is still an immature sister. For example, the disputes that occurred in the yard during the day were finally resolved by Ms. Yayoi without serious consequences. On the contrary, in my opinion, you seem a little flustered. If you always stand with one foot in the ideal world and the other in reality, one day your body will be torn in two."

"As a detective, do you think so?" No one has ever commented on me like this before, but people often say that I am a realist and have no lofty ideals. The detective smiled and continued: "This is also a man's intuition. I would like to sort out the situation before you get into trouble... Please don't say these words to Miss Yayoi just now, because the three little ones are not the only ones who are put to the test. Pigs, Miss Yayoi is also among them." "I understand that. I like Yayoi very much, but I just think that if Yayoi has brothers, she doesn't need to accept such a test."

Since coming to this mansion, I don't know how many times he sighed.At this moment, a person came from behind. "Sister, are you here? I see you are not in the room. Let's go down and have a cup of tea together!" Yayoi's slender voice greeted at the door.She seemed to have showered and changed out of her daytime kimono into cotton pajamas.Even so, Yayoi's face was still sullen, maybe she came to Satsuki to discuss something - Satsuki could roughly imagine the content.Seeing Yayoi's troubled appearance makes people feel that the detective and grandfather really put too much pressure on her.

"I also agree. Although the scenery here is beautiful, it is harmful to health." Hearing what the detective said, Satsuki realized that he was only wearing a shirt, and hurriedly took off his shirt and returned it to him. Descended the stairs and came to the living room, where the group met the butler Aichikawa.The butler, who has served the Sakuragawa family for thirty years and is fully trusted by his master, is very flustered, unlike in the past. "So flustered, what happened?" Gao Yue stopped the housekeeper with a stern tone.Just now, the butler who was praising the detective for his extraordinary behavior made Satsuki feel even more ashamed, so her voice was slightly higher.As a colleague, Yamamoto followed closely behind the detective. "Miss Satsuki, Miss Yayoi, it's like this..." Aichikawa's tone seemed particularly flustered as if his throat was blocked. "Quickly say something!" "Just now, Mr. Mizuguchi made an internal call. Mr. Nizi, he, he was killed... And, during the call, Mr. Mizuguchi's voice suddenly stopped." Aichikawa stammered as she explained the situation.Just three minutes ago, the internal phone rang.After Aichichuan was connected, only Mizuguchi said in a panic: "Nizi was killed." After trying to stabilize his emotions, Mizuguchi further explained the details. "When I walked past Nizi's room, I found the door was open and looked in. Then, I saw that guy was hit hard on the left side of the head. Come here!" After Mizuguchi finished speaking, Aichigawa asked, "Did Niko be killed?" But the call was cut off suddenly, but the other party didn't seem to hang up.Aichigawa continued to call for more than a minute, but the other party did not respond.Besides, before and after this, no other sounds were heard.Aichichuan felt that the matter was serious, so he came to the living room, where he met Satsuki and others. "So, what should we do? Should we go to Mr. Mizuguchi's room to check on the situation, or inform Mr. Takayoshi first, or call the police immediately?" The butler's voice sounded weak. "We'd better go to Mr. Mizuguchi's room first. After confirming what happened, we go to alarm grandfather—maybe it's just a nasty prank." Satsuki gave instructions. At this time, the detective interjected: "Then, I'll go with you, you two are very worrying. Yamamoto, take care of Miss Yayoi. Oh, please call Sato here before that." "Obey!" After saluting, Yamamoto quickly disappeared into the depths of the mansion. "Who is Sato?" "He was my driver, he used to practice aikido, so he doubled as my personal bodyguard. Now it seems that a disturbing incident has occurred. It is difficult for me to protect your safety 100% alone." It was clear that the detective had considered the worst: someone seemed to have infiltrated the mansion and committed murder.Satsuki also thought about it. "I originally wanted to ask you to stay here, but it seems that is impossible." "You're very smart! To be precise, I'm not from this family. It's just that, as a member of the Sakuragawa family, it's impossible for me to make the choice to let the guests go and stay by myself." Satsuki replied with her chest puffed out .In this regard, the detective can only respond with a slight smile. After a while, a two-meter-tall, burly driver with short hair and a grim facial expression appeared in front of him. Like Yamamoto, Sato bowed respectfully. "Sato! Yamamoto has already introduced you to the general situation, please come with us." "Understood, Detective!" Sato nodded with a deep but loud voice. "I will protect everyone's safety at the cost of my life." This kind of big talk that usually sounds exaggerated, now sounds very kind. During the stay, the three candidates were arranged to live in the annex of the mansion, which was not due to this vacant room.He didn't say anything, but Ying Liang was secretly on guard, worried that someone would forcefully break in at night and cause established facts.Undoubtedly, Yayoi is full of charm; however, the majesty of the Sakuragawa family cannot be tarnished. Yamamoto took care of Yayoi, Satsuki and the other four walked to the annex.The annex is about 100 meters away from the main building.The snow had stopped, and two or three centimeters of snow had piled up on the road to the annex. There was a moon in the sky, and the surrounding area was pitch black.Under the illumination of the lights on both sides of the main building and the annex, a path covered with snow is clearly visible. According to Aichigawa's explanation, the annex has three floors, and each floor has four rooms.Nizi lives on the first floor, Shuikou lives on the second floor, and Gao Gong's room is on the third floor.The rooms are all 10 tatami mats in size, and there is another suite of 8 tatami mats in size.The reason why the three people's rooms are separated is to avoid quarrels between three competitors on the same floor due to trivial matters.Shared bathrooms are located on the ground floor.In order to avoid unexpected encounters in the bathroom, the three of them decide their own time and bathe in order.In addition, in order to prevent unfair situations, all furniture and daily necessities in the room are uniformly configured. After arriving at the annex, the four entered the hall carefully.There was no one in the gray-carpeted corridor, nor was there a sound.Aichigawa led the way, went up the stairs, and stopped in front of Mizuguchi's room on the second floor. "Mr. Mizuguchi! Mr. Mizuguchi!" Aichikawa called while knocking on the door, but there was no response from inside.Aichigawa turned his head, and at the same time, the detective gave the driver a wink.The driver silently stepped forward and turned the doorknob.The doors to each room here can only be locked from the inside.However, the door of Shuikou was not locked. With a light push, the door opened to the inside, making a creaking sound.Because it is an ancient building built before the war, the doors and windows everywhere are inevitably a bit old. "Mr. Mizuguchi!" Sato called when the door was half opened.There was no answer, but there was a smell of cigarettes. "Mr. Mizuguchi!" After calling again, Sato opened the door. An old chandelier lights up the interior.Next to the telephone station on the inside of the door, Mizuguchi fell face down on the ground with a thin sharp knife pierced into his back, and blood was faintly oozing from his white shirt.Satsuki couldn't help taking a step back and let out a scream.If she hadn't been held by the detective, she might have fallen on her back. "I'm out of breath." Sato squatted down and felt the pulse of Shuikou, and shook his head gently.His movements are quick and agile, it is hard to imagine that he is an ordinary driver. "It seems that the worst has happened." The detective whispered while supporting Satsuki's shoulders. "Oh, how's the situation, Sato?" "I was stabbed in the back. No other trauma was found. The body temperature has not dropped. It is estimated that the assassination time was not long. He may have been killed during the phone call with Aichichuan." Gao Yue tremblingly glanced at the corpse.Mizuguchi was still the same as before, his face didn't change much.He appeared to have just showered and was wearing a fresh shirt. The door of the room is facing a window, and the mountains on the opposite side can be seen during the day.There is a small table in front of the window, an abstract painting hangs on the wall to the left, and a sideboard below.An old-fashioned lamp sits on the table, and the sideboard is furnished with fruit baskets, translucent glasses and a huge ceramic ashtray.Shuikou is a smoker, and the ashtray is full of ashes.Considering that the servants cleaned the room every day, he had smoked more than one pack of cigarettes just today. There is a door on the right leading to the bedroom, and the telephone is in a corner outside the door.The telephone is a white push-button telephone that is common in hotels, and it can make both internal and external calls.At this moment, the receiver is suspended in mid-air. "This knife..." After calming down a little, Aichikawa finally spoke. "Do you have any impression of this murder weapon?" The driver asked softly. "Yes. It is a regular item in the room, with the fruit on the sideboard." Satsuki cast her eyes on the sideboard.Next to the fruit basket full of apples and grapes, there is a fruit knife that is the same as the one pierced into the back of the mouth. "The same items were used in all the rooms. It appears that the killer used knives from other rooms." "It's entirely possible. It's just that fruits and knives are only available in guest rooms..." "That is to say, this was brought out from the room of the other two people?" The detective interjected, and Aichikawa vaguely confirmed. "...the fact that Mizuguchi was killed seems to indicate that he did see Nizi being killed." "Please wait a moment." The driver said, and opened the door with agility, and entered the inner bedroom.Less than a minute after turning on the lights, he quickly turned back. "There's no one in the bedroom. I'm worried, in case the murderer is still hiding in there... sorry for shocking everyone." "Your actions are correct." The detective seemed confident, nodded solemnly, and then looked at Satsuki. "Then, let's go to Nizi's room and have a look. Of course, needless to say, the result will be..." "Why didn't you report it to the police?" "It's not too late to call the police after investigating the situation clearly. If Nizi is really killed, then we can tell the police together. Miss Gaoyue, can you leave alone?" The detective looked extremely composed.Satsuki was already panicked, but she kept having a strange feeling.The inspection of the corpse and the investigation of the situation in the room were all carried out by the driver, and the detective supported him from beginning to end.Normally, Satsuki would wonder if he was the real detective.However, there is no time to take care of these now. Regarding his concern, Satsuki kept nodding her head, saying "it doesn't matter". Nizi fell down in the middle of his room, face down, head towards the window.Perhaps after discovering the body, he hastily closed the door, which was tightly closed.The difference was that there was no knife on his back and blood was pouring from his head.The blood that flowed out had not yet solidified, staining the bamboo-colored carpet red. "He has died. There are two marks of being hit by a blunt instrument on the head. The estimated time of death is around the time of Mizuguchi's death." As before, Sato quickly inspected the scene and explained the situation. "As for the murder weapon used..." Sato looked around and found a brown metal stick in the narrow space under the sideboard, about 50 centimeters long, with several short and thick round sticks wrapped around it. fine vine. "Isn't this the one adorning the entrance?" Satsuki was much calmer than before. It was a decoration given to Yingliang by a famous artist.On a pedestal imitating a woman's body, three such metal rods stand in three rows.The one in the middle is slightly higher, and looks like a mountain as a whole. I remember that the title of this group of shapes is "Dahe Sanshan".Satsuki remembered that when she was young, she held the metal rod in her hand, and felt that the carved vines wrapped around it looked like a centipede, so she threw it on the ground. "That's true. It must have been given to Mr. Ying Liang by Mr. Wu Zuo." Aichichuan, who had been standing at the door, nodded.He had calmed down, but he didn't want to go into the room. "The entrance? If you say so, it was indeed decorated there. I found a piece missing on the right side. I thought it was originally designed like that, so I didn't pay attention..." Sato apologized to the master ashamedly, but he just just After passing there once, the memory is really amazing. "Don't mind. Everyone is at fault, as long as you learn the lesson next time." The detective replied calmly, but Satsuki wondered if the detective himself had noticed the decoration.The detective still accompanied Satsuki all the time, without any investigation. The driver replied "yes" and began investigating again. "The table knife on the sideboard is missing. It is very likely that the murderer used the knife here to kill Mr. Mizuguchi." There are also fruit baskets and ashtrays on the sideboard. The number of apples has decreased. Maybe Nizi ate some. Checking the trash can found that there are discarded peels and cores in it.Nizi doesn't smoke, and there are no cigarette butts in the ashtray.Instead, it contained a pair of glasses with one lens shattered.Those are the glasses with translucent frames that Nizi usually uses. Satsuki looked at the body again and found that he was wearing another pair of glasses.It was a pair of black-rimmed glasses.Gao Er had never seen him wearing this pair of glasses before. "Those glasses..." Of course the driver is also aware of it.Not only that, but he also seemed to see what Satsuki was thinking. "Don't draw conclusions too early. Ms. Gaoyue, I'm still not sure if the glasses Mr. Nizi wears are his own. It may be his spare glasses." "Yes." Gao Yue closed her mouth and looked at the detective.However, the detective was intrigued by another discovery and suddenly walked over to the ashtray. "It's a sin to put my business card under it." It was the same business card that Satsuki got during the day.Before dinner, the detectives also distributed to Yayoi, Niko and others.Everyone did not refuse, and accepted it solemnly on the surface.It was the business card, on the sideboard with the ashtray on it.The detective was outraged by this. "If you don't need it, you might as well return it quickly." The detective frowned and wanted to take back the business card. "Detective, calm down! Please be careful and don't touch the items on the scene." "Oh, you're right." The detective honestly withdrew his hand. Faced with this sudden tragedy, Satsuki felt like a nightmare.In this regard, Aichigawa also has the same feeling.He didn't know what to do and looked very embarrassed.However, he seemed to remember his duty immediately. "The police must be notified immediately." "Yes. Then, go back and call the police!" "The murderer may still be wandering in the yard. It is very dangerous to act alone." Sato stepped forward and stopped Aichichuan who was about to go out. "Hey! Don't be so sensational." The detective reminded Sato to pay attention. Sato said: "I'm sorry! But, Detective, I am responsible for protecting everyone. I must ensure that everything is safe. If you want to go back to the main building, in order to ensure safety, everyone must go together." "Oh, that's true. Then, after the investigation here is over, let's all go back to the main building together." "Before that, it's best to inform Mr. Gao Gong of the situation. The murderer may have escaped, but he may still be hiding in the annex. It's best to ask Mr. Gao Gong to go back to the main building together." "Yes, there is another one here!" In the end, according to Sato's proposal, everyone went to Takamiya's room first. Satsuki has an ominous premonition that something worse will come.The new son-in-law candidates Shuikou and Nizi were killed, and perhaps Gao Gong would also be killed.There is also a possibility that Gao Gong was eager to become the new son-in-law, and he foolishly took the lives of those two for this.In short, no matter what, it is the worst ending. From a very young age, Satsuki's ominous premonitions always came true.The death of her grandmother, the death of her pet dog, the accident of Yayoi's parents...all of these had foreshadowed - Satsuki felt a strong sense of unease.However, I hope it will not be fulfilled this time... Satsuki prayed like this and walked up the steps leading to the third floor. However, Satsuki's hope was completely destroyed the moment Gao Gong's door was opened.After entering the room, they found the senior official with a rope wrapped around his neck, face down, dead. The third victim. "Has Takamiya been killed too? I thought it must be him who frantically killed the other two in order to get Miss Yayoi." The detective muttered carelessly. "It seems to be strangled from behind. Mr. Aichigawa, have you seen this rope?" "Like something in the dressing room on the first floor." Aichikawa replied immediately. It seems that when Gao Gong entered the room, he was attacked from behind by the murderer hidden behind the door.Therefore, unlike the other two, this time the body fell to the ground along the wall of the doorway. Gao Yue felt that Gao Gong's body lying on the ground was a bit strange, but she didn't know where the strangeness was. "Did you find anything?" The driver who also felt abnormal asked with his mouth open. Satsuki replied truthfully, "I don't know." "Perhaps it's because his right hand is clenched?" Sato said, checking his right hand. The corpse's left hand is loose and open, while the right hand is lightly clasped together.Sato seems to have discovered something. "Holding a button in the palm of his hand, as if it were a gilt coat button." "Buttons! Is it the murderer's?" The detective suddenly showed great interest. "Maybe it was something caught during the resistance. Miss Satsuki, your observation skills in this area are very keen." For Sato's appreciation, Satsuki just nodded.She seemed to think that the reason for her strangeness was not in this. "It's better to go back first." After a general survey of the entire room including the bedroom, Sato suggested. No one disagrees. On the way back, when passing by the entrance of the annex, everyone saw that the right side of the sculpture was missing a corner.