Chapter 6 kill witnesses

On a cold morning, the milkman was pedaling a heavy bicycle while exhaling.Gradually, the sun rose and the temperature was higher than before. When turning from the road into the alley, the young man heard a dog barking.He especially likes dogs.So, when he heard the dog barking, he couldn't help but stop the bicycle and look in the direction of the dog barking. There is an open space of 600 square meters in the front right, and there is a sign on the edge of the land, which says "XX Bank S Street Branch Construction Site", and the open space is surrounded by railings.This clearing is a rare good place for naughty children who have nowhere to play, so children in this area often sneak over the railings to play on the inner ground.This young man can see this scene when he is also delivering the evening paper.

At this moment, he looked into the open space through the destroyed railing.It was overgrown with weeds, old water pipes left over from children playing with it, cement chips etc. all over the place. The dog is still barking.It was a big black dog.The young man recognized it as a wild dog that had been wandering around the area recently.The children also gave it a name: "Heijie". The young man whistled to the dog, because he used to give the dog the leftover milk to drink, so the dog knew the young man very well, and whenever the young man whistled, he would come running wagging his tail.

But today the dog was different from usual. When the young man blew his whistle again, he still couldn't come over. He just stood there and kept barking, which gradually turned into a whining sound.It didn't know what else it was biting, and it looked like it was still pulling it out vigorously.The lad stood outside and could only see the dog pulling a piece of black wood.Here comes his curiosity.As soon as he turned over, he jumped over the railing. The dew-wet weeds in the clearing clung to his feet.The young man continued to walk in while frowning.As he got closer, the young man's face became paler, and he forgot about the wet weeds on his feet.

"Someone's sleeping there!" This is what the young man thought at that moment.Because the word "death" did not immediately come to mind for this strong young man. A person leaned over there, "Heijie" was holding the hem of that person's black raincoat in his mouth, and the raincoat was soaked by the rain. The young man recalled: last night, it did rain for a while in this area. "Hei Jie" was still screaming wildly.The young man shifted his gaze to the man's head, and couldn't help yelling "ah", his eyes widened.It turned out that the man's back pillow was covered with blood.The surrounding grass was also stained with blood. Only then did the young man think of the word "death".

"he died!" Thinking of this, the young man ran out of the open space. A business card and a driver's license were found on the body of the deceased.His name is Shinji Ota, and he is forty-two years old.He is the operator of a small transport company around here. The cause of death was a blow to the occipital, and the murder weapon was a large blood-stained stone that was lost in the grass around the corpse. "This may be the first scene." The forensic doctor who completed the autopsy said to the Tajima detective. "What about the time of death?" Tajima asked, turning his gaze to the corpse again.

As a master of detection, Tajima, corpses are nothing new to him, but he still frowned.Because for "death", no matter how experienced you are, you can't treat it like watching a show. "Probably between eleven o'clock and twelve o'clock last night." "Between eleven and twelve o'clock, that is, a little while before it rains." "yes." "I arrived home at twelve o'clock last night, and it started raining as soon as I got home." Tajima said to himself, then nodded in affirmation.In order to find the criminal, the rain might be of some help.

When the corpse was covered with straw mats, his relatives also came.The young wife arrived with the driver who worked in the store.Detective Yabe, who brought them here, whispered to Tajima, "This is the victim's wife, Misako Ota." As soon as the criminal police lifted the straw mat, Misako immediately knelt beside the corpse.Although her face was very pale, it was inexplicable that she had no tears. "Is it because you have a strong character, or do you have no feelings for your dead husband?" Tajima was puzzled.He fixed his eyes on the woman's face for a long time.As she moved away from the body, Tajima began questioning.

"I sympathize with you very much, but this has already happened. I ask you to help us catch the murderer together. Because I have to inquire about many private matters at home, please don't mind..." "It doesn't matter." On the contrary, Misako Ota's straightforwardness made Tajima a little confused. "It's okay? Do you know the ins and outs of this matter?" "I knew he would end up like this sooner or later." Misako's voice was still so strong, but it was a little trembling at the end of the sentence, "I have reminded him many times, but he is just..."

"What did you remind him of?" "He's always been doing hated things. I'm afraid that sooner or later someone's going to kill him." "Did you say that the worry became a reality?" "..." "Do you know who hates your husband?" "Sorry I can't tell you straight." "Then we will have to investigate ourselves. But can you give an account of your husband's whereabouts last night?" "He called right after dinner and told me he was going out." "What time did you leave the house?" "Around seven o'clock."

"Where did you go?" "I don't know. But I can probably guess that it must be the 'Black Cat' bar in front of the station. He often goes there recently." "Do you know who he called?" "It's for Muramatsu." "Who is Muramatsu?" "Also the operator of a transportation company." Tajima asked Misako for Muramatsu's address and wrote it down in his notebook. When Tajima finished asking questions and thanked Misako, she was found crying in pain. In order to solve the case, the police set up a search headquarters at the police station in Guanpianer, and dispatched all the criminal police to collect materials.

Tajima first visited the Muramatsu Transportation Company with Yabe Detective.This is a small delivery company with just two small trucks.The owner, Shinkichi Muramatsu, is a fat man in his fifties.After Tajima told him the news of Ota Shinji's death, he didn't look surprised at all. "I think he will be like this sooner or later." Muramatsu said what Misako once said. "Do you mean the victim was resented by many?" "Forget it! But I don't want to speak ill of the dead." "Can you be more specific?" "Well—for example, his transport company has three drivers, but they are all newcomers." "You mean the drivers don't stay here long?" "Yes. For example, if the driver crashes the car, usually the repair fee is shared equally between the boss and the driver, but I heard that this is not the case in his place. The repair fee is all borne by the driver himself, and it is still deducted from the driver's salary. .Now is not the time when it is difficult to recruit workers. If he does what he does, the drivers will not stay for long!" "Are you saying that some of the drivers who resigned have a grudge?" "I remember a young driver named Cao Chang had an accident more than three months ago, causing serious injuries to the driver and requiring two months of treatment. I heard that the total cost of hospitalization and damages was about 100,000 yen. But But Ota said, "This is all caused by you, I don't pay a penny!" In the end, I didn't pay a penny!" "Where's the driver named Cao Chang now?" "The license has been revoked, and I can no longer drive. Now I will do some odd jobs. I have to earn another 100,000 yen, so after I finish my work during the day, I have to find another night shift to be a night patrolman. " "Are you saying he has a grudge against Ota's inhuman behavior?" "Of course. I heard that the cause of the accident was that Ota employed too hard a driver, causing the driver to be overtired. Hey! Even if you don't give out 100,000 yuan, a 10,000 to 2,000 yuan is a little bit of affection from the employer to the employee! " "Do you know where Meadows lives?" "I don't know where he lives. I only heard that he is now a night watchman at the Nandong Pharmaceutical Factory on the other side of the river." "Nandong Pharmaceutical Factory?" Tajima repeated and looked at Yabe again.Yabe understood immediately, and he ran out immediately. Tajima's eyes returned to Muramatsu. "Do you know anyone who hates Ota?" "Well... there's a guy named Hirasawa who probably hates him." "Who? For what?" "It's a young man who works in a fish shop in front of the station. He fell in love with a woman from a tea shop, but that woman was caught by this Ota..." "Snatched?" "Forget it. He goes around that woman's apartment all day long. Not to mention, Ota really has a lot of tricks!" "how about you?" "Me?!" Muramatsu was taken aback, and couldn't help but widen his eyes, "I'm just walking with him." "Didn't Ota call you last night?" "Telephone?" "Ota's wife said that her husband called you yesterday evening." "Ah, what did you say about that..." Muramatsu seemed a little panicked, "I remembered, there is such a thing." "What did you say?" "Our colleagues will get together once at the end of the month. It's just to discuss this matter, nothing else." "yes?" Tajima already felt that there were some things in the other party's words that could not be fully believed. When Tajima visited the "Black Cat" bar that night, his hunch was confirmed. The lady proprietress in the store confirmed that the victim came last night, and she came with Shinkichi Muramatsu. "It seems that Muramatsu asked Ota to come." The proprietress recalled. "This bastard!" Tajima scolded in his heart, but Muramatsu didn't say a word about it. "Do you remember what the two of them talked about?" Tajima asked, lighting a cigarette. "It's not about money yet." The proprietress smiled. "money?" "Muramatsu borrowed 500,000 yuan from the dead Ota. Last night, it seemed that Muramatsu asked Ota to extend the repayment date for a few more days. But Ota refused." "and after?" "Then the two had a quarrel, and Muramatsu rushed out the door first." "What time?" "It was about ten o'clock when Muramatsu left, and after another twenty or thirty minutes, Ota also left." "Are you sure that Muramatsu borrowed money from the deceased?" "It can't be wrong. Muramatsu told me." "How do you say it?" "I don't even look at my peers, I charge the same interest as usury." "Same as usury..." Tajima repeated it inadvertently.This can prove that Muramatsu also has questionable motives, or it can be said that he is the most questionable object. What do you say that you are just a peer relationship!A wry smile appeared on Tajima's face.The phone call last night was not a gathering of peers at all, but a urging to pay back the money. Tajima walked out of the "Black Cat" bar and came to a nearby fish shop called "Yuchen".Two young men are busy receiving customers.Tian Dao was patient, and as soon as the guests left, he stepped forward and asked, "Which of you two is Hirasawa-kun?" "I am. What can you do?" A tall, thin-faced young man looked up and answered. The store is full of fishy smell.Tajima showed his police ID.When he mentioned Shinji Ota's name, Hirasawa said he had heard about it from the radio.Sure enough, there was a semiconductor radio in a corner of the store. "I heard that you are a bit awkward with Ota because of women?" Asked by Tajima, Hirasawa showed a bitter expression.It seems that what Muramatsu Shinkichi said is true. "That's all in the past." Hirasawa replied coldly, "I've forgotten about that woman a long time ago!" "But your face tells me you haven't forgotten." "That is……" "Okay, now let's talk about your whereabouts last night. What time is it after closing?" "nine thirty." "What about after that?" "Going to drink." "Where?" "At the nearby supper stall." "and then?" "When I got drunk, I went home. My home is at the 'Peace Village' behind the stall." "What time did you get home?" "It was around twelve o'clock. Because it started to rain, I ran back in a hurry." "Have you been drinking at the booth before twelve o'clock?" "No, I drank until about half past ten, and then walked along the river for a while." "A walk in such a cold night?" "Isn't it okay?!" Hirasawa suddenly raised his voice, blushing angrily. When Tajima returned to the search headquarters, Yabe was already waiting there. "I've seen Kusada." Yabe immediately reported, "Just like what Muramatsu said, he held a grudge against the victim, and when he heard that Ota was dead, he said 'he deserved it'." "Does he have an 'alibi'?" "Well..." Yabe showed a embarrassed expression, "He said he caught a cold last night, so he asked for leave to rest at home and didn't work the night shift. He went to bed as soon as he finished working during the day. But no one can do this for him. Testify for a while." "Is the cold real?" "It's a bit of a cough, but I can't see a fever, and the strength to lift a stone is more than enough." "That means his 'alibi' is less clear." Tajima laughed bitterly.Because the "alibis" of Muramatsu and Hirasawa he investigated are also very ambiguous.After returning from the fish shop, Tajima went to Muramatsu's transport shop again.Muramatsu lowered his head at the time and apologized for his lying, but insisted that he had not committed a crime.Other clerks in the store also testified that he was back in the store a little before it rained.While it's possible he's been to the crime scene, it's not confirmed that he's the murderer. At the search analysis meeting held that night, everyone believed that these three people were the most suspicious. "But the problem is that the 'alibis' of these three people are so inaccurate." The director said, "It's so difficult to concentrate on one person." "It's good to have witnesses." The inspector said in a low voice, "But the weather was very cloudy last night, so we can't place too much hope on the fact that there are witnesses." "But maybe someone will hear the victim's cries. Because there are houses all around those clearings." Tajima said while thinking about the terrain of the scene.But he himself did not hold out much hope for this.If there were witnesses or anyone who heard the abnormal noise, they would have reported the situation to the search headquarters. "In short, the top priority is to find witnesses first. Then re-investigate these three people." The director's final words made the action conclusion for the meeting. The next day, Tajima and Yabe detectives searched the houses around the scene door to door.As expected, almost everyone had already fallen asleep at that time and did not notice anything unusual.It is still March, if anyone stays awake after eleven o'clock and looks outside, this person is very suspicious. The two were a little desperate.They came to the sixth house.A boy who was a sophomore in this family told a strange thing.He said he had opened the window and looked out just after eleven o'clock. "I was reviewing for the exam, and when I got tired, I opened the window and looked out." "So you..." "It was pitch black outside, and I couldn't see anything. But suddenly I noticed a little bright spot like a firefly's light flickering." "The highlight of the fireflies?" Tajima and Yabe glanced at each other.There will be absolutely no fireflies in March.But the boy insisted that it could only be the light of fireflies. "It only flashed for two or three seconds, and then disappeared immediately. It was pale yellow and faintly shimmering." "Could it be the light from the matches?" Yabe whispered to Tajima. "If it's a match, it's the murderer's. Because the victim didn't smoke." Tajima continued to ask, "Could it be the light of a match?" "this……" The boy hesitated a little.That means he can't tell.Tajima decided to do an experiment to help the boy. That night, Tajima asked him to open the window, and stood on the spot to strike a match. "It's not like that!" the boy denied, "It's not so red, it's more yellow than this." "yes?" Tajima ordered Yabe to turn on the small flashlight he brought with him.After two or three flashes of the flashlight, the boy shook his head and denied it. "I said it was a yellow light like a flashlight, but I couldn't see the light, so I said it was a firefly." Tajima said cautiously: "But there are no fireflies in this winter!" As a result, the experiment ended in failure.The boy insisted that it was definitely the light of fireflies.Tajima and Yabe had no choice but to return to the search headquarters in disappointment. Apart from this boy, there were no other witnesses.Even this young man cannot be sure that he was a direct eyewitness to the incident.It can only be said that he opened the window and looked into the open space around eleven o'clock when the incident occurred, but he saw neither the murderer nor the victim. "I always feel that the boy's testimony has nothing to do with this case." Yabe said to Tajima, "First of all, the fireflies he said are impossible to appear in this season." "But he just said 'like'!" "He denied the matches and the flashlight again! It couldn't be the cat's eyes that were shining. That would have nothing to do with the case." "Are there really no fireflies now?" "Really, there won't be even one." Yabe smiled wryly after finishing speaking, "Take a step back, even if he saw a firefly, it has nothing to do with this case! If he sees a firefly Whether it is the light of a match, a flashlight or a cigarette butt, it can still be used as a reference for this case!" "That's true." Tajima said ambiguously.Yabe is right. But it would be a pity to throw away the materials provided by this boy.But Tajima thought again, really can't pin this hope entirely on the boy's testimony.So he decided to forget about it. The search was all focused on these three suspects, but went nowhere.The owner of the food stall admitted that Hirasawa had been drinking at his place until the stall closed at 10:30, but he didn't know where he was after that; he didn't have a good opinion of Muramatsu, and it was said that he couldn't repay the loan of 500,000 yen; about the pasture , since he is not that close to the people in the same apartment, no one can say whether he must have slept in the house that night.All in all, the "alibi" of these three people cannot be established. All three had sufficient motives to kill, and all had the conditions and ability to kill.But for a while, I couldn't focus on a certain person. Once again, Tajima returned to headquarters disappointed.The young detective on duty told him that he had a call just now.It was a boy named Ai Akira calling. "Ai Ming?" Tajima repeated involuntarily.He remembered, it was the boy who said he saw the firefly light. "What did he say?" "He said to call back later if you weren't around. Seems like he understood something." "Understand what?" "Yes, he said so." "What time did you call just now?" "An hour ago." Tajima checked his watch, it was seven o'clock. "Understood……?" Tajima repeated it again.Tajima still didn't understand just these things.He thought about it for a while, and decided to go there himself. The boy is not at home.His mother let Tajima into the living room and said: Today is Sunday, and her son went out to watch a movie in the afternoon, and he hasn't come back yet.In other words, he called the search headquarters from outside. "Do you know where he went to see a movie?" Tajima asked. The woman replied that it was a well-known movie theater in front of the station.After Tajima asked, he got up and went back to the search headquarters.As soon as he entered the room, he saw Yabe's pale face. He grabbed Tajima's hand and shouted loudly: "He was killed!" "He was killed? Who?" "That boy! Akira! By the river." "Ajing Ming was...?!" Tajima was stunned for a moment, he stared blankly at Yabe. The boy was stabbed to death from behind.The murder weapon may have been a sharp knife, but not much blood was shed. The scene is in a very secluded location behind a busy high street.Looking at the mother who was kneeling beside her son and crying, Tajima's face was very ugly. "Is this related to the previous case?" Yabe asked. The spectators gradually gathered around, and the lights of the journalists lit up the river. "Maybe fifty percent." Tajima replied very cautiously. "Maybe he was stabbed to death in an argument with a hooligan, or maybe the murderer of Ota Shinji found out that he knew some clues." "If it's the latter, his call could be the crux of the matter." "Yes, he said he figured it out, and maybe he discovered something again." "Could it be that the suspect is understood?" "No way. Although he saw the fireflies, he didn't see the victim or the murderer, and he didn't publish the name of the suspect in the newspaper!" "That's why he was killed by hooligans?" "No, I don't want to think that way. My intuition thinks it has something to do with the previous case!" So, Tajima returned to the search headquarters and asked again in detail about the situation of Ajing Akira's call just now. "Can you think about it again, did he really say the three words 'understand'? And he said that he would call again later?" The young criminal policeman thought about it seriously and replied: "Really, I didn't say anything else other than that." "yes?" Tajima sat on the chair in great disappointment, and immediately heard the detective say "Ah" again: "He seemed to be muttering to himself something like 'I understand after watching the movie'." "Movie?" Tajima remembered what the boy's mother had said, saying that Akira had gone to the movies that afternoon, and that he went to a famous movie theater in front of the station. "Let's go to the movies." "See a movie?" Tajima said to Yabe, who was full of suspicion, "go to the movie theater in front of the station", got up and left first. This is a small movie theater that can seat 300 people.Tajima heard that it is very popular with students because its movie tickets only charge 100 yuan. Today is Akira Kurosawa's "Heaven and Hell", and an animation will be shown.When Tajima and Yabe arrived, it was just in time for the last game to start.The two looked up at the ad, Tajima hadn't seen the movie.Not only this one, but I have patronized and solved crimes in the past two years, and have hardly watched a few movies. "What about you?" He turned to Yabe.Yabe hadn't seen it either. "Did Ajing realize something after watching this movie?" "Maybe, don't worry about it for now, go in and have a look." Tajima urged Yabe into the cinema.It might be because of Sunday, the venue was very chaotic, and they couldn't find a vacant seat for a while, so the two leaned against the back wall and watched. First up was a Disney cartoon.The image of Donald Duck that Tajima is very familiar with appears in the screen.Tajima thought, Ajing Akira probably won't get any inspiration from this. As soon as the cartoon is over, the following is "Heaven and Hell".Tajima tensed up, staring straight at the screen.He wanted to find out from the picture what the boy "understood". "Heaven and Hell" describes a kidnapping incident.The police tracked down a child abduction case, conducted in-depth investigations, and finally caught the murderer.Rather than paying attention to the plot of the story, Tajima observed every scene very carefully.He thought that the boy might have noticed something special inadvertently?Tajima didn't even let go of an inconspicuous scene, and was highly concentrated. At the end of the movie, the lights went on and the audience stood up.The two looked exhausted and leaned against the wall for a long time, not wanting to move. "Did you find anything?" Tajima first asked Yabe. "No." Yabe shook his head. "The film has nothing to do with our case. What did the boy find out from the film?" "I'm thinking about it too?" "But I can't find any clues from the movie." There really isn't a single point of reference.However, Ah Jing clearly and truly said that he only understood it after watching the movie! Tajima was still thinking about the content of the phone call.He firmly believes that Ajing Ming's death is related to the previous case.If it's the same criminal, it's a must to find out what the boys learned from the movie!What exactly did he "get"? After thinking for a long time, I have no idea.After returning to the search headquarters, Tajima was pondering this question. In the search headquarters, no one connected the two cases together. The director frowned and said to Tajima: "If Ajing Ming is really a witness to the last case, then the possibility that his death was killed by the murderer is established." "But he said that what he saw was only lights like fireflies, and these alone are not enough for the murderer to hit the nail on the head." "However, Ai Ming was killed after calling!" "Didn't you watch that movie? Didn't you find nothing?" "It is true, but I always feel that there is some connection between the two cases." Tajima insisted on his opinion, and he decided to go to the movie theater again. The autopsy proved that the time of Ajing Akira's death was between 7:00 pm and 8:00 pm, that is to say, he was killed within one to two hours after he called the search headquarters.This result made Tajima's heart even heavier.If he hadn't gone out and met the kid right away, maybe he wouldn't have died.Thinking of this, Tajima is even more convinced that there is a connection between the two cases, but he suffers from lack of evidence. Tajima is determined to find evidence.In order to find evidence, it is necessary to find out the content of the sentence "I understand" on the phone.If it can be proved that the boy was an eyewitness to the previous case, then once the two cases are connected, the murderer will be found out very quickly. The question is what is that firefly-like light that the boy sees? What did the boys find out after watching the movie?In order to solve these two mysteries, it seems that I have to go to the cinema to find the answer. "You don't want to go again?" Tajima asked Yabe in an unconfident tone, "Anyway, I want to go again, maybe I can't find anything, but I still want to go once." "Watching two shows in a row, this is something I have never done since I was a criminal policeman. This life is pretty good! But watching the same movie twice is a bit disappointing!" Although Yabe was joking, as soon as he walked to the entrance of the cinema, his expression immediately became serious.Tajima also had a gloomy face, and they entered the movie theater in front of the station together. Contrary to yesterday, the audience was very small.The two found a middle seat and sat down.The movie starts right away.Since I saw the movie last night, I was very impressed.Tajima and Yabe carefully observed every shot as if they were looking at stuffed animals.They refused to let go of even a small movement.Tajima thought: Since Ah Bingming can find problems in the film, then he will never be unable to find anything.Although he thought so, until the end of the movie, the two still got nothing.After the lights were turned on, the two looked at each other silently.After a while, Yabe asked blankly: "Let's go?" Tajima nodded, just about to get up, sat down again and said, "I want to read it again. If I can't find anything this time, I will give up!" "Then I will accompany you too!" Yabe also sat back in his seat. After a five-minute break, the next game started again.As soon as the animation finished, the opening title of "Heaven and Hell" appeared on the screen. At this time, Yabe suddenly grabbed Tajima's wrist tightly and said, "I understand!" "Understood? The movie has just started!" "The problem is not in the film, just watch it!" After Yabe finished speaking, he pointed at the "No Smoking" indicator light in the venue by the light of the screen. "Look at the clock next to the 'No Smoking' sign!" "what!?" Tajima cried out in a low voice. The clocks in the arena were luminous watches with luminous linings.Its hands were flashing a pale yellow light.Each number is like a little firefly. "Yes!" Tajima whispered and left the seat. "Ai Akira is the witness of the first case." Tajima said firmly as soon as he returned to the search headquarters, "The firefly light he said is the light on the luminous watch." "The victim was not wearing a luminous watch!" "Yes! So it must be the murderer's watch. Usually it is invisible in the cuff. But when the murderer raises his hand and starts to attack, the watch will be exposed. Ajing Ming said he saw it flash for two or three seconds and then disappear immediately This shows that after the murderer put down his hand, the watch got into his sleeve and he couldn’t see it.” "Does that mean that the one with the luminous watch among the three is the murderer?" "Yes. And I have a rough guess as to who the murderer is." "Who?" "For ordinary people, a luminous watch is not very useful. For example, Hirasawa, who works in a fish shop, doesn't need it. In addition, the owner of the transport shop, Shinkichi Muramatsu, doesn't need it. I don't think I bought a luminous watch just to find a woman. watch?" "Then the job of the third suspect Kusaba is on the night shift." Yabe also understood, "You need a luminous watch when you are on the night shift." "Completely correct." While pacing, Tajima gave Yabe a satisfied smile. "I think criminals are pastures!" Cao Chang was arrested that afternoon.Although he was not wearing a luminous watch when he was arrested, his friend testified that he had been wearing a luminous watch until the day of the crime. After salvage, the luminous watch with his initials engraved on the pasture was fished out from the bottom of the river.He admitted on the spot that he killed Ota Shinji and the boy Ajing Ming.