Chapter 4 Chapter Four Blackmail

This apartment is located 200 meters away from Koenji Station. No. 507 on the fifth floor of this apartment building is the room of Yuko Hino. This is a two-bedroom house. Although the interior is not luxurious, it is very tidy.This reflects the serious character of the victim. The deceased lay on his back in a Japanese-style room the size of six straw mats. Obviously died of poisoning, the poison is probably potassium cyanide.Close to her head, you can also smell the unique sweetness of potassium cyanide. Forensics were busy taking pictures, examining wine glasses and brandy bottles that had been emptied on the table.

"Who found it?" Totsukawa asked the young police officer on the phone. "He'll be right here." After speaking, the police officer went to the corridor outside the door and called a man in his forties. His name is Mimura Taisuke, and he claims to be the husband who divorced the deceased two years ago. "She said she had something to discuss with me and asked me to come here today. I came to take a look and found out that she was dead." Mimura said. "Do you know what she wants to discuss with you?" "I don't know that. What's there to talk about? We can talk if we're alive."

Mimura said to Totsukawa with a look of no interest. "Do you think she's going to kill herself?" Totsukawa asked Sancun. "I don't know that, but she's a pretty strong woman. Suicide, I don't think so. But I really don't know." "Did you know that she investigated a woman named Sanae Hojo?" "No, it's been two years since we broke up, and I don't know anything about what she did." "Then why did she bring you here to discuss things?" Totsukawa asked. "I don't know. Maybe I can't find a more suitable person for a while?"

"Have you seen each other often since the breakup?" "No, just an occasional phone call." "Didn't she mention that she was investigating the marriage of a woman named Hojo Sanae when she called?" "As I said just now, I never ask about her work." Mimura replied as if nothing had happened. "The last time you talked on the phone, she only said that she wanted to discuss something with you?" Totsukawa asked again. "Yes, it is." "When was that call made?" "Last night." "Didn't she say what she wanted to discuss?"

"No! Didn't I say it several times? I should go, I still have a job." "Excuse me, what do you do now?" Totsukawa asked. Mimura took out a business card from his pocket and handed it to Totsukawa. Judging from the business card, Sancun runs a "corporate management consulting" agency. "So that's what I'm doing. It's a very difficult job!" "I want to go back." "Ah, please... please!" Totsukawa nodded, and Mimura walked towards the elevator.Totsukawa immediately called out to Detective Nishimoto in a low voice:

"Follow him!" "Do you think there is anything suspicious about that man?" Kamei asked. "I don't think he's the murderer. But have you noticed that he doesn't care about the death of the person who asked him to discuss the matter, and he doesn't know what the other party wants to discuss with him. According to common sense, at least it is not too much to ask! "Ten Tsukawa said. "Why does this person have such an attitude?" "It was precisely because of this that I asked Nishimoto-kun to follow him." After Totsukawa finished speaking, he and Kamei returned to the house to investigate again.

It can be said that nothing of value was found, but a bank deposit book was found in a three-way mirror drawer. When I opened it, I saw that the account had recently deposited an amount of 5 million yen. This was deposited four days ago. Totsukawa immediately used the phone in the room to inquire about the bank. "The 5 million yen was deposited in cash by Mr. Hino." The president of the bank replied. "She didn't say where she got the income from?" "She didn't say that. She was very happy that day and only said that she wanted to use the money to buy a car."

said the other party. After Totsukawa made the phone call, he and Kamei went to the detective agency where Yuko Hino worked. When the president heard the death of Hino Yuko, his eyes widened in surprise. "Such a woman would commit suicide? It's unbelievable!" The president is an elderly man. "No, it can't be called suicide, it may be homicide." "That must be him! She is not the kind of person who commits suicide!" The president firmly insisted on this point. "It was her divorced husband. Do you know him?" Hearing Kamei's question, the president frowned.

"It's Sancun, I know this person too well!" "why?" "Sancun also worked here in the past." "Oh?!" Totsukawa's eyes widened in surprise. "Is it also for investigation?" "Yes, he mainly conducts credit investigations of small and medium-sized enterprises, so he and Hino-kun got married after they met at work." "How is this person?" Kamei asked. "He's capable, but a little cunning, so I fired him." "What did he do?" "All in all, it's blackmail. Once he discovers the problem of the person under investigation, he will use this as evidence to blackmail the other party. Of course, he will not report it to the client."

"So, it's because of this Yuko Hino that you broke up with him?" "I think that's the reason, but I don't know." "Are you getting paid for your investigative work?" Totsukawa changed the subject. "Yeah, there is." "Are there often investigations that pay 5 million yen?" "No, such a fat job has never happened before." "How's Hino Yuko's investigation going?" "She specializes in marital status checks, so the pay for success is next to nothing." said the president. So, the 5 million yen money seems to come from unknown sources.

"Could you please introduce your organizational structure here?" Totsukawa asked. "What does this have to do with organizational structure?" "That is to say, when the entrusting party comes and asks to investigate something, how do you select investigators? Do you take turns?" "No, it's appointed by the person in charge. If it's a marriage investigation, Hino-kun will conduct it." "Did Hino-san say nothing about Hojo Sanae's marriage survey this time?" "Say... say what?" "For example, this investigation is difficult, and the client has this and that." "No, I never said it. If it is a general investigation, the result will be directly told to the client." "Then is there any written report here?" "Yes. The investigation report is usually in duplicate, one is given to the customer, and the other is kept by us for reference in case something goes wrong." The president replied. "And what about the report written by Ms. Hino this time?" "No, really. Because in the middle of the investigation, the client requested a suspension. It seems that the client's younger brother died." "Did the client himself come to the agency and say it?" "Yes, his name is Hoshino. At first he asked to investigate the situation of his younger brother's marriage partner, but because his younger brother died, he requested to suspend the investigation. That's all I know." said the president. "We want to know more about the situation of the man named Sancun, can we?" Kamei asked. "He... There is nothing to say." "He told us that now he's running some kind of 'corporate consulting' business. He's doing a good job, isn't he?" "It won't do well. First of all, he doesn't understand this business at all. All he is good at is deception." The president insisted. "Does it smell a little?" On the way back, Totsukawa asked Kamei. "About blackmail?" Kamei asked. "Did Mimura and Hino Yuko really stop having any contact after the divorce?" "Do you suspect that they continue to have contacts?" "I don't know. Anyway, Yuko Hino, who was in charge of the marriage investigation with little pay, suddenly received a huge sum of money. He must be called here because of this matter to discuss with Mimura." "This Mimura appears indifferent to the death of his ex-wife and is always eager to get rid of us." Kamei said. "So I asked Nishimoto-kun to follow him. I think Mimura must have known something from Yuko Hino. Maybe he wanted to tell the police about it at first." "What is he going to say?" "Could it be about the huge sum of money? Why did he leave in such a panic?" "Could it be related to the marriage investigation?" Kamei looked at Totsukawa and said. "I can only think so. Hino Yuko's huge sum of money must be related to this incident! Maybe there is a blackmail transaction, or it is a reward for keeping a secret." "Could it be Isao Hoshino who gave the money?" Kamei stared at Totsukawa and asked. "Judging from the clues we have so far, he is the only one." After Totsukawa finished speaking, he continued: "Anyway, Hino Yuko's death is the most likely homicide. If the search headquarters is established, we must do our best to investigate." "It's really 'the willows are dark and the flowers brighten another village'!" Totsukawa said happily. Search headquarters were set up. The Nishimoto detective called: "I'm currently in Nerima's Shijinji Temple, near Mimura's apartment." "Is Mimura at home now?" Kamei asked. "Yes, the home he went straight from Hino Yuko's, and it's still in the house." "Continue to monitor, I will send someone again." Kamei said. He immediately ordered the Hiroshi detective to go to Nishimoto's place. Then Kamei said to Totsukawa: "What do you think he'll do when he gets home?" "I don't know, maybe he still got the money with Yuko Hino." "If this is the case, Sancun is very likely to be an important person who blackmailed him!" Kamei's eyes sparkled with excitement. "The question is who is that guy behind it?" Totsukawa said. "It seems more and more hopeful. I think the person who conspired with Mimura must be the one who set a trap for Hojo!" Kamei raised his voice and said. But this important figure, Sancun, has remained silent. Kusaka Detectives arrived at Shishenji Temple, and together with Nishimoto, they monitored Mimura. Kusaka called back and said: "There was no movement in the house at all. The light in his room was still on just now, so there must be someone in the room!" "what to do?" Kamei asked Totsukawa anxiously. There is only tomorrow, the last day of the deadline. After tomorrow, the Hojo criminal police will be sent to the District Prosecutor's Office on suspicion of homicide. "I had to make a phone call." Totsukawa said. They want to monitor Mimura's phone, but in Japan, even criminals are not allowed to monitor. Only people have been sent to monitor. "What's the matter with Hoshino?" Kamei asked. "I don't know, anyway, these two people must be closely monitored. If they have a connection, then there must be blackmail!" So Totsukawa and Shimizu also joined in the surveillance of Mimura and Hoshino. At this time, Hoshino was in the club "Star Building No. 1" located in the Kabuki Street in Shinjuku. "There is a president's office over there, and he is staying there now." Shimizu reported the monitoring situation by phone. Totsukawa checked his watch. It's 8pm.At this time, Shinjuku Kabuki Street is bustling. "Do you know what he's doing there?" Totsukawa asked. "I don't know, because the president's room is a single room." "How many halls does this club have?" "I heard from the administrator that there are 5 halls in total. No matter which hall, a president's office has been set up according to Hoshino's request." "Is there one in Hall 5?" "Because it's a fancy club, I suppose there are?" Judging from Qing Shui's tone, he was very envious, which was not unreasonable. I'm afraid that criminal policemen like them would not be able to set foot in these high-end restaurants and clubs except for their official duties. An hour later, Shimizu reported: "Hoshino is out." Hoshino usually rides in a white Royce sedan, and it is the same tonight. "I'm going to follow him." After Shimizu finished speaking, he hung up the phone. They didn't know what Hoshino was going to do, they only knew that he went to "Star Hall No. 2" first. What he meant seemed to be to complete the transfer of these five star halls. On the other side, Mimura who was under surveillance still stayed in his apartment and never went out. Nishimoto went into the apartment and went to the house next door to Sancun, but from there he could only hear the sound of the TV in Sancun's house. "Could he turn on the TV and someone go out through the back door?" Kamei asked worriedly on the phone. "No, there is no back door to that room." Sibbon replied. 10 o'clock at night. Hoshino arrived at "Star Pavilion 4". Mimura remained silent. It was almost 11 o'clock, and Sancun finally moved. "Mimura came out of the apartment!" Nishimoto reported nervously, but immediately said in a panic: "He got on a motorcycle, and we followed him in the car!" Since Mimura rode a motorcycle through the alley, Nishimoto and his car could not follow them. The reason Nishimoto was so nervous was probably because he was afraid of losing track. Totsukawa wanted to get on a motorcycle and go to Nishimoto's place immediately, but he didn't know if he could make it. At this time, it was reported that Hoshino entered the "Star No. 5 Hall" in Nakano. It just so happened that Kusaka also sent information through the radio: "Mimura is in the Gaien of the Meiji Jingu Shrine. He's wandering around the middle of the Gaien." "Is it pretending to be a practice car?" Kamei asked. There are street lights everywhere on the street, but the central part of Gaien is dim because of few lights. Mimura leaned his body and rode the bicycle as if he was juggling his skills. "It's just a middle-aged speed gang!" Kusaka scolded while following him. Sancun has already circled around several times. But they felt that he was not the kind of person who was good at riding a bicycle, as if he had just learned to ride a bicycle. not for a while.Mimura stopped the car suddenly and got off slowly. "Where is he going?" Kusaka asked Nishimoto. "Looks like I'm going to the bathroom." Xi Ben said nonchalantly. Sure enough, after getting off the motorcycle, Mimura walked into a nearby public toilet. "Are you going to escape from there?" Rixia is still worried, because there are often people under surveillance who use toilets and other public buildings to get rid of the golden cicada's shell. "The windows of the toilets have iron nets!" While Nishimoto was talking, Mimura came out of the toilet.He got on the motorcycle again. He was still riding back and forth in the middle of Gaien, one lap, two laps... "When is he going to ride?" Nishimoto said impatiently. It was more than 12 o'clock at night. "It's so strange!" Kusaka suddenly said in a panic. "What's wrong?" "Your riding posture is wrong! Just now, Sancun was able to ride just fine, why is this person so stupid now!" Just when Rixia said this in surprise, the cyclist, as if to confirm what Rixia said, made a quick turn with the car and crashed into a nearby tree. The cyclist was thrown into the air at once, and then fell heavily on the concrete floor. Nishimoto also immediately stopped the car. Before the car stopped, Xiben and the others jumped out of the car like flying, and rushed towards the motionless man lying on the ground. "Call an ambulance!" Xiben said and hugged the man. Kusaka quickly ran back into the car, reported the situation on the walkie-talkie, and asked for an ambulance to be sent immediately, and then immediately ran back to Nishimoto. Nishimoto removed the man's helmet. "Oh! It's not Mimura!!" he exclaimed in surprise. "Quick, report immediately!" Kusaka returned to the car and reported the situation to Totsukawa. "I'm really sorry, Sancun used the toilet as a cover and replaced it with a substitute!" "Are you kidding me?" Totsukawa asked. "No, really!" "When is it?" "Just 40 minutes ago!" "But Hoshino has been eating and drinking with friends in Roppongi." Totsukawa said. The ambulance is here. Nishimoto helped lift the immobile man into the ambulance. The car quickly drove to the nearest university-affiliated hospital, and Kusaka followed. The man was immediately taken to the operating room.Nishimoto and Kusaka waited for the results in the reception room. The operation took over an hour.When the operating doctor came out of the operating room, he shook his head at Nishimoto and Kusaka. So they decided to examine the man's belongings. Among them is a driver's license. The person's name is Kuroki Hiroyuki, 35 years old, and his address is an apartment in Mitaka City. Nishimoto and Kusaka quickly returned to headquarters; they reported the situation to Totsukawa. It was already 2 o'clock in the morning. "How is Hoshino?" Nishimoto asked wearily. "After he had dinner with his friend in Roppongi, he called a taxi and went home. That friend went with him, as if he lived there with him. Shimizu-kun and the others are watching, but they haven't seen anyone come out." "In other words, Mimura and Hoshino have never met?" "Probably so. Mimura has been being followed!" "In other words, there is no relationship between Mimura and Hoshino?" When Kusaka asked such a question, Kamei immediately retorted: "That's not necessarily the case! If Hoshino, who was blackmailed tonight, just wants to hand over the money to Sancun, then there is no need to meet him. Hoshino can transfer the money to Sancun by remittance or other methods, that is, entrust an intermediary to do it." !" "Then, letting Mimura lie to us is the biggest mistake! I'm really sorry!" Nishimoto bowed his head to Totsukawa in shame. "Forget it!" Totsukawa smiled. "Isn't the man who served as Sancun's stand-in dead? Let's start from here, maybe we can catch Sancun's clues!" "I'll go to the man's apartment in Mitaka right away and find out the relationship between the deceased and Mimura." After Nishimoto finished speaking, he went out with Higaka. Nishimoto and Kusaka stopped at Mitaka Station, walked for fifteen or six minutes, and came to an old building. This is a 5 storey apartment with no lift. There was no name plate on the door of Room 502, but Nishimoto knocked on the door to be cautious.There was a sound in the house, and the doors and windows were suddenly pulled open. A woman in her mid-thirties showed her head. She was probably sleeping, she was wearing a casual dress, and her face was unhappy. "What are you doing? It's so late." The woman glared at Nishimoto. "Are you Mr. Kuroki's wife?" As Nishimoto asked, he showed her his inspection documents. "Where is he?" the woman asked.Judging from the tone of voice, she must have a certain relationship with Kuroki. "died." After hearing what Rixia said, the woman did not show any surprise. "Really? Dead?" "We want to inquire about Mr. Kuroki." "This man has nothing to say." said the woman. "Is there nothing?" "He's a rogue. Maybe he got into a fight with someone and got killed?" "Hitted into a tree on a motorcycle and died." "Really? Stupid!" The woman said without looking sad at all. "Have you been with Kuroki for a long time?" asked Nishimoto. "We're not a real couple." After she finished speaking, she suddenly remembered something and asked back: "He himself died unexpectedly, why should the police come to investigate?" "He died for someone else! He died for a man named Sancun, do you know him?" "Mimura? I don't know." "What does Mr. Kuroki do?" Hikaka asked. "I used to be a private detective, but I seem to have quit recently. Anyway, I didn't ask about it." "What... private detective?" Nishimoto was surprised. Maybe it has something to do with Mimura! Kusaka immediately took out the photo of the woman pretending to be Hojo Sanae from her pocket and asked: "Have you seen this man?" "..." The woman looked at the picture silently, but shook her head. "Haven't you seen this man?" Nishimoto asked again. "What does she do?" "She is suspected of being used to kill people. We are looking for her. If you have any clues, please contact us immediately." Sunset said to her. "Well, if I know something, I must contact you immediately." The woman said not enthusiastically. After Nishimoto finally asked the woman's name, he and Kusaka left the apartment. It was almost 3:00 in the morning. Back in the car, Nishimoto said to Kusaka: "Why are you asking her about Sanae Hojo? Do you think she knows?" "Someone must have seen a woman similar to Hojo-kun, so I want to ask whoever I am." Kusaka said. "So, you must think it's appropriate to ask such a woman?" "Yes. Didn't you see, this woman has a whore smell, so I think she will know this type of woman. If the murderer who killed Michihiro Yamano used this type of woman, it is very likely to make a breakthrough here come out." Kusaka said confidently. The two of them returned to the search headquarters and reported to Totsukawa that they had seen the woman named "Eiko Mita". "From what she said, we know that Kuroki, like Mimura, also worked as a private detective." "Is it a colleague?" "Yes. Maybe Mimura used this relationship to make Kuroki his substitute." After finishing speaking, Nishimoto asked again: "What about Sancun?" "He hasn't come home yet. Maybe he already knows he's being watched by the police. It's almost 4 o'clock!" Totsukawa had a troubled look on his face.