Chapter 16 third quarter

When was Yamazaki killed? Takehachi Sokui performed the calculations in the order of events. First, the box containing the corpse was transported to Tabata Station—that is, at 20:30 on the 15th as the starting point. Although it is not known where the box came from, the body must have been put in it before then, so it can be inferred that the murder took place before twenty thirty.The question is how much time before that. Counting the murder, it cannot be completed within half an hour or an hour, at least it will take more than two hours.That is to say, three hours before the box was transported to Tabata Station, that is, around 5:30 in the afternoon, it was time to kill.

Secondly, according to the diagnosis of the autopsy doctor, he was killed fifty hours before the autopsy.If correct, it will be around 6 pm on the 15th, which coincides with the estimated time above. But a six or seven hour error is possible in diagnosing a body that has been dead for fifty hours.Then Takeuhachi Suzui's inference coincides with the time of the anatomical identification. Secondly, it involves the question of where Yamazaki was killed. Judging from the almost digested curry rice taken from the stomach of the deceased, it also roughly coincides with the time of death.Around 5:30 in the afternoon, lunch has been digested, which is a general rule.At that time, Yamazaki hadn't eaten dinner yet.Maybe Yamazaki was hungry when he was killed.

Although he was hungry, he didn't eat his supper.It is conceivable that he is in a state of imprisonment.In other words, Yamazaki was imprisoned somewhere, and he was not given food. The police had investigated the case of the box entering the station. The results of the investigation revealed that there was a person who delivered the box to the window of the Freight Division of Tabata Station. However, the box weighs 72 kilograms, and it cannot be moved by one person. At least two or more cooperators are required. The police also believed that this was the main point of the investigation:

(1) Are the boxes transported to Tabata Station by taxi or other transport vehicles? (ii) Or were the boxes transported to the station by trolley? (3) Did the box pass elsewhere before then?For example, has it been stored in temporary cargo storage? (4) After arriving at the station, do you ask the porter for the help of the box and send it to the cargo department? The police investigation result (1) was to investigate taxi drivers in the city, but failed to list the suspects.In the case of (2), the focus was on witnesses near the station, but no strong testimony was obtained.Regarding (3), the temporary cargo storage place was investigated, and there was no one to store boxes or similar goods that day.In the case of (4), the porters were investigated, but no one admitted to helping to transport that kind of box.

In short, although I don't know how the box was transported to Tabata Station, it is certain that it cannot be carried by one person. It is reasonable to assume that the crime scene may not be far from the station, so that a van or taxi would not have to be used.However, there was no place where one could conceivably commit a crime near Tabata Station. The Police Department sent plainclothes police officers to spy on the area around Tabata Station, but to no avail.What the police still don't know is why Yamazaki Jiro was killed?Judging from common sense, the first thing to consider is a relationship of revenge, a relationship of jealousy... None of these investigations have made any progress.

It was Takehachi who knew the details best, but he kept silent.It's not that he doesn't want to assist the police, but that he wants to track it down by himself.The investigation of the Yamazaki Jiro incident will implicate Okase Masahira's murder.The two killings were inseparable, but the police didn't notice that. The only physical evidence was a shipping label tethered to the box.The delivery address is written on it: "Saburo Yoshida, Koriyama Station, Tohoku Main Line." "Shipper: Me". It is written with a brush.The police agreed that in order to cover up the real handwriting, the writer switched to writing with his left hand.The handwriting is very bad.The box is old and nothing special can be found.

The murder of Yamazaki Jiro became the key news of the newspaper.Of course, other newspapers also reported.But the editors of this agency put more effort into it.The newspaper has thus become a best-selling evening paper. Reports in this regard were written by Takehachi Sukui.Because he observed the scene in person and worked under the leadership of Yamazaki, the editors believed that he knew the situation best, so it was most appropriate for him to write. Takehachi Sochii went all out, occupying the entire page for two consecutive days.But he deliberately omitted some key points, because he wanted to do it by himself as before.

The mystery is still Yamazaki's actions after he ran away from home at 9:20 am on the 15th.The police were also at a loss. The newspaper also offered a reward. If anyone knows and can report to the newspaper about the activities between Yamazaki's escape and the discovery of his body, he will be rewarded.At the same time, it is stated that if someone knows who the prisoner is and reports it to the agency, the agency will keep it absolutely secret and the reward will be doubled. This is a reward offered by the newspaper. The higher the reward, the greater the influence and the better the newspaper will be sold.

On the third day, the newspaper office received a postcard, which said, "Seeing that your newspaper published a photo of the editor-in-chief Yamazaki, it reminded me that a customer who looked exactly like him once had dinner in our store. The time was 8 o'clock in the afternoon on the 15th." .He ate curry rice, I was in charge of that table, so remember. Hereby let me know." The sender's address: "Tabata Station Mae Kotei Cafeteria, Miyako Ayako." The postcard caused waves in the editorial office. The place was the cafeteria in front of Tabata Station, and the box containing Yamazaki's body was sent from Tabata Station.From the point of view of place, there is a close relationship.

Because it was reported in the newspaper that Yamazaki had eaten curry rice before his death, there were many letters saying that he had eaten curry rice here and there.But the venues were all far away, and some were clearly hoaxes. But this postcard is different; because she clearly stated that the address of the letter is Tabata Station, and she works at the cafeteria, so she has a lot of credibility. After the death of Yamazaki Jiro, the successor of the editor-in-chief was Hideo Ito, who had been working in the editorial department.Hideo Ito immediately asked Takehachi to go to the cafeteria in front of Tabata Station to have a look.

The "Xingting" mentioned in the letter is a large cafeteria with good equipment. Takehachi Sukui handed over his business card to the manager.Asked to meet Ayako Miyamae. A waiter with a white kerchief on his head came to Takehachi Soi with a blushing face.Ayako Miyako is about 17 or 18 years old and is in good health. "Excuse me, is this what you wrote to us?" Takehachi Sukui said, taking out a postcard. "Yes." She glanced at the postcard she wrote herself, lowering her eyelids shyly. "Thank you very much." Takehachi Sukui expressed his gratitude. The manager kindly asked them to go to the staff lounge to talk.While they were talking, the sound of dishes being knocked together and the names of dishes being shouted could be heard from the operating room from time to time. "Please tell me what happened in detail." "Okay! That person came to the No. 16 dining table I was in charge of at around eight o'clock in the afternoon on the 15th and sat down. His appearance was exactly the same as the photo in the newspaper. Because my 14th was a rotation day, so on the 15th I remember that day very clearly. That day what he asked for was curry rice, and he didn’t even smoke a cigarette after the meal, so he stood up and left immediately.” "Did he come by himself?" asked Takehachi Sotsui. "Yes. He is alone." Gongqian Ayazi was no longer restrained, her voice was not loud, but it was very clear. "Does he look like he is waiting for someone?" "I can't see it. He ate with a dull head, and left immediately after eating." "What clothes is he wearing?" "I remember it seems to be a suit, because the store is very busy, so I can't remember more details." "Did he take a small traveling bag?" "I didn't pay attention to this... But, there seemed to be something like a small package next to his feet. The store was very crowded at that time, and there were no free chairs. The things the customers brought were placed next to the chairs or feet, so There is such an impression. But it is not certain." "Do you remember it must have been eight o'clock?" "It's roughly between eight o'clock and eight thirty." "Is there anything unusual about that guest?" "Because I was very busy, I didn't pay attention to these things. It seems that there is nothing special to attract attention. I still remember him saying that there is not enough time, hurry up and get the meal he ordered!" "Did he say there wasn't enough time?" "General customers think it's slow and urge us to serve the food quickly." "How long has he been in your shop?" "It took him ten minutes to eat, and the waiting time is about thirty minutes!" Suji Takehachi thought that he might come to ask some questions in the future, so he had to ask her to take care of him: "If that person is indeed the editor-in-chief Yamazaki, according to regulations, the newspaper will reward you in the future!" Ayako Gongqian blushed with joy when she heard this. Is this person Yamazaki?If it is Yamazaki, there is a little connection in terms of time. The box containing Yamazaki's body was delivered to the Freight Division of Tabata Station at 8:30 that night. If it was Yamazaki who ate at Kotei’s cafeteria, he would eat curry rice there between 8:00 and 8:30, and at 8:30, the box containing Yamazaki’s body had been transported to the Freight Division of Tabata Station.The testimony of Ayako Miyako is untenable. The police presumed that Shan Ji's death time was around 6:00 p.m. that day, so it was impossible for him to go to the cafeteria to eat at 8:00 p.m. Takehachi Sochii hung up the search headquarters and reported his conversation with Amako Miyamae. "That may be the wrong person." The director denied it all at once: "Is there such a bastard thing? Do you think that the curry rice eaten at eight o'clock can be completely digested in the stomach during the autopsy? At least five or six hours after the meal. If the meal was finished at 8:30, then the time of killing should be inferred to be around 11:00 or 12:00 that night, which is far-fetched. Because his own body It was crated and brought to the station at eight-thirty!" Maybe Ayako Miyako misread the wrong person.The cafeteria is a place where anyone can go, and it is not surprising that there is a man like Yamazaki. But Takehachi Suzui couldn't completely deny it all at once like the director. The Cargo Section said that the person who went to consign the goods looked exactly like Yamazaki.The police laughed it off.But Takehachi Sukui was not like that. Takehachi Sochii thought: What if that is really Jiro Yamazaki!He arrived at Xingting cafeteria at 8:00 p.m., took 30 minutes to eat curry rice, and then sent the box to the freight department, which was completely reasonable in terms of time.