Chapter 20 first quarter

The truck loaded with the "Hino Bottom" going to the Fukushima Racecourse departed from Tokyo's Tabata Station at 20:50 on June 15; it arrived at Fukushima at 23:50 the next day. Island station.This incident caught the attention of Takehachi Sukui. Ask the stable attendants at the racetrack, and they all say that cattle, horses, pigs and so on are loaded in livestock transport vehicles.Drinking water and feeding feed while parking is time-consuming.Especially when transporting racehorses, special personnel must be followed, and the railway authorities also give special attention.

Even so, it is too slow, although it cannot be compared with the express train, but the express train from Tokyo to Fukushima only takes five hours, while the truck transporting livestock takes thirty hours. Takehachi Sochii asked the people at the Fuchu Racecourse about this matter, and they all thought it took too much time. "No matter how slow it is, it won't take so much time. Did something happen on the way?" ACCIDENT? By the way, the stable attendant Mikichi once said that "Hinodia" fell ill on the way.Other stable attendants at the Fukushima Racecourse also inquired about the matter.

The owner of "Shinodi" is former member of parliament Topei Tateyama, and he entrusted the horse trainer Nishida Sonkichi to train it.It is a pure British breed with a four-year-old mouth.He won two wins in the Zhongshan Horse Race and the Chukyo Horse Race last time, and he is also one of the few horses in the West Field Stables. Takehachi Suzui thought it necessary to get to know the crew of the livestock transport vehicle. He heard from Sergeant Usuda of the Koriyama Police Station that the truck carrying the box was No. 191, which left Omiya at 4:30 on June 16. Takehachi Sochii came to the second floor of the truck management office, and he found a middle-aged employee to explain his purpose.The middle-aged staff checked the attendance sheet.

"I found it. The conductor in charge of that train was Shuzo Yokokawa." "Did he come to work today?" "He is off work today, so he may be at home." Following the route introduced by the station, Takehachi found the "Aoba-so" apartment where Yokokawa Shusan lived. "Excuse me, does Mr. Yokokawa live here?" The host, Yokokawa, is a man of modest height in his twenties. Takehachi Sukui handed over his business card: "I came to disturb you today because of personal matters. I have something to do with horse racing. May I ask if you were the passenger of the truck that departed from Tabata Station at 20:50 on June 15?"

"This... Please wait a moment." Yokokawa Shuzo tilted his head and thought for a while, "Yes. I forgot the number of the train. It is indeed at 20:50 on the 15th. I am the flight attendant of that train." "Do you remember the horses that were sent to Fukushima for the races?" "Thinking about it, there is such a thing." "Is the stable attendant following the horses a man named Suekichi from the Fuchu stable?" "Here, I can't remember the name... Is it a short, thick, and strong-looking person who is about thirty-seven or eight years old?"

"Yes. He is Sueyoshi, the stable attendant." "The more you think about it, the more you think about it. A stable boy who loves horses. But what's the matter with him?" "It's not a big deal. I want to know if the train was late when it arrived in Fukushima?" "Yes. That's it." Yokokawa immediately said affirmatively: "According to the normal situation, it should arrive at Fukushima at 14 o'clock on the 16th. But it didn't arrive until 23:50, which was too late." "What? Was there an accident?" "If it is an accident, it can also be regarded as an accident. In fact, it is like this."

At this time, Mrs. Yokokawa brought the juice, and Yokokawa finished drinking and said: "The stable attendant you mentioned just now is called Sueyoshi! When the train left Utsunomiya Station, he came to me in the last car and said that the horse's condition was not good and he wanted to call a veterinarian. So then Maybe I have to stay at a station for a long time, but I didn't agree. This made him upset, and he was very angry. He said that this is not an ordinary domestic animal, but a star among horses, a famous horse worth 100 million yuan I couldn't hold him back, so I gave in and agreed to stay for 30 to 40 minutes for him to ask the veterinarian to treat the horse."

"Well, that's right!" "But which station should we stop at? Because we have already passed Utsunomiya, the rest are small stations, and it is impossible to find a veterinarian. In the end, we decided to stop at Yaita Station and find a local veterinarian. Sueyoshi knew that there was a horse market there, so Presumably there must be a veterinarian. I didn't know the situation, so I had to agree to stop there, but the maximum limit should not exceed 40 minutes. But the train departed from Utsunomiya at 3:05 in the morning and arrived at Yaita at 5:10 Points. Even if there is a veterinarian in Yaita, it is a question of whether he can come to see the doctor early in the morning. But Sueji said, as long as there is a veterinarian, I will definitely be able to call him to see the doctor. The veterinarian must understand the value of a famous horse. Ask What's wrong with his horse? He said it seems to be gastroenteritis. If it is not treated in time, it will not be able to participate in the horse race held in Fukushima. If it is not done well, it will have to be killed with drugs. And this is all stable work He cannot shirk his responsibility. He was so anxious that his face changed color and his nerves were tense. I really can't refuse him."

"So the veterinarian was called?" "Come here. As soon as the car reached Yaita, Sueyoshi jumped out of the car and invited an old veterinarian who was about sixty years old and had a white beard. By the way, he was a thin old man. Sueyoshi took the flashlight, Took the vet into the livestock van... I agreed to stop for forty minutes, but it took thirty minutes for the vet. Another hour for the treatment, and I couldn't start the car halfway, it took an hour and a half .” "If it's 30 to 40 minutes late, there's no need to complain to the Fukushima Locomotive Depot, but for such a long delay, you have to explain the reasons in detail. Because there will be conflicts with other trains. As a result, the one-and-a-half-hour The delay caused a lot of fluctuations. In order to make way for other trains, the departure from Yaita Station was only at 3:10 pm that day."

"That means it broke down at Yaita Station for ten hours." "Yes. For this reason, I have suffered the supercilious look of the director of the locomotive depot!" "That's a pity." "But when I saw the stable attendant working desperately for the horses, I was touched! It can be said that he even surpassed his feelings for people. He stayed up all night to take care of the horses. If I got sick, my wife could be like Does he take care of me like half of the horses? I'm envious of horses." Speaking of this, the flight attendant of Yokogawa laughed.

"Is the horse cured?" "Fortunately, there was no major problem. When the veterinarian came back, he said angrily, is such a small matter worth bringing me?" "What was the veterinarian's name?" "I didn't ask, I don't know. But Yaita is a small place, and there aren't many veterinarians, so you can find out as soon as you ask." "Excuse me today. Thank you." Takehachi bowed his head in greeting, and got up to say goodbye.