Chapter 23 Section 23

After three o'clock in the afternoon, Nishiguchi brought Isobe and two of his men to "Green Rock Village".Because the other party had been notified in advance, as soon as they arrived at the door, they saw the Kawahata couple and Cheng Shi already waiting in the lobby.The three of them originally had nervous expressions on their faces, but when they saw the stern-faced Isobe, the expressions on the faces of the three of them also became more and more rigid. Isobe asked them in detail about what happened the night Tsukahara Shoji left the hotel.Although they had told the police many times about these things, the three of them answered Isobe's questions carefully.There was no inconsistency in their words, nor did they feel unnatural.Even Xikou was tired of hearing about these situations.Before he heard half of it, he began to be distracted, staring blankly at Cheng Shi's upright face.

"Okay, can we take a look at the room where Mr. Tsukahara lived before?" Isobe said to the three of them in a rough voice. Setsuko stood up and said, "Let me lead the way. This way, please." "I'll go too." Shoji leaned on his crutches, followed behind Isobe and the investigators, and walked towards the elevator. When there were only himself and Chengshi left, Xiguchi apologized: "I'm really sorry for disturbing you so many times. According to the people above, this may not be just a simple accident, so the scale of the search has also changed. It’s too big. Every time a new person involved in the case comes, we have to accompany him. In fact, we don’t want to do this ourselves.”

Cheng Shi smiled and shook his head. "It's okay, don't worry too much about it. I'm the one who should apologize. I know Xikou, you've been very busy recently, but I still sent you that text message." Xikou quickly waved his hand. "It's okay. I'm really busy recently, but I'm only in charge of doing odd jobs. By the way, what exactly do you want to ask?" During the meeting this morning, Chengshi said in a text message to Xikou: I want to ask you something, can I meet with you?If it is still more convenient to call, then please tell me a time that is convenient for you to answer.

"Well, actually." Cheng Shi licked his lips, feeling as if he was thinking about how to cut the topic to the point, "Didn't you come to Xikou last time to ask us to borrow the accommodation registration book? You said you wanted to find out Why did Mr. Tsukahara choose to live with us. Have you found anything about this?" "Oh, you're talking about that. Can you lend us that register for a while? We haven't checked everything yet." "That's nothing. So you haven't been able to find anything out there yet?" "That's right. At least, among the tourists in the past two years, it seems that no one has contacted Tsukahara. Well, there is indeed the possibility that there is no reason at all. He just chose your place at will. Moreover, Glass Pu The website of the hotel trade union also introduces the situation here at 'Green Rock Village'."

Cheng Shi looked sideways at the ground and nodded.She seemed a little distracted. "Is there something on your mind?" Xikou asked tentatively. "What's on your mind...?" Cheng Shi still had an ambiguous smile on her face. She tilted her head and said, "You know that there is a university teacher named Tang Chuan living here, right? Someone called him yesterday. I I didn't deliberately eavesdrop, but because he was speaking loudly on the phone in front of the counter, I heard something..." A puzzled expression appeared on Nishiguchi's face.Although he had also seen the situation of this passenger named Yu Chuan from the search data before, Xiguchi had not even spoken to this person.Perhaps he had seen him somewhere before, but Xiguchi couldn't remember clearly.To Xikou, this Yu Chuan was simply a passerby.

"Well, the person who called him at that time seemed to be someone from the Metropolitan Police Department." Although Chengshi had lowered his voice, Nishiguchi was still taken aback.He straightened his back and asked, "The Metropolitan Police Department?" "That's what Mr. Yu Chuan said at the time. He asked the other party, this is just a case that happened in a local area, why did you call me from the Metropolitan Police Department. Later, Mr. Yu Chuan seemed to find that his voice was too loud, so I just lowered my voice, and I couldn't hear anything. After he finished the call, I asked him what was going on, and he just said it was a friend from college, but he didn't want to tell me that they were talking. something."

"Well, university teachers and people from the Metropolitan Police Department..." Nishiguchi also went to college.He recalled those friends back then, and felt that no one would stand on the teaching platform of the university. "Even if they are really friends, don't you think it's a bit strange that the people from the Metropolitan Police Department deliberately called Mr. Tang Chuan, a person who has nothing to do with the case? So I think the other party may be asking him Our situation here... like our family's hotel, my parents, or me." how is this possible?Xikou grinned.

"Although I don't know much about the Metropolitan Police Department, I don't think it's possible. Maybe the other party just occasionally found out that his friend lives with you, so I asked about the local situation by the way—is this the case? " "Really?" Cheng Shi still had an uneasy expression on his face. "Why are you so entangled? It is true that the passenger died strangely during the stay. From the perspective of your family, you will indeed feel a little concerned, but obviously, you cannot blame your Kawahata family for this matter. If something strange happens later It is rumored that if the guests dare not live here anymore, it will indeed be a bit bad, but there is no such sign now, so you continue to be bystanders, isn't that good?"

As soon as Nishiguchi finished speaking, the elevator door opened, and Isobe and others walked out of the elevator.Isobe still had a straight face, without any change in expression. At this moment, Cheng Shi glanced at the entrance and said "You are back".Xikou turned his head and saw a tall, thin man wearing glasses taking off his shoes.It seems that this person should be the Yu Chuan mentioned just now. Seeing Yukawa, Isobe asked Setsuko something, and then murmured, "This is just right." "Excuse me, may I bother you?" Isobe showed Yukawa his police badge.

What's up?Yukawa looked back at Isobe with cold eyes. "I want to ask you about the night three days ago. Where were you? What were you doing?" Tang Chuan glanced at Cheng Shi and the others, and said, "From about eight o'clock to ten o'clock, I was in an izakaya near the port. At that time, I ordered a plate of edamame, a plate of dried salted fish, and a bottle of black mist Island on ice. First it was the lady who kept me drinking with me, and then it was the girl." When Tang Chuan spoke, he almost didn't pause at all.What he said was exactly the same as what was recorded in the search data.

"So, on your way back from the izakaya to the hotel, did you see any suspicious vehicles?" "suspicious?" "For example, the car is parked on the side of the road, but the person is still sitting in the car or something." Tang Chuan thought about it for a while and said, "I don't know, I didn't pay much attention." "Really? Thank you so much for your assistance." After speaking, Isobe bowed his head towards Yukawa. "May I ask a question?" "what?" "Have you identified the source of the carbon monoxide gas?" After hearing Yukawa's question, Isobe couldn't help but widen his eyes: "Why do you know this..." "Just looking at the actions of the assessors who came last night, I can make a rough guess. Have you found the source of the gas?" "Well... I can only say 'no comment'. Because this is a secret search." Isobe pouted. "I see. I see." Tang Chuan smiled slightly and walked towards the elevator.