Chapter 9 Nine Clues Interruption

When I woke up in the afternoon, it was late and my spirits were fully restored.Holmes had put the violin aside, and was sitting with a book in his hands, reading carefully.When he saw me wake up, he looked at me with a very unhappy expression. He said: "You slept soundly, I'm afraid the sound of our talking will wake you up." I replied, "I haven't heard anything. Have you got any news?" "Unfortunately, no. I really didn't expect it, and I'm disappointed. I expected some definite news by then. Wiggins just came to report, and he said there was no sign of the steamboat, which is a shame." People are in a hurry. Because the timing is tight, and every hour counts."

"Can I help? My spirits have recovered, and I shall have no problem going out for another night." "No, we can't do anything now, we can only wait for the news. If we go out now, if there is news, it will be a waste of time. You can do whatever you want, I must wait here." "Then I want to go to Camberwell to visit Mrs Sissel Forrester, whom I had engaged yesterday." With a twinkle in Holmes' eyes, he asked: "Are you going to visit Mrs. Cecil Forrester?" "And Miss Morstan, of course. They are all anxious to know the news of the case."

"Don't tell them too much," said Holmes, "even the best of women can never be entirely trusted to them." I didn't argue with his unreasonable remarks, but said, "I'll be back in an hour or two." "Well! I wish you all the best! If you go across the river, you might as well send Toby back, because I don't think we'll be using him now." I returned the lube to its owner at his word, and paid him half a pound.Arrived in Camberwell, met Miss Morstan.She was still a little tired from last night's adventure, but she was waiting for news.Mrs. Forrester was also more curious, eager to know everything.I told them all the story, leaving some dangerous things unsaid.Although the murder of Mr. Sholto is mentioned, there is no description of the terrible circumstances and the murder weapon used by the murderer.Even such a brief recounting is still enough to make them surprised and interesting.

Mrs. Forrester said: "It's a novel! A wronged girl, a treasure worth half a million pounds, a cannibal black man, and a gangster with a wooden leg. This is very different from the plot of ordinary novels." Not the same." Miss Morstan looked at me happily and said, "There are still two knights to save me." "But Mei Li, your wealth depends on this search. I don't think you feel very excited. Please think about how gratifying it would be if you became a huge rich once." She shook her head, as if she didn't care much about the matter.It was a great comfort to me to see that she showed no particular pleasure in the prospect of becoming rich.

She said: "My main concern is the safety of Mr. Thaddeus Sholto, and the rest is of no concern. His performance in the whole case has been very kind and respectable. We have the responsibility to remove him from the case." Wash it out of this shameful and baseless injustice." It was late when I got home from Camberwell.My companion's books and pipe were still beside his chair, but he himself was missing.I looked around for a note, but I couldn't find a piece of paper. Mrs. Hudson came in to put the curtains, and I asked: "Is Mr. Sherlock Holmes out?" "Sir, he didn't go out. He is in his own room." She lowered her voice and said quietly, "Sir, do you know that I'm afraid he is ill!"

"Mrs. Hudson, how did you know he was ill?" "Sir, there is something strange about it. After you left, he walked up and down the room, up and down, and his footsteps made me tired of hearing them. Then I heard him talking to himself, and every time someone called , he ran to the landing and yelled, "Mrs. Hudson, who is it?" He's not sick. I took the liberty of telling him to take some cold medicine, but, sir, he gave me a look that scares me so much that I don't know how I got out of that room." I replied: "Mrs. Hudson, I think you can take it easy. I've seen him like this before. He has something on his mind, and it makes him uneasy." So I talked easily with our good landlord. Talking, but I kept hearing his footsteps faintly throughout the long night, and I knew that his urgency had grown restless from his inability to act.

At breakfast the next day, his face was tired and thin, and his cheeks were slightly flushed. I said, "Man, you've worn yourself out. I hear you walking up and down the house at night." He replied: "I can't sleep, this annoying question has made me anxious. All the great difficulties have been overcome, and now I am stumped by a very insignificant obstacle. It is too reconciled. Now we know who the culprits are, and the name of the boat and all, but there is no news of the boat. Others are at work, and I have exhausted my means, and the whole river is dead on both sides. I have searched all over, but there is still no news. There is no news of her husband from Mrs. Smith, and I almost think they have sunk the boat to the bottom of the river, but there is also a certain contradiction at this level."

"We may have been fooled by Mrs. Smith." "Otherwise, I don't think there is any need to worry about this level, because after investigation, there is indeed one such steamboat." "Could it have gone upstream?" "I have also thought of this possibility. I have already sent a group of searchers to go up to the Richmond area. If there is no news today, I will go out to find the gangsters myself tomorrow and give up looking for the steamboat. But for sure , sure we'll get some news." A day passed without hearing from Wiggins or the rest of the searchers.Most of the newspapers carried the story of the Norwood tragedy.They all attacked the unfortunate Thaddeus Sholto very badly.There was nothing new in the newspapers, except that the official post-mortem was to be performed the next day.I walked to Camberwell in the evening, and reported our failure to the two ladies.When I came back, I found Holmes still dejected and unhappy, and even ignored my questions.All night he was busy with a mysterious chemical experiment, and the stench from the heating of the still forced me to leave the room.Until dawn, I still heard the sound of the test tube, and knew that he was still conducting this foul-smelling experiment there.

The next morning I awoke with a start to find Holmes standing by my bed.He was dressed as a sailor, with a short overcoat and a red scarf round his neck. He said: "Watson, I'm going downstream in person now. After thinking twice, I think this is the only way I can go. Anyway, it's worth a try." I said, "Then, shall I go with you?" "No. It would be more useful for you to stay here as my representative. I don't want to go myself. Although Wiggins was very discouraged last night, I think there will be news today. All letters and calls are welcome. You disassemble it on your behalf and act cheaply according to your judgment. Can you do it for me?"

"Of course I would." "My whereabouts are uncertain, and I am afraid you will not be able to send me a telegram. But if I am lucky, I may not be delayed very long. There will always be something to report to you when I return." At breakfast, there was no news from him.But he opened the Standard and saw a new development in the case.It reports: Regarding the tragedy at Upper Norwood, it is reported that the content of the case is very complicated, not as simple as expected.The new discovery proved that Mr. Thaddeus Sholto was not suspected.Mr Sholto and Mrs Burnstone, the housekeeper, were released from the police station last night.As for the real murderer, the police station has new clues.The case is now under the charge of the able Mr. Ethelney Jones of Scotland Yard, and is expected to be solved within a few days.

I thought: this is quite satisfactory, our friend Sholto is free at last.What are the new clues?This seems to be the old style of covering up mistakes on the part of the police department.I threw the newspaper on the table, and my eyes were suddenly attracted by a small advertisement in the missing person section of the newspaper.The advertisement reads: "Missing: The ship's owner, Merdecai Smith, and his eldest son, Jim, left Smith's Wharf on the steamer 'Aurora' at around 3:00 on Tuesday morning and have not returned. The hull of the 'Dawn' is black with two red lines , the chimney is black with a white line. If you know the whereabouts of Merdecai Smith and the steamer "Dawn", please report to Mrs. Smith at Smith's Wharf or 221 B Baker Street, and you will be rewarded with gold coins Five pounds." The little ad was obviously Holmes' own, as evidenced by his address in Baker Street.I thought the wording of this ad was very clever, because even if the gangsters saw it, they would think it was just an ordinary ad for a wife looking for a husband, and would not see the secret in it. The day goes by so slowly.Whenever I heard a knock at the door or a heavy step in the street, I thought it was Holmes or someone who had seen the advertisement and came to announce the news.I tried to read, but my mind couldn't concentrate, and my thoughts kept going to those two strange thieves we were tracking.Sometimes I think this way: Could it be that Holmes' theory is fundamentally wrong?Was he suffering from a severe form of self-deception?Could it be that his assumption was wrong because the evidence was not real enough?I have never seen him make mistakes in his work, but a wise man is bound to make a mistake. I think it may be because his self-confidence is too strong, and he regards a plain question as an extremely complicated and bizarre mystery, so that Mistake again?But looking back, I have seen these evidences with my own eyes, and I have heard the reasons for his inferences.Look again at this curious chain of facts, some of which are insignificant, but all pointing in the same direction.I am obliged to admit that, had Holmes been mistaken, the case itself must have been exceedingly incomprehensible. At three o'clock in the afternoon, the bell rang loudly, and there was a loud commanding conversation downstairs. It did not occur to me that it was none other than Mr. Ethelney Jones.But his attitude was not the same as before. He was not as rough, airy and common sense expert as he was in Upper Norwood. He said: "Good day, sir, good day! I heard that Mr. Holmes has gone out." "Yes, I don't know when he'll be back. Will you please wait? Sit down and have one of our cigars?" "Thank you, please give me a breath." He wiped his forehead frequently with the red silk scarf as he said. "How about a whiskey and soda?" "Well, half a glass is enough. It's still so hot and my mind is so troubled by this time. Do you remember my understanding of this Norwood case?" "I remember you saying that once." "Well, now I have to reconsider the case again. I caught Mr. Sholto tightly in the net, but, well, sir, he slipped out of the net halfway through. He proved an irrefutable fact—he has been with him since he left his brother, so the person who entered the house through the secret door could not be him. This case is really difficult to solve. Prestige has also been shaken, and I'm hoping for some help." I said, "Everyone of us needs help from others." He said with certainty: "Sir, your friend Mr. Sherlock Holmes is an extraordinary man. He is beyond comparison. I have seen many cases in which he has been involved, and there is not one case that he has not cleared up." His methods are infinitely varied, and of course he is sometimes too hasty, but on the whole he could have been a most capable police officer. No fear of being laughed at is beyond my reach. I had a report from him this morning. There is a telegram from which it is known that he has made new discoveries about Sholto's case. This is that telegram." He took the telegram out of his pocket and handed it to me.The telegram, sent from Poplar at twelve o'clock, said: "Go to Baker Street at once. Please wait if I am not back. I have traced the Sholto gangsters. If you will see Come with me tonight until the case is over." I said: "The tone of this telegram is very cheerful. He must have connected the broken thread." Jones said proudly: "Ah, so he sometimes makes mistakes. Our detectives often go the wrong way. This time may be a joke, but the responsibility of our police is not to take any chances." Missed it. Now someone calls the door, maybe he's back." There was a heavy step up the stairs, with a heavy wheezing that indicated that the man was having difficulty breathing; there was a pause or two, as if he were struggling to ascend the stairs.At last he entered the room, and his appearance matched the voice we had heard.An old man, dressed in sailor's clothes, with an overcoat buttoned up to the neck.He was bent over, his legs were trembling, and he was panting painfully.He was leaning on a thick wooden stick in his hand, and his shoulders kept shrugging, as if he was struggling to breathe.His face, except for a pair of twinkling eyes, had only white eyebrows and a gray mustache, and the rest was completely hidden by his scarf.On the whole, he looked like a respectable navigator, aged and down and out. I asked, "Friend, what's the matter?" Slowly, with the peculiar habit of old people, he looked around. "Is Mr. Sherlock Holmes in?" he asked. "Not at home. But I can represent him, and you can tell me all you have to say." "I can only tell him personally," he said. "But let me tell you, I can represent him, is it about the steamboat Merdecai Smith?" "Yes, I know where the ship is, where the man he's after, and where the treasure is, I know everything." "You tell me, I'll tell him." He perfectly displays the old man's irritable and stubborn attitude.He said: "I can only tell him himself." "Then you'll just have to wait." "No, no, I can't waste a day on this matter. If Mr. Holmes is not at home, I have to let him find out these information. I don't like the appearance of either of you, and I don't have a word tell you." He got up to go out, but Ethelney Jones ran ahead of him and stopped him. Jones said: "My friend, please wait a moment. You have important news to report, and you can't leave like this. Whether you like it or not, we will keep you until our friend comes back." The old man wanted to rush out the door, but Ethelney Jones had already leaned her back against the door, blocking the old man's way. The old man beat the floor with his cane and shouted, "What a disgrace! I came here to visit a friend, but you two are strangers to me. You insisted on keeping me and treating me so rudely!" I said: "Please don't worry, we will make up for the time you spent. Please sit on the sofa over there. Mr. Holmes will be back soon." He covered his face with his hands in displeasure, and sat there helplessly.Jones and I continued to talk while puffing on our cigars.Suddenly we heard Holmes' voice addressing us. "I think you ought to offer me a cigar, too." We both jumped up in surprise from our chairs, and Holmes sat beside him, smiling broadly. I exclaimed in surprise, "Holmes! Is that you? Where is the old man?" He took out a handful of white hair, and said: "Here he is, wig, beard, eyebrows, all here. I thought my make-up was all right, but I didn't expect to fool you too." Jones exclaimed with joy: "Ah, you rascal! You are worthy of a theater actor--a fine actor, you cough like a workman, and your legs are worth ten pounds a week." .But I think I see the look in your eyes. You haven't quite convinced us yet." He lit his cigar and said: "I dressed like this all day today. You know, a lot of gangsters have come to know me--especially since our friend wrote a book about my detective deeds. So I'll simply put on some makeup at work. Did you get my telegram?" "I received it, that's why I came." "How is your work on the case going?" "No clue at all. I had to release two people, and there is no evidence for the other two." "It doesn't matter, I will give you two other people to fill their vacancies later. But you must completely obey my command, and all credits can be attributed to you, but all actions must be obeyed by me. Do you agree with this?" "As long as you help me catch the gangster, everything is agreed." "Well, first thing: I want a police cutter--a steamboat--to be at Westminster Docks at seven o'clock to-night." "This is easy to handle. There is often one parked there. I will go to the opposite side and make a phone call." "I also need two strong policemen in case the gangsters resist arrest." "Two or three people are always prepared in the boat, is there anything else?" "We'll catch the bandit and the treasure will be in our hands, and I think my friend would love to deliver the treasure chest to the young lady herself—half of the treasure should be hers, and she'll open it herself. Say hello , Watson, are you okay?" "It is my greatest honor." Jones shook his head and said: "This method is not free from differences in regulations-but we can accommodate it. But after viewing, the treasure must be returned to the government for inspection." "Of course, that's easy. And one more thing, I'd like to hear the details of the case from Jonozan Small himself first. You know, I always need the details of a case." , fully understood. You probably have no disagreement with the part where I am going to conduct an informal interrogation with him first, here or elsewhere, under police guard?" "You are the one who is in control of the whole case. Although I haven't been able to prove that there is such a person named Jonnozan Small, if you can catch him, I have no reason to prevent you from interrogating him first." "So, this is also agreed?" "I totally agree, is there anything else I want?" "Only I will keep you with us for dinner, which will be ready in half an hour. I have oysters and a pair of pheasants, and some white wine of my choice. You do not know, Watson, that I am a good housekeeper." Woolen cloth."