Chapter 17 Chapter Seventeen

Detective Superintendent Neal sat upright behind his desk.He received Poirot courteously and asked him to sit down. As soon as the young man who had brought Poirot had left, Detective Superintendent Neil's attitude changed. "That," said Poirot, "you already knew that." "Well, yes, I did collect some information, but I can't dig out anything from that hole to give you." "How do you say it's a hole?" "Because you are simply the most powerful mouse catcher, a greedy cat squatting at the hole waiting for the mouse to come out. However, if you want to ask me, I can tell you that there is no mouse in that hole. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that you can't even dig out any suspicious transactions. You know these rich big bosses. I dare say there must be some unclear things, so many minerals, patents and Petroleum and stuff. Joshua Resderick, Inc. is a reputable company, though. A family business—at least it used to be—but it can't be called that anymore. Simon? Resderick had no children, and his brother Andrew Resderick had only one daughter. They had an old aunt. Andrew Resderick's daughter followed her after she left school and her mother died. Lived. Kind of old-fashioned, I believe she's been a part of some queer religious order, but not a wicked one. Simon Resderick is a very shrewd businessman, with a very gregarious wife, They got married very late."

"Where's Andrew Restarick?" "Andrew seems to have a penchant for wandering. Nothing is rumored against him. Never stays long in one place, travels in South Africa, South America, Kenya, and many other places. More than once his brother forced him back He doesn't like either. He doesn't like London and he doesn't like business, but he also seems to have the unique money making skills of the Resderick family. His interest is in mining things. He is not an elephant hunter or an archaeologist. Or people who collect rare plants. All he does is business, and he makes money. "

"So, he can be regarded as a very ordinary person?" "Yes, so to speak. I don't know why he wanted to come back to England after his brother died. Maybe it's because of the new wife - he's remarried. Pretty woman, and much younger than he is." At present they live with old Sir Roderick Horsfield, whose sister is married to Andrew Resderick's uncle. However, I think they live together temporarily. Is there anything I say? New information, or did you know it already?" "I've probably heard of it," said Poirot. "Is there any record of mental illness in either of their families?"

"Probably not. At most, the old aunt likes to attend some weird churches. And this is not unusual for an old lady who lives alone." "So, all you can tell me is that the family is very rich," said Poirot. "Very rich," said Inspector Neil, "and well-earned. I may remind you that a good deal of it was earned by Andrew Resderick for the company. Some South African patents, Mines and mineral deposits. I dare say that when all this is developed and marketed, the amount of wealth is quite amazing." "Then who will inherit?" "It depends on how Andrew Resderick arranges it. It all depends on his will. In my opinion, there is no natural heir other than his wife and daughter."

"So both of them may inherit a large fortune in the future?" "It should be so. I think they must have a lot of trust syndicates, probably in institutions in the London business district." "For example, is it possible that he has another woman he likes?" "I've never heard of it, and I don't think it's possible. His new wife is very beautiful." "Young man," said Poirot thoughtfully, "it's easy to know all the details, isn't it?" "Do you mean to marry his daughter? This is indeed unstoppable. Even if the court rules that she is under guardianship, he can still marry her. Of course, her father can cancel her status as an heir if he wants."

Poirot looked at the neatly written list in his hand. "What's going on at Wadeburn Gallery?" "I don't understand how you bring this up. Have you been commissioned to investigate forgeries?" "Are they dealing in fakes?" "They don't sell fakes." Sergeant Neil said reproachfully, "However, a very unpleasant incident did happen. A rich American man from Texas came to buy paintings and paid them a large sum of money. They sold him a Reynolds and a Van Gogh painting. Reynolds's was a little girl's head, which caused a wave of suspicion. Although there is no reason to believe that Wadeburn Gallery bought it with bad intentions in the first place, it does. They made a lot of verification. They invited many experts to appraise it. In the end, as usual, the appraisal results were mixed. The gallery was willing to take the painting back. But the rich man was unwilling to change his original intention, because one of the most famous appraisers swore that It was genuine, so he decided to buy it. However, there have been some suspicious gossips in Wadeburn Gallery since then.”

Poirot looked again at his list. "And what about Mr. David Baker? Did you check him out for me?" "Oh, he's one of the usual ones. Scoundrels, gang up in nightclubs. Live on drugs--Purple Hearts, Heroin, Cocoaline, that's what's popular among girls. He This kind of guy is the most pitiful for girls, who say that he is suffering, and he is a genius. No one appreciates his paintings. Let me say, I think he is a pretty boy who can satisfy women." Poirot looked again at his list. "Do you know anything about Congressman Ruixi Helan?" "I don't know much about his politics. He's certainly very eloquent. One or two obscure deals in the City of London, but they got him out of it respectably. I think it's Mr. Wei is very cunning, and he often makes a lot of money by dubious means."

Poirot made a final inquiry. "How is Sir Roderick Horsfield?" "The old gentleman is a nice fellow, but a little dotty. You have a good nose, Poirot, and you smell everything, don't you? Yes, our special operations team was terribly annoyed by them.It is all the fault of these popular ethos of writing memories.No one knows who will write books about digging out people's scars again.These old guys, who have worked in intelligence or other jobs, are rushing to publish what they remember about other people's negligence or faults!Usually, it doesn't matter, but sometimes—you know, the cabinet has changed policy, and no one wants to hurt someone's feelings or give the wrong person, so we're trying to stop these old gentlemen Some of the mouths are really not easy to wrap around.If you want to dig up this kind of material, you're better off going to a special assignments team.I don't see any major flaws.The trouble is they don't destroy many documents that should be obsolete, they are still on file.Anyway, I don't think it is of much value, but we also have evidence that there is indeed a force probing the brain. "

Poirot sighed deeply. "Can I be of any help to you today?" asked the sheriff. "It's nice to get some facts from the authorities. But, sorry, nothing you told me today will help." He sighed and added: "If someone tells you by chance that there is a woman—young and beautiful What do you think of a woman with a wig?" "It's no big deal," Inspector Neil replied, and then, with a touch of sarcasm, "My wife wears a wig every time we travel. It saves a lot of trouble." "I don't understand you," said Hercule Poirot. As they parted, the Inspector asked:

"About the suicide in the apartment you want to inquire about, have you asked clearly? I sent you the information." "Yes, thank you. At least I have the official report, and it's just a transcript." "Those things you mentioned just reminded me of something. Let me think about it. This is a common and sad thing. An optimistic woman likes to find a man very much. She has a lot of money and does not worry about life. No particular worries, drank too much and went downhill. Then, got what I call a health phobia, and they were confident they had cancer or something. Went to the doctor, and the doctor said there was no sign of it. Even if you don't worry about it, they don't believe it at all. In fact, in my opinion, it's all because they feel that their charm is gone and they can no longer attract men. This is the real reason for their sadness. It's such a commonplace situation. I think it's a word, lonely, poor woman. Mrs. Chapentry is just one of them. I don't think she's going to—" He paused, and then said : "Oh, by the way, I remembered. You just asked Mr. Ruixi Helan about it. He is also a very playful person, but he is very cautious. Anyway, Louise Chabent once once His mistress, that's all."

"Is there a close relationship between them?" "I don't think it's particularly close. They've been in some not-so-reputable nightclubs. You know, we're sort of nailing things like that. But nothing about them was published in the papers." thing, nothing at all." "Oh, that's right." "However, their relationship has lasted for quite a while. They have been in and out of contact for about half a year. However, it seems that the two of them have other lovers. Therefore, it cannot be said that they are too close." "You're right," said Poirot. "However, it's hard to say," Poirot said to himself when he came downstairs, "it's hard to say. It's also a link, and it explains the embarrassment in Mr. McFarlane's words. It's a link, though very weak. , but there is indeed a link between Senator Ruixi Holland and Louise Chapentry. It may be insignificant at all, how can there be any significant connection?" However—"I know too much," said Poirot. I said unhappily: "I know too much, I know a little bit about everyone, but I can't create a pattern. At least half of the things are irrelevant. I want a pattern, a pattern , I have devoted my whole life to my career, and I am willing to change the model." He shouted loudly. "Excuse me, what did you say?" The waiter in the elevator room asked in surprise. "Oh, nothing," said Poirot.