Chapter 16 Benevolence trap

When the editorial department of a fiction magazine asked me for a manuscript under the theme of "The Complete Murder Case", the first thing I thought of was a letter sent to me by a certain doctor. This letter was mixed with other letters and sent to me in February last year. This letter was of course addressed to me, but the text on the right side of the envelope says "Nokura-cho, Ota-ku, Tokyo..." is my old address before I moved here.In fact, my new address was listed in the literature and art yearbook and literature and art handbook at that time. I think the person who wrote this letter probably sent it according to the address in the phone book?

On the envelope was also written the word "Dear Enlightenment". However, the reverse side of the envelope did not contain the sender's name or address, only the words "From a medical practitioner". Speaking of the content of this letter... No, before that, allow me to mention an old work of mine. In January 1963, I published a short story called "The Disappearing Diagnosis" in a special issue of a women's magazine "Mystery Fiction".I remember it was a work of forty manuscript papers. This novel was later included in my collection of short stories published in December of the previous year. You readers may have read it. Let me briefly introduce the summary here:

Kuniko Kaidang, a 28-year-old doctor in the internal medicine and pediatrics clinic, is currently single and lives in the clinic with Junko Komura, a trainee nurse.The clinic was originally funded by her father. However, when she passed the national examination and became eligible to work as a substitute doctor, her father suffered a cerebral hemorrhage and died.Her mother died before her husband when she was in medical school. At 10:58 in the evening at the beginning of a certain month, two men came to this clinic and asked for a doctor's visit.They said their mother was in such terrible pain that they wanted the doctor to see her right away.They had hired a car to come.

"Where do you two live?" Bangzi asked. The two men were wearing the same peaked caps and both were also wearing face masks.This is indeed the time when influenza is on the rise. "We just recently moved to an apartment near the station. We've already found several clinics, but they won't open no matter how hard they ring... Doctor, please. After seeing the patients, we will also drive You came back..." Hearing this, Bangzi finally decided to visit the doctor.When she saw the pleading eyes of two men who were older than herself, as a doctor, could she still refuse?

However, when she was ready to get in the car, her eyes were suddenly blindfolded. "What are you doing?" Bangzi shouted, the car had already driven away. One man blindfolded Kuni with skillful movements, while the other tied her hands.Even the driver, the three of them are in the same group. Bangzi immediately fantasized about being gang-raped by these three people. "We won't mess around with the doctor, you are very important to us." One of them said in a very polite tone: "As long as you are obedient, we will never do anything wrong. We have no intention of indecently assaulting you. However, if you shout loudly, you'd better remember that we have knives in our hands... Also, the towel that is tied around your head may wrap around your neck."

I don't know how long the car drove. Finally, she was taken out of the car and the blindfold was taken off. This is an eight-seat room.A dim, shadeless electric lamp hung from the ceiling and was the only source of light in the room.Apparently, this is what guys call an apartment room. In the center of the room lay a person on a berth. "This is our mother, doctor, please take a look." said a man.These three people did not take off their peaked caps and masks after entering the room. Kuniko could tell at a glance that this person—a middle-aged woman—had died hours ago. When Bangzi expressed his views, they asked for a death certificate and handed over the prepared death certificate.

"I can't do that." "why?" "When I came, the patient had died. If I had examined him within twenty-four hours before his death, I could issue a death certificate. The situation is different now. You only have to obtain an autopsy certificate." "Then please issue an autopsy certificate. Anyway, our purpose is to file a death declaration and obtain a burial permit." "However, Tokyo City implements the supervisory doctor system based on the autopsy preservation law. General doctors are not qualified to issue autopsy certificates. Therefore, you have to go to the supervisory medical institution, or find someone who has seen this patient before." It is legal for a doctor to issue a medical certificate.”

The three of them scoffed at Bangzi's words.One of them took out a shiny knife and pointed it at Bangzi's left chest. "Doctor, if you refuse to accommodate, you will become the same as this corpse. We will transport your corpse out in a car for disposal. Isn't that easy? Besides, we have never had any contact with each other, and the police will never catch us. " During the dispute, their breathing seemed to become more and more rapid.This is not an impulse to vent animal desire on a woman, but a natural expression of killing intent. Bangzi had to give in. "No way, I'll just drive."

"Great, then you can open it now. You don't need to ignore the names, addresses, and ages above, you just need to fill in the cause of death column. Of course you know (1): direct cause; (2): (1) ) reasons; (3): (2) reasons must be consistent, right? After the opening, of course you have to sign and stamp..." These people even have their pens ready. How the story of "The Disappearing Medical Certificate" develops later, and how it ends, I won't go into details here.Because it's just a novel after all. I present the summary because this section is relevant to this letter from "a medical practitioner".

Let’s call this doctor K for now (his name was known later, but when he received the letter, he didn’t even know what the initials of his name were). Mrs. K is 43 years old this year. She has Liangzi, who is in the first grade of middle school, and two other children.His wife, 41 years old, holds a qualification as a pharmacist and presides over the business of the pharmacy in the clinics (internal medicine and pediatrics) opened by her family.It is said that the clinic was funded by her industrialist father. The reason K decided to write to me was because he had read my short story "The Disappearing Medical Certificate".

Because Mr. K himself has an experience quite similar to Kaitang Bangzi in that novel. The following is the process of writing K's experience in the form of a novel based on this letter. "I want to ask you one thing..." The woman with only one piece of underwear on her body said to Mrs. K while getting under the covers.Every time you ask something, you must speak before the spring breeze. This woman understands men's psychology quite well, right? "How? Did you run out of money again?" Mrs. K stroked the skin of a woman fifteen or sixteen years younger than herself and said.Of course he felt dismayed when he heard a woman's request, but he knew that he would always agree to her request. Fascinated by her—K has such a consciousness. Being a medical practitioner, it was impossible for him to come to her apartment every day.He would come to her place for a while every afternoon during his doctor's visit, or sneak here in the name of playing golf on Sunday, which was the only way he could do it. Perhaps it was because of such restraint that at first K, who only had the mentality of acting on the occasion, became obsessed with her afterward. Perhaps this has something to do with Mrs. K being too virtuous.Not only was she not overbearing because the clinic was founded by her father, she never even complained about her current life. She respects her husband in front of her children and maids, and K's daily life is centered on K. When a man receives the ardent trust and expectation of his family, maybe he will feel cramped instead?What's more, he is a doctor who runs a clinic in his own home, unlike ordinary white-collar workers who have the opportunity to change their mood due to commuting. Because of the profession of a doctor, it is necessary to maintain a certain degree of majesty in front of patients; and to show authority as a husband and father in front of family members. Mrs. K sometimes wants to forget her career, abandon her position as a husband and father, and look for occasions where she indulges purely with a man. Is this a natural phenomenon? Therefore, K's "request" to this woman will be willing to agree to the extent possible, even if it is a little difficult, she will get her wish. "I'm not out of money..." The woman said in a coquettish tone.When speaking, she tilted her head back and stared into the other person's eyes to observe Mr. K's mood. "Then tell me what you want to ask for." "It's like this. The person next door asked me for something. I told this person that mine is a doctor. As a result, this person said that he had something to ask you." "Why did you tell anyone who I am?" "Because this man pestered me to ask. He must ask me what you do, so I had no choice but to tell him that you are a doctor. Tell him who you are as a doctor. Wouldn't it be honorable for me to be a mistress? " "You bastard..." Mrs. K smiled wryly, "But, what exactly does the other party want to ask me for? What does the guy next door do?" "It's a young couple. I heard that the husband is a salesman. I hope you can do something for them, because they are very good to me." Can Mrs. K refuse such a plea from this woman?His wife would never beg for anything in such a coquettish manner.Therefore, he felt extraordinarily fresh about this woman's "pleading". Afterwards, the two took a bath together, washing away the sweat caused by the cloud and rain in Wushan for each other.After Mrs. K put on her golf sportswear, the woman went to call the person next door. Not long after, a man of about 30 years old who was a bit slutty came into the room. "The lady said..." The man who came in pointed to the woman and said, "She said you are a doctor, so I want to ask you one thing." The man shook a piece of paper in his right hand. "What's the matter?" "You can tell what this is by looking at it, right? A doctor should have experience filling out this form." The man handed the paper to K.This is a piece of paper for a death certificate. This horizontal paper is divided into two halves, the left half is the death declaration, and the right half is the death certificate. This death certificate is an official paper printed by the government in accordance with the No. 1 regulation of WHO (World Health Organization).This kind of paper is used by all WHO member countries in the world. "What does it mean?" K has yet to understand what the man's intentions are. "Aren't there columns such as year, month, day, and patient's name? You can leave these columns alone. What I ask you to fill in is the column of 'cause of death'. Of course, the column for the doctor's signature and seal will also trouble you." "This...are you joking? It is forbidden under the Physician Law to issue a medical certificate without a diagnosis. In particular, the death medical certificate must not be issued indiscriminately. The purpose of this is to thoroughly investigate the cause of death, so this thing cannot be treated as a medical certificate. It's a joke. If a death certificate without the patient's name and date is issued and it is abused..." "doctor……" The man twisted his lips and said with a sneer: "Do you think I don't know about such things? That's it, that's why I'm asking you. Of course you won't be ignored if you ask a doctor you don't know about such things. However, I I believe you should not refuse." "You... what are you talking about?" "I hope you can understand, I am not begging you. I am holding onto your tricks. I can write an anonymous letter to your wife at any time. Isn't your clinic opened by your master Taishan? I have all these things I know. Isn’t your youngest son still in elementary school? But, you know it’s not easy for elementary school students. If I write a letter to your son and say: ‘Your father is a bad man, he loves women other than your mother’ , do you think he will not understand it, and will not be hostile to you?" K bit her lip. "I am ashamed to say that I, a despicable person, chose the safety of my family. That is to say, under the threat of this man, I issued a medical certificate of death due to myocardial infarction. The clinic rubber stamp and I didn't take the stamp with me that day, but I took it to stamp it when I went there for the second time. "Because I had such an experience, when I read the masterpiece "The Disappeared Medical Certificate", I can say that I was deeply moved. What I am worried about now is that I don't know where this medical certificate that I wrote was used. "As you mentioned in your masterpiece, even if it is a homicide case, as long as there is an official medical certificate from a qualified doctor, the household registration authority will issue a burial permit, and with such a permit, the body can be cremated immediately. Cremation, even if it is later found that there is a suspicion of murder, isn't this unsubstantiated? "I broke up with this woman about two months later. The direct reason for the breakup can be that I was forced to issue a medical certificate like that because of her? "Of course, like Ms. Kaidang Kuniko in the novel, I also had the idea of ​​reporting to the police. However, thinking that I had indeed violated the doctor's law, my courage disappeared. "The reason why I am writing to tell you this fact is that I hope that you will have the opportunity to write a novel based on my experience, which can be used as a lesson for fellow physicians. "Finally, it is to be reported that the above events occurred three years ago." When I got this letter, I had a hunch that this was no joke or anything. Although the letter does not have the sender's name and address, there is not a single typo.Judging from the handwriting, the letter writer must be a cautious person. It is believed that after encountering a situation that K had never imagined in his dreams and violating the doctor's law, he deeply repented in his heart, so that he would suffer pain if he did not talk to someone.He probably read my "Disappearing Medical Certificate" before he took up the pen and wrote to me anonymously, right? As Mr. K said, I also feel worried about where this medical certificate has been used. When I have time, I have the idea to trace the whereabouts of this medical certificate.So I put this letter in the bag for keeping the materials.Although I had a relatively leisurely life later, I was a little lazy, so I didn't take out this letter again.When it comes to something that I think I have to run, I will drive around regardless of whether I have time or not-I still do it a few years ago.Could it be that I have reached the age where I am not willing to move? However, the editorial department appointed me to write "Wanbi Murder Incident", which seems to be an excellent material. The death certificate issued by Mr. K should have been used as material long ago, and Mr. K has not been investigated by the police authorities so far. Doesn’t this prove that the use of forged medical certificates has not been discovered?In other words, up to now, this is a complete murder case. It was mid-March when I decided to investigate. I first check the postmark on the envelope.It turned out that the letter was sent from Bureau N (due to the nature of the case, it is not convenient to write the place name, I regret this. Using English initials will greatly damage the authenticity of the novel. Although I know it is a bad policy, I also had to do so). It is indeed doubtful whether this letter was posted by Mrs. K near his home. However, according to common sense, most people will not be so careful when they go to a far away place to post a letter. kind of degree.People who have criminal experience in the past may be so cunning, but judging from the content of the letter, Mrs. K is not such a worried person. In this way, Mrs. K should be someone who lives in District N. I thought of my newspaper colleague Shigeru Xinggu before I became a writer, and now he is the branch chief of an area under the jurisdiction of District N.The social department of this newspaper is to facilitate the collection of materials for the urban edition.The city of Tokyo is divided into several areas, each with a branch office. I went to visit Xinggu and asked him if he could help me investigate this matter. "I find the matter quite fascinating. Can our newspaper publish the results of the investigation?" "Of course I can't object to this. However, I can't guarantee whether it is worth making news. When writing a novel, the unclear parts can be supplemented by fantasy, but news reports are not. Maybe you will be told Damn your reputation." "Ha, I'll find you then." Xinggu introduced me to one of his subordinates. This young reporter named Ochiai Kosaku listened to every instruction of Xinggu obediently.I'm surprised that Xinggu has such great authority, but he has at least ten years of seniority in the newspaper than Ochiai.What's more, as the head of the branch, he should have such a prestige, right? I told the Ochiai reporter that I would like to visit the Medical Association of District N first. "Please get in the car." Ochiai took me to the parking lot in front of the branch office, and opened the door of the Aoto limousine for me. "Is it embarrassing to take the car from the newspaper office?" I looked at the newspaper flag on the front of the car and said. "This is my own car. I drive very steadily, so don't worry." "Then... do you always drive by yourself to cover the news?" I don't feel a world apart.When I was still at the newspaper, how could there be a reporter who drove his own car to cover the news?No, how many journalists at that time belonged to the car-owning class? "With the newspaper flag, it helps a lot with parking." Ochiai smiled openly and started the car. Ochiai said that it was the first time he came to the Medical Association Affairs Bureau to solve the problem, but because of him, the investigation went very smoothly.The head of the affairs bureau, who is nearly 50 years old, was very polite to us when he saw the business card he handed out, and ordered the staff to produce a lot of materials we wanted. We first selected physicians in internal medicine and pediatrics from the list of members of the medical association, and then filtered on the age condition. As a result, we selected eight physicians in total. "Among these few, which ones like to play golf?" "There is almost no doctor who doesn't like golf." The director of affairs browsed the list while talking, and then eliminated two of them. The next step is to check the family and marital status of the remaining six people.The Physician Association has detailed information cards of member physicians, so it doesn't take much time here. "What's the use of checking these things, both of you?" The chief of affairs seemed a little uneasy, and stopped to ask Ochiai. "Don't worry, we don't have any bad intentions. We won't cause trouble for you, don't worry." Ochiai gave him an ambiguous answer. The word "Doctor Association of N District" was used in the work in order not to make these relevant personnel be held accountable. As a result of this investigation, we discovered a man named Shingo Nanpu. Shingo Nampo (born February 5, 1924) Wife Harue (born March 16, 1926) In addition, the age of the eldest son and the fact that there are two children below are completely consistent with the content of the letter. Nanpu's age of 44 is not contradictory, because I received the letter last year.This has been taken into account when looking up the roster. "It is said that when this Nanpu doctor opened his business, his wife's natal family provided the funds. Director, have you heard of such a thing?" "How do I know that?" The chief of affairs replied with a tense eyelid.He showed a friendly attitude towards Ochiai, who handed over the business card with the title of journalist, but looked at me suspiciously, so it's no wonder, right?Therefore, I should be more grateful for Ochiai's assistance this day. But when I walked out of the Medical Association Affairs Bureau, I still had some doubts in my mind.How did the man who threatened the Nanpu family to issue a death certificate find out the fact that even the director of the medical affairs bureau did not know about it?According to Nanpu's letter, the man mentioned this when he threatened him. We quickly found the location of Nampo Internal Medicine and Pediatric Clinic.The clinic is on the side of the ramp in the residential area.The exterior walls of the clinic had only recently been repainted, and the white walls looked extraordinarily white in the setting sun. "I think it's better if I don't go in." Ochiai said after parking in front of the clinic. "Maybe? Well, then I'll go in alone." After checking that I had a health insurance card in my pocket, I went into the clinic. It's dusk, will the doctor be on a call or not?I was worried about this, but fortunately Dr. Nanpu was in the clinic. In the waiting room, there was only one elementary school student waiting while reading manga. I stood in front of the registration window and took out my insurance card. "You're going to see a doctor, aren't you?" The middle-aged woman in white clothes looked at my face and said.Judging by her age, she is Mrs. Chun Jiang who has a pharmacist license, right?Her bright eyes are really beautiful.She didn't seem to have any makeup on, only lipstick, and this color, which was close to bright red, looked particularly good against the white clothes. "I was passing by here, and my stomach suddenly hurt..." The primary school student in the waiting room seemed to have finished his examination and was waiting to get his medicine. I was immediately called into the examination room. Doctor Nanpu is not far from what I imagined after reading the letter.His hair was thick and dark, and his golf-tanned skin looked perfectly healthy.His physique is so good that people imagine that he was once a strong athlete in school. "You are..." Nanpu glanced at the medical records professionally, and looked at me squarely. "To be honest, I'm here for this letter." I took the letter out of my pocket. "Ah..." There was an obvious reaction on Nan Pu's expression.For a long while, he looked at the envelope a little stunned, and then his eyes fell on my face. "This is you, doctor..." Nan Pu nodded silently, then shifted her bewildered eyes to the direction of the pharmacy. Mrs. Chunjiang just opened the curtain separating the pharmacy and the examination room and came in. "Excuse me, aren't you Mr. Sano who writes mystery novels?" Madame asked me in a soft tone. I am using an insurance card issued by the National Health Association of the Arts and Arts.Of course, my real name was written on it, but there was also a column to fill in my pseudonym, and the word "reasoning" was written in the column of the group I belonged to. "That's right. I've read several of your masterpieces. I remember that one of your works a long time ago described a story about a female doctor being threatened, right?" "Well, you mean I published in a women's magazine...?" I was surprised by her question.Mrs. Chunjiang should be referring to the "Disappeared Medical Certificate", right? Is this just a coincidence?I had the feeling of being challenged by Mrs. Both Mr. Nanpu and I pretended to be patients and doctors to each other because of Madam's sight. Taking advantage of the time when his wife was returning to the pharmacy, Mrs. Nanpu quickly slipped me a note, which read: "At 7 o'clock, see you at the Cafe 'Take Buck' in front of the station." Nan Pu came to the "Ta Bake" cafe at 7:10.When he came, he was wearing a kimono. "Can you leave the clinic?" "It doesn't matter, my clinic is open until 6 o'clock. When there are emergency patients, my wife will call here." "Then... madam knows that I'm meeting you here?" "No, I like the coffee here. I go out for a walk every day at this time, so I stop by here." Perhaps because of wearing a kimono, Nanpu's mood was much more relaxed than before.This may also be because he has made up his mind and is ready to reveal everything to me. In fact, I feel a little guilty about him.Because Ochiai was sitting on the seat behind Nanpu, listening to our conversation.It was with Ochiai's assistance that I found Nanpu. He asked to do so. Can I still refuse? There is not much difference between Nanpu's conversation and letter.At first he refused to say the woman's name.Say it in the end.Violation of this article of the Physician Law (prohibition of undiagnosed treatment, etc.) is punishable by a fine, so the statute of limitations for public prosecution is three years-this is because he feels at ease after hearing my explanation? The woman, Miho Sakurai, was working as a waitress at a bar in Shinjuku.Nanpu met her when she went to this bar for a drink with fellow physicians after a dinner at a physician meeting. "People's psychology is really wonderful. After that happened, I broke up with her because I was a little scared in my heart, but, to be honest, I still miss her. I even dream of her sometimes." Mile." "Have you never seen her since?" "Yes, I'm concerned about how she's doing. I've been to her apartment once during this time, but she's moved out." Could it be that the Nanpu family sent me a letter to ask me to help him find Miho Sakurai? —I suddenly had such doubts. The apartment she was living in at the time was on the edge of District N.It is a wooden two-story building called "Shengzhuang".Miho Sakurai's room was room 24 on the second floor, and the man who was going to live with the Nanpu family lived in room 25.It's not clear what the man's name was—Nampo said. "You really don't remember?" I asked inquisitively. "It seems to be Yamada, and it also seems to be Tanaka. Anyway, it is a very common surname. The more common the surname is, the harder it is to remember." "Doctor, let me ask one thing. How many death certificates have you issued in the past few years?" "This... probably less than ten a year?" "Do you remember the names of these patients?" "Because the medical records must be kept, it is not difficult to find out." "If I were to name a person and ask you if you had ever issued a death certificate for that person, would you be able to answer that?" "Whether it's my patient or not, I have memories. Mr. Sano, you intend to investigate, isn't that right?" Nan Pu suddenly showed a disturbed expression. "I do mean that, because the matter has aroused my professional interest. I will, however, take care not to get you in the way." "Well... If you have a chance to meet her, can you please greet her for me? Although she may have a new man..." "I see, I will greet you then." "Then I will take my leave." After seeing him walk out of the shop, Ochiai moved over and sat down. "How do you plan to move the next move?" "Let's check all the household registration offices in District N, looking for the death certificate and death declaration issued by Nan Pu." "I'm afraid this is not enough? Because the death declaration is not necessarily handled in the N district. And didn't the Nanpu family say that they had issued a medical certificate in duplicate? According to the regulations, if the deceased died in his county or city, he must submit two death declarations , so I guess that the two death certificates are used for this. On the contrary, people whose native place is in Tokyo die in other prefectures and cities. Therefore, we may have to check all the death certificates in Tokyo. The household registration office is not allowed. To put it to the extreme, it is not impossible for a person originally from Chiba to be killed in Kanagawa." "makes sense." "I don't quite agree with him, though." What Ochiai said made sense.In fact, not necessarily as he said.However, it is not impossible for the gangster to apply this medical certificate to the household registration office in District N.It is worthwhile to run for nothing, and the household registration offices in several places are still worth a run—this is my idea. But, how could I open my mouth about such a thing?He helped me out of good intentions.If the result of making him spend a lot of effort traveling so many places fails to make news materials, wouldn't that be an excuse to him? "Anyway, I'll meet this woman tomorrow morning," Ochiai said. "But, hasn't she already moved away from the apartment in 'Shengzhuang'?" "It's not easy to find out about this kind of thing? When I go to the 'Holy Village', I will find out the real names of the couple who lived in Room 25 at the time. Then I will investigate the relationship between the two people." relationship, maybe some clues will be found. I think this may be more effective than going to household registration offices in various places..." "Then thank you. If there is a major discovery, please call me immediately? I should be at home." Although I said so in my mouth, I didn't have much confidence in my heart.How easy is it to investigate the relationship around you that Ochiai said?Didn't the police take care of things that can be found out by just asking casually? The next day, when I was seeing off the guests and returning to the study, Ochiai happened to call. "Things are a bit strange. Would you please come out?" Ochiai said. "Things are strange...how do you say it is strange?" "Miho Sakurai died. And it was Dr. Nanpu who issued the death certificate." "what?" Human psychology is amazing enough. ?At that time, I remembered what Nan Pu said: "If you have a chance to see her, can you please greet her for me?" What is going on here?According to Nanpu, he broke up with Sakurai Miho shortly after the coercion incident, and has never seen her since. "Hey, hello!" Ochiai yelled twice. "Oh, I'm sorry. Then... what is the name of the disease written on the medical certificate?" "Myocardial infarction..." "Oh? . . . I see. Where shall we meet then?" "Can you come to the newspaper branch? I'm reporting to the branch chief." After hanging up the phone, I was a little excited.It's a welcome excitement.The resting nerves of the whole body suddenly wake up, waiting for the command of the brain center - I have such a feeling. A medical certificate signed by Nanpu, and it was myocardial infarction.This is the medical certificate, can it be wrong?The medical certificate was indeed used.And the victim was Nanpu's past lover.Doesn't such speculative fiction-style material excite me? When I came to the newspaper branch, I saw Xinggu and Ochiai eating together. Ochiai's findings were as follows: On the morning of this day, Ochiai first went to the "Shengzhuang" apartment and asked the administrator Miho Sakurai for the new address.Fortunately, the administrator is a careful person, and he has a very detailed register. The new address she transferred was the second M apartment in Mejiro. Ochiai came to the Mejiro Ward Office and checked Sakurai Miho's household registration. As a result, he discovered that Miho Sakurai had died in September 1965. "When I heard this, I was really stunned. Although I felt confused at the time, I also felt a little strange, so I asked the head of household registration to find out the death declaration file at that time and show it to me. It turned out that this death diagnosis The book was opened by Nanpu Shingo. My heart almost jumped out of my mouth at that time." "Who handles the death declaration formalities?" "The applicant is a person named Shizuko Koyama. According to household registration information, this woman reported her household registration to Miho Sakurai's household about a week ago and became a cohabitant. However, shortly after Miho Sakurai's death, she moved her household registration back to the original household. address." "What kind of person is this?" "Shizuko Koyama's original household registration is in Shinagawa. I have asked someone to investigate." Xinggu replied. "That's a little odd," I said. According to the household registration law, no matter who makes the declaration of death, it must be the family members or other cohabitants of the deceased, as well as the landlord, landlord, house or land administrator, etc.Koyama Shizuko's declaration as a cohabitant is not inconsistent with the law, so the district office accepted it.A week before Sakurai Miho's death, Koyama Shizuko moved her household registration to become a cohabitant. Doesn't this mean anything?Could it be that this is an account set up for the purpose of submitting a death declaration at that time? "I think this is very strange. The manager of Apartment 2M is still there. According to him, he only knew that Miho Sakurai had died when he saw the body being moved out." "Who moved the body?" ?” "It seems to be someone from the funeral home commissioned by Shizuko Koyama." "Didn't the administrator become suspicious at the time?" "I also asked about that. However, he said that since there is a doctor's certificate, there should be no irregularities. Even if he has doubts in his heart, he should not publicize it so as not to spoil the image of the apartment-I think this is his Original intention. At that time, high-end apartments had sprung up everywhere, and many places could not be rented out. Of course, the administrator did not want to see the image of the apartment damaged. He was secretly complacent about not holding a farewell ceremony in the apartment. .” "Has the administrator seen Shizuko Koyama?" "Yes. I heard that after registering her household registration, she once took biscuits to the administrator's room to express her intentions. She said at the time that she would come to live here occasionally in the future. The administrator said that it was rare to see such a well-behaved The person who is here even secretly praised her. I think she is the win over manager." "What kind of woman is she?" "I heard that she is a designer who opened a fashion store in Ginza. She is a woman in her early 30s." Ochiai said while looking at the notebook.There are a lot of dense words written on the notebook.He found out so many things in one morning, is he really a more diligent and capable reporter than I imagined? "What did the undertaker say?" "It's been three years, and these people's memory is not very clear. Because their task is only to put the body in the coffin and transport it to the crematorium in a hearse. Bring the ashes back to their hometown for the funeral - this is Tokyo. It’s the custom of outsiders, so naturally these people won’t be suspicious. If they get extra tips, it’s even harder to say.” At this time, the phone on Xinggu's desk suddenly rang. "I'm Xinggu....What?...Oh, I got it. Okay, come back quickly." Xinggu didn't record it when he listened to the phone, and then hung up the phone rudely. “是山内打回来的，事情好像越来越有意思了。听说这个小山静子以前是和被害者在同一家酒吧工作的，现在已经结婚。她说从来没有把户口迁到这样的公寓过。这一点，不管到警局或法院，她都敢发誓。而且这个女人今年才26岁。” "That……" 落合站起来说：“莫非有人冒用她名字，办理户口迁移手续后又到管理员处打招呼？” “可能。总之，日本的政府机关采取的是形式主义，只要档齐全、盖有印章，无论什么样的申报都会受理的。”星谷用幸灾乐祸的口气说。 年龄30岁出头、自称是时装设计师的女人。——有关这个女人的情况，到这天下午时更加凸显。 负责追查当时居住“圣庄”二十五号房那对夫妇的田渊记者，这天下午2点多时，带着一位三十五六岁白领阶层模样的男子回到报社支局来。 这名男子叫做山中重次郎，他就是要胁楠浦氏，使他签写死亡诊断书的人。 山中重次郎说，他们夫妻在事件后发生不久就搬出“圣庄”，后来又搬过三次家，现在居住在住宅公团规划建立的A社区。他们夫妻每次搬家都有照规定报户口，因此被田渊记者寻觅到。 “你们这是干什么嘛！” 山中（楠浦氏记忆中的名字是山田或田中，原来各对一半）在支局客厅的沙发椅上坐下来就说道：“你们报馆何必这样大惊小怪呢？那不都是闹着玩儿的吗？” “闹着玩儿……？” 星谷以谴责的口吻插嘴说：“你说，你要胁楠浦大夫，这是闹着玩儿的？” “谁说我要胁过他呢？我只是受人之托，演了这场戏而已。因为托我的人正是这位大夫的妹妹嘛。” “妹妹？她有多大年纪？” “这……当时看起来好像30出头吧？实际年龄是不是大一些，这我就不知道了。这个人的穿着倒是很考究的。” “这位女士……” 落合打岔问道：“她有没有自称服装设计师呢？” “这我记不太清楚。你这么一说，我倒有这样的感觉。她给人的感觉是：有自己的事业，而且干劲十足……” 据山中说，这个自称楠浦医师妹妹的女人找他的目的是为要使她哥哥的心回到家庭，央求他帮忙。 她哥哥虽然开了一家内科诊所，可是，自从迷恋上一个女人以后，已无心经营医务。任此下去，不但诊所会没落，家庭必然也会毁灭。如果诊所来了急诊病患，结果由于寻觅不到医生，贻误医治时间而一命归阴，这不就成了大事吗？因此，当做行行好事，帮忙演一场戏——这是她的说词。 “所以，我只是应她的央请，演了一场戏而已。我说的台词都是经过她指导的。” “这家诊所创业的资金是由太太的娘家拿出来的，这件事情也是她告诉你的罗？”我问道，这件事情关系到探索这个女人的确实身份，非弄清楚不可。 “当然！不然，我怎么会知道这种事情呢？” “我问你一件事情。”星谷突然问，“你到底拿了多少钱？” “什么？……你说什么？” “我问这个女人到底给了你多少报酬？” 星谷的口气不正和刑警人员一样吗？我要是继续干新闻记者到现在，必要时也会说出这样的话吗？ “她给了我十万元。” 出乎意料地，山中坦承了这件事情。他是被星谷之威严所震慑住了吧？“那家公寓住的几乎都是过夜生活以及小星之类女人，环境实在不好，所以我老早就有搬走的念头。干这件事情拿到十万元时，我就付得起要搬进去的新公寓的押金和该给房地产公司的佣金，剩下的钱还可以买一个小橱柜——有这样的好处，我怎么不欣然承诺呢？” “说的也是。可是，有死亡诊断书的话，干杀人勾当也逃得过法网——你有没有想到这一点呢？” “什么？有人会干这样的事情吗？这张诊断书我后来交给那个女人了……” 以上是山中所说的话。 我听完后立刻借电话打到楠浦诊所去。我在电话里间楠浦氏他有没有妹妹。 “妹妹？我没有妹妹啊。您为什么问我这种事情呢？” “没有，这倒不出我所料。还有一件事情，今晚我可能到府上去拜访一下。” “到我家来？这……” 虽然楠浦氏有些为难的样子，我也没让他有说话的机会。 “我们到时候再说吧。”我说完就挂断电话。 不知什么时候站到我背后来的星谷，这时拍了一下我的肩膀。 “我们的看法好像一样。去的时候，我要你带落合一道去——这一点你该不会拒绝吧？” “这次亏你们这么大的协助才查出这么多事来，我还能拒绝吗？” “如果你认为一个人去比较方便谈话，我可以不派人的。不过，你得带答录机去，把谈话内容录回来。” “好。……至于照相的事情，这该怎么处理呢？” “这件事情等听完录音再说吧。在这之前拍照片有什么用呢？” 后来我们又花几小时时间，交换了有关处理这个事件的意见。 这天夜晚将近8点时，我在楠浦诊所的客厅和楠浦氏夫妻面对面坐着。 虽然我的面前摆有红茶，但我从头至尾都没有端起来喝。 楠浦夫妻和我之间的咖啡桌上摆有答录机。要把谈话内容录下来，他们两个人对此都没有表示反对。 我说：“这位女性何许人也？——这是最后的问题。这位女性自称为大夫的妹妹，而大夫实际上并没有妹妹。可是，这位女性知道这家诊所的创业资金是由太太的娘家拿出来的。知道这个事实的人应该不多，如此一想，答案不是很容易推测得到吗？” "You mean to say..." 楠浦氏愕然地转头望了一下春江夫人的脸。他好像察觉到我指的是什么人了。 “佐野先生，依您的口吻来看，好像在说我就是这个女人——是不是这样呢？” 比起楠浦氏，春江夫人显得从容不迫多了。 “如果我说，我认为如此呢？” “这您就得拿出证据来。” “这还不简单？死亡诊断书上部分的笔迹——我是说，樱井美保这个名字和死亡年月日等部分——这些字经鉴定后一定会证明是太太所写的吧？” “如果我是这个人……”夫人依然露着微笑说，“写的时候我一定会把字迹改过来，因此，这样的鉴定不会有结论。” “另外还有证人哪。第二M公寓的管理员和山中重次郎——这两个人难道不记得太太的睑吗？” “事情都过三年了。况且，女人的脸稍微改变发型或画上眼线，就会显得全然不一样，他们怎么能证明那个女人就是我呢？何况我曾于两年前接受过整形美容手术。” “你为什么要这样做呢？接受整形美容手术不正证明你做贼心虚吗？” “这只是推理小说式的逻辑而已。”夫人以淡然的口吻说，“这样的逻辑不可能成为现实事件的证据，法院审理案件时，会把多年前只有一面之缘的人所说的证词采用为证据吗？” 我默然无语。她说的话一点没错。纵然那年龄30出头、服装设计师模样的女性确实是春江夫人，但谁能证明她干过杀人勾当呢？ “我倒想向您提供一个可以拿来写推理小说的故事——您愿不愿意听？” 也不晓得出于怎么样的想法，夫人突然转变了话题。她的眼眸里射出向我挑战似的光线。 “你说来听听吧。” “这是一个女人的故事，而这个女人是一位开业医生的太太。这位开业医生家里有哪些人，这一点无关紧要。佐野先生要当做和我家同样，这是您的自由。这位太太察觉到自己的丈夫假借出诊的名义经常与女人约会。可是，她装着被蒙在鼓里的样子，而兴师问罪也为她的自尊心所不容许。她的丈夫已被外面这个女人迷得神魂颠倒。要是外面的女人肚子大起来了，那该怎么办呢？这位太太想到这一点后，觉得非让先生和这个女人切断关系不可，于是委托私人侦探调查出这个女人住的公寓。后来这位太太采取的是怎么样的方法，这就由您自己去猜想吧。花十万元收买隔壁的人，用要胁手段让先生开出死亡诊断书——我想这个点子倒很不错，一定有效果才对。” 说到这里时，夫人停顿了一下，同时，斜眼瞟了一眼楠浦氏。 “我不能告诉您这是哪位医生的故事，不过，我知道有人使用类似的方法而成功，这倒是真的。” “我觉得你的故事很有意思。结果，这位太太的先生和这个女人分手了。可是，后来怎么样呢？” 我对她用这个方式说的话很感兴趣，于是试着逗她把话说完。 “只是，这位太太算错了一件事。这个女人拿到医生给她的一笔钱后离开，并且用这笔钱做抵押住进一幢高级公寓。可是，不久她就面临付不起房租的窘境了。这时候她开始要胁这位太太。你先生曾经在人家的要胁之下开过没有患者姓名的死亡诊断书——把这件事情向警方揭穿时，你们不怕惹上麻烦吗？……在这样的处境之下，这位太太不想办法行吗？结果，她想出刚好用这张死亡诊断书来对付这个女人的方法。她于是一方面研究户籍法，一方面调查这个女人和店里哪位同事比较要好等等事情，可以说是准备得相当周到了。讨好公寓管理员，当然也是手段之一。……最后，她佯装带钱来就进到这个女人的公寓房间，然后伺机为她注射了马钱子——一种神经刺激剂。或许您会认为这样做谈何容易，其实，对习惯于为人打针的人来说，这只是一件小事情而已。稍微有经验的人很容易就可以做得到。这位太太在先生的诊所常常代替护士为病人打针，所以算来是很老道的嘛……好啦，我的故事到此为止，后来怎么样，您这位推理小说作家自己去想像吧。我可以告诉您的一点是，东京这个地方——尤其是住在高级公寓的人——人人彼此都非常冷漠，所以，干这种事情是相当方便的。殡仪馆的人只要看到死亡诊断书，自然一句话都不会多说了……” 夫人说到这里，伸手关掉了答录机的开关。 “你……”楠浦氏刚要开口就把话咽回去。他本来准备说什么，我当然不知道。 这件事情不适合于在报纸上报导——星谷下的是这样的结论。社会版主编的意见和他相同。 首先，这件事毫无证据。就以我录下的录音带而言，夫人在谈话中并没有说是她干的。何况被杀害的樱井美保已成骨灰，即使检察官起诉，法院也只有以证据不足为理由而判以无罪。 将这样的事情在报纸上报导而被她告以毁损名誉时，报社将难以反驳，无法与之对抗。 要告就告，在兴讼之前努力搜集证据，反而让她尝尝铁窗滋味——虽然年轻记者们纷纷如此表态，然而，负责人哪能轻举妄动呢？ 就这一点来说，小说和新闻就大不相同。小说有创作自由这个护身符，没有被告以名誉毁损罪之虞。不仅如此，作者还可以任意加上推理。 我这篇推理小说就是如此产生的。 最后附带报告的一点是：楠浦夫妻已经决定关掉设在N区的诊所，准备到I县的一处无医村开诊疗所去了。