Chapter 8 Chapter Seven: Being Framed (Part 2)

<fox den> In this way, I stayed up all night. On the third day, when I felt my head was heavy and my consciousness was blurred, Kindaichi and the police officer had already arrived. ah!Sorry to keep you waiting. Kindaichi smiled and said to me.At that time, I was still a little confused, and then I remembered that Kindaichi had invited me to explore the underground labyrinth yesterday. oh!Do you really want to go? Of course I want to go! Then can I go together?Will it bother you? how could be?Don't bother me, if you can come, we are so grateful!To be honest, no one is more familiar with the situation in the cave than you.

I was thinking about the implication of these words, but Kindaichi still had a smile on his face, while the police officer stood beside him without saying a word, with the expression that Jintianichi was in charge of everything. If so, let's go!Oh, wait a minute, I'll go get ready first, I'll be right there. Oh, wait a minute, officer, don't you have something to tell Tatsuya? Oh, I almost forgot!Tatsuya, didn't you say that you received an anonymous letter when you were in Kobe?It's the letter warning you not to come to Eight Tombs Village. ah! That letter must still be there!May I have a look at it?

I silently glanced at the two of them, feeling a little strange in my heart. Did something happen again? Um!I'll talk to you later, but take it out and show it to the police officer first. I hastened to find the letter from the filing box.The police officer and Jin Tianyi looked and looked carefully, then nodded as if they had gained something and said: exactly the same. Kindaichi said, the police officer also nodded, and I watched their conversation in a daze. what happen?Do you know who sent this anonymous letter? Nah!Not about this. The police officer said slowly: Yesterday, the N City Police Department also received an anonymous letter. We feel that the writing style and paper quality of that letter are very similar to the one you received, so

What do you guys think? I thought they already knew the identity of the sender of the anonymous letter. Um!The handwriting is almost the same material as the paper.Especially with the kind of paper that the ink sees through, I'm pretty sure it's exactly the same. Tatsuya, this person is extremely cunning, he deliberately wrote on paper that ink would permeate, so that it would be difficult to find the real culprit by comparing the handwriting. So, what was in that letter?Is it related to me? Yes, Tatsumi. Kindaichi looked at me sympathetically. He denounced you, just like the one you received. He categorically stated that the murderer was Tatsuya Tajimi, and added: Why didn't he be arrested and sentenced to death?

I can't help but feel depressed. So, you still don't know who sent it? have no idea.However, one thing that is certain is that someone in the village must have done it, because the postmark of the Bamu Village Post Office was stamped on the envelope. In other words, someone in this village wants to frame me! Jin Tian nodded. But is there any evidence written in that letter that I am the murderer? Don't worry, he didn't mention anything, he just insisted that Tian Zhi met Tatsuya as the murderer, so I also found it very strange.Tatsuya, I think, the person who wrote this anonymous letter is definitely not an idiot, at least he knows to cover up his handwriting, or he must have a reason to hide his handwriting.The letter didn't mention any evidence, but insisted that Tian Zhi saw Tatsuya as the murderer. He should also know that the police would not take action just because of writing these things. So, what is his intention?What are you expecting?These really make me feel very strange.

So, the purpose of this anonymous letter is not to get the police to take action against me, but something else! I think probably so!If there was no purpose, why would he take the risk?However, we really don't know what his purpose is. Hearing this, my heart has been half cold. Then we went into the cave.Today, only the three of us came in, and each of us carried a kerosene lamp and walked silently in the dark tunnel.The words that Jin Tianyi said just now made me fall into a cloud of gloom for a moment, and I didn't even have the strength to speak, but at this moment, I noticed one thing.

What happened?Why didn't you see the members of the search team?is today your off day? oh!They stopped going on strike. strike? yes!They said it would be a waste of time to search any further.They felt that it was impossible for Kuno to be here. Even if he was, they had searched for three full days, so they should be able to find it!Therefore, today they refused to enter the cave to search again no matter what they said. So these three days have been busy for nothing! Why do you think so? Didn't you find Cousin Kuno yet? The words are correct, but thanks to them, the scope of the search has now been narrowed down a lot.

Why? Because they have found the place, we don't have to look for it again! I looked at them and wondered if they were really looking for them. However, Mr. Kindaichi, Cousin Kuno has feet!He can run around! Kindaichi patted his forehead as if he suddenly realized. Um!Makes sense, I didn't think of that!ha!ha! The police officer didn't express any opinions, but just walked silently with a kerosene lamp.Everyone went their own way, and I suddenly felt a little uneasy. We soon arrived at the ghost fire pool. Kosuke Kindaichi's goal was the other side of the pond, and I was the same, because the two places, the Fox Cave and the Dragon's Jaw, were on the opposite bank, and the most suspicious place was near the Dragon's Jaw.

Standing by the ghost fire pool, I looked at the black crows on the other side, and a sense of trembling rushed up from the balcony.It's time to decide my fate, no, in fact, my fate has been doomed long ago, it has been doomed since my mother's generation!I stood in this abyss of fate, feeling extremely helpless. It seems that Kindaichi really made up his mind to go there. Officer, let's go then! OK!However, will there be any problems?I heard that no one has been in here for many years! It's all right, Tatsumi, how about you?Are you ready? Um.let's go! I answered firmly.

All right!Let's go!Then I will go first. As I said before, the cave on the right is the end of the road, and the cliff is on the left.There is a small plank road in the middle of the cliff, which can only allow one person to walk sideways, and the surface of the cliff is full of sand, so it is quite dangerous to walk this road. Jin Tian hung a kerosene lamp on his waist, pressed his body against the cliff, and slowly walked sideways like a crab crawling.I followed closely behind him, the police officer in the rear. We really moved forward inch by inch, and occasionally we could hear the stones under our feet fall into the pool, making a thumping sound.Every time I hear a sound, my heart will tighten.Although the ghost fire pool is not very deep, it is definitely not a question of depth, but the legend says that the ghost fire pool is too scary, no one wants to fall into that dark pool.

In addition, what makes people feel disgusting is the luminous moss that climbs all over the cliff.The flickering bluish-white light often gives people the illusion of distance, as if it is shining brightly beside them, but in fact there is still a distance away from them. Therefore, as long as you don’t pay attention to turning your body aside, you will often lose sight of it. will lose center of gravity. Everyone was silent and had nothing to say, and I felt like we were crawling silently in the dark like caterpillars.In the utter silence, I could hear the rapid breathing of Kindaichi and the officer, and I was drenched with nervousness. We finally came to the middle of the small plank road.Suddenly, Jin Tianyi screamed, and at the same time, the kerosene lamp was also extinguished, and the surroundings were suddenly plunged into darkness. I thought to myself: It's over, how can I go forward in a dark place?It is impossible to go back, this is doomed to fall.I felt that the blood in my whole body was congealed in an instant. Mr. Kindaichi!Mr. Kindaichi, what's wrong with you? I yelled into the darkness. Kindaichi Kosuke, Kindaichi Kosuke! The police officer also called from behind. Then, we slowly heard a sound in front of us, the sound of a match being struck. Finally, Kindaichi's face appeared under the kerosene lamp, but his panicked face appeared on my knee. Kindaichi quickly looked around. ah!Scared me!I thought I fell into the pool!You have to be careful, it's suddenly a lot lower here. After speaking, he still looked around carefully. Officer, Tatsumi, please be patient, the road here is much wider. We finally reached the other side.There is a small open space here, and there are five openings. Jin Tianyi got into the hole on the far right first, but ran out after a while. This one is a dead end. However, he quickly got into the second hole and came back after a while. This hole is very deep, officer, please give me the rope. There were two bundles of rope, and Kaneda hung one of them on his left wrist, untied the other, and handed one end to the police officer. You have to hold it tightly, and you must not relax it. This is a life-and-death rope!Tatsuya, come with me. So I followed Kindaichi into the cave.It didn't take long, however, to discover that this, too, was a dead hole. Is it also a dead hole? yes!Now go to the third hole! We left the officer to go in again.Unfortunately, this hole is still a dead hole. After three consecutive failures, we entered the fourth hole, only to find that there are countless forks here. When Kindaichi was about to walk into the first fork, he untied the other rope from his wrist and asked me to hold one end. Just stand here, remember, never let go of the rope.As long as you hold it well, I am not afraid of the road ahead no matter how many twists and turns it takes. So Jin Tianyi took the other end of the rope and went in, and he came out not long after. Wow!It scared me to death. As soon as I went in, I found that there were three more roads inside. Fortunately, they were not deep, and they were all dead ends. So we pulled up the rope that the police officer was holding, and immediately saw two more small caves.We still used the method just now, and Kindaichi went in again. I put the kerosene lamp by my feet, and with my left hand I held the rope to the police officer, and with my right hand I held the rope to Kindaichi.However, not long after, I felt like there was a light footstep coming from another cave, and I listened again with all my attention, yes, someone really came this way!At this time, I was already in cold sweat. I quickly blew out the kerosene lamp, then squatted aside and looked into the cave. There was indeed a glimmer of light shining in the cave, and it was slowly approaching the entrance of the cave.The flame looked like a kerosene lamp, and someone really came with a kerosene lamp!My heart was pounding, pounding.If I could escape, I really wanted to turn around and run.But I can't do this, because I still hold the rope that is related to Jin Tian's life and death in my hand! I calmed myself down as best I could, then held my breath and stared at the approaching lights.The light was getting closer and closer, and finally appeared not far away, and it was about to come in front of me.Suddenly, a red and black face appeared.I recognized that face in the dark, and my heart was like a bucket hanging high that was suddenly thrown down. Mr. Kindaichi! I yelled out of nowhere, and Jin Tian rushed over as soon as he heard it. who?who is it. It's me, Tatsuya!Wait a minute, I'll light the kerosene lamp. As soon as the light came on, I saw Kindaichi standing there with his eyes wide open suspiciously. Tatsumi, what's wrong with you? I was scared to death!I have been standing here all this time. It turned out that you came back after a circle. I always thought that you should come out of the original hole, so I was shocked.I didn't expect it to be you, so I quickly blew the fire away.Scared you!I'm so sorry. Um!The road just now divided into left and right. I continued to walk forward, but unexpectedly, I walked back again without knowing it. Although situations like this were repeated several times, Kindaichi still did not give up the idea of ​​searching.Because if you don't try to walk around every fork in the road, it won't be called a thorough search.However, the problem is that there are countless small forks in those small holes. It turns out that this is the so-called fox den. I remember the lyrics of a song that said: Don't get lost in the fox hole!The hole mentioned in the lyrics has as many as one hundred and eight.Although exaggerated a bit, but, to be honest, it is quite a lot.Kindaichi still checked one by one. I'm starting to get a little fidgety, but it hasn't taken us too long so far.Just when I was bored waiting, Kindaichi, who was in which hole I was in, suddenly pulled the rope hard. When I was about to go in and find out, I suddenly remembered what Jin Tianyi told me just now. I quickly pulled the rope connecting the police officer, and then tied the two bundles of rope to the stalactites hanging upside down. After a while, the police officer came running up. ah!Tatsuya, did you find anything? I don't know, it seems to be in this hole! We followed the rope pulled by Kindaichi and walked about 300 meters. Finally, we saw the flames of kerosene lamps.This hole happened to be a dead end here, but we saw Kindaichi squatting beside the kerosene lamp and looking at the ground intently. Mr. Kindaichi, what's wrong with you? Jin Tian waved his hand to signal for us to go, and silently pointed towards the ground.We hurried over, glanced at the ground, and immediately froze. There was a pile of clods of soil raised high under Jin Tianyi's feet. I probed into it, ah!Isn't that the upper body of a man wearing clothes?His face could no longer be seen clearly, but the surrounding area was full of stench. Because the body was not buried properly, it would emit a foul smell.I came here because of the stench. who is it?Who is this man? My teeth were chattering in terror, and the officer stared at the horrible thing in horror. Although the corpse has been decomposed beyond recognition, I can assure you with his head that he is Dr. Kuno. Then Kindaichi handed the officer a silver cigarette case: This was found on the chest of the deceased.You open it and have a look, it's very interesting! The police officer immediately opened the cigarette case, and what was inside was not cigarettes, but a note, which read: Doctor｜Kuno Tsunemi／Nii Shuhei The murderer drew a red line over Kuno Tsunemi's name.Strange, what is going on here? Judging from the handwriting, I can be sure that it is the handwriting of Uncle Kuno. Could it be that Cousin Kuno ended his life by himself? <The Secret Behind the Screen> Jin Tianyi must have guessed that Cousin Kuno had been killed long ago, otherwise, he would not have insisted on searching himself today after the search team searched for three days. I feel a little ashamed. I thought that Detective Kosuke Kindaichi finally hit the nail on the head this time!The result was beyond my expectation. He had already guessed that Cousin Kuno had been killed, and he even thought that the body must be in the depths of the cave.Thinking about it now, I really see people as inferior, and I can't help feeling a sense of admiration for him. Kindaichi Kosuke helped a man with an unattractive appearance. The saying that people should not be judged by their appearance really came true in him. He is worthy of being a rare genius! Let's not talk about these for now.Due to the discovery of the dead body of Cousin Kuno, the case took another 180-degree turn. Cousin Kuno was originally the most suspicious, because he wrote a series of names in his notepad.When the notepad was exposed, he suddenly disappeared, so everyone thought he was the most suspected.But when he died, all the clues returned to the original point. Judging from the degree of decay of the corpse, even I, as a layman, know that it was not caused by three or four days.Later, after careful research and judgment by the doctor, it was determined that Cousin Kuno had been dead for at least two weeks.So, Cousin Kuno was killed shortly after he left home, and he died ten days earlier than Aunt Xiaomei.In this way, Cousin Kuno is definitely not the murderer, he is just another victim who was killed by the murderer with the same modus operandi. Cousin Kuno died of poisoning. Since Grandpa Chousong, this drug has been used many times in murders.The question is, how could Cousin Kuno take this drug?I think the bamboo leaves found next to the corpse should prove it! There were also two hardened rice balls wrapped in that bamboo leaf. Judging from the toxic reaction found in the two rice balls, someone must have poisoned the rice first, and then gave these rice balls to Cousin Kuno eats.On this point, Aunt Kuno can also prove it. On the day when Uncle Kuno ran away from home, no one in the family knew about it, and Uncle Kuno knew nothing about family affairs, of course he didn’t know how to make rice balls, even if he made them himself, it’s impossible for everyone in the family not to notice, so he Impossible to take lunch away. We didn't quite believe Aunt Kuno's statement. In the end, Aunt Kuno blushed and said: Due to the large number of people in the family, there has been insufficient food for a long time. In the past few years, the family has never cooked white rice, so he definitely did not take it away from home. ah!A scene suddenly appeared in my mind: in the stalactite cave, Uncle Kuno curled up and trembled constantly. Although I don't know what Cousin Kuno did, but Cousin Kuno must be very scared and uneasy when he escaped hastily!Then, at that time, a person suddenly appeared and kindly sent rice balls, but Uncle Kuno ate them without knowing anything, one, two, three, four, five Then there was depression, groaning, vomiting blood to cramps all over the body, followed by exhaustion, weakness, and swallowing the last breath. During the whole process, I think the murderer may have been watching with cold eyes. ah!terrible!This thing is really chilling! When will this bloody killing incident stop?Enough is enough, I can't take it anymore!I want to go back to the gray life I lived before, I'm dying, I can't support it anymore! But, I knew it was impossible, because I hadn't gotten over the madness yet, and I felt that there was something much more terrible ahead of me. First, the murder of Cousin Kuno is very unfavorable to me, because Cousin Kuno is like a shield for me.However, now the only hope is shattered.Moreover, I believe that those who originally doubted Cousin Kuno will now redouble their sympathy for Cousin Kuno, and instead put all their suspicion and hatred on me. You have to be careful!Tatsuya. One day my sister told me: I heard from A Dao that someone filed a lawsuit against you, and the paper is still pasted at the gate of the police station. sue me. Um!yes!The content is written that this series of murders are all done by you.Posted it last night. I just feel that there is an unknown fire slowly igniting in my stomach. Sister, did that person say anything about me? He didn't write these things, but he insisted that you are the murderer.The reason he held was that these things happened after you came, and he also wrote that because of you, these crazy things could not be stopped from happening and so on. My sister, who has always had a bad heart, was a little out of breath when she talked about this.Her health was not good, coupled with the blows of a series of homicides, and worrying about my safety, her heart became weaker.I didn't want to bother her anymore, but now I can't get enough of it. Sister, who posted that piece of paper?No, it should be said who hates me so much?According to the police officer, the police station recently received similar anonymous letters.There must be someone in this village who hates me very much and tried his best to drive me out of this village.Sister, who is this person?What the hell does he have against me? Why!I do not know either!But, Tatsumi, you must be careful!Maybe it's because I'm paranoid, although the people in the village are relatively simple, but it's hard to guarantee that nothing will happen. At this time, my sister had already smelled an ominous atmosphere brewing in the village, but I didn't notice it at all. Um!I will.However, I really feel frustrated.When I think about who really hates me so much, it makes me angry. As I was talking, I couldn't help crying, and my sister also cried with me, then patted my shoulder lightly and said: It's really hard for you.However, Chen Mi, don't pay too much attention to it, the misunderstanding will be cleared up one day.Be patient, don't act rashly! My sister is most worried that I will run away from home because I hate these things.In good conscience, judging from the situation of Tian Zhijian's house at that time, if I ran away, it would be a big trouble.Because Aunt Xiaozhu is already demented, and Sister Chundai’s health is not good, and she can’t breathe when she does a little work. The whole family is sick and crazy, and only I, a healthy person, is left to support the family business. Can I go?Maybe it's because of this that my sister won't let me go! In fact, my sister also loves me, because she loves me so much, so she is reluctant to let me go.I think I know my sister's heart very well, but when I think about it later, I only realized one-tenth of the affection in my sister's heart at that time! Let's not talk about these for now.Although the person who wanted to frame me tried every means to punish me, the police never came.In fact, since the discovery of Uncle Kuno's body, the police seemed to have suddenly quieted down. Not to mention Officer Isokawa, even Kosuke Kindaichi never came again.No one in the village took any action, and nothing else happened, not even Miyako. The whole village was very quiet during that period.I later learned that it was the quiet period before the storm, and I didn't know anything at the time.However, in this case, there was no treasure to be found, so I simply used this period to sort out my mother's love letters. After I asked my sister, I went to N City to find a master who could mount calligraphy and paintings, dismantled the three-sour picture screen and took out the love letter between my mother and Kamei Yoichi.I don't want to take the screen out of the house, and I don't want others to see my mother's love letter, so I ask the master to help me after noon every day. I like this job very much. When I came to Eight Tombs Village, I haven’t encountered a good thing. At least after sorting out these letters, I can calm down my long-term excited emotions. It may be due to the early death of my mother!So as long as I see something about my mother, I am very interested. At the beginning, as long as my sister was in better spirits, she would come over to take a look.However, after reading my mother's love letter, I may be too emotional, so I don't come here often. During that period, I sorted out the letters I took out of the screen every night, and read them carefully, and I never got tired of this job. As for the content of those letters, each one recorded how unfortunate my mother was back then. As he scolded me day and night, my heart and my body were gradually wasting away. If I don't obey him, he pulls me around by my hair. Presumably my mother must have been crying while writing at that time! When he was in a good mood, he would tell me to undress and lick me like a dog.I hate that feeling very much, but I dare not say it. From this point, it can be seen that even the way father caresses people is so weird. Occasionally I was at ease when he was away, sometimes reading in bed, sometimes writing letters.However, as soon as he came back, he would ask me what books I read at home?Who did you write to.He seems to know everything I do. I always feel that although his people are not at home, his soul seems to be attached to me, and he never leaves for a moment.When I think of this, the hairs all over my body stand on end. Seeing this, I thought my father really had supernatural powers. Even if he was not at home, he could know every move of his mother who stayed at home.If that is the case, it is not an exaggeration for my mother to be so terrified. At this time, I suddenly remembered that there seemed to be a hole in the wall with the mask in the next room! I know, I know, it turned out that after my father came back, he hid there to monitor my mother's every move, and then went back to my mother's room to guess what my mother had just done.My father usually has a brutal temperament, and he would fight with fists and kicks if he didn't like it.A man with an abnormal mind like him probably likes to see his mother trembling with fear. ah!Poor mother, what kind of life did she lead?She hardly ever had a moment of peace of mind! Thinking about it this way, I think it is a good idea for my mother to hide her secret in the screen.Even the very suspicious father would never have thought that there is a mystery behind the screen!I think my mother must often light a lamp in front of the screen and read the love letters inside the screen. The secret inside the screen proved my mother's unfortunate fate, but I didn't know that there was a bigger and bigger secret hidden in it, a great secret that changed my life That was the day when the master was about to finish his work. After he took out all the paper pasted behind the screen and was about to mount the screen again, the master suddenly called me: There is still something stuck here!Shall I take it out by the way? what? I don't know either, it feels thick to the touch.It is not glued directly on it, but placed in a paper bag, and the whole bag is pasted up.How to deal with this thing? After what the master said, I also thought of it.When the light came through, the left side of the screen looked as if something was stuck inside, but I never expected that something was put in an envelope.I'm anxious to know what's hidden inside Um!Then please help me out! It was a bag made of thick paper, and it was tightly sealed.I touched it.It seemed to contain some thick paper about the size of a postcard. When I waited for the master to go back that night, when I opened the envelope and took out the contents, my fingers trembled unconsciously.When I took a closer look, I couldn't believe it. I wondered if my eyes were wrong. That's my photo!However, I don't remember at all when I took it.The person in the photo looks about twenty-six or seven years old, about the same age as me now.It was a half-length photo with a smile on it, and judging from the background, it should have been taken in a photo studio.But why do I have no impression at all? I was at a loss, and I didn't know what was going on, but then I slowly thought about it.The person in the photo is just very similar, it is not me at all, but he is very similar to me regardless of his eyes, nose and mouth.The only thing that is not like me is that the photo was definitely not taken in the past two or three years. I stretched out my trembling hands and turned the photo over, and what caught my eye was: Yoichi Kamei (27 years old) Autumn photo of the tenth year of Taisho <fire of bullets> ah!I can not believe it!My mother's former lover actually looked exactly like me.Facts speak louder than words, and this is the best evidence of my mother's affair.I'm not Tajimi's real son, I'm the illegitimate son of my mother and lover Kamei Yoichi. This discovery didn't scare me, it drove me into a state of madness.On the one hand, it brought me great comfort and joy, on the other hand, it also made me taste the bitterness of disappointment, and it was difficult to accept this fact at once.If I am not the biological son that Tian Zhimi wants to hide, then the blood flowing in my body is not the blood of Tian Zhimi's family.This discovery is really great news for me, but it also means that the huge fortune of the Tajimi family is about to slip through my fingers. At that time, the properties of the Tajimi family were very attractive to me, and I had secretly investigated the properties of the Tajimi family.A cattle herder told me that Tian Zhimi’s family currently has more than 120 cattle that are handed over to the servants to raise in the mountains. At the market price at that time, a mature cattle can be sold for 100,000 yuan. about.What surprised me even more was that these were less than one-tenth of the total assets of the Tajimi family. Although the current Tian Zhimi's family is not as good as before, at least they still maintain the identity almost equivalent to the owner of the manor! After hearing these words, I became more interested in the properties of the Tajimi family. However, these properties are meaningless to me now, because I have lost the qualification to share property with Tian Zhimi's family.ah!This sense of disappointment and frustration immediately plunged me into a dark abyss. However, I suddenly thought of one thing. Could it be that Xiaomei, Xiaozhu's aunt and sister didn't notice this?When the tragedy happened, my sister was still young, maybe she couldn't remember; as for Aunt Xiaozhu and Aunt Mei, they probably had never met Yoichi Kamei!If they had seen it, they would not have noticed it, because Kamei Yoichi and I are so similar. But at that time, another terrible memory appeared in my mind, that is, when my brother Jiuya was dying, it was also the first time I met him. When my brother saw me for the first time, a mysterious look suddenly appeared on his face. Smile, and my brother also said: Um!Really good looking.It is really rare that our Tianzhijian family can produce such a good seed.ha!ha! That enigmatic smile and sarcasm made me wonder for a long time, and it has haunted me for a long time.It wasn't until today that I realized that my brother had known for a long time that I was not the son of the Tajimi family, but Kamei Yoichi's biological son.But, why did my brother ask me to inherit the incense of the Tajimi family?I think it's probably because he doesn't want to pass on the family property to Shintaro! My brother's strong hatred really makes me tremble with fear.In order not to allow Shintaro to take over the Tajimi family, he would rather hand over the family to a person who has no blood relationship. This is definitely not because he treats me well. I am just his puppet, a puppet who specializes in dealing with Shintaro.I was extremely depressed, and at the same time, a nameless fire was burning in my chest again. I couldn't sleep at all that night.I hate my father, my mother, my brother, and even more my own destiny. What face do I have to go back to Kobe?How can I be worthy of those colleagues and superiors who bless me and cheer me up?How should I tell them? In this way, I was very annoyed, frustrated, and irritable. Even in the middle of the night, I still didn't feel sleepy at all. However, everything in the world seems to be predestined, because this insomnia allowed me to escape a catastrophe. It was about ten o'clock in the middle of the night, I heard a deafening sound, I quickly sat up from the bed, and the boom sounded two or three times, breaking the silence of the night. Huh!What is the sound?When I was holding my breath and preparing to hear clearly again, the roof and the wooden doors and windows outside were rattling.ah!Someone threw stones at my house!When I figured it out, I jumped out of bed and put on some clothes, and then I heard the boom again. Something is wrong!I was so frightened that I quickly hid behind the door, my body trembling.I looked out through the crack of the door, and there was a bright red outside the wall. I saw torches everywhere.I don't know exactly what happened, I only know that there seems to be a large number of people rushing towards Tian Zhimi's house. I wanted to go out to find out, and when I ran halfway, I met my sister in pajamas. ah!Sister, what happened? When I asked my sister, she yelled at me almost at the same time: ah!Tatsuya!quick!run away! I took a closer look and saw that my sister was running towards me holding my shoes. Tatsumi, run away!Those people are here to catch you. What did you say?They're coming for me. I was confused. Yes, after they caught you, they planned to tie you up with a rope and throw you into the river!Say no more, let's go! My sister grabbed my hand tightly and pulled me away desperately.At this time, I was scared and angry! Sister, why did they arrest me?Why did you throw me into the river?I don't want to, I don't want to run away, I'm going to argue with them! No, absolutely not!How can they reason with you?They are in a rage now! But, sister, if I run away now, won't I admit that I am the murderer? It's useless to talk about it now!Maybe there will be a chance in the future to rehabilitate, now you run away and wait for the opportunity At this time, the noisy yelling and cursing outside the house could be heard more clearly. My sister was already pale with fright, and I was even more scared and shrank into a ball. Although I have locked the door, they will break into it in one fell swoop, hurry up, hurry up! but sister Tatsuya, what else do you want to say? My sister yelled: Are you not listening to me?Don't you understand why I should be so worried?let's go!let's go!Listen to me! I can no longer resist, and when I hear the sound of stones hitting the roof, doors and windows, I feel that my life is on the verge of death. Sister, where should I escape to? There is no other way, just hide in the cave!No one dares to go to the other side of the Ghost Fire Pond, so you can hide there for the time being, and I will deal with the situation as appropriate.If I can't show up for a while, I will also send food to you.Anyway, do as I say tonight. My sister's face is getting paler and paler, and I can't breathe just by saying these few words. I can't bear to make her worry anymore. Um!I see, and I will do as you tell me. I put on my watch and ran towards the storage room.It's 0:30 in the morning. Fortunately, there are flashlights and kerosene lamps in the storage room that were only used a while ago.At this time, my sister brought me another coat. Don't catch a cold! Um!Sister, I'm leaving. You have to be careful! My sister choked up and said, so I hurried into the cellar. The capricious fate finally pushed me into the dark tunnel. <Midnight pursuit> Looking back now, it was really a close call at that time, if I delay it a little bit, I'm afraid my life will be over! Immediately after passing through the cellar, I entered the tunnel.While walking in the tunnel, I could hear footsteps and shouts overhead from time to time.Judging from the noise, there were more than three or four people coming.Fortunately, I listened to my sister's words, otherwise the consequences would be unimaginable. I blew out the kerosene lamp and groped my way slowly through the dark tunnel.Since I often walk this way recently, I am familiar with it. After a while I was at the bottom of the second stone step.oh!I forgot to explain that walking up this stone step leads to the ancestral hall behind the courtyard.I think the person who dug this secret passage at the beginning probably just wanted to build a shortcut between the storage room and the ancestral hall.可是萬萬沒想到剛好碰到天然生成的鐘乳洞。 於是我開始尋找設在石壁上的機關，突然有一絲微光滲過來。 喲，這裡有個洞啊。 小心點，不太好走喔。 Um!no problem. 那些聲響迴盪在狹窄的洞穴裡，聽來格外刺耳。 我趕快按下機關。我從來沒有發覺石門移動得如此緩慢，那些腳步聲已經逐漸從上面下來，而石門卻只開了一點點而已，如果來不及，我就得照原路跑回去了。 ah!腳步聲和叫罵聲傳過來了呀！ 此時，我全身汗毛豎起，當石門開到可以側身進去的寬度時，我趕緊鑽進去，然後再按下機關，呼！so close.不過就在石門要慢慢地關起時，一群人蜂擁而入。 你們看，岩石在動啊。 fuck it!那傢伙剛才一定躲在這兒。 該怎麼打開這個門呢。 來，讓我試看看。 我死命地在黑暗的地道中匍匐前行。 那時我才真正覺悟到事情的嚴重性。照現在的情形看來，那些人暫被困在石門外邊，不過我得趕在他們來到之前到達岔路口才行。如果不快點，可能會和從典子常走的濃茶入口處進來的人碰個正著。 後來我發現他們果真就像我想的那樣，在各個鐘乳洞的入口處都派人把守著。因為他們確定我逃進地道中，所以就把所有的人馬都調來洞內。 他們這們做對我來說很有利，因為光是分配人馬的工作就得花一段時間，另外，他們也不熟悉洞內的情形，在行動上難免有欠敏捷。由於這些因素，使得我比他們先一步到達岔路口。 But.我還是不能因此而放心，因為來追我的人好像正慢慢在增加中，那些喊叫聲有如打雷般在洞內的空氣裡振蕩。於是我加快腳步通過猿座和天狗鼻，只要一過回聲處，鬼火潭就不遠了，只要過了鬼火潭，即使他們追來我也不怕。因為鬼火潭裡有好多很隱密的藏處，他們不可能找得到的。 不過，當我到了天狗鼻時，我聽到從回聲處傳來的鬧哄哄的說話聲，而且那些聲響除了發出很大的回音外，還緩緩地朝這邊接近中。 ah!我忘記了，我不是有一次在這邊碰到過英泉嗎？英泉也說過在這兒的對面有一個可以通到邦卡基的出口嗎？那些人一定是從那裡進來的。完了，我這下真的完了！而從後面追來的人有增無減，從前面回聲處傳來的腳步聲也愈來愈大聲了。 我趕緊打開手電筒，環顧一下四周。ah!我注意到就在我頭上那塊突出來的粗大的天狗鼻子，我趕緊攀著石壁爬上去。幸運的是，天狗的鼻子上面剛好有一個凹洞可以躲在裡面。正當我要趴下去的時候，回聲處的轉角出現了火把的光。 真是奇怪了，如果他是往這邊逃過來的話，應該會碰到呀！該不會是在途中錯過沒有注意到吧。 How can it be! Yes!大概是還沒來。 那傢伙一定不敢點燈，慢慢地在黑洞裡摸索，所以才這麼慢呀！ Um!你說的也有道理，那我們就埋伏在這裡等他來吧！ 從講話的聲音聽來，好像有三個人躲在天狗的鼻子的下面。 我開始焦慮起來，如果從後面追來的人也到這兒，那可怎麼辦？他們一定會在這邊把每一寸土地都翻過來找，況且這裡最引人注目的就是天狗的鼻子呀｜ 大叔，我經常聽人家說這個地方，還真的好像是天狗的鼻子啊！ 我聽到下面的說話聲。 Yes!而且最不可思議的就是這些都是天然形成的喔！ 大叔，說不定天狗的鼻子上面可以躲人呢！ 當我聽到第三個人的聲音時，我的心簡直要跳出來了。不過年紀比較大的那人說： 別說這種不合理的話，你看！ 他舉起火把照了一下洞頂： 如果有人在，一定會看到的。阿信，別亂講。 我馬上鬆了一口氣，這時我真得感謝這個凹洞！那三個人好像坐下來邊抽香煙邊閒聊起來，慢慢地話題轉到今晚的事上面，所以我豎起耳朵起聽得清楚些。 阿鐵，你是不是說過，即使村子裡再重演一次二十六年前的那件事也無所謂？ 突然我覺得這聲音相當耳熟，不知在那裡曾經聽過，所以我偷偷探出頭來朝下面看了一下。 那三個人正坐在那晚我們碰到英泉時所躲的凹洞裡，我見過其中一人，那是我第一次要踏進這個村子時，跟我同車的牛販吉藏先生。 吉藏嘰嘰咕咕的不知說了些什麼，後來吉藏提高聲調說： 阿鐵，你那個時候幾歲？大概三歲吧！那你當然記不大清楚。我那個時候二十三歲，剛娶老婆還不到兩個月，正是新婚蜜月期，我的老婆小我六歲。倒不是因為她死了我才這麼說，她還真是一個不錯的女人 吉藏的聲音更大了： 那天晚上，碰的一聲就改變了我的一生啊！現在想起來還是滿肚子的火。 吉藏那令人生懼的聲音迴盪在洞窟裡，我突然覺得背後好像吹來一陣冷颼颼的風。 那是因為你的親人被殺害，所以你才會那麼憤恨。可是，也不必因為那段陳年往事，就這麼大費周章地要追捕那小子啊！不如將他交給警察來辦不就得了嗎。 聽了阿鐵的話，吉藏哼的冷笑一聲： 阿鐵，因為你年輕，所以你相信警察。你聽好，警察才靠不住呢！二十六年前，要藏這傢伙整整瘋狂了一個晚上，如果警察能早點趕來，也不會死傷那麼多人。他們是在事情都結束後才來，那時要藏早就不知逃到那個山裡去了。警察辦案都是一個調調，專放馬後炮！他們都是等到事情結束後，才滿不在乎地來。像這樣的人怎麼可以依賴呢？我們要懂得自己保護自己啊！ 可是那小子回來，也不一定會再發生像二十六年前那樣的事情呀！ 你可以保證絕對不會發生嗎？那麼最近發生的這些事又作何解釋呢？自從二十六年前那件事發生後，村裡就再也沒發生過什麼命案。可是那小子一來後，怪事就接二連三的發生。他是惡魔的兒子，我在巴士上碰到他時就這麼想過，那時我真想殺了他。 吉藏那咬牙切齒的聲音，好像錐子似地扎進我的胸口，使我的心情十分沉重。 那是因為你們之間有不共戴天之仇啊！對了，你好像和濃茶尼姑妙蓮關係匪淺嘛。 阿鐵這個年輕人趁機調侃吉藏，吉藏馬上正色道： Is there anything wrong?我和妙蓮的交情好礙到誰了？反正這種事是你情我願的。自從我的老婆走了以後，也沒什麼好女人願意跟我。不過，阿鐵，你要記住喔！不管是男人還是女人，光憑容貌來判斷是看不出，要上過床後才會知道。妙蓮有情於我，而我對她也不錯呀！可是，這一切又被破壞了，都是那小子 吉藏又咬牙切齒地斥罵。 過了一會兒，阿鐵又開口說： 可是那個小子真的是兇手嗎？I don't quite believe it. 從剛才到現在一直都保持緘默的阿信終於開口了。 嗯，我本來也是半信半疑，不過，最近我覺得他的嫌疑滿大，因為他挪了一下位子。 因為我主人家的少奶奶給我的感覺。你們也知道，少奶奶特地去神戶把那小子接來，她對那小子很照顧，只要有誰講那小子不好，她就馬上站出來幫他說話。可是，最近少奶奶的態度突然轉變，好像對他疏遠了許多，也不太接近那小子，一定是她看清了那小子的底細。 I was taken aback.雖然他們沒有說出名字，可是他們嘴裡所說的少奶奶，我想一定是美也子。 那麼，西屋的少奶奶也說那小子是兇手囉！ 阿鐵問道。 Not at all.她是有修養、有學問的人，怎麼會跟我們說這些？不過，最近我家主人稍微問了一下那小子的事，結果才說出那小子的名字，少奶奶的臉色就變了，嘴裡直說別再問那個人的事，而且以後也不准在她前面提起，說完少奶奶就跑到房間裡去了。所以，我家主人認為少奶奶一定知道那小子就是兇手，而且一定也有證據。 oh!原來如此，所以最近美也子都不來了。可是，所謂的證據又是什麼呢？當然那是絕對不可能有的，不過，如果美也子懷疑我，為什麼她下來向我求證呢？我覺得我好像掉進地獄裡一般非常的絕望、沮喪。 Um!我想一定是有證據 阿信說到一半，突然後面傳來一陣叫喚的聲音，三人一聽到馬上就站了起來。 What happened? 也許是抓到那小子吧！ 好，那我們也去瞧瞧。 三個人正準備要走時： Hello.阿信，你留在這邊。 你們把我丟在這邊，未免太太殘忍了吧！ 你害怕呀！真沒用。我們去去就來啦！ 阿信被他們單獨留下來，拿著火把不知所措的站在原地。最後，他終於忍不住了。 Uncle!等等我一下呀！ 他邊說邊急忙跑去。 Very good!現在正是大好機會！如果不趁現在趕快溜走，等一下就逃脫不了了！ 我急忙順著天狗的鼻子溜下來，繞過回聲處，來到鬼火潭。我最擔心的是，不知有沒有人把守在鬼火潭那邊，幸虧他們還沒有注意到這兒，所以潭邊一個人都沒有。 由於上回我已經來過一次所以很快地我就到了對岸。這裡漆黑得伸手不見五指，我相信不會有人來再也沒有一個地方比這裡更適合躲藏了。 我的心好像吹寒風般，感到一陣淒涼，我茫然失措地佇立在黑暗中。就在那時候，突然有一個東西撲進我的懷裡。 我嚇得跳了起來！ 辰彌哥，是我，是我呀！ 說話的人不正是典子嗎？ <暗夜回聲> 典子，你為什麼來這裡？What are you doing here? 我來找你呀！我聽說你逃到地道裡，便猜想你一定會來這兒，所以就在這兒等你啊！不過，你真行，能夠避開那麼多人的耳目逃過來。他們真的如此厭惡你嗎？一想到這兒，我就覺得好悲哀喔！ 另一件令我傷心的就是美也子的態度，她以前那麼信任我、關心我，可是現在哎人心真是善變！ 不過，典子能在這個時候出現，我還是很高興，而且也萬分感激她。不過，她這時候來蹚渾水，似乎不太妥當。 典子，謝謝你，你能來我真的很高興，可是這裡不是你該來的地方，趕快回去吧！ why? 雖然在黑暗中我看不清典子的表情，不過我相信她一定是睜著她那雙天真無邪的眼睛望著我。 等一下還不知道會發生什麼事呢！萬一連累到你，那可怎麼辦？還是趁現在趕緊走吧！ oops!你不要擔心啦！村裡的人才不敢過來呢！他們深信只要是跨過鬼火潭的人，就會遭到詛咒，所以這裡是最安全的地方。 雖然典子這麼說，但我還是於心不忍。 典子，你還是回去好了，不然慎太郎會擔心的。 it's okay!辰彌哥，讓我再多待一會兒嘛！不過，等一下我還是得再來一趟。 有事嗎。 Um!幫你送便當來呀！ 送便當？ 我不解地反問道。 yes!我想這個騷動還會再持續一段時間，你總不能就這樣不吃不喝吧！所以，等一下我就回去幫你做一個便當來。 典子，你為什麼會覺得這個騷動還要拖上一段時間喔？ 事實如此呀！現在大家都在氣頭上。 但是，發生這種事，警方絕對不會坐視不管的。等到警方一介入，那些人就會自動解散了啊。 辰彌哥 典子略帶悲傷地說道： 在村子裡發生了難以解決的事，警方都得去找村裡最有力的人士來調解，可是像這次的事件是在全村人的支持下掀起的，如果警方插手管，可能只會把事情搞得更大。所以，警方也束手無策呀！ 我聽了不禁開始不安起來。 典子，你是說全村的人都支持今晚的行動？ Um!不過我當然反對啦！辰彌哥，你放心，並不是所有的人都討厭你的。只是提起二十八年前的那件事，大家不由得都害怕起來。對那些四十歲以上的人來說，二十八年前的那場浩劫，有如昨日的夢魘般，還記憶猶新呢！所以，只要有人在旁邊煽火、散怖謠言，那麼這把火就會馬上燃起，而且會燒得一發不可收拾。 那麼，煽火的人到底是誰呢？ Um!I don't know either. 在發起這次騷動之前可有什麼前兆嗎？ 我一點都沒有察覺到，所以，這次一定是西邊的人所策動的，聽說是周先生和吉藏帶頭的喔！ 周先生？ 就是西屋的工頭呀！聽說在那場浩劫中，他的太太和小孩都被殺了。 一聽到這兒，我的心好像被針刺了一下。 西屋的工頭？典子，這麼說來，真正的幕後主使人是西屋的主人囉！ 應該不會吧，不過，鬧出這麼大樁事，我想不管主使者是村長或西屋的主人，恐怕都沒辦法壓下來。 我越來越感到不安了。 典子，那我該怎麼辦呢。 所以說，這是一場持久戰啊！要等他們的怒氣平息下來，才可能解決問題的。現在大家都在氣頭上，誰說什麼都沒用，只會火上加油罷了，所以一定要等這次的熱度漸漸降下去後再見機行事。我們可敵不過他們的竹棍、長槍的呀！ What?他們還拿著武器？ Yes!他們這次可是來真的，你最好注意那個吉藏，他說如果讓他碰到的話，非打死你不可。他可是說得到就做得到，你千萬要小心他呀！ 我突然想起剛才在洞窟裡吉藏那對兇惡的眼神，不禁令我打了一個寒顫。這麼說，我剛才還逃過一難呢！ 我不由得沉默下來，心情越來越沉重，也就懶得開口。過了一會兒，典子用她那冷冰冰的手輕拍了我的雙頰一下。 辰彌哥，你在想什麼？Don't worry!只要躲在這裡就會沒事的，誰也不敢跨進這裡一步。你別看周先生和吉藏那種人如此凶暴，他們相當的迷信，所以，你就安心躲在這裡吧！食物我會幫你帶過來。對了，我還發現了一條秘密通道喔！Um!你摸摸看我穿的衣服。 我一摸，典子好像是穿著戰爭時所穿的防空服，難道她是從地下防空洞過來的了。 所以，這兩、三天你只要躲在這裡就沒事了，絕不可以認輸，一定要堅持到底喔！ 我從來不曾發覺典子是一個如此可以依賴的人，她似乎不知道什麼是悲觀，總是那麼充滿活力、那麼樂觀。 為什麼像她這樣的一個弱女子，卻是如此堅強呢？我真覺得不可思議。 謝謝你，典子，那就萬事拜託了。 Um!你放心啊！Here they come! 我們本能地轉身就跑。差不多在那片叫喊聲響起的同時，對面的鬼火潭被照得通亮。那些人追來了！他們似乎沒料到我會跑到鬼火潭這一側來，氣得在那兒直跺腳、罵粗話。 典子握緊我的手腕說道： 別理他們，他們並不知道你在這兒。 我當然不把他們放在眼裡。 你看，拿著火把、站在最前頭的就是西屋的工頭周先生，周先生的後面就是吉藏。 周先生看起來大約六十歲左右，白髮蒼蒼，不知是不是火把的光的關係，臉上的皺紋看起來好深，而且兩個眼珠瞪得大大的，而吉藏還當真拿著一根又粗又大的棍子。 不過，正如典子所說，沒有人敢跨進鬼火潭一步，他們只能在對岸乾瞪眼。後來，不知他們是如何商量的，僅留下兩、三個人看守，其餘的全撤走了。 你看，我說的沒錯吧！ 留守在對岸的人圍著煤油燈坐了下來。剛開始還哼著流行歌，三不五時朝這邊咒罵兩句，後來就漸漸安靜下來，最後終於聽不到說話聲，大概是睡著了吧！ 後來我也慢慢地鬆懈下來，不知不覺地靠在典子的膝蓋上睡著了。 到底睡了多久我也不知道，但我在朦朧中聽到好像有人在叫我的名字，我睜開眼睛。 Tatsuya! 在夢中聽到的聲音，此刻正在黑洞中迴響著。 辰彌，救命啊 一時之間我以為自己還在做夢，可是後來發現不是夢，在黑暗的某一個角落真的有人在呼喚我。 我霍地坐起來。 典子！典子！ 我輕輕地叫了典子兩聲，可是沒人應我，後來我打開手電筒一看，根本沒有典子的人影。我看了一眼手上的表，十點二十分，啊！駭人的黑夜已經過去了。 在那個時候，我又聽到叫喊聲。 辰彌，辰彌，你在那裡呀？save me!ah!我要被殺了呀！Naruto 我總算清醒過來了，趕緊跳起來衝到洞外去。 那些留下來看守的人似乎已經走了，鬼火潭的對岸黑漆漆的一片，從那黑暗中隱約傳來聲聲呼救。 那忽遠忽近的叫聲聽得我全身汗毛直豎。 辰彌 ah!那不正是姐姐的聲音嗎？