Chapter 4 Chapter 4 The Man from Tokyo

one Shigetaro Tokai came to the fruit shop at Kashii Station. Inquire about things a little. The boss who was wiping the apples, who was about forty years old, turned around immediately.Any shop owner would not welcome people who inquired about things. Shigetaro explained that he was a police detective, and the boss became serious. What time does the shop open at night?Shigetaro started asking. Open until eleven o'clock at night.The boss answered solemnly. So, passengers who leave the station around 9:30 can see it, right? nine thirty?yes.can see.The car arrives at 9:25, and you can see it here.At that time, the store was not busy, and there were not many customers buying fruit, so we could see clearly.

Well, on the night of the 20th, a man in his thirties in a suit came out of the station with a woman in her mid-twenties in a kimono, have you seen it? On the night of the twentieth?Time is too far away.The boss tilted his head in thought.Chongtaro also felt that this problem was really a problem.Four or five days had passed.Perhaps it is useless to mention the date alone, it is better to change another way of asking. A few days ago, someone committed suicide on the coast, do you know? Wasn't the dead body found early in the morning?I have heard it from others and seen it in newspapers.

exactly.It was the morning of the twenty-first.The twentieth is the night before that day, remember? Oh, is that day?The boss tapped his forehead and said, I remembered now.I saw it the night before. ah?seen?Shintaro's eyes sparkled. Yes, I have seen it.It was because of the suicide that occurred the next day that I remembered it clearly.That night, on the 9:25 train, there were only about ten passengers who got out of the station.There are always very few passengers on this bus.There are the man in the suit and the woman in the kimono you mentioned.I thought the two of them were going to buy my fruit, but they just looked over here.

Did you buy any fruit? I didn't buy it, so I walked straight to the tram station.I'm not disappointed.Unexpectedly, such a thing happened the next morning.I was still thinking, maybe these two people committed suicide, but I didn't expect to be right. Do you still remember the looks of the two of them?Shigetaro stared closely and asked, the boss was thinking while holding his cheek. At that time, we were far away, and the lights from the station were backlighting. We could only see figures, but not faces.There was a picture of the man in the newspaper, I'm not sure. Well, Shigetaro lowered his shoulders.How about clothes?

I don't even remember that.While walking that way, although I took a look, it was probably just a fleeting impression that men were wearing suits and women were wearing kimonos. Are the colors and patterns of the clothes clear? Not sure.The fruit shop owner smiled slightly.Shigetaro was slightly disappointed.There was a customer picking mandarin oranges in the store, and he heard the questions and answers of the two people clearly. So these two people walked in the direction of the Kashii Tram Station, which is the coast! Yes, yes, walking all the way to the beach. Shigetaro thanked him and left the fruit shop.

As he walked, he thought about it, and he understood the matter almost. Unfortunately, he didn't see the faces of the two people clearly, but it must be Kenichi Sayama and Ah Shi.They arrived here by train from Bodo at 9:25 on the night of the 20th.Then, it must be around 9:10 to board the bus at Hakata.The time difference between the two places is only fifteen minutes. Sayama received the woman's call and left the hotel immediately. It was eight o'clock at night, about an hour before boarding the train from Hakata Station. What did he do?The investigation was so difficult that it was almost hopeless.The streets of Hakata are vast and complicated, how can we figure out the clues.While thinking, Torikai Shigetaro walked towards the Kashii Tram Station, when someone behind him shouted hello, hello, beckoning him to stop.

Shigetaro turned around and saw that it turned out to be a young man who looked like a company employee, with a somewhat embarrassed smile, catching up. Are you a police officer? Yes.Shigetaro looked carefully, the man was holding a bag of tangerines.It turned out to be a customer who bought fruit at the fruit shop. two When I was buying tangerines just now, I heard your question from the side.The young man had already stood beside Shigetaro.To be honest, I also saw those two men and women who committed suicide at around 9:30 on the night of the 20th. oh!Shigetaro opened his eyes wide.He looked around and found a small shop that looked like a teahouse and a restaurant.Shigetaro took the young man into the shop, drinking coffee that looked like colored sugar water, and looked at him.

Please speak carefully. No, I can only give an outline, not details, the young man shook his head and said.When I was shopping for fruit, I heard your question and thought my words might be of use for your reference. That's fine, please tell me.Shigetaro nodded. I am a local, but I work for a company in Bodo.The youth staff started.The night before the suicide couple was discovered, that is, the night of the twentieth, I seemed to have seen this suicide couple too.I arrived at the Kashii Tram Station at 9:35. Wait a moment, Shigetaro made a pause gesture with his hands.Is it a tram?

yes.I took the tram that left at 9:27 in front of the racetrack, and it took me less than eight minutes to get here. The race track is in Hakozaki, at the east end of Hakata, which can be seen from Hakata Bay. I see.So, you saw this couple in the tram. No, not in the tram.There were two cars on that tram, and I took the one behind.There are very few passengers. If they also sit in the back one, they will definitely be able to see it.So they must be sitting in the front one. Where did you see it? After exiting the ticket collection station, I headed home.That night, I was a little drunk in Bodo and walked very slowly.Therefore, two or three people who got off the tram behind me chased after me.These people are all locals, and I know them all.However, a man and woman I had never seen before drove past me from behind and walked very fast.Men wear overcoats and women wear kimonos.The two men walked down the road to the coast.I didn't pay much attention at that time, so I went home. I didn't know about the suicide until the next morning.According to the newspaper, they died around ten o'clock the night before, and I think it was this couple.

Did you see the face? At that time, it was like what it is today. It was chasing from behind, and it couldn't be seen. Well, what color is the coat, and what pattern is the kimono? I can't remember it at all.Although there were electric lights in that street, they were not lit, and I was drunk.But I heard the woman say something. say what?Jutaro's eyes sparkled.what did you say As I was passing by, the woman said to the man, this place is so quiet! How quiet this place is!Shigetaro repeated these words involuntarily.How does the man answer? The man made no sound, and strode down.

Is there anything characteristic of that woman's accent? Accent is very clear.There is no local accent, it is completely standard language.No one in this part of the world could say such a thing.In terms of accent, it's probably a Tokyo accent. Shigetaro took out a pack of fan cigarettes from his pocket and lit one.Breathing out blue smoke, thinking about new problems. Does the tram really arrive at nine thirty-five? That's right, I always take this bus whenever I come back late from Bodo. Shigetaro studied this reply.Are the man and woman seen by the clerk the same pair as the man and woman seen by the fruit shop owner in front of the train station?The employee didn't see them on the tram, but thought they were getting off the same tram and chasing him from behind.The train arrives at Kashii Railway Station at 9:24.The tram arrives at the Kashii Tram Station at 9:35.Eleven minutes apart.The distance between the two stations is about 500 meters.The road from Kashii Railway Station to the beach just passes by the tram station, and the road and time are in order. That's all I have to say. The enthusiastic employee looked at Shigetaro who was deep in thought, and stood up. Since you questioned this matter at the fruit shop, I will report what I know. Excellent, thank you very much.Shigetaro asked the person's address and name, and thanked him deeply.If you know more about what the woman said, you will gain. When we came out of the small shop, it was already dark. three How quiet this place is!This was the woman's words that Torikai Shigetarou had heard the staff relay, and now it was lingering in his ears as if he had heard it directly. From this short sentence, three elements can be learned. 1 is a standard language with a Tokyo accent, not a local.Starting from Fukuoka Prefecture, people in Kyushu do not speak like this.Take the Hakata accent as an example. It should be said that this place is too quiet. 2 According to the meaning of this sentence, this woman seems to be here for the first time. 3 Therefore, this sentence is not asking for consent from the man, but expressing his initial feelings to a man who already knows the local situation.Therefore, the man didn't answer, and kept going forward. In short, the man has been here before, and the woman is here for the first time under the leadership of the man.The woman spoke with a Tokyo accent, and it was just before the presumed time of suicide death (if the death was just after ten o'clock, the difference was only thirty or forty minutes, and if the death was around eleven o'clock, the difference was only one and a half hours. Death presumption The time can range from two to three hours).It seemed that the man and woman seen by the owner of the fruit shop and the company staff must be the man and woman who committed suicide. However, if we carefully scrutinize it, I am afraid that we cannot make a conclusion.There are more than a few thousand people who come to Hakata from Tokyo. Could it be that those who pass by here at this time must commit suicide?Torikai Shigetaro thought about this link for a long time, and decided to try it himself. The cold wind was blowing, quietly blowing the store's banner up and down.There are only a few stars blinking in the black sky. Tokai Shigetaro walked back to Kashii train station.When I arrived at the station, I immediately looked at my watch.The watch is outdated, but the time is still accurate. Like a stopwatch that continues the race, it starts off.With both hands in his pockets, his head lowered, he stepped forward at a normal pace.The target was still the Kashii tram station, and the cold wind lifted the corners of his coat. Arrived at the brightly lit tram stop.Look at the watch, it's only been six minutes.In other words, it only takes six minutes to walk from Kashii Railway Station to Kashii Tram Station. Shigetaro thought for a while.I looked at my watch again, this time aiming at Kashii Railway Station, I walked back again, at a faster pace than before.After arriving at the station, I looked at my watch, less than six minutes. Chongtaro walked back the same way.This time, I wandered slowly, looking around, like a walk.Even walking slowly like this, it only took eight minutes to reach the Kashii Tram Station. Based on these three experiments, it can be known that it takes between six and seven minutes to walk from the Kashii Railway Station to the Kashii Tram Station at a normal pace. The owner of the fruit shop saw the men and women coming out of the train station at 9:24.The men and women that the company staff saw at the tram stop were passengers who disembarked from the tram at 9:35, with an interval of eleven minutes.If they had seen the same man and woman, it would have taken them eleven minutes to walk from the train station to the tram stop. How should this problem be explained?Tokai Shigetaro began to think.Why did it take them eleven minutes to walk a slow road that only takes seven minutes Thinking of this, the company staff's words resurfaced in their minds: This man and woman chased me from behind and walked very fast. correct.If you walk quickly, it will take less than five minutes.Eleven minutes apart, how to explain it? 1 I have something to do in the middle, such as shopping. 2. The man and woman seen by the owner of the fruit shop are not the same pair as the man and woman seen by the company staff? Both cases can make sense. In the first case, the possibility is very high.The second case can explain clearly why the time interval is so far apart.Moreover, there is no evidence to prove that the men and women seen in the two places must be the same pair.The only difference is that men wear overcoats and women wear kimonos.No one saw their faces, and no one remembered the colors of their clothes. If so, Jutaro thought of this and recalculated. If Kenichi Sayama and Toki are a couple, then it seems to be the couple that the company staff saw.What the woman said caught Shigetarou Tokai's attention deeply. However, if it must be said that the man and woman who came by train were another couple, there is not enough evidence.Because the possibility of the first case is still very high.Thinking of this, Shigetaro simply put aside the question of whether the two couples are the same couple. Since he could not reach a conclusion, he went home from Bodo and went to bed. When he arrived at the police station the next morning, there were already two telegrams waiting for him on the table. He opened the first letter: Kenichi had often traveled to Bodo on business.Sayama. Then I read the second letter: Xiuzi has never been to Bodo. This is a reply to the two telegrams sent by Shigetaro at Kashii Railway Station yesterday.One was from Sayama Kenichi's older brother, and the other was from Ah Shi's mother, whose real name was Kuwayama Hideko. Judging from this, Kenichi Sayama often travels to Hakata, so he must have a good understanding of the local terrain, while Ah Shi seems to have never been to Hakata. Two black shadows appeared in front of Torikai Shigetaro's eyes, one said that this place is so quiet!the woman, and the man who, without saying a word, hastened to the shore. Four In the morning, Torikai Shigetaro did one thing. He got out of the police station, took the city tram to Hakozaki, and walked from there to the station in front of the circuit.This train goes directly to the port on the north shore called Tsuyazaki, and the Kashii tram station happens to be an intermediate stop. The weather is sunny, a rare good weather in winter. Shigetaro handed out his business card to the station master's office. I don't know what to advise?asked the plump, red-faced station master. At 21:35 on the night of the 20th, the tram to Kashii Tram Station departs from here at what time?Shigetaro said. Twenty-seven minutes past twenty.The webmaster replied immediately. I want to talk to the person who collected the tickets at the station that night. I don’t know if I’m here now? Well, the station master asked the assistant next to him to check.I found it from the duty list, and the assistant went to call someone immediately. What's matter?asked the station master while waiting for someone. Yeah, a little bit.With that said, he took a sip of tea.very important. The young station attendant came and stood upright in front of the station master to salute. it's him.The station master said to Shigetaro. Yeah.I really bother you.Shigetaro turned to the young station clerk.Did you collect the ticket for the tram at 21:27 on the night of the 20th? Yes, I am on duty. At that time, was there a pair of male and female passengers, the male was 27 or 8 years old, wearing a coat, and the female was 22 or 4 years old, wearing a kimono? Ah, the station clerk blinked and said, there are so many people wearing coats, what color are they? It's a dark purple coat and brown suit pants.The woman was wearing a gray winter overcoat and a shrimp-brown kimono.Shigetaro recounted the dead body's clothes.The station attendant looked up and hesitated for a long time. I really can't remember.At that time, I was only concerned with collecting the tickets and had nothing special to do, so I didn't pay attention to the appearance of the passengers.As soon as the station door is opened and tickets are being collected, passengers will enter the platform one after another. So, was the passenger situation chaotic at that time? That is thirty or forty people, as usual. Recently, women wear more suits and less kimonos. Can you think about it again? I can't even think about it anymore. You think about it carefully.Shigetaro insisted on asking. However, the station attendant frowned, unable to find a clue. Shigetaro suddenly thought of a way. When the ticket was collected, were there any passengers you knew? This is true. ok, do you know the name? We are normal friends, so we all know their names and addresses.But only three people. That's fine, please speak up. Shigetaro wrote down the names and addresses mentioned by the station staff, thanked him, and walked out of the station chief's office.All three lived along the tram line.He got on the tram and got off at three stations: Wabai, Shingu, and Fukuoka. People who live in Hebai say so.I'm sitting in the car in front.There are two women in gray kimonos.One is about forty years old, and the other is twenty-six or seven years old.However, it seems that they are all women who are off work from nearby companies.No man in a dark purple coat was seen. Shigetaro took out the photo of Ah Shi from his pocket and showed him. That young woman in a kimono, isn't that her? No, they look completely different. The second one lived in Xingong and was sitting in the back car. A woman in a kimono?Ah, I can't remember exactly.Maybe there is one.I was so sleepy I wanted to sleep.Didn't notice the man in the dark purple coat. Shigetaro showed him the photos of the two victims, and replied that he couldn't remember them at all. The last passenger who lived in Fukuoka said so. I'm in the back car.There was a woman in a kimono, yes, in her mid-twenties. Gray kimono? I can't remember the color, but the winter kimono is almost gray.may be.She kept talking to the man next to her. man?What kind of man?Shigetaro felt that he had a clue, and quickly shrugged his shoulders and asked. It looks like a couple.The man was in his forties, wearing a kimono with a pattern of broken white dots. As usual, I showed him the photo and replied that it was wrong.Is there a male passenger in a dark purple coat?Can't remember.As a result, Shigetaro, who hoped to find evidence that Sayama and Toki took the tram together, found nothing and returned to Hakata. Shigetaro returned to the police station exhausted, and the inspector immediately stood up and greeted: Hello, Torikai-san.Someone from the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department is here, waiting to meet you! Next to the inspector, there was indeed a young man in a suit smiling and sitting there, who had never met before.