Chapter 6 Six old friends with good memories

Miss Livingston was waiting for Mrs. Oliver when she came home the next morning. Mrs. Olivia, I have two calls from you. who is it?said Mrs Olivier. The first call was from Clayton and Smith, who wanted to know if you wanted chartreuse or light blue satin. I haven't decided yet.Mrs. Olivia said: Remind me tomorrow morning, please?I want to see it again in the night light. The other phone call was to a man named Hercule.It was from Poirot's foreign gentleman. Oh what did he say?Mrs. Olivia asked. He asked if you could call him back and come visit this afternoon. It doesn't seem to work.Mrs. Olivia said: Would you please call him back?I have to go out again soon, did he leave his phone number?

Yes, stay. Great, so we don't have to look it up.Well, you call him and tell him I'm sorry I can't make the appointment because I have to go out and track an elephant. What did you say?asked Miss Livingston. Tell him I'm tracking an elephant. Oh, okay. Miss Livingston answered with tactful observation of her employer.Although Mrs Olivier was a famous novelist, Miss Livingston felt that she was sometimes out of her mind. I've never hunted an elephant before, said Mrs Olivier: but it's kind of interesting. She went into the living room and opened the top of the messy volumes on the sofa.Most of these books were old and messy, and she buried them in them the night before to search for things, and copied the addresses full of them.

Well, we have to find a point of entry, Mrs. Olivier said: In general, if Julia is still there, start with her.She'd always had her own opinion, and she lived around there and knew the place.Well, let's start with Julia. There are four letters that require your signature.said Miss Livingston. Don't bother me now, said Mrs Olivier: I really don't have time.I have to get to Hampton Court, it's a long way. Julia.Mrs. Castel staggered up from the rocking chair. As long as the elderly in their seventies took a longer rest, or even just took a nap, it would be very difficult to get up.She took a step forward, squinting to identify the visitor.She was a bit deaf, when the loyal servant who lived with her in the noble house informed her, she didn't hear the name clearly, was it Mrs. Gu Liwei?She didn't remember who Mrs. Gu Liwei was.Mrs. Castel took a few steps forward tremblingly, watching carefully.

I haven't seen you for so many years, you must not remember me? Like many elderly people, Mrs. Castel knew voices better than faces. Oh, my God, it's Aridan!How nice to see you, my dear. They greet each other. I just passed by here, Mrs. Olivia explained: Find someone not far from here.I found out when I looked at the address book last night, I remembered that you live near here.It's a great location, isn't it?She asked and looked around. Not bad, said Mrs. Castel: not exactly what the ad said, but still a lot of good things.You can have your own furniture, meals are provided in the communal restaurant, and of course you can start your own business.Yes, it's really good, the garden is beautiful and well maintained.Sit down, Aridan, sit down quickly.You look fine. I saw you in the paper the other day attending a literary dinner.It feels really strange, I just read about it in the newspaper the day before, and I saw him in person the day after, it's really weird.

Yes, said Mrs. Olivier, as she sat down: it happens a lot, doesn't it? do you still live in london Mrs. Olivier replied that yes, she still lived in London, and then the conversation turned to a vague memory of the past, which was the scene of dancing the rancher (a square dance) for the first time in childhood dance lessons, forward, backward, Reach out, turn twice, and turn again. Mrs. Olivier asked about Mrs. Castel's daughter and her two grandchildren, and what the other daughter was doing.It seems to be working in New Zealand. Mrs. Castel is not sure what kind of job it is, social research.She pressed the electric bell on the armrest and told Emma to bring tea.Mrs Olivier said don't bother, Julia.Kaste said:

Trouble is also needed, Aruiden is here, so I must have a cup of tea. Both women leaned back in their chairs and chatted about their second and third Lancer dances, about old friends, friends' children, and dead friends. Mrs. Castel said: It's been years since we last saw each other. The last time was at Lowellin's wedding, Mrs. Olivia said: Well, it should be right.Maura, the bridesmaid, looked awful, out of place in that apricot dress. As I recall, the dress was very inappropriate. Today's weddings are not as good-looking as we used to be, and some of the costumes are grotesque.Once, a friend of mine went to a wedding, and she said the groom wore a quilt-like white satin dress with ruffles on the collar.The bride wore the same strange trouser suit, white but with green woodsorrel all over it.

Well, dear Aridan, you can never imagine it, it is really outrageous, and it is the same in church. If I were a priest, I would not perform this kind of wedding. Tea came and they continued their chat. I met my goddaughter Celia the other day.Ravenk, Lady Olivia says: Do you remember the Ravenk family?Of course, it has been many years. Ravenk?Wait, is that the Ravenk that had the tragedy?Husband and wife committed suicide together, right?It happened on the edge of a cliff near their house, right? Julia, you have a wonderful memory.said Mrs Olivier. I've always had a good memory, but sometimes I can't remember names.That's a tragedy, isn't it?

Tragic indeed. I have a cousin who knew them very well when he was in Peninsular Malaysia, Roddy.Foster, you know that.General Ravenk was very prestigious in the army, but he was a little deaf when he retired, and he often couldn't hear what others said. Do you remember their couple? Remember, in fact, it is not easy for us to forget the people we have known, isn't it?They lived in the cliff villa for five or six years. I forgot Mrs Ravenk's name.said Mrs Olivier. It should be called Margaret, but everyone calls her Molly.That's right, it was Margaret, which was the name many girls took at that time.Do you remember, she used to wear a wig.

oh yes.Mrs. Olivier said: I don't remember exactly, but it should be. She seems to have persuaded me to wear a wig, saying that it is convenient when going abroad or traveling.She has four wigs, one for evening, one for traveling, and one so peculiar that it won't lose its shape even with a hat on it. I don't know them that well, Mrs. Olivia said: and when the shooting happened, I was on a speaking tour in the United States, so I don't know the details. Well, of course, that's the big mystery.Julia."I mean, no one knows the answer, there's a lot of gossip," Castel said.

What did the police say after the investigation?They should have investigated it. Oh, of course, the police investigated, but the process of the shooting is difficult to figure out, and they can't say for sure.It should be that General Ravenk killed his wife and then committed suicide, but it is also possible that the wife shot her husband and then shot herself.I think it was two people meeting to kill themselves, but no one knows why. Does no one suspect that he killed it? It is said that there is no sign of murder at all, I mean, no other footprints or signs of anyone approaching.After tea they went out for a walk as usual, but did not come back for supper, so the footman or gardener went out to look for them and found them all dead, with the pistol between them.

Is that revolver the general's? Um.He's got two revolvers in the house, like veterans do, don't they?I mean, they feel more secure that way.The other pistol is still in a drawer in the house, so he, uh, he probably took it out on purpose, and I don't think Mrs. General took a pistol for a walk. Yes, but the truth is not that simple, is it? But there was no apparent evidence that they had any feuds or quarrels, or anything that would have led to their suicides.Of course you can't know the misfortunes in other people's lives. Mrs Olivier said: Yes, no one will ever know, that's true, Julia.What do you think? Oh dear, everyone is curious. Yes, said Mrs. Olivier: people are like that. It's possible that the general had some kind of illness, maybe he heard that he was suffering from cancer and died soon, but according to the test report, he was not seriously ill and was in good health.He suffered from I think what he had before?Coronary artery disease, is that what it's called?Sounds like a crown, right? But that's a heart attack.He suffered from the disease, but has recovered.And the lady, uh, she's a little nervous, always nervous. Well, I seem to remember this, said Mrs. Olivier: Of course I don't know them well, but she suddenly asked: Did she wear a wig? Oh well, I don't remember that.She wears wigs all the time, I mean, one of them. I'm just curious, Mrs. Olivia said: I don't understand, if you want to commit suicide, or even shoot your husband, wouldn't you still be wearing a wig?What do you say? The two ladies chatted about this topic with great interest. Julia, what on earth are you thinking? Honey, as I said, people are curious.Some rumors have been circulating. Is it about the general or the lady? Well, they say there's a young woman who I think works as a secretary.He was writing a memoir of his life abroad at the invitation of a publisher, and this woman often came to help him with dictation.Some people said um, people sometimes make irresponsible remarks, they said he might, uh, have an affair with this woman.She's not very young, she's in her thirties, she's plain-looking, and I don't think there's anything shady about her, but no one knows.Everyone assumed he killed his wife because he thought, well, maybe he wanted to marry this woman.I don't believe in rumors of that kind, and I never did. So what do you think? Well, I have some doubts about Mrs. You mean there are other men? I believe there was something going on in the Malay Peninsula, and I've heard some rumors about her.She got entangled with a young man much younger than she was, and her husband was upset, and it became a scandal, I forget where.However, things have passed for a long time, and I have not heard anything about it since then. Are there any rumors around their home?I haven't heard of any special relationship between them and the neighbors?Did no one hear them quarreling or other unhappiness? Well, I don't think so, I have read all relevant reports at that time.Everyone really talked about it, because they thought it should have something to do with the tragedy of love. But you think no?They have kids, don't they?One is still my goddaughter. That's right, there was also a son, who was supposed to be very young at the time, and where did he study.The daughter is only twelve years old, oh, maybe more, and she lives with a host family in Switzerland. I think this family has no mental problems, right? Oh, you mean the boy, yes, of course there might be.You must have heard these strange things, some boy shot his father, seems to be around Newcastle.He had been so depressed a few years before it happened that he reportedly tried to hang himself when he was just in college, then came home and shot his father, no one knew why.But anyway, the Ravenkers don't have that problem, probably don't, in fact I'm pretty sure they don't.But on the other hand, I can't help thinking What?Julia? Well, I can't help but guess that it has something to do with men. you mean ma'am she Yes, uh very likely.You know, like those wigs. I don't understand how this has anything to do with wigs? Well, she wants to make herself look more beautiful. Is she thirty-five years old? More than that, thirty-six years old.I remember she showed me the wigs one day, and one or two of them looked really good on her, and she had a lot of makeup on, which started after they moved there.She is indeed beautiful. You mean, she might have met someone, some man? Well, I think so all the time.Mrs. Castel said: You know, when a guy hooks up with a girl, it's usually easier for people to see because men aren't good at hiding themselves, but women can.Well, I thought maybe she met some guy and just didn't notice. Oh really, Julia? No, I'm not sure.Julia said: 'Because somebody's gotta know, no?Maybe the servant, the gardener, the chauffeur, or the neighbors found out, and they talked about it.It's also possible that he discovered it himself. You mean murder out of jealousy? Well, that's what I thought. So you think he's more likely to kill her and then shoot himself than she kills him and then kills himself? Well, that should be it.Because if she wanted to get rid of him, well, there was no way she was walking with a pistol in her purse, and that purse must be big, if that was the case.We always have to consider some practical issues. I see.Mrs Olivier said: Indeed, very interesting. It must be interesting to you, dear, you write crime stories.You must have a better view, and you should know better why. I don't necessarily know why, Mrs. Olivier said: because, my detective stories are all imaginary, and what I hope it happens, it will appear in the story, but it is not true, and it is unlikely to happen , so I am the least qualified to speak.I want to hear what you have to say, because you know a lot of people and you know them very well, I think the lady or the general should have said something to you. That's right, that's right.Wait, saying that reminds me of something. Mrs. Castel leaned back in her chair, shaking her head in bewilderment, her eyes half-closed as if in a coma.Mrs. Olivier remained silent, staring at Mrs. Castel's face like a woman waiting for a kettle to boil. I remember one time when she said something and I wondered what she meant.Castel said: It's talking about starting a new life, it seems to be related to Saint Teresa, Saint Teresa of Avila Mrs. Olivier asked in surprise: How did Saint Teresa of Avila get involved? Well, I don't know either.I think she must be reading the biography of Saint Teresa. In short, she said that it would be wonderful for a woman to have a second chance. The original words may not be like this, but that is what it means.You also know that when a woman is about forty or fifty years old, she suddenly wants to live a new life.Such was the case with St. Teresa of Avila, who never did anything special except to be a nun, until at last she reformed all the monasteries and became a saint. True, but it looks like their situation is different. Well, it's different.Castel said: But when women find love, they always say silly things, and it's never too late to say something.