The owner of the antique shop, Genda Takatoku, the man who had been humbly promoting his shop in the Morokaku family this afternoon, was now standing among the crowd of onlookers, staring at the burning house with an expression full of horror and regret.
Two hours later.
The fire was finally put out, and firefighters and police began searching inside.
There were police guarding the door. Jiang Xia walked to the door of Zhujiao's house and looked up at the charred roof.
Before he could say anything, the other two detectives nearby had already approached skillfully, trying to sneak into the crime scene.
However, this time, although the gatekeepers were also police officers from the First Investigation Section, they were no longer the three types of criminal investigators who usually dealt with detectives. The difficulty of sneaking in suddenly soared.
Conan had just slipped to the door and was about to sneak in quietly when he was carried back ruthlessly - the courtyard door was not really wide, and his low presence when necessary failed unfortunately at this time.
It's not very good to brush the face, after all, I'm not familiar with him.
The three detectives were gathering together, plotting whether to sneak in or find a higher point - such as the wife's attic next door - to observe secretly.
Behind them, an eight-foot strong man suddenly appeared.
The unfamiliar police officer with a square chin held a cigarette in his mouth, looked at them for a moment, and then joined the conversation: "When did the fire scene become the domain of detectives?"
Jiang Xia looked at him with a look that said "You lack common sense" and said confidently: "Detective can do anything."
Conan and Hattori Heiji, who were also about to refute: "..."
Although this is indeed the case, it always feels like something is not quite right...
"Haha, that makes sense." The strangers from the police department looked intimidating, but actually had a good temper. He took the initiative to shake hands with them, "I am the police department of the arsonist investigation department, Chief Gong."
He looked at Jiang Xia with interest, the detective who was often mentioned by the third search department next door. After thinking for a moment, he provided some clues to the detectives:
"This fire must have been deliberately set, and it was one of the recent serial arson cases - I just heard from my subordinates that they found the specific red horse statue in the house. After identification, it
The materials are very similar to those that appeared in the previous three incidents, and they should be produced in the same batch."
The police have already checked and found that there are no similar red horse ornaments for sale on the market.
The origin of this batch of "red horses" left at the fire scene is rather special. If it were committed by an imitator who had read the newspaper, it would be difficult to imitate it to this extent - so this should be the work of the serial arsonist himself.
"The fire started in the small room on the right side of the house, which is the cabinet door of the room where the red horse was found. Oil had been poured on the floor of the house, which is why it burned so quickly. After preliminary speculation, the arsonist was
He poured oil into the house through the window and set it on fire."
Speaking of this, Police Chief Gong smiled mysteriously, looked around, and lowered his voice: "Actually, we already have clues."
"Huh?" Jiang Xia answered and immediately remembered something, "..."
Sure enough, the next second, Police Chief Gong said in a low voice:
"We extracted some messy fresh footprints in the yard on the side of the fire. Although they have not been further distinguished, it seems that the clearest footprints are three types, probably two adult males, plus one...
He hesitated, "Plus a woman with a small shoe size, or a child?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Gongchang Police Department realized something belatedly.
He looked at the three students in front of him, especially Conan, who looked embarrassed and had a very special shoe size: "...?"
…
"Actually, we received a commission."
Jiangxia pointed to the memo in Hattori Heiji's hand: "A few days ago, Mrs. Morokaku said she saw a suspicious figure near her home. But today we came over to ask for details, and she said she was mistaken. We
She originally planned to go back, but suddenly many suspicious people came to her house..."
He briefly told the police officer in front of him what happened during the surveillance.
…
Gongchang Police Department originally only heard from his colleagues in the third department next door that Jiang Xia was a "magic tool to prevent overtime." Now he happened to meet him, so he was curious to see the situation. Unexpectedly, he actually gained a lot of information.
Although the three young men left just before the fire, even this could greatly reduce the workload of the police.
"The insulted store manager, the gambler and fortune teller who wants money from Mrs. Morokaku, and the lover who wants to destroy the evidence... Indeed, no matter which one, it sounds suspicious."
Police Gongchang thought for a moment and quickly understood what to do next: "Since there are suspects and a clear time of the fire, let's go to them first and ask for their alibi."
…
On the other side, Yoneka-cho 5-chome.
Mao Lilan and Toyama Kazuye had already prepared meals and were packing up the pile of things they bought in the afternoon.
When I pulled out a piece of clothing from my bag, there was a clack sound, and a small square box fell out and landed on the ground.
The box is about six or seven centimeters long, made of kraft paper, and has a simple blessing label that reads "Business is prosperous".
Yuan Shan and Ye Yi were startled. They picked up the iron ring on it and brought it to themselves to look at. They looked confused: "What is this? When did I buy it?"
Mao Lilan heard the movement and came over from behind to take a look.
Then I quickly remembered the origin of this boxed keychain: "Have you forgotten? This is a souvenir from the uncle who gave us his seat when we came back on the bus."
When it came to giving up their seats, Toyama and Ye remembered.
——On the return trip, the two of them carried a lot of things in their hands. Although they themselves did not feel that it was too heavy to lift, in the eyes of others, it probably looked like it was very difficult.
So not long after getting on the bus, a kind uncle stood up and offered his seat to them.
After giving up, he asked carefully: "Um, may I ask, where do you live?"
"Huh?" Yuan Shan and Ye looked at him in surprise, "Uncle, are you trying to strike up a conversation?"
"No, no, of course not." The kind uncle hurriedly waved his hand and explained, "That's right, I opened a store in Cupido Town, doing antique business, and there are also some beautiful handicrafts for young people in the store - if you have
It’s empty, you can come over and have a look.”
Seeing that the two young girls were interested, the uncle reached out and rummaged through his bag and took out a catalog, plus this keychain in a small box, and gave them to them as a souvenir.
At that time, Mao Lilan and Toyama Heye had too many things in their hands. In addition, the small box had a simple appearance and did not suit their aesthetics, so they did not open it on the spot.
At this time, when taking the clothes away, the keychain fell out. Yuanshan and Ye picked it up and opened the lid curiously.
————
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