Chapter 20 Chapter 19 Arrest

Back at Senko Temple, Kindaichi found Ryozawa who was meditating. "Ze, I have something to ask you." "What is it! Mr. Kindaichi." "Hanako was killed on the night she guarded the spirit of the ten thousand eunuch, right?" "yes!" "That night, Monk Mingran asked me to go to the branch house, so I left first. Then, when I left the branch house to go to Guitou Ben's house, I saw you and me at the halfway up the winding mountain road. Monk Liaoran and Zhuzang came down from above, do you remember? At that time..." Kosuke Kindaichi looked at Ze, and suddenly felt like he didn't know how to speak clearly.

"I remember it very clearly. How was it then?" "At that time, when you came out of the monastery with the monk and Zhuzang, were you three people walking together? In other words, were the three of you always together when you came out of the monastery until you met me?" Kindaichi Kosuke wanted to express his meaning as clearly as possible, he stared at Ze and said. Ryozawa looked at Kosuke Kindaichi with an incredulous expression on his face. "Mr. Kindaichi, I don't know why you ask such a thing, but I can only answer 'no'!" "No? Didn't you go there with Monk Liaoran and Zhuzang?"

Kosuke Kindaichi asked very eagerly. Liao Ze was puzzled and said: "It's true that we left the monastery together, but as soon as we left the mountain gate, the master said that he forgot to take the bag with the scriptures and asked me to go back to get it. He also said that it was on the cabinet in the abbot's room, but I found it. I searched and searched but couldn’t find it. I thought maybe Master had misremembered it, so I searched everywhere in the monastery, but still couldn’t find the burden, so I had to go down the mountain empty-handed. Seeing Master and Zhuzang waiting for me there, Master saw me smiling and said: 'I'm sorry, I'm sorry, the burden is in my arms!' Then we met you."

Kosuke Kindaichi said with a distressed expression: "Then what do you mean to say that Takezo and the monk have always been together?" "Probably so! I went back to the monastery, and I thought, of course Zhuzang is with Master." The confusion on Liozawa's face was no less than that of Kosuke Kindaichi. "Thank you. By the way, where is Monk Lian?" Kosuke Kindaichi asked by the way. "He said he was going to separate the family." "He is going to separate the family now? What to do?" Kindaichi Kosuke looked at Ze with wide eyes, as if Ze had lied.

"Master said that Tsurumi Benshan has approved it, and tomorrow there will be a teaching ceremony to let me inherit the monastery. Now the branch family is the largest ship owner on the island, so of course we have to inform them about this kind of thing." Liao Ze's expression was very ugly, as if he was about to cry or not. "Inherit the monastery? Do you know where the monk will go in the future?" Kosuke Kindaichi asked inquisitively. "He said he was going to live in seclusion in a certain monastery. He had mentioned this kind of thing before, but in fact he didn't need to be in such a hurry. Oh! I don't even know what to do."

Liozawa felt very uneasy when he thought that he would become the center of faith of the islanders. After Kosuke Kindaichi comforted him a few words, he left the temple with tired steps. There is an earth temple on the winding path down the mountain. Kosuke Kaneda went to that temple and looked inside through the lattice door. Suddenly his eyes widened, as if he had found some important evidence. He quickly looked around, saw that no one was paying attention, so he pushed the lattice door. Fortunately, the lattice door was not locked, and it opened with a slight push, and he tiptoed into the dark temple.

Someone must have been in this temple recently, because the thin layer of dust on the floor showed obvious signs of being stepped on, and at the same time, the petals of artificial flowers placed in vases for decoration also fell on the floor.Kosuke Kindaichi picked up the petal, put it in the notepad, and walked out of the Earth Temple. Then, Kosuke Kindaichi went down the slope to the main house. Although the three girls were buried last night, the day for the official funeral has not yet been determined, so there are still many heavily armed policemen coming and going. "Wantai's funeral has not yet been held, and these things happen one after another, and the anniversary of the death of the former boss is approaching.

Kosuke Kindaichi remembered the dejected look on Asheng's face when he said these words last night, and couldn't help but feel a sense of desolation and misery in his heart. After a while, he saw Takezoro in the kitchen, and immediately called him in a low voice: "Bamboo, I have something to ask you." Kosuke Kindaichi said to Takezo with a serious face. "What's up?" "Do you remember what happened the night Hanako was killed? It was when you went to Qianguang Temple that evening, you met me on the winding road..." "I remember." Takezo answered succinctly.

"I heard that later you met Monk Ran in front of the mountain gate and followed Ze; Monk Ruan said that he forgot to take something, so he went back to the temple after Li Ze. After that, you met again from the mountain gate to the halfway up the winding mountain path. Did you stay with Monk Qingran all the time when you came to me?" Kindaichi Kosuke said carefully, lest Takezo heard wrong. "Yes, we're all in this together." Takezo stared at Kosuke Kindaichi in bewilderment. "Really? You haven't moved half a step away from Monk Liao Ran? This matter is very important, please think carefully before telling me."

Takekura looked at Kosuke Kindaichi with a cautious expression, thought for a moment and said: "Ah! By the way, on the uphill road, Monk Zhuanzhang's clogs broke. He said he wanted to retie it himself and told me to go first, so I walked to the halfway up the winding path first. Monk Zhuanzhang then followed Come on, when we were talking, Ze also came, and then when the three of us were about to walk together, we met you." When Kosuke Kindaichi heard this, his heart felt heavier and heavier, and he felt extremely desperate. "I understand that the place where the monk's wooden display belt is broken is in front of or behind the Temple of Earth?"

"Just in front of the Temple of the Earth. I saw the monk sitting on the edge of the temple gate, tying the straps of the wooden exhibition." Kindaichi Kosuke's mood became more and more heavy. He stared blankly into the distance, scratched his head repeatedly, and then said as if thinking of something: "By the way, when I came out of the temple and met you on the ramp, you asked me where I was going, and I told you, I understand that the monk asked me to go to the branch to inform the vigil. At that time, your expression was very strange. ,why?" "Ah! That's because the branch family should already know about the vigil. The day before, Monk Ming Ming asked me to inform, and later asked you to inform again... Although I felt strange, after thinking about it, I thought, Do you understand that the monk has other things to explain, so he didn't ask any more questions." Kosuke Kindaichi said to Takezo with an expression of "the truth is finally revealed": "I see, thank you. By the way, if you see Officer Isokawa, please come here." Takezo didn't dare to delay, so he immediately invited the police officer Isokawa. "Kindaichi, what's the matter?" Officer Isokawa was so busy that he was sweating and asked loudly. "I want to show you a magic trick. Takezo, can you find a long pole like this with a hook in the front?" Kindaichi Kosuke said to Takezo, gesturing at length. Zhu Zang quickly found such a pole. "Is this ok?" "Okay, Takezo, please come with me." When the three of them came to the mouth of the bay, Kindaichi Kosuke completely ignored the strange gazes from the people on the island, turned around and said to Takezo: "I want a boat." "Okay, I'll get over it right away, please wait a moment." When Takezo pulled out the boat, Kosuke Kindaichi and police officer Isokawa boarded the boat immediately. "Kindaichi, what are you going to do?" Officer Isokawa was confused by Kosuke Kindaichi's mysterious behavior, and couldn't help asking in wonder. "You'll find out soon. Takezo, please row to the bottom of the tengu nose rock where the bell is placed." Kindaichi Kosuke ordered Takekura decisively. On the Seto Inland Sea, which is getting more and more autumnal, the sea is calm and blue.Officer Isokawa and Kosuke Kindaichi watched the sea silently, but the boat seemed to be full of tension. Officer Isokawa seemed to understand that Kosuke Kindaichi was about to reveal the truth of the matter, so he remained silent. The boat entered the place where the tide converged, and the seaweed swayed and swayed under the washing of the tide. Suddenly, Kosuke Kindaichi raised his head, looked at the bell that had been hung on the rock and said: "Zhuzang, stop the boat here, and use a pole to fish in the water, okay?" "What do you want?" Takezo asked puzzled. "There should be a rope tied with a heavy object sinking in the sea. If the thing tied is not heavy, the rope won't sink. Please fish it out." Kosuke Kindaichi pointed at the sea surface to let Takezo fish something while pointing. So Zhuzang held the hook upside down and fished in the sea. Kosuke Kindaichi and the police officer leaned out from the side of the boat and looked at the pole. "what!" Takezou suddenly yelled. "found it!" Kosuke Kindaichi said happily: "I'll get this pole, please go into the sea and cut the rope. Thank you for your hard work." After finishing speaking, Kosuke Kindaichi took out a navy knife from his pocket and handed it to Takezo. "no problem." Takezura then took off his clothes, and with the navy knife in his mouth, he swam quietly towards the submerged hook pole. Before long, he surfaced. "this is for you……" Takezo handed over the rope he was holding to Kosuke Kanedaichi, and nimbly jumped into the boat.Kosuke Kindaichi hurriedly held the rope, looking nervously at the surface of the water. "Officer, the magic trick is about to begin. Do you think there will be a ghost? Or a snake?" Kindaichi Kosuke turned around and asked Officer Isokawa. But without waiting for the police officer to answer, he immediately pulled the rope, and saw a strange thing slowly emerging from the sea. At first, Officer Isokawa and Takezo could not see what it was, but after a while, when they saw the whole thing, their eyes widened and they forgot to breathe in surprise. "Ah! It's a bell!" The police officer Luanchuan gasped. "Yes, this is a prop bell." Kosuke Kindaichi followed Officer Isokawa's words: "This is the bell that the mother of the three sisters Yue, Xue, and Hua used to perform in the play "Into the Clock". It’s a crime to kill the props!” Kindaichi Kosuke's voice was full of regret, without any joy after seeing through the magic mechanism. At this time, Monk Liao Ran happened to walk up to the rock of Tengu Nose, and looked down inadvertently.As if telepathically, Kosuke Kindaichi also raised his head at this moment, and at this moment, the eyes of Qingran on the rock and Kosuke Kindaichi under the rock met like lightning, and they knew each other well. "Nan Wu..." Monk Liao Ran stood there in a daze, clapped his hands together on the rock and began to recite silently. The autumn rain is continuous and cool. On the second day, there was a thin mist and rain on Prison Gate Island all day long, and Qianguang Temple was also shrouded in this mist and rain. Liao Ran and Liao Ze held a Dharma transmission ceremony in the main hall. According to the old rules, it takes at least a week for the teaching ceremony of Cao Dongzong to be completed. In the main hall hung with a red curtain, no idlers are allowed to enter except for the master and the apprentice.Here, the disciples receive the oral teachings from the master, and carefully copy the major events, successor books, and bloodlines.And when the apprentice is copying, he has to get up and pray three times every time he writes a word, so it takes a lot of time.Also, before the ceremony is completed, the successor is not allowed to leave his seat except to go to the toilet. This is to let the person who inherits the mantle get rid of distracting thoughts.After inheriting the mantle, it means that there is no longer the title of master or disciple, and they are both disciples of Shakyamuni Buddha. However, Monk Liaoran did not follow the traditional rules. It only took him one day to complete the transmission ceremony, and Liaoze became the abbot monk of Qianguang Temple that day. After the Dharma teaching ceremony ended, Monk Qingran walked out of the main hall with a radiant spirit. After he came out of the toilet, while washing his hands, he looked at the whole temple. In the hazy fog and rain, there were heavily armed policemen standing everywhere. Monk Liao Ran couldn't help sighing when he saw this scene. However, he is not a person who is easily impetuous, so he still walked into the academy with steady steps. "Awaited." After greeting the people in the room, he sat down. Waiting for him in the room were Kosuke Kindaichi and Police Officer Isokawa. The two seemed to have been waiting for a long time, and the ashtray on the table was already full of cigarette butts. "finished?" Officer Isokawa patted the cushion and sat down again, asking in a stiff voice. "It's over, TOEFL, TOEFL." Monk Liao Ran said with a smile. "Master, where is Liao Ze?" Kosuke Kindaichi asked by the way. "He went to the branch house to say hello. After all, I will need Gibei as a backup in the future. Mr. Kindaichi, what are you going to say?" Monk Kyoran's calm expression made Police Officer Isokawa and Kosuke Kindaichi look at each other involuntarily. "Master!" Kindaichi Kosuke yelled, with a troubled expression on his face, as if he had a thousand words in his heart, but he didn't know where to start. He tried to adjust his breathing, and after a long silence, he quickly glanced at the monk and said: "Master, we are here to arrest you today. I am very sorry that I have been taken care of by you in the past, but it has become like this today." Kosuke Kindaichi's slightly hoarse voice seemed to be sobbing, but Monk Kyoran still sat calmly, and Police Officer Isokawa watched the two of them silently. The atmosphere of silence was like the rain and fog outside the temple. The academy is diffused and flowing. "Arrest me? Why?" Monk Liao Ran asked very calmly. Although there was no hint of questioning in the monk's voice, his eyes conveyed a sly expression of "willing to hear more about it". "Because you killed Hanako! Master, did you kill Hanako?" Kindaichi Kosuke spoke word by word. "Kill Hanako? Mr. Kindaichi, is it that simple?" Monk Liao Ran asked back with a smile on his face. "No, by the way, you were the one who killed the pirates on the pirate cottage, right?" Kindaichi Kosuke asked another question. "Killing pirates on a pirate cottage? Well, what else?" Monk Liaoran still looked at Kosuke Kindaichi with a smile on his face. "No more. You only killed Hanako and the unidentified pirate." Officer Isokawa looked at Kosuke Kindaichi in surprise, as if he didn't know the real situation yet. "that's all?" The monk continued calmly: "Kindaichi, didn't I kill Xue Zhi and Yue Dai?" "No. You did not do these two cases; the village head Araki killed Yukie; and Dr. Murase Koan killed Tsukiyo." Kindaichi Kosuke spoke clearly and firmly. "Kindaichi!" Officer Isokawa managed to squeeze out these three words with a trembling voice, but was too surprised to speak.After a long time, he said in a small voice like a mosquito: "Kindaichi, is this, is this true?" "It's true. Officer, Monk Akatsuki killed Hanako, the village head killed Yukie, and Dr. Murase Koan killed Tsukiyo. Only in this way can this case be reasonably explained." Kindaichi Kosuke paused, and continued: "This incident is both strange and terrifying. The monk, the village chief and the doctor killed the three sisters Yue, Xue and Hua respectively. If you think that the three of them are accomplices, you are wrong. Because every murder is an independent crime. Completed, these are separate homicides." "How is this possible? Three girls were killed one after another, but it was three separate cases..." "Yes. Of course, someone was responsible for these three murders, instructing the monk, the village head and the doctor to carry out the three murders. Strictly speaking, this person is the real murderer! Compared with him, the monk, the village head The chief and the doctor are just machines ordered to kill people." As Kosuke Kindaichi said, he glanced at the monk. "Who is that terrible man?" Officer Isokawa couldn't help asking curiously. "Kaemon, who passed away last year." Kosuke Kindaichi said calmly. Officer Isokawa seemed to be struck by lightning suddenly, his whole body was stiff and unable to move, and his cheeks were twitching intermittently. Knowing that the monk still had a relaxed attitude, looking down at his nose, indifferent. "It's all Kaemon's arrogance and stubbornness. I'm a fool. I should have discovered this since I came to this island, oh no, before I came to this island." Kindaichi Kosuke looked at the monk and police officer Isokawa with a look of exhaustion. "Do you know why I came to this island? I came here at the request of my family's Wantai to prevent the killing of three people. Before she died, Wantai knew that this kind of thing would happen. He Zeng said: 'If I die, the three younger sisters will be killed...go to Prison Gate Island...cousin...cousin...' At this point, he died." Kindaichi Kosuke thought of his best friend's last words, and his tone was full of sentimentality. "When Wantai was still physically able to support me, he kept suggesting that I come to Prison Gate Island, and even wrote a letter of introduction for me. The problem is the recipient of the letter of introduction. Why did you write those three people? Why didn't you write your own? What about your relatives? Although Yu Sansong is crazy, why didn't he write about Kaemon? In fact, if he could have thought of this earlier, he should have solved the mystery of this incident earlier." There were faint tears in Kindaichi Kosuke's eyes, tears of blaming himself. "At first I thought: maybe Wantai thinks that his grandfather Kaemon is old, and maybe he thinks that Kaemon has passed away. But if he thinks so, then the three recipients are not all the same Is it? Whether you know the monk, the village head or the doctor, you are not young! Maybe Mrs. Wanwan thinks so, and the recipient will write about the three of them! In case anyone dies, there are two others. Personally." Kosuke Kindaichi analyzed his thoughts when he received Manta's letter of introduction. "If that's the case, why didn't he write about Kaemon? After all, Kaemon is his grandfather! Just in case, you can also attach monks, village chiefs and doctors to the letter of introduction. But why didn’t Manta do this? Is he afraid of Kaemon? Or is it because Manta knows that Kaemon is the murderer of the three younger sisters?” When Kosuke Kindaichi said this, he paused, took a puff of his cigarette, looked around at the two people in front of him, and then put his hand holding the cigarette on his knee. "Wantai was conscripted into the army not long after the war broke out. He was first sent to mainland China, then wandered around the South Sea islands, and finally arrived in New Guinea. Therefore, he should have not corresponded with his family for a long time Even if there is, it is impossible to mention in the letter that the three younger sisters will be killed. However, Qian Wantai really knows that once he dies, the three younger sisters will definitely be killed. Why does he know this ending? Only One explanation: that is, before he left his hometown, he had already talked about it with his grandfather!" Kindaichi Kosuke was completely unaware that a long piece of ash from the cigarette held in his finger had fallen onto his knee.He looked at the tatami in front of him with wet eyes and continued: "Thus, a picture of three men sitting in the living room of Onitoumoto's house emerged before my eyes, one of them was an old man, the former boss Kaemon, and the other two were the old man's grandsons, Manta and Hajime. Manta and Hajime received the summoning order almost at the same time. Kaemon knew that after his death, he and Sansong would not be able to inherit the huge family business of the family, but the grandson who could inherit the incense would go to the battlefield. Kaemon faced a desperate situation. Difficulty." Having said that, Kosuke Kindaichi looked at Officer Isokawa.He looked at the monk again and said: "Just imagine, how Kaemon will explain to the two grandchildren? It is nothing more than: It would be best if Wantai of the main family came back alive. But if Wantai died and only Hajime came back alive, The main family will be inherited by Hajime. However, if this is the case, the three girls Yue, Yuki, and Hana will become obstacles to Hajime's succession, so they must be killed..." Kindaichi Kosuke's voice was a little hoarse, he stopped for a while, and remained silent for a while. Officer Isokawa silently looked at his side with surprised eyes. Monk Liao Ran sat cross-legged indifferently. Kindaichi Kosuke took a few sips of tea, cleared his throat, and continued: "This is simply too scary! Ordinary people would never think about doing it like this. But, then again, how many people on the island acted in accordance with common sense and common sense? I am worried about the future of the family. After all, if any one of the three sisters Yue, Xue, and Hua inherits the family business, the Guitou family will be finished; There is such an arrangement. I just don’t understand, if Wantai and Hajime both die, will he let Sanae inherit the family business?” "Will not!" Monk Ran's old and deep voice suddenly sounded in the room. "I'm sorry, but I'm sorry. Kaemon doesn't take girls seriously at all. Whether it's Tsukiyo, Yukie, Hanako or Sanae, they are all the same in Kaemon's eyes. If Mimanta and Ah If they are all killed in battle, then he has no choice but to ask Tsukiyo to take over the family, in short, there is no way he will kill three girls and let Sanae inherit the family business!" Monk Liao Ran said kindly. Hearing this, Kindaichi Kosuke suddenly had a look of surprise and grief in his eyes. "Master!" He said a little out of breath: "That is to say, if Wantai is dead and Hayi is alive, they must be killed. If both of them are dead, these three girls will..." When Kosuke Kindaichi said this, he seemed to be at a loss for words. Monk Liao Ran nodded silently. Kosuke Kindaichi and Police Officer Isokawa looked at each other, and in the eyes they met, there was the helplessness and sadness that Monk Miruran knew. "It's destiny, everything is destiny!" Monk Liao Ming still lowered his eyes and said calmly: "After I went to apply for the bell back, I heard the news from Takezo that Hajime was still alive in the cabin on the return trip, and I learned the news of Manta's death from you... All of this is predestined! Qian Manta's death, Hajime's survival, and the retrieval of the bell... Ah! I feel that Kaemon is staring at us. In fact, as long as these three conditions are lacking, the three girls will not Killed. But Wantai's death, Hajime's survival, and the hanging bell, all of these... In short, the conditions are too complete." Monk Liao Ran sighed and said. Kosuke Kindaichi and Police Officer Isokawa looked at each other again and sighed in despair. Monk Mingran still said calmly: "Mr. Kindaichi, I'm a monk. I think you can see that I'm not superstitious. However, I have to be a little surprised that these three conditions appear at the same time. It feels like there is some invisible mysterious force." It is pushing us; not to mention, there is a life-and-death relationship between the three of us and Kaemon." When Monk Liao Ran said these words, he was still smiling. "Besides, those three girls are people who are not worth killing. Sorry for interrupting, Mr. Kindaichi, please continue talking!" Monk Liao Ran nodded, and returned to the indifferent demeanor just now. "Officer, Master, please listen carefully." Kindaichi Kosuke said in a sad tone: "If I were arrogant, I can proudly say that I discovered Kaemon's influence on this case a long time ago. Of course, this is a lie. I only found out after everything was over. It was the monk who came to this point, and it was the monk who gave me a hint and let me discover this. The monk knew my identity a long time ago, and for the sake of fairness, he put the key to the puzzle before my eyes, which is the Fan the haiku screen. And before everything was over, I didn’t see through the key point. Of course, this is due to my own ignorance, and on the other hand, it is also because the Buddhist monk has deceived me.” Monk Koran frowned, and looked at Kosuke Kindaichi suspiciously, Kosuke Kindaichi immediately went on to say: "It can't be said that Monk Liaoliang lied to me, but I misunderstood, so I got into a dead end at the most important juncture. Since the police officer doesn't know the inside story yet, I think it's better to follow the order from Hanako to being killed. Let's start talking!" The smoke had already been filmed, and Kosuke Kindaichi felt hot and cold at the moment.He kept raising the teacup and drank the tea in the cup. The black tea dregs left a bitter taste on his tongue. Monk Liao Ran seemed to suddenly realize that everyone was thirsty, so he immediately brought iron bottles and clay pots from the abbot's room, and poured fragrant tea in front of everyone.