Maori Kogoro began to understand everything

"Detective Maori, where is the evidence?" Benshan gritted his teeth and said, "The snowman incident cannot be used as evidence that Banqiao is the criminal..."

"There's no evidence yet."

Maori turned his gaze towards the cliff.

"These are of course just my speculations, but is it possible that we can't find evidence? It's just a matter of time. After all, judging from the method used, the murderer should have killed Miss Sakuko in her own room, and it would be difficult to remove the traces."

Chapter 173: An interview that starts off well but ends badly

Banqiao stood there with trembling eyes, his gaze unfocused. Having everything revealed to him in front of him gave him a chill down his spine, as if he had been seen through.

The so-called famous detective in front of him looked like just an ordinary middle-aged man.

To be precise, he is also a mystery fan. Although he was nervous when he took action, he was also somewhat complacent. He didn't expect that in the blink of an eye, he would be exposed in front of everyone, including the girl he liked.

Banqiao opened his mouth, but couldn't say anything when he saw Maori's calm expression.

"But," Benshan said with difficulty, "Why would Banqiao kill Shuozi..."

"I didn't expect it myself," Banqiao said with mixed emotions, "Maybe I will lose my mind as long as it's related to Mahua... Sako has always liked you, so she deliberately designed an accident for Mahua, just to make Mahua's skiing figure disappear from your mind, just for such a ridiculous reason..."

……

When we left the ski resort in Gunma Prefecture and returned to Tokyo, snow started falling in the mountains again. Maori drove quietly, and only a few kids in the back were still talking about the murder case at the ski resort.

"The adult world is really scary!"

"Is this considered a love triangle..."

Maori glanced at the gossipy Ayumi through the rearview mirror.

They are just a few college students. They haven't entered society yet. How can they be considered adults?

The adult world is much more complicated and scary. Only immature people would be like those college students.

Banqiao still regarded himself as a sentimental character who helped Mahua get rid of his enemies in the end. How could this have any good results? The biggest taboo in love is to move yourself.

……

three days later.

"Are you going to Okinawa tomorrow?"

It was dinner time at the Maori Detective Agency. Ran was almost shocked when she heard the news from Maori. She looked at the proud Maori anxiously and said, "Dad, why haven't I heard you talk about this before?!"

"Didn't I tell you?" Mao Li was stunned for a moment, then explained with a smile, "You should know the scoring leader of the professional baseball Jaguars, Noh Sei San, right? This time it was planned by Nichimi TV to let me talk to this Noh Sei player face to face!"

"But," Xiao Ai, who was eating nearby, couldn't help but interrupt, "Why did they ask you to go? There shouldn't be any connection between a professional baseball player and a detective..."

"How come it doesn't matter?"

Maori drank a sip of beer happily. "Nose is one of the few pitchers in the baseball world who uses his brain to play baseball. This time, I will let him use his insight that can see through the batter's mind to directly compete with my reasoning!"

"But Dad," Xiaolan said worriedly, "Can you talk to him smoothly? I heard that Nose is notoriously difficult to please..."

"It's okay," Mao Li said nonchalantly, "I'm not a pushover either. Besides, there's also a sports commentator who has a good relationship with Nose who's joining the conversation."

"What time is the flight tomorrow?" Xiaolan asked with concern.

"Well, it seems that we will leave from Haneda Airport at 6:35 in the morning, because Nose is only free in the morning..."

"Ah? In that case, doesn't that mean we have to get up before 5 o'clock?"

Xiaolan panicked and hurriedly said to Xiaoai: "We need to get ready and go to bed early, Ai-chan!"

"Huh?" Maori looked at the happy Xiaolan and Xiaoai and raised his eyebrows, "Hey, hey, I'm going alone..."

"Oh, right," Xiao Ai and Xiao Lan completely forgot about Mao Li and started to plan excitedly, "Sister Xiao Lan, let's go to the convenience store and buy some things now."

"Okay, better buy two towels..."

"Hello..."

Mao Li looked at his daughter and Ai helplessly, "Do you hear me?"

"This is Mugure doing free training in Miyazaki," the TV was broadcasting a sports report, "for the Falcons to successfully defend the title, you can feel his passionate fighting spirit..."

"Then Mr. Motoyama will have a talk with Nose in Okinawa tomorrow. You must be as good as you were today."

"Don't worry, Nose-nii and I have been friends for many years, and Kogoro Mori will also be here to help tomorrow..."

……

The next day, Maori and his two companions boarded the earliest flight, departing from Haneda Airport at 6:35 am and bound for Naha City, Okinawa.

"Alas," Mao Li sighed and sat in the front row by the window with a look of despair, "In the end, he followed me..."

"What's the matter?" Xiaolan happily sat with Xiaoai, "I called the TV station yesterday. Didn't they agree to pay for our plane tickets? You said the Okinawan food we ate last time was delicious..."

Maori held his forehead in a depressed tone.

The TV station staff agreed, but his salary was reduced to economy class. Besides, he had originally planned to have a good time alone...

"It's okay, Dad," Xiaolan comforted him, "We're just taking two photos with a digital camera. We won't disturb your work..."

As she spoke, Xiaolan stood up and unzipped her backpack. Suddenly, a roll of tennis balls fell out and bounced everywhere.

"There are three boys in the baseball club," Xiaolan said awkwardly after collecting four tennis balls with the help of passengers and the stewardess, "and the other one is for me, mine..."

"You're asking for your mom, right?" Maori said speechlessly, looking at his guilty daughter. "I know she's also a fan of the Cougars..."

"So please, Dad! You must get an autograph for Mom!"

"I know this without you telling me!"

……

"Mr. Mori! I've been waiting for you for a long time. I'm Teranishi from Okinawa Nichimi TV!"

"Mr. Teranishi, my daughter and I are sorry to bother you today."

In Naha City, Okinawa, the Mori family met the director of Nichimi TV who came to pick them up in the airport lobby, and they seemed quite enthusiastic.

"Is Mr. Nose already waiting at the hotel?"

"That's right? Mr. Nose goes for a long run every morning between 9 and 10. He's probably running somewhere near the hotel right now..."

"I see. It's raining even though it's raining. You're really self-disciplined. You're worthy of being a professional player!"

……

Just like before, the trip of the three Maori people started well but ended badly - professional baseball player Norizo, who was training as usual, was stabbed on the side of a small road near the hotel. Maori quickly found the murderer, who was an old friend of the victim, sports commentator Masaharu Motoyama...

The interview program was naturally canceled, but fortunately Mao Li still got an autograph for Eri Kisaki, although this autograph might not be very good as the last autograph of the victim...

……

Yamagata Prefecture, due to its special geographical location, attracts many tourists from all over the country every year and is known as a paradise for hot spring lovers.

It happened to be winter, so the Maori family took some time out to go on a hot spring trip to the mountains of Yamagata Prefecture. The snow-covered mountains had a unique flavor, and although the weather was a bit cold, it made people look forward to a nice hot spring bath.

The car drove through the wind and snow and into the mountains. Maori watched the flying snowflakes quietly.

The river in the distance has frozen over, and occasionally you can see vehicles carefully passing over the snow-covered bridge among the undulating mountains. Although it is deep in the mountains, it seems to have been well developed and can be considered a tourist destination in Yamagata Prefecture.

He, Xiao Ai and Xiao Lan were going to one of the hot spring villages this time. After booking a room at the Kotoya Hotel in advance, they even had a special car to pick them up, so they didn't have to look for a place in the mountains by themselves.

The hotel owner who acted as the driver even enthusiastically recommended: "Mr. Maori, our hot springs are particularly useful for treating shoulder pain. You can try it later."

"That couldn't be better."

……

"arrive!"

The car soon arrived at a snowy village, where we could see a large hot spring hotel among the dead trees.

A sign at the door with "Qinwu Hotel" engraved on it was extremely eye-catching in the falling snow. The proprietress and several waitresses were standing under the eaves to greet people.

As the hotel car stopped in front of the house, the staff immediately came over to greet them, and the proprietress bowed slightly.

"Welcome, Mr. Maori, we have been waiting for you here for a long time, please come in..."

"Thank you."

Maori picked up his luggage backpack, and Xiaolan and Xiaoai followed him into the hotel. The spacious lobby was decorated with many colorful long-sleeved kimonos on both sides, dividing the world from the grayish-white snow scene outside.

it's actually very good……

Maori looked at the courtyard of the hotel. Just like the Daimon family last time, there was a stone-surrounded pond. The bare branches and the pond were covered with snow. Coupled with the vague mountains in the distance, it was a scene rarely seen in Tokyo. People couldn't help but want to step on the snow in the yard.

Mao Li looked inside the lounge and found a group of people sitting on the sofa. In addition to the round-faced female editor Yasuta Raiko, whom he had met at the Daigakukan Publishing House before because of the case of Shinna Kaori, there was also a romance novelist Akechi Eri, a bald old man and three young and beautiful women.

"Detective Maori?" The female editor, Yasuko Hosada, was surprised to see Maori, "Why are you here too?"

"Mr. Mori?" The old man who was talking stood up and walked forward, handing him his business card with a kind look, "It's an honor to meet you here, Mr. Mori. I'm Tokyoichi Hanakawa, a producer at Nichimi TV. Please give me your guidance..."

"Hello," Maori greeted in a friendly manner, then glanced at a few people and looked at the female editor, "Editor Baotian, are you here for the new play?"

"Yes," the female editor smiled, "Because it tells the story of three young women emerging in different fields, we plan to use the most active women in various fields as the blueprint for this play. This time, we specially invited three junior sisters from my alma mater, Wangdao University, to come here to discuss..."

The two women who were sitting on the sofa and looked quite arrogant straightened up when they heard this, and at the same time looked at Maori, the famous detective.

"This is a fashion model who is very active in Paris and New York," producer Bandō introduced the rather cold long-haired woman on the sofa, "She is also Ms. Shibasaki Asuka, the daughter of Councillor Shibasaki..."

"The person next to her is an oil painter who won an award at the Toudou Art Exhibition, Ms. Anzai Ema..."

Maori looked at the woman with a headscarf and curly hair who looked like a proud hen. She was pretty, but her personality didn't seem very good. The third woman was better. She was dressed casually and stood quietly by, looking at the snowy courtyard outside the floor-to-ceiling window. She seemed a little introverted.

"Who is this……"

Producer Bandō was about to introduce the last woman when Xiaolan suddenly said excitedly, "It must be the singer-songwriter Ms. Harumi Fukatsu? I'm a big fan of yours!"

"Ah?" The introverted woman came to her senses and said embarrassedly, "Thank you."

"Humph!"

The two people on the sofa said sarcastically, "It's really weird. It's just a popular song, but there are still fans."

“There are singers everywhere who become popular and then disappear…”

The competitive atmosphere made Maori frown slightly, and his impression of Shibasaki Asuka and Anzai Ema suddenly became much worse. If he was in charge of the series, he would never invite such people. However, he was not a person in the entertainment industry after all, and he didn't know what the female editors were planning, so he remained silent.

Anyway, it was just an accidental encounter, so it’s enough to just do the surface work.

"Uncle," Xiao Ai said at the right time, "Please put your luggage in the room first and don't disturb others."

"No problem... But speaking of which," Mao Li exclaimed as he looked at the snow outside the French window, "The scenery here is really nice!"

"As long as you like it," the proprietress smiled happily and led everyone out of the hall, "Your room is just across the corridor ahead. Please let us know if you need anything..."

"This is it..."

The proprietress opened the paper door, led the group into the room, and helped pour a few cups of hot tea.

"There are two rooms in total, which should be enough."

The living room also offers a view of the snow outside, and even has some long-sleeved kimonos hanging like in the hall.

"There are some here too," Xiaolan asked curiously, "Madam, you have long-sleeved kimonos and obis hanging everywhere here. Is there any story behind this?"

"Every household here worships the Kimono Sode God, and every family has such decorations," the proprietress said with a smile, "It is very common here."

"Kimono sleeve god?"

Maori and Xiao Ai put away their luggage and walked to the window to look outside: "The snow seems to have stopped..."

"It's still early for dinner," the proprietress suggested, "why don't you go for a walk in the village? Although there's only snow now..."

"Then let's go for a walk."

Maori looked at the snow-capped mountains bathed in the sun with great anticipation. The mountains seemed more beautiful than when it snowed, and the air was especially fresh.

The village is not too big, but the houses are scattered among the mountains in an orderly manner. There are many wintersweets in full bloom on both sides of the flat road. Thick white snow is piled on the scattered houses, like igloos. After the heavy snow stopped, the mountain birds began to come out again, singing non-stop in the snow forest.

The three Maori people accidentally ran into the female singer Harumi Fukatsu who was also visiting the village. She seemed to want to say something but it would be more accurate to say that Harumi Fukatsu came to them on her own rather than running into them.

"Is Miss Harumi familiar with this village?"

"Ah, no," Fukatsu Harumi said hurriedly, "I just want to go to the shrine to take a look, because a senior from university used to talk about the kimono sodezakura here..."