novelhk Page 128
Page 128
Tatsuya Nishimura found him in "Ryusen-ma"—a special workshop dedicated to brewing Ryusen sake, which Tomohisa Ishikawa has been using more and more frequently by himself in recent years.
"Tatsuya?" Ishikawa Tomohisa was somewhat surprised to see Nishimura Tatsuya barge in. "How did you end up here..."
"The 'finishing touch' of Longquan wine was developed together by us, wasn't it?" Tatsuya Nishimura questioned directly, "It's not some secret family recipe of yours at all!"
Tomohisa Ishikawa's expression froze instantly: "You're drunk, go home and rest."
"No, I must know the truth today," Tatsuya Nishimura insisted, closing in step by step. "Why did you lie? Why have you kept this from me for twenty years?"
Faced with Tatsuya Nishimura's persistent questioning, Tomohisa Ishikawa finally lost his patience: "Because that's precisely the value of Ryusen sake! A secret, a legend, a technique known only to the head of the sect—that's the soul of Ryusen! Once revealed, it's just an ordinary bottle of sake!"
"So you treat me like an outsider? For twenty years, I've always thought we were protecting a dream together, but to you, I'm just a useful tool?" Tatsuya Nishimura's voice trembled with anger.
Tomohisa Ishikawa turned to face the fermentation tank, his tone cold: "Sign the agreement, Tatsuya. It's better for both of us this way."
At that very moment, Tatsuya Nishimura saw the wooden mallet on the workbench used to open barrels.
“I don’t even remember how I picked up that mallet,” Tatsuya Nishimura told Officer Takada, his eyes blank. “I only remember that when I came to my senses, Tomohisa Ishikawa was already lying on the ground, his head covered in blood.”
"After that, I suddenly remembered that Watanabe of Yamazaki Suisan had a conflict with Ishikawa Tomohisa, and I thought of framing you for this, so I slowly dragged Ishikawa Tomohisa's body to the back alley of the 'Sakura-tei' restaurant."
Yuuki Takada quietly asked, "Did you regret it at the time?"
Tatsuya Nishimura remained silent for a long time: "In the very first moment, there was only fear. Then... a strange sense of relief. The years-long disputes, suspicions, and anger had finally come to an end."
However, Tatsuya Nishimura's next action was unexpected. Instead of fleeing the scene, he began working as usual—checking the temperature of the fermentation tanks, adjusting the humidity controller, and recording the state of the mash.
“I complete all the procedures like an automated machine,” Tatsuya Nishimura said, “as if by doing this, time would turn back and everything would go back to the way it was before.”
But reality will not change.
Tomohisa Ishikawa lay on the ground, his gradually cooling body a reminder to Tatsuya Nishimura of what had happened.
“I sat down next to him and started talking to him, just as I had been wanting to do for the past few months. I told him about my disappointment, my anger, and the pain of being excluded from Longquan by him... I asked him why we couldn’t go back to the way things were.”
Of course, there was no answer.
"Then why did you admit to all of this?" Takada Yuki asked. "According to our investigation, you meticulously arranged the scene to make it appear that Mr. Ishikawa's death was killed by someone else, Watanabe of Yamazaki Suisan. But unfortunately, he has a clear alibi today."
Tatsuya Nishimura gave a bitter smile: "Because I received the test results today."
He took a folded piece of paper out of his pocket and pushed it toward Yuki Takada.
Yuki Takada carefully opened it; it was a sake component analysis report.
“This is a sample of Longquan that I secretly brought out from Sakura-tei yesterday,” Nishimura Tatsuya explained. “I finally know that secret, the secret that made me kill my best friend.”
Yuki Takada looked at the report, puzzled.
"Look at the last item, the trace element content," said Tatsuya Nishimura.
Yuki Takada found the line of data, still puzzled: "What's so special about this value?"
“This is a mineral that only exists in the ancient well in the backyard of Sakura-tei,” Tatsuya Nishimura said with unusual calmness. “In other words, the so-called ‘finishing touch’ of Ryusen sake is simply adding water from that ancient well during the final blending.”
Yuuki Takada was stunned: "It's that simple?"
“It’s that simple.” Tatsuya Nishimura suddenly laughed, his laughter tinged with tears. “Twenty years of friendship, all for a well.”
A long silence fell over the interrogation room.
“You know what, Officer Takada,” Tatsuya Nishimura finally spoke again, his voice weary, “when I discovered the truth, I didn’t feel angry, but rather a sense of relief. It turns out that Tomohisa wasn’t protecting a technical secret, but a simple belief. He believed that mystery itself had value, and that people were willing to pay a high price for legends.”
Tatsuya Nishimura took a deep breath: "And tragically, he was right. If I had known the truth, I might have inadvertently revealed this simple secret, and then Ryusen's aura would have vanished. He was willing to bear my resentment in order to protect our shared dream."
Yuuki Takada asked softly, "Do you now believe that Mr. Ishikawa has always considered you a true partner?"
"Actually, there's something I think I should tell you. Mr. Ishikawa already told you the secret recipe for brewing Longquan wine, but you just haven't grasped it yet."
"After Ishikawa Tomohisa passed away, he wrote down the word 'bird'. If I'm not mistaken, this material is probably something unique that can only be found in your hometown of Tottori Prefecture."
Nishimura Tatsuya closed his eyes, tears finally streaming down his face: "So that's how it is... So that's how it is. Nishimura Tatsuya, I just remembered that the sake I specially brought to Ishikawa Tomohisa before I went to university had a unique ingredient added to it, which came from his hometown, Tottori Prefecture."
"I I I..."
"And I... I killed my best friend, Ishikawa Tomohisa, for this reason. I'm sorry."
He lowered his head, his shoulders trembling slightly: "I'm sorry, Officer Takada, please tell Tomohisa's family... I'm so sorry."
Yuki Takada turned off the recording equipment and signaled the guards to take Tatsuya Nishimura out of the interrogation room.
At the doorway, Tatsuya Nishimura suddenly stopped, without turning around, and said softly:
"Longquan wine will probably never be made again. That's fine, let it disappear along with our friendship."
Chapter 161 The Crisis of Slow Progress
Early in the morning, Miwako Sato went for a jog in the park.
Suddenly, a voice came over the loudspeaker: "According to a report by Japanese media, a group of criminals recently went to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department and took away a suspect named Ryunosuke Mishima, who was previously the main person in charge of the Mishima Group."
Previously, in the case of the murdered girl, it had been ruled a suicide, but recently the police have a new lead, and it is said that the possibility of homicide cannot be ruled out.
Regardless of the situation, female residents are urged to be extra careful and strengthen their physical and mental health awareness and self-protection consciousness.
Alright, it's such a beautiful morning, let's not continue with such heavy topics. Next, let's play a song.
Just then, a figure suddenly darted out from behind in the alleys of the surrounding streets.
Miwako Sato, panting heavily, turned around but saw no one, and continued jogging.
Suddenly, a black hand reached out from behind, about to put its arm around Sato Miwako's shoulder, but Takada Yuki happened to arrive and grabbed the black hand.
Sato Miwako then realized what was happening and looked at Takada Yuuki with some confusion. "Takada-senpai, what are you doing here? And who... is this person?"
Yuuki Takada looked at the man behind Miwako Sato with a wary expression and said coldly, "I was just about to ask him why he was following you so suspiciously."
The man was about thirty years old, wearing a wrinkled gray jacket, with greasy hair and shifty eyes.
He nervously swallowed, his right hand unconsciously reaching for his pocket.
The man shook his left hand repeatedly, saying, "I'm sorry, I think you've misunderstood. I heard you're police officers and you wanted to call the police."
Before Sato Miwako could speak, Takada Yuuki stepped forward and shielded the panicked man in front of him.
"Call the police?"
"Don't move!" Yuuki Takada shouted sharply, his eyes coldly fixed on the man.
Sato Miwako gently patted Takada Yuuki's shoulder, "Takada-senpai, let me handle this kind of thing."
She turned to the man, her expression serious but calm. "You said you wanted to call the police. What case is it about?"
The man's gaze shifted between the two women before finally settling on Miwako Sato's face.
Yuuki Takada stepped back slightly, but remained vigilant, his sharp gaze fixed on the stranger.
The man nervously licked his lips, his right hand still in his pocket.
“I…I live in Sanbancho. There’s been some strange noises next door lately.” His eyes darted around. “I heard arguing and a woman screaming, and I haven’t seen the female resident next door since last night.”
Yuuki Takada scoffed, "If that's the case, why don't you just go to the police station and report it?"
"I...I have some..." the man stammered, beads of sweat forming on his forehead. "To tell you the truth, I actually have some criminal records and don't really want to go to the police station."
Yuuki Takada noticed the bulge in the man's pocket and suddenly asked, "What's in your pocket? Please take it out slowly."
The man froze, then slowly pulled a cell phone out of his pocket.
"I just... recorded some sounds, intending to show them to the police."
Just as Sato Miwako reached out to take the phone, a muffled explosion was heard in the distance.
The three of them turned at the same time in the direction from which the sound came—Sanbancho.
Yuki Takada immediately took out his phone and quickly dialed a number.
"This is Inspector Takada from the First Investigative Division of the Metropolitan Police Department. There has been an unusual explosion in the direction of Sanbancho. Please confirm the situation."
After giving a brief report, Yuuki Takada hung up the phone, then fixed his gaze on the stranger again, asking sternly, "Which building in Sanbancho do you live in?"
"No. 27, 4-chome..." the man replied softly.
Sato Miwako immediately glanced at the map in the newspaper, "It's very close to where the explosion was."
She looked up at Takada Yuuki and asked, "Takada-senpai, I think we need to go and check it out immediately."
Yuki Takada nodded and said to the man, "You're coming with us. If it's a prank, you'll regret it and get a fine record."
The sound of sirens grew louder as they approached, breaking the tranquility of the early morning.
Fifteen minutes later, a cordon had been set up in front of apartment number 23, 4-chome, Sanbancho.
A window on the second floor of the apartment was completely shattered, and black smoke slowly drifted out of the window.
The fire official in charge at the scene reported to Miwako Sato and Yuki Takada: "Preliminary assessment indicates that the explosion was caused by a gas leak. A female resident has been found, but she... shows no signs of life."
Sato Miwako put on gloves, her expression becoming serious.
"An accident?"
"It's not certain yet; further investigation is needed."
The man who called the police was placed next to the police car, his face pale, and he kept muttering to himself, "I knew it... I knew it... she would turn out like this."
Yuki Takada gestured for Miwako Sato to follow, and the two entered the apartment under the guidance of firefighters.
The damage was mainly concentrated in the kitchen area, but puzzlingly, the bedroom door was jammed from the outside by something.
When the forensic team pried open the bedroom door, the scene before them made even the experienced Miwako Sato gasp in shock.
The deceased woman lay on the bed, fully clothed, with her hands folded over her chest, as if she were sleeping peacefully.
But in stark contrast to this serene demeanor were the clear marks on her neck from the ligature and a strange symbol drawn with lipstick on her forehead—a triangle surrounded by a circle.
“This doesn’t look like an accident,” Yuki Takada said in a deep voice. “It’s murder, disguised as an accident.”
Sato Miwako looked around the room, her gaze landing on a photograph on the dressing table.
In the photo, the deceased is seen embracing a man intimately, a man whose face she had just recognized—the same man who had claimed he would call the police and stalked her.
“Senior Takada,” Miwako Sato said in a low voice, “isn’t the person in this photo the same person we just met in the park? Could he have lied to us police?”
Yuki Takada immediately understood and turned to rush out the door, but there was no one next to the police car—the man had slipped away at some point.
"Damn it!" Yuuki Takada slammed his fist on the car door in anger.