No. 42, 1-3, Tosahori-cho, Nishi-ku.

This two-story, single-family house belongs to Shinji Otsuka, who bought it with full payment from his ex-wife after their divorce six years ago. The house is similar in type to Mari Akashi's, but it does not have a small courtyard.

Shinji Otsuka, who lives alone, is not the type who likes flowers and plants. For him, as long as he has enough money to drink and have fun, that's enough.

Of course, if he wants to find someone to take care of him in his old age, Shinji Akashi, as his biological son, is very important to him.

Shinji Otsuka was sitting in the living room, idly watching TV on the sofa. As time passed, there was still an hour left before the agreed time, but he had no intention of taking his son to his ex-wife's house. He even took out his mobile phone to arrange an all-night mahjong game with his friends to celebrate this extraordinary Christmas Eve for him.

"Dad, can I take this doll home?" asked Shinji Akashi, who was only seven years old, in a childish voice.

He was holding a green dinosaur-shaped plush toy in his hands, with anticipation in his eyes, because his mother had said she had prepared a surprise for him, so he wanted to go home quickly, see his mother and spend Christmas with her.

When Otsuka Shinji heard the word "go home", his face instantly turned gloomy. He clenched the phone that had not yet dialed, but when he thought that it was impossible for someone to compete with him anymore, a smile appeared on his face.

But this smile is a little creepy.

Shinji Otsuka originally wanted to reject his son's request outright, because he knew very well that his son would never leave him and go back to that silly woman. But when he was about to speak, the doorbell suddenly rang.

He realized that the police might have come to conduct routine inquiries, so he stood up and gently rubbed his son's round head. He arched his eyebrows and tried to act like a kind father, and said in a gentle tone:

"Shinji, please go back to the house first. We'll go to mom's later, okay?"

"Okay, Dad."

After watching his son go upstairs, Shinji Otsuka did not go to the door to greet him directly. Instead, he quickly went to the bathroom and made sure that his muddy rain boots were soaked in a bucket of bleach. Then he calmly walked to the kitchen to wash the clean cup again, pretending to be done before going to the door.

He opened the door and saw two men in suits standing outside. He pretended to be surprised and said:

"Hmm? Mr. Policeman, what can I do for you?"

——

It was not difficult for a police officer to get a person's home address. After calling Usuke Sakata, who was still on standby in the office, to log into the police system and search, he quickly obtained relevant information about the victim's ex-husband Shinji Otsuka.

Shinji Otsuka, male, 34 years old, lives at 1-3-42, Dozaborimachi, Nishi-ku, Osaka City, and is an unemployed vagrant.

[To be honest, I've been using Yeguo Reader to keep up with updates lately. It's easy to switch between sources, and has a variety of reading voices. .yeguoyuedu is available for both Android and Apple devices.]

Unemployed vagrant.

Fujiwara Yuu couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at this. No wonder Akashi Shinji lived with his mother. However, the fact that Otsuka Shinji was a "homeless person" was a bit strange. If he was a homeless person, how did he survive and how did he come up with the money to buy a house? Banks are not philanthropists who will allocate large loans to homeless people.

Being cautious, he entrusts Usuke Sakata to help investigate Otsuka Shinji's bank statements, hoping to find out how he has survived for the past six years.

From the victim's home, Akashi Hoko, to where Otsuka Shinji lived, there were only eight traffic lights, and even if you walked, it would not take more than twenty minutes. The two places were very close.

After Fujiwara Yuu parked his motorcycle, he noticed Otaki Goro standing at the doorway, not entering. He seemed to be raising his hand to knock, apparently having been turned away. He scanned the street, confirming there were no surveillance devices before entering the single-family house, which had no outer gate. Before he even got close, he felt a gaze fixed on him. Looking up, he saw a boy clinging to the railing of a second-floor balcony.

That little boy in the photo, is he Shinji Akashi?

But why was he standing here and why was he staring at me?

Fujiwara Yu raised the corner of his mouth, but before he could ask, Akashi Shinji turned around and ran into the house like a frightened rabbit. This froze the smile he had managed to squeeze out, and his expression turned worse...

He didn't understand, he didn't accept it. Did his expression look scary?!

"Toji, what are you doing standing there?" Otaki Goro noticed Toji Sosuke with his head down and his fists clenched, and thought it was a bit strange, so he shouted.

"nothing."

Fujiwara Yuu walked towards the door with a sullen expression and slapped the doorbell in anger. Fortunately, he didn't yell, otherwise he would have looked like a yakuza underling collecting protection money. If Otaki Goro hadn't taken off his driving sunglasses, with the scar at the end of his eyebrow, he could have perfectly portrayed the yakuza boss with just a scowl.

There was no cursing from inside the door. After opening the door, they saw a short-haired man about 1.7 meters tall. He looked at them with a surprised expression and said:

"Hmm? Mr. Policeman, what can I do for you?"

Fujiwara Yuu was convinced his guess was correct upon hearing this. This Otsuka Shinji was indeed a strong suspect. Otaki Goro, who also sensed something was amiss, deliberately glanced behind him to confirm that the police officer who had followed them had not parked the police car at the door before speaking with a cryptic tone:

"Hello, Mr. Otsuka. I didn't expect you to be so smart. You recognized us as police officers at first glance."

They were not wearing obvious police uniforms like the officers in the forensic department and the nearby police station. They were dressed in suits and leather shoes, but were directly called "police". Anyone with a little bit of intelligence would think something was wrong.

Moreover, they didn't give any advance notice to Shinji Otsuka before they came, so how could he think that the police would come to his house today?

People with hidden agendas have flaws everywhere.

Otsuka Shinji realized that he had let the cat out of the bag. He smiled awkwardly, made an inviting gesture, and started flattering him bluntly:

"Mr. Officer, you're joking. I just thought you had the temperament of a police officer. I didn't expect you to actually be one. It seems I'm quite good at judging people, hahahaha!"

What a good eye for talent! He flatters people without forgetting to brag about himself.

Fujiwara Yu's gaze fell on Otsuka Shinji's wet hands. The entrance was very quiet and free of mud, and there were no shoes for going out. It seemed that this person had not left the house today.

As for the pair of shoes I wore out yesterday, they have probably been disposed of.

He put one hand in his pocket, mimicking the other person's hypocritical expression, and said in a subtle tone:

"I didn't expect Mr. Otsuka to be so smart. Could you please answer a few questions for us?"

"Of course you can. Please come in, both of you."