Chapter 126 Hatori Yui's First Reasoning Show
Inspector Yuminaga also suspected Director Yamada, but before he could find any evidence, he needed to look at the situation objectively and impartially. He asked, "Mr. Yamada, what do you do for a living?"
Director Yamada said, "I'm a self-media worker. My wife and I run our online accounts together." He took out his phone, opened an app, and brought up his homepage before handing it to Inspector Yuminaga. "This is one of my accounts. It's the same name everywhere on the internet."
Inspector Yuminaga took a look at it. The user name was [Yamada Family Sweet Life], and it had 97 published works, all of which were short videos showing affection. There were quite a few people who liked to watch these simple affection videos. The account had over 110,000 followers, and each video had over 100,000 views.
Inspector Yuminaga didn't quite understand this, but Higashino Hiroshi beside him explained, "This data is very good. The number of fans and the number of views are almost the same. If there is no data manipulation, it means that his fans are basically active fans. And this is just one video website. If you add up the entire network, the number is also considerable."
Director Yamada smiled sheepishly and said, "My several accounts have less than 800,000 followers combined, which is nothing."
Higashino Hiroshi, however, thinks this guy is too modest. Even in China, with a population of 1.4 billion, a self-media account with more than 800,000 fans is considered a very powerful internet celebrity. They can receive business orders (commonly known as making money). The more active fans, the higher the value of the account. After a live broadcast of selling goods, the money earned is unimaginable. And how many people are there in the whole of Japan? According to statistics (as of April 2023), the total population of Japan is less than 125 million, and the population aged 15 to 64 is 74.208 million. If the fans of the Yamada couple did not include foreigners, they would definitely be a famous couple in the "show of affection" track. There are so many circles on the Internet, and it is impossible for more than 70 million people to like to eat dog food.
In this way, the interests of the couple are closely tied together. However, there is a fatal problem with accounts run by couples: they cannot easily break up. Their fans are attracted by both of them. If they knew that their love was all a facade, not only would they leave, but they might even quit following them and turn against them.
On the Internet, a person's image collapse is a very serious matter.
Inspector Yuminaga also thought of this. He took out the divorce agreement he had found in the Yamada family and asked, "Since you two are so in love, what's the matter with this divorce agreement?" He pointed to the lower left corner and said, "Mrs. Yamada has already signed it, but you didn't."
Director Yamada's expression froze for a moment, but he quickly returned to normal. He explained, "Actually, this is fake."
Everyone looked at him in confusion.
Director Yamada showed an embarrassed expression and said, "Here's what happened. Lately, our fan base has been gradually declining. They seem to be tired of the lovey-dovey plots. My wife and I are very anxious, and to retain our fans, we decided to put on a show." He said sheepishly, "We pretended that our relationship broke down and we divorced angrily. Then I suddenly realized that I still loved her the most, so I pursued her again to win her back. That's basically the script."
Higashino suddenly understood. He understood. Adding a melodramatic plot to the already irritating fan base would not only retain existing fans, but if done right, it could also become an overnight sensation. After all, there weren't too many people online who just wanted to watch the drama, and the "chasing wife to the crematorium" plot was one of those things people never tire of.
Hiss, the Yamada couple, there’s something.
Director Yamada's explanation seemed to convince everyone.
Inspector Gongchang asked again, "You came back this afternoon and then left again. You were out until we called you. Where did you go?"
Director Yamada said, "I usually spend most of my time editing videos at home. But yesterday, my good friend came to Tokyo, and I took him out for a walk. I stayed out with him that night and didn't send him on the return train until noon today. After returning in the afternoon, I had no plans to go out, but I received an invitation to a party from someone in my industry, so I went. My wife said that if I don't eat the vegetables I bought, they will be stale tomorrow, so I didn't go. When I received your call, the party had just ended." He pulled up his phone call log, pointed to one of the numbers and said, "This is the number of someone in my industry. They can testify for me."
After contacting Inspector Yuminaga's subordinates, they confirmed that Mr. Yamada arrived at the party at 5 pm and did not leave until 8:30 pm.
At this time, Director Yamada asked in confusion, "Speaking of which, wasn't this just an ordinary accident? My wife probably forgot to close the valve after cooking. She always forgets this."
There were also unwashed dishes in the kitchen sink, proving that Mrs. Yamada had indeed cooked.
Inspector Gongchang was speechless for a moment. He felt that the matter was not that simple.
Yamada was about to continue trying to persuade the police to leave, but Hatori Yui suddenly said, "This incident was not an accident."
Everyone looked at him.
Hatori Yuiichi said, "Mr. Onodera, can I borrow your kitchen first?" The Yamada family's kitchen cannot be destroyed at will, and the structure of the Onodera family's kitchen is similar to that of the Yamada family, so it can be borrowed for demonstration.
Onodera Ritsu nodded: "Okay."
"Please follow me." Hatori Yuiichi led everyone into the Onodera house and stopped outside the kitchen and said, "Everyone wait here for a moment."
Dong Yexi followed behind with a frown, feeling a little puzzled: How did Weiyi become like this? He was not the kind of person who liked to be in the spotlight.
However, when he discovered that Edogawa Conan, who had been missing for a while, suddenly appeared, he realized that this must be a play they had discussed.
So, Higashino Xi leaned against the door frame with his arms folded over his chest, watching Hatori Yui's performance with great interest.
As everyone waited quietly, the gas stove in the kitchen suddenly ignited automatically. Kojima Genta widened his eyes and said in amazement, "Is this magic?!"
"This should be the timed ignition function of the gas stove," the property manager explained. "We recently had the gas pipes inspected for all residents, installed safety valves, and also replaced them with this brand new smart gas stove. Instead of a rotary switch, we have an integrated touch screen that can be turned on and off on a timer, making it easier for residents to prepare delicious meals."
Inspector Gongchang frowned and said, "Isn't this a safety hazard? If a fire breaks out suddenly like this, what if there are flammable items nearby?"
The property manager said embarrassedly: "The manufacturer may not have considered this. However, this type of stove will automatically shut down if it is left empty for more than two minutes, and the safety valve will cut off the gas supply. As long as there are no flammable materials on the stove, it is still very safe." As soon as he finished speaking, the flame on the stove went out.
The property manager breathed a sigh of relief. However, before he could completely relax, he suddenly smelled something.
It's the smell of gas!
"Impossible, the safety valve must be closed!" The property manager immediately rushed to the kitchen, opened the cabinet door to check the safety valve, but found that the safety valve was indeed cut off. He was even more confused: "What's going on?!"
At this time, Hatori Yui finally moved. He walked slowly to the property manager, motioned for him to make room for him, then squatted down and said, "It's actually very simple." He reached into the cabinet and took out a small piece of wood only one centimeter long with a very thin silk thread tied to it.
"Although this gas stove will automatically shut down, it is not actually in the closed state after the flame is turned off. If the safety valve does not cut off the gas supply in time, the gas will leak. It's like when the flint cannot be lit and the gas leaks out. As long as we use this small device to support the safety valve, the valve will not fall off." Hatori Yui pinched the small piece of wood between the thumb and index finger of his left hand, and it looked particularly miniature against the backdrop of his fingers.
"The reason the safety valve was closed after we opened it is because the criminal tied this string to the door handle. If someone rushes in and pulls the door, the safety valve will immediately fall." Hatori Yui tugged on the thin string. "You don't need fishing line, anything that can perform a similar function, even a long hair will do."
"Now the identity of the criminal is clear." Hatori Yui stood up and said to Director Yamada with a serious face, "The only one who has the time to do all this is Mr. Yamada."
"No, that's not right! How could I have had time to commit the crime?" Director Yamada defended, "My wife had just returned when I was out, and she hadn't started cooking yet. If I had tampered with it then, wouldn't she have noticed something was wrong while she was cooking? And you said that the safety valve would fall down as soon as the cabinet door was opened. She would definitely have opened the cabinet door when she was busy in the kitchen. Wouldn't that make the device meaningless?"
Hatori Yui retorted coldly, "What if Mrs. Yamada didn't cook, or even enter the kitchen?" He looked at Director Yamada, whose expression was extremely grim, and curled his lips slightly. "Besides, the bowl in the sink doesn't necessarily belong to her."
Inspector Yumio immediately realized, "Mr. Yamada ate it!"
Hatori Yui nodded and said, "I think this is what happened. When Mr. Yamada came back that afternoon, he immediately set up the device and programmed the stove. Then he took out the plates and bowls, pretending he'd already eaten, and placed them in the sink. When Mrs. Yamada got home, she didn't know when he'd returned, so she assumed he'd already eaten. Mr. Yamada must have brought her some other food, something she could eat right out of her hand, perfect for dinner, and he also drugged her."
"Captain, there is indeed a bag of takeout sandwiches in the trash can next to the dining table," said an officer.
Inspector Yumio nodded.
"If the police had mentioned the sandwich bag just now, I think you would have said you ate it." Hatori Yui looked at Director Yamada and said, "Anyway, as long as Mrs. Yamada is dead, you can tell any story about these evidence."
Director Yamada retorted, "But I don't know when she'll have dinner, so how can I set a time?"
"No, you know." Hatori Yui smiled slightly and said, "To maintain their exposure, self-media workers will definitely do one thing: live streaming. Normally, they will inform fans of the specific live streaming time in advance, but you were already preparing to act out the breakup script. Mrs. Yamada suddenly live streaming while you were not at home will make fans even more convinced that there is a problem in your relationship."
"I think your script for today should be: the husband plays with his little idiot for a whole day and night and doesn't come home. After coming back, he immediately goes out to party, completely ignoring his wife. She feels upset and suddenly starts a live broadcast to complain to her fans. When the time comes, your colleagues will post the group photo online. Fans only need to compare the time to find out that what Mrs. Yamada said is true, and they will complain about you with her more sincerely, or speak up for you. No matter how the follow-up develops, you must have made an appointment with Mrs. Yamada for the live broadcast time." Hatori Yui said firmly.
Director Yamada's cheeks twitched uncontrollably, and sweat began to form on his forehead. He shouted, "This, this is all your speculation! What evidence do you have?!"
When Dong Yexi heard this, he knew that the matter was over.
"You want evidence? That's too much," Hatori Yui asked. "You haven't even set foot in the house yet, have you? Haven't you had time to recycle the small appliances in the kitchen? The dinner plates are still in the sink. There's definitely no Mrs. Yamada's saliva on them, right? But there's something on the sandwich wrapper..."
With every word Hatori Yui spoke, Director Yamada's face paled. Inspector Yuminaga didn't give him time to explain; he handcuffed him and took him away. "If you have anything to say, go to the police station and tell us."
Higashino Xi stared at Hatori Yuiichi with shining eyes. Yuiichi's performance just now was simply too cool, although it was a bit different from his usual self.
The tone of voice seemed strangely familiar.
Seeing that the matter was resolved smoothly, Hatori Yui secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
It’s really difficult to imitate the senior’s confident demeanor.
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