48 Hours a Day

“Have you checked the maid cleaning the room?” Holmes took out his pipe and put in the tobacco wire.

“It was found that although the maid had been working in the house for two years, the old housekeeper had taken her down for the first time, searched her body and found no oil painting. From the time she entered the room to the old housekeeper outside the door, she had not been anywhere else, so that her suspicion could be ruled out in the present case.” Vial Dao.

After a pause, he went on to say, "Through the Viscount's relationship, I also found two other victims who had been visited by Mr. M at the residence, listening to their description and the situation was similar to that of this time, all of whom received letters from Mr. M at the same time, one of whom was stolen on vacation, the other was more prominent than Mr. Viscount's identity, and his belongings were better hidden, but they were also thrown away. The guy was like a magician who could drill into any secret room and play everyone between his hands. ”

Holmes lit a smoke, “One of the most powerful thieves I've ever met was a midget performing in a circus, only half a child tall and thin enough to sneak into your house through a chimney and squeeze through narrow gaps by shrinking bones, but even he couldn't have done anything without a trace. ”

“So I don't know how that guy did it, so I'll have to ask you.” Congratulations, Vilby.

“Come on,” Holmes laughed, "since I've promised to help you and I'm very interested in this case, I'm sure I won't leave it alone, but let's find you a place to stay in London for now. ”

The three arrived in front of a motel by carriage, and while Ville was checking in, Holmes stood in the lobby with a pipe to measure the frequent passengers.

“Do you think Mr. M will be among them?” Zhang Heng asked.

“Who knows," Holmes spit out a cigarette ring and can tell he's in a great mood right now, "we're in such good luck today, Zhang, with such an interesting case, I thought Ville would surprise us early in the morning, hey, this kid didn't disappoint me. ”

“…” Zhang Heng couldn't help but laugh. The more difficult the case Ville encountered, the happier Holmes would be. The big detective's thinking was different from that of ordinary people.

“Where are the paintings? Do you have any idea?” Zhang Heng then asked.

Holmes didn't answer, but instead asked, "Do you have any ideas? ”

Zhang Heng was also thinking about the case along the way, trying to merge all the clues together, Dravia's Fu. The red-haired detective did a very detailed investigation on the scene, which was to turn the Viscount's mansion to the bottom of the sky and read like he was in a situation.

Zhang Heng thought about it, “You said before to rule out all the strange and unscientific options. The rest is the truth. No thief's body and hands can be as good as this. Step on the dirt without leaving any trace, bypass the hunting dog without causing any movement. Also, I saw the layout of the house. In addition to the old housekeeper across the door, the cook stayed up late that night, he was busy in the kitchen, he was not far away, and the door of the house was usually locked, so I think the problem was still with the cleaning maid. ”

Holmes was measuring Zhang Heng with the same eyes as a rare animal in the zoo, and then he shouted, “My mysterious Eastern traveler friend, no matter how long I've known you, you're always amazing, aren't you? It's really good to know you, although you're still learning by my side, but you can actually stand on your own doorstep with your abilities. You're much stronger than my mediocre peers out there, and newcomers like Ville are no better than you, maybe you'll be my strong competitor soon, so that the world may not be that boring to me. ”

This assessment is already very high for Holmes, although there is still a suspect of bragging about himself, but it can make the big detective who has always been proud say such a thing to prove that Zhang Heng did impress him.

Holmes continued, "Haha, the first time I saw that note, I thought of the secret room murder in Kumburg, where rumors were circulating that the victims had been killed by ghosts, because all the doors and windows were closed and could not be opened from the outside, and the scene of the murder was very bloody and had a strong vengeance, so the locals thought only ghosts could do it, and even the police believed in ghost revenge.

“But as I said, removing the impossible interference, the rest, even if ostensibly incredible, would surely be the right answer. It turns out that the victim was the murderer himself, and he killed himself by extreme means, which was an interesting case, because the victim's heart had been burying a secret that haunted him for a long time, and he was guilty of a mistake he had made when he was young. This guilt was accompanied by his life, coupled with his poor physical condition at the time, having acquired terminal illness, and fearing that future generations of the other party would seek revenge for his wife and daughter in order to repay the wrongful debts he owed in that year.

“This time around, I looked closely at Ville's notes and ruled out the possibility of access for outsiders, leaving only a possibility for thieves. After all, buying a maid for less than a pound a week would be much easier than sneaking into a heavily guarded mansion, and if I were Mr. M., I would have chosen a path. ”

Zhang Heng frowned, “The letter on the ground is a good explanation. The maid had it with her a long time ago. She stole the painting while cleaning. But the only question I haven't figured out yet is how she escaped and checked it out. Is the butler also her accomplice? ”

“You are approaching the final answer, my Eastern friend.” Holmes blinked his eyes, excited, “I'm sure you can think of just a few more half-days. It's not hard to find the oil link in this matter. It's hard to catch that Mr. M, you have to admit that his imagination and talent as a thief is good. I watched him behave like a prudent and patient man. It's certainly not easy to catch a guy like that, but London is our home and we can't let him get away again. ”