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"The place where the deceased Caesar fell from the train was a long tunnel. I believe everyone here has experienced quite a few tunnels on this journey, so you should have some idea about it."
"When the train passes through a tunnel, there is nothing to be heard except for the clattering of the wheels. Yet, Xue Zhengying claimed that his wife heard muffled sounds of a struggle coming from the Smoking Room. How could that be? Was Xue Zhengying's wife lying? But in the end, she also became a victim."
"I began to suspect Xue Zhengying, and everything started to make sense. Why would Xue Zhengying want to kill Gu Qiuxian?"
"Last night during dinner, I overheard a conversation between a man and a woman in the Smoking Room next door. The woman said it was dangerous for men to be on this train; he might have been found out. The man, however, seemed unconcerned, believing that even if someone knew his identity, he still wanted to take the risk because something exciting was about to happen. Perhaps after hearing this, one might think that this man was the killer. But knowing that there was a killer on board was initially a secret. How could the killer know he had been exposed? A reasonable explanation is that the two people involved in that conversation were adulterers, and the woman's husband was also on this train. The woman even suspected that her husband already knew about their affair."
"But she couldn't imagine that her husband had planned a murder for them. What was the plan? We discovered that the deceased Gu Qiuxian had issues with kickbacks in his business dealings, and someone had claimed they wanted to hire a killer to deal with him. A husband who discovers his wife’s infidelity could easily take revenge on her lover. Thus, rumors of a killer, combined with that conversation, led me to suspect that someone had deliberately created a 'killer' to cover up his crime. As the facts unfolded, my suspicions only grew stronger. So how did it happen?"
"After lights out, the husband acted according to plan. Earlier, he had injected sleeping pills into Gu Qiuxian's drink so that when he poisoned him, Gu Qiuxian wouldn't wake up due to resistance and others would think it was the work of a killer. Once the lights were out and everyone was asleep, the murderer used the excuse of going to the restroom to approach Gu Qiuxian's upper bunk and prepare to strike. To his surprise, Gu Qiuxian, who should have been asleep on the upper bunk due to the sleeping pills he had consumed, was tossing and turning restlessly at that moment. In the dim light, he realized that Gu Qiuxian had actually switched to the lower bunk and was now sound asleep under the influence of the sleeping pills. If he were to attack Gu Qiuxian now, how could he cover up any traces of the sleeping pills? Would he have to move Gu Qiuxian back to the upper bunk? That would likely wake up others in nearby bunks. Had his plan been disrupted?"
"Just then, Caesar, who had switched to the upper bunk, got up to go to the restroom. A new plan immediately formed in his mind, which would also aid in his escape. What was it? He intended to use the opportunity of switching bunks and Caesar going to the restroom at midnight to create an illusion of accidental death by killing Caesar instead and leveraging earlier rumors of a killer to further confuse matters, making it easier for him to slip away unnoticed."
"Yesterday afternoon while playing cards with Gu Qiuxian, Xue Zhengying noticed Caesar next door looking anxious and deep in thought; he suspected something was off with him as well. So Xue Zhengying followed through with his original plan and stabbed sleeping Gu Qiuxian with poison. Then he trailed Caesar out to the restroom door and opened a window in the Smoking Room. Coincidentally, at that moment, the train passed through a tunnel and everything went pitch black. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Xue Zhengying suddenly attacked Caesar and pushed him out of the Smoking Room window."
"As a result, people would be less likely to think Gu Qiuxian died from an affair but rather at the hands of a killer—whether it was accidental or intentional—since both Gu Qiuxian and Caesar were not clean individuals themselves. Caesar was essentially a fugitive with stolen money. Both he and Gu Qiuxian could be seen as targets for a killer, further complicating both cases."
"However, Gu Qiuxian's death did not escape Xin Yue's notice. Because last night when Xue Zhengying claimed he went to use the restroom coincided exactly with when Gu Qiuxian was murdered. She would suspect that their affair had been exposed and that her husband Xue Zhengying was indeed the murderer. This is why she had been so restless; she couldn't fathom that her husband would actually kill someone and might even pose a threat to her own safety. This only fueled Xue Zhengying's murderous intent; his anger over her infidelity was already substantial, and seeing Xin Yue begin to doubt him meant he must also eliminate her—both as revenge for her betrayal and as a means of silencing her. Until today at noon when another opportunity finally arose."
"When Xin Yue returned to their bunk and headed for the restroom, Xue Zhengying noticed no one else around. He then prepared a cotton thread to trap the door latch in order to create an enclosed space that would delay discovery and confuse time of death so he could act calmly while manufacturing an alibi—such as reporting that Xin Yue saw a killer. This enclosed space could easily be uncovered; conclusions of suicide would soon be overturned. Therefore, once again he needed another killer narrative to cover up his crime."
"So during this time, he also planned to dispose of his Conductor Uniform used for misdirection once more in order to fabricate evidence implicating another killer's involvement since although this uniform wouldn't help him commit murder directly, it could assist him in evading blame by making it seem like it belonged to a killer from Hard Seat carriage who mingled into sleeper class."
"But there was a problem he overlooked, revealing yet another flaw. We discovered that the discarded Conductor Uniform was packed inside a black plastic bag. During the day, it would be impossible for him to wear the uniform without being recognized. To cover his tracks, he stuffed the uniform into a bag, and after killing Xin Yue, he threw the bag out of the bathroom window. However, Xue Zhengying had previously reported that his wife saw the killer go to the Hard Seat sleeper car, wearing the Conductor Uniform. This was meant to prove that the person was a passenger in the Hard Seat compartment; otherwise, there would be no need for such disguise. Only passengers in the Hard Seat could wear a uniform to masquerade as train staff to enter the Sleeper Car.
"This exposes a critical flaw. After committing murder, time is of the essence; every second counts, and he needed to get out quickly. Why not just throw it away? That would save more time. What necessity did the killer have to carry a plastic bag inside, only to pack away his discarded clothes after the murder and toss them out of the window? Wasn't that redundant?
"This proves that he never wore the uniform at all. Wearing it during the day would raise suspicion if he unexpectedly ran into someone familiar. Therefore, he had to pack the uniform in this bag and then take it into the bathroom. This indicates that the killer was deliberately creating a false impression that he was a passenger in the Hard Seat compartment, while in reality, it proves he was in the Sleeper Car. If he were in the Hard Seat and not wearing a uniform, he wouldn't be able to enter the Sleeper Car. Coupled with his false claim about Xin Yue hearing something in the bathroom, all clues regarding motive, timing, and conditions of the crime pointed directly to Xue Zhengying—he is the murderer."
Chen Xing looked at Xue Zhengying with disbelief. "Is this true?"
Xue Zhengying's expression darkened; he had no strength left to refute it. He only asked, "Did you not capture that Fat Conductor and the little guy?"
Ming Jiushun burst into laughter. "Their charges are different from yours. The fat one committed theft from within his own ranks, stealing part of Caesar's embezzled funds. As for that little guy, he had already caught our attention; with help from local police, we learned he is a drug dealer."
The passengers finally let out a collective sigh of relief.
The train conductor clasped his hands together and murmured, "Thank you to that long-haired fellow; my train is finally at peace."
Xue Zhengying lowered his head in pain and regret, murmuring, "She doesn't love me anymore; she doesn't love me anymore... it's just too heartbreaking..."
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