Mary's Nineteenth Century

King's Cross Station in the 19th century did not have platform nine and three quarters.

The train from here goes to the northeast of England, and there is a "flower town" on the side of Cambridge, which is rich in all kinds of flowers, including poppies.

"The florist said that some of the high-quality poppies bought in the London market are purchased from "Baihua Town". "

Mycroft bought a ticket for the last train to Cambridge for the day. "If the journey is smooth, we can reach the town at ten o'clock at night. Because the florist often visits, there are two good hotels there, so we don't have to worry about sleeping on the streets."

"Mr. Holmes, you will indeed bring good news."

What Mary meant was not only that she would have a place to live tonight, but also that she was expected to discover the whereabouts of the red-haired lady.

The location of "Hundred Flowers Town" meets the time limit for traveling back and forth to London on the day.

Compared with London, it is more advantageous to inquire about news in a small town.It's easy to know who has something weird on their roof, and since almost everyone in the town knows each other, it's quicker to figure out who the red-haired lady is.

5 month 3 day.

A carriage drove into Baihua Town, the night here was completely different from London.

The night wind is blowing, and the fragrance of flowers bursts.

Or strong, or quiet, mixed together seems a little more romantic taste.

"It's not friendly to people with pollen allergies."

Mary talked about the matter, "Fortunately, none of us have any troubles in this regard."

But, another person has.

According to Jenny's description, her younger brother doesn't like plants, hates the smell of earth, and can't stand places full of pollen.

"From this point of view, Bald should avoid "Hundred Flowers Town". "

Mycroft speculated that there must be some kind of occasion that brought Baldur and the red-haired lady together.

Enter the inn.

The two did not rest after placing their luggage, and went to the hotel waiter to inquire about the news.

As expected, the town has no secrets.

The red-haired lady and the damaged roof point to an orphan girl living alone.

Aisha Kevin, 25 years old.Her parents died one after another ten years ago, and she once had a fiancé, Merck, who committed suicide eight months ago.

Aisha worked as a tutor in London for a period of time, but she did not renew her contract this year and returned to live in Baihua Town.

In early April, the roof of Aisha's house suddenly leaked, and she realized that the roof seemed to have been stepped on by someone, and a crack was broken.

this incident caused

This attracted the attention of the residents of Baihua Town, and I was afraid that some thieves with high stealing skills came to the town to commit crimes.But after observing for a period of time, no suspicious person was found.

Putting the pieces together, Aisha Kevin is very likely to be Bald's sweetheart.

I will be able to come to the door tomorrow morning to confirm the speculation.

However, Mary heard something strange from the waiter's words, "Mr. Holmes, don't you find it strange? The red-haired lady's fiancé, Merck, also committed suicide." "

Although the way of death is different, Merck committed suicide by drinking a bullet, but the frequency of deaths surrounding Aisha is somewhat higher.

Mycroft doesn't believe in coincidences, "The suicide by gun does not mean that it is 100% voluntary. We need to persuade Merck's family to agree to the autopsy."

Why do you say that shooting yourself was not voluntary?

So Yaao asked another question, why did Baldur climb to the top of Big Ben?And why did it pull out the top window and climb onto the dial?

Is there mind manipulation again?

Or, was there something wrong with the mental state of the deceased itself?And being deliberately lured to the bell tower?

The answer is still in the fog.

The next day, I went to Aisha's house and finally saw the red-haired lady who made Baldr obsessed.

"Barry Bald?"

Aisha was surprised that someone from outside the town would come to her, and she was even more surprised when she heard that it was to investigate a death.

"Oh! yes, I know him. I used to meet him now and then in an Italian restaurant when I was a governess in London."

According to Aisha's description, she worked as a tutor in London for two years.Because of her fiancé's suicide, when the contract expires, she is unwilling to stay and return to the small town sadly.

In late autumn last year, after her fiancé died, Aisha had three months left on her work contract.

It was at that time that I met Baldur, the cause of which was a traffic accident.The carriage parked on the side of the road encountered a falling object on the third floor of a house along the street, and the horses were frightened and went mad and kicked Bald who was passing by.

"I called someone to take Mr. Boulder to the hospital. It turned out that Mr. Boulder and I went to the same Italian restaurant from time to time."

Aisha did not get to know Bald well, "Soon, last Christmas came. My work contract expired, and I left London completely."

Listen to Aisha's description, and only recognize the relationship between the two parties

to an extent.

"Excuse me." Mary said straightforwardly, "Miss Kevin, do you know that Mr. Baldr is in love with you? Has he ever confessed his love?"

Such a straightforward question made Aisha's face stiffen a little uncomfortably.

She was silent for a moment, then nodded slightly, "Yes, Mr. Baldr proposed to me in mid-December. That was really surprising. Romance, so Mr. Baldor was rejected on the spot."

Proposing marriage after two and a half months of acquaintance, this speed is a bit irrational.But when Bald dealt with emotional issues, his approach was irrational.

Mycroft had to ask, "Did Mr. Baldur pursue you crazily before he proposed?"

"No. That's what makes it so sudden to me."

Aisha believed that she never gave a hint that Baldur misunderstood, "Mr. Baldr and I only met in the restaurant, at most we talked about the weather and the flowers in Baihua Town.

Perhaps, my gentle attitude gave him the illusion, but I have never met Mr. Bald in private, and I don't know what I did wrong. "

"Miss Kevin, you don't have to feel too guilty, there is inevitably a big illusion in life - she likes me."

Mary gave Aisha a reason in a considerate manner, "Perhaps, it was your help to Mr. Baldur in the traffic accident that made him develop a persistent love. What happened after that? You returned to Baihua Town and saw Bao Mr. Ald?"

"We never met again, but I got two letters."

Aisha did not tell the specific address of the Bald family, and the letter was sent to the post office in the town."Miss Kevin the Redhead" was written on the envelope, which led the postman to deliver the letter to Elsa.

At the moment, Aisha fetched two letters, which were sent on January 1 and February 15 respectively.

Mary and Mycroft opened the letters, neither of which was very long.

In the first letter, Baldor first apologized very sincerely, saying that he didn't intend to scare Aisha, and then talked about how charming Aisha's advantages are.

He regretted that he failed to impress Aisha's heart, which was due to the short time they spent together.In the end, she sincerely expressed the hope that Aisha would give him a chance.

In the second letter, Bald said that he read the reply and didn't care about being rejected by Aisha again.

He is willing to wait, waiting for Aisha to get over the grief of her fiancé's death.if aisha needs any help

just come to London and find him.

Mycroft compared the time of posting the letter, and Bould fell head-on in late March, and it turned out he couldn't keep his emotions in check. "Miss Kevin, you wrote back, once? Or twice?"

"Only once. I told him I couldn't forget my late fiancé and let him choose a better girl."

Aisha said that out of politeness and to completely break Baldr's mind, she sent a letter after thinking about it. "In February, I didn't reply. Afterwards, Mr. Baldr didn't hear from me. I thought..."

Aisha thought that this was the end of the matter, but who would have thought that Baldor was dead.

"I'm sorry, can I ask the specific cause of Mr. Balder's death? Why did you two come to Baihua Town to look for me?"

Mary and Mycroft glanced at each other, but hadn't talked about the details like Baldr falling to his death in a wedding dress.

"Before answering your question, I'm afraid I should be rude to ask another matter."

Mary talked bluntly about Aisha's fiancé, "Mr. Merck committed suicide by raising a gun. What was the cause? I heard that he worked in an insurance company. What caused him to go to extremes?"

Aisha's emotions became visibly agitated. "Why are you bringing up Merck, he's dead! He's a good man! No matter what happens, I believe in him!"

"Because, on the face of it, Boulder committed suicide, too."

Mycroft said calmly, "The two men who admired you committed suicide one after another. Do you think it's normal?"

"Suicide? Baldur committed suicide?"

Aisha's eyes widened, "This, this, do you think that he died because he didn't get my response?"

Obviously, Aisha overlooked an important point, "from the surface point of view".

Mycroft repeated, "It looks like suicide, but there is a 99% chance that it was disguised as suicide. Miss Kevin, do you understand? What we suspect is that your fiancé's death is also suspicious."

"Oh, God……"

Aisha felt a chill down her back when she heard this speculation. "How is this possible?"

Is it really impossible?

If Aisha had been able to accept that Merck committed suicide, she would not have such great resistance.

A moment of silence.

Aisha reluctantly talked about the past, "Merck worked in an insurance company. He could have been promoted last spring, but there was a major insurance fraud accident in the business he was in charge of. The insurance company lost a lot of money.

sum of money. "

Merck was demoted as one of the auditors, and that was the beginning of his depression.

Later, I began to drink heavily and smoke a lot, and became more and more prone to insomnia, and my mood fluctuated abnormally.

"Originally we were planning to get married last fall, but Merck proposed to postpone the wedding until he was back to normal."

Aisha agreed at the time, "I want to help Merck, but I don't know what to do. Merck's job is in London, so I stay in London and sometimes deliver meals to him."

Things didn't get better.

Half a year later, Merck became more and more negative, with headaches, depression, weight loss and so on.It was obvious that he was having a very bad time.

"Allow me to guess. At that time, you thought that the reason for Mr. Merck's suicide was that he received a dismissal notice from the company?"

Mary does not think that the insurance company is a charity. If Merck cannot complete the work tasks, half a year is enough for the insurance company to fire him.

Although Aisha didn't want to admit that her fiancé lived like a coward who couldn't bear the blow, she had to nod.

"Yes, Merck committed suicide three days after being fired. The neighbors were the first to notice, the smell next door, a few empty wine bottles on the floor of the room, and..."

Also, there was a body on the ground that had been shot dead.

Typically suicide, the gun is put in the mouth and the trigger is pulled.Killed with one shot, not only pierced the back of the head, but also left a mass of blood in the mouth.

Because he died from a gunshot wound, Scotland Yard intervened.No autopsy was performed, but a preliminary autopsy conclusion was given.

Merck had remnants of the ammunition used to shoot the gun. The guns and bullets belonged to him, and there was no trace of intrusion into the house.

"Associated with Merck's mental state, he was ultimately ruled a suicide."

Aisha did not doubt this conclusion, because she knew how bad Merck was.

"But I can't believe it. How could he leave me alone? If he dared to die, why didn't he dare to live? I can only tell myself that maybe alcohol has completely paralyzed his mind."

At the moment of the gunshot, Merck's life came to an abrupt end.

Even after eight months, Aisha has not fully recovered from the blow, and her eyes are red unconsciously. "Now can you tell me how Mr. Baldur died?"

"I wonder if you have heard of the Big Ben incident on May Day?"

Seeing Aisha nodding, Mary gave a relatively tactful answer, "Bald is the one who fell. And Xiao

The rumors made up by the newspaper did not match, and there was evidence that there was another driving force behind Bald's death. "

Elsa is dumbfounded. "What! God..."

Mycroft did not forget one important thing, "Miss Kevin, we hope to re-examine Mr. Merck. Do you know his family situation? At that time, who was in charge of his funeral?"

"An autopsy? Oh, yes, an autopsy is required."

Aisha received several shocks one after another, and her mind was a little bit overwhelmed, but she did not completely lose her ability to think.

"Merke has no close relatives. I organized the funeral. I agree with your autopsy. If his death was not self-destructive, does that mean that the black hand behind it is related to me? For example, a pervert who likes me?"

This speculation is very reasonable.

Mary nodded, "You are right, there is such a possibility. I hope you will think carefully about whether there is such a suspicious person."

Aisha shook her head in fear, "No, this is too ridiculous. There is no third person who has confessed to me, and I will not have the illusion that someone likes me. I am an ordinary person with an ordinary appearance. I am not a heartthrob. I don't have a prominent family background, let alone a large fortune. God! What does that black hand like about me?"

When a pervert likes you, there is always a reason why he is persistent, and it is a reason that ordinary people cannot fathom.

Mary couldn't answer Aisha's question for the time being, "Miss Kevin, please stay vigilant. Also, please try to recall who you have come into contact with, regardless of gender. Please give me the list this evening."

That's the end of the conversation for now.

Mary and Mycroft first went to the cemetery on the edge of the town to transport Merck's body back to London to find a doctor for a comprehensive autopsy.

Eight months on, not sure if there are enough clues left on the body, but it's worth trying.

The atmosphere is a bit depressing.

The case of Baldur's death this time was more complicated than expected.At present, he is the second deceased, and the one who died before him is Merck.

From shooting yourself to death to jumping off Big Ben, those are two different ways to die.

If Merck and Bald were really killed by the same mastermind behind the scenes, they must face up to each other's methods. Are there other dead who have not been discovered?

"Mr. Minton."

Mycroft broke the silence and asked to ease the atmosphere, "Just now you said that people are prone to delusions. Have you ever had delusions?"

Upon hearing this question, Mary quickly recovered from the successive deaths.

Emotions were removed from the case, what illusion could she have if she was as rational as she was?

"People like us have delusions? Like someone likes me, or do I like someone? Perhaps you should know, Mr. Holmes, that there are no illusions for me..."

Mary was about to say that there are no illusions, only facts.Without saying a word, I suddenly thought of something. "Wow! Illusion, yes, illusion. The poppies and poppies that Boulder mentioned, could it be that he had an illusion? His head was injured, the back of the right brain."

Mycroft regained his senses in an instant, and he didn't think about "How does Mr. Minton view the great illusion in life 'he likes me'", thinking of a possibility. "Did you mean stand-in syndrome?"