After two hours, the road under the donkey cart finally changed from a muddy dirt road between the woodlands to a stone path filled with smooth stones, and the surrounding jungle was no longer chaotic, but orderly on both sides of the road, birch and ash, mostly of these two, with a natural white trunk and green foliage.

The farm was some distance from the town, and Donald caught a glimpse of some town buildings on a hillside passing by, but the donkey cart then turned around and headed straight for the farm, and soon Donald saw a wooden fence on the side of the road, and the faint sound of cattle and sheep nearby.

The only pity is that the sky is still gloomy.

"It has been a rainy month here in Pston recently, and it is estimated that it will rain in the next two days, which is a big obstacle to the investigation of the case. ”

Sherlock poured the powder from the barrel into the jar, complaining about the weather, the rain could wash away too many things, the disappearance happened three days ago, and yesterday's heavy rain should leave them with few clues.

The trees gradually thinned out, and some farm buildings such as warehouses and cowsheds began to appear on the right, while Donald and Sherlock went all the way to the three-story house in the middle of the farm, red masonry and stone as the main material, and the foundation under it was very thick, similar to Italian architectural style, with many convex windows on the front of the house, and a balcony in the middle.

At this moment, there was someone on the balcony on the second floor, a woman in a dress, leaning against the windowsill, as if looking at the mountains and forests in the distance, and she couldn't see the expression on her face.

"I don't know which roof it is in the previous shed roof crushing corpse case, if you have the opportunity, you must go to the scene to see. ”

Goren went inside to report the news, and the two stood outside, Sherlock looking at the nearby farm building and Donald on the building in front of him.

In every case, the owner of this farm should be a wealthy man.

It should be a lot of pay, right......

"Two gentlemen, Boss Bartlet, please come in. ”

When he came out again, it was not Golen, but a fairly neat housekeeper.

In the living room, I met the owner of the farm, Zil Bartlet, a pot-bellied man, a bloated figure sitting on a dark red single sofa, a wooden pipe in his hand, and his face that should have been oily looked very haggard at the moment, with heavy bags under his eyes, and it seemed that he had not slept well these days.

After introducing each other, Donald and the two also sat down.

"My request is very simple, find my daughter as soon as possible, the disappearance of cattle and sheep, it doesn't matter, the reward is negotiable, and I promise not to disappoint you. ”

Sitting facing him, Donald saw that Bartlet's eyes were bloodshot, his face was abnormally flushed, and he spoke with the smell of alcohol.

"Okay, I have some questions for you, so please answer them truthfully in order to get Miss Audrey back as soon as possible. ”

The general basic situation has been known through old Hopper on the way here, and there is no need to ask here, what Sherlock wants to know is something that only the person concerned knows.

"For my daughter's sake, just ask. ”

At the mention of Audrey, Bartlet's face darkened a little.

"What are the conditions for the kidnappers?"

Sherlock's problem is to the point, since it is a kidnapping, then the other party must have a request, by analyzing their demands, you can achieve a certain anti-tracking effect, even if the other party asks for money, there must be a place to trade, this is also a countermeasure.

From Chapter 3 of The Detective's Minutes: The Key Elements of the Kidnapping Case!

“......”

No response.

"Mr. Bartlet, what are the conditions for the kidnappers?"

Perhaps he had drunk too much and was confused, and Donald, the narrator, repeated it on the side.

"No conditions! That damn bastard, shit! He didn't offer any conditions, we've been waiting for three days without any news...... Don't you understand, if he asks for money, I have already prepared gold pounds, and even if the family does not have enough, I can immediately borrow from the bank, rely on this farm, and redeem my daughter first...... But we didn't get any reply, he just left a note telling us not to call the police!"

The gold ring on Bartlet's thick finger as he spoke proved his financial strength, and he was not joking, and the reason why he did not call the police and call the detective for three days was because he really planned to spend money to ransom his daughter first.

Regardless of appearance, this is a competent father.

'What are you kidnapping someone without any conditions, it's fun?'

Donald and Sherlock looked at each other, both with this in their eyes, but Sherlock didn't say anything, now is not the time to joke.

"Mr. Bartlet, have you been in for a vendetta lately, for example, in the recent acquisitions, which have been done in a way that is not so ...... Reasonable thing. ”

The kidnapper did not make any obvious requests, which does not mean that the other party has nothing to ask for, and naturally it is not really for fun to kidnap people, and the other party's purpose is likely to be in other aspects, perhaps to draw Ziel Bartlet's energy, so that he is unable to deal with other things in a short time.

"I don't have a plan for the acquisition in the near future, there is such a big thing on the farm, how can I have the energy to think about that, as for the grudge...... In business, if you want to say that no one is offended, it is impossible, but I can guarantee that I have never driven people to a dead end, even if it is an acquisition, I will offer a reasonable price according to the situation, at least I will leave a way for the other party to live, just like that, I will not come to kidnap my daughter, right? If I let me know which bastard it is, I will definitely make him pay the real price, is it true that I Zil Bartlett has no anger?"

Bartlet's emotions became more and more agitated, and the alcohol made him feel less controlled.

"Has your daughter been behaving erratically lately, has she ever had an argument with you?"

Part of the kidnapping case is self-inflicted, that is, kidnapping herself to achieve a certain purpose in this way, if this kidnapping was done by Audrey herself, then she does have a reason to leave only a note that cannot be reported to the police, because the purpose she wants to achieve Bartlet must know.

"Abnormal behavior...... I don't know, some time ago I was busy dealing with the missing cattle and sheep on the farm, and I didn't pay much attention to her, Douglas, to go and call my wife down, she had been with Audrey, I think there would be some clues. ”

It is understandable that a busy father is less concerned with his children, but Donald wonders why they have been sitting here for so long, and Mr. Bartlet's wife has to send someone up to find them.

Shouldn't she come down early to be with her husband?