Chapter 575: Extra!
The funeral was completed before sunset, and the part where believers could directly participate concluded.
However, for most people who follow the Church, the main event for the clergy was perhaps just beginning.
Because as early as tonight, or by tomorrow at the latest, would be the 'internal election' of the new local Bishop by the priests.
In any case, the visiting Bishop who presided over the ceremony could not stay in Richmond for long; his more important task was to represent the Church and complete the ordination ceremony for the new Bishop.
Wayne had already been spoiled about this aspect.
On his way back, he bought a stack of newspapers. He didn't even glance at the reports introducing and speculating on 'potential candidates for the new Bishop,' just waiting for everything to settle before the Detective Agency proceeded as planned.
"The State Government issues an executive order: significant changes will occur in the training model for militia in all Virginia counties."
This should be related to what 維多克 · 比頓 just said. America's management model is like an onion, with layers enclosing each other. Superiors may not be able to directly penetrate to subordinates, but they can impose restrictions within their authority through laws and executive orders.
Especially for projects involving budget allocations, if they want money, they all have to cooperate honestly. Sometimes, the effect is even more immediate than an administrative ban.
"Latest progress in the Scott case! The case has been appealed to the Federal Supreme Court."
This case was a hot topic of litigation that Southerners paid close attention to, the kind that could easily spark debate even when brought up in academia.
The case itself wasn't complicated; it concerned whether "a slave who gained freedom in a free state, when he returns to his birth slave state, is 'still free' or 'becomes a slave again.'"
Supporters believed that freedom was an inherent human right, and the state of slavery was based solely on contract. However, the opposing voices were clearly louder, as if this loophole were opened, the Fugitive Slave Act might become a dead letter, and slaves might be completely safe once they escaped to a free state. This involved tangible interests.
In any case, both "freedom" and "slavery" are now written into the American Constitution. If the slave had not initially filed the lawsuit in the North, this case probably wouldn't even have had the chance to go to court.
"Fake Great Detective? Wayne Constantine suspected of academic fraud sparks controversy."
???
I haven't even written an academic paper; what fraud am I committing?
Shaking the newspaper and taking a closer look, it turned out that a reporter had taken the matter of fingerprints to the academy for fact-checking.
Many professors at the academy stated that they had conducted relevant research, but objectively speaking, no written academic results had ever been published.
The person who wrote the report even tried to set the tone, saying that Wayne was deceiving the public and fooling the court, suggesting that even cases the Detective Agency had previously been involved in probably needed to be re-examined by the public.
Damn it.
Wayne was very confident in the theories related to fingerprints. With facts as a basis, such statements could actually be easily refuted, as people would genuinely struggle to provide counter-examples.
However, in those days, to debate and clarify in newspapers genuinely required money. If this report attracted public attention, involving the credibility of the Detective Agency, Wayne would need to speak out in response.
Although it shouldn't be much, all that was his money.
Wayne glanced at the byline of the report. If you also get secretly killed by gangsters, I definitely won't help you clear your name.
Unexpectedly, on the morning of the next day, Wayne was "slapped in the face" by himself.
The police officers who came to the restaurant for investigation were quite polite: "Mr. Wayne, do you know Scott Thompson?"
That little scoundrel who was setting the tone in the newspaper, right?
Wayne truthfully said, "No, but I've read the false report he wrote."
The inquiring officer nodded slightly and took a newspaper from his companion. The one folded on top was the report Wayne had read yesterday:
"His body was discovered this morning, in a terrible state. The word 'LIAR' was written in blood on the bedroom wall.
"We've already been to the newspaper office. The feature articles he wrote in the past two months were not accepted. He could only assist other colleagues in polishing manuscripts and was on the verge of being fired. Only this one article got a spot."
Wayne's mind raced, and he quickly understood what the officer wanted to convey.
Holy cow, where did that jinx come from?!
Just yesterday, he published a false report about me, and today he dies for you to see.
Is he just randomly splattering blood on others, huh?
Wayne pushed the newspaper back. "I just learned of his death, and this matter has no direct connection to me. It was just a false report that could be resolved with a simple clarification. I had no motive to target him personally."
The officer carefully rubbed his hands, his attitude still polite: "We respect your opinion, but according to protocol..."
Wayne understood; he was quite familiar with the Richmond Police Station. "I'll go back with you to give a statement."
...
"Thank you for your cooperation. However, during the case investigation, we may need to contact you at any time for information. We hope you will not leave Richmond for now."
The Sheriff in charge of taking the statement eventually escorted Wayne all the way to the Police Station entrance.
Wayne, at present, could at most be considered as having "a motive to commit the crime," not even a "suspect," so he didn't even need bail and could leave after giving his statement.
Although the Sheriff's words sounded non-mandatory, they had to be obeyed—if it were an ordinary person, leaving the local police's jurisdiction without permission after being warned during a case investigation could, in this era, directly lead to a wanted poster.
The Police Station probably also realized there was something fishy about this case. Not to mention the Police Chief, even old acquaintance Sheriff William didn't show up, probably either to avoid suspicion or to wait and see subsequent developments.
The Sheriff who was put forward was nearly sixty. He had accumulated enough work experience in the city government system over many years to be promoted to this position. Previously, he was responsible for internal affairs at the Police Station and did not participate in case investigations at all.
Wayne felt he probably couldn't rely on this one; the Detective Agency investigating would be more reliable.
The credibility of "proving one's innocence" would, of course, be greatly discounted, but entrusting a private detective to find the truth of a case was not an overly outrageous practice.
It would just be a bit troublesome this way; the evidence found would have to be strong enough to be accepted by the jury.
That evening, newsboys were hawking "Extras" printed by the newspaper office along the streets.
Newspapers have issue numbers, and an "Extra" refers to content specially printed by the newspaper office that falls outside the regular issue—usually, only major news that is widely anticipated qualifies for such treatment.
As expected, Father Tyrrell was elected as the new Bishop of Virginia.
Believers who had come from various places to bid farewell to Bishop Corleone, if they had not yet departed, would be able to witness the ordination of the new Bishop at the Cathedral tomorrow.
Also being peddled by the newsboy were some of the day's new newspapers that had already been printed:
"Based on the clues currently investigated, Wayne Constantine himself does not seem to have had enough time to commit the crime—the police can even be part of his alibi, because the day before the incident, this Great Detective had just assisted in the arrest of a group of slave traffickers."
"But as a highly skilled Great Detective, Wayne Constantine is obviously familiar with police procedures. With his abilities, he could completely ensure that his criminal acts would not be caught. More importantly, perhaps he didn't even need to act personally."
"It should be known that this is not the first time Wayne Constantine and his Detective Agency have been questioned by the public. Previously, in Georgeberg, there were rumors that the Wayne Detective Agency coerced citizens into withdrawing lawsuits."
"The author cannot help but ask, is he truly innocent? Could the so-called 'Detective Agency' be a newer type of gang?"
Good heavens,
Are you trying to exploit a bug on me, huh?
