Chapter 338: Chapter 317: Murder on the Orient Express_1

In a literary duel, Lin Yuan is inclined to write about those works that he feels most confident. He sees high chances of winning with both the Hercule Poirot series and the Sherlock Holmes series, hence the indecisiveness between the two most legendary detectives in the history of crime fiction—

“Let’s go with Poirot.”

Lin Yuan finally made a decision.

The reason he declined to use Sherlock Holmes was simple.

Because the origin of Narrative Trickery is “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd”. Poirot was the detective unraveling this case, and it was from this novel that Leng Guang had become the pioneer of anti-unreliable narrators; therefore it seemed most fitting to let Poirot win this literary duel.

What began with Poirot should also end with Poirot.

It adds a sense of ceremonial completion.

If he were to use Sherlock Holmes instead, it would seem as if Sherlock was stepping in just to clean up Poirot’s mess.

Lin Yuan holds both these characters in equal esteem, hence he wouldn’t favor one over the other unjustifiably.

“Boss, you need to be careful.”

Concerned that Lin Yuan might disregard this literary duel, Jin Mu specifically introduced him to Leng Guang’s works:

“Leng Guang isn’t considered the top-tier detective novelist, but most of his works have received high praises. Calling him a first-rate detective novelist is not an exaggeration…”

“I know.”

Lin Yuan does take this seriously.

He specifically requested a set of information from the System.

As it does not involve any specific content, the System did not charge any fee for it.

This set of information includes a complete list of all cases that Poirot has solved.

Poirot has solved many cases.

Among his most famous are “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd”, “The ABC Murders”, “Murder on the Orient Express”, “Death on the Nile”, “Evil Under the Sun” and so on.

Lin Yuan plans to choose one from these classic Poirot stories for the impending literary duel.

This time, he needs to make use of precision tailoring.

“Among all of Hercule Poirot’s cases, ‘Murder on the Orient Express’ is an absolute masterpiece worth mentioning. This work tells the story of an intricate game between human morals and the rule of law. It also initiated the plot scheme of a collaborative murder…”

“There is also ‘Death on the Nile’, which is also one of the best works by Agatha Christie. This book has been adapted into countless film adaptations and TV series, probably owing to the gripping romance element in the plot?”

“On the other hand, the storyline in ‘The ABC Murders’ is relatively simple and straightforward compared to the other two. The main focus is on the psychological analysis and portrayal of characters, with the serial killer’s predictive murder pattern standing out as a highlight.”

“‘Evil Under the Sun’ could be an option too. But it follows a predictable plot pattern. A wealthy and powerful victim who is despised by everyone on an isolated island where everyone has motive and appears suspicious. Plus, the murder scene in a cold, secluded cave is similar to ‘Death on the Nile’. It could be an option if ‘Death on the Nile’ is not available, but not a priority.”

“…”

After much hesitation and careful consideration.

Lin Yuan finally made a decision.

His choice was: “Murder on the Orient Express”!

Undoubtedly, this piece is a widely recognized masterpiece!

If a ranking were to be given to all of Poirot’s cases, 80% of readers will put ‘Murder on the Orient Express’ at the top of the list!

Rumor has it that it was the first Agatha Christie novel many people read?

There’s no exact data to back this up, but anyway, Lin Yuan has his own reasons for choosing this work!

“The pioneer of the collaborative murder scheme that proliferated inspiration in many authors and a work that left the readers astounded at the grand reveal of an entire cast of villains.”

Oh no, I stand corrected.

They should be described as an entire cast of good guys.

Being a fan of locked-room murder mysteries and trains, a locked-room murder case taking place on a train is particularly tempting.

The usual crime scenario is:

Only one amongst many is the perpetrator.

But in this case, it so happens:

Only one amongst thirteen people is innocent!

This introduces a sense of contention in the post-apocalyptic world:

If the law fails to deliver their version of justice, can they resort to their murder ritual in punishing the perpetrator, who also happens to be a most heinous criminal walking free?

All twelve people are murderers.

This displays a contradiction between morality and legality.

Another reason for the fame of this work is probably Poirot wavering on this very principle.

He finally made a decision.

Those were his words after discovering the truth: “Now that I have given you the answer, please allow me the honour of exiting this case…”

Poirot’s withdrawal is the greatest kindness he could offer.

From this story onward, Poirot is no longer a cold-blooded crime-solving machine, representing absolute law, but rather, a human being full of warmth and affection.

In fact, as we often hear in “Detective Conan”:

There is only one truth.

Yet in this instance, Poirot chose to abandon this belief and for the sake of empathy, provided two choices for everyone, even at the expense of neglecting his duty.

With a compassionate approach towards justice, Poirot became the true detective in many hearts.

“They seem unable to escape controversy?”

Lin Yuan was partly worried that choosing “Murder on the Orient Express” might result in fresh controversies:

When the law fails to uphold justice, can people take it upon themselves to punish criminals who evade legal punishment?

Poirot’s decision, which some people may see as compassionate, might seem like condoning criminals to others.

“That’s probably not the case.”

On second thought, Lin Yuan thought he might be thinking too much.

Every writer inevitably faces controversies to some extent.

Even though some people may not agree with the ideology conveyed in “Murder on the Orient Express”, those people certainly represent a minority. Lin Yuan believes that many more people will understand Poirot, and even grow to admire him.

As stated earlier, the most explosive part about Poirot in “Murder on the Orient Express”:

Is when he chooses to acquit murderers!

This is probably the only case among all of Poirot’s cases where he let go of the murderers. And he spared not just one or two, but a whopping twelve people!

Coincidentally,

Another great detective, Sherlock Holmes, also made the decision to let criminals go once.

However, considering the impact of the scenario, the final scene of “Murder on the Orient Express” is the most thrilling.

But of course, only those mystery enthusiasts who advocate Poirot’s approach will find it exciting.

Next, he had to work on a careful adaption.

With different character stories and backgrounds, the amount of adaption Lin Yuan needs to implement this time is substantial.

Fortunately, as long as the core story remains the same, everything will be fine.

This is a story about revenge, the motive for killing is key; the characters’ identities are secondary.

Actually,

Another reason for choosing “Murder on the Orient Express” is that Lin Yuan wants to build Poirot’s brand recognition!

With the release of “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd”, readers are already familiar with Poirot.

With the addition of a deeper character development of Poirot in “Murder on the Orient Express”, Lin Yuan believes that Poirot’s popularity will definitely explode!

Keep in mind.

This case is not only one of the peaks in Poirot’s life but also one of Agatha Christie’s personal best!

Agatha Christie wrote numerous detective novels during her lifetime. Posthumously, people always enjoy ranking her works.

The majority will leave the first position for “No One Survived”.

There are, however, occasional divergences.

The difference lies in the fact that some readers believe that “Murder on the Orient Express” is Agatha Christie’s best work!

This debate will not be discussed in the book for now.

It is a fact that majority of readers agree on, that “Murder on the Orient Express” ranks among the top three in all of Agatha Christie’s works.

There is no controversy about that.