Tokyo Wingman King

Rural landscape.

A famous upscale villa district in Tokyo.

This low-density park city, with its concentric radial layout similar to Paris, Berlin, and various European satellite cities, boasts wide roads surrounded by lush greenery, a feature rarely seen in the heart of Tokyo.

Here, a casual street photo can capture the feeling of traveling in Europe and America—for Asama, it's the feeling of having to drive for more than ten minutes just to buy a bottle of water.

Many people now label this residential area, which was built during Japan's Taisho era, as outdated, saying it is far less modern and convenient than emerging luxury residential areas like Azabudai and Futako-Tamagawa.

However, these people overlooked the fact that amenities such as tram lines, convenience stores/supermarkets/shopping malls near their homes, and a wide variety of restaurants and canteens are meaningless to the wealthy people of Dengenchofu.

[Inconvenient] is simply a hidden threshold set up here for the unknown.

The wealthy residents of Denenchofu have chauffeured drivers for all their travels. When they attend meetings or social events, the organizers are only worried about their absences, never about their lateness. They have contracted farms that deliver fresh fruits, vegetables, and meats, and a private chef who prepares multiple meals a day. If they want to buy something, someone will deliver it to their door. They even have a custom-made online store for their butlers to order. As for their children's education, distance is no problem at all. Many people send their children to the other side of the ocean early on for a bit of peace and quiet.

These people never find the rural landscape inconvenient; on the contrary, they worry that their accommodations are too conspicuous, allowing tourists to wander around freely and lacking sufficient privacy.

The capitalist upper-class lifestyle flows slowly in Denenchofu with an old-fashioned and conservative air. Or rather, Denenchofu presents the idea of ​​"the poor are ignored in the city, but the rich have distant relatives even in the mountains" to all of Japan in the most European style.

Many Japanese have forgotten that Eiichi Shibusawa, the "father of Japanese capitalism" currently depicted on the 10,000 yen banknote, was the driving force behind the development of Denenchofu. A century ago, it was clear that the reputation of those living in Denenchofu was more convincing than money. Moving to Denenchofu remains a way for the wealthy but not truly respectable to gain prestige.

Of course, those urban luxury residences that have sprung up in the last decade, boasting convenience, not only don't embarrass the wealthy, but also know how to make ordinary people with empty pockets both envious and hesitant to enter. They deliberately create boundaries through other means, such as access restrictions for supporting facilities and exclusive goods and services priced far above market value, ensuring maximum ostentation while maximizing the sense of exclusivity.

For Asama, a place that only protects the dignity of a small group while ignoring and rejecting the majority is not much different from a strip club.

What island, building, estate?
This world has countless private spaces for the elite to enjoy themselves, but public spaces where everyone can gain vitality and dignity are few and far between.

This is very much in line with human nature.

Once most people have experienced a life of being superior and ahead of others, they find it hard to tolerate the mundane existence of being just another face in the crowd, struggling for petty gains.

Those who live in the highest heavens can at most understand a little about "sharing desires with the people," but they absolutely cannot accept "sharing joy with the people."

Shibusawa Eiichi, who wrote the concept of "being rich and benevolent, righteous and profitable" into "The Analects and the Abacus" and had illicit relationships with more than a dozen women, would probably still be asleep in a private room of a nightclub at this point in time if he were still alive.

Anyone can say nice things, and anyone can put on a charity show. Publicly displaying their conscience is merely a necessary security measure for the wealthy; indulging in pleasure in secret is their true life.

Asama never thought too highly of the rich. Even young masters like Miyukiin and Togami often made Asama shake his head and frown at their daily lives.

It can only be said that there are too few people like Shinazugawa.

Although there is still much she can do as the future head of the Shinazugawa family, it is not something that someone like me, who stands idly by, has the right to interfere with.

Asama should feel fortunate, as after examining the situation from multiple angles, he deeply understands the strong character of the idol girl.

In this era, the idea that "the person I support won't collapse" is an immense blessing no matter how you look at it.

—Asama stood on the central avenue of Denenchofu, lost in thought.

He could just stand in the middle of the road sunbathing and no one would bother him.

On weekday mornings, Denenchofu is as sparsely populated as the deep forests of Hokkaido.

Behind Asama is Denzenchofu Station, a blend of French neoclassical and Mediterranean pastoral styles. The shopping street on its ground floor is even more deserted than those tourist attractions that have lost their giant pandas.

Following the location sent to him by Nijo Reina, Asama searched for Nijo's house along the dappled light filtering through the trees.

This Windsor-style villa, surrounded by a low wall made of rough stones and greenery, is not ostentatious among the diverse villas, but its location is not hard to find. After all, it stands in the center of the villa area, which is also the location of the Nijo family in the forest of Japanese superstructures.

It took Asama three minutes to walk along the green wall to the main entrance of the Nijo family villa. He was perhaps the first guest to visit the villa on foot in its 95-year history.

The buildings behind the main gate still retain a British style. The Nijo family's Kamakura villa pays homage to Hampton Court Palace, owned by King Henry VIII. The Denenchofu villa, on the other hand, is a tribute to Windsor Villa, owned by Edward VIII—both were English kings known for their romantic affairs.

The only difference is that the former loved the beauty more than the country, while the latter loved the beauty more than the country.

So what does Nijo Kenjiro mean?
Is this a sarcastic jab at Asama Shizumizu for being a womanizer?

Asama couldn't help but think about this.

The two heirs of the Nijo family—Nijo Ruri and Nijo Rena—waited patiently in front of the gate adorned with peony patterns, while Takishima Tetsuya, dressed as a butler, stood respectfully beside Nijo Rena.

"Mr. Asama, it's been a long time."

"Teacher, you must be tired from your journey."

The first person to speak up and greet them was Nijou Ruri.

The second young lady of the Nijo family, dressed in a Marchesa black satin lace vest dress, looked at Asama with a Yamato Nadeshiko-like smile.

At first glance, her outfit today makes her look like a high school student just getting ready to go out on a date; she looks even younger and more beautiful than when we first met in her retro dress.

The fake high school student winked seductively at Asama, her provocative lips slightly parted, hinting at a hint of reproach—Asama had been replying to her messages very casually these days, usually no more than five words each time.

"Long time no see, Miss, Nijo-san."

Asama ignored Nijo Ruri's subtle expression.

Like Konoe Chiyo, Nijo Ruri was one of the difficult women that Asama absolutely did not want to deal with.

He knew very well that 99% of women with extensive dating experience wouldn't like his type. Therefore, in Asama's eyes, Nijou Ruri's enthusiasm was like Candida albicans—a troublesome thing to avoid at all costs.

Ruri Nijou covered her mouth and laughed.
"If you're worried about getting confused with Rena, just call me Ruri, Mr. Asama."

"Yes, Miss."

Asama steered the conversation toward his former son-in-law, now son, Takishima Tetsuya, who was originally supposed to show him the way at Denenchofu Station.

"Weren't you busy? How come you have time now?"

Reina Nijo explained for Tetsuya Takishima.

"My father asked him to tidy up the study at the last minute. I thought it would take one or two hours, but Tetsuya finished moving everything in half an hour."

Nijo Rena's face was flushed red from the autumn sun. Perhaps there was another reason for the blush—Asama had told her in advance that he would sound out her father's opinion today.

Takishima squinted and flattered,
"Thank you for your hard work, Mr. Da! You saved the world today with your incredibly handsome face!"

"Nijo-san, is hiring a blind man as a butler part of the Nijo family's charitable work?"

"As an intern butler of the Five Messengers, if you don't voluntarily go crazy for a while every day, the consequences will be terrible."

No sooner had Takishima finished speaking than Nijo Rena stomped hard on the tip of his shiny leather shoe.

The third daughter of the Nijo family carefully examined Asama, who wore a faded gray long-sleeved T-shirt in a washed, high-street style with the sentence "[It is not from the benevolence]" printed on it.

Reina Nijo knew that this sentence came from Adam Smith's "The Wealth of Nations." The whole sentence meant that "[our meals are not from the kindness of butchers, brewers, bakers, etc., but from their concern for their own interests (making money)]" - the market does not operate on goodwill, but only on self-interest and exchange.

Wearing this outfit clearly indicates he came prepared; it's undoubtedly a gesture of respect for himself and Takishima. Normally, Hachiman doesn't put much thought into his attire; when he slapped the young master of the Ichijou family, he was wearing a basic outfit.

Teacher Da wore slim-fitting black trousers with slightly worn cuffs. He was still wearing the same white sneakers, which, if you ignored the laces, looked brand new.

This summer, Teacher Da has grown much taller and more muscular. He exudes both the calmness of a scholar and the aura of a warrior. His once somewhat delicate features have also begun to develop more definition.
Reina Nijo averted her gaze, concluding that "[Hachiman is indeed devastatingly handsome]", and asked curiously,
"Does Teacher Da have appearance anxiety? Is he worried that people care too much about his appearance?"

"It's not so much anxiety as it is an insult to force someone to be fat and say they are slim."

Takishima pondered this seriously.

"I don't understand. Shouldn't the great wisdom of the Great Teacher tell you to use your super power to show off your super coolness? You are a great being who can easily distort even the aesthetic standards set by the Creator."

Nijo Rena looked down at her boyfriend, who was still on the ground, with a puzzled expression, then said to Asama,
"I don't understand, but Tetsuya is right."

Seeing that the three of them naturally left her aside, Nijou Ruri looked at her younger sister and smiled.

"Rena, let's stop with the pleasantries. It's not proper for our family to keep our guests standing at the door."

"Oh, okay, Mr. Da, this way please."

Ruri Nijo and Rena Nijo led the way, guiding Asama into the courtyard. Takishima also got up, dusted off his trousers, and followed.

This Nijo villa occupies a little over an acre, with at least two-thirds of the area used as a front yard. The overall garden design is much simpler than the Nijo family's Kamakura villa.

Clematis with white petals and purple stamens, hydrangeas with blue and pink hues, and calamus, irises, and geraniums that have already finished blooming and are now just green leaves, form a low green curtain that completely encloses the courtyard.

In a corner of the lawn stood several sets of tables and chairs for outdoor afternoon tea. The chairs had unique designs, with heart-shaped backrests—the Calvert Chairs designed by the master artist Gaudí. The round tables varied in shape and looked like antiques from the Victorian era to the British Arts and Crafts Movement.

The villa itself is not grand; under the Mansard blue tile roof is a beige two-story building. On the second floor, in front of the continuous French-style floor-to-ceiling windows, the stone terraces on the left and right are full of flowers.

"Is Mr. Asama satisfied with this courtyard?"

"Judging from her tone, is the Second Miss planning to give me this courtyard?"

"If Mr. Asama can strengthen the ties with our Nijo family through marriage, giving you this villa would be a simple matter."

"Mr. Nijo really spoils his daughter too much."

Asama gave an irrelevant answer.

“This is our good fortune. Rena was still like a little girl last year, saying, ‘Dad is the best dad in the world.’”

Nijo Ruri said something that made her younger sister blush, but it was Takishima who was secretly laughing on the sidelines who suffered the consequences.

Nijo Ruri looked at the somewhat empty lawn and said, "We originally had more than a dozen pugs and corgis, but we heard that Mr. Asama is allergic to cats and dogs, so we asked someone to send them to another place."

Asama glanced at Takishima, who was still being beaten, and thought to himself that the Nijo family's cleanup work was not done well.

That was a huge help.

“It’s all as we should do. If it makes Mr. Asama feel at home, that would be even better. We will not allow something like [the master being allergic to dogs but allowing the servant to keep a dog] to happen in the Nijo family.”

Nijo Ruri was speaking with a hidden meaning.

The old butler, whom they had met once but whose name they did not know, stood with a smile in front of the villa, five steps up, and with three maids, respectfully waited for Asama and his companions to approach.

"Greetings, young master Asama. Thank you for your help, Miss Ruri, Miss Reina, and young master Tetsuya. The master is currently in the study on the second floor."

After finishing his sentence, the old butler whispered instructions to Nijo Ruri about how to tidy up the room.

Ruri Nijo nodded and said,
"Yes, thank you for your hard work. Leave the rest to Rena and me."

The old butler bowed slightly and left the Nijo residence with several maids.

The four stood in the entrance hall. Nijo Rena leaned over and asked Asama a question.

"Do you have time to have lunch together, Teacher? Tetsuya and I will be in charge of lunch today."

Asama nodded. He would go to the Takatsukasa residence in the afternoon. Even if they left at 2 PM, they would still make it in time, since the meeting place was also in Denenchofu.

"We have Chateaubriands that were air-freighted from Hyogo Prefecture this morning. Would you like to try the grape Fanta-flavored steak, Mr. Dai?"

"Takishima said with a smile."

"Why don't you just order takeout?"

"It's too extravagant and wasteful of Da Zhangwei to order takeout instead of eating the food he has at home."

Who exactly is indulging in extravagance and waste?
"Just make something with a normal flavor."

"Then, Mr. Hachiman, look forward to our cooking skills!"

"Okay, keep it up."

"Mr. Asama, this way."

Nijo Ruri waited sideways at the top of the stairs, deliberately showing off her figure to Asama.

As he stepped onto the old but still sturdy wooden stairs, Asama glanced around. He preferred looking at the inanimate objects on the walls—portraits of the previous heads of the Nijo family—to the troubles of the living.

Dressed in tailcoats or military uniforms, and sporting uniform mustaches, the Nijo family heads all wore the same arrogant and disdainful expressions.

Asama had never seen this look on the face of the current head of the family.

The heads of the five families, even Kujo Minari, all had kind and benevolent expressions towards Asama. Thinking about it, it's quite scary. Could it be that they also watched that brainwashing movie several times?

Seeing that Asama's attention was focused on the wall, Nijo Ruri squeezed in and asked,

"Interested? Would you like Ruri to introduce Mr. Asama to him?"

Asama, using the handrail for support, flipped over seven or eight steps and landed on the carpet in the second-floor corridor. Looking down at Nijou Ruri, he said...
"No need, I've done my research and already know about it."

"Mr. Asama is so lively."

That's just how country people are.

"Heh, country bumpkins aren't capable of doing the Nijo family's homework. They even think the Nijo family line has long since died out."

"Really? So how did you do that?"

"We'll only do better than what's circulating online about how the Rothschilds did it. After all, familiarity breeds contempt and offense, right?"

"As an Easterner, perhaps 'being close to someone makes one less respectful' would be a better term."

Asama shrugged.

"Since Mr. Asama has done his homework on our family, what are your thoughts on the Nijo family?"

"The Nijo family is the Nijo family."

"How does it compare to the Konoe family?"

"It depends on how you compare them."

"Which side is cuter on a girl?"

Ruri Nijo's expression was both serious and curious.

"It depends on which side speaks less."

"As expected of the Konoe family, male chauvinism is still prevalent. No wonder Mr. Asama's sister is such a quiet person."

"Second Miss, I am neither a member of the Konoe family nor do I have a younger sister."

"Is Mr. Asama still going through his rebellious phase? Well, in my opinion, those ambitious but disobedient men, and those more capable but disobedient men, are definitely more attractive than those who are just following orders, or those fools who eagerly await their inheritance and then try to show their independence by firing the family financial advisor as soon as they inherit the family business."

"So, which stocks does the Second Miss like to invest in?"

Nijo Ruri smiled and said,

"Are you asking about those under my personal name, or the family foundation I manage?"

"It's all right."

"As for the private equity fund, just have the person in charge of that area in your family draw up a table and it will be clear. This month, our two companies have similar plans, mostly domestic companies. As for the companies that the private [PayPal gang] is involved in, I've followed them all, including MP which makes rare earths, IREN which has switched to AI infrastructure, and in the futures market, there are also buying opportunities in non-ferrous metals."

Nijo Ruri rattled off a long list of company names, including four startups that Asama had never even heard of.

She suddenly paused, her shrewd and professional demeanor vanishing, replaced by a slightly coquettish tone.
"Although it's not a trade secret, if Mr. Asama makes a little money from this information, don't forget to give me a commission."

"The stocks you picked don't sound that rebellious."

"Isn't this just how things are? Good stocks that can resist manipulation and good men who don't listen to reason are both things that are valuable but hard to find."

Nijo Ruri looked at Asama with an ambiguous expression, and when Asama helplessly shrugged, she covered her mouth and laughed.

"Mr. Asama's shyness is so cute."

"Perhaps I'm just being presumptuous, but I must state that I have no interest in being the second young lady's new boyfriend."

Ruri Nijo's expression remained unchanged upon hearing such a direct rejection; she simply smiled.
"The real reason Buffett avoids cryptocurrencies is that he doesn't understand them. But that doesn't stop Berkshire Hathaway from engaging with the crypto space."

Nijo Ruri led Asama to the door of the study on the second floor, knocked three times, and when she heard no response, she opened the door.

The room wasn't large, but the east-facing floor-to-ceiling windows bathed everything in sunlight. The paintings on the walls were no longer the portraits seen on the stairs, but landscapes by Claude Lorrain, Turner, and Richard Wilson.

The head of the Nijo family, Kenjiro Nijo, was staring intently at a painting that covered a large part of the wall.

Asama recognized this painting, Turner's massive work, "Snowstorm: Hannibal's Army Crossing the Alps".

"Father, Mr. Asama has arrived."

Without turning his head, the head of the Nijo family said, "Have a seat first."

"No need, I'm too tired from sitting on the subway, standing is fine."

Asama took the initiative to stand next to Nijo Kenjiro.

"An authentic work?"

Do you think forgeries have any aesthetic value?

"Is the one in London a forgery?"

Kenjiro Nijo glanced at Asama and smiled.
"It is true, and as long as everyone believes it to be true, then it is true."

He then gave instructions to Nijo Ruri.

"Ruri, brew a pot of tea for our young master Asama, Chinese tea."

"Ok."

The second young lady of the Nijo family, who had not yet left the room, smiled and walked to the tea table.

"What do you think of this painting? Our little Asama, I heard that you are very popular with art students and art teachers in Eiwa."

"Can answering this question be considered payment for your help?"

Kenjiro Nijo looked at the face before him, which was exactly like that of Takumi Konoe, capable of uttering shameless words without batting an eye, and smiled.

"You've already paid the reward." (End of Chapter)