Crossing over, and then being blocked by a rich JK.

Chapter 552 Them on the Road
This once again proves that as long as the connections are strong enough and the evidence is conclusive, holding people accountable becomes simple and efficient.

Secondly, the music website brought their 'sincerity' early in the morning.

Over the phone, a senior executive from the music website stated that they had thoroughly investigated the relevant personnel and confirmed that they had indeed engaged in illegal operations and were suspected of corporate espionage. The person in question has been suspended from their duties and taken to the police station to cooperate with the police in further investigation.

At the same time, to express their apology, they will provide Yuki with appropriate compensation.

First, for the next week, Yuki's "Marigold" will be featured on the homepage of the music website's app for promotion and display.

Secondly, the music website will allocate a special compensation fund and deposit it into Yuki's bank account. In addition, when there are opportunities for audio interviews on well-known TV programs, the music website will give priority to Yuki.

Finally, the music website's legal department will sue the TV show and seek as much compensation as possible for Yuki.

Watanabe Yu didn't say whether he was satisfied or not, but only indicated that they should inform Yuki, not him. At the same time, he also gave some 'constructive advice' over the phone.

In other words, Yuki doesn't want anyone to disturb her real life, so they'll have to make another call to explain the specific compensation terms to Yuki in a sincere and earnest manner.

As he had expected, the music website executives on the other end of the phone showed no dissatisfaction and readily agreed, repeatedly stating that such a thing would not happen again and hoping that Yuki and he would not hold any grudges.

Upon hearing this, Watanabe Yu readily agreed and exchanged some polite words.

As the music website subsequently filed a lawsuit against the program, as they had promised, the matter was temporarily put to rest for him.

The music website will definitely inform him of the specific results once there is a follow-up.

He wasn't worried about what kind of punishment those people would receive.

Capitalist countries impose very severe penalties on commercial espionage. Once convicted, it can result in imprisonment for up to five years and a fine of up to five million yen, depending on the circumstances.

Although the fines weren't much, after the people involved were released, only the companies that had previously worked with them in the industry dared to hire them.

The problem is that their previous companies might not necessarily accept them.

The Japanese market is only so big, especially in Tokyo, where everyone in the industry is watching closely.

If you dare to accept this today, tomorrow everyone will quietly put you on their list. They might not criticize you immediately, and they won't criticize you in the future, but they will no longer prioritize you for related collaborations.

Who would dare to deal with a company that would plant corporate spies in rival companies?
The contents of today's high-level meeting might reach the ears of a company president tomorrow.

However, Watanabe Yu didn't want to think about these things any further, because right now, to be precise, it was the weekend a week before the monthly exam, and he had already accompanied Yasuhara Risa on her way to the class reunion.

"So I'm really curious, Risa-nee, why don't you drive a better car?"

Sitting in the passenger seat, Watanabe Yu turned to look at her as she drove, and asked the question with great confusion.

After entering the workforce, people's criteria for judging their former classmates will change from grades to what kind of car they drive, what kind of watch they wear, and how nice their clothes are. Although it sounds vulgar, that's the reality.

Your former classmates will decide how they treat you based on how well you are doing now—whether they treat you the same as always or with a hint of flattery.

Of course, there are also those who are more straightforward, where no matter how well or poorly you are doing, at the dinner table everyone only talks about family matters, or at the very least, reminisces about their student days, and never mentions work or income.

However, it is clear that those who are able to avoid being filtered out by society are often those whose families have the financial means to not focus on material things.

"Too ostentatious."

Risa Yasuhara gave a concise answer.

There are indeed many more expensive cars parked at home, but she doesn't really like them, and she's only going to a class reunion, so this 911 is enough for her.

"Isn't your 911 less conspicuous?"

Watanabe Yu glanced at her speechlessly and asked a question in return.

“This one is relatively less flashy.” Risa Yasuhara paused. “We only have a few cars at home. I can’t exactly drive a Bentley or something, can I? Besides, those kinds of cars usually require a driver.”

She didn't want a third person to know about this mess.

After Watanabe Yu agreed to help her, her mind immediately cleared up.

She had no reason to hold a grudge against those people. Of course, she would still have to settle things, but her subjective feelings were different from before.

So, she stopped caring so much about what that person said.

You're right. Whether you're doing well or not, only you, your friends, and your parents know. As for people you're not close to, people you might only see once a year, why bother caring about them?

"Your family must have a driver."

Watanabe Yu leaned forward slightly, fiddling with the screen on the car in front, searching for a song that sounded relatively pleasant.

To be fair, Risa has pretty good taste in music. The songs in her library are mostly carefully selected, which is far superior to someone like him who listens to DJ music while driving.

—While DJs are indeed energetic, especially when driving at night, they really keep you awake.

"Is that the point?"

Risa Yasuhara rolled her eyes in annoyance.

He's the typical type of person. When others say he runs like the wind, he'll ask if your legs are tired or hurt.

"Isn't it?"

Yu Watanabe selected an English song that looked like it would be very nice, and then clicked play.

A melodious tune filled the car, and he relaxed and leaned back in the passenger seat.

These coupe or sports car types look cool, but the actual seating experience is indeed lacking, especially in terms of comfort.

Of course, he also knew that since most buyers were buying sports cars, they were mostly attracted by his good looks, and the quality of the seats was completely irrelevant to this demographic.

People aren't here to buy family cars; they're just here to buy high-performance, expensive-looking cars.

In other words, being handsome is enough.

"I can't be bothered to talk to you." Risa Yasuhara rolled her eyes, then after about five seconds of silence, she asked abruptly, "Can you drive?"

Theoretically speaking, her question was a bit silly.

How old is Watanabe Yuuya?

How could someone that age possibly drive?

Especially considering how much his parents quietly cared for him, they probably wouldn't have taught him to drive beforehand.

“I can.” Watanabe Yu nodded, then gestured with his chin toward her. “So?”

He had a bad feeling.

Generally speaking, if the driver suddenly asks the passenger if they can drive while on the way to a party, it usually means that they are going to drink later.

“I might have a few drinks later,” Risa Yasuhara paused, “with my friend.”

She certainly wouldn't accept a toast from others; she planned to simply offer a soft drink instead.

She only drinks with people she is close to.

Of course, the same applies to social situations.

"Then let me ask you this: when you're drinking with your friend, what will other people think?" Watanabe Yu looked at her with a hint of helplessness. "I mean, what do you drink when others offer you a drink?"

It wasn't that he was prescient, but rather that Risa Yasuhara's attitude towards this classmate made him feel that she would clearly treat her differently.

Drinking alcohol with friends, drinking beverages with others. "I drink beverages."

Risa Yasuhara blurted it out.

"Don't you think this is ridiculous?" Watanabe Yu's tone became serious. "No matter how much you don't get along with them, you still have to make do in a place like this, otherwise you'll give them a reason to criticize you."

This was entirely avoidable.

Moreover, he didn't know what was wrong with Risa's brain. She was usually such a mature and worldly-wise person, so why did she suddenly shut down at a time like this?

This kind of differential treatment is really stupid.

Even if they really intend to do that, they should at least try to cover it up.

"……Fine."

Risa Yasuhara was silent for two seconds. She really hadn't expected Yu Watanabe to say that, but since he had said so, she would just listen.

Anyway, she believed he would never joke about something like this.

And thinking about it carefully, her differential treatment was indeed a bit outrageous.

No matter what, it has to appear that everyone is treated equally.

Thinking about it carefully, although I do this at social gatherings, I do drink alcohol most of the time, and if I drink juice or other beverages, then I drink juice or other beverages throughout the entire event.

“I think you shouldn’t have such thoughts, because it’s such a small detail.” Watanabe Yu sighed, then shook his head. “Forget it, let’s leave this topic here and talk about Auntie’s matter.”

There's no point in continuing like this. Risa is the kind of person who doesn't need a heavy hammer to make a sound; once is enough.

In fact, his mention of it again was already a heavy blow to her.

Therefore, stopping short of a point is best.

"Mom? What's wrong with her?"

After being told that, Risa Yasuhara felt a little embarrassed at first, but otherwise she didn't care.

No matter what, he was her student, or rather, in her heart, her younger brother.

My younger brother noticed I had done something wrong and then took the initiative to remind me. That's a good thing no matter how you look at it.

"After you had a plan and told her about it, did she still subtly urge you to hurry up?"

Watanabe Yu asked the question that had been bothering him.

It's not that I don't trust Shizuka Yasuhara, it's just that I think, given Shizuka Yasuhara's personality, she would still try to subtly hint at things before her daughter fully meets a certain condition.

"No."

Risa Yasuhara shook her head and gently pressed the brake.

The 911 came to a smooth stop at the intersection with the red light on.

"Actually, in my opinion, people of your generation who were going to get married have already gotten married. There's no rush to get married, so urging them won't help."

Watanabe uttered those words slowly and deliberately.

He almost slipped up and said "our generation" instead of "your generation," but thankfully he corrected himself when he said it.

"Yes, but obviously they don't believe in that. They think that some things can be accomplished by urging, but the truth is the opposite. Urging won't get you anywhere."

Risa Yasuhara sighed. Just then, the red light ahead turned green. She released the brake, gently pressed the accelerator, and the car continued driving along the main road.

"Actually, there are such cases, but the results are mostly not good."

Watanabe Yu turned his head and looked out the car window. Perhaps because it gets dark early in winter, the sky was already completely dark, and the car window itself had a 'filter' that made it even darker.

"for example."

Risa Yasuhara became interested.

"For example, if a family arranges a blind date, and both parties feel it's a good match, they get married. But after marriage, sharp conflicts begin to arise, and neither of them can resolve these conflicts, and then..."

Watanabe Yu chuckled.

He felt he had made himself perfectly clear.

These kinds of arguments and emotional abuse can eventually lead to divorce.

And this process is irreversible most of the time.

Those with children are a bit of an exception; they might struggle with the decision, but many would think, "We already have children, so let it be," and just endure it and continue living their lives.

"And then you got divorced, right?"

Risa Yasuhara gripped the steering wheel, a sigh appearing on her face.

As a teacher, she often has to greet parents, but based on her experience over the years, the proportion of single-parent families is rising. Although the overall number is still small, it is clearly increasing.

Whenever she dealt with these kinds of parents, even if they didn't say anything, she could sense their deep exhaustion.

"Correct."

Watanabe Yu nodded slightly.

"So what is the purpose of these people getting married? To have a child, to fulfill the duty of having offspring, and then abandon the child and family? To make the other party bear all the responsibility?"

Risa Yasuhara couldn't help but become agitated.

She can't stand this kind of thing.

When these students from single-parent families show a maturity beyond their years, she feels an indescribable heartache.

"Perhaps they are just mechanically completing the tasks assigned to them by their families."

Watanabe Yu shrugged.

"So I think Risa-nee, your judgment back then was correct. It's better to 'fight' to the end than to compromise. If you really compromise, you'll probably have a hard time in the future."

He then added that sentence.

"So I really have to thank you." Risa Yasuhara breathed a sigh of relief and composed herself. "If it weren't for your help, I'd probably be running around on blind dates that I couldn't handle right now."

She has now begun to gain control of her freedom.

The problem is being resolved gradually.

The most pressing issue is the upcoming class reunion.

"We're almost there."

She said so.

They would arrive at the party location in five minutes.

(End of this chapter)