Tokyo: The life of a literary giant begins with home self-defense!

Chapter 434: In the Temple of the King Protector of the Nation

This is my third time visiting Kyoto.

On the second day after Long Chuanche arrived in this ancient capital, it started to rain under the bluestone sky.

The rain fell on the moss-covered tiles and stones, pattering softly as if dyeing clothes green as well.

"Long Chuanche, hurry up."

The woman holding the oil-paper umbrella called out to her own house.

Today was the day she and Longchuan had arranged to go to Jiaowang Huguo Temple together.

The rain was light, seemingly just to create atmosphere.

Longchuan Che, who had gotten up early, emerged from a side room.

The group that arrived in Kyoto yesterday stayed at the old house of the lady's family.

Located on the banks of the Kamo River, the courtyard is bathed in emerald water. This three-courtyard complex has a hazy, dreamlike beauty when it rains.

"coming."

Longchuan Che rubbed his shoulders.

I arrived in Kyoto yesterday and spent the whole day cleaning this house that has been uninhabited for a long time. Even after resting for a night, Tatsukawa Toru still has a sore back.

"Thankfully it's not the rainy season."

The lady insisted on staying here once she returned to Kyoto. Ryukawa Toru glanced at the several damaged eaves and sighed with some relief.

Longchuan Che looked around the house, and his wife looked around Longchuan Che.

The boy's simple, patterned haori (traditional Japanese kimono) wasn't particularly formal, but it was still considered respectable.

"You know the truth."

The wife patted Long Chuanche on the shoulder with satisfaction; today was a rather special day for her.

Isn't your daughter going?

Ryukawa Tetsu looked around. The only person who went out today was his wife. Takeda Akane did not appear for the ancestral worship ceremony.

"She won't go."

The lady hesitated for a moment, then pulled Long Chuanche out of the courtyard without saying much more.

The Takeda family's design was quite ingenious; a small door was hidden deep in a narrow alley, leading to a rather spacious courtyard.

The woman said she used to sit at the door waiting for malt candy, but that's no longer the case.

"Sir, what do you think of my outfit today?"

The woman seemed genuinely happy today, wearing a red furisode embroidered with maple leaves, and twirled around in the light drizzle.

"good."

Long Chuanche smiled, the woman like a bewitching flower blooming in the rainy season.

If the eldest daughter is gentle and refined, and Maki Takeda is aloof, then the wife is rather flamboyant.

Her thin lips were somewhat red, and her eyebrows were delicately arched.

She possesses an elegant beauty even without makeup, which shines even brighter in the thin rain.

"Would you prefer a black and white funeral dress?"

The wife suddenly adopted a somewhat resentful tone, and Long Chuan Che gave her a look that said, "Please spare me."

"Didn't you already apologize?"

Longchuan Che shifted the oil-paper umbrella slightly towards his wife, who still harbored some resentment about the incident from two days ago when she overheard someone through the door.

"Heh, man."

The wife gave a coquettish laugh, implying that she knew exactly how much mischief the man was up to.

"I don't care what you did before, or how you bullied me, but you have to go along with me during this period."

The woman hiding under the oil-paper umbrella exuded a deep sense of sorrow.

Long Chuanche was puzzled, but was astonished by the look in his wife's eyes.

The faint crimson light, mingled with the thin morning mist, seemed to surge along the Kamo River beside them to the ends of the earth.

"why?"

Longchuan Che raised an eyebrow.

"It doesn't work anyway."

The lady leaned her head against Long Chuanche.

The voice, tinged with Xia Yu's tone, carried a resolute air of surrendering everything to her, as the wife spoke softly.

"Their dissatisfaction with your engagement stems from their belief that your relationship will face problems."

The woman looked directly into Ryukawa Tetsu's eyes. "And I know you will never leave my side."

The word "absolutely" was too absolute in Madam's words. Longchuan Che smiled and wanted to ask why, but seeing Madam's serious expression, he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

"ok, ok, I got it."

The boy is somewhat possessive, or perhaps he lacks a sense of security in a relationship where both parties feel indebted.

His wife's statement that he would not leave her side meant that she would not leave him either.

The wooden clogs made a soft clattering sound on the bluestone slabs as we arrived at Jiaowang Huguo Temple at just eight in the morning.

The East Temple Pagoda pierced through the rain and mist in the distance, revealing the ancient temple with a solemn atmosphere.

"Should we go straight there? Or should we buy some incense first?"

The Takeda family had nothing. Ryukawa Toru pointed to the small shop run by Honji Temple not far away.

To-ji and Kyo-o-gokoku-ji are relatively famous temples in Kyoto, attracting many people to offer incense and pay their respects.

"Weren't you going to find the old monk? Let's go there first."

Ryukawa Tetsu's main purpose in coming to Kyoto was to meet with Miya Seiichitaro. He had told Ono Taro that the Writers' Association would be handed over to Ryukawa Tetsu, but the two of them had to meet.

"Not in a hurry."

Long Chuanche shook his head, thinking it best to wait for the young lady to be present, but the girl had been busy late yesterday, and she hadn't gotten up yet when Long Chuanche left.

"You two seem to get along quite well."

The wife covered her mouth and chuckled. She and her sister both felt it was strange that Long Chuanche suddenly had a fiancée.

They used to joke around with each other, but now everything they do is considered somewhat taboo.

"I've already said it's not that kind of relationship."

Ryukawa Tetsu shook his head. The young lady wasn't interested in him, and their engagement would last until Kujo Fujitaka's death at most.

The only condition the old man was willing to let Tatsukawa Tetsu do whatever he wanted outside was that he must maintain his marriage with Imamura Natsuko, otherwise he would be tied up and brought back to the Kujo family.

"What about Xiaomuzi?"

The lady frowned as she looked at Long Chuanche. It was Long Chuanche who had agreed to marry Songzhi Muzi, and she didn't want him to really become someone who bullied young girls for fun.

"The young lady will help me explain."

Longchuan Che smiled at his wife.

"If Mu Zi is willing to marry me, she will also help me keep it a secret from her grandfather."

Long Chuanche had made up his mind, or rather, he and the young lady had made up their minds.

She only maintains a superficial engagement, and doesn't interfere with who Long Chuanche marries.

"I don't think that girl will listen to you so easily."

The man was very open-minded, but the woman disagreed.

"It will backfire and turn the house upside down."

Would a girl really be willing to risk her marriage to help someone else?
Anyway, my wife thinks it's impossible.

In Mrs. Kujo's eyes, everyone in the Kujo family is a symbol of treachery and cunning, even Tatsukawa Tetsu, who is by her side, is no exception.

"Don't think so badly of others."

"You're still defending her?!"

The two whispered among themselves as they entered the Jiaowang Huguo Temple. At this moment, amidst the misty rain and towers, the East Temple felt even more desolate.

"Are you really not going?"

Ryukawa Tetsu and his wife arrived at the temple first, while only Takeda Akane and the eldest daughter remained in the Takeda family's house.

The young lady, dressed in elegant clothes, looked at the girl under the eaves with some curiosity.

Today is the day to worship ancestors, but the girl has been left behind by her mother and is only allowed to stay at home.

I don't want to talk to her. I've had enough of being annoyed by Natsuko Imamura these past two days.

No matter what she said, the other party could always find a weakness to attack. Akane Takeda picked up the hot tea on the table and slowly took a sip.

"Pitiful."

If I go out, the other person will probably be all alone.

After thinking for a moment, the young lady sat down next to Akane Takeda.

"Do you want me to help you?"

The eldest daughter of the Kujo family suddenly said this.

(End of this chapter)