Traveling back thirty years to Conan, intercepting Princess Eri

Matsuda Jinpei and Furuya Rei also jogged over.

The two little ones looked at the dazed Hagiwara Chisato, then at the worried Hagiwara Kenji, and neither of them said a word.

The argument from before had long since vanished, and now all that remained in their hearts was sympathy and worry for the siblings.

Lin Xiuyi stepped forward and looked at the girl in front of him who was trying to appear strong, and felt a pang of heartache.

"Miss Qiansu, there is a Chinese proverb: 'Where there's a will, there's a way.'"

"Things haven't gotten to the worst yet, there will definitely be a solution. You're still young, don't carry all the pressure on yourself."

“Lin-san is right.” Matsuda Jotaro quickly stepped forward to agree. “Your parents have already gone out to borrow money, and maybe they have already borrowed enough funds. So don’t worry too much.”

"...I hope so."

Hagiwara Chisato knew that the two of them were just comforting her. Her parents had been out borrowing money for almost a week, but they hadn't received any good news. They must have encountered a lot of difficulties.

The girl forced a smile, took her brother's hand, and

"Uncle Matsuda, Brother Shuichi, and Jinpei and Rei, thank you for your comfort. It's getting late, and Kenji and I need to go home to wait for news from our parents, so we'll be going now."

After saying that, she took Kenji Hagiwara's hand and turned to walk towards the bank entrance.

Because she was too agitated and somewhat absent-minded, she didn't notice the two people standing not far ahead. In her hurried steps, she accidentally bumped into them.

"Ouch..."

A cry of pain rang out. The person who had been knocked down was a boy a little older than Matsuda Jinpei and the others, who looked to be about ten years old. He was wearing a blue tracksuit and his hair was a bit messy.

"Why are you looking where you're going! Don't you watch where people are walking?"

"I'm so sorry! I'm really so sorry! I didn't mean to!"

Hagiwara Chisato quickly reached out to help the boy up: "I'm sorry, I was distracted just now. Are you alright? Did you hurt yourself?"

The boy was clearly still angry, his brows furrowed, and he glared at Hagiwara Chisato, ignoring her outstretched hand.

Seeing that the atmosphere was a bit awkward, Hagiwara Chisato stood still, her outstretched hand frozen in mid-air, her face full of helplessness.

Just then, following behind the boy, a thin, middle-aged man wearing a gray coat and with a toothpick in his mouth walked over.

He first looked at his son, then at the guilty-looking Hagiwara Chisato and her brother, and then reprimanded the boy.
"Hang, what have I always taught you? A real man should be tolerant and generous, not petty. Since this lady didn't do it on purpose and even apologized to you, what should you do?"

The boy called "Hira" glanced at his father, then at Hagiwara Chisato. Though still somewhat annoyed, he finally grabbed Hagiwara Chisato's hand and stood up.

"……It doesn't matter."

"I'm sorry, my sister really didn't mean it, please don't be angry."

Kenji Ogihara quickly ran to the boy's side and sincerely apologized on behalf of his sister.

"Tch, he's just a boy. He only got bumped, he didn't even hurt himself, what's the big deal?"

Matsuda Jinpei couldn't stand seeing Hagiwara Chizuru suffer, and seeing that the boy, despite saying it was okay, still had a sour face, he immediately put his hands on his hips and mocked the boy.

"You've been angry for so long! You're so petty, not like a real man at all!"

“Exactly! She’s like a little girl, she has no class at all!” Rei Furuya immediately chimed in.

"You guys!" The boy's face flushed red and then turned pale with anger, clenching his fists. "Believe it or not, I'll beat you up..."

Before the boy could utter the word "you," his father reached out and struck him hard on the head, reprimanding him sternly.
"Haven't I told you countless times not to bully children younger than you? Why can't you remember!"

"But they...they called me petty and said I wasn't a real man!"

The boy rubbed his head, which had been throbbing from the blow, and looked at his father with a wronged expression; his eyes were red.

"She bumped into me first, and I already said it was okay, but they still yelled at me!"

"Didn't you say you wanted to be a real man?"

The boy's father crouched down, looking at him seriously, his tone softening slightly but still stern.

"A real man should have the demeanor of a real man. He shouldn't get angry just because someone says something to him, let alone hit someone."

"If someone insults you, that's their fault, but if you retaliate, then you're in the wrong. Understand?"

The boy pursed his lips, remained silent for a moment, looked at his father's serious eyes, and finally nodded dejectedly.

"understood."

After disciplining his son, the middle-aged man stood up and nodded slightly to the Hagiwara siblings.
"I'm sorry, young lady, you must have seen this. This child has a rather impulsive temper."

"No, no, I bumped into him first. I should be the one apologizing."

Hagiwara Chisato quickly waved her hand, her face full of guilt.

"I'm so sorry, I was distracted and didn't watch where I was going."

"It's good that you're alright." The middle-aged man smiled, then patted his son's shoulder. "Hang, let's go, we need to take care of some business."

The boy nodded, then glared at Matsuda Jinpei and Furuya Rei with dissatisfaction before following his father and turning to walk towards the bank counter.

Watching the two figures disappear into the distance, Matsuda Jinpei muttered indignantly, "What the hell? He's the one who's petty, yet he blames us for talking about him."

Rei Furuya nodded: "You want to beat us up? If it really comes down to it, we should be the ones beating him up!"

"Alright, you two, stop talking."

Hagiwara Chisato sighed softly, her voice filled with exhaustion.
"It was indeed my fault just now. I wasn't watching where I was going and bumped into him."

Hagiwara Chisato took her younger brother's hand and walked towards the bank entrance again.

This time, she slowed down, trying to concentrate and avoid getting distracted.

Kenji Hagiwara held his older sister's hand tightly and whispered comfortingly, "Sister, don't worry, Mom and Dad will definitely be able to borrow the money, and the family repair shop will be fine too."

Hagiwara Chisato didn't speak, but nodded vigorously.

She looked up at the bright sunlight at the bank entrance and silently prayed:

Mom and Dad, you must successfully borrow the money. Our family can't fall apart...

Lin Xiuyi and Matsuda Jotaro stood there, watching the siblings' figures gradually disappear into the distance, both with heavy expressions on their faces.

Matsuda Jinpei and Furuya Rei stopped arguing; the two little ones lowered their heads, their faces full of worry. (End of Chapter)