Conan: I'm a zaibatsu in Tokyo

Inside a private room of a high-end bar in Beika Town.

The lights were dim, and Shuichi Akai sat in a corner, holding a glass of lemonade.

Sitting opposite him was a blonde beauty wearing a black bodycon dress.

Vermouth gently swirled the wine in her glass.

Vermouth found this guy, with his serious appearance and demeanor, utterly uninteresting and saw it as just another boring mission.

"Enough with the small talk."

Vermouth yawned and said, "Get the information Gin needs as soon as possible."

Shuichi Akai looked troubled.

"This one……"

"Actually, ever since the last car accident, Zheng Yi has been very wary of me."

“Oh?” Vermouth raised an eyebrow.

Shuichi Akai said, "Even my access to the core laboratory has been downgraded. Materials that I could access before now require Professor Igarashi's personal approval."

Vermouth nodded.

This is only natural.

Gin told Shoichi that this guy had been bribed by the organization, so Shoichi naturally had to be wary of him.

But this has nothing to do with Vermouth.

She neither understood her subordinates nor had any obligation to help them solve their problems.

Vermouth, with her legs crossed, said, "I don't care about any of that, I just need the information the organization needs."

Shuichi Akai still looked troubled, wanting to say something but unable to organize his thoughts, so he could only keep his mouth shut.

Suddenly, Vermouth's brow furrowed slightly.

Her gaze fell on Shuichi Akai's fingers as he pushed up his glasses.

There was a thin layer of calluses on the pads of his index and middle fingers.

Those are marks left from repeatedly pulling the trigger.

Moreover, his hands were disguised, deliberately concealing the calluses.

And his sitting posture.

Although he appeared relaxed, his back always maintained a subtle tension.

After noticing this, Vermouth didn't say anything, but just smiled slightly and didn't ask him anything.

She suddenly became interested.

Vermouth suddenly spoke, her voice languid: "Haven't we met somewhere before?"

Shuichi Akai gave a sheepish smile, pushed up his glasses, and looked somewhat bewildered: "Huh? I don't think so? I don't remember."

"is it?"

Vermouth chuckled softly, her fingers tapping lightly on the table.

"Yeah, maybe I misread it," she said casually.

The man's reaction was also fine; he seemed quite professional.

After saying that, Vermouth picked up her glass and drank it all in one gulp.

"Just do your own thing." Vermouth stood up, straightened her skirt, and walked towards the door without looking back.

……

Early in the morning, Zheng Yi, dressed in loose loungewear, lay on the sofa without any regard for his image, holding an unopened book in his hand and covering his face as if he were dozing.

"Hey, how long are you going to sleep?"

A small hand poked his cheek without any hesitation.

Zheng Yi didn't move, but simply pulled the book down a little, revealing one eye, and looked at Ai standing in front of him.

"Ai-chan..." he drawled, his voice carrying a languid quality typical of the elderly, "Let me lie down a little longer. When you get old, your energy just won't keep up."

"How old are you?" Ai rolled her eyes. "And you jerk, you stepped on my foot!"

"A mindset of being old is what truly makes you old." Zheng Yi sighed, but didn't respond to the matter of pressing down on the foot.

When Masakazu saw Momiji bring over a plate of strawberries, he picked up the biggest one, but instead of eating it himself, he offered it to Ai Haibara's lips.

"Come on, open your mouth, ah—"

Ai looked at the strawberry, then at Shoichi's face, and her lips twitched.

"I'm not a child."

He was smiling and looked very kind.

Ai was a little scared, thinking that Shoichi was thinking of some way to play a trick on her again, so she opened her mouth and gently bit the strawberry.

"So nice."

Zheng Yi nodded in satisfaction and casually picked up a strawberry and popped it into his mouth.

Then he moved Ai's feet and put them under his head as a pillow.

Ai's eyelids twitched.

She asked Zheng Yi, "You have such a big company, is it appropriate for you to ignore it and just stay at home?"

"Don't you have your sister?" Zheng Yi asked back.

Ai is already a little angry.

The company is yours, the money is yours, the reputation and status are yours, but it's my sister who has toiled so much!
You really have no conscience at all.

Zheng Yi's head moved slightly, and Ai's feet hurt from the tugging of her hair.

He said softly, "I'm old, long past the age when I should be working hard. Now, all I want to do is stay at home and enjoy my grandchildren."

Ai said with a forced smile, "Hehe, the prerequisite for enjoying grandchildren is having grandchildren."

My sister is older than you, okay?

How could you say such a shameless thing?

As soon as he opened his eyes, he reached out and took another strawberry, holding it to Ai's lips and saying, "Good girl, open your mouth."

Ai blinked her eyes and looked at Masakazu.

So, I'm the 'grandson' you're enjoying being with?
"asshole!"

Ai angrily snatched the strawberry from Masakazu's hand and forcefully shoved it into his nose.

"Waaah~"

The door was suddenly pushed open, and Vermouth walked in wearing high heels. As soon as she entered, she saw Shoichi and Ai getting close to each other.

Just as he was pinning Ai down on the sofa and wiping his nose with a tissue, before he could retaliate, Vermouth walked in.

"A rare guest indeed."

Hongye looked at Vermouth and could tell at a glance that this woman was not a good person.

Vermouth walked straight to the sofa next to Shoichi and sat down, crossing her long legs and patting Ai's head.

Ai moved her head slightly, but she wasn't angry at Vermouth's offense.

"I have a question for you," Vermouth said bluntly. "Subaru Okiya."

"Oh, him? Shuichi Akai."

"Who?" Vermouth's voice suddenly rose. "Who do you think he is?"

“Shuichi Akai,” Masakazu repeated, his tone still nonchalant.

"Isn't he already dead? Gin confirmed it with his own eyes."

“What you see with your own eyes may not be the truth,” Zheng Yi said. “Besides, Gin may not be telling the truth.”

Vermouth's heart suddenly raced for a moment.

The thought of sitting opposite Shuichi Akai filled Vermouth with a lingering fear.

Fortunately, that guy still wanted to infiltrate the organization and didn't immediately attack her. "I never expected this, I never expected this..." Vermouth murmured to herself.

No wonder he felt so familiar to me.

"I never expected him to still be alive, and... and he's going to join the organization again."

Zheng Yi looked at Vermouth and said, "You can go tell Gin to take care of this FBI agent."

"Then why didn't you tell Gin?" Vermouth asked.

Shoichi: "I don't get along with Gin, and Shuichi Akai was originally my employee, but Gin took him away. I'm very angry."

Vermouth smiled, finding the whole thing quite amusing.

Gin actually snatched Shuichi Akai away from Shoichi.

Shoichi sighed and said, "Actually, I feel that Gin is an undercover agent sent by other forces into the organization, which is why I didn't tell him Okiya Subaru's identity."

"Oh?" Vermouth looked at Zheng Yi with a smile.

Zheng Yi said, "Even someone like me can tell that Okiya Subaru is Akai Shuichi, so there's no reason why a professional like Gin wouldn't be able to tell. Even you feel there's something wrong with him, so you came to ask me."

"But he still let Subaru Okiya into the organization; his motives weren't pure."

Shoichi was speaking ill of Gin, and Vermouth listened without agreeing.

Gin may have many faults, but he is also a loyal dog of the organization and could not possibly be an undercover agent sent by other forces.

“You’re right,” Vermouth nodded.

She frowned and said, "I also feel that Gin is a bit suspicious. Let's not tell him Shuichi Akai's identity yet, so as not to alert him."

Zheng Yi nodded, agreeing with Vermouth.

Gin is a suspicious guy and not worth trusting.

Vermouth looked at Masakazu and asked, "What about Shuichi Akai? Should we just let him stay in the organization?"

Zheng Yidao said, "I don't know what Gin's purpose is in going to such lengths to bring Shuichi Akai back into the organization. Let's hold back for now and focus on observing the movements of Gin and Shuichi Akai to discern their true intentions."

Vermouth nodded.

He kept an eye on Gin and Shuichi Akai, waiting for them to cause trouble so he could rush over and mock Gin.

“That’s settled then. I’ll keep an eye on Shuichi Akai,” Vermouth said.

While the two were talking, Momiji, who couldn't get a word in edgewise, rescued Ai, one of Shoichi's subordinates.

While helping Ai tidy her clothes, she listened to the conversation between the two.

I can't understand names like Shuichi Akai and Gin at all.

At this moment, Vermouth looked at Red Leaf and asked, "Is it alright for us to talk about these things in front of a stranger?"

"Unrelated person?" Hongye pointed to herself.

Ai nodded.

The people here are only you and have no connection to the organization.

Seeing Ai nod in agreement, Koyo angrily pinched her cheek.

I even rescued you from Zheng Yi's clutches, and it would have been better if you had let Zheng Yi bully you.

“It’s alright,” Zheng Yi said. “She won’t tell anyone.”

Masayu glanced at the wall clock and asked Vermouth, "Would you like to stay for dinner?"

Vermouth leaned back on the sofa and glanced at the little girl in the room.

What kind of food should we leave at this time?

She's been here so long, and they haven't even poured her a glass of water. There are strawberries on the table, but they haven't offered her one. It's not like they're treating a guest at all.

"I won't bother you anymore." Vermouth pinched Ai's cheek, then got up and left.

……

The afternoon sun dappled through the gaps in the leaves, casting dappled shadows.

Momiji knelt gracefully, holding a delicate matcha cup in her hand, but her gaze seemed to drift unnoticed towards Ai, who was pruning a bonsai.

"Ai-chan."

Hongye asked, "Who was that woman who came to our house this morning?"

"Oh? You mean that blonde woman?"

"Yes." Hongye's eyes flickered slightly.

Looking at the potted plant that she had pruned into a shape that resembled a human, Ai put down the scissors with satisfaction.

"That woman..."

Ai squinted and said, "He's a big star."

"Huh?" Hongye was a little surprised.

She'd never heard of it.

Ai said, "She's a Hollywood star. You know, there was a time when Shoichi really liked writing movie scripts, and it seems like it was all for this woman."

"Really?" Hongye muttered softly.

Ai shook her head: "I don't know either."

She sat down next to Hongye, looked down at Hongye's feet and said, "Anyway, Zhengyi values ​​her quite a bit. It seems like the purpose of setting up an entertainment company was to sign her."

After the company signed her, Zheng Yi stopped interfering in the entertainment company's affairs.

Hongye frowned.

Ai blinked her big, bright eyes: "Their relationship is very good, the kind of good that doesn't need to be hidden."

Hongye's fingers tightened slightly as she held the teacup: "No need to be shy? What do you mean?"

Ai said in a casual tone, "I've seen that woman sitting on the sofa several times, reaching out her finger... and gently lifting Shoichi's chin while she speaks."

"Lift...lift your chin?"

Hongye's pupils suddenly contracted. That was too ambiguous, wasn't it?
Hongye looked at Xiao Ai and said, "You're not just making this up, are you? I'd believe that woman talking while lifting your chin."

Ai's eyelids twitched.

Vermouth did indeed do such things; besides picking my chin, she did even worse things.

But Ai glanced at Momiji and said, "That woman knows my real age and doesn't treat me like a child."

"Zheng Yi even told that woman about this?" Hongye's brows furrowed even deeper.

She only learned Ai's identity passively after being caught red-handed.

"You're not lying to me, are you?" Koyo asked, staring at Ai.

Why would I lie to you?

Ai picked up the tea on the table, blew on it gently, and looked at Momiji with exceptional sincerity.

"If you ask me," Ai said, "Shoichi's relationship with that woman is unusual."

Hongye nodded.

You don't need to tell me that.

The woman walked in without even knocking, and Zheng Yi didn't feel anything strange or offended, which speaks volumes about their relationship.

Although she broke in by picking the lock.

Moreover, after that woman came in, she acted as if she were in her own home, talking to Zheng Yi and patting Ai's head so naturally.

What's even more outrageous is that when the woman saw that he was a stranger, she didn't do anything or say anything. She just ignored him and didn't even greet him.

Xiao Ai took a sip of tea and said, "As you know, Zheng Yi is very strict with his employees."

"Is that so?" Hongye said softly, "Zhengyi is actually very good to his employees. It's just that those employees think Zhengyi is 'strict' and they work hard because they respect him."

Ai slowly raised her head.

Strict? Respectful?
Is it really necessary to use such a good word?
"He would love to make my sister work 24 hours a day." Ai harbors deep resentment towards Masakazu.

"But he actually wouldn't let that woman work, and he was extremely indulgent towards her. Of all Zheng Yi's employees, she was the only exception." (End of Chapter)