Living in the bubble economy of Tokyo, I became a literary giant through lotteries.

A group of reporters with cameras surrounded one of the mall's side exits.

Surrounded in the center was a slender woman wearing large sunglasses and a mask.

"Ms. Nakamori! Mr. Kondo was photographed entering that female colleague's apartment again last night and only leaving this morning! Are they just ordinary colleagues? Are you really aware of this?"

"Ms. Nakamori! As far as we know, Mr. Kondo has repeatedly used your personal checks to pay the penalties for retiring from racing, amounting to tens of millions of yen! Is this a rumor or fact?"

"Is your engagement with Mr. Kondo still ongoing? Could you tell us about the current progress?"

The flashes went off in rapid succession, and the questions became increasingly pointed.

They don't care about the truth; all they want is a reaction that will make headlines—a breakdown, tears, or outbursts, anything goes.

Surrounded by people, Akina Nakamori trembled slightly. She lowered her head, her long hair hanging down to cover most of her face, and remained silent.

Her assistant and driver seemed isolated from the crowd, powerless to help.

At this moment, she was like a sheep surrounded by hyenas.

Guan Gu Feng stopped and turned to look at Kitamura No beside him.

Kitamura immediately understood, his brow furrowing slightly. After a moment's thought, he voiced his thoughts: "These news reports have indeed been making headlines in various magazines lately. Mr. Sekiya, you…"

"It's best not to get involved. Rushing in under these circumstances will only cause unnecessary trouble."

Guan Gu Feng nodded in agreement, but said aloud, "Indeed, but we still need to do something about it."

"You have to accept favors from top-tier singers when necessary. Hasn't President Kadokawa been having a headache trying to find a singer with the right clout to sing the end credits song for his movie?"

"Moreover, we don't need to show up in person. The mall security guards have the duty to maintain order in front of the entrance. We are just reminding them to fulfill their duties."

Kitamura raised an eyebrow as he listened to Kitamura's high-sounding words, which clearly distinguished between "scheming" and "benefiting."

He nodded, turned around, and strode into the mall's security center.

A moment later, a team of uniformed, well-trained security personnel, led by Kitamura, rushed out of the side gate in an orderly manner.

"Make way! Make way, everyone!"

The head of security, without any hesitation, used his arm to block the cameras that were practically poking into Akina Nakamori's face.

"This is the entrance to the mall; gatherings are prohibited! You are seriously disrupting the mall's normal operations!"

This group of security personnel happened to be from a security company under Kadokawa. When Kitamura went in to transfer the personnel, he gave them a few "tips".

He knew very well that these journalists, who made a living by breaking news, feared power but not morality.

Reasoning with them is useless. Being a little fierce and tough, as long as you are careful not to hurt anyone, is the most effective way to disperse them.

The reporters were suddenly swept away by a torrent of security personnel, and chaos ensued.

Akina Nakamori stood there, stunned, not yet realizing what was happening, when she saw a burly man with a serious expression, dressed in black casual clothes, stride towards her.

do not know.

"Ms. Nakamori, please come with me. Mr. Sekiya sent me."

Nakamori Akina didn't have time to think much before quickly retreating back into the mall, escorted by him and several security personnel.

The reporters were firmly blocked by a human wall of security personnel and could only watch helplessly as their prey disappeared.

In an empty emergency passage on one side of the mall, Guan Gufeng leaned against a marble pillar and waited.

Seeing Akina Nakamori walking safely under Kitamura's escort, he straightened up and interrupted her before she could speak.

"Ms. Nakamori, this is not the place to talk. Come with me to the underground parking lot first. Call your agent and have him drive the car directly to Section C on B1 to pick you up."

Akina Nakamori bit her lip, swallowing back the words of gratitude she had prepared. She nodded silently, took out her phone, and started making a call.

Once they reached the underground parking lot, far from the hustle and bustle above ground, Akina Nakamori finally breathed a sigh of relief, having escaped her predicament.

She turned to face Guan Gufeng and solemnly bowed at nearly a ninety-degree angle.

"Mr. Guan Gu! Thank you so much for your help! I'm so sorry to have troubled you!"

Her sudden, generous greeting startled Guan Gufeng, who instinctively took a half-step to the side. He wasn't used to being thanked so formally, so he quickly waved his hand.

"No need to thank me, thank the mall instead." His voice was polite.

"The security company for this shopping mall happens to be under Kadokawa, so it's relatively easy to mobilize personnel, and they are quite responsible."

Akina Nakamori was slightly disappointed. After so many years in the casino industry, she could hear the implication in his words.

The pure gratitude I once felt was now tinged with a sense of loss.

However, the fact that the kindness was not unfounded made her feel more genuine and at ease.

"Even so, I still want to thank you for your help, Mr. Guan Gu..."

She straightened up, wanting to say something more to make up for her meager thanks.

She looked up and saw Guan Gufeng take a rice ball out of the plastic bag in his hand and hand it to her.

Have you eaten yet?

"what?"

This sudden turn of events left her momentarily stunned, and after a few seconds, she stammered in response.

"I...I've already eaten."

"Um."

When Guan Gufeng heard her say that, he took the rice ball back, deftly peeled off the plastic wrap, and took a bite.

He bought the rice ball at the restaurant while eating, intending it for breakfast the next day, but suddenly felt a little hungry, so he took it out to fill his stomach.

Thinking it wouldn't be right for me to eat alone, I politely asked her about it.

Nakamori Akina looked at the person in front of her. At such a young age, he was already a writer with a high social status, yet he was eating rice balls without any regard for his image. Her feelings were complicated.

The fear and humiliation he felt from being besieged by reporters were inexplicably dissipated by his interruption.

She took a deep breath, as if she had made up her mind, took out a business card from her handbag, and handed it over with both hands.

"Mr. Guan Gu, I wonder if... we could exchange contact information?"

Guan Gufeng paused in his chewing and looked at her with some confusion.

But after thinking about it, he realized it wasn't a big deal, so he nodded and exchanged business cards.

Just after exchanging contact information, a black Toyota Century pulled up not far away; it was the nanny van that had come to pick up Akina Nakamori.

Akina Nakamori glanced at the approaching car, put away her business card, said goodbye solemnly again, and then quickly got into the car with the help of her assistant.

After the car drove away, Kitamura, who had been silent all along, spoke up at the opportune moment.

"Mr. Guan Gu, actually, given what happened just now, it would have been fine to have security personnel accompany you. You didn't need to stay in the parking lot the whole time..."

"Just do a good deed to the end. After all, she's a woman. In that most insecure time, having someone you know standing by your side for a while makes you feel much more at ease."

After Guan Gufeng got into the car, he said, "I actually thought you would ask me why we didn't use our car to take her home directly."

Kitamura started the car and calmly stated his assessment: "There's definitely another group of reporters staking out her apartment building right now."

"If our car shows up and she gets out of our car and is photographed, those reporters will do everything they can to check the license plate. There's no need to drag you into it."

Guan Gufeng had actually thought of this, but he was more concerned because there was only one bottle of mineral water left in the car.

It would seem a bit impolite for her to just take out water and drink it herself while she was in the car.

She drank it, so what am I supposed to drink?

He couldn't come up with a perfect solution to this dilemma while standing in the parking lot.