Tokyo, 1991: Starting as a bank clerk

Chapter 244 This is my supplementary gold card [Basic update 4k]

Kiryu Yaya looked at her for two seconds, then chuckled softly: "Indeed, this kind of weather makes people feel listless."

She looked up at him, then quickly looked down again, her voice a little lighter than before: "—Well, it should be fine once the rain stops."

Kiryu Yaya nodded, shifting his gaze from her face to the increasingly dark sky outside the window: "Then let's wait for the rain to start."

He paused, looked away, and looked at her again: "But Mizuna, if you ever encounter anything in the future, you must tell me."

Sometimes, sharing your worries can make them feel half as bad.

Mizuna Yayoi nodded gently: "————Thank you, senpai."

Then, in the next moment, she seemed to have made a decision.

Yayoi Mizuna took a card out of her pocket, held it with both hands, and handed it to Kiryu Yaya.

It was a gold bank card with the Mitsubishi Bank logo printed on the front.

"Senior—please accept this card."

Kiryu Yaya looked down at the card, and asked in confusion, "What's this?"

Yayoi Mizuna raised her head, her face slightly flushed: "This is my supplementary gold card, with a monthly limit of 40 million yen. If you need money, please use this card!"

'

Kiryu Yaya opened his mouth, but for a moment he didn't know what to say.

He looked at the card, then at Yayoi Mizuna's clear eyes, and a hint of helplessness slowly crept onto his lips.

He looked at Yayoi Mizuna with annoyance, like an older brother disciplining his ignorant younger sister: "Mina-chan! Put the card away first."

Mizuna Yayoi's hand froze in mid-air.

She blinked, as if she didn't understand: "Senior—?"

"I said, you should put it away first."

Kiryu Yaya sighed and rubbed his forehead, saying, "While I am indeed short of money, it's not to the point where I need your help."

Mizuna Yayoi seemed a little nervous, as if she was afraid that Yaya Kiryu wouldn't accept the card: "But—"

Kiryu Yaya interrupted her directly: "There's no 'but' about it. I'm already very happy that you have this intention."

Yayoi Mizuna lowered her head, clutching the supplementary gold card tightly: "But I just wanted to help relieve some of your stress, senpai—"

A gentle smile appeared on Kiryu Yaya's face as he softly said, "But Mizuna has already helped me so much. Compared to this supplementary gold card, I think the bento you make for me every noon is the most precious gift in my life."

As he spoke, he scratched his head somewhat embarrassedly and casually mentioned, "Actually, it's been a very, very long time since I've had such a carefully prepared meal since my parents passed away."

After those words were spoken, Yayoi Mizuna's expression changed slightly: "Senpai————"

"I'm sorry, this is the first time I've heard you mention this—"

Kiryu Yaya simply waved his hand casually, as if the matter was already over.

Then he stretched out his arm and put it on Yayoi Mizuna's shoulder, saying earnestly, "So, money isn't actually that important to me, otherwise I wouldn't have returned President Miyazawa's 100 million yen just now."

"I value genuine feelings more than money."

After Kiryu Yaya finished speaking, he added, "Of course, if I ever become so poor that I can't even afford to eat, I'll definitely be the first person I turn to is Mizuna-chan."

Yayoi Mina nodded quickly: "Then it's settled."

"Um."

Kiryu Yaya smiled and withdrew his hand from her shoulder: "Let's head back soon, we still have work to do in class, don't we?"

Yayoi Mizuna put the supplementary gold card back, then gave him a slight bow: "Then, senpai, I'll head back now."

"Um."

Yayoi Mizuna turned around and took two steps, then stopped, turned her head to the side and added, "Senpai, tomorrow's bento—"

"I will work even harder."

Kiryu Yaya watched her departing figure and smiled gently.

Kiryu Yaya returned to the financing review class.

However, as soon as he pushed open the door to the financing review office, he sensed that something was off about the atmosphere.

From the moment he stepped through the door, several pairs of eyes instantly focused on him.

At that moment, Kiryu Yaya couldn't help but wonder if he hadn't washed his face before leaving home that morning.

But the next moment, Masakazu Yamada came out of his office and said to him, "Kiryu, I've heard about what happened earlier. You did a great job!"

Kiryu Yaya gave a soft "Ah," and asked, "Section Chief, what are you talking about?"

Masakazu Yamada put his hands behind his back and nodded slightly: "Someone from the sales department just called to tell me that you refunded the 100 million yen. I already know."

He paused, then added, "You did the right thing, and you did it beautifully."

Kiryuya too:

He truly hadn't expected that the excuse he'd made up on the spot just to get a refund would cause such a huge uproar.

Save the children.

He wants to be an honest person in his next life.

"Section Chief, actually—"

Kiryu Yaya opened his mouth as if to say something, but was stopped by Yamada Masakazu raising his hand.

"Let me finish."

Masakazu Yamada took a step forward and glanced at everyone in the office area: "What I want to talk about today is not just the Kiryu-kun incident itself, but a principle I want to convey to everyone through this incident."

"We work in banking, and we deal with money every day."

"Tens of millions, hundreds of millions, billions—these numbers are just lines of numbers on our reports, but behind each number are specific people and specific interests."

"Sometimes customers are polite, sometimes they are grateful, and sometimes they want to express their feelings in various ways. This is not uncommon in business dealings."

He paused, then emphasized slightly, "But it is precisely at times like these that we must remember our place."

"We are bank employees, and every transaction we handle represents the bank's credit and the customers' trust."

"If we accept something we shouldn't because of a momentary impulse, even if the customer means well, once that door is opened, it will be very difficult to close it again."

No one spoke in the office area.

Masakazu Yamada's gaze slowly swept over everyone: "Some people may think Kiryu-kun is stupid for what he did today, returning 100 million yen so easily. Anyone else would have accepted it long ago."

"But in my opinion, this is precisely the smartest approach."

"Because he not only upheld his own bottom line, but also saved the bank a potential problem."

"If this transfer is ever discovered by the head office or uncovered by the audit, no matter how you explain it, your career will be over."

He paused slightly at this point, then changed his tone: "Of course, I'm not teaching anyone to be heartless. Sometimes it's indeed hard to refuse a client's kindness, but the key is to maintain a proper balance."

"Small amounts of reciprocal gift-giving are acceptable within the bounds of compliance, but once large sums of money are involved, or if it is directly related to business, then you must be careful."

"Even if you really don't have any ulterior motives, those who are watching us might not think the same way."

As he finished speaking, his gaze lingered on Kiryu Yaya for a moment: "Therefore, as the section chief, I not only support Kiryu-kun's actions, but I will also commend him throughout the entire section."

"I hope everyone can keep this spirit in mind and protect themselves no matter what."

After he finished speaking, the office area fell silent for a moment.

Then Kenta Sasaki was the first to clap.

"The section chief is absolutely right!"

Kiryu Yaya's face showed a constipated expression, like he had eaten a sour plum.

Stop! Stop!

He almost dug a three-bedroom, one-living-room structure out of the ground with his feet.

Masakazu Yamada nodded and patted Yaya Kiryu on the shoulder: "Alright, stop standing there. Go do what you're doing. I've already spoken to the branch manager about that transfer, so no one from general affairs will be asking about it."

Hearing this, Kiryu Yaya breathed a sigh of relief: "That's good, thank you, Section Chief."

morning.

Kiryu Yaya found a moment of free time and dialed Miyazawa Keiko's number from a phone booth outside the bank.

The phone was answered after two rings, her voice light and cheerful at the end: "Kiryu-kun! Did you miss me or do you need to talk to me?"

"Both."

He leaned against the wall by the corridor window, a smile playing on his lips: "But let's get down to business first. I've already returned the 100 million yen you transferred this morning."

There was a two-second silence on the other end of the phone.

"Why?"

Her voice clearly faltered: "Did I transfer too much? Kiryu-kun, I just thought that if I transferred a little more, you might have more money to spare later."

Kiryu Yaya hummed in agreement: "That's part of the reason, but that's not the root cause."

He lowered his voice: "Huizi, you know that our bank has regulations that prohibit employees from engaging in large, unreported financial transactions with customers, and the larger the amount, the more sensitive it is."

"If someone finds out and I can't explain it, my job might be in danger."

"But—didn't you say you wanted to build a brand? This is an investment, a partnership, not some kind of messy relationship!"

"I know."

He heard the grievance in her voice and softened his tone: "I understand your feelings, but the bank looks at the account records, not what kind of relationship we have."

"Huizi, if we really want to cooperate, we can't use private bank transfers; we need to think of another way."

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone.

"I didn't expect to cause you any trouble."

Her voice was much lower than before, tinged with a hint of annoyance: "I was just too anxious, afraid that in a few days you'd say something like 'never mind,' or 'let's think about it some more'—"

"I'm afraid you'll change your mind, and then I won't be able to be your model."

Kiryu Yaya held the receiver, a slight smile curving his lips.

"Don't worry, Huizi, I won't go back on my word."

"You said you wanted to be my first model, so that agreement is final."

The person on the other end of the phone hummed in agreement: "—So, what should I do next?"

Kiryu Yaya pondered for a moment and said, "Let's find some time this afternoon to go look at a factory together. If it's suitable, we can acquire it on the spot."

Keiko Miyazawa thought for a moment and said, "Okay, there shouldn't be anything to do this afternoon."

Lunch break.

The dining hall on the second floor of the annex was noisier than usual.

The weather was overcast and the air pressure was low, so many employees who would normally go out for lunch stayed in the cafeteria, and the queues at the windows were longer than usual.

But Kiryu Yaya walked straight to the beverage counter.

Sasaki and Arima have arrived.

This place seems to have become their base.

Mizuna Yayoi was also sitting in the usual spot waiting for him.

The dark blue cloth bag in front of her had been untied, and two black lunch boxes were neatly placed on the table.

Kiryu Yaya pulled out a chair and sat down: "Mina-chan, what's the menu today?"

Upon hearing this, Yayoi Mizuna pushed one of the bento boxes in front of him and opened it: "It's not very lavish today. I made chicken meatballs, and the soup base is made with kelp and bonito flakes, so it should be quite light."

Kiryu Yaya glanced at it, smiled, and said, "It's very good, quite to my taste."

Yayoi Mizuna's face flushed slightly: "That's good—"

Kiryu Yaya picked up a dumpling, put it in his mouth, chewed it a couple of times, and nodded: "The ratio of kelp and bonito flakes is just right, it won't overpower the natural flavor of the chicken."

Upon hearing this, Yayoi Mizuna's brows furrowed slightly.

Sitting across from him, Kenta Sasaki, chopsticks dangling from his lips, glanced at Yaya Kiryu's face twice before finally putting down his chopsticks as if he couldn't hold back any longer: "Kiryu, you really returned that 100 million yen?"

He asked in a low voice, but there was a sense of disappointment in his words.

Arima Kishou, with a piece of grilled fish between his fingers, replied without looking up, "You're still talking about this?"

"Narrive? I'm not nagging, I'm heartbroken for Kiryu!"

Kenta Sasaki sat up straight and gestured with his hands: "That's a hundred million! A hundred million! Do you know how much a hundred million is? It's enough for me to live on for a lifetime."

Arima Kishou paused for a moment, then asked, "Is 100 million yen a lot?"

Yayoi Mizuna nodded in agreement, then looked at Sasaki: "One hundred million yen, is that a lot?"

Kiryu Yaya picked up the second chicken meatball but didn't reply.

One hundred million yen is indeed a lot for him.

However, upon hearing Arima Kishou's words and recalling his behavior at Yayoi's house last time, it was clear that...

Kiryu Yaya vaguely felt that Arima Kishou's family background seemed to be quite good as well.

Upon hearing this, Kenta Sasaki paused in mid-air with his chopsticks holding the tonkatsu cutlet, glanced at Kishou Arima, then at Mizuna Yayoi, and his lips twitched.

"Are you guys serious?"

Arima Kishou didn't answer. He just lowered his head, put the last piece of grilled fish into his mouth, chewed it, and swallowed it before slowly adding, "One hundred million yen is indeed a lot, but it depends on what you compare it to. A decent apartment in Tokyo's Minato Ward costs more than that."

Kenta Sasaki opened his mouth as if to refute, but after thinking about it carefully, he felt that what he said was indeed true, so he had no choice but to close his mouth again and silently shovel a mouthful of rice into his mouth.

He swallowed, then couldn't help but mutter, "Anyway, it's a lot for me."

"If I were Kiryu, I would have taken the money on the spot and resigned the next day."