I'm in Detective Conan, and I start with the Grand Theft Auto system.

Lin Shen picked up his wine glass and clinked it against Sato Miwako's again.

He finished the last bit of beer in his glass, then gently placed the empty glass on the bar counter. He glanced at the clock on the wall and figured it was about time.

He had already gotten most of the information he wanted from Miwako Sato.

There were no survivors at the scene. The police took over the case, and the subsequent investigation had little to do with him.

That's enough. There's no need to ask any more questions about the remaining details. Asking too many questions will only arouse suspicion.

He put down his glass and said in a natural tone, "Sis, we've had enough to drink today."

"Let's do it another day, another time, and then we'll drink until we drop."

As he spoke, he stood up and said, "I have some things to take care of later, so I can't drink too much."

Sato Miwako didn't think much of it, stood up, draped her coat over her arm, and nodded with a smile: "Okay! No problem! You go ahead with your work, I'm getting ready to head back too."

Akemi then emerged from behind the bar, picked up her coat draped over the back of a chair, and offered, "Officer Sato, let me take you home."

Sato Miwako quickly waved her hand: "No need, no need, I can just take a taxi myself, it's not far."

Lin Shen, standing beside him, casually added, "Let Mingmei take you. Tokyo isn't very safe at night lately; it's always good to be cautious."

Akemi walked over and naturally reached out to support Sato Miwako's arm, smiling as she said, "Yes, let me take you."

"Anyway, I don't have anything to do, and it's convenient for me to drive back and forth."

Seeing this, Sato Miwako felt embarrassed to refuse any longer, so she could only smile and nod, "Well... then I'll trouble you. Thank you."

Akemi replied, "Don't mention it," and then helped Sato Miwako out of the coffee shop, opening the passenger door for her.

The car started and smoothly drove away from the street in front of the coffee shop.

As Akemi drove, she naturally started chatting with Miwako Sato.

She has always been the kind of person who can easily connect with others. She speaks in a gentle and natural tone. In addition, having lived a life of dependence on others since childhood, she has much more life experience than the average person.

Sato Miwako has a cheerful and outgoing personality, and the two chatted about everything from the recent traffic situation in Tokyo to which supermarket has the best beef. The conversation flowed smoothly and the atmosphere became more and more relaxed.

About ten minutes after the car drove off, Sato Miwako leaned back in the passenger seat, turned her head to look at Akemi, her face flushed slightly from the alcohol:

"Ms. Akemi, to be honest, I initially thought you were a difficult person to get along with."

"After talking to you, I realized you're a really nice person."

She chuckled, her gaze fixed on the road ahead: "Officer Sato is quite easy to get along with. I was worried that you police officers might be difficult to talk to."

Miwako laughed twice: "That's because you haven't seen our Metropolitan Police Department's old fogies."

"They all had long faces, like they owed them eight million."

The two of them laughed for a while longer.

As the car stopped at a traffic light, Sato Miwako suddenly turned to the side and said in a serious tone, slightly intoxicated, "Akami, shall we find a place to have a drink? We still have plenty of time."

Akemi paused for a moment, turned to look at her, and then laughed: "Sure. I don't have anything to do tomorrow anyway."

As she spoke, after the green light came on, she didn't continue driving towards Sato Miwako's apartment, but instead turned left at the next intersection and parked her car in front of an izakaya that looked quite nice.

The two got out of the car, chose a booth further inside, ordered a pot of hot sake and a few skewers of grilled meat, and began their second round.

After a few rounds of drinks, Sato Miwako's cheeks were already flushed.

Holding her wine glass, her gaze, tinged with curiosity, fell on Akemi's face. After a moment's hesitation, she finally asked the question that had been weighing on her mind:

"Ms. Akemi, what's your relationship with my little brother? Are you two a couple?"

Upon hearing this, Mingmei paused for a moment, then chuckled softly and shook her head: "No, that's not it."

"Mr. Lin... he saved my life before. He has helped me a lot since then."

"I'm afraid I can never repay the kindness he has shown me in my entire life."

As she answered, she observed Sato Miwako's reaction: "So now I want to do whatever I can to help him, as a way of repaying him."

Sato Miwako paused in mid-air, her hand holding the wine glass still, her expression turning slightly surprised: "You saved my life?"

Akemi looked up and smiled. "Yes. But it's all in the past, let's not talk about it."

Looking at Akemi's smiling face, Sato Miwako could sense that she didn't want to talk about this topic anymore, so she wisely refrained from pressing the issue.

She raised her glass, clinked it against Mingmei's, and changed the subject: "Okay, let's not talk about that anymore. Come on—drink!"

Akemi picked up her glass, smiled, and clinked it against hers.

The two sat under the warm yellow lights of the izakaya, drinking and chatting about trivial matters of life, the atmosphere as relaxed as that of old friends who had known each other for a long time.

----------

The next day at noon, sunlight streamed through the glass doors of the coffee shop, casting a long shadow on the floor.

Akemi stood behind the bar, wiping a cup that she had already wiped three times with a rag.

She yawned, a really big yawn, so big that tears welled up in the corners of her eyes.

She rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand, trying to look more alert, but she couldn't hide her drowsiness.

Lin Shen sat by the bar, holding a freshly brewed cup of coffee. Looking at Mingmei, who was clearly exhausted but trying to stay awake, he couldn't help but speak:

"Didn't sleep well last night? Why don't you go upstairs and get some more sleep? I'll watch the shop for now."

Akemi shook her head, put the cleaned glass back on the glass rack, and yawned slightly. "Last night, Miwako and I accidentally drank until four or five in the morning..."

Lin Shen paused mid-air, his hand holding the coffee cup, a genuine look of surprise on his face: "Didn't you say you were taking her home? How come you ended up going out drinking instead?"

Akemi smiled sheepishly and draped the rag over the faucet: "We chatted on the way and found we got along quite well, so we went to a nearby izakaya to continue drinking."

"As we were chatting... I looked up and realized it was already daylight."

Lin Shen put down his coffee cup, couldn't help but shake his head, and had an expression on his face that said, "You women are really hard to understand."

Just then, the glass door of the coffee shop was pushed open.

The doorbell rang with a clear "ding-dong".

Akemi reflexively perked up, straightened her posture, and immediately switched back to her standard business smile, saying in a clear voice:

"Welcome! What would you like to order?"

She was speaking when her gaze fell on the person who had just arrived, and her tone unconsciously softened.

The woman who entered was wearing a dark gray business suit, her white shirt collar was neatly tied, and a gold cherry blossom badge was pinned to her chest—the mark of a lawyer.

Her hair was neatly styled, and she wore gold-rimmed glasses. She exuded the aura of an elite professional woman from head to toe.

After entering, the woman did not go to the counter to order. Instead, she stood still, quickly scanned the layout of the store, and then walked straight towards the direction where Lin Shen was sitting.

Akemi stood behind the bar and paused slightly when she saw this scene.

Does the other party know Lin Shen?

Lin Shen also heard the footsteps and looked up at the other person.

After seeing the person's face clearly, a hint of surprise appeared on his expression, but he quickly returned to normal.

The female lawyer stopped in front of Lin Shen's desk, extended her hand, and gave a polite smile: "Hello, I'm Eri Kisaki."

Her voice wasn't loud, but her enunciation was clear, carrying the composure and confidence unique to someone who had worked in the legal field for many years: "I am Xiaolan's mother."

She paused for a moment, then said, "You must be President Lin, right?"

Lin Shen stood up, shook her hand, and then gestured to the seat opposite him: "Yes, it's me. Please sit down."

Eri Kisaki gave a slight bow and sat down opposite her, saying politely and sincerely, "I've been wanting to find an opportunity to thank you in person."

"Thank you for taking care of Xiaolan these past few days."

Lin Shen sat back down in his chair, waved his hand, and replied in a casual tone, "You're welcome."

"Xiao Lan is a very sensible child, and she doesn't really need my help."

When Eri heard him say that, her smile deepened. She sat down in the chair and placed her handbag on her lap.