Tokyo: Starting with taking on his wife's debts

Clearly, she had worried too much. Not only did Mrs. Riko not run away, she curled up a little further on the sofa.

"This is your husband's suicide note. Although you don't seem very bright, you should be able to tell if it's real or fake, right?"

Hideaki handed the suicide note to Riko. After she took it with trembling hands and her gaze fell on the letter, he continued, "Please ignore the last two lines. I added them myself later. They have nothing to do with your husband... Hey!"

Before Xiuming could finish speaking, the suicide note slipped from Mrs. Riko's hand, her head drooped, and she fell straight off the sofa.

Chapter 6 Mrs. Riko, my current identity is your deceased husband

Xiuming's position was just right, and he caught her with his hand, but she still slid softly onto the floor.

This type of vasovagal syncope caused by strong emotional stimulation can be classified as ordinary syncope.

As long as they haven't bumped their heads, they'll usually wake up after lying down for a while.

Sending him to the hospital? Absolutely not.

Xiuming first carried her to the mattress in the master bedroom and made her lie down.

Considering that the off-white pleated trench coat she was wearing was too big and too thick, and being a mid-to-high-end style, it was also quite heavy. Wearing it would definitely not be good for breathing and blood circulation, so we took it off for her.

She was wearing a high-necked beige knit sweater underneath, a spring/summer style, with a soft and thin texture.

Because it's a fitted style, it accentuates the bust, waist, and hips quite tightly.

After much deliberation, Xiuming still held the zipper at her neckline and pulled it down a little to make it easier for her to breathe.

However, halfway through, Riko's eyelids twitched slightly, and she opened her eyes.

The two locked eyes.

Hideaki slowly raised his hand and said, "Mrs. Riko, if you knew me, you would know that I'm not like that... alright..."

Before she could finish speaking, Riko rolled her eyes and fainted again.

Such an explanation is somewhat redundant.

Xiuming continued to loosen her collar, and the platinum pendant sank deep into her cleavage, disappearing from sight; only a silver chain remained.

The bra has a great push-up effect, but it's not good for breathing.

However, since she has already woken up once, it's obviously not serious, so let's not scare her anymore.

"Beep! Beep!"

In the living room, the pager in the briefcase rang.

Xiuming found the pager code lookup manual next to the landline.

The latest message is an alarm threat code sent by a debt collector from Ginkgo Financial. The meaning is very clear: he is to call back or the police will be called.

Xiuming ignored him; how could a loan shark possibly call the police?

The worst-case scenario is that, seeing no hope of repayment, they entrust their debts to debt collection companies, often composed of gangsters.

It's not too late to run away then; at least it can buy us a few more weeks of time. After all, if we entrust the debt to someone else, we'll earn a lot less money.

They must feel sorry for them too, right?

Just as I was about to remove the pager battery, another call code came in.

It's a callback code from the bank.

Xiuming guessed that they were probably coming to take possession of the house and notify him of the move.

After all, in his suicide note, Hideaki clearly stated that the bank had given him a notice to repossess the apartment.

Xiuming thought for a moment, then plugged in the phone line and called the bank.

"Are you vampires trying to kill me? I'm not moving! Forced move? Bring it on! Take my body too! I have a child, and I'll do anything for my child. The first person to knock on the door, I'll take them down with me..."

Before Xiuming could finish speaking, the other end of the phone hung up.

If I can't get rich quickly, I really won't be able to keep this house.

After all, they can call the police, but there's nothing they can do; they can't fight city hall.

When forcibly taking possession of a house, a group of people will ram the door, sometimes throw tear gas, carry riot control equipment, rush into the house, and forcibly drag the person out. The scene is comparable to a forced demolition.

However, the proper attitude must still be shown. They will consider this a troublesome situation, take into account many chain factors, hold meetings, and formulate meticulous plans to minimize the extent of the escalation.

At least half a year!

Of course, the longer you can delay, the better; every day you delay, you save a day's rent.

More than an hour passed after the phone call, and it was almost noon, time for lunch.

Why do people need to eat? It's such a waste of money...

Xiuming steamed rice for two people, stir-fried a plate of spinach and eggs, and made a cold tomato salad.

Finally, after picking through the scraps of meat, I made two bowls of lean meat soup.

He wasn't good at Japanese cuisine, but with the ingredients he had, he managed to make a dish that looked, smelled, and tasted delicious.

While serving the rice, I heard footsteps coming from the master bedroom; it seemed that Mrs. Riko had woken up.

Although she seemed very compliant, I couldn't help but be surprised. I didn't even bother to serve the rice and quickly left the kitchen.

Riko gripped the phone receiver, her heart pounding so hard her head was buzzing.

"Stop shaking..."

She prayed and wailed in her heart, but her left index finger felt like it had been electrocuted; she just couldn't press the three simple number buttons accurately.

Everything the husband wrote in his suicide note was true, and no outsider could possibly know it. Moreover, the handwriting was familiar, making it difficult to fake.

When she saw the list of debts in the suicide note, she felt dizzy and even forgot about her husband's suicide.

Recalling the moment she woke up, the strange man who had suddenly barged into her home with unusually violent methods was now placing his hand on her chest, and the intense suffocation made her consciousness blur again.

His mouth opened and closed like a whispering demon; you couldn't hear what he was saying, you could only feel your body falling straight into a dark abyss.

When she woke up again, she subconsciously checked her body. Her clothes were intact, and she had not been violated by him. The tragic encounter she had expected did not happen. She felt inexplicably relieved and even felt a sense of gratitude for his "mercy in sparing her life".

The sound of a cleaver chopping on a cutting board came from the kitchen. Thinking about myself now, I was a widow with no one to rely on.

The terrifying image of him brutally tying himself up with rope flashed through his mind again, and countless news reports of gangsters torturing and killing debtors surfaced in his head. He instinctively dialed the police.

But the call didn't go through, and he found out...

Riko's face froze instantly, then turned deathly pale. The red telephone slipped from her right hand and fell, dangling under the table and swaying, held up by the telephone cord. The receiver banged against the table leg with a "bang, bang".

Tears welled up in her wide eyes again, and her lips trembled as she said, "I'm sorry... I... I didn't get through... really... I didn't get through..."

“Yes, you didn’t get through,” Xiuming gestured towards the kitchen. “Would you like to eat?”

Hideaki's sudden, gentle attitude, as if they were having a casual chat, momentarily stunned Riko.

Yet, instinctively, he pleaded and explained, "I really didn't dial the number, please, let me go..."

Xiuming finally lost his temper, his face darkened, and he shouted, "Shut up!"

Riko's shoulders trembled, and she stopped crying, her tears flowing uncontrollably. Even her sobs were choked back.

Xiuming was secretly surprised, as if he had found an effective way to deal with it.

He immediately maintained his cold expression, pointed to the kitchen, then gestured to the Western-style dining table, and said, "Bring the food to the table and set it out for me!"

Riko bit her lower lip, looking aggrieved, and carried all the dishes to the table while tears streamed down her face.

"Can't you count? How many bowls of rice did you serve? Give me another bowl!"

Riko was stunned. Was this something for me to eat?

She was clearly right. As she nervously brought out another bowl of rice, Xiuming sternly made her sit in the dining chair and shoved chopsticks into her hand.

The aroma of the food wafted into Riko's nose, and she subconsciously swallowed, something she could never do.

"Eat! Pick up some food! Eat it all! You'll regret wasting a single grain of rice!"

Xiuming spoke more and more fluently.

Riko swallowed large mouthfuls of rice while tears streamed down her face.

It tastes really good, just like my mom's cooking...

At first, Riko would only swallow when Hideaki called her name, but later she would secretly pluck the food herself without him having to call her anymore, and would even peek at it while keeping her head down as if she were burying her head in the sand, her eyelashes trembling.

Xiuming's shouts terrified her.

After finishing even the soup, Riko accidentally let out a burp. Hideaki glanced over instinctively and saw her once rosy complexion turn pale again.

"I'm sorry, I... I didn't mean to..."

"It's ok."

Xiuming was secretly pleased. It seemed that she had returned to normal and could communicate. He immediately put a pile of debt documents from his briefcase on the table.

"Mrs. Riko, given the current situation, do you have any repayment plans?"

Riko, holding her empty rice bowl and head bowed, whispered, "I don't have any money right now, but... I will pay you back... Please give me time..."

Xiuming was taken aback, then realized that he hadn't introduced himself yet.

At first, she mistook him for a "burglar," and now she's mistaking him for a debt collector.

She looks so weak and vulnerable, so easy to fool, I really want to exploit her... what a pity.

"Mrs. Riko, you probably haven't seen the last two lines of the suicide note yet. My current identity is that of your deceased husband. Am I clear? In other words, his debts are now on my shoulders. Do you understand?"

Chapter 7 Isn't this a cheesy confession?

As Hideaki spoke, he pushed the will and debt documents toward Riko's hand.

Regarding the debts and estate left behind by Hideaki after his suicide.

Xiuming went through the whole process from beginning to end.

Now, Mrs. Riko is burdened with huge debts and has no way to get rid of them.

She couldn't even get the death compensation for Xiuming's suicide: insurance companies don't pay out for people who commit suicide within a year.

There's also the mortgage.