Conan: The Romantic Daily Life of a Ghost Detective

"Long time no see, Eri." Chizuru smiled nostalgically. "You two are back together? That's wonderful news! We should have a few more drinks later."

Uncle Mori scratched his head: "Well... not yet."

Eri Kisaki snorted coldly and didn't say anything.

Judging from the looks of it, this lady must be the owner of this shop, and she must also be an acquaintance of Uncle Mori and Eri Kisaki from when they were young.

However, what puzzled Wen Shui was that Kudo Yukiko hid behind him after hearing the landlady's voice.

"What are you up to?" Wen Shui asked in a low voice.

Yukiko Kudo tugged at the back of his shirt: "Just cooperate, and I'll make you drink less later."

As the two were whispering, Ms. Chizuru noticed that there was someone hiding behind Wen Shui and said with a smile, "This handsome young man's girlfriend seems a little shy. Why don't we go into the private room first?"

"Girlfriend?" Kogoro Mouri was taken aback.

Eri Kisaki looked helpless.

Conan's face turned slightly green, but after seeing that Wen Shui's hands were behaving themselves, he didn't bother to care.

"Miss Chizuru is still as understanding as ever, but you guessed wrong this time." After saying that, Yukiko Kudo suddenly appeared from behind Nukamizu.

The proprietress was startled and exclaimed, "Yukiko? When did you get back?"

Yukiko Kudo and the izakaya owner started chatting warmly, suggesting they had a good relationship.

During their casual conversation, Wen Shui learned that the reason there was no one at the bar was because the chef had taken the day off, and Ms. Chizuru, who was filling in for the chef, had gone to chat with familiar customers in the back private room.

There were actually waiters at the door greeting guests, but it seems they went to take care of the guests in the private rooms as well.

"So please bear with us if the taste isn't to your liking later," the proprietress said with a smile.

Yukiko Kudo: "It's alright. I feel like this trip was worthwhile because I was able to eat Chizuru-san's cooking. But please make sure to come and have a few drinks when you have time."

"Of course, it's been many years since we last met. I'll go over as soon as I finish what I'm doing here."

After the proprietress finished speaking, she led them to the private room inside.

At this moment, the office worker who was sitting in the lobby constantly complaining about his boss called out to the proprietress, "Boss, why haven't my edamame arrived yet?"

"Almost done, I'll go check on the kitchen." The proprietress greeted her with a smile, then muttered under her breath, "Where has Nanako gone again? Part-time college students are really unreliable."

.

Wen Shui didn't go directly into the private room; instead, he used the excuse of going to the restroom to call Xiao Lan.

Hiding in a toilet stall, Wen Shui dialed Xiao Lan's number.

After a few rings, Xiaolan's deliberately lowered voice came through the receiver: "What's wrong, Wen Shui-kun?"

"Where did you go? You almost gave yourself away just now." Wen Shui cut straight to the point.

"Huh?" Xiaolan's voice suddenly became very loud, followed by the sound of running and cars driving by on the other end of the phone.

After about ten seconds, Xiaolan finally answered, "How...how did you know?"

"You're acting suspiciously, are you secretly investigating something?" Wen Shui didn't answer her question, but asked in return.

Xiaolan hesitated for a moment, then slowly said, "Well, there are some things I want to figure out."

"Is it about the karate club?" Wen Shui asked.

"Well, in short, I want to handle this myself this time," Xiaolan said firmly.

Wen Shui sighed: "Alright, but you must tell us if you encounter any difficulties."

Xiaolan seemed relieved: "Okay, I understand."

Wen Shui was a little worried and added, "If you encounter danger, use karate to defeat the opponent first. We have the best lawyers in the country here, and we don't have to pay for their services, so be sure not to give the enemy any opportunity."

"You're not talking about my mother, are you?" Xiaolan asked.

Wen Shui: "Yeah, Ying Li is so amazing. Even if you get into a fight during the investigation and the Metropolitan Police Department has to deploy a helicopter, it's no big deal."

"I'm not the male lead in an action movie, how could I cause such a big scene?" Xiaolan said, laughing and crying at the same time. Then she changed the subject, "But Wen Shui, it feels a little strange that you call my mother 'sister'."

Wen Shui: "I had no choice, it was Yingli who told me to call you that."

Actually, when Eri Kisaki first met Yukiko, she asked Nuku to call her Aunt Eri, but after Yukiko Kudo made a scene, Nuku also asked her to call her older sister.

Although the two women were good friends, they still argued about who was superior in such matters. After all, there had been a debate between the Teitan Princess and the Teitan Queen back in school.

However, Yukiko Kudo's attitude seems to have changed now, and she is taking the initiative to act like a dignified lady. But despite this, Nukumizu has not changed how she addresses Eri Kisaki.

"Something feels off," Xiaolan muttered to herself.

Wen Shui thought for a moment and said, "It's okay, I can call you Sister Xiao Lan too."

"Wait a minute, that would just make things weirder," Xiaolan complained loudly. It seemed she didn't need to worry about being seen from her current position.

"Then what should we do? I can't exactly call you Mom, can I?" Wen Shui said.

"W-what are you saying?" Ran's tone suddenly became flustered, and she said with embarrassment and anger, "It seems that Ai was right, Wen Shui-kun's head is indeed full of bad things."

After saying that, she hung up the phone.

Wen Shui stared blankly at the phone's call screen, wondering what Ai Haibara had said to Ran that made Ran react so strongly.

He was just saying it casually.

No, I have to go to school tomorrow and get some answers from Ai Haibara. I can't let her damage my reputation.

However, it seems that Ran is currently trying to find a way to resolve the troubles of the karate club.

The trouble that could involve the junior students in the karate club shouldn't be too dangerous; Ran's karate skills are more than enough to handle it.

Back in the Japanese-style private room, Wen Shui sat around a low table with everyone.

Eri Kisaki and her husband, along with Yukiko Kudo, sat opposite them, while Nukumi sat with Conan.

Through the window directly opposite, you can see the lush green bamboo growing in the courtyard of the izakaya. In addition, the rooms are decorated in a traditional Japanese style, giving people a rather artistic feeling.

A young waitress with bangs came in, served tea, and then took out a menu to take our order.

The food and drinks arrived quickly. I don't know if this is how the restaurant always is or if it's special treatment for regular customers, but the portions of each dish were very generous.

The aroma of food immediately filled the entire room.

The proprietress of the izakaya followed them into their private room, seemingly intending to have a few drinks together.

The proprietress instructed the girl with the bangs, "Nanako, I'm going to have a few drinks with an old friend. You go and take care of the other guests in the private rooms. I'll have Takeuchi keep watch at the door. Call me if anything comes up."

"Okay, boss lady, I'll be right there."

The waitress nodded in agreement, but before leaving the room, she glanced curiously at Yukiko Kudo.

Wen Shui glanced a little longer at the girl, who had an ordinary appearance but knew how to dress well, and thought to herself, "So she's the college student who works part-time. She doesn't seem to fit the image at all."

Just as he was thinking this, Yukiko Kudo slammed her beer mug down in front of him: "Come on, give me your first time right here."

"Madam, please don't say things that are so easily misunderstood," Wen Shui thought to herself.

"Yukiko, didn't I say you can't drink alcohol with warm water?" Eri complained.

“What does it matter? We had to take this step eventually,” Yukiko Kudo said with a smile.

Wen Shui looked up at Kudo Yukiko's large, sparkling eyes, which shone like diamonds, and the mischievous smile on her lips. He vaguely guessed what this woman was up to.

.

After leaving the room where the warm water was, Nanako went straight to the tea room and placed the plates.

The izakaya didn't have many customers, so it only employed her and another part-time college student, Miki Takeuchi.

The proprietress just called her son over to the kitchen counter to cook some simple dishes for her; it looks like she's planning to have a few drinks today.

There were only three groups of guests in the private rooms today, and none of them were particularly difficult drinkers, so Nanako wasn't very busy. Normally, she would probably take out her phone to browse entertainment gossip.

But today, one of Nanako's regular customers was also in the private room area.

She had been called over by the other party and stayed in the private room a little longer, which is why she missed the arrival of Wen Shui and her group.

Thinking of this, Nanako suddenly pictured Yukiko Kudo's delicate face.

She truly deserves to be called a popular idol; even at that age, she doesn't look much different from an eighteen-year-old girl.

Nanako looked at her figure and her not-so-outstanding face in the mirror. She probably wouldn't even be thirty years old, and in a few more years she would become uncompetitive.

Nanako sighed, but quickly cheered up.

Since there's no way to grasp the future, the only thing to do is to enjoy youth to the fullest. Although she's not particularly beautiful, she's young, and with a little dressing up, she can make many men fall head over heels for her.

Nanako enjoys the feeling of being admired.

And sometimes you can earn much more pocket money than you would earn working.

Nanako, carrying a teapot, inspected the private rooms of the other two groups of guests before finally knocking on the door and entering the room of a regular customer.

Nakai Akira, who was drinking alone with his head down, looked up at the door and asked, "Why did you take so long?"

"The proprietress's friend came and ordered a lot of things, so we just finished." Nanako casually closed the door.

Then he ran straight to Nakai Akira's side and knelt down, the two of them very close together.

This is just a regular izakaya, not a kabuki hall, and it doesn't offer services like hostesses.

There was clearly a secret between the two of them.

After chatting for a while, Nanako told them that Yukiko Kudo had come to eat there.

Upon hearing this, Nakai Akira instantly sobered up, even dropping his wine glass onto the tatami mat. He stared in disbelief and exclaimed, "What did you say? That retired female idol, Kudo Yukiko, came here to eat with her friends?"

"Keep your voice down, the landlady specifically told me to keep this a secret," Nanako complained.

She picked up the wine glass that had fallen on the tatami mat and then took out a towel to wipe the wine stains off the floor.

Akira Nakai pondered for a moment, then suddenly put his arm around Nanako's shoulder and whispered in her ear, "Nanako, I need to ask you for a favor."

Chapter 71 Xiaolan Caught in the Act

Nanako felt the warm breath that Akira Nakai was blowing on her ear, her body trembled slightly, and she leaned into his arms.

This pose might seem a bit bold and ambiguous to outsiders.

But Nanako reacted very naturally to this level of contact.