Hikigaya, the Son-in-law of Three Surnames

She gently opened the door. Hachiman was also sleeping soundly. She curled up in his arms familiarly, feeling the sense of security brought by his warmth, and spoke in a voice that was almost sobbing.

"I'm sorry, Yukino, just before the wedding... just before the wedding..."

Chapter 46 Chapter

Like the murmur of a guilty person, Qingxue "raided" Hachiman's bed at night and hid in her arms.

"I'm sorry, Yukino, as long as it's until the wedding..."

Only by putting a date on sin can Qingxue enjoy the warmth and tranquility despite feeling uneasy.

Suddenly, the man who she thought was asleep slowly hugged her tightly with his hands. For a moment, Qingxue's body felt a little stiff.

"Am I... a shameless woman?" Qingxue whispered. She was so resistant during the day and had made up her mind secretly in the hot spring. However, when the nightmare really came, she still habitually solved it by asking for Yawata's warmth, just like taking drugs, this drug called attachment.

"Yes." The man said softly.

Qingxue slapped him habitually, and the opponent's arms hugged her even tighter, making Qingxue feel a little suffocated.

But because of this, a poison called a sense of security began to spread within her body, and the terrifying voice gradually began to fade away. This was a fact that had been tested countless times. Only in the chest of this man, the man who killed her husband with his own hands, could the sense of guilt be covered up by a sense of immorality.

"But, I am also a shameless man. No matter what, I shouldn't have accepted you in the first place. But, I also betrayed Yukino. We are both sinners."

Hachiman whispered in a rare gentle voice.

The murder of Yukino's father not only left an indelible shadow on Kiyoyuki, but also on Hachiman, the murderer himself. Facing Yukino, who had lost her father, he had to pretend to be strong while hiding the guilt in his heart. He was far from strong at the time.

Then, the two people who were licking their wounds occasionally met each other, and then betrayed the people they cherished together. If this relationship was ever exposed to the public, it would be a disaster for both of them. However, for the two people at that time, this was the only way to sustain their lives.

As if reminiscing about the past, Qingxue suddenly said, "Well, Hachiman-kun, I remembered the first time we...comforted each other like this."

Hachiman hummed softly, "I have forgotten what happened so many years ago. Has it been that long?"

"But in my heart, it's still the same as yesterday. I still remember that time, we also slept in the same bed like this, but you were not as cunning as you are now, nor as tall as you are now. You didn't even dare to reach out and hug my shoulders like you do now."

Qingxue recalled the past. They were obviously memories of sin, but because of him, they were sweet.

"At that time, we still slept back to back." Hachiman also said with a smile.

Until one day...

Perhaps he was too at ease. Before the two of them could talk about the past, Hachiman heard Qingxue's steady breathing, and before he knew it, she fell asleep.

"Good night, my lady, I hope you have a good dream tonight."

..................................................

Perhaps the key memory was triggered before going to bed, allowing Hachiman to relive that time in his sleep.

At that time, he was not as wild and strong as he is now. He was just a high school boy who was trying to be strong based on his willpower.

With a young face, he held a bowl of porridge and fed Yukino carefully.

"Come, have another sip." He said softly while holding the bowl. This was the hospital in Chiba. Before this, Yukino had been depressed and on a hunger strike because of her father's death and Hachiman's absence.

Until that rainy day, Hachiman appeared in the hospital. Saki was no longer by his side. He just said to Yukino in an accusing manner, "You are far inferior to her."

"No more, I can't eat anymore." Yukino said in a low voice. She had just resumed liquid food and really couldn't eat much.

She felt that she was very despicable, subconsciously using this method to force Hachiman to return to her, but as long as he was by her side.

Hachiman nodded. Compared to before when she could only rely on nutrient solution to maintain her body, Yukino's condition was much better now.

"Hikigaya-kun, you have big dark circles under your eyes. Did you sleep well last night?" Yukino asked softly.

In fact, I didn't sleep at all last night, but there was no need to let the girl know this.

He just shook his head and bid farewell to Saki. His declaration at Yukino's father's funeral was like that of a mad dog. Although it successfully prevented the destruction of the Yukinoshita family, it was not easy for Hachiman.

No, if it was just his own business, it would be fine. But as he looked at the girl's long-unseen smile, a feeling of guilt surged in his heart, tugging at his stomach and making him feel like vomiting.

You clearly killed her father, so why can you still face her with a smile?

Such questions emerged in my mind.

"What's wrong?" When Yukino saw the boy's face getting paler, the smile on her face paused.

Just as Hachiman woke up and tried to force a smile, a voice slowly came from behind him.

"Yukino, are you feeling better?" A cold and noble lady's voice came slowly over.

"Mother..." Yukino straightened up subconsciously, and it was more like an unconscious action.

"Then I'll go change the water in the vase first." Hachiman made up an excuse and walked out with the vase.

Their eyes met with Yukino's mother who happened to follow in. After the funeral, the two never met again.

All he could see were a pair of eyes that were just as tired as his own. However, this was understandable. During the funeral, those downstream suppliers were merely frightened by Hachiman's brutality, but the real issues still needed to be handled one by one by the current head of the Yukinoshita family.

But at this point Hachiman no longer cared whether he had behaved impolitely or not, his stomach was churning.

After arriving at the restroom, he couldn't help but vomit out everything he had eaten in the morning. Only after his stomach was empty did Hachiman feel better.

He came to the mirror in front of the washbasin, his face not much better than pale. If Yukino saw it, it would be terrible.

Even though I told myself to cheer myself up, the feeling of guilt still lingered when I faced Yukino.

"It's terrible."

It seems that I am far from strong enough.

He took the vase and changed the water, then returned to Yukino's room. However, the girl had already fallen asleep. Hachiman didn't intend to wake her up, so he quietly left the room.

"Hikigaya-kun." Just when Hachiman was about to go back to the room he rented with Saki (although he was the only one left now), the majestic female voice came over.

Hachiman pursed his lips and turned around. At this moment, he was still a little shorter than the other person. He said softly, "Mrs. Yukinoshita."

The face that had never given Hachiman a good look said in a slightly cold tone: "From today on, you will come home with me."

Chapter 47 Chapter

"From today on, you will come home with me."

Yukinoshita Kiyoyuki spoke in a commanding tone, her attitude as always.

Hachiman doesn't have a good impression of Yukinoshita Kiyoyuki, or rather, in high school life, the role of Yukino's mother always appears with storms and disputes.

It was a stumbling block to the progress of Yukino and Hachiman's relationship...originally.

Until the woman in front of him asked Hachiman to pick up a gun and kill Yukino's father for Yukino.

Hachiman agreed to her request, and in a sense the two became accomplices.

But in fact, he was not familiar with her.

After a moment of silence, Hachiman said, "I know that the Yukinoshita family still has many opponents to deal with, and the matter of the Zunxing Sect is also there. I will start to solve it. This is what I promised you, but now... give me some time."

He just needs a little more time.

Yukinoshita Kiyoyuki shook her head and said, "I can give you some time, and I have never thought of letting you take charge of the affairs of the Yukinoshita family all at once. However, your current identity is Yukino's lover and the future son-in-law of the Yukinoshita family. Therefore, from now on, you must live in the Yukinoshita family."

There was that commanding tone again. If she hadn't begged him at the beginning, Hachiman wouldn't have felt so guilty facing Yukino now.

"It's ridiculous. You were the one who was most against my relationship with Yukino in high school, but now you're ordering me to live in that mansion."

Hachiman said in a cold tone. Having experienced some things, he began to understand how to use words as a weapon to hurt people.

"It's different now than it was then." Yukinoshita Kiyoyuki still spoke with that condescending indifference.

"Because I'm more useful now?" Hachiman said with a chuckle.

"Yes." Yukino's mother answered bluntly.

"......I understand." As expected, he still had no good feelings towards Yukino's mother.

Even though he knew that the other person was one of the few people in the world who cared about Yukino.

Hachiman said nothing more and calmly followed her into the black sedan.

After the car started, Hachiman and Mrs. Yukinoshita sat in the back seat. He glanced at the woman next to him. She was wearing a traditional kimono with a chrysanthemum pattern, which was both dignified and steady. If you looked at her like this, you would think she was just a noble lady with a serious temperament. Who would have thought that she was actually a conspirator who secretly murdered her husband.

Of course, if that were the case, Hachiman himself was also an accomplice. This woman seemed to never waver, except for the funeral that day...

Maybe it's my own misunderstanding.

Arriving at the large and somewhat cold mansion, Hachiman stood outside the iron railings and thought to himself, will this be his home from now on?

He followed Mrs. Yukinoshita through the emerald green courtyard and into the western-style house. The luxurious yet restrained mansion was, under normal circumstances, a place that a poor boy like him would never be able to reach even if he worked all his life.

But there was one thing that puzzled Hachiman: "Why are there no servants here?"

The entire mansion was empty. When Hachiman came here before, there were clearly quite a number of servants.

"In order to prevent my husband from having any staff left behind... I just fired all the servants. I will screen them one by one later. Now I can only have the housekeeping company come to my house every other day." Mrs. Yukinoshita said calmly.

"I see." Indeed, he didn't think in this direction.

"I'll take you to your room....You and Yukino are just lovers right now, so you can't live in the same room yet."

Hearing the condescending Mrs. Yukinoshita say this seriously, Hachiman's face looked a little strange, but he didn't have the spare time to think about these things.

When thinking about this, Hachiman thought of the girl who was currently in Tokyo, and her soft body on the night before they parted.

But soon, Hachiman drove the images out of his mind. At this moment, he was more like an ascetic monk.

"Where is Yukinoshita Haruno?" he asked.

"Yonori is currently in the company, and probably won't be back for the next two days."

After hearing what Mrs. Yukinoshita said, Hachiman wondered, in such a huge house, are there only him and this stern Mrs. Yukinoshita these days?

Well, it doesn't matter.

"I want the development data of Yukinoshita Construction Company in the past ten years. From today on, I will learn more about it."

Even though he himself doesn't know when he will be swallowed by the guilt and remorse in his heart, before that, he will shoulder the responsibilities he should bear.

"I understand. I'll have someone sort it out for you as soon as possible." Mrs. Yukinoshita nodded.

The two spoke in an extremely clear and businesslike manner. Perhaps even they would not have thought that five years later, they would even play uniform PLAY.

After Hachiman made his request to Mrs. Yukinoshita, he said, "I want to rest in my room for a while."

The woman turned around and left without saying a word. Hachiman glanced at her back. Perhaps, if Yukino was not deeply attached to him, it would be more beneficial for Mrs. Yukinoshita to throw him out as a disposable shield.

Hachiman did not feel unhappy, or rather, he knew his own weight. Even though he went crazy at the funeral and made the upper-class guys in Chiba tremble and dare not move, that was also because of Yukinoshita's reputation. As for himself, he was just an unknown person who could be killed at any time.

Hachiman turned around, closed the door, and lay directly on the bed. At this point, he didn't have the energy to make use of his bed, but as expected, this was a guest room in a wealthy family. The bed was as comfortable and soft as that in a high-end hotel.

I couldn't sleep last night, my eyelids were trembling...

"I hope I can fall asleep," Hachiman thought to himself.

Perhaps it was because his body was too tired and his mind was forced to shut down. Although he slept very uneasily, Hachiman finally fell asleep. Until he heard a tragic scream, he woke up immediately, although he had not yet fallen into a deep sleep. Subconsciously, he looked for a sharp weapon, picked up a fruit knife from the cabinet next to him, and opened the door to go out.

The scream just now... came from the kitchen. He immediately ran down the stairs. The shout just now was the voice of Mrs. Yukinoshita. Was it the guys from the Zunxing Sect who came to take revenge?

Thinking about this possibility in his mind, Hachiman found that he didn't feel any fear at all. Perhaps subconsciously, he had already wanted to end it all, including his own life?

He shook his head, not wanting to think too much, turned around and went to the kitchen. The first thing he saw was Mrs. Yukinoshita holding a kitchen knife. But to his surprise, there was no attacker in the kitchen as he had imagined, but only a lively crucian carp on the ground.

The scream just now...was because of this fish?

Hachiman looked at Mrs. Yukinoshita with some confusion. She frowned as if she was facing the biggest dilemma in her life.

Hachiman thought about it. Mrs. Yukinoshita said that all the servants had been dismissed, but someone still needed to cook dinner.

"Could it be that, Madam, you can't cook?"

Mrs. Yukinoshita, with her sleeves rolled up and a kitchen knife in hand, remained in her pose, but the coldness on her face grew a little more.

Chapter 48 Chapter

Use the back of a kitchen knife to hit the crucian carp's head hard, so that the originally ferocious crucian carp will stop moving.

Then scrape off the scales from tail to head, remove the gills, gut the fish, and discard all the internal organs except the roe.

Sprinkle with chopped ginger slices, green onion segments and steamed fish soy sauce, then place in the steamer and wait for time to pass.

While the fish was not yet cooked, Hachiman stir-fried carrots, water chestnuts and pork in the pot. When the ingredients were almost cooked, he added miso sauce.

Gradually, a rich aroma filled the kitchen.