After being elected as the governor of Tokyo, he will debut as a band!

“So it was Monica…” Xiangzi seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, and his body relaxed.

I was terrified! I thought she was some comedian's daughter.

"What's wrong? You seemed a little nervous just now."

Hiroi's ability to sense other people's feelings becomes even more acute when he's drunk.

"nothing……"

"Alright then, little sister Xiangzi, here you go. I'm going back to sleep now. See you tomorrow!"

Hiroi Kikuri waved and prepared to go home. She knew that today's "guidance" had made no progress, but it was something that had to be done slowly to comfort the disheartened music girl. Not to mention that she was getting paid. If she could, Hiroi Kikuri would even like to make this job her permanent job. Toyokawa Shoko was so stubborn that she could keep getting paid until the end of time. Wouldn't that be wonderful?

Make way for me: 051 Prison Visit

Hiroi Kikuri didn't say where Toyokawa Kei went, and Toyokawa Shoko didn't ask either.

Hiroi genuinely had no idea where Toyokawa Kei had gone. She was merely sent by Aoyama to look after Toyokawa Shoko. At most, she knew that Toyokawa Kei was in big trouble, but she didn't know whether he was going to the police station for a pork cutlet meal or to the district prosecutor's office for a chat.

Reporting it to the police won't be accepted, since Toyokawa Kei is an adult, and being out of contact for less than 24 hours doesn't qualify him as missing.

The reason why Toyokawa Shoko did not ask Hiroi about her father's whereabouts was because she was afraid of the truth, that Toyokawa Kei had really abandoned her, just as she had said.

Then she really became an unwanted child.

She didn't even dare to call her father, fearing a reply like "The number you dialed is switched off" or "The number you dialed is not in service."

Some things, if you don't ask them clearly, you can deceive yourself and live in a daze. But if you do ask them clearly, you really need to spend a lot of effort and willpower to face the established reality.

But Toyokawa Shoko can no longer bear that reality.

Escape is shameful but useful.

Of course, at least tonight, no one will inform her of Toyokawa Kei's whereabouts, so she can keep her worries to herself.

Because Toyokawa Kei is involved in some confidential matters, the police and prosecutors will not disclose his specific whereabouts in the short term. The Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office has contacted the Metropolitan Police Department and the Kanagawa Prefectural Police Headquarters to jointly establish an investigation headquarters. Relevant witnesses and physical evidence are being protected to prevent interference with the investigation process by those with ulterior motives. However, from another perspective, this behavior is not very confidential within the circle. In fact, it is also sending a message to certain people, urging them to find a solution as soon as possible and not wait until things get out of control.

Considering this, the prosecution or police will probably not send anyone to notify Toyokawa Shoko until tomorrow or later... Before that, unless she has acquaintances in the police and judicial circles to notify her, she probably won't be able to find out any news about Toyokawa Kei.

Back in her cramped rented room, after closing the door, Toyokawa Shoko felt a little unsteady on her feet.

He just squatted down against the door.

The bento box that Hiroi Kikuri forced into her hand slipped onto the floor in the entryway, but fortunately it was sealed tightly and nothing leaked out.

"...That bastard dad of mine, he's probably just out fooling around, right?"

Toyokawa Shoko muttered to herself.

When I wake up tomorrow morning, I might see her coming back drunk.

In short, let's eat first...

I have to go to school and work tomorrow, and my body can't handle it if I don't eat.

If you get sick because of this...

Xiangzi's hands involuntarily clenched a little tighter.

There is no one left in this world who would take care of me without expecting anything in return when I am sick.

……

Two days later, Toyokawa Shoko finally learned about her father's whereabouts from a police officer at a police station in Tokyo who came to visit her.

Toyokawa Kei is under temporary detention by the police on suspicion of committing multiple crimes, including embezzlement, forced trading, and counterfeiting currency, and will not be able to regain his freedom in the short term.

After learning about Toyokawa Shoko's situation, the two police officers who visited her door also expressed their willingness to help her with any problems she might have.

If there are difficulties, you can seek help from the Shinjuku Police Station. They can also help contact Toyokawa Shoko's maternal grandparents to act as temporary guardians, but Toyokawa Shoko declined.

In the case of an ordinary person, if the guardian is unable to fulfill their parental obligations, the police would simply notify other relatives who are willing to take care of the child to come and pick them up. However, the situation in the Toyokawa family is more complicated, and even the police station is not in a position to forcibly intervene. They can only prioritize the wishes of the parties involved.

On the other hand, Toyokawa Shoko felt relieved to hear that her father had only been detained. At least it meant that she had not been abandoned, and although her family was further broken, it was not completely disintegrated.

Afterwards, Toyokawa Shoko went with the police to the detention center to see Toyokawa Kei.

Although Toyokawa Kei still had some bruises and wounds on his face, he lived a regular life in the detention center and quit smoking and drinking. His complexion was much better than when he was staying at home drinking heavily. He was even in a good mood because he heard from Itokaki Keisuke that he could hire a lawyer to ask the Neijin Group for money. He looked radiant.

"Xiangzi, I may not be able to go home for a long time, so I asked a friend to find a mature and reliable older woman to take care of you. I heard that the lady lives very close to us. She should have met with you in the last couple of days, right?"

When the father and daughter met, Toyokawa Kei remembered what Aoyama had promised him and asked him a question.

Although he didn't know Aoyama's true identity, he was at least certain that this person was in cahoots with the police and prosecutors who came to rescue him later. After entering the detention center, he also made a special inquiry about Aoyama's identity. Although he did not receive a clear answer, he was certain that the prosecutors and police trusted this person very much, so he also chose to trust him.

What could Toyokawa Shoko possibly say? Could she reply, "You damn old man, you've entrusted the wrong person to take care of me. Your friend found a drunkard just as reliable as you to look after me"?

Even if he answered like that, what could Toyokawa Kei, who was already a prisoner, do? He could only ask a "friend" to find someone else to "take care" of Shoko.

Is that new replacement really any better than Ms. Hiroi, who loves to drink? Ms. Hiroi may seem unreliable, but she also seems weak! Even Toyokawa Shoko is confident she can fight her in a fight.

For Xiangzi, who was in dire straits, being taken care of was secondary; what mattered most was not being bullied by others.

"...I met him, and he's a reliable person."

So this was the only answer she could give.

Toyokawa Kei nodded and didn't continue the topic. Instead, he got straight to the point about "getting money."

“A lawyer will contact you in a few days. He will help your father get back the money he is owed. It could be a large sum of money… Xiangzi, you must cooperate with the lawyer and follow his instructions.”

Xiangzi was silent for a moment, then asked in a somewhat hoarse voice, "...Who are you going to ask for the money from?"

"Well, well..." Toyokawa Kei hesitated for a moment, "Anyway... it's not about asking your maternal grandfather's family for money. The lawyer will tell you the specifics."

"……I see."

Hearing this, Xiangzi finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Because of her mother, she really didn't want to go to court with her mother's family.

Make way for me: 052 A perfectly ripe mango or Cao Cao, which would you choose?

After visiting Toyokawa Shoko in prison, she didn't go to work but went straight home.

She still has many things to think about carefully.

For example, the life ahead, communication with relatives on the mother's side, and contact with a famous lawyer.

According to Toyokawa Kei, the lawyer who helped him "get money" was a renowned lawyer with an extremely high success rate and was particularly skilled at helping his clients "extract benefits."

However, the fees charged by famous lawyers are also quite high, so Toyokawa Kei hopes that Shoko can play the victim in front of the other party. As long as she can arouse the other party's pity, she can save a lot of money on the fees.

When Toyokawa Kei proposed this idea, he was quite confident in his reasoning.

After all, he knew he would be in prison for quite some time, and even if the Ni Jing Group was willing to give him money, he wouldn't have the opportunity to spend it; the money would mainly end up in the hands of Toyokawa Shoko.

Since that's the case, you're asking for money for yourself, so crying poor and playing the victim doesn't seem like an unacceptable thing.

As for dignity and such...

Toyokawa Kei wasn't the kind of person who completely accepted the idea that "dignity can't put food on the table," but other people's dignity is not his own, and even if it were his own daughter, it wouldn't be easy for him to empathize with her in this matter.

Furthermore, if one's daughter can persevere through a mentally exhausting part-time job like telephone customer service, she should be psychologically prepared to accept things like playing the victim or putting on an act long ago.

But the reality is... well, it's safe to say he was completely wrong.

When he brought up the matter, Toyokawa Shoko remained silent, and she did not express any opinion on what he said about it until the end of the meeting.

Silence is also a form of response, and her attitude on this matter is quite clear.

Although the old Fengchuan family is poor and I, Miss Xiangzi, am down on my luck, I can't put on a pitiful act.

In short, Xiangzi, burdened with worries, took the elevator, then the bus, and walked more than a kilometer to finally arrive at his doorstep, only to find Hiroi Kikuri sitting cross-legged on the open ground in front of the door, drinking and eating.

"Hey! Xiangzi, I've been waiting for you for ages." She pointed to a curry pork chop and pickled cucumber set meal in front of her that hadn't been touched much. "This is for you. I got it from Abai's company's employee meal. To be honest, 'Hundredfold Repayment' Co., Ltd. is indeed a company that originated from a Japanese confectionery shop. Even their employee meals taste and are quite good."

"Miss Hiroi, please stop bringing me food. I can eat what I cook myself."

Toyokawa Shoko glanced at the bento box, but didn't take it. She just shook her head and tried to open the door to go inside.

In recent days, Hiroi Kikuri, adhering to the principle of "if you take someone's money, you have to do your job well," has been trying every day to strike up a conversation with Toyokawa Shoko.

Bringing food to others is child's play. She also followed Toyokawa Shoko to her part-time job, drank with her at a nearby izakaya until she finished get off work, and then followed her home.

It has a sense of relentless pestering.

Furthermore, because Hiroi Kikuri gave off a suspicious vibe, she was stopped and questioned twice by patrolling police officers during the process. However, since Hiroi Kikuri had a formal "Guardianship Authorization Letter" in her possession, the police officers only offered a few symbolic words of advice and then let her go.

The letter of authorization was obtained from Toyokawa Kei the day after Aoyama asked her to take care of Toyokawa Shoko. Of course, Aoyama was too busy to handle this matter, so he left the document with Suzumiya Hyakubi. Hiroi happily went to Hyakube Hokai Co., Ltd. to collect the activity funds that morning and took the document with him.

Although Toyokawa Shoko was a little annoyed by Hiroi, her part-time job did end very late, and she was inevitably uneasy walking alone at night. Having an adult with her would make her feel much more at ease—even if that adult was a weakling with a combat power of only 5. Moreover, Hiroi lived in the same building as her, so accompanying her at night wouldn't be considered a bother. Therefore, after Shoko chased her away twice and found out that the other woman was drunk, she was really a bit shameless and didn't insist anymore.

It's nothing more than

When you walk, just walk faster and try to keep a distance from Hiroi.

"Wait a minute, hey!"

As Xiangzi opened the door, Hiroi Kikuri called out to her and stood up after taking a big gulp of fragrant plum wine.

"Xiangzi, if you're free, how about we go somewhere together?"

"I have no interest in the places that alcoholics like to go."

"Haha, what a coincidence. The two small business owners there don't really like drunkards either."

"?"

So you're still going?

What a shameless guy! I don't get along with people like that...

Toyokawa Shoko thought.

"But that place is a place where you can happily make money and enjoy music without having to show your face."

"Is that place... an exhibition hall?"

"Hehe, you know a lot! You used to be in a band with people your age, right?"

Hiroi Kikuri laughed.

"...None of your business."

“But the Starlight Performance Hall is different from the performance halls you’ve been to before. It accepts musicians with all sorts of unspeakable difficulties to take the stage. Just for the sake of performing while concealing their identities, Starlight offers two options,” Hiroi held up two fingers, “a perfectly ripe mango or Cao Cao!”

"?"

Toyokawa Shoko felt somewhat confused.

Ripe mangoes and Cao Cao? How could these two things help musicians on stage conceal their identities? I can't even imagine how it would work...

"Alright, as they say, seeing is believing, so just follow me... Fanxing isn't far from here, it's just in Shimokitazawa, only a few train stops away. Let's go!"

Hiroi clenched his fist, then grabbed Shoko's arm and pulled her toward the stairwell.

"Wait, I never said I was going with you."

As everyone knows, drunkards are clumsy and strong, and Xiangzi struggled for a few moments but couldn't break free. It wasn't until she reached the stairs that she managed to grab the handrail and pull her wrist out of Hiroi's arm.

However, due to inertia, Hiroi, who was already unsteady on his feet, lost his balance and fell down the stairs.

"boom!"

When Xiangzi came to her senses, Hiroi was already sprawled out at the bottom of the stairs. If this were a comic book world, her eyes would probably have turned into the shape of mosquito coils.

Xiangzi quickly ran down to check the situation.

"Are you alright?! Um, I apologize for what happened earlier! Do you need to go to the hospital?"

"Ouch...it hurts so much..."

After a few seconds of dizziness, Hiroi finally regained some clarity. "It's okay, I've fallen so many times over the years that I'm not easily injured anymore. Why waste money at the hospital? Alcohol is the best painkiller."

Make way for me: 053 It's getting cool.

Hiroi Kikuri, this old drunkard, has fallen, rolled down the stairs, and been knocked over by other people or large dogs so many times that it has become muscle memory. So even though she was still in a dazed state, she still skillfully took out her phone and called Iwashita Shima, who had been cleaning up her messes for years, for help.

Her phone screen was cracked like a spider web, the kind of phone that no one would pick up if you threw it on the street, and you might even have to pay a garbage disposal fee. Toyokawa Shoko was surprised that such a phone could still make calls smoothly.

"If you fell down the stairs, just get up and go to the hospital yourself. Don't bother me with a phone call about something so trivial! Are you a child?! Useless!"