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

As Aoyama gave the answer, Takamatsu Akari bit her lip.

In fact, Gao Songdeng had a premonition when Xiangzi handed her lyrics written by others and sheet music composed by others.

It was the enthusiastic atmosphere of the Sickhack performance she saw at the Shinjuku Folt that inspired her and made her look forward to holding a live concert, which is why she kept this question to herself.

But today I happened to run into Aoyama, and because he saved me, I developed a little bit of trust in him, so I voiced my doubts.

This expected answer, coupled with the hard work during rehearsals and the misunderstanding that "Xiao Xiang doesn't like the lyrics I wrote" due to seeing lyrics written by outsiders, made her feel deeply powerless and sad.

Although Aoyama could not see the tears in her eyes, his extensive experience with people told him that Takamatsu Akari was on the verge of tears. A sudden surge of compassion made him add another sentence.

"I haven't finished speaking yet."

"?" The lamp's body trembled, and it looked up at him.

Her tearful eyes shone with a strange light that seemed to be "the last hope of a young girl."

"Everything in this world is constantly evolving and changing. Perhaps the band's current activities are not what you want, but that doesn't mean that the situation will remain unchanged forever."

"Now, you are sacrificing yourselves to persist for Ms. Toyokawa Shoko's goal. This is a considerable debt of gratitude. Therefore, in the future, she should also use her own emotions and abilities to strive for your goal. Everyone for me, and I for everyone, this is the principle and cornerstone that enables human society to always develop in a more progressive and better direction."

Aoyama was looking for something to demonstrate, so he reached into his pocket and pulled out two fruit hard candies for replenishing energy while running. One was mint flavored and the other was grape flavored. One was packaged in blue and the other in purple, corresponding to the hair colors of Toyokawa Shoko and Takamatsu Akari.

He simply stuffed both fruit candies into Takamatsu's hand, pointing to the blue one and saying, "This is Miss Toyokawa Shoko," and pointing to the purple one and saying, "This is Miss Takamatsu," before placing the two candies together in her hand for support.

“You help Miss Toyokawa Shoko fulfill her wish, and then Miss Toyokawa Shoko also helps you fulfill your wish. You both get what you want. Isn’t that great?”

"Xiao Xiang and I help each other out?"

"Yes. If you help her and she doesn't want to help you in the future, just tell me, and I'll make her take responsibility."

When someone achieves their goal with the help of others, they should give the helper an equal reward. This is the foundation of social trust. Conversely, if someone receives help from others but then tries to extort them, and such behavior is supported by law, then it causes great damage to social trust.

If Toyokawa Shoko can't even understand this point, then she doesn't deserve Aoyama Muko's appreciation.

"Having heard this, Miss Takamatsu, are you still sad?"

"No... I want to help Xiaoxiang fulfill his wish faster and better now."

Gao Songdeng looked at the two fruit-flavored hard candies, liking them more and more... She couldn't help but drift off into thought, imagining collecting a brown hard candy with coffee flavor, a black hard candy with sesame flavor, a green hard candy with lime flavor... and a strawberry-flavored hard candy in pink packaging. Then she would put them all together.

Takamatsu put the two hard candies into his pocket, thought for a moment, and then somewhat embarrassedly took out four band-aids and handed them to Aoyama. "Mr. Hack, you're prone to falling while running, these band-aids will definitely come in handy."

"Um, thank you."

Takamatsu looked at Aoyama for a few seconds, seemingly wanting to say something, but ultimately didn't speak. She bowed deeply to Aoyama and then turned and ran towards the bridge arch.

"Hey, kid, where are you going again? It's dangerous under the bridge."

Aoyama was somewhat baffled by her behavior.

"I would like to ask Ms. Hiroi for tips on how to resonate with the audience through singing."

Takamatsu Akari answered without turning his head.

"Wait, Guangjing? Under the bridge?"

As Qingshan reflected on his actions, his expression became somewhat stiff.

That jerk got drunk again and is lying under the bridge again?!

Qingshan wanted to follow Gao Songdeng, but when he glanced down at the bridge arch and saw that there seemed to be a lot of people gathered there, he didn't make any rash moves. Instead, he waited for the two guards to catch up before leading them towards the bridge arch.

Isogachi Music Awards: 016 Hiroi is going to be taken away for re-education.

Hiroi Kikuri drank to her heart's content again last night, but didn't spend a single penny.

Because she used a trick she only employed when her wallet was empty—she would carry her acoustic guitar to a familiar pub, order a glass of water, and then, when someone struck up a conversation with her because of the guitar, she would "casually" reveal her identity as a popular musician. When the other person offered to buy her a drink in exchange for her playing a song, she would use her superb performance skills and beautiful voice to win them over, thus ensuring she could drink for free continuously.

However, whether this method of getting free drinks works is largely a matter of luck. Sometimes, she drinks water until she's full and burping, and no one even bothers to talk to her.

However, she was very lucky yesterday. She drank with two older brothers who were captivated by her performance until they were completely drunk. Then, while wandering around the streets, she happened to encounter a light rain. To avoid the rain, she ran under a bridge and played the guitar while listening to the rain. Before she knew it, she fell asleep.

When she woke up again, she saw Takamatsu Tamamo.

After asking Takamatsu to buy her a bottle of water to quench her thirst, she fell asleep again.

When she woke up again, she found herself surrounded by a group of menacing-looking people.

These people were wearing clothes with the same pattern and were clean, so it was clear they weren't homeless.

Who are you looking for?

She rubbed her sticky, half-closed eyes and asked, still a little confused.

The leader walked up to her, his face full of disgust as he waved his hand in front of his nose.

"The smell of alcohol is so strong. Another hopeless drunkard. After getting completely drunk, he went to sleep under the bridge. This kind of person is the scum of society."

The people following behind him also poured out their malice.

"She's a woman, and she might be up to all sorts of shady business here. We need to take her to the police station."

"It would be best to tie her up with a rope before that, as she might have a disease and we need to prevent her from scratching us."

Hiroi Kikuri couldn't stand it anymore. "Hey, hey, don't talk nonsense! I admit I'm a drunkard, but I earn my living properly by playing my musical instruments!"

"Oh, there's another musical instrument, isn't that called a guitar?"

A strong man walked over, snatched Hiroi's guitar away, strummed it haphazardly a couple of times, and made a terrible noise that sounded like someone banging their head against a wall.

He curled his lip and threw the wooden guitar hard onto the stone slab ground under the bridge arch, smashing it open and creating a hole.

"This thing?"

"Can it be used to make money? What nonsense are you talking about? I think you're just being dishonest. Once we tie you up and bring you to our association, a few teachers will give you a good talking-to, and you'll know you're wrong... Everyone, let's get started!"

He exchanged glances with his accomplices on either side, and immediately one of them took out a rope that had been prepared beforehand and moved closer to Hiroi Kikuri.

Hiroi Kikuri, who was still somewhat disoriented due to a hangover, suddenly became fully sober.

Having spent many years on the streets, she was very experienced in dealing with emergencies and was not helpless in the face of the situation.

There are too many enemies, and running away is out of the question. We should negotiate first, and then cause a scene on the street to attract the attention of the police and passersby. Maybe then we can escape unscathed.

"Brothers, calm down. I'll go with you. There's absolutely no need to tie me up. There are surveillance cameras around here. If the police officers in the monitoring room see you doing something that looks like kidnapping to a weak woman like me, they'll definitely come after you."

"What nonsense are you talking about! Do you think we're some lowlife gangsters?"

The man in the lead tugged at his clothes, which had the word "Purification" printed on them. He then showed his business card, which read "Seitaro Onishi, Director of the Toshima Ward of the Purification Organization." In addition, he had a work ID stamped with the seal of a non-profit organization, and a picture of a non-profit organization license issued by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government on his phone. All the necessary documents were in order.

"We are a legally recognized organization. Even if we are caught on camera, the police will not bother us. And what do you think we are taking you away for? We are here to educate you, to make you repent, and to invite reporters to film your disgraceful behavior so that all of Tokyo can see what kind of scum exists in our society!"

Well, the underworld was wiped out by Aoyama, but the police still need to find ways to make money, so it's inevitable that they turn a blind eye to these kinds of "violent acts" that skirt the law.

Besides, the people they "violently" targeted were mostly homeless people, illegal sex workers, and other marginalized groups. So, they were beaten, and that was that. At least in a place like Japan, it wouldn't cause any public outcry.

"W-what?!"

Hiroi Kikuri felt even more panicked.

This is truly an attempt to label herself as a "homeless person" or a "woman engaged in illegal activities."

And it will be publicized in the news, newspapers, and on television...

Hiroi could already imagine the expressions he would get from Shima, Eliza, and Ijichi Seika the next time he saw them, such as "So this is what you're like" or "I really misjudged you."

"Alright, are you coming with us or not? Otherwise, don't blame us for getting rough."

"I'll go with you, I'll go with you."

Hiroi wasn't scared anymore. Being taken away by this legitimate organization meant his personal safety wouldn't be a problem. He could have Shima and the others testify to prove he wasn't a homeless person, and then he could spend some money to bribe them, and everything should be fine.

Just then, a girl's voice came from the other end of the bridge arch.

"Wait, wait a minute, I can prove that Ms. Hiroi is not a suspicious person."

Hiroi looked back and saw Takamatsu Akari standing at the archway, looking at him nervously.

"A child?" The leading man glanced at her and scoffed, "What can a child prove?... Oh, it does prove that you have a history of luring children."

"...Um, it's okay, don't worry about me, um... little sister."

Hiroi Kikuri waved at Takamatsu Akari, making a relaxed gesture.

……

Aoyama and two guards hid outside the bridge arch. Although he didn't know what had happened, he recognized Hiroi Kikuri. Although Hiroi Kikuri was a drunkard, he always avoided illegal and disorderly conduct like the plague.

Moreover, the wooden guitar that was smashed to the ground and almost split in two proves that these people are not kind, at least they don't care about using violence.

Most importantly, he also recognized the logos on those people's clothes.

The Neon Cleanup Group, ostensibly a non-profit organization dedicated to combating urban malpractices, has actually committed numerous misdeeds.

"You two, go and take a look. Reveal your identities if necessary."

Aoyama gave instructions to the two guards.

……

Thanks to @{"reader_id":"4092319","reader_name":"Caesar Belial"} for the salted fish spike.

Isogachi Music Awards: 017 Hit a brick wall

The two guards had also worked in the criminal investigation department, so they naturally knew how to handle such emergencies.

Generally, police officers should first show their identification and issue a warning before intervening if the other party continues to commit the infringement. However, if the infringement is already in progress, police officers can stop the infringement first before showing their identification.

Aoyama's intention was clearly to have the two of them teach this group, who were using the name "Nekogami," a lesson in force, so they needed to find the right opportunity to reappear.

Just as several burly men surrounded Hiroi Kikuri and grabbed her arms, two guards intervened.

Like the Double Dragon brothers, they flew past Takamatsu Akari's head with a flying kick, directly knocking down the two people who were holding Hiroi Kikuri's arms.

The two guards were both in plainclothes, so the members of the Negee group present did not recognize their identities at all. In addition, they were strong and fierce-looking, so they naturally assumed that they were gangsters.

"The remnants of the East City Gang, right? Everyone, surround them and don't let them escape. Hanamura, quickly call the police and tell them that there is a stronghold of the East City Gang remnants here."

Without saying a word, the leader labeled the two guards as remnants of the East City Gang, and then ordered his men to surround them.

As an officially recognized social group, they dare not easily use violence against others, but they are very skilled at using the bodies of lower-level members as human walls to block the movement of others.

"There's no need to call the police."

A guard showed his identification.

"There are two police officers here who are ready to assist you at any time."

The leader stared at the "Asahita Shadow" emblem on the certificate with a mixture of disbelief and skepticism, feeling a slight twitch in his heart.

The badge number was clearly written on the identification, making it easy to determine if it was forged. The penalties for forging police identification were also very severe, so he knew that the possibility of the two people in front of him faking their identities was extremely low.

"It's a misunderstanding, it's all a misunderstanding," he quickly stepped forward to smooth things over, persuading his men to disperse. At the same time, he gestured behind his back, indicating to his confidant to call the head of the Toyoshima district branch to investigate the background of the two policemen.

"Since you two are police officers, then this is no longer our business. This woman is yours to take back to the police station and give her a good talking to. People like her are ruining the image of Tokyo."

After saying that, he waved to his men behind him, "Alright everyone, let's move on to another street and continue patrolling. We're determined to drive all the ugly things that are hiding in the dark corners of the city and lingering in the sunlight!"

His men had actually wanted to leave for a while. They were very good at dealing with alcoholics like Hiroi Kikuri, and would even do it for free. But asking them to go head-to-head with the police? No way.

Sorry, the few subsidies your Neijing Group gives out aren't worth them doing this kind of thing.

If they were to have a criminal record for assaulting a police officer, not only would the Nijrakitiyabha group no longer accept them, but other legitimate social organizations would also be unwilling to hire them to increase their numbers.

But just as the dozen or so people turned to walk out of the underpass, the policeman who showed his badge stopped them.

"Wait a minute. You're the leader, right?"

"Yes." The leader quickly presented his identification. "I am Nomura Tsukuzo, an officer of the Toyoshima branch of the Neijin Group."

"Alright, you, and those two we just kicked down, come with me. I suspect you're involved in kidnapping and human trafficking."

Upon hearing this, everyone else present immediately and consciously followed suit.

“Officer, you can’t just say things like that,” Nomura said nervously. Kidnapping and human trafficking are serious crimes, and even if the crime is ultimately convicted of attempted kidnapping, the perpetrator could face more than five years in prison. “She just said that she was willing to come with us.”

“This cannot be used as a basis for your exoneration. This lady may have been coerced by you into using such language to protect her safety, and…” the guard sniffed, “she was still intoxicated and did not have the ability to resist or clearly express her will. In addition, there was a clear physical conflict between you just now, so it is reasonable for me to judge that your behavior is suspected of kidnapping and trafficking.”

This is the kind of situation where "it weighs less than four ounces on the scale, but a thousand pounds on the scale."

Generally speaking, when police encounter drunkards getting into conflicts with others, they usually turn a blind eye as long as it doesn't escalate into violence. In addition, since the Nijrakitiyabha group has the backing of a member of parliament, taking people away usually means taking them to a class or taking photos, and they won't do anything to endanger the personal safety of the other party. Therefore, many police officers even welcome their behavior of taking away drunkards and homeless people on the street.