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

Aoyama interrupted him, tapping the table twice with his finger, somewhat like a teacher slapping a desk with an eraser during class, to indicate that what he was about to say was important.

"Two things. First, I need to meet with Lord Ogikubo privately today. Please contact his secretary to confirm the time. Second, the two major projects coming up—the Boso Peninsula development plan and the street performance support plan—will both pose challenges to public security in Tokyo. The Metropolitan Police Department needs to provide support, so I also need to meet with Inspector Horiuchi and several superintendents from the Metropolitan Police Department. Please communicate with the people from the Metropolitan Police Department and the Public Safety Commission and schedule three four-hour meetings this week. I plan to finalize the key points of the upcoming work through these three meetings. Please have someone prepare a meeting outline for me."

Isokachi Music Awards: 042 One sentence cuts off Minami's self-marketing path

"understood."

Takuya Utsunomiya glanced at his watch.

"I will submit the follow-up progress of these matters you arranged, as well as the information you need, to..." He saw Nakamoto Itsuki clearing the dishes for Aoyama Muto via video. "Is it alright to submit it to Mr. Nakamoto?"

"no problem."

Aoyama glanced at the TV again. The screen was showing footage of Wakaba Mutsu eating. The TV host was praising Mutsu's cuteness from every angle. Although Mutsu's serious eating posture didn't seem unusual, Aoyama remembered that Mutsu's posture yesterday when she poured herself soy sauce didn't seem like this at all.

"Oh, right, there's one more thing... Aren't variety show production crews these days incredibly boring? Filming celebrities' family lives is one thing, but why focus so much of the footage on their underage children? Celebrities entertaining the audience is part of their job, but their children are just ordinary people. Even if their guardians agree to this, the production crew should know when to stop..."

Takuya Utsunomiya was taken aback. He rarely watched variety shows, since his wife was a professor at Musashino Art University and always looked down on such vulgar programs. He himself had little interest in watching television programs, which did not expand his social circle, so he had no idea what Aoyama was talking about.

Fortunately, Nakamoto Itsuki reacted quickly. While Aoyama was speaking, he found the online playback interface of the program, took a few screenshots, and sent them to Utsunomiya Takuya.

After receiving the message, Utsunomiya Takuya quickly understood Aoyama Mukashi's meaning after a brief check.

But he didn't know why Aoyama would care about such trivial matters... It is indeed a bit unethical for the production team to give too much screen time to minors, but the mother of the celebrity seems quite satisfied with this, and the audience is happy to watch it, so there doesn't seem to be much need to strengthen supervision.

However, since her superior had objections, Utsunomiya couldn't go against them.

It was a trivial matter anyway, and getting the production team to make changes was just a matter of a word from him.

"Yes, the production team of the show did go a bit too far. So, what you mean is..."

Utsunomiya Takuya asked.

"Make a call to the entertainment industry association and urge them to exercise their oversight power."

"understood."

Utsunomiya didn't raise any further questions and readily agreed.

This was much easier than contacting the whip of the Shigure Party and coordinating the schedules of high-ranking officials in the Metropolitan Police Department; it wouldn't take him a minute to get it done.

……

Yutaka Ogikubo is the general council chairman of the Shigure Party and a major supporter of Mukashi Aoyama within the party.

During Aoyama's journey to become Governor of Tokyo, he provided considerable assistance, including consolidating the resources of the Shigure Party and exchanging resources with several major social groups in Tokyo in exchange for their help in securing votes. After Aoyama's successful election, he dedicated himself to promoting the arts and culture revitalization plan. Some dissenting voices within the Shigure Party were prevented from gaining significant traction thanks to his strong support. Once Aoyama secured the support of the Neijo Party and its backers on this matter and launched the Boso Peninsula development project, these dissenting voices quickly disappeared.

While Ogikubo Yutaka couldn't be described as providing "a timely help," he did delay the onset of many troubles, giving him ample time to resolve them one by one.

The two met twenty minutes after Ogikubo Yutaka's dinner.

The elderly politician's health was not as good as before, and he suffered from various chronic diseases. Twenty minutes after eating, he would take a half-hour walk in the manor and use this time to have a private conversation with Aoyama.

As the two walked on the stone path, all the security personnel who had been stationed in the manor had been withdrawn to the outer perimeter. Within a 200-meter radius, there were only the two of them.

"Recently, our Prime Minister has been troubled by His Majesty's abdication and the excessive influx of hot money into Wall Street. If he cannot come up with an effective solution, he may resign before May next year."

Ogikubo walked with measured steps, side by side with Aoyama.

Aoyama was tall and had a youthful appearance, looking almost like he could be Ogikubo's grandson. No one would guess that the two men held the same level of authority.

"Hmm, is that person in the Imperial Palace planning to go all out? If not, I happen to have something useful here that might be of help to His Majesty the Prime Minister."

Aoyama was referring to the scuttler specimen that the Neijin group had given him. The person in the Imperial Palace liked this kind of thing. Sending this over might get him to stay in that clay figurine position for another two years.

"Why should we help him? Endo Yoshiki is the president of the Yukikaze Party. If he resigns, wouldn't that be perfect for Lord Maruyama Kuniyoshi to move into the Prime Minister's official residence?"

Ogikubo raised an eyebrow, glanced at him, and said.

Despite his expression, he maintained his original walking pace, clearly anticipating what Aoyama would say.

.

"Sir, you're asking a question you already know the answer to."

"Haha."

For the Shigure Party, it's not necessarily a bad thing for Yoshihiro Endo to continue as prime minister. The overall situation is complex, and the Endo cabinet's rule is unstable. The Maruyama cabinet would also be unstable.

It would be best to let Yoshihiro Endo maintain his confidence in governing, and when the cabinet is re-formed next year, let more members of the Shigure Party become cabinet ministers to achieve a coalition government. This would pave the way for the Shigure Party to control the parliament and elect a new prime minister, while also minimizing the counterattack from the Yukikaze Party and making the Maruyama cabinet's governance process more stable.

Aoyama knew this, and so did Ogikubo.

The two sides discussed this topic in a manner somewhat similar to the little game that Zhou Yu and Zhuge Liang played before the Battle of Red Cliffs, where they guessed the character for "fire".

"Alright, let's not talk about that. What's the matter that you rushed to see me today?"

Ogikubo didn't ask Aoyama what the "good thing that could make that person in the Imperial Palace compromise" was, after all, it was their trump card, and it was best to have as few people as possible know about it until it was actually played.

Just ask him what he wants to get from me.

"The Metropolitan Police Department's Special Division is currently investigating me."

"Oh?" Ogikubo paused. "Isn't the Special Department supposed to investigate spies and such? Why would they be paying attention to you?"

"Well, it's probably because I've been going out alone in disguise lately to run personal errands, which has aroused suspicion among some of the professionals."

Qingshan smiled and said.

His voice was calm and composed, as if he were talking about something extremely ordinary.

“Oh,” Ogikubo said, looking like she was thinking hard, “just like the day you were filmed by the drone from Yokohama, right?”

"more or less."

"I understand. May I ask one more question: you haven't done anything to displease the CIA, have you?"

"No... I'm just going to develop some completely legal and compliant hobbies."

"Hehe, whether it's legal or compliant doesn't matter, as long as it doesn't make those people nervous... Hmm, what's your idea? To stop those people from investigating you?"

After thinking for a moment, Ogikubo asked.

"That might be difficult. Most of the people in the Special Department are trained by the CIA, and even Lord Maruyama would find it hard to command them."

"There's no need to issue an order to stop their investigation."

As Aoyama spoke, he took a photo from his pocket and handed it to Ogikubo.

"Just make them understand that what they're investigating isn't what they think it is, right? The people in the Special Department are smart too; they work for results, not to make fools of themselves in front of the Americans."

……

Here's a character design image; please ignore the AI's finger pointing at you.

Thanks to Ah Tou for the donation!

Isogachi Music Awards: 043 79 supporters of the Shigure Party

This photo is the original picture of the food on the table that Aoyama took last night, unlike the cropped and modified photos he sent to Aoyama Yukio.

Besides the small bowl of clam and cucumber miso soup in the center of the photo, you can also see the floor under the table, a plate with the restaurant's logo, and a physical menu with the restaurant's reservation number.

"Ms. Ogikubo, do you know what this photo is?"

Aoyama handed the photo to Ogikubo, who carefully examined the contents of the photo under the dim outdoor light.

"know."

He didn't feign ignorance by saying he was old and his eyesight was failing; instead, he nodded slightly.

"Since last night, an official from the Metropolitan Police Department's Special Division has been trying to find out which restaurant in Tokyo this bowl of miso soup came from, and even went so far as to mobilize some of the lower-ranking police officers. Several media outlets in Tokyo have already ridiculed and criticized that official for this matter."

Not only mainstream media, but even some purely entertainment-oriented variety shows are trying to ride the coattails of this miso soup craze, which has a rather sarcastic tone.

To be fair, when it comes to being sarcastic and sarcastic, the Japanese are definitely ahead of the game: after all, the language of this country is really bad at swearing.

"So, that Superintendent General was here for you."

It was only then that Ogikubo understood why the Metropolitan Police Department Special Division official was willing to bear the heavy burden of public opinion in order to find the restaurant that made this miso soup.

If they can follow this lead and uncover evidence of a Tokyo governor engaging in bribery or even colluding with foreign powers, then even if the public outcry is ten times more intense, it will be insignificant to them.

In a sense, their suspicions are reasonable.

What could the Governor of Tokyo, one of the top fifteen most powerful political officials in the country, possibly need to do in disguise and in secret?

There aren't many options available for this problem, but most of them, if proven, would translate into work achievements that would be enough to increase the department's year-end bonus by 20%.

Who would have thought that Aoyama disguised himself and kept it a secret from everyone just to form a rock band?

"Unfortunately, the photo that the Superintendent of Police obtained through his informant hidden in my father's mansion was a heavily cropped partial image, containing very little information. It's impossible to find the restaurant I ate at yesterday in a short time based on that photo. But if we give him this photo, it will be different. They can immediately find that restaurant, find the people who ate with me last night, and investigate what I was doing in private yesterday, and even before that."

At this point, Aoyama suddenly laughed again.

"But unfortunately, what they were ultimately able to find out may be completely different from what they initially wanted to find out."

Seeing him like this, Ogikubo recalled what he had just said to her—

"I'm just pursuing some legal and compliant hobbies."

If that's the case, then the Metropolitan Police Department's Special Division has really made a huge blunder this time.

"Governor Aoyama, you've given me this photo hoping I'll hand it over to the Metropolitan Police Department's Special Division, is that right?"

"I asked Ogikubo."

“That’s right, it’s not appropriate for me to submit this myself… and to avoid that police superintendent from resorting to desperate measures, when you hand over this photo, I hope you can convey to him the support of the Shigure Party for me.”

Aoyama placed the photo in an inconspicuous brown envelope and handed it to Ogikubo, who accepted it but did not put it in his pocket.

"But I shouldn't be saying these things. Lord Maruyama is the president of the Shigure Party."

Ogikubo gave him a deep look and said.

"You misunderstood me. I just wanted to ask you to persuade Lord Maruyama to make such a statement, and then through you, to accurately convey Lord Maruyama's opinion to that police superintendent."

Aoyama laughed heartily, exuding an air of absolute confidence.

"Lord Maruyama is not so easy to persuade. You'll have to offer him something that will satisfy him."

"I have a way to guarantee that the one in the Imperial Palace will not abdicate within three years. Isn't that enough?"

“If your method is only a one-time solution, then it’s not enough… The person in the Imperial Palace has taken your benefits and promised not to abdicate, but that doesn’t mean he won’t go back on his word later.”

Unless you can play the long game and always keep that person's lifeline in your grasp.

Ogikubo didn't say the last sentence explicitly, but Aoyama understood what he meant.

He simply couldn't maintain the ability to blackmail that person in the long run. The Scuttler soft-snout fish specimen was a rare and highly sought-after treasure, especially to the palate of the person in the Imperial Palace. Even for someone in his position, it was something that could only be encountered by chance.

Since things have come to this point, the only option left is to bring out "that thing".

The scandal of the governor of Kanagawa Prefecture.

The things Suzumiya Hyakubi has investigated over the past few days in Yokohama's Ijincho district.

"Governor Shijo of Kanagawa Prefecture has spearheaded the establishment of approximately thirty high-end nursing homes in six cities, including Yokohama, Yokosuka, and Kamakura, over the years. These nursing homes are rife with contract fraud and pension fraud. Furthermore, according to my informant, one of these high-end nursing homes is highly likely to be involved in acts of blatant disregard for human life with the involvement of organized crime."

(Yakuza 7 plot)

Kanagawa Prefecture is the second most populous prefecture in Japan after Tokyo, and the position of governor of Kanagawa is fiercely contested by various political parties. The current governor is a key figure in the Yukikaze Party. If he were to step down due to a serious scandal, it would not only be highly likely that the governorship would fall into the hands of the Shigure Party, but it would also deal a significant blow to the overall strength of the Yukikaze Party.

At least in Aoyama's view, the chip he threw out was definitely substantial enough.

"The yakuza of Kanagawa Prefecture..."

After hearing what Aoyama said, Ogikubo's expression became somewhat uncertain.

But after a brief moment of thought and consideration, he nodded slightly and smiled.

"I think Lord Maruyama will be very pleased to hear what you have said... So, as you wish, I will convey Lord Maruyama's opinion to the Special Division of the Metropolitan Police Department."

He put the envelope that Qingshan had given him into his jacket pocket, and then solemnly said to him.

"The 79 official members of the Shigure Party will be your strong support."

Igomachi Music Awards: 044 Worries Temporarily Eliminated

After the walk, Aoyama followed Ogikubo back to his residence for some tea.