Tokyo Knights: The Odd Jobs X Files

"Of course, I will offer you a higher salary than your current job."

Li Xin smiled.

Although he is often stingy, if Fujii Takako does her job well, it can save him a lot of money and avoid a lot of trouble. He is not so blind as to not understand this. He is stingy with the salary he pays Fujii Takako. What if she does not work hard?

"It's settled then. Give me your phone number, and I'll contact you once the money arrives."

Fujii Takako stopped eating and stood up abruptly. After receiving the note with Crocodile's phone number on it, she said with a half-smile, "I don't care whether what you're saying is true or false. I will really use the money you give me for charity. It won't matter if you deny it later!"

After Mitsuhiro Hida died, she had no regrets in her life and no goals, so she was not afraid of death. She would be happy if she could do something meaningful before she died.

"Remember this awareness you have."

Li Xin was very satisfied with Fujii Takako's attitude.

Chapter Seventy-Four: Simple and honest folk customs, outstanding people and beautiful scenery

After Fujii Takako left, Crocodile said to Li Xin, "Xin, after we finish eating, let's go look at some houses. I've got my eye on a few. One of them is nearby and very quiet. I heard that a famous Japanese mystery novelist lives nearby. You know, novelists love quiet environments, so it must be a good place."

Li Xin nodded. He was quite at ease leaving those mundane matters of daily life to Crocodile.

After finishing their meal, the two arrived at 2-23 Beikacho, in front of a large, detached house.

"How was it? Wasn't it great?"

Crocodile Man smiled and said to Li Xin.

Li Xin nodded slightly. This large house had three floors and a garden at the back. According to Crocodile Old Man, there was also a basement below. The actual area was huge. Li Xin could not only cultivate his internal energy here, but also practice swordsmanship in the courtyard. It could be said to be killing two birds with one stone.

Just as he was about to say "yes," a violent explosion suddenly came from not far away. Li Xin felt the ground shake a few times, and Crocodile was so frightened that he shrank behind Li Xin.

A plume of smoke rose from a nearby house, and a bald, white-haired old man ran out, coughing incessantly as he ran, muttering under his breath, "Damn it, I added the wrong amount again..."

Across from the house where Li Xin was, a middle-aged woman dressed as a housewife peeked out from her house. After seeing this scene, she had an "I knew it" expression on her face. Ignoring the thick smoke billowing from the house next door, she prepared to close the door.

Crocodile Man hurriedly stepped forward and said, "Wait, ma'am, there's a fire next door, why aren't you helping to put it out?"

The middle-aged woman initially didn't want to pay attention to the short, fat, and unattractive Crocodile Man, but upon seeing Li Xin behind him, she instantly became very talkative: "It's alright, this is Professor Agasa next door working on an invention. His house explodes and catches fire every few days, so he uses earthquake-resistant and fireproof materials in his house. It won't burn here!"

Seeing her so calm and composed, she must have experienced similar situations many times before, which is why she is like this.

Shortly after the middle-aged woman finished speaking, a fire truck pulled up with its siren blaring. The firefighters jumped out of the truck with practiced ease and began extinguishing the fire. One of the men, who appeared to be the captain, walked up to the bald old man and said, "Professor Agasa, could you please stop giving us so much trouble? At the very least, don't invent things during mealtimes. You can eat and rest, and we can eat and rest too. Wouldn't that be better?"

The bald old man said with a wry smile, "I'm sorry, I'll be more careful next time..."

"Hey……"

The fire chief shook his head and sighed, having completely lost faith in the old man's assurances.

Regarding the firefighting, perhaps they were very skilled at responding to so many calls to this area, or as the middle-aged woman said, the building was constructed with earthquake-resistant and fire-resistant materials, making it difficult for the fire to spread. Therefore, the firefighters quickly finished putting out the fire and rushed back, probably because they were in a hurry to get back for lunch.

After witnessing all of this, Li Xin asked Crocodile Man, "Crocodile Man, are you sure this place is a quiet environment?"

If this kind of thing really happens here every now and then, Li Xin can't stand it. What if it happens while he's practicing his martial arts? Wouldn't Li Xin suffer a qi deviation?

Crocodile's face darkened. Sure enough, you get what you pay for. He had been wondering why such a good location house had such a cheap rent. So that's what was waiting for him. With such a dangerous person who could cause an explosion every now and then living next door, who wouldn't be worried? Not everyone can be like that middle-aged woman, who has developed a heart as strong as Mount Tai that remains calm even when it collapses in front of them!

“Okay, it’s my fault for not doing my research beforehand.” Crocodile readily admitted his mistake. “But it’s okay, I have another house in my eye, also in Beikacho, at 5-chome 40. Although the house isn’t as big as this one, it’s more convenient. If that doesn’t work, there are also options in Beikacho 6-chome and 7-chome.”

Li Xin nodded, but still felt something was off, so he asked, "Why are they all choosing Beika Town? Tokyo is so big, can't they find other places?"

Crocodile Man said to Li Xin, "Because the rent is cheap in Beika Town."

Li Xin immediately understood Crocodile's good intentions and nodded, saying, "Alright, let's stay in Beika Town."

The two arrived at 40 Beikacho 5-chome, a three-story residential building. Crocodile said to Li Xin, "This is not the whole building. The first floor has already been rented to a cake shop, so only the second and third floors are available for rent. If we rent the entire second and third floors, we can get a discount, and we can also use the rooftop terrace."

Li Xin nodded and said, "Let's go up and take a look first."

“Okay, let’s go up first. I’ve notified the real estate agent; he should be waiting up there already.”

Li Xin and Crocodile went upstairs, where the real estate agent was indeed waiting at the second-floor door, enthusiastically introducing the advantages of the house to Crocodile and Li Xin. Li Xin was too lazy to listen to that nonsense and walked to the window to look outside.

Across from the residential building is a road more than eight meters wide, but the traffic doesn't seem heavy, which is acceptable. The surrounding area is mostly residential buildings, so I didn't see anything that would cause noise. There's also a coffee shop and a sushi restaurant across the street, which can be used for meals.

Of course, Li Xin didn't need to. Restaurants in Tokyo were too expensive, and he wouldn't eat out. He preferred to cook for himself.

While Li Xin was observing the scenery outside the house, Crocodile Man and the real estate agent were engaged in an unseen game of strategy.

"Sir, this house is in a great location with excellent surrounding infrastructure. It's fully furnished and equipped with all the necessary appliances, so you can move in right away. If you miss this opportunity, it will be hard to find such a good house again."

The real estate agent had a "I'm doing this for your own good" look on his face, as if he genuinely cared about Crocodile's well-being.

Crocodile smiled slightly and gently rubbed his finger on the windowsill, creating a thick layer of dust.

"Really? But I have a feeling this house has been uninhabited for a long time. Is it really as sought-after as you say?"

Crocodile Man blew the dust off his fingers toward the real estate agent.

The real estate agent's lips twitched slightly as he cursed the hourly workers for not doing their job properly and not cleaning the room thoroughly, thus embarrassing him.

Of course, he didn't really care about being embarrassed; after all, people in their line of work are meant to be embarrassed. But if he lost a customer because of this, it would be a huge loss. He chuckled and said, "How about this, since the landlord of this house is no longer in Japan and has moved to America, the house fee... can be waived. What do you think?"

The crocodile man smiled but didn't say anything.

In Japan, renting a house isn't just about the rent itself; there are various other fees involved.

First, you need to deposit money, which is a security deposit.

The amount is usually one to two months' rent. After the tenant moves out, the landlord will inspect the house, and any damage will be deducted from the deposit. Although that's the case, as long as you don't encounter a particularly bad landlord, you can usually get the money back in full.

After the initial payment comes the monetary gift, which can be understood as a thank-you gift from the tenant to the landlord for renting the house to them.

The amount of the wedding gift is equivalent to one to two months' rent. This gift is nominally for thanking the landlord, so once it's given, it's gone and can't be taken back; it's essentially extra rent.

The reason for this custom is that after World War II, houses in Tokyo and many other areas were destroyed by the war, leaving many people homeless. At that time, being willing to rent a house to someone else was a great favor to the tenant, hence the concept of a "gift money".

Of course, nearly fifty years have passed since World War II, and there is already a housing surplus in Japan. After the collapse of the "bubble economy," housing prices have been halved, and in some extreme cases, they have been drastically reduced. Except for some very prosperous areas, there are many vacant houses. The historical conditions for the existence of gift money no longer exist, but for various reasons, the custom of gift money still exists to this day.

The real estate agent said they didn't need a key money payment, which meant they were waiving one to two months' rent, which was a huge discount.

Crocodile Man smiled again, then stared at a painting on the wall. He lifted the painting to reveal a patch of brown ink and several yellow talismans underneath, and said in surprise, "Hey, what's this?"

The real estate agent's face began to be covered in sweat, but even though he was drenched in sweat, he still pretended to be very surprised: "Yeah, what is this? Is it some kind of child's prank?"

Crocodile Man laughed heartily: "Hehehe, to be able to stick the talisman up so high, it seems that Japanese children are all quite tall!"

The real estate agent laughed and wiped his sweat: "Yes, kids these days are really something else. I saw an elementary school student the other day who was almost as tall as you."

The crocodile man's smug smile instantly turned green.

How can you be so mean?!

The real estate agent realized he had misspoke and could only smile apologetically, "How about another 10% off the rent? We can't reduce it any more than that, we're not making any profit anymore!"

Isn't there any profit to be made?

Crocodile Man didn't know if the real estate agent really believed it, but he certainly didn't, because he had already inquired and learned that the house was haunted, that someone had died there, and because of that, the second and third floors had been vacant for almost a year, and even the cake shop on the first floor seemed to be considering moving away.

If no one rents a house, there's no point in having a high rent.

So, after some haggling between Crocodile Man and the real estate agent, the agent tearfully negotiated the rent down to 60% of the original price.

"Ah-Xin, what do you think?"

Crocodile had already negotiated the price and visited the third floor. He was fairly satisfied with the house. Next was Li Xin's opinion, since he knew very well that in their partnership, Li Xin was the real core, and he was just a handyman.

Li Xin could tell that Crocodile was quite satisfied with the house, so he nodded and said, "Okay, you decide."

He doesn't have high requirements for housing; he just needs a place where he can practice his martial arts in peace.

"Alright, this is the place I've decided on!"

"The crocodile man said with a smile."

In Tokyo, especially in a central location, what more could he ask for than renting two floors at such a low price, fully furnished and equipped with appliances?

What? You're saying this is a haunted house where someone died before? So what? Neither Li Xin nor Crocodile Lao believe in that stuff. Li Xin even has several lives on his hands, so why would he be afraid of a haunted house? It's more like the haunted house is afraid of him!

After signing the contract with the real estate agent, the keys to the apartment building were handed to Li Xin and Crocodile. The real estate agent also told Li Xin and Crocodile that if they had any other needs, they could contact them. After all, there was nothing else to do in Beika Town, but there were too many empty houses that couldn't be rented out. Crocodile wondered if he hadn't bargained enough earlier.

But the house has already been rented, and if he goes back on his word, the deposit will be taken away as a penalty for breach of contract. After thinking about it, Crocodile decided to wait until the lease expires before talking to the real estate agent about the rent.

"Ah-Xin, how about we go get something to eat to celebrate our housewarming?"

After settling the luggage, Crocodile patted Li Xin's waist with a smile.

It's just a change of rented place, so it doesn't really count as a "housewarming." Crocodile was just looking for an excuse to have a nice meal.

Li Xin shook his head indifferently: "Forget it."

Crocodile Man knew Li Xin all too well and said directly, "It's my treat."

"Then let's go."

As expected, Li Xin took the bait. Crocodile Man smiled and went downstairs with Li Xin. He had already checked beforehand and there was a sushi restaurant across the street where they could eat sushi.

As soon as the two crossed the street, they saw a female employee handing out flyers to people around her in front of a coffee shop called "Polo".

"Hello, our coffee shop is newly opened, and we offer discounts on purchases. Please come and visit us!"

The seemingly gentle and lovely shop assistant handed a flyer to Crocodile Man. Crocodile Man glanced at the flyer and asked Li Xin, "Ah Xin, is this a new store opening? Why don't we eat here?"

Although he wasn't a big fan of coffee, the young female shop assistant in front of him looked very cute and was about the same age as his daughter, so he couldn't help but want to patronize her business.

Do you have hot water?

Li Xin asked.

The female shop assistant had clearly never heard of such a strange request before, and stammered, "No, we don't have that..."

It's common for Japanese people to drink tea and hot drinks, but very few drink boiled water. The female shop assistant had never seen a customer make such a strange request.

"That's it."

Li Xin patted Crocodile on the shoulder and said to him, "Let's go eat sushi."

Crocodile shrugged at the female shop assistant, giving her a helpless look, and then walked with Li Xin toward the sushi restaurant next to the coffee shop.

Who is this person...?

The female shop assistant had an indescribable expression on her face.

Chapter Seventy-Five: The Fox Girl's Request

At the Cat's Eye Cafe, Li Xin blew on the steam rising from his water glass and took a sip of warm water.

Indeed, Cat's Eye Cafe suits him better.

After taking a sip of water, Li Xin asked the idle Lai Sheng Ai, "Xiao Ai, have you received any requests on the message board lately?"

Because Mai Shiranui had to prepare for the "KOF" tournament, she didn't have time to personally teach Ai Kisugi and had to let her train on her own. As a result, the usually busy Ai Kisugi had some free time again.

"No, to be honest, it's because you're not famous enough, Ashin-ge. Not many people know you!"

"I love you in the next life," he muttered.

Li Xin remained silent. Indeed, his biggest deal to date was transferred to him by Ya Yu Liao. The "X" brand hadn't been established yet, so it was no wonder that no one was commissioning him.

However, becoming famous is not an easy thing. You have to complete enough tasks. Without fame, tasks will not come to you. This is a vicious cycle!

"Hey……"

Li Xin sighed, took a sip of water, and suddenly remembered something. He asked Lai Sheng'ai, "By the way, Xiao Ai, I have a question for you."

"what's up?"

In my next life, I will love exploring the world.

"Does your coffee shop have any special offers for female customers lately?"

Li Xin asked.

"No, why would we do those kinds of activities?"

Lai Sheng Ai shook her head and said, "They're too busy with business to bother with all those miscellaneous promotional activities. Do they feel like they're not getting enough work?"

"Then why have there been so many more female customers in the last few days?"

Li Xin glanced around the coffee shop. Originally, more than 90% of the customers in Cat's Eye Coffee Shop were men, but now, while it's not exactly half men and half women, it's more like 40/60, with women making up 40%.

Lai Sheng Ai looked at the culprit that caused the surge in female customers at Cat's Eye Cafe and didn't know what to say.

Brother Ashin, are you really unaware or are you pretending not to know?