I save a pathological girl with a twisted love story.

He opened his notebook and drew a rather rudimentary map on it. It was probably only at the level of a primary school student's doodle.

He said somewhat embarrassedly, "Although the drawing isn't very good, at least it should be able to help you find it."

"That's good." Xia Wuzhao took the elementary school map and thanked Sato.

Sato was quite surprised and embarrassed: "It was just a small favor."

Xia Wuzhao shook her head and left the school.

This is a small town nestled between mountains and the sea, with no skyscrapers, only endless rows of low-rise houses.

Tram tracks are like blood vessels throughout the town, with black and yellow railings cutting off the flow of people, while traffic lights that flash and tick make a constant noise guide the flow.

You have to take the subway first, and then follow a big bend along the mountainside before you can see the seaside residential area.

After passing three subway intersections and walking along a short stretch of national highway, we finally entered the residential area.

Small shops and accommodations are scattered here, and izakayas (Japanese pubs) are located here.

Along the way, Xia Wuzhao could see drunken fishermen and other middle-aged people.

The air here is filled with the faint, fishy smell unique to the seaside, as well as an extremely strong smell of poverty.

The only relatively affluent area in the town was the area around the school. It barely resembled a modern city, while this place seemed to have been out of touch with the times for decades.

It was as if time had frozen.

Walking on the highway, Xia Wuzhao can see the ever-surging tides and the human-made structures that have sunk to the bottom of the sea.

It's like the jagged corpse of an era gradually rotting in the sea, leaving only gray, hard bones.

He looked at the map and wandered around before finally finding the izakaya.

It's a very old-fashioned Japanese izakaya, with a purely wooden building, mostly dark brown on the outside, like burnt cedar planks.

Large red lanterns and curtains hung outside, and you could hear the noise coming from inside just by standing outside.

"Wow, your alcohol tolerance is still so impressive!"

A mature woman's voice came from inside. She seemed quite pleased: "Another drink, please."

This corresponds to the man's bold and unrestrained voice.

Xia Wuzhao glanced at the job posting outside and went straight inside.

The first thing you see is countless lanterns hanging overhead, emitting a dim, yellowish light.

Next, the entire space is divided into a bar and semi-open cubicles.

The partition is on a slightly raised platform, equipped with a low table and tatami mats. Shoes can be placed on the edge of the steps.

Wooden partitions separated many seats, and most of them were full of customers.

A few customers were sitting outside the bar, drinking beer and eating grilled squid.

Behind the bar stood a male owner, chatting with customers and laughing loudly from time to time, seemingly quite familiar with them.

The menu was hanging on a wooden partition above the man's head.

A simple menu with calligraphy written on a small white cloth.

Most of the items are things like sake, sushi, yakitori, grilled oysters, and salt-grilled mackerel, with seafood being particularly abundant.

The man also had several large bowls of cold side dishes beside him, and he would occasionally serve a plate to the guests.

These are not the reasons why izakayas are so popular.

The real reason was that woman dressed like a butterfly, walking around among the guests and making jokes from time to time.

The woman was probably in her thirties, and her clothes were completely out of place with the atmosphere here.

She had dyed golden hair, wore sparkling earrings, had heavy makeup, and brightly painted nails.

Some of them are vulgar, even bordering on the cheap.

She stood next to a man, her hand on his shoulder: "Your alcohol tolerance isn't very good today."

The man smiled and said with feigned annoyance, "It's all because you, Keiko, don't really pay attention to us old customers anymore. You're always so close to that guy Yajima."

"Oh, look at what you're saying. It really breaks my heart."

The woman said coquettishly.

"Really? Keiko? Let me touch it and see just how heartbroken you are."

The man smiled and reached out his hand.

The woman slapped the man's hand away, pouting, "Are you serious? You're so lecherous. I'm ignoring you."

As he spoke, he walked over to another guest.

The guests burst into laughter, teasing the guest.

Xia Wuzhao watched this scene without being moved.

Xiao Ai said in Xia Wuzhao's mind, "This is Asahi Aoi's mother? It's because of her that Asahi Aoi's personality has become like this."

Chapter 7 The Repulsive Adult World

Because my mother's work was so wretched, so despicable, so lowly.

It's even something I can't mention, something I can't let my classmates know.

It was this that caused her daughter, Aoi Asahi, to develop such a twisted personality—weak and helpless in front of others, yet sharp-tongued and cold-hearted when alone.

This reason is so reasonable that it's hard to think of any other explanation.

But Xia Wuzhao did not believe that this was the real reason.

Xiao Ai was puzzled. She asked, "Lord Xia Wu, is this speculation incorrect?"

"wrong."

Xia Wuzhao silently replied to Xiao Ai in her heart.

This reason is far too obvious and too superficial.

"Because if that were really the reason, wouldn't Aoi Asahi seem too ordinary and mediocre? But she is by no means such an ordinary girl; there is something more difficult to explain and more complex in her heart."

Xia Wuzhao recalled Asahi Aoi's words.

The owner, who was chatting with a customer, noticed Xia Wuzhao walking in after being reminded by the customer. He said warmly, "Hey, young man. You're not old enough to be working in an izakaya yet."

"I'm here to apply for a job."

Xia Wuzhao had the smile of a good student on her face, a smile that easily gets her a job.

A customer sitting at the bar looked at Xia Wuzhao and laughed drunkenly, "You're a high school student? Shouldn't high school students be working part-time at coffee shops or something in the town center?"

The boss, feigning displeasure, said, "Hey, don't talk nonsense. Otherwise, the employees I finally hired will run away, which would be a big problem. Besides, what if this shop closes down? Where will you guys go for drinks then?"

"Haha, boss, you don't need to worry about that. We'll drink wherever Huizi is," the customer joked.

"Then you'd better keep a close eye on her, lest Keiko suddenly disappear one day."

The boss was also smiling.

Two middle-aged men were chatting about this topic, oblivious to everyone else around them.

It seemed as if he didn't care about Keiko's thoughts.

Keiko, with her extremely worldly air, was already used to such words.

She joked, "I'm not leaving. I'll only leave if I find a good family to marry into."

"The Yajima family seems to be doing quite well; they're considered a good family," a guest said. "Keiko, you haven't really gotten involved with the Yajima, have you?"

Keiko rolled her eyes and waved her hand: "I have a child to support, so I can't possibly be a match for Yajima. Besides, Yajima has a family, so I can't join them."

The guests burst into laughter.

The boss then looked at Xia Wuzhao, waiting for her answer.

It was only then that Xia Wuzhao said, "Because I really don't know how to run those coffee shops and the like."

He gave a shy smile: "Because I've never met my parents, I'm not very good at interacting with other people. I always felt a little out of place working in that somewhat glamorous shop."

"After thinking it over, I think it's better to do some physical labor."

His words drew exclamations from the customer and impressed the boss.

Xia Wuzhao knew that her request would be accepted because her tone and expression were consistent with that of an introverted high school student.

They can easily gain sympathy.

"Ah, that's really true." The guest shook his head.

The boss scratched his graying hair: "There's a job here that suits you. In the afternoons, you can process the fish and other ingredients that others bring in. When things get busy, you can greet guests. But with Keiko here, you can let Keiko handle the guest reception."

"However, since you are a high school student, you can only work after school or closer to evening."

"Hmm—, if you're willing, I can offer you around 900 yen per hour. You'll only need to work about two or three hours a day, or as little as one hour. And the working hours are very relaxed; you can start work whenever you want."

"If you can't come on a certain day, you can ask me for leave in advance."

"How about it?"

The boss looked at Xia Wuzhao.

As if to prevent Xia Wuzhao from refusing, a customer sitting at the bar said, "Young man, this is quite a good offer. In today's society, you can't find an easy and high-paying job."

He pointed at himself while drinking beer: "I work hard fishing every day, and all the money I earn is wasted on these beers."

The shopkeeper laughed and scolded, "You didn't lose money on beer, you lost money on Miss Huizi. Besides, I bought a lot of fish from you. You should say you made a lot of money from me."

A long-time customer grumbled, "In the end, it all just ends up here."

Huizi chimed in, "What you're saying isn't just something you dumped on me, it's something you dumped on your own happiness. The things everyone said today were so hurtful."

The guest said, "Huizi, you're not even drinking. You're just throwing money away. How can I be happy?"

Huizi rolled her eyes, flitted to the bar like a butterfly, and asked the owner to pour her a drink: "You guys, you all come here every day and try to get me drunk. Honestly."

"Because you look so good drinking it, Huizi." These middle-aged men were all joking.

Huizi downed her drink in one gulp and rolled her eyes at the people around her.

The guests egged her on, urging her to have another drink.

The shop owner glanced at the atmosphere inside, seemingly unsurprised. He turned to Xia Wuzhao and asked, "Want to work here?"

"Ah."

Xia Wuzhao pretended to be introverted and agreed, glancing at Huizi.

Even with heavy makeup, she couldn't hide the wrinkles around her eyes and her aging skin.

But the worldliness about him was too strong, as if he had been ravaged and crushed by the iron wheels of society.

The boss had a young man from the kitchen show Xia Wuzhao around the environment, and she could start work tomorrow.

Xia Wuzhao thanked her again before leaving.

-----------------

"Ah~~, I'm back."

Stumbling and unsteady, Keiko opened the door and walked inside.

He threw his bag aside and kicked his shoes haphazardly down the steps.

Leaning against the wall, I walked inside, reeking of strong perfume and alcohol.

In the small living room, a girl was sitting.

Huizi glanced at her and muttered, "You ungrateful wretch, you didn't even leave me any food."

The girl fell silent for a moment, the atmosphere almost deathly still: "I haven't eaten either."

Huizi sat haphazardly at the table, poured herself a glass of water, drank it, and then lit a cigarette.

"Cough cough cough cough cough."

Soon after, she began coughing violently. Her lungs emitted long, hoarse gasps.

After a while, she lay exhausted on the tatami mat, letting the cigarette ash fall all over the floor.

"If you need money, just take it from my bag."