I won't be a loser.

"No, there's no other reason. I just thought of this, so I came over to give you a bouquet of flowers. It's purely a spontaneous act of mine. Flowers... you can do whatever you want with them. That's it."

After saying these words, looking at Sayuri Sawamura who understood nothing in front of him, Kento grinned slightly, pursed his lips, took a deep breath, and a faint sneer appeared on his face. He turned around and left, leaving Sayuri Sawamura with a puzzled and bewildered look on her face. She stood at the door with flowers in her arms, confused, watching Kento's figure walking farther and farther away.

He was well aware of the rashness of his behavior and the confusion and trouble it would bring to others, but... Xianren still couldn't help but do such a thing.

"Occasionally doing something abnormal is what makes a normal human being..."

We are not sophisticated clockwork puppets, so how can we live according to the so-called 'normal' way in everything? People who can cry, laugh, act stupidly and collapse are normal people.

"Ah... tears are flowing."

A drop of warmth on his face slid down to the corner of his mouth. He reached out his hand and wiped it gently, and a faint smile appeared on the sage's face.

- - - -

Thank you all for your monthly tickets and blades! Thank you all for your recommendation tickets!

Chiba New Story: 426. Salaryman with Unsatisfactory Life

Five people lived in one house, four women and one man.

At the beginning, not many people cared about it, but as the days passed, other residents around the residence could not help but doubt the relationship between Xianren and his group and why they lived here. Some obscene speculations that were unbearable to hear began to spread among the residents in this area.

"Those people actually suspected that we were—that's disgusting!"

Ji Naiyi was sitting on the sofa. She didn't know whether he had heard the news accidentally while walking outside today, or whether he had deliberately stood behind her and whispered a bunch of disgusting things in a voice that she could hear clearly.

The others were also sitting on the sofa at this moment. Only Kousaka Iori didn't care much. People like Fujiwara Momoka and Madoka Nene were also somewhat affected and felt a little disgusted with this matter.

"So, I've been feeling those strange looks since I was walking down the street lately?"

Yuanye Ningning lowered her head with a lonely look. She didn't expect that the people around her would look at her in such a way.

Fujiwara Momoka, who was sitting on the sofa, picked up the water cup, took a sip, and then put the cup down again. Her eyes fell on the other three people present. Facing the angry Himeno Ikera, the silent Kousaka Iori, and the lonely Maruno Nene, she didn't know what to do for a moment.

"We have nothing to do with those people anyway. We just need to do our own thing. After some time, we won't stay here."

Fujiwara Momoka tried to comfort her, but Himeno Igen was still a little reluctant.

"Even so, aren't we still in Chiba? As long as we stay here, we can't avoid the gossip. Won't you feel a little uncomfortable?"

"Under the current circumstances, even if we explain ourselves to them, they might not believe us."

Everyone sitting in the living room in silence was at a loss for what to do. Ji Naiyi's eyes moved around the living room and stopped on Fujiwara Momoka.

"What about others?"

"By this time, they should have gone home."

They looked at each other, and no one knew what the wise man was doing at this time.

"Who, ask him?"

"How do you open your mouth? What are you going to ask?"

Although everyone has lived together for a long time, they have kept a distance from Xianren. After learning that the other party is married, those who originally had some vague inclination towards him now keep a distance from Xianren and will not take the initiative to approach him to talk to him.

That is, when dealing with some work matters and having no other options, everyone would reluctantly step forward to communicate with Xianren about work matters. From some perspectives, it could be said that the four of them were isolating each other.

"..."

Sitting in the living room, everyone looked at each other, no one knew how to answer this question. After a silence for a while, no one could think of any solution, so they dispersed and continued to do the things they were responsible for.

"Thank you for your hard work, Miyamizu-kun."

In the center of the lake in the park, Xianren, who was paddling a boat, looked at Yukinoshita Haruno. He stopped his hands, turned his head to look at the slightly wrinkled lake surface around him, and sighed softly.

"So, why did you ask me to meet you this time? I wonder if there's something particularly important going on, Yukinoshita-senpai?"

"It's nothing particularly important. I just didn't expect that Miyamizu-kun's father-in-law would be Mr. Feng. He's a very famous figure in the construction industry in Tokyo."

The wise man sitting on the boat did not expect that the purpose of Yukinoshita Haruno asking him to meet was actually his father-in-law, and he couldn't help but frowned.

If it were somewhere else, Xianren wouldn't mind standing up and leaving. He had no interest in anything related to his father-in-law. But now everyone was on the boat, surrounded by water, so it was not realistic to leave.

"I'm sorry, I don't know much about architecture, and I can't influence him. Forget about talking about architecture."

"Miyamizu-kun, do you know what my family's status is?"

"Mr. Chiba?"

"My father is a prefectural council member in Chiba Prefecture and also the president of a construction company."

In his not-so-infertile brain, a lot of complicated things suddenly came to mind, such as the identity of Councillor Chiba, the president of the construction company, the government-issued projects, public utility bidding... collusion...

He lowered his eyes and looked unhappy.

"My father is hoping to develop some business in Tokyo. If it would be okay with you, Miyamizu-kun, please give this business card to your father-in-law."

"..."

Yukinoshita Haruno handed the business card in her hand to Kento. There was an unfamiliar name on it, but he thought it should be Yukinoshita Haruno's father.

Do you want to answer it?

A lot of complicated things came to his mind, and he also thought about the troubles that the identity of "parliamentarian" might bring to others. The wise man frowned, stared at the business card in front of him, thought for a while, and finally stretched out his hand to take the business card.

Just when Yukinoshita Haruno was about to smile, she saw the man in front of her pick up the business card, stretch out his hand casually, and then let go. The business card fell on the calm surface of the lake, gradually getting soaked and sinking to the bottom of the lake.

"My relationship with my father-in-law is not particularly close. If you want to discuss business with my father-in-law, it's better not to look for me. He is usually at home. If there is any important business, Yukinoshita-senpai, it would be more appropriate to have someone come to discuss it in person."

Meeting the indifferent gaze of the wise man, Yukinoshita Haruno looked slightly surprised, but soon she smiled.

"Miyamizu-kun came to Chiba to study, didn't he do it to avoid his father-in-law?"

"Yukinoshita-senpai, it seems like you have a younger sister?"

"Ok?"

Looking at the wise man in front of her, Yukinoshita Haruno was stunned, then she slowly narrowed her eyes and stared at the wise man for a while with an indifferent expression, and it was impossible to tell the depth of her expression.

"Yes, I have a younger sister."

"She doesn't seem to be very popular among her classmates. A while ago, I overheard some girls talking in a cafe. They seemed to be from the same school as your sister, and they seemed to have quite a grudge against Yukinoshita-senpai's sister."

It was impossible to tell what Kento was interested in. His voice was flat, but what he said made Yukinoshita Haruno feel that it was consistent with her understanding of her sister.

"Xiaoxue has always been quite self-centered. She would do things that would upset others, so it's normal for her to be disliked. I never thought that Miyamizu-kun would run into a classmate of my sister's."

The topic changed to talking about her sister. She didn't know why Kento was interested in this. Yukinoshita Haruno followed Kento's topic. She rarely talked about her sister with other people on weekdays, so she felt it was a bit novel.

"Have you met my sister?"

"No."

"Well, someday, if we have time, I'll take you to my old school. You can see my old high school and my sister. She has a somewhat cold personality, but she's a very cute child. If Miyamizu-kun is not married yet, you might consider my sister."

When talking about her sister, Yukinoshita Haruno's personality seemed to have changed. She talked more and seemed to have a deep and special feeling for her sister.

When it comes to "sister", Xianren couldn't help but think of his sister, and he felt a dull pain in his head. He didn't know what stimulated the child. He pursed his lips and turned his head to look at the lake in the distance.

The slightly abnormal behavior also made Yukinoshita Haruno pay some attention, but she did not ask questions. The two walked together in the park for a while. Yukinoshita Haruno took the initiative to say goodbye and left the place first. Xianren watched Yukinoshita Haruno's back as she left, and returned to his home alone...

"Miyamizu-kun, have you noticed anything special recently?"

Just as he was about to leave the living room and go to the office to take a short break and look at what he had written, Ji Nai Yigeng suddenly called him and looked at the girl with a hesitant look in her eyes.

"No, is there something in the house?"

"Not this... Was it outside, on the way home, or on the way out?"

"Ok?"

Thinking about what happened when I went out and on the way back, I suddenly remembered that in recent times, it seemed that some people were staring at me with strange eyes. As a wise man who has almost gotten used to other people's eyes looking at him, he did not pay much attention to it.

His eyes fell on Ji Nai Yi Geng, he was not quite sure, and asked tentatively.

"People who live around here?"

After the wise man spoke, the other three people looked at each other, then looked at the wise man at the same time and nodded slightly.

"Are there any strange rumors?"

"Pretty much. People around here already suspect we're a den of rape. Some even think we're all women you raped."

Looking at Ji Nai Yigeng who looked dissatisfied, he also understood why the expressions of these people were so gloomy after he returned home. He did not expect that while they were living well here, there were still people who made such malicious speculations about them.

"I understand what's going on, but there's no better solution at the moment. Just be patient for now."

"..."

After hearing the wise man say this, the four of them had no other choice but to nod slightly and agree.

But after that day, Himeno Iger and Fujiwara Momoka seldom stayed in the surrounding streets. They usually either rested at home or went out to places farther away. When they occasionally met the people living nearby, their faces were very bad. On the contrary, Yuanno Ningning communicated more with the people around her, and occasionally explained the reason for living together, such as the explanation of "studio". Some people understood, but more people became more suspicious.

In this situation, Xianren still does his own thing, going to school every day and staying at home in front of the computer to write his own works.

As summer was approaching and spring was coming to an end, Kento, who had been writing at home for several months, handed his work to Machida Sonoko.

"You could have given it to me at home, why did you have to come to the cafe?"

Machida Sonoko looked at the boy in front of her, his legs in black stockings lightly crossed, his expression a little confused, but it seemed as if he understood something.

"I see. You want to ask me to go to the hotel later?"

"I started writing it after the New Year. It took me about three months. Take a look at the content."

As for the frivolous Machida Sonoko, Kento just picked up the coffee on the table, took a sip, and then waited for her answer. Looking at the manuscript in front of her, it seemed like it could be sent to her by email or handed to her at home, but it had to be delivered to a place like a coffee shop outside. It was so serious and made her feel that she shouldn't be too casual.

She picked up the manuscript on the table and began to read it carefully. The first paragraph she saw made her blink and look at the wise man in front of her. Then she flipped through the pages again. It took her about half an hour. After reading the general content, she fell into a long silence.

"I didn't expect you to write something like this... well... it's a bit surprising."

"I read some popular best-selling works, drew some inspiration, and wrote them down. How do you feel about it?"

"It doesn't have any unique characteristics, but from a commercial perspective, it's a pretty good work. The sales may not be too high, but they won't be too low either. You... well, I think it should be no problem to publish it."

"Then publish it like this."

The decision was made so quickly that Machida Sonoko found it a little hard to understand.

"Aren't you going to continue with your previous style and create works that are more...traditional?"

"I'm not considering it for now. I'll think about it in my free time. Right now, I'm more focused on sales and income. I've already stepped into society, so I need to think about my future."

Feeling the change in Kento's temperament, Machida Sonoko fell silent. She had known Kento for a long time. Kento used to look calm but a little frivolous, giving people the feeling that he was a boy imitating an adult. But now he looks more like a middle-aged man who looks young. He has an inexplicable sense of heaviness in life and a faint sense of loneliness, just like a salaryman who is not satisfied with his life.

- - - -

Thank you all for your monthly tickets and blades! Thank you all for your recommendation tickets!

Chiba New Story: 427. Employees should be exploited harshly!

"Seeing you working so hard actually makes me feel a little ashamed. Well, I'll accept this manuscript for now. Can we contact each other by phone for follow-up matters?"

"Ah."

Clearly, he was still a young man full of vigor and vitality a year ago, but after not seeing each other for a while, the light in his eyes has lost. Machida Sonoko couldn't help but sigh about the impact of time and growth on a person.

"Do you have time later? Can you go shopping with me?"

"Although I have time, I also have other people I need to see. Why don't you consider finding a boyfriend yourself?"

He picked up the coffee and took a sip, then looked at Machida Sonoko who was sitting opposite him with an indifferent look on her face. A long time had passed since they met, but he had not heard anything from her or Mari Fukaoka about each other's feelings, which surprised Xianto. In his opinion, Machida Sonoko did not seem to be the conservative type.

"It's really surprising to hear this suggestion from you. Are you really concerned about my relationship status?"

"As someone I know, I've considered you from a friend's perspective."

Looking at Machida Sonoko, who had short hair and wore the same suit and white shirt most of the time, he put down the coffee cup in his hand, folded his hands on the table in front of him, and gave his answer.

"Uh-huh?"

Machida Sonoko, who had expected Kento to make some surprising remarks, did not expect the answer given by Kento to be so simple and ordinary, so plain that she could not help laughing.

"Ha, I didn't expect you to give such an answer. Can't our relationship be a little closer? As long as you are willing to support me for the rest of my life, I don't mind remaining single~"

An ambiguous gaze fell on Xianren, and Xianren, who was being stared at by Machida Sonoko, closed his eyes silently.

"Every time we talk about something you don't want to answer, or something that bothers you, you can't help but close your eyes. Are you afraid that I will get the answer from your eyes?"

Machida Sonoko asked softly, lowered her head to look at the coffee in front of her, picked it up and took a sip, then looked at Xianren again.

"No."