Chapter 121: What Is the Source of Your Confidence?

9: 0 AM, Chiba Prefecture, Chiba City. (Note: In Japan, the prefecture is larger than the city.)

Anjiutsu Goichi walked breathlessly to the third floor of an apartment building, checked the name "Kawada" on the doorplate, and pressed the doorbell.

After the "ding-a-ling" sound rang out, he couldn't help but wipe the sweat that had broken out on his forehead.

After being entrusted by Akiwara Yuto to find a book reviewer, he immediately activated the connections he had accumulated over many years, and after several inquiries, he finally found a suitable candidate—a book reviewer with a column in the *Chiba Daily News*.

Although the *Chiba Daily News* was only a local media outlet in Chiba Prefecture, it was, after all, very close to Tokyo and could influence the Tokyo Metropolitan area to a greater or lesser extent.

Therefore, if a book review could be published in this newspaper, it would not only help drive local sales in Tokyo to some extent but could even further expand distribution channels in Chiba Prefecture.

Although he thought this way, Anjiutsu Goichi still felt a bit uneasy.

It was said that although this book reviewer could be paid to publish articles, if the work failed to catch his eye, he would sometimes refuse, or even give a negative review.

These people in the cultural field were sometimes truly hard to fathom.

Anjiutsu Goichi complained inwardly, completely forgetting that he himself belonged to the cultural industry in terms of professional classification.

He hadn't been lost in thought for long when a burst of footsteps approached, followed by the door being pushed open, revealing a middle-aged woman wearing an apron behind it.

Upon seeing Anjiutsu Goichi, the middle-aged woman gestured with her hand and said with a smile, "Are you Mr. Anjiutsu? Please, come in."

Anjiutsu Goichi said, "Excuse the intrusion," and walked inside.

After changing his shoes at the entryway, he followed the middle-aged woman to the door of the study.

In this study sat a middle-aged man wearing glasses and holding a newspaper. He wore a serious expression as he read.

Anjiutsu Goichi understood; it seemed this was the target for today, the book reviewer named Kawada Keiji whom he wanted to visit.

Upon seeing Anjiutsu Goichi, Kawada Keiji put down the newspaper and pushed up his glasses with his right hand. "Are you President Anjiutsu? Please, sit down so we can talk in detail."

Anjiutsu Goichi nodded, walked into the study, and sat on the guest sofa.

After sitting down, he offered a polite greeting and handed over the gift he had brought.

Kawada Keiji took it, glanced at it, and discovered it was Gyokuro tea from Kyoto, then said, "You are very thoughtful."

At this moment, the middle-aged woman in the apron walked in, poured a cup of hot tea for both of them, bowed slightly, and left.

Kawada Keiji set aside the gift and said to Anjiutsu Goichi, "President Anjiutsu, I generally understand the purpose of your visit today. However, there are a few points I must clarify beforehand."

Anjiutsu Goichi replied, "Please, go ahead."

Kawada Keiji coughed to clear his throat. "Regarding publishing a book review, no matter what, the quality of the book is the most important thing."

Kawada Keiji's expression turned serious. "If the quality of the book is too poor, I have the right to refuse to publish a corresponding review. Or even..."

Hearing this, Anjiutsu Goichi became nervous. "Even?"

"Even write a negative review, perhaps." After saying this, Kawada Keiji paused, then continued, "Even so, does Anjiu Bookstore still wish to entrust me with this?"

While saying this, Kawada Keiji actually felt quite disdainful inside.

As a book reviewer, or rather, a literary critic, he believed his duty was to unearth books of true value on the market and recommend them to readers.

Not to evaluate a specific book just because someone casually entrusted him to do so.

Doing so would not only be an insult to his profession but also an insult to all the readers who trusted him.

Therefore, his words had an underlying intention: to "scare" away this President Anjiutsu who had used personal connections to get here...

After all, if the other party left on their own, he wouldn't have to worry about going against the "favor" that his friend had asked of him.

Regardless, using his profession to pave the way for others was something he resisted from the bottom of his heart.

On the other side, hearing these words, Anjiutsu Goichi fell into hesitation; in fact, by this point, he had already heard the implication that the other party wanted him to "retreat in the face of difficulty."

So, should he still insist on having the other party write the review?

If the other party was dissatisfied, they might very well write a negative review; when that time came, it could cause a backlash among some reader groups, and many might even refuse to buy the book.

But conversely, if a good book review could be written, it could still serve as a significant boost to current sales.

Anjiutsu Goichi weighed the options for a long time and finally decided to trust his own judgment; after all, the book *The Devotion of Suspect X*, whether viewed by himself or based on the feedback received from readers, was quite excellent.

He stood up, bowed, and said, "Mr. Kawada, although you may have a poor impression of me because I used connections, regardless, please take a look at this book first."

He straightened up, took the book he had brought from his briefcase, and handed it over.

"No matter what kind of evaluation you give, Anjiu Bookstore will have no objections. After all, having made this decision, we have already prepared ourselves to bear the corresponding consequences."

Kawada Keiji had been prepared for Anjiutsu Goichi to leave, but he hadn't expected to hear such a determined statement.

He subconsciously looked up at this President Anjiutsu and found that the other party's gaze was unusually firm, which left him deeply surprised.

He was silent for a moment, then took the book. "I understand. Then leave the book here. As for whether a review will be published, please keep an eye on the relevant columns in the *Chiba Daily News* in the near future, President Anjiutsu."

Anjiutsu Goichi caught the "see yourself out" implication in the words. He nodded, bowed again to say goodbye, then left the study and headed toward the door.

Immediately after, the sound of the front door closing followed.

Kawada Keiji stood up, walked back to his desk, and sat down. He put the book down and looked at its black cover, which bore the title *The Devotion of Suspect X*.

Below the title was a long staircase drawn in white lines. On this staircase, one person was walking down, while two others were walking up...

He nodded, feeling that the cover design was quite good.

Immediately after, he opened the book and began to read.

President Anjiutsu, let me see what kind of confidence you have to entrust me with writing this book review!