Chapter 339

After dual cultivation with Mai Xuejie, Uesugi Muneyuki now automatically secretes fragrant essential oils on his body, derived from the Indian Ayurvedic essential oil secret method, formed by Uesugi Muneyuki condensing the energy of the inner world into vital force, with four fragrance types corresponding to pine scent, coconut oil scent, mustard oil scent, and sesame oil scent.

As for the effect, Uesugi Muneyuki learned essential oil massage from Mai Xuejie but hasn't had a chance to use it yet; he wants to find a woman to try it on.

Then it's decided! My fiancée, Minami Ojou-sama!

Indeed, Minami looked curious and eager to try, but when she heard Uesugi Muneyuki say the essential oil needed to be combined with massage, she shook her head frantically like a rattle drum: "No, no, no, I'll die!"

Minami Ojou-sama has a delicate body and petite stature, and she herself is a sports weakling with no athletic ability, so she has never once dared to face Uesugi Muneyuki alone; even so, afterward she often collapses from exhaustion and falls asleep immediately.

This is also why Minami dares not move directly into Sakayubashi Tower.

Probably precisely for this reason, Minami doesn't care much about the recent public discourse outside; she is relatively traditional, and Uesugi Muneyuki also comes from the Old Domains Peerage, so neither thinks it's a big deal, and Minami knows Uesugi can switch superiors at any time, but she cannot do without Uesugi himself.

But just because the two don't care doesn't mean others don't care.

When Uesugi Muneyuki and Watanabe Minami tidied up a bit to prepare to go home for New Year, he noticed in Investigation Division 1 that the Acting Unit Chief of the Fifth Section, Itami Kenichi Keibu, was still there, talking with Division Chief Sugishita Ukyo about something.

This Itami Kenichi is also a pitiful soul; he's already in his forties, let alone a wife, he can't even find a girlfriend, he's attended countless mixers at the Metropolitan Police Department but not a single woman has taken a liking to him, remaining single to this day, and precisely because he has no girlfriend, he voluntarily took on the New Year holiday duty alone, together with Division Chief Sugishita Ukyo.

Itami Keibu's selfless act instantly earned him the goodwill of the entire Investigation Division 1; it's estimated he'll be promoted to official Unit Chief of the Fifth Section and formally promoted to Police Inspector within a thousand years, and for non-professional groups, reaching the rank of Police Inspector means life is pretty much complete.

Sugishita Ukyo, on the other hand, has an ex-wife and no children, so he also plans to work the New Year shift.

When leaving, Uesugi Muneyuki encountered Shirotori Sho Keibu of the Second Section, who was also preparing to take leave and go home; his girlfriend Okada Sayaka was waiting for him outside Sakuradamon, this professional model and professional mahjong player wearing a winter fleece coat and a black dress, with black genuine leather long boots underneath, tall and slender figure, though it's unclear whether she's wearing stockings.

"Shirotori-san, Happy New Year!" Uesugi Muneyuki greeted Shirotori Sho with a smile, then looked at his girlfriend: "Okada-san also came?"

"Oh, Uesugi-san, Happy New Year!" Shirotori Sho also returned the greeting: "Watanabe Management Official! Happy New Year! I'm in a hurry, so I won't say more, goodbye."

After saying that, Shirotori Sho quickly ran off with Okada Sayaka.

"Why so rushed? We don't have to rush; we clearly have plenty of time!" On the way, Okada Sayaka chased after Shirotori Sho: "That Uesugi isn't he a case-solving superhuman? You've always said you wanted to get on good terms with him, didn't you? And you even bought him New Year gifts from Toraya and Kudamono?"

"That's different! How could that be the same?" Shirotori Sho hastily lowered his voice, a bit embarrassed: "Have you heard the rumors outside? This guy is good at everything, with extraordinary abilities, but he's a pervert! He doesn't let go of Watanabe Management Official, Ikeda Patrol Sergeant, or that Ishihara doctor!"

"Moreover, it seems there are rumors that other police officers, in order to smoothly solve cases, have offered their wives and daughters to him—though I don't know if it's true, but staying away from him is definitely safe!" Shirotori Keibu said with lingering fear.

"Eh, is that so? But I think he looks like a good guy." Okada Sayaka's reaction was exactly as Shirotori Sho expected: "A hero who bravely steps forward in such a situation to exchange hostages and save people—how could he be a bad person?"

"Heroes are heroes—good people are indeed good people, talent is indeed talent, but... anyway, let's go back and talk later!" Shirotori Sho felt a mix of emotions, thinking he never said Uesugi wasn't a hero.

But you, Metropolitan Police pervert Uesugi! Stay away from my girlfriend!

Another couple walked away, leaving Uesugi Muneyuki still somewhat puzzled; Minami just gave a silly laugh and patted his shoulder: "Looks like everyone's heard about it!"

"Heard what?" Uesugi Muneyuki thought, how come one after another is like this? Am I really that terrifying?

"Pfft, it's not just you admitting on Fuji TV's 'God's Hand SP' that you had crazy sexual fantasies about various women around you in high school, then combining it with the Eirina incident, leading to rumors that you, Muneyuki, are the Metropolitan Police pervert, fond of sleeping with other police officers' wives." Minami laughed so hard she couldn't straighten her waist: "Don't worry, I understand, Muneyuki, you're not that kind of person."

Uesugi Muneyuki felt a bit embarrassed, not knowing what to say.

"By the way, is Mikoto-nee coming to spend New Year with us?" He could only change the subject.

"No, Ishihara-san doesn't seem to plan to return to Osaka either."

"Eh, again like this." Uesugi Muneyuki casually said: "Turn a bit, we'll go to the Metropolitan Police Women's Dormitory to pick her up."

"Alright" Minami smiled with narrowed eyes, she turned back to gaze at the snow falling continuously over Tokyo and the majestic, magnificent Imperial Palace and Sakuradamon, taking a deep breath.

This year has been a bountiful harvest!

Fifteen minutes later, at the Metropolitan Police Women's Dormitory, the forensic beauty who had just finished a day and a half of autopsy and testing sighed, her face bearing some weariness yet still dignified and alluring, showing a hint of desolation.

Ishihara Mikoto today wore a dark gray tailored suit skirt, with a white high-neck sweater underneath and a long winter wind coat over it, her legs wrapped in a pair of semi-transparent black velvet thick stockings, her feet in a pair of pointed high heels, the heels slender and long, plus she secretly tightened her waistband high, making her 157 cm frame appear with balanced, delicate, and slender proportions.

Her fox-like face was very delicate and soft, combined with the pure aura from her medical profession and the gentle, dignified charm of a lightly mature woman in her early thirties, plus her decent social skills, Ishihara Mikoto quickly became a popular figure in the women's dormitory.

Mikoto originally thought the female police social circle would be different, but it turned out the same—female police, especially desk duty officers, out of ten people, no more than two truly focus on their careers; they still remain stuck in the cycle of makeup consumption, competition, and mixers, hoping to marry a good husband and return to the family as housewives; the small women's dormitory has a complex web of relationships.

However, just as she was about to open the door, a large hand directly covered her mouth and nose from behind, then hooked her legs, lifting her whole body into a sudden dash!

"Muh? Wuwu wuwu wuwu wuwu!!! Wu? Wuwu wuwu wuwu wuwu!" Mikoto-nee went from shock to terror to fear, then, from the scent on her body and the calluses on the man's fingers, realized who it was, and angrily pounded Uesugi Muneyuki's chest with her fists.

You scared me to death!

Just like that, Ishihara Mikoto was directly "kidnapped" to Sakata Bridge.

That night, in the tower of Sakata Bridge, a grand New Year's Eve feast officially opened its curtains.

On the spacious wooden dining table lay dark-colored tablecloths with subtle patterns or simple designs; Minami carefully chose a bunch of narcissus flowers as decoration, occupying the center of the table was a four-tiered exquisite lacquerware stacked box, the box itself was steady black, with deep red and matte gold edges, a modern design—one glance tells it's a Mitsukoshi product, each layer tightly fitted, the unveiling ritual full of ceremony.

Uesugi Muneyuki, Watanabe Minami, Ikeda Erena, Ishihara Mikoto, and Saito Asuka five people stood before the table, the TV playing the Kohaku Uta Gassen, Mai Xuejie was hosting, a small stack of mirror rice cakes piled beside the TV, the wall hung with New Year scrolls, Uesugi Muneyuki personally wrote eight characters "Seiwa Jinwa" and "Kin'ga Shinnen," his excellent calligraphy made Minami also praise him.

Joke, Uesugi Muneyuki is the one who got a perfect score in the Japanese language proficiency exam hosted by the Ikebukuro Police Station under the Metropolitan Police Department!

The indoor soft lighting and the sound of warm air created a cozy comfort; the lingering sunset dyed the western sky pink-purple, the outline of Tokyo Tower gradually lit up with warm orange lights in the twilight, city lights began to shine, countless office windows lit up with scattered stars, traffic on the roads formed flowing rivers of light, distant Tokyo Bay's water surface reflected the city's lights.

The world outside the window was vast, cold, yet full of vitality; the world inside the window was warm, exquisite, a harbor filled with food aromas and soft laughter.

"Ready to eat!" Minami Ojou-sama glanced at the time, it was about right, she smiled with narrowed eyes and lifted the lid of the osechi stacked box on the table: "Clang clang clang~ New Year's blessings, may the whole family rejoice~"

"Congratulations on the New Year!" Saito Asuka was the most excited, the girl jumped and bounced, celebrating that she had grown another year older.

Ikeda Erena's expression was still okay, while Ishihara Mikoto's looked a bit strained, thinking: How come it's New Year again, and I'm another year older!

"Congratulations on the New Year! Today, no matter what, everyone eat and drink heartily!" Uesugi Muneyuki opened a bottle of Dassai and laughed.

This year differs from past years; Minami's addition instantly elevated the New Year's Eve feast, one box per person, the four-tiered lacquerware stacked box filled with various delicacies.

The first layer: black beans, herring roe, dried small sardines, red and white fish cakes, Date-maki, roasted chestnuts, salmon kelp rice balls.

The second layer: teriyaki cold fish, lobster shrimp bake, high-grade sea bream bake, eel bake, large slices of Matsuzaka beef.

The third layer: Chikuzen-style simmered chicken, eight taro roots, ginseng burdock dish, fatty fish liver.

The fourth layer: various domestic vegetables, scallops, Hokkaido tiger prawns, and an entire pine needle crab.

The luxury of this meal—let alone others, even Uesugi Muneyuki felt it was a bit too extravagant: "This meal alone for five people must have cost at least 150,000? 200,000?"

"200,000?" Minami Ojou-sama solemnly shook her fingers repeatedly, laughing brightly: "The answer is,

The cost of preparing this meal is approximately zero!"

"???" Erena, Mikoto, and Asuka all showed puzzled expressions.

"It's simple—none of these ingredients required us to spend money to buy them; they were all given by others." Minami Ojou-sama placed her hands on her hips: "Half came from her father, a small half from other enterprises and related parties, for example, domestic eel was sent by that manager of Nomura Bank, grilled sea bream was sent by the Executive Director Sato of Mitsui Sumitomo, Matsuzaka beef was sent by Okada Brother, eight taro roots were sent by the Date Clan of Uwajima, burdock was sent by the Kai side!"

"All 'no need to spend money, hehehehe'" Minami Ojou-sama laughed brightly, laughed arrogantly: "Even the rice, I brought it from home, hahaha 'all police headquarters nationwide send rice to Gotokuji, our homegrown Akitakomachi rice we can't finish eating, so we don't need to buy rice!'"

Follow this young lady, and you'll eat nine meals in three days!

Forever follow the great Omitaidokoro Watanabe Minami! Ikeda Erena and Saito Asuka's eyes sparkled with a click, how dark Japanese society is! Ishihara Mikoto smiled faintly, also expressing compliance, she of course enjoys luxurious indulgence and exquisite living, now it seems joining Uesugi Muneyuki isn't bad.

Only Uesugi Muneyuki watched as Minami had already unified the realm in her own home, shaking his head repeatedly with a wry smile.

There's an old German saying: the magistrate who ruins families, the governor who exterminates clans.

Dream of the Red Chamber truly does not deceive me, in this East Asian environment, money is actually the most useless.

Wealth and nobility, only with nobility comes wealth, without nobility, wealth is generally not preserved, one might just be taken by deep-sea fishing.

Father each year alone needs to prepare two or three million yen in gifts, while Watanabe Eiji is solely responsible for receiving gifts,

This is even without him especially demanding or being particularly greedy, just the annual festival gifts alone require his family to have a warehouse to store them.

"Wait a moment, wait a moment~" Seeing Ikeda about to pick up her chopsticks, Minami Ojou-sama immediately called out to her: "Today we can enjoy osechi cuisine here, share fine wine and savor delicious dishes, all because in a series of major cases, critical cases, and key cases amid difficult circumstances, we made the most accurate judgments, leading us to one victory after another thanks to Uesugi Shougenshou!"

"Come, let us raise this cup to bid farewell to the old year and welcome the new, let us together wish Sōsetsu, eternal health and victory, happy new year!"

"Eternal health and victory, happy new year!"

Just like that, amid the New Year's ringing bell chimes, the Uesugi Era's second year ended, the third year officially began.

As for what happened that night in Sakayabashi, it need not be spoken to outsiders, only knowing that Saito Asuka the next day full of grievances did cleaning, and even had to wash the ceiling.

With the arrival of the New Year holiday, January 2nd, Uesugi Muneyuki also officially prepared to meet with Mai Xuejie.

Kurosawa Shrine trip, begins!