Chapter 699

Uesugi Muneyuki received the news that Kenshin's remains had been stolen on his way back.

Shirakawa Mai's Mercedes-Benz 660 was like a silent black arrow, cutting through the darkness of the winter night.

The car interior was warm and cozy, the faint scent of high-grade leather intertwining with the elegant gardenia perfume on Shirakawa Mai.

Her fingers gripping the steering wheel were fair and slender, her nails a healthy pale pink, her profile beautiful in the soft glow of the dashboard, her long eyelashes occasionally fluttering lightly, her gaze focused on the road conditions, yet she would unconsciously glance at the man in the front passenger seat.

Muneyuki is so cute, I want to ride him!

Indeed, the junior is the cutest when solving cases and after solving them!

At this moment, Uesugi Muneyuki was resting with his eyes closed, the fatigue from days of travel leaving faint traces on his face, but that deep-seated calm had not receded; Shirakawa Mai silently calculated in her heart: upon returning to the hotel in Yonezawa, the four-person New Year's Eve feast she had prepared in advance and booked from the high-end restaurant should just have arrived, and there was also that bottle of clear-tasting daiginjo sake he might like…… Perhaps, they could temporarily forget the bloodshed and strangeness of these two days and enjoy a quiet night just for them.

Asuka's battle attire had already been prepared…… Ashura Rei's moment had finally come!!

This thought made her grip on the steering wheel tighten slightly, a hint of secret anticipation and warmth rising in her heart.

Just then, Uesugi Muneyuki's phone placed in the armrest box began to vibrate violently, breaking the tranquility in the car. He opened his eyes, glanced at the caller ID showing the current chief priest of Uesugi Shinai, possibly a distant relative from several generations ago who had long since fallen outside the five degrees of mourning.

"Hello?" His voice carried a hint of hoarseness from fatigue all day.

From the other end came his paternal uncle's panicked, almost incoherent voice, in the quiet car cabin, even Shirakawa Mai could faintly hear fragmented words like "unprecedented", "treasure vault", "Kenshin Kō's ancestral bones", "missing", "empty as can be".

Shirakawa Mai's heart also tightened.

Kenshin Kō's remains stolen? In this troubled autumn, this is undoubtedly adding insult to injury, and may even trigger massive internal family upheaval and external questioning of the shrine's management capabilities!

And, the New God's bone ash…… earlier at An Tadomi's side……

She looked worriedly at Uesugi Muneyuki.

Oh no! Have we fallen for the feint to attack elsewhere tactic?

Could it be that someone took advantage of our absence while handling the case…… to steal the New God's bone ash?

However, Uesugi Muneyuki's expression showed no change at all, not even a twitch of his eyebrows.

He listened as his extremely distant paternal uncle on the other end anxiously asked, "How will we handle New Year's visits now?" "Should we immediately report and seal off?" "Muneyuki, you are the blood of the main line and also a capable person on the police side, quickly come up with an idea!", only after the other party finished speaking breathlessly did he say in his consistently steady tone, even somewhat overly flat:

"Uncle, calm down. It's a small matter."

"Small, small matter?!!" The voice on the other end suddenly rose: "Kenshin Kō's ancestral bones are missing and it's still a small matter?!"

"This is about ancestors! Ancestors' matters are all major! How did Kunisada Kuninori teach you? That is Kenshin Kō's ancestral bones! 」「I don't care what you say, Muneyuki, you better have a plan! 」

"Well, I know." Uesugi Muneyuki responded, as naturally as saying what to eat for dinner: "Everything will temporarily proceed according to the original plan. The visitation process remains unchanged, the external explanation is just 'year-end inventory, some areas temporarily under maintenance', the Yamagata Police side should not be alarmed for now, I will handle it." "But, but……"

"No buts. Do as I say, uncle. Stay calm, keep the people in the shrine steady. I will contact you soon."

Uesugi Muneyuki's tone carried an undeniable certainty, and after speaking, he simply and cleanly hung up the phone.

His facial muscles twitched a few times, as if he were suppressing laughter.

The car cabin returned to silence, only the low, steady hum of the engine.

Shirakawa Mai could no longer hold back, she slightly furrowed her beautiful brows, turned her head, her clear, bright eyes filled with surprise and doubt: "Muneyuki? Kenshin Kō's remains stolen, this…… this how could it be a small matter? You…… do you have any leads?"

Shirakawa Mai thought the matters of the inner world were major!

The New God's bone ash being stolen is no joke!

"Don't panic, everything is under our control." Uesugi Muneyuki put his phone back in place, adjusted his sitting posture, and looked out the car window at the rapidly retreating snow scenery occasionally illuminated by the headlights. His profile appeared somewhat inscrutable in the alternating light and shadow.

"Indeed, it's not a big deal." He spoke slowly, his tone even carrying a hint of barely perceptible amusement: "Because it was me who did it.""Ah?!" Shirakawa Mai froze, her crystal-clear lips parting wide, even the Mercedes-Benz swayed once on the road.

"It was me, after I paid my respects that day, I took Kenshin Kō's ancestral bones out of the Buddhist shrine." Uesugi Muneyuki said casually with a smile: "Just took them out from the box in his grave."

"Eh?!" Shirakawa Mai's foot slipped again, nearly pressing the wrong pedal, she quickly steadied herself: "You, you what did you say? You took the remains away in advance? Muneyuki, when? How did you do it? The shrine people didn't notice? No…… why did you do this?"

A string of questions popped out like pearls from her rosy lips, matching her beautiful eyes widened slightly from shock, appearing especially vivid in the car's light and shadow.

Uesugi Muneyuki turned his head, looking at Shirakawa Mai's rare expression of pure surprise, stripped of the shrine maiden and celebrity halo, a fleeting trace of extremely faint, nearly like the success of a prank, glimmer passed through the depths of his eyes.

"The timing was when I went to 'see' him. As for the method…… enter through the front gate, open the box, take it out, put something else in, then close it, very simple." He spoke in the tone of describing standard laboratory operating procedures: "Shinai personnel usually only do simple cleaning and worship on specific days, they won't lightly open the ancestral bone casket for inspection, so it's normal they didn't notice."

"And at that time I said I wanted to pay respects to the ancestors, as the second son of the Uesugi clan, no one would object, I had them retreat so I could be alone for a moment, then…… when I came back, I just took the ancestral bones out, that simple." Uesugi Muneyuki couldn't help but laugh: "Of course, to avoid detection, I put some pre-prepared other things in, afterward hearing movement I discovered the cracked Date……""Put something else in?" Shirakawa Mai caught the key, her premonition growing stranger: "What did you put in?""Can't the Buddhist shrine be empty?" Uesugi Muneyuki spread his hands, with an expression of 'this is no big deal': "Oh, I used my own previously dispersed spiritual power crystal fragments, mixed with a bit of soil and incense ash from near the grave site, roughly shaped into a similar form and weight and put it back."

"You?! You're not afraid Kenshin Kō will jump up and beat your knees?" Shirakawa Mai stared blankly.

"Afraid of what?" Uesugi Muneyuki paused, added: "I did get Kenshin Kō's personal consent."

üの」

￥？？？」

p？？？？？」

Shirakawa Mai was completely stunned, she was first shocked that Uesugi Muneyuki dared to boldly swap his own ancestor's remains, then rendered speechless by his hardcore operation of making a counterfeit with 'spiritual power crystal mixed with incense ash and soil', and finally that sentence 'ancestor personally consented' was like a small hammer, lightly tapping on her common sense cognition, producing a crisp cracking sound.

She opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but found herself at a loss for words. The imagined tension, worry, anger at thieves, concern for subsequent troubles…… all got stuck in her throat, finally turning into a sigh, both annoyed and amused.

"Ue! Su! Gi! Mun! E! Yu! Ki!" She called out his full name syllable by syllable, her voice full of helplessness and a hint of laughing and crying: "You…… you what should I say about you? That is your family's ancestral spirit, the remains of a Warring States general! Not a laboratory specimen! How could you…… how could you……" She trailed off on "how could you" for a while, also unable to find the right words to describe his behavior combining extreme rationality, reckless daring, and a kind of near-blasphemous humor.

Kenshin Kō will chop you to death with one sword!

"Make full use of things, prevent risks." Uesugi Muneyuki said calmly: "Before, wasn't it always said someone was stealing and grave-robbing the New God's remains? I had thought of that earlier."

He said, pointing to his own black leather briefcase that looked ordinary but never left his side: "In here, properly stored in a special container."

Mai's gaze fell on that briefcase, imagining it contained not only case files and autopsy reports, but also quietly lying the bone ash of a generation's war god…… this absurd situation made her finally unable to resist, she raised her hand and lightly rested it on her forehead, letting out a low laugh.

The national female star's laughter was like clear water striking jade, echoing in the enclosed car cabin, dispelling the last trace of tension.

"Truly defeated by you……" She laughed while shaking her head, the corners of her eyes slightly crinkling, revealing infinite charm and indulgence: "Is this considered defying the ancestors' decision or protecting the ancestors' decision?"

"Didn't I say? I saw Kenshin Kō, Kenshin Kō permitted it!" Uesugi Muneyuki had to repeat: "You haven't heard? I wasn't missing for a period of time? That time I really saw Kenshin Kō, I went to Takamagahara! City of the Gods! In the pale great hall of the City of the Gods I saw Kenshin Kō! He acknowledged me…………hum~hum~hum~ah ah ah! Mai what are you doing!" When Uesugi Muneyuki said he really went to Takamagahara City of the Gods, Shirakawa Mai's radiant smile and leisurely expression on her face vanished instantly, she opened her mouth wide, one foot braked the Mercedes-Benz on the mountain road causing a heavy drift, her eyes full of shock and fear, while Uesugi Muneyuki was thrown about, screaming as he gripped the handle above:"What are you doing? Oh no

"Takamagahara? Muneyuki!! Are you serious? You didn't lie to me?"

"Why would I lie to you?" Uesugi Muneyuki rolled his eyes: "Didn't I say many times, Kenshin Kō really agreed? 」「No, I thought your so-called agreement was that kind…… kneeling in front of the grave stating your needs, the ancestral bones had no objection, the ancestral grave had no green smoke, that counts as ancestral tacit consent! 」Shirakawa Mai said in utter astonishment: "Now you tell me you went to Takamagahara? And actually spoke with Kenshin Kō?"

"Otherwise!" Uesugi Muneyuki then understood the other party initially didn't grasp his meaning, still thinking he was joking about making a decision against the ancestors.

"Immediately, tell the details!" Shirakawa Mai's eyes lit up.

"Let's talk later, hurry up and drive." Uesugi Muneyuki shook his head with a wry smile.

The car re-entered the expressway from the emergency lane, speed steadily increasing.

After the initial shock and helplessness passed, Mai Xuejie's heart gradually calmed down, and she began to blush with excitement.

This man always does this, resolving seemingly huge crises in the most unexpected ways, while also bringing himself great surprise, tooth sound.

She glanced at his calm profile, then recalled the late-night snack and sake she had prepared in advance at the inn, as well as this night when she could finally be alone.

Anticipation quietly crept back into her heart, mixed with trust in him and a hint of sweet resentment—this guy always makes heart-stopping things sound so casual, nearly ruining the "little plan" she had been brewing all evening.

"So, great risk prevention expert and one who communed with ancestors, honored guest of the High Plain of Heaven." Mai Xuejie turned her gaze forward again, but the corners of her mouth held a gentle, subtle smile, and her voice softened: "Has the 'official duty' been temporarily dealt with? Next, should we consider... arranging some 'private' schedules? I've booked something quite nice, oh."

"Ashura Rei... after tonight, you'll come of age! Eighteen years old~"

The implication in her words brushed the air like a feather.

Uesugi Muneyuki heard the words, his gaze withdrawing from outside the window and falling upon Mai Xuejie's exquisite and beautiful side profile, as if only now did he fully detach from the thoughts of the case and the remains.

He fell silent for two seconds, as if reloading the "private schedule" procedure, then gave an extremely slight nod.

"Nn." A simple syllable, yet it made the curve of Mai's lips rise even higher.

Today really is, double joy at the door, tooth sound!