complex

page views:1 Publication date:2023-03-24

1.

Dapeng Construction's headquarters are located in Aoyama 3-chome.

The office building is an eight-story glass curtain wall building, its novel and modern design fully reflecting Dapeng Construction's booming performance and its continuous growth.

That morning, Shoko entered the counter to visit the company.

"Ah! Mrs. Tsuruta, Sales Manager Saito is waiting for you! Please go directly to the eighth floor to the meeting room!"

the receptionist said, pointing to the elevator.

Shoko must have spoken with Manager Saito on the phone before coming to the company.

Shoko entered the elevator and pressed the button for the eighth floor.

A week had passed since she returned to Tokyo from Sado! After that night in Sado, Manager Saito sent two young general affairs staff to the area to handle all matters related to the cremation and the transport of the ashes back to Tokyo for burial, all of which were handled by the company! Especially at the funeral, the president of Daipeng Construction... Washio Ryutaro actually attended in person, and a "company funeral" was held at the Aoyama Funeral Home

. Before Shoko could even figure out what was going on, the company had already held a grand and solemn funeral for Koyuki.

Shoko had come today to thank the company for its kindness.

Department Manager Saito was waiting for her in the reception room.

"Oh! Mrs. Tsuruta, it's really too much trouble for you!"

the department manager greeted her warmly.

"Not at all! We are so grateful for everything the company has done for us!"

she said, bowing deeply.

"Not at all! It's all what the company should do! We invited you here today because the company still has some paperwork to complete!"

the department manager said, inviting her to sit on the sofa directly in front of the table, where a white package was placed.

"What is this?"

"It's a small token of sympathy from the company, please accept it!"

"But I can't accept this! My husband has caused the company so much trouble, and I'm already very grateful that he received a company funeral!"

"Yes! That's only right..."

Saito said with some difficulty.

Behind Shoko's tone of expressing how much trouble she had caused the company, there was actually a hint of shame.

This "trouble"

was very different from the polite words she had used before.

It turned out that the 12 million yen in cash left in the safe at the Kamo Hotel in Ryotsu was the same amount that Tsuruta Kosuke had taken from the company. Therefore, the company did not consider Tsuruta Kosuke a suspect in embezzlement. The whole incident was only remembered as an affair between the bidding section chief and the female secretary.

Not only did the company not report the embezzlement to the police, but it also held a company funeral for him in the company's name, which made Shoko really not know how to express her gratitude.

“Actually…”

Saito adjusted the edge of his glasses, clasped his hands together, and gave a strange look. “We can look at your husband’s situation from two perspectives. First, since he’s a suspect in embezzling company funds, isn’t it strange that the company is giving him a lavish funeral? But on the other hand, while he did take company funds, they were eventually recovered in full. He can’t really be considered a suspect in embezzling company funds and absconding. Considering his hard work and contributions to the company, we, as his superiors, are truly heartbroken by this. Therefore, the company should hold a company funeral to express our sincere condolences! So there’s nothing strange about it!”

The department head tried to explain his intentions.

“I see, thank you so much!”

Shoko expressed her gratitude respectfully.

“Now, we need you to fill out some forms for labor insurance procedures and stamp and sign the pension withdrawal slip…”

Department Head Saito took out several documents from beside him, all of which were administrative procedures.

After signing and stamping the documents, and informing the company that the bank would automatically transfer the funds to her Azabu Bank account, Shoko finally completed all the necessary procedures.

"I'm so sorry to have troubled you to come all this way! If you need any help in the future, please don't hesitate to contact me, Saito. The company will do its best to assist you!"

Saito saw her out of the meeting room.

"Thank you so much!"

Shoko bowed repeatedly to the department head before the elevator doors closed.

After the elevator reached the first floor, Shoko stepped out and walked towards the building entrance. Once outside the office building, she stopped and looked up at the entire building.

A flood of emotions washed over her. Looking at this office building—the one where her father had worked for the Taiho Construction Company after retiring from the Ministry of Construction, and where her husband, Kosuke, had held a position for over a decade—standing under the blazing sun, it seemed to coldly disregard Shoko and the passersby.

That day, Shoko went to Ginza, aimlessly browsing department stores and clothing shops, buying some things, and feeling much better. She then wandered to a tea shop on Namiki Street, a place she hadn't visited in a long time, had some tea, and around 2 PM took the subway back to Azabu.

During this leisurely afternoon, she recalled her experiences of giving herself to others in Atami and Sado, and the sadness of loss, all of which made her realize she was alone, and she felt a strange loneliness.

Shoko got off the subway at Hiroo Station, walked out of the intersection, and headed towards Arisugawa Memorial Park near her home. She climbed the small slope on her left, reached the platform, and walked towards the park's pedestrian path.

In Arisugawa Memorial Park, the warm afternoon sun of spring bathed the air. Dense trees stood quietly, while tender saplings peeked out, creating a verdant scene. Water dripped from the cliffs into the pond, its clear sound filling the air. Shoko, having climbed to the platform, sat down on a bench.

The thought of living alone from now on filled her with loneliness, but the image of Tanizu Shohei's face suddenly gave her the courage to forget that loneliness.

Thinking back to that night at the Sado Hotel, amidst the turbulent waves, throwing herself into Tanizu's arms seemed like an inexplicable impulse.

The atmosphere that night made it easy to do impulsive things.

After resting for a while, Shoko stood up and walked towards the park exit behind her chair.

Suddenly, Shoko felt as if someone was watching her from somewhere. She turned around and saw sunlight filtering through the leaves and children running and playing in the square. She didn't see anyone watching her.

But as she turned back and continued walking, she still felt as if someone was looking at her. How strange! (Am I just being paranoid? No, someone must be watching me…) Shoko then hurried home.

2

“Oh! You’re Mr. Tanizu’s son!”

“Yes! My father received a lot of help from you during the Ministry of Construction era!”

“Speaking of help, I received more help! Because Mr. Tanizu is a senior figure! But you’re quite an oddball, the son of a politician, a graduate of Waseda University, yet you became a journalist and didn’t enter politics. That’s really rare! I’ve never heard of any other important person’s son becoming a journalist!”

“I’m sorry for my lower social status!”

“No, that’s not what I meant. I was just wondering about the nature of your work. It’s not like you specifically target the political and online communities, is it?”

That day, Tanizu Shohei arrived at an office in the Ministry of Construction in Kasumigaseki. Sitting at the other end of the large table opposite him was Tokuoka Kameo, who was busy lighting a cigarette with both hands. “I’m a politician of modest standing, you know! I can never quit smoking. Every time there’s a meeting about smoking bans, it’s incredibly painful…”

he said with a wry smile.

As the director of the Construction Bureau of the Ministry of Construction, he was considered quite unburdened by bureaucracy.

“Have you started construction on the cross-harbor highway in Tokyo Bay?”

Tanizu began to get to the point, taking out his notebook to take notes.

"Hmm! That's a project in the third district, not our province's work. I wasn't directly involved in that project!"

"But the Tokyo Bay development project, known as the Water Bay Project, is a major project attracting a lot of attention. Surely the director isn't completely indifferent to it?"

"Of course, I am.

I'm responsible for supervising the entire project, and each construction area reports its progress regularly, meaning I have the authority to approve it.

But we Japanese prefer developing amusement parks, like Disneyland now, and other parks are planned, making the Water Bay Project difficult to push forward."

Tokuoka said with a forced smile.

Tanizu quite agreed and smiled along.

The Japanese might be like a bubble economy! Just like Japan's economic structure, it's like a bubble economy.

The Tokyo Olympics, the Expo, the island redevelopment, amusement park development, and other economic development projects centered on the capital—everyone mostly shouts that these plans can expand domestic demand and revitalize the domestic economy! The true cause of death of Kosuke Tsuruta, who died in a car accident in Sado, remains unsolved. If it was indeed a homicide, then the police's continued investigation is the right direction. However, Inspector Moriyama has yet to provide any information, and Tanizu himself has been unable to uncover any clues.

Upon returning to Tokyo, Tanizu immediately launched an in-depth investigation into Tsuruta's involvement in the bidding and planning of the waterfront project before his disappearance.

The waterfront project, with a total investment of five trillion yen, was planned to develop Tokyo Bay into an international metropolis. Given the high-rise buildings and traffic congestion in Tokyo, coupled with soaring land prices, Tokyo Bay remains the only undeveloped area. The bay covers approximately 120,000 square kilometers and has remained undeveloped until the approach of the 21st century when this major development project was conceived.

The Tokyo Bay Bridge, a massive marine engineering project, has a total cost of 1.15 trillion yen. It is a world-class project, expected to take eight years to complete, connecting the Keihin and Keiyo industrial zones – a true "dream bridge

. "

In other words, it would be more accurate to call this project the "Conquer Tokyo Bay Project. "

If this development project ultimately fails to achieve its intended purpose, like the Seikan Tunnel, wouldn't it be a massive waste? Even if it connects Kawasaki and Kisarazu, it's impossible to predict the traffic volume it can handle, making it unpredictable whether the total investment will be recouped. Furthermore, it could damage the Tokyo Bay ecosystem. Criticisms like these are rampant. However, last year, the Cabinet swiftly approved the development plan and immediately began construction, hoping to boost domestic demand, revive the construction industry, revitalize national industries, and create more business opportunities. Therefore, this large-scale development project is a colossal undertaking.

Major construction companies all attach great importance to this project, which is massive and divided into many construction areas, each handled by a different company. Tsuruta Kosuke's company, Taiho Construction, is naturally also paying close attention.

However, Tsuruta Kosuke's connection to the Tokyo Bay Bridge project is not with the Tokyo Bay Bridge itself, but with the first phase of the Water Bay Project.

That project is the Tokyo Bay International Urban Renaissance Project, a redevelopment plan for the area where the Sumida River flows into Tokyo Bay.

This area was originally a lower-middle-class district known as ōkawabata, filled with warehouses and factories. The proposed development area stretches from the upper reaches of the Sumida River to the mouth of the Tsukushima River, covering approximately 330 square kilometers of Tokyo Bay. The estimated cost is over one trillion yen, with 21st-century commercial and cultural facilities as the main focus, and plans to build a jungle of skyscrapers reaching 120 meters in height.

The most anticipated part of this major project is

the massive circular intelligent tower, the "Central Renaissance Tower." Last autumn, the government publicly announced the project plan, dividing it into several construction areas and designating ten large construction companies to submit bids.

Dapeng Construction Company happened to be on the list of ten construction companies. After several rounds of intense bidding, they won the bid for 23 billion yen and successfully secured the project.

However, rumors circulated that the organization responsible for the bidding process, the "Kanto Suimeikai

," had been involved, suggesting that something was amiss, leading the District Prosecutor's Office to launch a secret investigation! But these were just rumors, and no evidence had been found.

Tanizu wanted to inquire about this, so he asked, "I've heard these kinds of rumors. Has the District Prosecutor's Office really found anything suspicious? Can you tell me?"

(There probably won't be any clues from this!) Tanizu tried various methods to find clues, and meeting with the Director of the Tokuoka Construction Bureau was one of them.

"I heard there was some lobbying during the Renaissance Project bidding process. Have you heard of anything like that?"

"Lobling? Hmm! That's illegal. I haven't heard of it!"

"I heard the people in charge of bidding at each company were initially embroiled in disputes, but later they negotiated a reasonable private price!"

"Your question is very ill-conceived. I absolutely refuse to answer these kinds of questions. I can only guarantee that Dapeng Construction Company won the bid fairly and squarely."

"So-called fair and square bidding is just a formality. The amount they negotiated privately beforehand already determined who would win, didn't it?"

"That shouldn't happen. I believe every company has its conscience."

Degang's expression remained unchanged.

"Then do you know about the death of the bidding section chief at Dapeng Construction?"

"Sigh! I heard he died in a car accident. He often walked around this office. Hearing this news is truly saddening and deeply regrettable!"

Degang said in a solemn tone.

"It seems like twice as many people are interested in this Renaissance Project tender as usual. I imagine the Director has had some close private conversations with certain individuals, hasn't he?"

"These acquaintances are mostly people I've met once or twice; there's absolutely no one-on-one meeting with anyone."

"Isn't Dapeng Construction in a bad situation? To secure this major Tokyo Bay Bridge project and create a good company record, they must have gone to great lengths to win this contract, right?"

Tanizu began probing from another angle.

"For such matters, please inquire within the industry! For our government agencies, we must comprehensively assess a company's track record, creditworthiness, technology, and enthusiasm before awarding the project to the most suitable company.

As for whether a company is in good shape or not, I am not directly in charge of that company, so I cannot comment on that issue!"

“But this time, even construction companies larger than Dapeng Company are bidding! There are six construction companies even larger than Dapeng, and their engineering backgrounds are top-notch; they should be the better choice!”

“I disagree! Dapeng Company has already undertaken several public works projects with excellent results and a good reputation. Even I agree with this outcome.” “That

’s true! But…”

Just as Tanizu was about to continue, the phone on Tokuoka’s desk rang.

“Excuse me!”

Tokuoka answered the phone.

He didn’t hear what the other person said, but Tokuoka immediately replied, “Yes! I’ll prepare the documents right away!”

After hanging up, he turned back to Tanizu and said, “Ah! I’m so sorry! It’s during a parliamentary session right now, I’m very busy. The Vice Minister just called to ask me to come over, so I have to excuse myself!”

3

…He sneaked into the izakaya! “Eh! Yunshangren?”

Tanizu poured beer into the other man’s glass.

“Is he that great? That Mr. Tsuruta?”

“No! That’s not what I meant!”

The young man downed his beer in one gulp.

"That's just the name of a room. Tsuruta often went into that place called 'Cloud Above,' hence the name!"

said Takehiko Kagawa, a young employee of Taipeng Construction.

Cloud Above is on the top floor of the Taipeng Construction building in Aoyama. This floor houses the president's office, the chairman's office, and a secret meeting room. This secret meeting room is not normally used; it's only used by a special secret team formed when Taipeng Construction is preparing to bid on large-scale public works projects or major projects, to develop winning strategies. The room is guarded by layers of secretaries, and ordinary company employees cannot access it.

That's its purpose.

Therefore, those who frequently enter and exit that meeting room are generally referred to as "Cloud Above People" by Taipeng Construction's employees

. Of course, these people are mainly the president, chairman, and permanent directors, so they are all people of status and position. However, for public relations work and data collection, some young bidding department staff also frequently enter and exit this meeting room, working with senior executives. Therefore, this title usually represents the "top-level organization

. "

Kagawa Takehiko, who explained the above to Tanizu, was an employee of the sales department of Taiho Construction.

Shoko's father, Tsuruta Shinzaburo, had also worked at Taiho Construction after retiring from the Ministry of Construction, and Kagawa Takehiko had been his subordinate at the time. Kagawa often visited Shoko's home in Azabu. So when Tanizu mentioned Shoko's name, he easily lured him to meet at a coffee shop on Omotesando that evening, and then invited him to an izakaya for a chat! He called this meeting a "memorial service for Mr. Tsuruta" for just the two of them

, to celebrate the passing of a former friend and colleague, and to talk about Tsuruta Kosuke's work and position at the company, as well as any tasks he had undertaken. Tanizu hoped to glean some clues from this casual conversation.

Kagawa, a junior employee at Dapeng Construction, is not the type of person who would disclose all the details of the company to a third party. However, he seems to have a good relationship with Tsuruta Kosuke, who died in Sado, so he also has some doubts about the cause of Kosuke's death. He tells Tanizu everything he knows about what he wants to know.

"So, was Mr. Tsuruta frequently going in and out of that room again, and becoming a member of the secret task force? Just before he disappeared?"

"This time it's not exactly a secret. This Renaissance project is related to the Water Bay Project, so everyone in the company is eager to win the contract."

"This Water Bay Project is a huge project! There must be many companies fiercely competing for it!"

"That's right, it's certainly attracting a lot of attention, and it's only just getting heated! I think there will definitely be even fiercer competition."

"But isn't Dapeng Construction the company with the first-choice priority for this project?"

"That's true, but our company put in a lot of effort, more energy than other companies, to get this contract!"

"Put in effort? How so?"

"While we're first-class, we're not top-tier. How could we have won this contract without putting in a lot of effort? Of course, we had to put in more effort to be confident of success!"

Kagawa's words implied that even construction companies vary in size. Dapeng Construction is a first-class company, but not a top-tier one.

Japan has 520,000 companies nationwide, with the construction industry being the largest sector. This prosperity is entirely due to the demand for construction talent in projects such as reservoirs, roads, bridges, high-rise buildings, military camps, and apartments. Other diverse construction projects also contribute to the booming development of the construction industry, even stimulating the growth of downstream industries. For example, pipeline engineering and air conditioning equipment projects require specialized technical personnel, thus creating opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Construction companies that possess departments related to construction, pipelines, and air conditioning can be considered large-scale construction companies.

Currently, only six companies are widely known and have an excellent reputation among large-scale construction companies: Shikakawa Construction, Daise Construction, Kumayama Gumi, Takenaka Construction, Zenmatsu Construction, and Omori Gumi. Shikakawa, Daise, and Kumayama are particularly renowned in the global construction industry, thus being referred to as the "Three Golden Chairs" of Japan's construction kingdom.

Taiho Construction, headed by Ryutaro Washio, is considered by these large construction companies to be at best a large-scale small-to-medium-sized enterprise, not a top-tier construction company.

Taiho Construction has sixteen subsidiaries, and Ryutaro Washio is the head of each! President Washio is sixty-eight years old this year, yet he still possesses the vitality of a young man. His life story can be described as a blood-and-tears tale of Tokyo's transformation from post-war desolation to its current status as a world-class international metropolis—a story that is not an exaggeration.

Mr. Washio was born in the coal mining region of Kyushu and graduated from a local old-style industrial school. Before he was even twenty years old, he founded his own company, Washio Construction.

Rather than calling him the president of a construction company, he would be more accurate to call him a "technician

.

" In other words, in the early stages of a small-to-medium-sized enterprise, the company relied heavily on

the skills of its "technicians. "

It was precisely because he possessed these skills that he was able to start his own business before he was even twenty, beginning by contracting public works projects from local governments, thus launching his personal enterprise.

However, due to World War II, he was drafted to serve in Southeast Asia. When the war was over and recovery was underway, major Japanese cities were in ruins due to wartime air raids. In light of this, he believed, "From now on, the construction industry will no longer be confined to rural towns; it should become the largest market and the center of the most construction projects, with Tokyo as the largest market!"

So, at the age of twenty-three or twenty-four, he gathered all the funds from his rural hometown and went to Tokyo alone to pursue his ambitious goals in the construction industry! Washio's vision and ambition were realized one by one.

He established Washio Construction in Arakawa Ward, later renamed Sagao Construction. In the capital city of 1948, it was a brutal, survival-of-the-fittest world of post-war reconstruction.

As a technician, Washio thrived, skillfully utilizing his talents to purchase materials, consolidate contracts with other technicians in the district, and jointly apply for construction rights for various public works projects. He even attempted to bribe officials in the Ministry of Construction and other central government departments, using illegal means to defeat competitors. What he most proudly recalled were the scars he bore from dealing with various shady characters, a testament to the survival strategies of the old-style Japanese construction industry.

When the capital finally regained order and the economy stabilized, and the construction industry transitioned to modern management practices, Washio Construction grew into a large corporation and changed its name to Taiho Construction. While not a top-tier company, it remained a core player in the construction industry.

"The president is that kind of person. You could call him the Tanaka Kakuei or Osumino Kenji of the construction industry—a top-tier modern entrepreneur.

For him, building a 120-story building in Tokyo Bay is child's play!"

Kagawa continued.

The beer had been finished sometime during the night, and "Unkai"

was a relatively affordable izakaya in Omotesando, with a coffee shop-like layout, and it was packed with young men and women! Amid the smells of grilled meat and fish, tobacco, and alcohol, Tanizu listened intently as another person described the life story of a prominent figure in the construction industry! "So, to be appreciated by President Washio and become a high-ranking official, Mr. Tsuruta Kosuke must be quite outstanding!"

"Since he's President Washio's confidant, he must be very outstanding, but Mr. Tsuruta doesn't seem to fit the category of outstanding people. Someone who specializes in shady dealings like him can hardly be considered an outstanding talent!"

"Shady dealings...? What?"

"To put it simply, in the construction industry, there are always people who conduct these kinds of private negotiations. Each company probably has several people in charge of this! They usually report directly to the president or chairman's office, but they don't actually do anything. Mr. Tsuruta is one of those people!"

"I see, he's a negotiator! And the content of these negotiations mostly involves illegal and other shady matters. Outsiders only think that every company needs to negotiate and communicate to gather opinions from many people in order to prevent collusion with other companies and to improve the company's system. But this is the first time I've heard of such a specialized department with dedicated personnel..."

Tanizu refilled his glass.

"May I ask you again? What do negotiators actually do?"

"Wow! Please forgive me! We don't know what they do either..."

"But you must know roughly what they do!"

"They probably do things like entertaining the contractors responsible for bidding projects, collecting relevant information, interacting with various companies, clearing channels, preparing bids, and making quotations—all sorts of trivial matters!"

"I see, they only do trivial things. In other words, very few companies have a bidding department!"

"Rather than saying very few, it's more accurate to say that only our company has

a bidding department!" This was an unexpected answer for Gu Jin. Among construction companies, only Dapeng Company had a bidding department.

The two main sources of work for construction companies were public works projects from government agencies and private contracting projects.

The proportion varied depending on the company's history and business strategy. However, even companies that focused on public works projects at a 60/40 or 70/30 ratio had their bidding and communication with government agencies handled entirely by the sales department or sales section; no company had a separate bidding department.

Furthermore, government agencies typically issue contracts to private companies through named bids. Despite the complexity of these processes, there's no dedicated "bidding department."

Similarly, agencies like the Construction Bureau, Highway Bureau, and Housing Bureau, which handle numerous tendering and bidding processes, also lack such

departments.

Gu Jin believes that construction companies likely have secret bidding specialists or staff, meaning these departments operate covertly.

Therefore, isn't it strange for a company to have a bidding department? This makes Dapeng Construction an anomaly in the construction industry! This is arguably Dapeng Construction's most notable feature, indicating its high dependence on government agencies and perhaps reflecting its ambition to become a top-tier construction company! "Since other companies don't have a bidding department or a bidding department head, Mr. Tsuruta is quite an unusual person. And the chairman's secretary… Funakoshi Kazumi, is quite an extraordinary woman. So, their elopement to Sado Island must have caused a huge shock within the company!"

"That's right, this news really shocked everyone in the company. Considering they're both from the same high-ranking family, the focus of the company's attention, doing something so outrageous is truly unbelievable!"

"But is the embezzlement really true? Mr. Tsuruta doesn't seem like that kind of person! He shouldn't be short of money!"

"Yes! Everyone in the company finds it unbelievable. But everyone thinks that because Mr. Tsuruta is a special case, he can use company funds at will. He's probably used to spending money, so he embezzled a portion of the funds for his own extramarital affair!"

"But the amount he embezzled is too large! Don't you find it strange?"

"I find it a bit strange, basically a bit hard to believe! Mrs. Tsuruta is so pitiful!"

Kagawa, having been a subordinate of Shoko's father, Shinzaburo Tsuruta, who served as a special advisor to the chairman's office and was responsible for drafting strategies for negotiations with relevant government agencies, was considered a junior to Tsuruta Kosuke. Therefore, he felt particularly sorry for Shoko.

"I always felt that Mr. Tsuruta and Kazumi Funakoshi's secret trip together was probably related to the follow-up developments of the waterfront project bidding. What do you think?"

"Follow-up developments...?"

"Like how the negotiation funds are allocated, how to prevent leaks, and so on..."

"You're making me wonder!"

Kagawa suddenly denied it strongly.

"But there are rumors circulating that this Renaissance Project case seems to involve a lobbying scandal. What are the company's opinions on this rumor?"

"Please spare me! I don't know whether the rumor is true or not. I'm currently in charge of another reservoir project!"

"I heard that the District Prosecutor's Office has also started investigating this case, so it shouldn't be a simple private negotiation! Hasn't the company found any clues about which company tipped them off, or whether there was any bribery?"

Tanizu asked, reasoning on his own. Kagawa hurriedly got up from his seat and threw a check ball to Tanizu.

"Don't bring that up again! This is an izakaya. First, I don't know anything about this, and second, there's no such rumor circulating within the company!"

"You're really well-defended!"

"Perhaps! I'm a model employee of Taipeng Construction, you know!"

Kagawa said, sounding somewhat angry and impatient. After a short while, he checked his watch and said, "Ah! I've arranged to meet a college classmate in Roppongi, so I'll take my leave now!"

Before leaving, he didn't forget to ask Tanizu Shohei to give his regards to Mrs. Tsuruta. It seems that Kagawa's willingness to chat with Tanizu Shohei for nearly two hours was entirely due to his friendship with Shoko and her father, which he reluctantly agreed to.

4

"Hey! What's wrong?"

A woman with a fair complexion leaned against Tanizu and said.

"What are you thinking about? You've been acting really strange today! You haven't had any energy at all since just now!"

"Sigh! It's nothing!"

Tanizu said, lying on the bed.

This was a hotel room in Dogensaka.

The woman was busy caressing Tanizu's lower body, but no matter how she caressed him, Tanizu's body didn't react much.

"Hey! What's wrong with you?"

The woman angrily hit his stomach.

The woman was Takagi Mika. After taking a shower, Mika came out of the bathroom and began to caress Tanizu with her skilled techniques, but to no avail, which made her a little angry.

"What are you thinking about? Since I asked you anything, you've just been 'uh-huh' or 'oh'! We haven't seen each other for so long, and you're still so cold!"

It took Tanizu a while to come out of his thoughts.

"Ah! I'm so sorry!"

He then picked Mika up from behind and pushed her down onto the bed. Mika immediately let out a soft moan and lay back.

Tanizu placed his hand on Mika's full, rounded breasts. The soft, rounded feel of these breasts against her slender body ignited a slight desire within him.

"I'm so sorry about earlier! I was just thinking about something!"

"What were you thinking about?"

"About Mr. Tsuruta!"

"Oh! I heard he died in a car accident in Sado. We were all shocked..." The "

we" she was referring to were probably

the employees of the Ginza club… the "dancers"! "Really? I think something's fishy, so I'm investigating!"

"Why is Mr. Shōhei so concerned about Mr. Tsuruta?"

"Because when I was in university, I stayed at Mr. Tsuruta's house in Azabu for four years. My father and his father were good friends, so I empathize with him, and that's why I'm so concerned about this!"

"But I heard that Mr. Tsuruta is a son-in-law who married into the family! You wouldn't have such a favor relationship with him, would you?"

"I'm talking about Mr. Tsuruta because it involves the Tsuruta family, so the object of my gratitude is the Tsuruta family!"

"Oh! I see! Mr. Shōhei, could it be that you have feelings for Mrs. Tsuruta?"

"No way!"

Tanizu and Mika lay on the bed together, his hand moving to Mika's fair lower abdomen, his fingers restlessly exploring the valley of the dense forest.

Because the caressing was quite brief, Tanizu was surprised that Mika's valley was already wet and waiting for his invasion, so he quickened the rhythm of his fingers in and out! "Ah... don't be so hasty!"

Mika said, but with the in and out of his fingers, she occasionally let out a soft moan.

"Your young body reacted immediately to stimulation, that's wonderful!" "Don't be so rough, be gentle..."

"What do you mean by 'be gentle'?"

"Don't use your fingers, use your...it's all over!"

"Hmm! But I want to exercise later, I have something to say..."

Tanizu shrewdly withdrew his wet fingers and gently stroked Mika's hair.

"After we met last time, did you ask Ms. Saori about Mr. Tsuruta?"

He had asked Mika to inquire about the whereabouts of the missing Tsuruta Kosuke, but Tsuruta Kosuke died in a car accident in Sado, so he thought Mika would take the initiative to tell him about the situation before and after Tsuruta Kosuke's disappearance.

"Oh! Saori is strange! She took leave after that day and never came to work again!"

Saori was the lady who always served Tsuruta Kosuke when he came to the store.

"Leave? When did it start?"

"Didn't we meet at the hotel a while ago? She hasn't come to work for several days since then!"

"Huh? That's more than a week!"

"Yeah! Even the madam seems worried!"

"That's strange! How could this happen?"

"I don't know either! I asked the madam, and she said Saori seems to be sick and isn't staying in the dormitory; she might have gone back to her hometown!"

Tanizu lit a cigarette, leaned back, and stared at the ceiling, deep in thought.

Was there any connection between Saori's disappearance and Tsuruta Kosuke's disappearance and death? But there was no evidence to prove whether there was a connection or not.

"Wow! You're so energetic right now!"

"Energetic? What do you mean?"

"Look how majestic you were when you were loving me! Even now, when you're thinking about this and that, you're still so erect!"

Mika leaned her face closer to Tanizu's lower abdomen again, grasped his hard erection with her fingers, and hungrily took it into her mouth, beginning to suck and lick it, which made Tanizu let out an excited growl.

"You're really skilled. Where did you learn that?"

"Oh! I created it myself and studied techniques from various videotapes!"

"Your move is unbeatable!"

"Don't talk nonsense!"

Suddenly, Mika turned her face away, stopped what she was doing, as if she had remembered something. "I remember!"

"What did you remember?"

"Saori's matter! I forgot to mention it!"

"Hmm! What matter?"

"Didn't you ask me to ask about him? So even though Saori wasn't here, I still asked the other ladies about Mr. Tsuruta and Saori.

They told me that before Saori disappeared, she said something strange, like, 'It's all Mr. Tsuruta's fault for causing me so much trouble. A strange man is following me and forcing me to hand over the things Mr. Tsuruta entrusted to me!' I heard that this is absolutely true!"

Things entrusted to Tsuruta Kosuke? An unknown man followed her and threatened her to hand over those things? Hearing these words, Tanizu's mind suddenly cleared.

"Hey? Is that all you can think of?"

Mika's pupils shone.

"Stop thinking about it!"

Mika turned her head coquettishly, looking at Taniguchi's face, seducing him with alluring charm. Her fair and delicate skin, her hair cascading over her shoulders—Mika was undeniably sexy! Taniguchi realized this.

He suddenly understood that his lack of reaction to the beautiful sight before him was entirely due to his own preoccupation.

(That's right! That's it! He must have been thinking too deeply!) But Shoko's image kept swirling in his mind, making him unable to muster any energy.

However, lust was currently overriding reason; men are easily impulsive creatures.

Even though he loved Shoko, the desires in his lower body would generate lust for other women he didn't love, and lust was one of life's greatest pleasures.

So he moved his face between Mika's legs and began to lick that moist valley.

"Ah!"

Mika moaned loudly.

Hearing her voice, Tanizu worked even harder, his tongue trembling as he sucked on the sweet love juice.

"I...I want it so badly...hurry...come on!"

So Tanizu adjusted his position and forcefully buried his throbbing member deep inside the woman.

Mika breathed and moaned excitedly, making Tanizu thrust in and out even more vigorously, until finally the two reached the peak of pleasure!

5

...The next morning, he woke up at 9:30! After a night of passion, Tanizu finally returned to his dormitory in Kichijoji.

The phone on his bedside table rang, startling him awake.

"Hello! Tanizu!"

he answered, still half-asleep.

"This is Moriyama from Aikawa!"

It was Sergeant Moriyama from Sado calling.

"Ah...Mr. Moriyama! I'm so sorry to have troubled you the other day. Have you found any clues yet?"

Tanizu quickly sat up in bed.

"We still don't have any major leads, but we've found two or three new small clues. I want to tell you about them, and then I'd like to ask you for a favor!"

Before Tanizu returned to Tokyo, Moriyama had arranged for the two of them to investigate simultaneously, and if they found any clues, they would contact each other by phone.

"Okay! What is it?"

"First, it concerns the whereabouts of Mr. Tsuruta Kosuke and Ms. Funakoshi Kasumi. The night before the accident, they stayed at the Kamo Hotel, but their whereabouts were unknown before that night. Until yesterday, we filtered through the passenger list of the Sado steamship passengers for the week before the accident, and discovered that the two of them arrived on the main island two days before the accident, on the Daisado, which departed from Niigata at 3:45 PM on April 6th!"

Moriyama reported.

The reason it took so long to find the information was entirely because the two rented a car on the island, forcing the police to investigate their whereabouts from the car rental place, and even trace their movements towards the steamship.

It turned out that the two already owned a car, and even traveled to Sado with that car on the large Daisado, Moriyama explained.

"He clearly has a car! Why would he need to rent one in Sado? That's strange! Where did his own car go?"

Tanizu asked.

"Yes! That's really strange! We checked the car that boarded the Sado with them; it was a black Mercedes-Benz limousine. Because it's a very high-end car, the crew remembered it very clearly. They remembered that the driver was Nashimoto Tadayoshi, and he was also listed on the passenger list. Therefore, Tsuruta Kosuke and Funakoshi Kasumi specifically drove Nashimoto's black limousine from Tokyo and Atami to Niigata, and then boarded the Sado to the main island!"

"So, after Tsuruta Kosuke and Funakoshi Kasumi arrived on Sado Island, they decided to rent a car. In other words, Nashimoto, the driver, had other plans!"

"We think so too, because Nashimoto left almost no trace on Sado. The Sado, which the three of them were on, arrived in Ryotsu at 6:05 PM that evening, which is around 6:00 PM.

But Nashimoto Tadayoshi's name didn't appear on the hotel list where Tsuruta and Kasumi stayed, nor on the accommodation lists of any hotel on the island..."

"Could he have used a false name to check in?"

“We’ve ruled out that theory, because people like Tsuruta and Kasumi would need to use aliases for their secret, illicit trips, but there’s really no reason for Nashimoto to use one! It’s very strange what happened in between!”

“Who exactly is this Nashimoto?”

“Yes! That’s what we suspect and are eager to know, so we’d like your assistance in investigating whether there’s someone named Nashimoto Tadayoshi around Tsuruta Kosuke and Funakoshi Kasumi.” If

the man named Nashimoto works for Tsuruta’s company, Moriyama should be able to find out from the phone call. However, Moriyama probably considers that everyone currently believes the car accident was caused by the illicit trip, and it doesn’t seem like a homicide at all, so he can’t openly launch a formal investigation.

“I understand!”

Tanizu replied immediately.

But Moriyama continued, "There's one more thing I'd like to ask for your help with. I need to get photos of Mr. Tsuruta Kosuke and Funakoshi Kazumi from when they were alive. It doesn't have to be headshots or casual photos. Please send them to me once you have them, okay?"

"Photos?"

"Yes! We want to find out which places on the island they visited, but we have no clues because they don't have any photos of them sightseeing! If you send us photos, we might consider officially investigating this case as a homicide!"

After hearing this, Tanizu immediately agreed to help him find them.

"I'm sorry! Asking you to get the photos from Mrs. Tsuruta might cause her some anxiety, so I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to reassure her!"

"Don't worry! It's an honor to be asked to do something by the police.

Are there any other leads?"

"Oh! There's someone else we don't know if connected to the car accident victim. On the night Mr. Tsuruta and his group stayed at the Kamo Hotel, there was also a single woman from Tokyo named Ikuko Umetani staying at the same hotel. She was quite conspicuous because she was wearing a red coat, but she seems to have vanished after the accident. Her name isn't on the passenger list for the Sado-Niigata ferry, so she might have met with some misfortune!"

"It's rare to see women traveling alone these days!"

"Yes! But we're wondering if she might have taken another route, perhaps starting her journey by raft from Naoezu and camping out, or staying at a temple to continue her travels!" "

Perhaps that's true!"

"Alright! Let's clarify these questions first. For example, since they already brought a large limousine to the island, why did Tsuruta and Kasume need to rent another car? And who exactly is that driver, Nashimoto, and where did he disappear to? Also, where were Tsuruta and Kasume on the island before April 8th? What were they doing?"

"Thank you for your hard work! I'll quickly get the photos and then go ask Nashimoto. If I have any answers, I'll call you right away!"

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