Tokyo Unnatural Forensics

Chapter 588, The Fear of Falling from Social Class
As the Kimura family was escorted into a police car by the Nagano Prefectural Police, and the commotion gradually subsided, Uesugi Muneyuki and Watanabe Minami stood in the sunlight of Karuizawa. The surroundings were peaceful again, but there seemed to be a lingering scent of blood and desire in the air.

"A tragedy that began with greed and was catalyzed by fear." Uesugi Muneyuki calmly summarized to Minami, Erena, and the others, watching the departing police lights: "Kimura Eizo stole the wealth of the dead, and his daughter, Kimura Aki, in order to protect this stolen vanity, did not hesitate to kill a vibrant life, and ultimately destroyed herself as well. The law will judge their crimes, but what truly devoured them was the insatiable black hole of desire in their hearts."

After saying that, Uesugi Muneyuki frowned and glanced at Minami with a meaningful look, but also with no other choice.

Everyone experiences the fear of falling out of social class, especially in families like this.

Times have changed. As Grandpa Uesugi Kuninori said, since the advent of capitalist society, it has become difficult to pass down official positions, land, or wealth from generation to generation. Many former noble families are now doing worse than ordinary people. The Uesugi family has been a scholarly family for generations, and they can only maintain their influence by having their descendants pass the exams to enter various universities to teach. Grandpa's anxiety about Tokyo University was not relieved until both of his Uesugi brothers entered Tokyo University to take up positions.

Wasn't Watanabe Eiji the same? His father, Watanabe Kazuo, was the former president of the Japanese National Railways, and his uncle, Watanabe Takahisa, was the former Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare. Yet Watanabe Eiji could only rise to the rank of Superintendent General (if it weren't for him). As for Watanabe Minami... to put it bluntly, there has never been a female Superintendent General in the Japanese police force. At most, Minami could only reach the rank of Superintendent General. However, with him by his side, Uesugi Muneyuki dared to say that once Minami had accumulated enough experience, she would definitely be able to become a Superintendent General, or even a Superintendent General.

This kind of class anxiety is actually spreading in the hearts of the urban middle class and above. Judging from Kimura Aki's performance, Uesugi Muneyuki could sense that her abilities were probably not very good, so he was very afraid of falling into the social class. The more afraid he was, the more he wanted to prove that he deserved it, which led to various luxury consumption, parties and investments.

If what left-wing people want to do is take away all your resources and make decisions for you, then what right-wing people want to do is maintain a perpetual caste system below themselves and allow continuous upward mobility and advancement among classes above themselves.

As the saying goes, it's not the spending of the second generation that's scary, but their investments and divorces. The former is a bottomless pit, while the latter is a real percentage of damage.

Mizuki Yamashita knew that as an illegitimate child, it was almost impossible for her to fully inherit the Karuizawa villa left by her father. Even if she successfully inherited it, she would not be able to afford the inheritance tax. Even if she could afford the inheritance tax, she would not be able to afford the various property fees, municipal fees, land tax, and property tax.

In Japan, owning such a large villa is very expensive. Uesugi Muneyuki remembers many fools from a certain country across the sea being tricked by their local real estate agents into buying a villa in Sapporo, Hokkaido for 20 to 30 million yen. As a result, after a year, they didn't even live there for a month, and the property tax, municipal tax, property management fees, heating fees, and snow removal fees easily exceeded one million yen.

There are nearly 1000 million vacant houses in Japan, of which 300 million are listed for sale for 1 yen or can be moved into for free by registering. Guess why nobody wants them?

Therefore, she did not intend to take back her father's villa intact; she just needed money, she desperately needed money.

However, Kimura Aki was only willing to give her ten million yen for a villa worth hundreds of millions, or even less. The intense fear of falling into a lower social class drove her childhood friend to commit murder. Miss Yamashita hadn't expected this. Born out of wedlock, she wasn't that sensitive to wealth. After her father's death, she and her mother had endured a period of hardship, so she had less material desires. Could things be worse than her fainting from anemia and hunger and being reported to the police station?
What about yourself?
Uesugi Muneyuki found that he did not seem to have strong anxiety in this regard.

It's probably because he's been a human for the second time and has become much more indifferent to these things. Secondly, he really relies on the power of the inner world he possesses, and the outer world side isn't that important to him.

But what if one day I lose the power of the underworld? What if one day I can no longer easily trigger the Soul Contract, death flashbacks, and solve cases effortlessly? What if one day… then will everything I currently possess still be there?

Thinking about this, Uesugi Muneyuki gazed at the police car that had taken Kimura Aki away from Nagano Prefecture, and suddenly understood why Kimura Aki regarded him as a "traitor".

The man smiled slightly, as if he were from Bengbu.

It is said that men have a strong "id" need, that is, a deep desire for a woman to like him not for his money, appearance, power, ability, or even his dick. What they want is for a woman to like his "id," that is, to like him "as a person." In terms that everyone can understand, it is "kindness."

But how is this possible?

Love is the most selfless thing, but the conditions that give rise to love are the most selfish. Just as parental love is the most selfless thing, but the prerequisite is that you have to be their child.

So don't overthink it, I am who I am, and I am still me.

The tide rises on the Qiantang River, and today I truly am who I am!
Thinking of this, Uesugi Muneyuki felt the gloom in his chest gradually dissipate, and he breathed a long sigh of relief.

"Sōsetsu, what's wrong with you?" Just as Uesugi Sōsetsu was thinking, Minami looked at him with curiosity: "Why is your expression so serious one minute, tense the next, and then you suddenly burst out laughing? What are you doing?"

"It's nothing." Uesugi Muneyuki suppressed a laugh and said, "I was thinking, what would I do if someone suddenly appeared and said they had enough dirt on the main family to ruin its reputation?"

"Hey? Zongxue, what did you do wrong?" Minami smirked and looked at him sideways.

Could this guy have hooked up with another young female police officer in the Metropolitan Police Department?
Seriously? With Ikeda around him almost 24/7, how could this guy possibly hook up with other policewomen?
No, Zong Xue said "ruined and disgraced"... Could it be a policewoman and married woman?

That's impossible! Knowing he's my fiancé, who would dare to cheat on me, Kora!

If I find out, I'll be sent to Hokkaido!

Minami noticed that Uesugi Muneyuki didn't seem excited about solving the case; her mind was in turmoil. She didn't say much, only remarking, "If you really run into trouble, Muneyuki, remember to tell me."

"It's nothing." Uesugi Muneyuki nodded. "Alright, let's go back!"

"Okay, there's golf this afternoon!" Miss Minami said with a smile.

........................

At the same time, on the other side.

Tokugawa, the Imperial Household Agency Councilor, immediately returned and relayed everything to Maeda Toshisuke, the Grand Councilor of the Imperial Household Agency, and His Majesty inside the Imperial Palace. "Dr. Uesugi is a man of keen insight and relentless pursuit of justice. He protects not only the dignity of the law, but also social fairness and the order of the people's hearts. It is truly a blessing for the nation to have such a talented individual as its bulwark," the other party remarked calmly after hearing the report.

The phrase "national bulwark" quickly spread among the top bureaucrats in Kasumigaseki after Maeda Toshisuke conveyed it. This was not an official title, but it was a supreme recognition that carried more weight than any medal.

This signifies that Uesugi Muneyuki's position within the core of power has risen from a "technical elite" to a "pillar of the nation" safeguarding its foundations.

Maeda Risuke dared not delay and immediately relayed the news to Uesugi Muneyuki, who was visiting a golf course in Karuizawa as planned.

Uesugi Muneyuki was both amused and exasperated after hearing this.

A nation's defenses?

Uesugi Sōsetsu, courtesy name Kōbō?

When you're young, you don't understand him; when you grow up, you slander him; when you mature, you understand him; and when you're old, you become him.

Zeng Guofan, we miss you!

Are you kidding me? I want to be Sakikawa Nian's Sherlock Holmes, not Sakikawa Nian's Pol Pot!

I maintain order for my own benefit and ideals, not for your royal family or anything else!
But these were golden words, and Uesugi Muneyuki could only express his gratitude.

Maeda Risuke then emphasized that he hoped Uesugi Muneyuki and Watanabe Minami would attend the tennis practice on time the day after tomorrow afternoon, and that His Majesty would likely bestow a banquet, or at least add an afternoon tea party.

Uesugi Muneyuki didn't say anything; he had neither the right nor the reason to refuse.

The afternoon activity was golf, and the girls all changed into golf attire. Uesugi Muneyuki naturally changed into a Ralph Lauren golf outfit as well.

But just as he was changing his clothes, in the dressing room, a small, pure white, jade-like hand covered his mouth from behind, while another hand pressed on his lower abdomen, and a flash of light appeared.

"Check your spiritual energy reserves! Everyone who sees it gets a share!"

"Ugh! Ugh ugh ugh ugh!" Uesugi Muneyuki immediately knew who had come and screamed in despair.

Mai-senpai changed out of her previous dress and put on a tailor-made pure white golf tracksuit.

She wore a fitted short-sleeved polo shirt, the high-quality fabric highlighting her slender waist and beautiful bust. Her lower body was adorned with a classic pleated golf skirt, the hem falling perfectly above the knee, offering both ease of movement and elegance. The skirt featured a delicate brand logo on the side, showcasing her refined taste in the details.

What's most eye-catching are her long, straight, pure white legs.

Instead of showing her legs or wearing sports stockings as is typical in golf attire, she opted for a pair of ultra-thin, sheer white Wolford pantyhose. The stockings were made of an extremely thin material, clinging to her skin like a second skin, making her already fair skin appear even more radiant and translucent, presenting a near-perfect, flawless pure white glow.

The sheer design of the stockings made the skin texture of her legs faintly visible, shimmering with a delicate and soft light in the sunlight, like a thin layer of precious glaze applied to fine white porcelain. It retained the refreshing feel of sportswear while injecting an incredibly deadly sexy allure.

She wore a pair of professional white golf shoes, which harmonized with the overall white theme, making her look fresh and refined, like a snow maiden stepping out of the golf course, cold and noble.

"Hmm, looks like you caught quite a bit of blood from solving the case this morning."

Mai-senpai said with a wicked smile, grabbing Uesugi Muneyuki's head with both hands and turning him so that he was facing her, which also made his beautiful legs, which were covered in ultra-thin white stockings, appear more fully in his view.

Sunlight streamed through the locker room window, illuminating her legs and making her sheer white pantyhose appear to glow slightly.

She looked up and met Uesugi Muneyuki's gaze. In those cool eyes, there was a hint of shyness and flattery that was hard to detect, as well as a deep love and arrogance that only he could understand.

She didn't speak, but silently conveyed her question with her eyes, her long, thick eyelashes fluttering slightly.
Is something on your mind? Why didn't you tell me?

Uesugi Muneyuki chuckled, but still couldn't help stretching out his arms to hug his senior tightly.

He now understands the benefits of having a partner in the Otherworld.

"We should fight back, senior."

"I feel so too!"

(End of this chapter)