Tokyo Unnatural Forensics

Chapter 69, Tempura in the Rain

PS: 2025 is here, and Tianzi would like to wish everyone a happy new year. This update is the one that will be added for the 2000 monthly tickets as promised. The remaining two updates will be posted tomorrow afternoon and tomorrow evening. Tianzi always keeps his word.

[Brother Uesugi, your so-called tower is just average. ]

The spirit of Fuji TV anchorwoman Hironaka Mariko wandered around the house. While Uesugi Sosetsu was directing the movers to put away the furniture, she bluntly commented on Uesugi Sosetsu's living environment: "You keep talking about the nobility all the time, but in the end you are just an ordinary employee living in an ordinary tower on the 18th floor. You are really the same kind of people, the port boy and the nobility man!"

[If living in the tower is considered an ordinary member, Ms. Hironaka, your requirements for ordinary members are a bit high.] Uesugi Sosetsu replied unhappily.

The monthly rent of this 18-story tower in Sakatabashi, Bunkyo-ku, is about 30 to 35 yen, and the monthly property and water and electricity fees are about 5 yen. Assuming that the rent and property expenses should not exceed one-third of the monthly income, the owner's net income must be at least 100 million yen per month to afford to live there.

And these men are just "ordinary members" in the words of Mariko Hironaka.

Generally speaking, in Tokyo, if a marriage relies solely on the man earning money and the woman being a housewife, the man's annual income must be at least six million to live a decent life. This is also the minimum requirement for the man's income when many women plan to be housewives after marriage.

If the man's annual income can reach more than 10 million, then the configuration of a single-income housewife is very comfortable, and this is also what most Japanese women expect. If the husband's income reaches this level, and he goes out to spend money on wine and women and find a lover, as long as he does not bring him home, the wives will basically choose to be patient.

Ten years later, the University of Tokyo and official agencies conducted a survey on more than 10 randomly sampled high school girls in the Kanto region and found that more than half of the women dreamed of getting married and becoming housewives after graduation, which was an overwhelming majority compared to those who wanted to go out to work. Everyone wanted to marry a husband with an annual income of tens of millions after graduation, and at the very least, an annual income of six or seven million was the bottom line.

Unfortunately, let alone earning tens of millions a year, it is very rare for Japanese men to earn six million a year when they are around 30 years old, which is the right age for marriage. This situation was more common during the golden age of the bubble economy, but it does not mean that it will be like this later.

This has formed the culture of "older man and younger wife" in Japan, where a large number of regular employees in their thirties and women in their early twenties have become husband and wife.

[What a joke, I already make 600 million a year, if my husband can't make million then why would I marry him? ] Hironaka Mariko said as a matter of course: [Does your income compare to mine? And this policewoman, can you afford the rent together? ]

Uesugi Sosetsu no longer paid attention to this ghost anchor, he thought to himself, it's true.

This tower building is of average middle-class standard and is not particularly luxurious. Most of the truly wealthy elites live in large flats on the 30th floor or above of the tower, or in garden houses like the Uesugi family, or in more modern villas (luxury villas).

But Uesugi Sosetsu was already very content.

The new home was simply divided into some areas. The standard 3LDK tower was obviously for a family of three. The guest room at the entrance was simply arranged, the living room was empty and lacked many things, and Uesugi Sosetsu's own master bedroom was only placed in a single bed and also seemed a little empty. It took about two hours for Uesugi Sosetsu to get the moving company to move all the things.

"Finally done!" Sitting on the big sofa in the living room, feeling the sunlight coming in from the French windows on one side, Uesugi Sosetsu pulled Ikeda Erina to sit down and said with a smile: "How is it? This house is not bad, right?"

"Well, it's okay." Ikeda Erena bit her lips and blushed. She pinched the edge of her skirt and sat down carefully next to Uesugi Sosetsu. After visiting Uesugi Sosetsu's new home, the tall beauty's breathing was a little hot. She pressed her legs together tightly, like a sprouting spring bud, and had a premonition that Uesugi Sosetsu might plan to...

"There are still a lot of things missing at home, Master Erina, do you want to give me some suggestions?" Uesugi Sosetsu looked around and said casually. He was in a good mood after moving into a spacious and bright new home.

However, the tall beauty did not answer his question immediately. Ikeda Erena just felt that the two of them were a little close. Even though it was almost October and the temperature in Tokyo was going to drop, the two of them sat on the sofa together, almost touching each other as they talked. She smelled the pleasant pine scent on the man, listened to his pleasant voice, and the air was slowly warming up under the heat of the conversation.

The velvety soft pantyhose wrapped around my legs didn't seem so uncomfortable.

Being with him, everything seems to be happy.

But... looking at the superior environment around her, looking at the man's new home, looking at his hesitant expression and his winking expression at her, Erina began to hesitate.

He was probably going to confess.

Is it really okay to agree to his confession? Is being a housewife really what she wants?

No! This is not the reason why she went to Beijing! This is not the reason why she insisted!
The shyness in her heart was suppressed with her more resolute will and belief, and Erina's mood gradually calmed down. Even though she was happy about this situation and even though she liked being with him, she still exhaled a hot breath and whispered: "Uesugi, that..."

"Hmm?" Uesugi Sosetsu indicated that if he had any opinions, he could raise them.

"Although it's a bit excessive, I don't want to resign." Ikeda Erina blushed and said embarrassedly: "I still want to continue doing this job."

Uesugi Muneyuki: "???"

A series of question marks appeared above the man's head.

Is your answer related to my question?
"I'm sorry, Uesugi-kun, I don't want to think about so many things right now. You know, we martial artists will easily become lazy if we don't keep exercising." Ikeda Erina continued. Seeing Uesugi Souyuki's expression stagnant, she felt even more ashamed. She lowered her head and said in a somewhat confused tone: "So, can we maintain the status quo?"

"Maintain the status quo?" Uesugi Sosetsu was even more confused. There were so many things missing at home, but you wanted to maintain the status quo?
"I'm sorry, I'm really sorry." Erina suddenly added, her pretty face full of shame. Seeing that Uesugi Sosetsu's expression was still not very good, Erina slowly moved to his side, her body shaking, and the huge and full chest also shook with it. The tight and slender legs wrapped in black stockings were simple and plain, but they complemented each other. The miraculous body composed of a firm chest, full buttocks and a slender waist was fully displayed in front of Uesugi Sosetsu.

The blushing Erina, with her heroic short hair and pale yellow skin, is very cute without her aggressiveness: "In the future, I will show you. If it doesn't work, if you really want to try it, I can reward you occasionally... But I really don't want to resign, okay?"

"Sure!" Uesugi Sosetsu thought to himself, if you don't want to refuse, then don't refuse, but why did you agree to let me touch you?
Looking at the pair of long, straight and well-proportioned black silk legs under Erina's skirt, he couldn't help swallowing.

He had wanted to touch it for a long time.

Ikeda Erena responded softly and slowly raised her head. Seeing the look in Uesugi Sosetsu's eyes, the tall beauty exclaimed softly and immediately ran to the toilet: "Um, I'm going to the toilet!"

After saying that, a pair of long legs in stockings under the skirt disappeared at the bathroom door, leaving the man puzzled.

[What a greedy woman!] At this moment, Hironaka Mariko spoke up, and the ghost anchor looked in the direction of the toilet and couldn't help but exclaimed: [How can there be such a greedy woman? She wants both?]

[Ah? Wait, what does that mean?] Uesugi Sosetsu didn't understand at all: [Hongzhong, what on earth is she talking to me about? Do you understand?]

[Didn't you understand? Tsk tsk, as expected, Hong Kong boys and Chinese men are the same kind of people! ] Hironaka Mariko looked down on him, she made a face - because she was really a ghost, and this face was quite scary, she twisted her face into a hemp rope, all her facial features rolled together, and her two eyeballs popped out of her eye sockets and then retracted: [She thought you were going to confess to her. ]

[Originally, an unmarried man took an unmarried woman to his new home and asked her what she thought of the home decoration, which was a strong confession hint. And this woman is really greedy. If I was 23 years old and a full-time male employee living in a tower confessed to me, I would definitely agree. ] Hironaka Mariko complained: [Why is she so confident even though she is so ordinary? ]

[Wait, when did I want to confess to her?] Uesugi Sosetsu understood as soon as he heard the explanation, and his brows furrowed: [According to you, Ikeda thought I wanted to date her?]

[What else? ] Hironaka Mariko laughed, she also understood.

[I never wanted to date her from the beginning, she must have misunderstood.] Uesugi Munen had completely understood at this point, he didn't know whether to laugh or cry: [How could I date her with the intention of getting married? She's not even a career partner!]

[Then why are you trying to please her so much? ] Hironaka Mariko looked down on her: [Hypocritical man. ]

[Who told you that relationships must lead to marriage? Have you ever thought about getting married with President Kameyama?] Uesugi Sosetsu replied rudely: [Representatives of the production board, directors, screenwriters, and Johnny's superstar Nakai, did you sleep with each of them with the intention of getting married?]

[Tsk!] Hironaka Mariko was speechless after being refuted by Uesugi Sosetsu, so she simply changed the subject: [In short, this is a greedy woman, do you understand?] Uesugi Sosetsu understood.

To put it bluntly, Ikeda Erena wants to maintain her current partner and ambiguous relationship with him, but doesn't want to formally date him with the intention of getting married. She also wants to continue to be active in criminal investigation and not be a housewife, and doesn't want to be transferred to office work. She also doesn't want to lose her position by his side because she refused Uesugi Sosetsu and ended up not being able to be his partner.

In short, she wants it all.

The only thing she didn't expect was that Uesugi Sosetsu had never thought of dating her with the intention of getting married from the beginning to the end!
You think too much, Master Erina!

It's troublesome to touch a female civil servant! Not to mention a landmine gravity boss killer reporting crazy female Tyrannosaurus!
Don't worry, you can rest assured. I, Uesugi Sosetsu, will never consider marrying you. You can rest assured!

When Ikeda Erena came out, she found that Uesugi Sosetsu's attitude towards her seemed to have changed subtly.

I'm sorry... Erina felt very uncomfortable. She liked this man very much, but she was unwilling to give up her current career. She didn't want to be a housewife. She hoped to continue her life of upholding justice and punishing evil.

I'm sorry, Erina bit her lip and said silently in her heart, I'm too greedy.

"Let's go, let's go eat." Uesugi Sosetsu stood up and said with a smile: "I owe you the tempura last time, I'll return it to you at noon today. I know a great restaurant!"

"Ok!"

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

"welcome!"

After walking for about five minutes, Uesugi Sosetsu brought Ikeda Erena to a small shop that looked particularly old from the outside.

The store is located on the first floor of an old wooden building with a lantern and a sign hanging at the door that reads "Tenhachi Sake" and a series of katakana.

When they pushed open the door of the shop, an old voice came from inside. An old man with white hair and a youthful face and a white-haired old couple with turbans and slightly plump figures greeted Uesugi Sosetsu and Ikeda Erena with a smile.

"Let's go with the old recommended set menu. Order whatever is in stock today, and also a set meal with more rice." Uesugi Muneyuki is obviously a regular customer here.

"OK!" The old man smiled and made a very rustic OK gesture.

The old couple are both nearly 80 years old. They have been making tempura here for fifty years and are truly a pair of "tempura immortals" (no derogatory meaning).

"This is an old restaurant. If you didn't know, you would think it was an izakaya." Uesugi Munen introduced it to Erina, "Don't worry, the restaurant I introduce will definitely be delicious."

"Yeah, I'm looking forward to it." Ikeda Erina took a look and felt that the store was really narrow.

There is a kitchen bar at the entrance, and the kitchen is inside the long bar. The cabinets on the wall are filled with wine, bowls and chopsticks, and condiments. A little further inside are the stove and range hood, which are all old items and look like they are from the last century.

In front of the old man was a pot filled with black sesame oil, and next to it was a large box of breading powder.

On the other side was a tatami booth with cushions and a low table on the floor. There were two rows of price lists hung on wooden signs on the wall. A large TV was placed in the corner, which was playing a promotional program in which Shirakawa Mai was participating.

Because it was noon, there were not many people in the store, so Uesugi Soyuki and Erina chose seats by the window.

Rumble~
Suddenly, there was thunder outside, and while we were waiting, autumn rain came down in torrents.

"The customer is really lucky." The old man picked up a string of fried shrimp tempura from the sesame oil with his extra-long chopsticks: "Hey, this is today's fried shrimp tempura!"

The sound of rain mixed with the fresh smell in the air, the aroma of fried food and the crispy and delicious tempura shrimp, instantly made Ikeda Erina's eyes narrowed: "Delicious!"

"Don't be impatient, this is just an appetizer." Uesugi Sosetsu glanced at the rain outside, smelled the fresh air pouring in from outside the store and the aroma of sesame oil in the house, and said to the boss: "Boss, this is God's hint for you to change the oil!"

"What nonsense are you talking about, kid? I use a new pot of oil every day! If you don't believe me, just look!" The old man picked up the small pot half jokingly and half angrily, and then coated the next dish with flour: "The next dish is the choice of Lord Tokugawa Ieyasu!"

Although Erina didn't understand, Uesugi Sosetsu understood.

Sea bream tempura.

At the end of the Japanese Warring States period, the method of making tempura was introduced to Japan through Sakai Port, and this deep-fried delicacy began to become popular among the people. According to legend, Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first shogun of the Edo Shogunate, tasted it after being recommended by a merchant in Kyoto and found it delicious, so he bought several large fish at once and made tempura of them all for himself.

The result may be that because the old turtle's daily diet was very light and restrained, his body could not bear it and he suffered from enteritis or pancreatitis. The 75-year-old Tokugawa Ieyasu became a tempura glutton and died of vomiting and diarrhea.

This is of course just a historical anecdote and may not be true.

Another funny thing is that the origin of tempura may be "temple", because deep-fried food was introduced to Japan along with Christianity. At that time, the Japanese asked the Portuguese who ate deep-fried food during festivals what it was. The Portuguese thought it was a question about religious activities and answered "temple" casually, which was remembered by the Japanese as "tempura".

"Here, Lord Ieyasu also likes to eat sea bream tempura and fried shrimp heads!"

The old man brought the food in one after another, and fried and removed from the pan one piece at a time with long chopsticks.

“Mushroom tempura!”

“Eggplant tempura!”

Squid tempura, scallop tempura, sea urchin tempura, lotus root and shrimp tempura, sea eel tempura, monkfish liver tempura, seaweed rolled yam tempura, corn tempura, green pepper tempura.

Everything can be tempura.

Ikeda Erena had never eaten such authentic, complex food that was particularly to her taste. The tall beauty praised it the whole time and kept saying “Oh my”.

There were continuous rumbling and muffled thunders, and the heavy rain outside mixed with fresh air and moist water vapor poured into the house. There was delicious, sweet, slightly chewy and crispy tempura in his mouth, and Uesugi Sosetsu was by his side, chatting and laughing with him.

At this moment, Erina suddenly understood what happiness was.

This is the happiness she wants!
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(End of this chapter)