Forbidden Zone of Deception

Chapter 340 NHK Television

Saito's facial muscles twitched almost imperceptibly, and a complex emotion flashed in his eyes. The coffee cup he was about to bring to his lips froze in mid-air.

Several seconds passed before Saito seemed to suddenly come to his senses, abruptly slamming down his coffee cup with a soft "click."

He quickly put on a somewhat stiff, even perfunctory, smile and said with a forced laugh, "Ah? The most memorable one? Haha... Well, I'm getting old, I can't remember many things. They're all old stories, nothing worth mentioning, nothing worth mentioning..."

As he spoke, he stood up somewhat hastily and said, "Um... I still have some drafts to review, so I'll head over first. Don't think too much about it, just focus on your work."

After saying that, he left as if fleeing.

Reiko Asakawa stood there, stunned, a huge question suddenly arising in her mind.

Saito-senpai's reaction was so strange.

Lingzi had worked as a frontline reporter before, and had seen countless people. "Can't remember" was not her reaction. It was an almost instinctive avoidance and...fear.

What kind of topic could make a seasoned journalist with a wealth of experience remain so reluctant to discuss it even after so many years, to the point of... losing his composure?
……

At this time, the Nirvana team arrived at the NHK broadcasting center building in Shibuya.

The building stands tall in a bustling neighborhood, a magnificent and modern structure. The enormous NHK logo gleams in the sunlight.

They entered the hall, which was spacious and bright. Most of the staff members were dressed appropriately and walked briskly. The air was filled with an atmosphere of efficiency, rigor, and invisible pressure.

Jiang Jin looked at the posters of classic programs and award certificates hanging on the wall, which silently told the glorious history of this NHK broadcasting company.

Jiang Jin and his group mingled among the visitors and staff and entered the lobby. However, getting into the office area was not so easy.

"Kong Huaizheng, it's up to you now," Jiang Jin said in a low voice.

Kong Huaizheng understood and fixed his gaze on a middle-aged man who looked like a middle-level manager and was talking to a colleague near the front desk.

He approached discreetly and took out the bone bell.

A moment later, the manager's eyes glazed over for a second before returning to normal.

He walked up to the front desk, gave a few instructions to the staff member in charge of registration, and pointed to Jiang Jin and his group. A hint of doubt flashed across the staff member's face, but he had clearly received clear instructions and did not stop them or ask any further questions. He then indicated that Jiang Jin and the others could enter the internal office area.

“It’s all sorted out,” Kong Huaizheng whispered. “He subconsciously believes that we are a special investigation team sent by headquarters. As long as we don’t do anything too outrageous, no one will come to check on us in the short term.”

While cautiously observing his surroundings, Takamiya Yuichi frantically recalled details from the movie in his mind. He whispered to the others, "According to the original plot of the movie, Asakawa Reiko is not directly involved in the curse yet. When she appears in the movie, the cursed videotape has already caused some deaths and become an urban legend among young people. She conducted interviews on this topic at the time. Her niece, Tomoko, and her friend watched the videotape in Hakone on the same day, but Tomoko didn't take it seriously at first. It wasn't until September 5th that she learned about the curse from her friend, and then she was murdered. Reiko delved deeper into the investigation of her niece's death, watched the cursed videotape, and dragged her ex-husband, Takayama Ryuji, who possessed a weak superpower."

"In other words, the person we're about to meet is Asakawa Reiko from the 'prequel story,' who hasn't experienced those terrifying events yet," Yu Tianlun concluded.

Lian De eased the overly heavy atmosphere in his usual way, winking and saying, "Hey, I'm about to meet a young Nanako Matsushima, I'm actually a little excited. I saw her on TV before, she really looks exactly like the one in the movie, she's such a beauty."

Jiang Jin ignored his teasing and said seriously to Kong Huaizheng, "After we find her, communication may not be smooth. We need to obtain information from her without causing a disturbance. At that time, we will still have to rely on your methods."

Kong Huaizheng nodded, indicating that he understood.

As they followed the signs to find the news department's office area and walked through an internal corridor, a little boy of about six or seven years old suddenly ran from around the corner and almost bumped into Jiang Jin.

Jiang Jin instinctively steadied the child, while Takamiya Yui's pupils contracted, and she said in a low, urgent voice, "Wait! This child... he is Yoichi, the son of Asakawa Reiko and Takayama Ryuji!"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Jin's heart stirred.

He remembered that in the original movie, Yoichi inherited his father's superpowers.

Sure enough, Xiao Yangyi seemed completely oblivious to the fact that he had almost bumped into someone; his attention was drawn to the death knell at Jiang Jin's feet, which was invisible to ordinary people.

He crouched down, his clear, bright eyes staring curiously and intently at the open space where the death knell stood, even reaching out his little hand as if to touch something.

He could see, or at least sense, the death knell!
Jiang Jin immediately realized this and felt a chill run down his spine.

He crouched down, bringing his line of sight to Yang Yi's, and tentatively asked in as gentle a tone as possible, "Little friend, what... are you looking at? Can you see it?"

He pointed in the direction of the death knell. Yang looked up at Jiang Jin, seemingly thinking that this uncle didn't seem like a bad person. He looked at the "open space" again, then nodded firmly, pointed at the death knell with his little finger, and said in a childish voice, "Big dog... a little scary, but... not bad."

Just then, an anxious female voice came: "Yang Yi! I told you not to run around!"

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw a young woman in a business suit, with a pretty face and a capable demeanor but a hint of fatigue, running quickly towards them. It was none other than Asakawa Reiko, whom they had seen on television.

Lingzi grabbed Yang Yi and quickly bowed to Jiang Jin and the others, apologizing, "I'm so sorry, so very sorry! This child is too naughty. Because it's Sunday today and I have to work overtime, I was really worried about leaving him alone at home, so I had no choice but to bring him to the TV station... I'm so sorry to have troubled you all!"

Jiang Jin stood up, a knowing smile on his face, and said in the tone of a Japanese office worker, "It's alright, Ms. Asakawa. Children being lively is their nature. That's how it is in our line of work. News doesn't wait for anyone; we work almost 365 days a year without a break. I understand."

Jiang Jin deliberately said that, behaving like a colleague from the station.

Hearing this, Lingzi relaxed a little, but still said apologetically, "I'm so sorry. By the way, which department are you from? You seem a little unfamiliar."

The time has come!

Kong Huaizheng stood in Lingzi's blind spot, raised the bone bell and started vibrating it, the mental suggestion quickly seeping into Lingzi's subconscious.

At the same time, he whispered to Jiang Jin in Chinese: "That's enough, Vice Commander. Now you make up a plausible identity. As long as it's not too outrageous, she'll believe it."

Jiang Jin understood immediately. Facing Lingzi's questioning gaze, he remained calm and said in a matter-of-fact tone, "Oh, I'm Kurosaki Ichigo, who was recently transferred to the General Affairs Department. These are my colleagues. We are responsible for some internal process optimization research."

Under Kong Huaizheng's hypnosis, Lingzi's eyes glazed over for a moment, then she showed an "I see" expression. She did not doubt the unfamiliar name and department at all. Instead, she said apologetically, "I see, Kurosaki-kun. I'm sorry to have made you laugh at our first meeting."

Jiang Jin seized the opportunity to say, "Miss Qianchuan, you seem to have work to do. Why don't you go ahead and take care of it? I'll look after the child for you for now. He seems quite well-behaved."

Under the influence of hypnosis, Reiko felt an inexplicable trust in Jiang Jin. Without much thought, she gratefully said, "Ah, thank you so much, Kurosaki-kun! I'll leave you to my care for a while, and I'll be back as soon as I'm done!"

She gave Yang a few more instructions to be obedient, then hurriedly jogged towards the news department office.

Watching Lingzi's departing figure and confirming that she could no longer hear, apart from Gao Gongwei, who was still somewhat confused and warily observing his surroundings, Lian De, Kong Huaizheng, and even the usually aloof Xu Yinqiu couldn't help but chuckle.

Lian De clutched his stomach, laughing so hard he almost fell over: "Pfft—Kurosaki Ichigo! Vice-Captain, you really know how to name people! Why didn't you just say your name was Uzumaki Naruto!"

Jiang Jin glanced at him and calmly replied, "Is that not allowed? Can't I prefer Bleach to Naruto?"

Lian De persisted: "Then you can call him Shinichi Kudo! Famous detective, that fits our current investigation perfectly!"

Yui Takamiya, who was standing next to him, finally couldn't help but interject: "Um... Detective Conan started serialization in 1994, so it should still be around now."

Lian De looked at Jiang Jin with the eyes of someone who had discovered a new continent, nudged him with his elbow, and teased him in a voice that only they could hear: "Tsk tsk, I didn't see that coming, Deputy Commander! I thought only someone like me could be a shut-in, but I didn't expect that someone with thick eyebrows and big eyes like you would also betray the revolution! Tell me, what message did the Imperial Army ask you to deliver?"

This conversation left Gao Gongyi completely bewildered. He looked at Jiang Jin, then at Lian De, with a puzzled expression: "Wait... how did reading a comic book get involved with the Japanese Imperial Army? What's the connection?"

Xu Yinqiu suppressed a laugh and explained softly to Gao Gongwei, "Gao Gong-kun, you're not Chinese, so it's normal that you haven't seen the Spring Festival Gala skits."

Jiang Jin deliberately chose this anime-style alias so that he could joke around with his teammates and try to alleviate the heaviness and fear that had been weighing on everyone's hearts for days.

In this perilous dungeon, these touches of humor amidst the hardship are especially precious.

However, jokes aside, Jiang Jin's gaze quickly sharpened again.

He lowered his head and looked at Yang Yi, who was looking up at them with curiosity, and said, "Yang Yi, come with us."

However, Yang Yi said, "Uncle, please let that aunt leave."

Xu Yinqiu was stunned. How did she become an aunt?

"What's wrong with me?" Xu Yinqiu asked, puzzled.

Yang Yi shook his head and replied, "I wasn't talking about you, I was talking about the auntie behind Uncle who was wearing white and whose face was covered by her hair!"

(End of this chapter)