Conan: I'm a zaibatsu in Tokyo

Zheng Yi sat on the sofa, holding the day's morning newspaper in his hand, his brows furrowed into a deep frown.

Newspaper reports about "two mysterious men forcibly breaking into the women's restroom" continue to dominate the front page, and the content is becoming increasingly outrageous.

"Are these reporters crazy?" Zheng Yi said, bewildered. "Gin has already blown up five of their newspaper offices, how come they're still acting like they're on steroids?"

Sitting opposite him, Ai was fiddling with her newly bought bag, and said nonchalantly:
"Isn't this normal? It's about freedom of the press. They certainly won't compromise easily in pursuit of the truth."

After thinking about it, Masakazu felt that Ai's words made sense.

It has nothing to do with me, so I don't need to think about it.

He yawned and stretched: "Yeah, whatever, it has nothing to do with us anyway."

Shoichi secretly despised Gin.

He knew perfectly well that the newspapers were reporting the news because of him, yet he didn't dare confront them directly, instead choosing to bully those journalists who upheld their integrity.

Pooh!
……

A teahouse.

Zheng Yi pushed open the door and walked into a private room, where a group of people all stood up.

These people were the owners and editors of several newspapers. They all looked haggard, with sunken eyes, as if they hadn't slept for days and nights, and they carried a burnt smell and the stench of blood.

"What are you doing here?" Zheng Yi took a step back and said with dissatisfaction, "Didn't I say I don't give interviews?"

The female boss stepped forward, her face pale as she looked at Masakazu, and said in a trembling voice, "Mr. Sumitomo... no, Mr. Masakazu, please, please let us go."

Zheng Yi was stunned: "What do you mean, let you go? When did I lay a hand on you?"

Don't try to smear my innocence out of thin air!
I've never even used Conan, so don't make baseless accusations.

The male boss said with a sob in his voice, "Lord Zhengyi, please stop pretending. We know that you were the one who orchestrated all of this."

You were unhappy with our report, so you sent that assassin to warn us. We...we really did our best!

Zheng Yi was completely confused: "Wait, what assassin? What warning?"

The female boss bit her lip, her eyes filled with despair: "This is the retaliation we've been suffering lately!"

Your men killed our editor-in-chief, bombed our newspaper office, and left a message saying that if we didn't find out the identities of those two people, we would wipe out our entire journalism industry.

Lord Zhengyi, we know you have a grudge against those two and want to ruin their reputations. But we really have done our best!

We fabricated identities, found body doubles, and even hyped the news to its peak. What more do you want us to do?

Zheng Yi blinked, as if he had realized the situation of these people.

"Let me make it clear beforehand, I haven't done anything to target you, nor have I left you any messages." Zheng Yi immediately distanced himself from the situation.

Zheng Yi would definitely not get involved in anything that has absolutely nothing to do with him.

You're mistaken. You've been reporting on Gin's dark past, and after being threatened, you've only intensified your attacks, which is why Gin's retaliation has become increasingly fierce.

Thinking about how these guys have become like this because of their imaginations, Zheng Yi couldn't help but laugh.

Seeing Zheng Yi laughing so hard he was doubled over, the newspaper owners exchanged glances, becoming even more convinced.

When Lord Zheng saw their miserable state, he finally realized that they had admitted their mistake, and that's why he laughed triumphantly.

"Lord Zhengyi, we know we were wrong." The female boss knelt down with a thud, pleading:

"Please tell that assassin to stop. We really can't take it anymore."

Zheng Yi finally managed to stop laughing.

“You guys…” Zheng Yi took a deep breath, trying to keep himself serious.

"Ok."

Zheng Yi sighed, feigning helplessness, and helped the female boss, who was kneeling on the ground, to her feet.

"Since you've come to me, I can't just sit idly by."

A glimmer of hope flashed in the eyes of the newspaper owners: "You mean..."

"That assassin was definitely not sent by me," Zheng Yi said seriously, stating the truth.

Everyone wore ingratiating smiles and dared not voice any objections.

Of course, Lord Zhengyi wouldn't send assassins to kill people and bomb the building.

The female boss held Zheng Yi's hand and said, "Yes, it was definitely not you who sent them, but we all know that Mr. Zheng Yi is highly respected, so we would like to ask you to mediate."

"Sigh~ I don't know any criminals who commit such outrageous acts, how can I mediate for you?"

He looked helpless.

"But don't worry, since you've come to me, I'll take care of this." Zheng Yi put on a big boss's air.

"Oh, right." Zheng Yi suddenly remembered something: "It seems that several of your newspaper offices were bombed. Do you have any offices now?"

A male boss said stiffly, "We plan to rent an office floor from the Justice Group. The future reconstruction task has been decided to be handed over to the Justice Group's urban construction company."

Zheng Yi nodded.

It seems their group has a good reputation; the first group these people think of is the Justice Group.

It's definitely because the Justice Group has done a good job, and they should continue to maintain that level of performance in the future.

Although these people had considered everything, Zheng Yi still asked with concern:

"What about your safety? It will take time for me to mediate for you. Until that criminal is dealt with, you may be in danger at any time."

“This…” The people looked at each other in bewilderment.

Is it really just a matter of you making one phone call to stop us from being retaliated against?
The female boss rolled her eyes, gritted her teeth, and said, "You're right, we're going to hire Justice Security to protect us."

“This…” Zheng Yi said with heartache, “If it’s about protecting an entire company, especially against such a ruthless opponent, the price probably won’t be low.”

The female boss gritted her teeth and remained silent.

For safety's sake, it's all worth it.

She continued, "Mr. Zhengyi, how long will it take you to complete the mediation?"

“One month,” Zheng Yi said kindly.

“Okay, we can accept that,” the group said.

If it's only for a month, I'll grit my teeth and accept it.

Zheng Yi looked at the lambs waiting to be slaughtered with eyes full of kindness.

"Alright, you can go back and wait for news," Zheng Yi said.

"Yes! Yes! Thank you, Master Zhengyi! Thank you, Master Zhengyi!" The newspaper owners were overjoyed and thanked him repeatedly before fleeing the teahouse as if their lives depended on it.

Watching their hurried departure, Zheng Yi's lips curled into a happy smile.

Even after returning home, Zheng Yi's smile didn't disappear.

"What bad thing have you done this time?" Ai asked, looking at Masakazu with a sly grin.

"Something good is coming your way."

Zheng picked up Xiao Ai and lifted her high.

He said happily, "Some customers come to my door to give me money, and I can't even refuse them."

Zheng Yi sighed and said, "Indeed, reputation is the greatest wealth. With a reputation, people will come to you to give you money."

Ai looked at Masakazu strangely.

I don't know why this guy's expression was so sincere when he said those things.

Don't you feel ashamed at all?

"So, who did you kill with Conan this time?" Ai asked.

“No,” Zheng Yi said.

How could he use Conan to kill someone? He's a law-abiding citizen.

“They’re the newspaper owners,” Zheng Yi said. Xiao Ai nodded.

Oh.

So it turns out this time it wasn't Conan they used, but Gin.

Ai looked at Shoichi and thought to herself that fame really is wealth. Gin's revenge on them was all pinned on Shoichi.

Those newspapers couldn't do anything to Zheng Yi, so they could only try to please him so that he could gain benefits.

Furthermore, this time Gin's misdeeds were pinned on Shoichi, which will be proven when Conan or Rena Mizunashi investigates the matter in the future.
The fact that "the organization does bad things and blames it all on Zheng Yi" can be used to whitewash Zheng Yi in the future.

Damn it, Zheng Yi got a double win.

“Now that you’ve made some money, I’ll buy you a bag. What style do you want?” Zheng Yi asked.

A smile appeared on Ai's face.

We should let Zheng Yi earn this money.

After choosing the bag she wanted to buy, Ai asked, "How do you get Gin to stop?"

After all, these newspaper reports were so outrageous, Gin certainly wouldn't let it go.

Moreover, given the tense relationship between Shoichi and Gin, Gin definitely wouldn't listen to what Shoichi said.

"It's simple, just a phone call," Zheng Yi said casually.

Xiao Ai looked at Zheng Yi suspiciously, doubting the truthfulness of his words.

Can a single phone call really settle things with Gin?

After thinking for a moment, Ai realized that the only way to resolve this matter with a single phone call was for Shoichi to call the boss and have him order Gin to stop.

But is it necessary to alarm the boss over such a trivial matter?

Not long after, Masakazu quickly dialed Gin's number.

"Hello Gin, are you busy?"

Shoichi's warm greeting went unanswered; Gin remained the same aloof Gin.

But Zheng Yi didn't take it seriously.

Within the organization, the person Zheng Yi respects the most is Gin. So what if he's a bit aloof?
Shoichi continued to show great interest in how Gin's appetite was.

Gin on the other end of the phone was already getting impatient.

What does Zheng Yi mean by that bastard?
Did you call to provoke me?

They even asked me if I could still eat. I'm not so old that I can't eat. If I don't retire, you can never think about completely controlling the organization's influence in Japan.

"I was wrong."

"What did you say?" Gin wondered if he had misheard.

“I said, I was wrong,” Zheng Yi repeated.

Even though Shoichi had repeated it, Gin still felt like he had misheard.

He actually heard Zheng Yi apologize to him.

“Brother,” Vodka said softly, “Zhengyi seems to be really confessing his sins to you.”

Vodka's mind was also in complete chaos.

At first, he thought he had misheard, just like Gin.

It was only on the second occasion that Vodka realized that Zheng Yi was truly apologizing.

Zheng Yi has never taken his elder brother seriously, but this time he actually apologized to his elder brother.

Did he take the wrong medicine?
Or is it some kind of malicious provocation, waiting for the older brother to severely humiliate him when he accepts his apology?
But all I heard on the phone was Zheng Yi continuing, "It was a moment of impulsiveness on my part; I didn't think about the consequences and let those newspapers report the news."

Later I realized my mistake; I had already allowed those newspapers to start fabricating your false identities. Let them go.

Gin squinted, his fingers gently stroking the car window.

He wanted to hear it a few more times.

But Zheng Yi wouldn't let him have his way. He simply said "I was wrong" and then fell silent.

"cough."

Gin sat up straight.

He was actually already satisfied.

Gin felt he had done a great job getting Shoichi to this level.

Zheng Yi is a very tough guy, as can be seen from his business methods.

Anyone who doesn't comply with his wishes is killed without hesitation. The fact that he was able to confess this time was completely unexpected for Gin.

"I see."

Gin gave a cold reply and then hung up the phone.

He turned to Vodka and said, "Go find Vermouth."

"Yes!"

Gin looked out the window.

Sure enough, to deal with a tough nut like Zheng Yi, one should use even tougher methods.

Now that Zheng Yi has admitted his mistake, it's time to deal with Vermouth.

They were at home.

After hanging up the phone, he said to Ai, "Done."

"Done?" Ai's eyes widened. "So easy?"

And why would you apologize to Gin?

"Why can't I apologize to him?" Zheng Yi asked. "Am I some kind of stubborn person?"

"Uh~"

After thinking about it, Ai realized that Shoichi was indeed not a very principled person.

It's normal for someone to be able to easily say something as trivial as apologizing to Gin.

"So Gin just let this go like that?" Ai asked.

Just because of Zheng Yi's apology?
Zheng Yi has exposed Gin's dark history, and you think an apology is enough to let it go?
"Ahem, it was Vermouth who spread Gin's dark history, not me," Zhengyi said.

If it weren't for Vermouth, no one in the organization would have known that Gin forced his way into the women's restroom.

"And in Gin's eyes, I might be a tough guy."

As soon as Zheng Yi finished speaking, the smile on his face vanished instantly, replaced by a tough expression.

Those eyes, which usually held a hint of mockery, were now slightly narrowed, their gaze sharp as a knife, as if they could easily pierce through one's heart.

"Yeah~"

Ai stood on the chair, reached out and rubbed Shoichi's face, smoothing out the inexplicable expression on it.

You're such a reckless person, how could Gin consider you a tough guy? Gin must be blind.

Xiao Ai sighed, "Indeed, fame is wealth."

Shoichi's image is deeply ingrained in people's minds. Even if Shoichi acts like a jerk in front of Gin, Gin probably thinks it's all just Shoichi's disguise.

Beneath his seemingly reckless exterior lies an unyielding and uncompromising nature.

Now that Zheng Yi is bowing down and apologizing to Gin, Gin might also feel a sense of conquest.

Conquering someone like 'Shoichi' would be a very rewarding experience, even for Gin.

That's why Zheng Yi's apology was so effective. (End of Chapter)