Conan: I'm a zaibatsu in Tokyo

Dark as ink.

A black Porsche 356A was parked quietly beside the fountain square deep inside the park.

“Big brother…” Vodka sat in the driver’s seat, glancing cautiously at Gin, a layer of cold sweat beading on his forehead.

"Are we really coming with just the two of us? That's... way too reckless!"

The cigarette between Gin's fingers flickered, and he glanced coldly at Vodka: "What?"

Vodka swallowed hard. "I'm worried. Zheng Yi is a very cunning guy. Since he invited you to meet here, he must have set some kind of trap. Could this be... a trap?"

Vodka's mind was already racing, with all sorts of sophisticated political maneuvering swirling in his head.

He recalled those famous traps in history, such as the Candle Shadow and Axe Sound, the Feast at Hongmen, and the Ambush from Ten Sides.

Vodka whispered, "He deliberately chose this location in this open park, with no cover around. If we're targeted by a sniper, we'll have nowhere to escape."

And since he sent you alone, he might have already arranged for an assassin to eliminate you!

Vodka became increasingly frightened as he spoke.

How could he not understand Zhengyi?
"Shut up," Gin interrupted him impatiently.

He still didn't believe Zheng Yi would dare to lay a hand on him.

Moreover, Zheng Yi couldn't kill him.

“But…” Vodka wanted to say something more.

"No buts." Gin pushed open the car door.

Gin stepped out of the car and stood in the empty park, exuding an aura that kept strangers at bay.

Seeing this, Vodka had no choice but to follow, but he remained highly vigilant, his eyes constantly scanning the surrounding darkness, fearing that a squad of gun-wielding assassins might rush out of the bushes at any moment.

Behind a clump of bushes not far from the fountain square, a silver motorcycle was parked quietly.

Vermouth took off her helmet, picked up a pair of binoculars, and was observing the activity in the square with great interest.

Her gaze passed over the vodka and landed on the gin.

"Why did that guy, Zheng Yi, invite Gin over? He's not going to make peace with Gin, is he?"

Time ticked by, and Gin glanced at his watch; the hour hand was already at '8'.

The sound of the fountain was particularly jarring in the quiet night.

The surroundings were deserted; there wasn't a single pedestrian, let alone Zheng Yi.

“That guy has absolutely no sense of time,” Gin said coldly.

He kept staring at his watch.

After waiting for half an hour, Gin was already getting impatient. After waiting for an hour, Gin's temper began to flare up.

Even Vermouth, who was waiting to watch the show from afar, couldn't wait any longer.

“Big brother…” Vodka glanced at his watch, then at the empty entrance.

"That bastard... is he too scared to come?"

Realizing that Zheng Yi seemed too afraid to come over, Vodka suddenly seemed to find courage.

Gin's cigarette had burned down to the end, and he flicked the butt away expressionlessly.

I got stood up by that bastard Zheng Yi.

"What trick is he playing?" Gin muttered under his breath.

He had originally thought that Zheng Yi would talk to him, or even assassinate him as Vodka had suggested, but the other party didn't even show his face.

It seems he just wanted to play a trick on him.

Gin didn't understand.

Zheng Yi is the boss of a large group and now the person in charge of the organization. How come his words are like farts, with no credibility at all?
"Brother, should we go directly to him?" Vodka asked tentatively.

Gin didn't say anything, but simply took his phone out of his pocket.

Since Zheng Yi doesn't intend to show himself, there's no point in expecting anyone to find him.

He opened his contacts, his finger hovering over the name "Jun Du," ready to press the call button.

"Beep beep beep~"

The shrill ring of the telephone suddenly sounded.

A name flashed on the screen: Warehouse Manager Yamamoto.

Gin narrowed his eyes, suddenly feeling a sense of foreboding.

He pressed the answer button, but before he could speak, Yamamoto's hoarse shouts came through the receiver, accompanied by crackling sounds of burning and piercing alarms.

"Lord Gin! Something terrible has happened!" Yamamoto's voice was filled with terror:
"Warehouse Number Three! Warehouse Number Three is on fire. The fire is completely out of control, and there are explosions everywhere!"

"Warehouse Number Three?" Gin asked. "What's stored inside?"

"It's...it's the batch of weapons that just arrived in the warehouse recently."

"boom--!!!"

A loud bang came from the other end of the phone, followed by a busy tone.

Gin held his phone, his face so dark it looked like it could drip water.

Warehouse No. 3 was one of the organization's most important supply depots in the Tokyo area. It contained not only a large quantity of weapons and ammunition, but also a wealth of early research data on APTX4869.

"Big brother, what's wrong?" Vodka asked cautiously, looking at Gin's murderous expression.

"The warehouse was burned down," Gin said coldly.

"While we were here waiting like idiots."

Vodka gasped, "Was it...was it Cointreau?"

Who else could it be but him?

Gin really wants to kill someone now.

That bastard Zheng Yi is treating him like a fool.

The sound I heard on the phone just now was definitely not the sound of weapons exploding, but fireworks.

That bastard Zheng Yi treated him like a fool; those weapons definitely ended up in Zheng Yi's warehouse.

This was not a trap at all; it was a scheme to lure the tiger away from the mountain!
It's still a simple tactic of luring the tiger away from the mountain.

Zheng Yi had previously hinted at his coveting of Warehouse No. 3.

So after he was put on rest and Shoichi took power, Gin kept fishing near Warehouse No. 3 to prevent the things inside from being eaten by rats.

However, Zheng Yi easily lured him here with that so-called agreement, leaving them sitting here for an hour.

During that hour, his men had already sneaked into the warehouse and set it ablaze.

"Fine...very good." Gin laughed angrily.

He turned abruptly and strode toward the Porsche 356A.

"Drive." Gin opened the car door. "To Warehouse Number Three. I want to see what Cointreau left me."

Vodka didn't dare to delay and quickly climbed into the driver's seat and started the car.

Behind the bushes in the distance, Vermouth put down her binoculars.

"What's going on?" she murmured softly.

She had no idea what was happening.

All that's known is that Shoichi didn't come, Gin waited here for an hour, and then left angrily.

"Just to mess with Gin?" Vermouth frowned, disappointed.

This isn't what she wanted to see.

It's not lively at all.

And while Gin was indeed tricked by Shoichi, wasn't she also tricked, the person who had been waiting here for an hour to watch the show?

She started her motorcycle and followed behind Gin and Vodka, ready to see if the two of them were going to cause trouble for Shoichi.

……

The night breeze by the sea carries a slightly salty, damp scent.

Ai stood quietly on the beach, hands in her pockets. "Honestly, Masakazu," Momiji finally couldn't help but say, "You went through all that trouble to bring us here just to watch fireworks?"

This location is really a bit out of the way. She doesn't understand why Zheng Yi would put the fireworks display here.

Zheng Yi stood behind the two of them, a smile always on his face.

Zheng Yi said softly, "Some things only have meaning when viewed in a specific context."

"Meaning?" Ai looked at Masakazu curiously.

Is there anything special about this place?

“You don’t understand,” Zheng Yi said.

Hongye asked, "How can we understand if you don't tell us?"

Zheng Yi just watched the fireworks and smiled, without offering any explanation.

Ai suddenly frowned.

"What's wrong, Ai?"

“Those trucks,” Ai asked, pointing into the distance, “why are so many trucks parked where the fireworks are going?”

Upon closer inspection, Hongye realized that several large vans were indeed vaguely parked behind the workers responsible for launching fireworks.

"They're probably transporting fireworks," Zheng Yi replied casually. "I've prepared a lot of ammunition this time, just so you can have a good time watching."

"Transporting fireworks?" Ai shook her head.

She looked at the cars in the distance; they didn't seem to be civilian vehicles.

Does it look like a military-grade armored transport vehicle?
Hongye pointed over there and said, "The flames over there are huge! Is it on fire?"

"There are so many fireworks there, wouldn't it be dangerous if they exploded?"

“There’s no fire, you’re mistaken,” Zheng Yi said.

Hongye opened her mouth and pointed over there.

With such a bright fire, how could she be mistaken? She's not blind.

Zheng Yi said in a serious tone, "What you see is a bonfire; there are people having a bonfire party there."

"Where can we find such a big bonfire?" Hongye asked.

"Besides, that's the place where you let people set off fireworks, how could anyone be having a bonfire party there?"

Zheng Yi casually said, "Then don't worry about it, nothing will happen anyway."

Just then, Zheng Yi's cell phone vibrated in his pocket.

He glanced at it.

"I'm leaving." He put away his phone. "Leave here immediately."

"Huh?" Hongye paused, looking at him with some confusion. "But the fireworks are still going on, and they've only just started. Why are we leaving?"

"Just leave when I tell you to." Zheng Yi interrupted her, grabbed Hongye's wrist with one hand and Xiao Ai's shoulder with the other, and pushed the two of them toward the car parked in the distance.

“But…” Hongye glanced back at the sky and said, “It’s such a pity that such beautiful fireworks are ending like this…”

It's still playing.

"It's not a pity."

Ai said discontentedly, "Could you be a little gentler?"

Hongye also frowned.

She felt that Zheng Yi's actions today were very inexplicable.

I don't know why, but I insisted on dragging her and Ai to watch the fireworks together.

Just as she was engrossed in watching and fantasizing about romance, he suddenly tried to leave abruptly without giving a reason.

Ai watched the trucks at the fireworks display leave, and she pursed her lips, somewhat understanding Shoichi's thoughts.

"Are you doing something here and then inviting us to watch the fireworks?" Ai asked.

"Are we a freebie?" Hongye turned to look at Zhengyi with a dark expression.

"What bonus?" Zheng Yi continued pushing them forward. "Couldn't it be that I invited you to watch the fireworks and then did something else on the side?"

Hongye snorted coldly.

While Momiji was still being stubborn, Ai's pace quickened.

This looks exactly like the "fire dragon burning the granary" incident; Zheng Yi is definitely trying to steal things from the organization.

So, is Gin coming over?
Ai jumped into the car and urged Hongye to leave quickly, while inwardly blaming Zhengyi.

He actually managed to bring her and Hongye along to watch the fireworks, something so dangerous. He's incredibly daring.

What if Gin arrives in time and clashes with Shoichi, accidentally injuring the two of them?
"Hurry up, hurry up, it'll be dangerous if we don't leave now," Ai said urgently.

"What danger is there?" Hongye asked, puzzled. "Did the fireworks explode? Even if they did, they're so far away from us, they couldn't possibly hit us."

"Don't ask anymore, it's dangerous anyway." Ai looked unwilling to explain.

Hongye rubbed Ai's head in annoyance, "You didn't tell me."

……

Gin pushed open the car door, and a wave of heat hit him.

Half of the warehouse roof has collapsed.

Gin stood in front of the warehouse, his eyes coldly sweeping over the ruins.

The more he looked, the gloomier his face became.

In the case of a regular fire, the scene would be one of utter devastation, with burnt debris, melted plastic, and twisted steel everywhere.

And the huge crater created by the explosives.

But it was so clean inside.

It's like just burning down an empty warehouse.

Gin walked to a shelf, squatted down, wiped his fingers on the ground, and smelled them.

There was no smell of gunpowder.

Gin's face instantly turned ashen.

He had long suspected that Zheng Yi would steal things from the warehouse, but he didn't expect that Zheng Yi would be able to steal so much.

He's only been gone a short time, and this huge warehouse has been almost completely emptied.

There are too many rats infiltrating the organization.

"Check." Gin squeezed out the word through clenched teeth.

"Check all the surveillance footage, check all the entry and exit records. I need to know what kind of vehicle he used to transport it, and who transported it."

He wanted to see just how many Zhengyi people were actually in the organization.

Vodka hesitated greatly after receiving the order.

He said softly, "Brother, now is not the time for you to be in charge. The boss wants you to take a break for now, and those people might not cooperate."

"Huh?" Gin glared at him.

Vodka nodded quickly: "Yes! I'll take care of it right away!"

"Given your prestige within the organization, even if the boss removes you from your post, those people wouldn't dare disobey your orders."

"Enough with the nonsense," Gin snapped coldly.

He looked at the vodka, and the silhouettes of the tequila vaguely overlapped.

Seeing his older brother's increasingly dangerous gaze, Vodka quickly shrank back and went to carry out his business.

In the distance, Vermouth, who was riding her motorcycle to catch up, had just been nearly hit by a car.

Before I could even go and reason with the car, my attention was drawn to the distant flames.

"This seems to be one of the organization's warehouses, doesn't it?" Vermouth muttered to herself.

She made up her mind; she would go find Zhengyi later.

Zheng Yi is rolling in money now; I wonder if we can squeeze anything out of him. (End of Chapter)