Tokyo, 1991: Starting as a bank clerk

Chapter 331 Furu Uda Mai

Kouyu Mai's voice was soft, with a hint of reproach.

She lowered her head, the collar of her yukata slightly open, revealing her snow-white nape and a small section of her shoulder blade, like a cat lazily lying in the sunlight.

Kenichi Sato leaned against the edge of the bed, his gaze fixed on her lowered eyelashes. After a moment, he chuckled softly, "Only you would be willing to file my nails."

Kouyu Mai didn't look up, but her movements became even more meticulous: "Even if others want to work on it, they need the opportunity."

Kenichi Satoh smiled but didn't reply.

The sound of a nail file gently scraping against the edge of a nail was exceptionally clear amidst the sounds of mountain streams and the wind in the pines.

After a moment, as if suddenly remembering something, he looked at her profile and said, "Mai, your thirty-fifth birthday is coming up soon, isn't it?"

Kouyu Mai paused almost imperceptibly, then hummed in agreement: "Yes, time flies."

She looked up at him, a faint smile playing on her lips: "You have a good memory."

"When have I ever forgotten about you?"

Kenichi Sato said this with exceptional seriousness.

His gaze fell on Kouyuu Mai's lowered eyelashes, his eyes filled with affection: "The first time I saw you, you were only twenty-five years old. You were standing in a club in Ginza, wearing a dark blue dress, and I could tell that you were completely different from those heavily made-up women."

Kouyu Mai stopped what she was doing.

She looked up and smiled shyly: "Kenichi, you even remembered this."

Kenichi Sato chuckled softly, "Of course I remember. Back then, I thought, 'I wish this woman could stay by my side forever.'"

Kouyu Mai lowered her head, put the nail file into the hidden pocket of her yukata, and then gently leaned against his shoulder.

Her movements were very natural, as if she had done it countless times before.

The sound of mountain stream seeped in from outside the shoji door, mixed with the rustling of wind through the pine branches, filling the silence in the room perfectly.

Kenichi Sato let her lean against him, his gaze fixed on the gradually brightening daylight outside the window, as if he were looking at a very distant place.

After a moment, he spoke, his voice lower than before: "Mai, have you ever regretted it?"

Kouuda Mai's eyelashes trembled slightly, but she didn't look up: "Regret what?"

"You regret following me, but I can't even give you a proper title."

Mai Kouda was silent for a moment, then gently shook her head: "Kenichi, I have never regretted this matter."

"Ten years ago, in that club in Ginza, I didn't think about anything. At that time, I was just a woman who had just arrived in Tokyo from Osaka and had nowhere to go."

"You asked me if I wanted to go with you, you gave me a place to stay, and you gave me the life I have now."

She paused here, then her voice softened: "For me, titles and status are far less important than you."

Kenichi Sato's gaze lingered on her face for a moment, then he raised his hand and gently tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear.

"But sometimes I feel like I'm making you feel wronged."

Kouyu Mai stared blankly for a moment, seemingly pondering the question seriously. Then she looked up at him: "Do I feel wronged? — I can't say I feel absolutely no, but what makes me feel wronged is not being able to see you all the time."

She laughed as she said this: "As for you making Kouyuu Hiko marry me and making me Mrs. Kouyuu, so that I can give my parents an explanation."

"If that's the case, then I really don't feel there's anything to feel wronged about."

Kenichi Sato looked down at her, his eyes holding something hard to describe.

After a long while, he sighed softly, "It's good that you think that way."

Kouyu Mai leaned back on his shoulder and didn't say anything more.

She could feel his shoulders were slightly tense, as if he had something weighing on his mind.

But she also knew that if he wanted to speak, he would do so himself.

If he doesn't want to talk about it, there's no point in asking.

She had been with him for ten years, and she knew this better than anyone else.

Just then, the phone next to me suddenly rang.

Kenichi Sato did not answer immediately.

He glanced down at Kouyuu Mai, who was still leaning on his shoulder, her eyelashes trembling slightly as if startled by the ringing of the bell.

He raised his hand and gently patted the back of her hand before reaching for his phone on the coffee table.

Kouyu Mai straightened up from his shoulder and quietly sat back on the tatami, bending down to adjust the sash of her yukata.

Kenichi Sato pressed the answer button.

"Feed".

The voice of Konosuke Nakajima came from the other end of the phone: "Executive Director Sato, I apologize for bothering you. There is something I need to report to you immediately."

Kenichi Sato, still looking out the window, said calmly, "Speak."

"This morning, the special investigation team sent a formal letter to Tokyo Metropolitan Bank, requesting access to all account transaction details for Chiyoda General Planning. The letter was personally signed by Takahiro Matsumoto, and the bank manager's authorization order was attached directly to the letter. They skipped all internal procedures."

Upon hearing this, Kenichi Satoh narrowed his eyes slightly: "The letter has already been sent?"

Konosuke Nakajima replied quickly, "It's already been sent. I had someone confirm that it was sent out at 9:20 this morning. The Tokyo Metropolitan Bank has already received it. I've asked Chiyoda Bank to delay the delivery process as much as possible, citing trade secrets, but it can only be delayed for three to five days at most. If they don't get the bank statements by next week, they may initiate interbank legal investigation procedures."

Kenichi Sato did not respond immediately.

His gaze fell on the pine forest outside the window, illuminated by the morning light. He squinted slightly and said, "Understood. Keep things stable on your end, I'll handle the rest."

Konosuke Nakajima responded with a sound of agreement, then hung up without asking any further questions.

Kenichi Sato put down his phone and sat on the tatami mat for a while.

Only then did Mai Kouda come over again and massage his shoulders to relieve the pressure.

Kenichi Sato squinted his eyes contentedly and casually said, "It's nothing, just some small stuff at the bank."

After a while, Kenichi Sato remembered something, stood up and said, "I have a lunch meeting at noon, and it's about time to set off. There are too many people and too much attention there, so I won't take you. Just wait for me at the hotel."

Kouyu Mai lowered her head and gave a soft "hmm".

The shoji doors closed gently behind them.

Kenichi Sato's footsteps faded away along the corridor, crossed the courtyard, and disappeared from Mai Kouda's sight.

The room fell silent again.

Only the sound of the mountain stream, the rustling of the wind through the pine branches, and her own steady, slow breathing remained.

Kouyu Mai sat on the tatami mat, maintaining her submissive posture.

She didn't look up until the sound of an engine outside started.

The moment he looked up, the smile on his face vanished like the receding tide, revealing a tired and indifferent expression.

Then she stood up, walked to the window, and pushed the shoji door open most of the way.

A mountain breeze rushed in, stirring the hem of her yukata and the ends of her loose hair. She took a deep breath, as if trying to expel all the lingering scent from her body.

She stood by the window for a while.

After a while, he turned around, sat back down on the tatami mat, took out his mobile phone from his handbag, and dialed a number.

The phone rang twice before being answered.

"Feed?"

Yusuke Takagi's voice came through the receiver, sounding somewhat tired.

Kouyuki Mai said softly, "Yusuke, it's me."

Yusuke Takagi immediately lowered his voice: "Mai? Is it a convenient place for you to talk?"

Kouyu Mai hummed in agreement: "He's not at the hotel right now. He had a lunch appointment and left."

Yusuke Takagi then raised his voice slightly: "How have you been lately?"

Kouyu Mai gripped her phone, her fingers tightening slightly.

She opened her mouth, wanting to brush it off with "I'm fine," but the words stuck in her throat: "It's not good—"

There was no response on the other end of the phone.

Mai Kouda continued, "Every time he touched me, I had to bite myself to keep from pushing him away. That smell, his hands, the breath he had on my ear when he spoke—just thinking about it makes me nauseous."

She paused for a moment and closed her eyes.

A mountain breeze blew in from outside the door, ruffling the stray hairs on her forehead.

Then, Kouyu Mai mustered her courage and said, "Last night, when he was on top of me, I closed my eyes and kept thinking about your face—only by thinking about you could I get through it."

There was a long silence on the other end of the phone.

Then Takagi Yusuke's voice rang out again, a few decibels lower than before, and his tone was hoarse: "Mai—I'm sorry, I'm so useless—I even had to ask you to plead for me—"

Kouyuu Mai chuckled softly: "Yusuke, don't say that. From beginning to end, you're the only one I've ever loved. I'd do anything for you."

Yusuke Takagi remained silent for a long time, then sighed and said, "Thank you for your hard work, Mai—"

Mai Kouda paused for a moment, then said, "Konosuke Nakajima called just now. He didn't hide it from me. I heard about Chiyoda General Planning and the Special Investigation Team investigating bank statements."

Yusuke Takagi's breathing visibly paused: "Chiyoda? The investigation team has already found Chiyoda?"

"Um."

Mai Kouda said, "Nakajima said he could hold out for three to five days, and Kenichi Sato didn't sound relaxed either."

Yusuke Takagi gasped, "Only a few days have passed, and the investigation team has already found this far?"

Mai Kouda suddenly fell silent for a long time, then asked, "Yusuke, do you think this investigation team will be a good opportunity?"

Upon hearing this, Yusuke Takagi quickly said, "Mai, don't be impulsive. As the executive director, Sato isn't so easily brought down."

Kouyu Mai sighed softly, "You're right, we can't rush things, but I really want us to be together openly and honestly."

Yusuke Takagi also sighed: "Compared to Sato, let's see if I can survive this ordeal. I might be transferred to Southeast Asia."

Kouyu Mai shook her head and said, "No, he's already planned to get you out. After all, it's an internal bank investigation, there's always room for maneuver."

Yusuke Takagi hummed in agreement: "That would be perfect. Anyway—thank you for your hard work, Mai."

The phone hangs up.

Kouyu Mai put away her phone, gazed leisurely out the window, and then slowly narrowed her eyes.

Monday morning.

The sky over Tokyo remained overcast.

Kiryu Yaya arrived twenty minutes earlier than usual.

But when he opened the door, the entire investigation team, except for him, was already there.

Several people's eyes turned to him, but Kiryu Yaya's expression didn't change much; he was just silently complaining to himself.

What did you roll it into?

However, his gaze immediately fell on Inspector Kazama Toru's face.

It was quite obvious that the chief inspector's face was noticeably somber.

He was clearly scolded by Konosuke Nakajima.

But you can't blame him for that.

After all, who could have imagined that he would arrive with the mission of preventing the investigation team from accessing the sealed files?

They then took advantage of the weekend window of opportunity to carry out a covert operation.

Right now, Kazama Toru must be filled with resentment.

Kiryu Yaya sighed softly as he thought about this.

However, their days are about to become truly difficult. Konosuke Nakajima will definitely give a firm order to have Toru Kazama stall them.

The investigation team's actions.

When Matsumoto Takahiro saw Kiryu Yaya arrive, he clapped his hands and said, "Now that everyone is here, let's go over last week's progress."

He held a freshly refilled cup of hot tea in his hand, the steam rising from the rim of the white porcelain cup, momentarily obscuring his expression.

He then continued, "The interviews for the Kanto International Development project have been completed, and the relevant records have been archived. Over the weekend, Director Kiryu and I conducted a supplementary search of the old files from 1957 to 1961 and discovered some new clues."

At this point, Matsumoto Takahiro's gaze naturally swept towards Kazama Toru's direction: "One of the clues points to a consulting firm called Chiyoda General Planning. Kanto International Development has paid this company over 800 million yen in consulting fees over the past few years. Judging from the frequency and amount of payments, this line is worth investigating further."

"This morning we sent a formal letter to Tokyo Metropolitan Bank requesting access to the account transaction details of Chiyoda General Planning. If all goes well, we should receive initial feedback this week."

Kazama Toru maintained his clasped hands, his gaze fixed on Matsumoto Takahiro's face, and then questioned, "Chief Matsumoto, it seems that the investigation team was not notified in advance about the supplementary retrieval of old files over the weekend."

His tone was calm, but clearly carried a sense of accountability: "When was the decision to investigate Chiyoda General Planning made? What were the bases for it? Were the documents requesting cross-bank transactions verified through the procedures of the Audit Department?"

"According to the working procedures of the investigation team, decisions involving cross-bank information retrieval should be reported to the Ministry of Supervision in advance, and the implementation should only proceed after the procedures are confirmed to be compliant."

The office was silent for a few seconds.

Sanae Fushimi sat by the window, her gaze sweeping back and forth between Toru Kazama and Takahiro Matsumoto.

Section Chief Ando, ​​meanwhile, was looking down at the documents in front of him, seemingly uninterested in the conversation.

Matsumoto Takahiro met Kazama Toru's gaze, his tone unchanged: "Investigator Kazama, the authorization order for the special investigation team was issued by the bank president, and there is a clear exception clause in the working regulations: when there is a risk of loss of evidence, the investigation team has the right to initiate the information preservation procedure without prior notice."

"If the financial chains involved in Chiyoda General Planning's account information are true, their evidentiary value will diminish over time. We chose to send the letter on Sunday because of the need to preserve evidence."

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