Ke Xue: Xiaolan delivers goods to your door at the beginning

Before Suzuki Sonoko could answer, Lin Xiaofeng looked at Sera Masumi without changing his expression and said, "Let's discuss whether you should accompany Sonoko to the beauty pageant."

Sonoko Suzuki: "..."

Brother Feng lies without blushing!

"Me? Me?" Sera Masumi waved her hands nervously. "I have several investigations to conduct recently, so it's absolutely impossible!"

"Don't worry, we won't let you go," Lin Xiaofeng said smoothly. "Min is even faster than you. Beauty pageants are perfect for promoting newcomers. He will arrange this spot. Consider it a bonus from the ten-year cooperation agreement between THK and the park."

Sera Masumi breathed a sigh of relief, took out her phone, and excitedly suggested, "Let's call Ran. Even though you don't have school tomorrow, you two are going to a music festival!"

“Great!” Sonoko Suzuki’s eyes lit up. “Let’s go to Kabukicho Ichiban-gai!”

Sherry gave an awkward smile. "Sonoko, is it really appropriate to take a child to Kabukicho Ichiban-gai?"

Sera Masumi glanced at Sherry, then turned to look at Lin Xiaofeng.

Next up is Detective Lin...

Huh?

Lin Xiaofeng had already left his seat and gone to the aisle to find the maid to confirm the bill, pay the bill, and give a tip.

“It’s okay,” Sonoko Suzuki said to Sherry with a smile. “We can go to the store where they perform robot dances to watch the show, or we can go to the gift shop to see if they have any cute little items. If it’s one of those stores, kids should be able to go too!”

Sera Masumi looked away and dialed Ran Mouri's number on the phone.

Sonoko's voice is so loud, Detective Hayashi must have heard it already, right?

However, since Detective Lin was busy paying the bill and had already heard Sherry say that "it's not good to bring children," it was normal for him not to question Sonoko's suggestion.

Sonoko Suzuki was excitedly planning how to meet up with Ran Mouri and what to do for the evening, but her plans were cut short before they even began.

Lin Xiaofeng and Shirley stood with Suzuki Sonoko outside the building for a while, waiting for the Suzuki family's driver to pick her up before walking together towards Kabukicho Ichiban-gai.

Kabukicho is famous and is a must-see for many tourists visiting Tokyo to satisfy their curiosity. After nightfall, the streets are bustling with pedestrians and cars are not allowed to drive in.

This street has many restaurants, international eateries, arcades, karaoke bars, and souvenir shops; it's not just a place for sex workers.

At the same time, because there are many foreign tourists who come here because of its reputation, members of violent gangs who come here to drink and party, bikers or thieves who come for tourists, the security management is strict. Lin Xiaofeng and Shirley walked along the street and in less than five minutes they spotted two people who looked like plainclothes police officers in the crowd.

Of course, even if this street didn't have that kind of 'chaotic' phenomenon, it's definitely not a suitable place to bring young children to play.

Lin Xiaofeng and Shirley spent half an hour in Kabukicho Ichiban-gai, where they were harassed no less than ten times by hostesses soliciting customers outside brothels and agents offering to introduce them to food, drinks, and entertainment. They caught a pickpocket trying to steal from them while the crowd was huddled together. As they passed a group of people arguing for some unknown reason, they were enthusiastically stopped by tourists from more than one country who asked if they could go out together...

Finally, Shirley spotted a souvenir shop and dragged Lin Xiaofeng inside, wanting to browse around. The souvenirs were interesting, but some of them were a bit too outrageous; one shelf was filled with countless indecent items.

Shirley didn't see it clearly at first, but walked up to the shelf out of curiosity. After she saw it clearly, she turned around and pulled Lin Xiaofeng out of the store. They ran until they reached the entrance of a quiet alley where there were few people, and then stopped, panting.

"Um..." A girl in a high school uniform peeked out, looking at the two men with expectant eyes, and asked in a deliberately coquettish voice, "Big brothers, are you Japanese? Do you need someone to accompany you to eat or go shopping?"

Shirley's face was still red, and when she turned her head, she seemed a little embarrassed and angry. "I don't need it!"

"Ah..." The high school girl was startled, but was quickly stopped by her companion who caught up. After hearing her companion whisper something in her ear, she looked strangely at Shirley and Lin Xiaofeng's tightly clasped hands, and bowed nervously, "I'm sorry! I didn't know just now... I'm really sorry, I'm sorry to have disturbed you!"

"Actually..." Shirley reflected that her attitude just now seemed too rude. Seeing the high school girls' nervous expressions, she was about to apologize when she noticed that the two girls bowed and then turned and ran away quickly. "Huh? Huh?!"

The two high school girls were still whispering to each other as they ran away.

"You're being too reckless..."

"Because they're both very handsome... it would be great to have dinner together, even without payment..."

"...But I really didn't expect...the people here are still too complicated..."

Lin Xiaofeng: "..."

Shirley ruined his reputation!

"Why are you leaving so soon? I was thinking of finding two cute high school girls to go to that cafe over there for drinks," Shirley muttered somewhat dejectedly. Turning her head, she noticed Lin Xiaofeng's face looked a bit sour. She paused for a moment, then tentatively asked, "Detective Lin, are you alright?"

Lin Xiaofeng's expression softened. "Shirley, don't forget your masculine attire. Because of your height, you look like a male high school student. The shop assistant at that souvenir shop was giving us strange looks."

"Is that so..." Shirley went through the souvenir shop clerk's expression and the words of the two high school girls in her mind, silently loosened her right hand that was tightly gripping Lin Xiaofeng's wrist, turned her head to look at Lin Xiaofeng, and revealed a guilty smile.

Lin Xiaofeng lowered his eyes to scrutinize Shirley's forced smile, and added expressionlessly, "He's the kind of boy who looks young and delicate, and has a rather thin build..."

So, when Shirley pulled him into the store and then pulled him out, when Shirley held his wrist and looked angry and embarrassed, those people actually looked him over more often.

He could read the meaning behind those gazes—the relationship between the two was really strange, like an adult male seducing a delicate high school boy?

I don't know if it's because Shirley's face looks too innocent, or because he looks like a bad guy...

If I had known, he wouldn't have worn black today. Wearing something that would have made him look gentler would have proven that it was 'mutual consent,' and those people shouldn't speculate about whether there was some kind of 'naive young man being lured' behind it all.

"I'm...sorry," Shirley realized that Lin Xiaofeng was probably being imagined as a 'pervert' by some people, so she smiled guiltily and took a step back to create some distance. "That shop just now...well, I was startled, so I forgot that I'm dressed like a boy right now..."

"It's okay, do you want to continue shopping?"

"No, no need," Shirley quickly waved her hand and started walking towards the street corner. "I think we should go back. Aren't we going to the music festival tomorrow? It's better to go back and get some sleep!"

Lin Xiaofeng had no objection and set off to follow. "Alright."

On their way to the street corner, the two encountered a farce where a female public relations officer and a customer were arguing in the street over a purchase, a group of girls who were traveling approaching them, and five enthusiastic shop assistants handing out promotional flyers.

Having just gotten rid of an enthusiastic tout, Shirley breathed a sigh of relief. Before she could even speak to Lin Xiaofeng, a middle-aged man carrying a briefcase, who looked like an office worker, stepped forward.

Good evening, everyone!

The middle-aged man had a kind face and a smile on his face. His eyes narrowed as he looked at the two of them, and hesitantly asked in Japanese, "Can you understand Japanese?"

“We’re friends,” Lin Xiaofeng explained with a black line on his face after seeing the man’s identity. “She’s a girl, 20 years old this year, and she’s already an adult.”

“Yes,” Shirley nodded and smiled at the middle-aged man. “We’ve been good friends for a long time. I’m from Fukuoka, and he’s a native of Tokyo. I recently came to Tokyo for work. I was curious about Kabukicho Ichiban-gai, but I was too scared to come alone, so I dressed up as a boy and asked him to take me here.”

The middle-aged man breathed a sigh of relief, but quickly decided to continue his act, scratching his head awkwardly, "No, actually I came to ask for directions, not..."

Sherry smiled and whispered a reminder, "There's a mark on the side of your briefcase where you accidentally pressed against the cherry blossom crest. It's only a corner, but the cherry blossom crest is easy to recognize!"

The middle-aged man quickly looked down at the briefcase he was holding in his right hand and found that there was indeed a metal mark on the side of the briefcase, and it was indeed a corner of the cherry blossom crest of the Japanese police. He couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat.

Because the bag was black and the dent wasn't a colored drawing, he hadn't noticed it before...

618. Shirley confesses her love.

"Thank you for your hard work!" Shirley smiled, raised her hand to give the man a slightly awkward salute, and followed Lin Xiaofeng to the parking lot where they had parked earlier. "I didn't expect to actually be questioned by plainclothes police officers. But I didn't hold your hand anymore. Do we still look strange?"

“He probably didn’t see that we came together,” Lin Xiaofeng said. “He might be worried that high school students who came to Japan for tourism might have been tricked by someone with bad intentions.”

When they went shopping together, even if someone saw them behaving intimately, they would at most speculate about their relationship. But it was different when they left. Perhaps it was because Sherry dressed in men's clothing and looked too much like an innocent high school boy, plus the diverse people coming and going in Kabukicho Ichiban-gai, that the plainclothes policeman wanted to come up and investigate.

If they are both Japanese, or if they can both communicate in Japanese, the plainclothes policeman could pretend to be a passerby asking for directions and get information out of them. Once he understands the situation, he would probably leave it at that. However, if Shirley is a foreign boy who only has a basic understanding of Japanese, the plainclothes policeman would probably have to investigate Shirley's nationality further and ask about their relationship in a language that Shirley can understand.

Sulli's short, brownish hair could easily make people wonder if she was a foreign tourist.

“No wonder, Tokyo recently cracked a case involving a high school girl who was imprisoned for two years,” Shirley said as she walked side by side with Lin Xiaofeng on the street. “The details of the case caused quite a stir after they were reported. I heard that the girl was on her way to visit a friend on the weekend when she was lured to another place by the perpetrator. The perpetrator seemed to be an honest and good-natured person. The girl never expected to be imprisoned by him, and for two years at that. It also seems that there were two other victims before the girl was imprisoned, who had already been murdered by the perpetrator before she was imprisoned…”

The middle-aged man watched the two leave until he could no longer hear Shirley's voice, then he scratched his head and turned to continue strolling down the street.

That's right, because of that case, they've been called to many meetings these past few days, and all police stations are being reminded to be vigilant in preventing the abduction of minors...

The girl seemed quite clever; he didn't need to worry about her.

……

On the way to the street corner, Shirley briefly explained the case that had recently caused a sensation.

Lin Xiaofeng also shared what he had heard—the Metropolitan Police Department was planning to consolidate its police resources and focus on investigating unsolved missing persons cases from recent years.

Lin Xiaofeng hummed in agreement, looking at the crowds coming and going at the intersection ahead.

Let's wait until Shirley asks before we talk about it. He has a lot of free time lately, and if Shirley is concerned about that missing person case, he can accompany her to investigate.

Shirley walked quietly to the side of the street as she watched the street corner approaching. Suddenly, she saw a young couple walking hand in hand. Her gaze lingered on the girl's smooth black short hair and sweet, well-behaved face. She couldn't help but turn to see Lin Xiaofeng's reaction.

That girl looks a bit like the girl in the photo Ayumi showed her. Could it be that Detective Lin likes girls like that...?

Lin Xiaofeng turned his head to look back at Shirley, casting an inquiring glance.

Seeing that Lin Xiaofeng didn't seem to have seen the girl, Shirley hesitated for a moment, but ultimately didn't remind him to go look. "I was thinking... you always seem to like married women, I have no idea what kind of girl you'd actually like...~..."

Lin Xiaofeng looked away: "Who said I only like married women? I like girls like you."

“Like me…” Shirley paused for a moment, then quickly caught up, looking speechless. “Don’t joke with me. I’m seriously thinking about this!”

Lin Xiaofeng stopped and turned to look at Shirley, his gaze calm yet serious. "I'm answering very seriously as well."

Shirley looked up at Lin Xiaofeng's serious expression, mentally reviewing their conversation. Although she felt it was unlikely there was any misunderstanding, she couldn't help but ask, "You...you mean..."

“Back in London, I mentioned I was looking forward to the chocolates you sent. If I knew why, I would have told you,” Lin Xiaofeng paused deliberately, looking at Shirley’s somewhat dazed eyes. After a hint of unease appeared in Shirley’s eyes, he satisfied his mischievous pleasure in teasing her before continuing, “I’ve thought about it, and it must be because I like you.”

Shirley: "..."

It was so sudden, like a dream...

Detective Lin was still looking at her. Shouldn't she say something now? But what would be a good thing to say?

To the left of the two, a bubble bath shop had colorful neon lights flashing at its entrance, and a man dressed in an exaggerated kimono was stopping passersby, introducing the services listed on the form in his hand.

"We have super cute young girls in our store! Of course, we also have mature and gentle ones..."

To the right of the two, a middle-aged man walked by with a smiling arm around a young girl.

"I've already told my wife that I have to go out for a business dinner with my minister tonight and will be home a little late..."

Lin Xiaofeng: "..."

The scene was a bit strange, but he felt that the location of the confession wasn't that important. What was important was to put Shirley at ease and stop her from overthinking.

If you're like Hattori Kuroko, picking and choosing places and taking too long to think things through will only make you less decisive, and you might even find it harder to say what you're thinking about.

Shirley: "..."

The neon lights of the surrounding shops, red and pink, softened the expression on Detective Lin's face, and his eyes occasionally sparkled, making it seem like a dream.

But the man next to her, who was soliciting customers, kept shouting about bubble baths and beautiful women, frantically reminding her that she was in front of a brothel, which made her feel that there was something strange about this dream.

It really is... too strange!

At the entrance of the brothel, the two men soliciting customers, Lin, failed to get any of the people he had stopped to enter. Somewhat disappointed, he then noticed two people standing on the street facing each other. His eyes lit up, and he quickly walked over. "Would you two like to try a bubble bath?"

Shirley: "..."

Tonight's opening was a bit off.

"Sorry, we're not interested," Lin Xiaofeng replied to the man, then grabbed Shirley's wrist and walked towards the street corner.

Shirley let Lin Xiaofeng pull her away, quickly forgetting about the unusual location of the confession, and pondered how to respond to Lin Xiaofeng.

To say, "Actually, I like you too"?

Isn't this answer too simplistic, making her seem perfunctory or casual?

How about expressing your feelings for Lin Xiaofeng more?

She wasn't sure if she was embarrassed to say it, or if she didn't know where to begin. Just as she was about to put this idea into practice, her mind went completely blank.

They were almost at the street corner. She seemed to have been silent for a long time. Wouldn't Detective Lin misunderstand that she was resisting?

No, I need to say something quickly... hurry...

"It seems... a little strange to say you like me in a place like this."

After Shirley finished speaking, she wished she could bite her tongue and commit suicide immediately.

Can time be turned back? That's not what she really meant!

"It is indeed a bit strange..."

When they reached the street corner, Lin Xiaofeng didn't let go of Shirley's wrist. He walked towards the parking lot and said in a gentle but serious tone, "Well then, when the place is right another day, I'll talk to you again. If it's alright, I hope you can accept my invitation to a date in the coming days and decide whether you're willing to be my girlfriend. When I confess my feelings next time, I will formally ask you for your answer to this question. I hope you can give me an answer then."

Sherry stared ahead, her face flushed, not caring whether Lin Xiaofeng could see her or not. She tried her best to put on a serious face and show a serious attitude. "Yes, I will take it seriously. In short, I look forward to your guidance!"

"Please give me your guidance as well," Lin Xiaofeng replied.

The city's nightlife was just beginning, with crowds of pedestrians heading towards Kabukicho Ichiban-gai. The two walked against the flow of people, slowly heading in the opposite direction.

Sherry gradually relaxed, feeling she should be more honest, and said in a very soft voice, "Lin Xiao, I like you too. I've liked you for a long time."

619. Camping with the Junior Detective Club

Summer vacation ended and school started. A new teacher arrived at Teitan Elementary School: Ms. Wakasa Rumi.

Lin Xiaofeng and Shirley officially became a couple, and they spent more and more time together. On weekends, he drove Shirley to pick up the Junior Detective Club and their teacher, Wakasa Rumi, and headed towards the campsite. The reason Lin Xiaofeng was in such a good mood accompanying the Junior Detective Club was to get to know Wakasa Rumi.

On the road.

Lin Xiaofeng drove with a focused expression, while Shirley remained in the passenger seat as always.