After Xiangzi died, I inherited her harem.

"To express such blatant dislike for her most important business partner at this stage in her own mother's office? Ms. Nagasaki is indeed a person who only thinks about herself. She doesn't even give her own mother any face."

Despite being openly disliked by Nagasaki Sase, Toyokawa Yuu wasn't annoyed.

He didn't care what this troublesome woman thought of him. In fact, if she avoided him because of this dislike, he would be more at ease.

However, Toyokawa Yuu also understood that this idea was most likely just wishful thinking.

Not to mention that Nagasaki Sase would probably never give up on pursuing Toyokawa Shoko and Wakaba Mutsu, the fact that he is currently a business partner with her mother means that he will likely have to deal with her a lot in the coming period of time.

Therefore, he chose to directly retort.

Watching with interest as Nagasaki Sase's face showed barely concealed worry after his mother was involved, Toyokawa Yuu's smile became more genuine for once.

Since his relationship with Toyokawa Shoko improved, he has rarely had the opportunity to express his emotions so openly.

At one point, Toyokawa Yuu even had a thought that startled himself.

If, sometimes, this troublesome person takes the initiative to come to you and give you a chance to vent your emotions, it seems like a pretty good thing.

Just like ten years ago, when Nagasaki Sose felt relaxed after no longer hiding his intentions from his burned self in bed.

Tearing off the mask means that you no longer have to wear it, which is exhausting.

He's not like Senmina Nami; he's still a long way from reaching the level where the mask is completely rotten on his face.

However, after careful consideration, Yuu Toyokawa decided against it, as this approach, which would only cause her further distress after a brief period of release, would likely lead her to abandon the idea.

"But don't be so nervous. I won't tell Ms. Nagasaki about this. My cooperative relationship with her doesn't require me to use such self-serving and unscrupulous methods to gain an advantage, and besides..."

Yuu Toyokawa paused, pondering her next words.

Should we be more direct... or even more direct?

He has probably figured out how to get under Nagasaki Sosei's control.

As a child abandoned by his father at a young age, Nagasaki Sase couldn't possibly be indifferent to his mother; otherwise, he wouldn't have shown such obvious emotion because of his earlier threat.

The very act of saying that he wouldn't use her mother to pressure her was itself a form of pressure.

Seeing this woman, who always wore a fake smile... or a fake apology, reveal genuine worry, Toyokawa Yuu felt a strange urge to peel off her mask.

"Besides, I also hate you. I don't even have the mind to take advantage of you with this kind of leverage. In this respect, we're even... I'm not a childish and troublesome kid like you. I have no interest in playing tricks like tattling on parents."

I breathed a sigh of relief from the bottom of my heart.

Nagasaki Sase discovers that being openly disliked doesn't feel as bad as she imagined; in fact, it can even feel a little relaxing.

This ease did not stem from the other party's dislike; Nagasaki Sosei's personality was not twisted to that extent.

But... finally, I don't have to pretend anymore.

Looking at the boy before him with his deep blue eyes, Nagasaki Sase's gaze trembled with complex emotions.

Someone who hates you intensely, and you hate him intensely in return, yet you won't reveal this mutual dislike to your mother...

There's even a strange feeling that you owe the other person a favor.

"Well then, to thank you for your great kindness, how about I give you this lunchbox as a token of my gratitude, Mr. Yuyu?"

With gritted teeth, she pushed the meal she had prepared for her mother in front of Toyokawa Yuu. Then, Nagasaki Sase was pleasantly surprised to find...

Yuu Toyokawa's expression darkened completely.

.................................................. ................

"Okay, let's stop here for now."

In a room next to Ms. Nagasaki's office, a career woman dressed in a smart suit, with a lively demeanor that seemed a bit too youthful for her age, glanced at the time again and stopped talking.

Shortly after Ms. Nagasaki finished speaking, Hachiman Kairin also stopped tapping her fingers on her phone screen and ended her note-taking.

"I am extremely grateful, Ms. Nagasaki. I apologize for troubling you with this presumptuous request."

Putting away her phone, Hachiman Kairin bowed deeply to the woman in the suit in front of her, expressing her gratitude and apology.

After receiving guidance from Ms. Nagasaki, she realized just how presumptuous it had been to ask for her opinion on her speech.

No, even "rude" doesn't do justice to my behavior just now. If it were someone with a bad temper who tends to overthink things, they might even think I was being sarcastic or jealous.

In fact, at this point, Hachiman Kairin began to feel uneasy, unsure whether the woman in front of her harbored any ill will towards her.

You know your comment was presumptuous...

Looking at the girl who was sincerely apologizing in front of her, Ms. Nagasaki twitched her eyes in annoyance, but she was too embarrassed to argue with a child.

It was Hachiman Kairin in front of her that made her realize this again.

Not every child of this age is as calm and easy to manage as Toyokawa Yuu and her daughter.

"It's alright, I didn't take it to heart. But I really have to go back now. I've been leaving Mr. Toyokawa in the office for a while now. You should go back and find your captain too."

Waving her hand to indicate that Hachiman Kairin didn't need to worry about it, Ms. Nagasaki turned and left, slightly taken aback as she looked at the office door that she had gently closed before leaving, but which was now completely open.

Then, a knowing smile appeared on her lips.

It seems my daughter has arrived.

And... Mr. Toyokawa is indeed a very steady person. Even when dealing with people his own age, he is so meticulous in avoiding any appearance of impropriety.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, Mr. Toyokawa. Luckily, I had a brief chat with Hachiman... So, you haven't had time to go home these past few days. Have you missed your mother?"

He knocked lightly on the open door to indicate that he had returned.

Ms. Nagasaki entered the office with a bright smile, opening her arms as if to welcome her daughter's embrace.

Then she saw her daughter, half-bent over, her upper body almost parallel to the coffee table, so developed that even she, as her mother, was occasionally envious. She was leaning over the table, almost reaching over it, and pushing a lunchbox in front of Toyokawa Yuu.

Meanwhile, his important partner's expression had turned completely dark. After being attracted by his voice, the partner almost immediately looked at him for help.

"Eh?"

ps：这章9k5，算9k（能不能算1w啊呜呜呜），还5k，剩余33k未还。

I feel like I'm almost done paying off the bounty, and I'm getting closer and closer to being free.

written request for leave

At the beginning of the month, I took a break and used the opportunity to organize the outline for the rest of the year.

Speaking of which, who was the person who almost regained their freedom yesterday... never mind, it definitely wasn't me.

Glug glug ...

Chapter 164 Mu, I'm counting on you.

Looking at the scene before her, Ms. Nagasaki felt her mind was a little confused.

Seeing her daughter's gesture towards her business partner that was less enthusiastic and more a breach of social etiquette, Ms. Nagasaki even wondered if she was seeing things.

Ms. Nagasaki was mentally prepared for her daughter to grow up, after all, her daughter's figure, which was already developing so fast that even she was envious, was undeniable.

If one day my daughter tells me she's in love, I probably won't find it particularly unbelievable.

The problem is... no matter who her daughter falls for, she can't possibly fall for Toyokawa Yuu. He's a young master from a prominent family who's starting his own business, and he already has a fiancée.

Thinking about the urban dramas about wealthy families that she occasionally watched in her spare time, Ms. Nagasaki felt her vision blurring.

She had been wondering why her daughter insisted on telling her not to mention her to Toyokawa Yuu, but now Ms. Nagasaki seemed to know something.

The initially enthusiastic look in his eyes gradually became complicated.

Ms. Nagasaki suddenly felt relieved that Toyokawa Yuu wasn't as immature as her daughter.

"Huh? Mom?"

Nagasaki Sase was slightly taken aback when his mother suddenly entered the room, and his expression became somewhat tense.

She was a little worried that her mother might have overheard her banter with Toyokawa Yuu.

If that were the case, her image as a good daughter might be jeopardized.

Straightening up, Nagasaki Sase turned to his mother and gave her the same gentle smile as always.

The speed at which the expression changed was so fast that Toyokawa Yuu even had the illusion that the merciless and harsh look she had just received was just an illusion.

"You must be tired from work. I've prepared lunch for you, but I'll have to share some with Mr. Youyu."

Actually, you didn't have to share with me at all...

Yuu Toyokawa raised an eyebrow but did not speak.

At times like this, all he needs to do is remain silent. He is certainly not childish enough to complain to Nagasaki Sase about the side of her that is inconsistent with her usual ladylike image.

More than these things, he was more concerned with finding a more natural excuse to leave.

As Toyokawa Yuu looked at the lunchbox that Nagasaki Sase had pushed in front of her, her expression grew increasingly unpleasant, and she even made no attempt to hide it in front of Ms. Nagasaki.

However, since Ms. Nagasaki had already seen his darkened expression as soon as she entered, she didn't need to worry too much about such a small matter.

"It wasn't too tiring. Mr. Toyokawa was the one who was mainly busy this morning."

Noticing that Yuu Toyokawa's face seemed to be getting darker and darker, Ms. Nagasaki could no longer remain frozen in place.

Although the warm smile on her face now seemed a little unnatural, Ms. Nagasaki still put her arm around Nagasaki Sase's shoulder and pulled her to sit down beside her, deliberately placing herself between Toyokawa Yuu and her daughter.

With a somewhat forced smile, Ms. Nagasaki looked at Yuu Toyokawa's expression, which was beginning to soften but still wasn't exactly pleasant. For the first time, she felt a little awkward in front of this boy who was only about the same age as her daughter.

When Ms. Nagasaki first entered and saw that scene, her feelings were actually quite complicated.

I felt relieved by Toyokawa Yuu's control over avoiding suspicion and maintaining social distance, but I also felt a little...uncomfortable about my daughter's behavior, which seemed to have been met with indifference.

No matter what, she is still my daughter, the only relative I can rely on. As a mother, I would instinctively not want her to suffer any injustice.

Of course, if Yuu Toyokawa knew what Ms. Nagasaki was thinking at this moment, she would probably just laugh out loud.

Compared to Nagasaki Sase, he felt that he was the one who was more wronged. At least Nagasaki Sase was not held back by food that he absolutely did not want to eat or social etiquette.

The reason I didn't fall out with Ms. Nagasaki directly because of Sase Nagasaki's matter was not only because I wasn't naive enough to bring personal feelings into my work, but also because I didn't want to fall out with Ms. Nagasaki because of that troublesome person.

Given the current state of the band Ave Mujica, Yuu Toyokawa really didn't want to have any unpleasantness with Ms. Nagasaki, or even lose this capable, tactful, and discreet collaborator.

Even though Ms. Nagasaki has demonstrated reassuring professionalism so far, she shouldn't take this incident to heart.

But... Yuu Toyokawa really didn't dare to gamble on how far a single mother would go for her daughter.

Due to Nagasaki Sase's involvement, both sides in the current collaboration feel like they're caught in a dilemma, afraid to fight a wolf with a stick.

Just as I was hesitating, the knocking sounded at the door again.

However, the person knocking on the door was not from the company and even acted somewhat rudely, pushing open the door before Ms. Nagasaki, the office owner, could respond.

"Yuu, haven't you and Ms. Nagasaki finished talking? We should go back now, don't forget we have to..."

Toyokawa Shoko pushed open the door, casting a golden gaze upon everyone in the room, before pausing slightly when her eyes met those familiar azure blue eyes.

"Xiangzi?"

"Ms. Toyokawa?"

Seeing Toyokawa Shoko walk in through the door, Toyokawa Yuu breathed a sigh of relief.

Compared to Toyokawa Shoko, he was not considered an important target in Nagasaki Sōse's eyes. With her around, he could at least catch his breath.

Ms. Nagasaki also breathed a sigh of relief. With Toyokawa Shoko's intervention, at least she could take the opportunity to get rid of that embarrassing topic from before.

She was starting to feel a little eager for Toyokawa Shoko to take the opportunity to leave, as for her earlier remarks about inviting Toyokawa Yuu to lunch...

Let's find a way to apologize later; this isn't a topic that's appropriate to bring up in front of our daughter.

Only Nagasaki Sōse felt uneasy the moment he saw Toyokawa Sōko enter.

Yuu Toyokawa did say that he had no interest in taking the conflict between the two of them to their parents, and he did indeed do so.

However, his fiancée, Shoko Toyokawa, is clearly not among those keeping it a secret.

Just now, I think I was a little overwhelmed by Toyokawa Yuu's arrogant attitude and became a bit carried away.

"Xiaoxiang..."

Nagasaki Sase clenched his fingers nervously.

It's one thing that Toyokawa Yuu doesn't like him, and he doesn't like him either because of the other's inexplicable dislike, but Toyokawa Shoko is still a very important friend to him.

Wasn't the reason I tried so hard to get close to Toyokawa Yuu in the first place for her?

Similarly, there's also the case of Mutsumi Wakaba, who claims to be sick and hospitalized but always appears in pairs with Yuu Toyokawa.

Thinking about this, even Nagasaki Sosei himself couldn't understand why he had insisted on arguing with Toyokawa Yuu, and even...