Mygo, you guys seem to be getting a bit heavy-hearted.

Shoko Toyokawa was skeptical of this.

Yanming closed the kettle, looked down indifferently at the stunned man, and said coldly, "I'll give you one last chance. Think carefully about your mistakes."

"Eh……?"

His mistake, his mistake...

The shrewdness that middle-aged men pride themselves on failed to bring him any clues. In desperation, he began to look around the company.

Finally, he spotted the blue octopus that Yanming had followed in yesterday... no, it should be Toyokawa Shoko!

This seemingly mature but easily fooled young lady, after being swindled out of double the agency fee yesterday, actually came knocking on my door with her powerful backer just one day later.

How did she realize she'd been tricked so quickly?!

No, no, now is not the time to think about these things...

The man's brain worked at high speed, and in an instant, he made the right choice between his important spiritual sustenance and a negligible amount of money.

He shouted, "I understand!"

"Oh?" Yanming raised his chin. "Tell me about it."

Hearing Yanming's tone, which seemed to leave room for negotiation, the man's eyes darted around: "Miss Fengchuan's money, I shouldn't have taken it... I'll return it all!"

"Oh, really?" Yanming seemed satisfied as he put away his stance.

The man immediately beamed with joy, bowing and scraping as he said, "Yes, yes!"

Yanming carried the kettle of hot water, walked over to Xiangzi and handed it to her, secretly winking at her while avoiding the man's gaze.

Xiangzi wasn't a naive fool; he immediately understood.

Then, Yanming turned his head and said, "Very good, very sincere. I won't bother you anymore."

"..." Just as the man breathed a sigh of relief, Xiangzi suddenly pulled the stopper out of the kettle without saying a word, took small but quick steps to the orange tree, and made as if to water it.

"?!?"

What's wrong with these two?!

After understanding the two men's intentions, and with Yanming keeping an eye on him, the man didn't dare to do anything out of line.

Therefore, he could only have a second chance.

"Miss Toyokawa! Oh no! Vadashi↑!!"

……

Ten minutes later, the three of them were sitting on the sofa in the company's reception area.

"Hmm~?"

Toyokawa Shoko happily hugged a thick envelope. Overjoyed at finding it again, she unconsciously shook her head slightly, her two cute little braids swaying from side to side like octopus tentacles.

I haven't felt this happy in a long time.

All of this is thanks to the young man in front of us.

Yanming sipped the tea he had just brewed with boiling water, while still grumbling, "Tum tum—you're an adult, and you still cheat young girls out of their money? Don't you have any conscience? If I find you doing this kind of immoral thing again, I'll uproot that tree and throw it into the septic tank, understand? Tum tum tum—the tea is good, I'll take two packets with me later."

"Yes, yes, I'm glad you like it, young man." Facing such a big client, the man naturally dared not neglect him.

Although there are many poor people in the Akabane area and the housing prices are relatively cheap, Yanming is just too young.

To have such assets at such a young age, unless Yanming suddenly dies before he turns thirty, his future achievements are unimaginable. Even if there is no business dealings, we absolutely cannot afford to become enemies.

Thinking it over, the shrewd and snobbish man laughed again and said, "My place is small, so if you see something you like, just take it."

Yanming: "?"

What's going on? Are they treating him like a robber?

Taking other people's things without permission is something only bandits do in Yanming's hometown!

He abides by the law, how could he do such a selfish thing that harms others?

Yanming turned to look at the little octopus who was still grinning foolishly and said, "You heard what he said. See if the house is missing any furniture. If you like it, move it. I'll transport it back to you on my motorcycle."

On the other hand, he wasn't a bandit, but Toyokawa Shoko could be.

No.

This isn't some kind of bandit, it shouldn't be!

Although she is young and owns numerous properties, and looks down on them, there is a poor, uneducated young woman next door who needs help from kind-hearted people.

This is clearly a charitable cause where both parties are willing to work together towards a better tomorrow!

Chapter Six: System Rewards

"Yanming-kun, really...really?" Having tasted the sweetness of success, Toyokawa Shoko was clearly tempted.

The other side panicked: "Dude, you guys are really taking it?"

He was just joking; these are all company property, and if he takes them, he'll be the one losing money.

Yanming scratched his chin, looking rather shy: "How about I just make a show of it, carry it away and you can move it back yourself another day?"

Look at what you're saying.

If these things really went to Yanming, it would be like fish returning to the sea, tigers returning to the forest, or MP5s entering Meilijian's campus. How could they possibly come back?

"No, no, no, sir, let's talk this over..."

Before he could finish speaking, Yanming put the empty teacup on the table and said, "Stop joking. Everyone here makes millions of yen a minute. It's really pointless to waste time drinking this lousy tea here. Just consider these things as my storage. I'll come and get them when I need them."

It's just a joke; nobody takes it seriously.

"Are you going back, young man? Won't you stay a little longer?"

After being scolded by Yanming, this person seemed to have developed some Stockholm syndrome.

"No, let's go back first... Miss Toyokawa? Stop laughing, wait until we're alone." Yanming raised his hand and waved it in front of Xiangzi, who then came back to her senses.

"Ok!"

Shoko Toyokawa couldn't contain her excitement.

My savings from the past few years have dwindled to almost nothing due to my constant spending. This unexpected windfall, snatched from the middleman's teeth, would have been something I would have scoffed at before, but now…

"Yanming-kun, you really helped me a lot today by taking down the stockings!" Xiangzi happily thanked Yanming.

Even the little face that had been tense in front of him since yesterday relaxed a bit, and finally looked a bit radiant like it should be at his age.

This is the kind of expression a JK (high school girl) should have.

Compared to the young widow Toyokawa Shoko, Yanming felt that the current Toyokawa Shoko was more pleasing to the eye.

Of course, it was just simple appreciation; there was absolutely no intention to pursue or woo the other person.

How could he possibly be attracted to a girl like that?

That's impossible.

But it turns out this child can laugh too.

[Task completion rate increased]

Current completion rate: 10%

[New Hint: Perhaps, Toyokawa Shoko's smile was actually quite common in the past?]

[Phase rewards are being distributed]

[Congratulations, host, you have obtained: [Toyokawa Shoko's Smiling Photo Collection] Please check your account when you are alone.]

"?"

No, you're a god...

[This has nothing to do with me, Host! It was all random, I'm innocent!]

The system is complaining.

How could a strategy guide system be so incompetent?

Oh, it's from Cat Station, then it's alright.

Yanming stood up, walked to the door and said, "Let's go back first, it's getting late."

"Ah, okay." Xiangzi hurriedly picked up her small handbag and followed, then paused, falling a step behind Yanming before hesitantly saying, "Also, Yanming-kun, um..."

Why are you suddenly starting to stammer?

Yanming turned around and said, "Please speak."

"May I invite you to my home for dinner?" As soon as she finished speaking, Toyokawa Shoko's face flushed...

Hey, it's not red yet.

Teacher Da Xiang crossed her arms and elegantly invited Yan Ming, showing no sign of shyness whatsoever.

It was simply to express his gratitude for the other party's help. Once he understood this, there was nothing to be ashamed of—that's the reason Xiangzi used to convince himself.

[Host, Miss Toyokawa is shy.]

Even without the system saying it, Yanming could see it.

After all, the girl in front of him was trembling all over, only her face remained calm.

...But if we expose her now, she'll probably be so ashamed that she'll explode into takoyaki pieces on the spot, right?

You're still just a kid, Toyokawa-kun.

"No..." Yanming, who had originally planned to cook for himself, was about to politely refuse when the prompt from the strategy system appeared in his mind.

'To truly understand a proud person, simply offering help may backfire.'

Yanming changed the subject and said, "In that case, I'll trouble you. I'm just wondering what to do for lunch."

To be clear, he wasn't trying to seduce her; he just felt there was no need to disappoint her kind intentions.

Well, that's right.

Hearing Yanming agree, Xiangzi breathed a sigh of relief, touched the envelope which was slightly warm from his body heat, and his anxiety about being rejected vanished.

What a gentle person she is.

Then she said, "Could Mr. Yanming please give me a ride to the nearby market first? I plan to buy some groceries there."

Besides the portion for entertaining Yanming, she also needed to prepare some food that could be stored for a long time, in case her father starved to death at home because she couldn't go back in time due to some unexpected matter.

Yanming readily agreed: "No problem."

Before the sun became scorching, the roar of motorcycles rose again, leaving their mark on the world as they moved forward, like a ballad sung in the form of rock music, leaving a deep lingering impression.

……

By the time I returned from shopping, it was almost noon.

Yanming pulled out the key, parked the car close to the wall, and casually took the large and small bags from Xiangzi, who was waiting for him.

"Let's go." Thinking about it carefully, this was actually my first time visiting a girl's home.

...even though the house is his.

Xiangzi nodded, not dwelling on the matter of having the guest carry things, took out the key from his bag, and opened the door.

“…I’m back.” Even though he knew no one would respond, Xiangzi’s good manners still made him speak as always.

Even so, a hint of loneliness unconsciously crept into Xiangzi's eyes, which Yanming noticed.

Yanming followed her into the room. Since there were no shoes for guests, he had to wear socks and walk in the living room.

In just one day, several empty soda cans appeared on the floor in the corner, with traces of white ash scattered around the openings. Xiangzi quickly cleaned them up, then turned and gave Yanming an awkward smile.

It seems she herself is well aware of what kind of person her father is.

"I'm so sorry, as I'm new here, I haven't had time to prepare many things yet, and I haven't cleaned up the traces from last night. I really haven't been able to provide adequate hospitality..."

"It's alright." Yanming didn't care about such trivial matters. Compared to that, his gaze was fixed on a still-closed door, from which came the faint sound of snoring. "Mr. Toyokawa, are you still sleeping at this hour?"

Xiangzi paused in tying the garbage bag, then said, "My father has become somewhat depressed for some reasons. He wasn't like this when I was little. I... don't want to be too harsh on him. He used to be really good to me."