Tokyo: Love Begins with Controlling the Rich Girl

"But the door is locked."

"Can't you just climb out the window if it's locked?"

There was a moment of silence in my mind, then a slightly upturned voice, filled with anticipation, said: "Okay."

The Kamishiro family mansion is located deep in the Hiroo affluent neighborhood, and its area is so large that it resembles a small park.

High walls, iron gates, surveillance cameras, and patrolling bodyguards—this is the scene Shimada Sho saw after climbing out of the window.

He was squatting on the second-floor windowsill, his long silver hair fluttering in the wind, wearing Yukine Kamishiro's casual clothes.

She wore a white dress with the hemline just reaching her knees, and light-colored canvas shoes.

"There's a tree under the third window on the left," Yukine Kamishiro instructed in her mind. "Slide down the trunk, and no one will notice."

How come you're so skilled?

"...I saw the bodyguard crawl by."

Chapter Fifty-Three: The Truly Meaningful Things

What kind of bodyguard climbs down trees every day? Spider-Man?

After yesterday's events and learning about her glorious deeds of liking to trick delinquents when she had nothing to do, Shimada Sho knew that this young lady was not as innocent as he had imagined.

However, he was too lazy to ask any further questions.

Sliding down the tree trunk to the backyard, Shimada Sho avoided the camera and bent his knees forward.

"Go left, there's a small door over there, usually unguarded," the young lady's voice rang out again.

You could tell she really liked that feeling.

His tone of voice carried an unusual elation.

Shimada Sho crouched down and walked along the base of the wall for a while, and sure enough, he saw a rusty iron gate.

The door lock was broken; it was ajar and made a creaking sound when pushed open.

Outside the door is a quiet alleyway lined with tall ginkgo trees, sunlight filtering through the leaves and casting dappled shadows.

"I'm out!" Shimada Sho opened his arms and took a deep breath after passing through the iron gate.

He imitated the protagonist in The Shawshank Redemption.

Unfortunately, he couldn't smell the scent of freedom; all he could smell was the shampoo emanating from the young lady, lingering in the air like blooming gardenias.

"Mmm." Yukine Kamishiro's voice was relaxed, a sound she hadn't heard in a long time.

……

The Kanda River is not close to Hiroo.

Shimada Sho took the subway for three stops and walked for more than ten minutes before he finally saw the winding river.

In mid-April, the cherry blossoms along the Kanda River are in full bloom.

Walking along the path, the banks of the river are covered with delicate pink flowers, some of which have been blown away by the wind and scattered on the path, like a stream flowing with the spirit of spring, standing side by side with the Kanda River.

Occasionally, a few late-blooming cherry trees stretch out their withered branches and lean over the cherry blossom-lined river.

It adds a unique touch of tranquility to this touch of spring.

The path was crowded with people: young mothers pushing strollers, elderly people walking their Shiba Inus, couples strolling hand in hand through the flower fields, and a few students carrying drawing boards, sketching on benches by the river.

Sho Shimada joined the crowd and walked slowly along the riverbank.

A breeze blew by, causing her skirt to sway gently and her long silver hair to dance in the wind.

He really does have the air of a young girl enjoying a spring outing—if you ignore his upright posture.

After walking for a while, Shimada Sho asked himself, "Is it pretty?"

"Hmm." After coming out, Yukine Kamishiro's voice returned to calm as she said softly, "It's prettier than I imagined."

"Didn't you come here before?" Shimada Sho asked, somewhat surprised.

“I’ve been here before, but it was when I was a child,” Yukine Kamishiro explained. “I didn’t think it was pretty back then.”

"now what?"

“Now…” she thought for a moment, “now it looks good.”

Shimada Sho didn't ask her why.

He could roughly guess that when she came before, she was a young lady surrounded by bodyguards and butlers.

Things are different now; she ran away from home, carrying a touch of teenage rebellion...

But Shimada Sho didn't come here for a spring outing.

He still has a mission to complete.

Looking at the task descriptions on the panel, I need to do something meaningful.

How do we determine if something is meaningful?

His eyes darted around and soon spotted a small stall selling taiyaki (fish-shaped fritters).

Shimada Sho walked over, bought one, and held it in his hand.

"Why isn't Mr. Thug eating?" Yukine Kamishiro wondered.

Shimada Sho walked around and casually explained, "I bought this for you."

"I can't eat it," Yukine Kamishiro said calmly.

Shimada Sho smiled slightly, "Keep it, you can eat it after I leave."

"I want to drink water," Yukine Kamishiro suddenly said, uttering something completely unexpected.

Shimada Sho was puzzled. "Drinking water?"

"Yes, soda. Mr. Thug, do you know where there's a convenience store nearby?"

"Convenience store... over here."

This place is near the Middle East Nomachi-cho, where the original owner used to come to the river to contemplate life when he was feeling melancholic.

As a result, Shimada Sho is also very familiar with this area.

Hearing the young lady say she wanted water, he didn't think much of it and walked in the direction he remembered.

Throughout the journey, Yukine Kamishiro remained silent.

After buying the water, he suddenly asked, "Mr. Thug, are you familiar with this area?"

The voice was very calm, as if it were just casual conversation without any purpose.

But upon hearing this, Shimada Sho suddenly stopped twisting the water bottle.

"..."

He was so busy looking for something meaningful that he neglected the issue of concealing his identity.

They acted like they were home as soon as they arrived.

What if the young lady notices...?

"What are they doing over there?" Shimada Sho's thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a voice in his head.

The young lady didn't dwell on the previous question and soon made a new discovery.

Shimada Sho looked up following her voice and saw a large group of people gathered in the distance.

Just around the corner a short distance ahead, a crowd had gathered, creating a lively atmosphere.

The sounds of people talking, music, and spatulas clattering together, along with the aroma of food in the air.

Shimada Sho walked over, squeezed into the crowd, and took a look. He noticed several red tents set up on the open ground next to the walkway, with a banner that read "7th Kandagawa Food Festival".

There were queues in front of several stalls, some people were grilling skewers, some were stir-frying noodles, and a crowd had gathered in front of another stall, with cheers coming from time to time.

"A food festival, huh?" Yukine Kamishiro said knowingly.

This is a booth for a cooking competition.

Several simple stoves were set up on the table, with ingredients such as eggs, rice, and scallions placed next to them.

A middle-aged man in a white chef's uniform was tossing a wok, and the fried rice in the wok turned into golden arcs, eliciting cheers.

[Master Chef Challenge: Register on-site, prepare a dish within ten minutes, judges will score on-site, and the winner will receive a Kanda River Food Festival medal!]

"interesting."

As Shimada Sho looked at the medal, a thought suddenly flashed through his mind.

"Mr. Thug?"

"Wait a minute." He squeezed his way to the registration area. "I want to participate."

“Miss…” The staff member paused, looked him up and down, and asked uncertainly, “Are you sure?”

"determine."

"But..." the staff member hesitated for a moment, "the match starts in three minutes, will you have enough time?"

"enough."

Shimada Sho tied on an apron and stood in front of the stove.

In front of me was an iron pot, a bowl of cold rice, two eggs, a handful of chopped green onions, and salt and pepper.

"What is Mr. Thug going to do?" Yukine Kamishiro asked curiously.

"Fried rice with egg."

While responding with his heartfelt words, Shimada Sho's hands continued to move.

Quickly chop the scallions, crack the eggs, and prepare the ingredients.

In his previous life, he struggled alone for a long time and was an excellent cook.

If we're talking about meaningful things, there's probably nothing more meaningful than cooking a meal for the young lady herself, right?

After all, they had been acting independently of each other before.

When Shimada Sho controls the body, the young lady can only watch.

Whether it's fighting or making friends, the young lady is more like an observer.

The only exception was the food, which he prepared himself and then left for the young lady to enjoy.

Does this count as physical contact that transcends physical boundaries?

"Even if Mr. Thug's cooking is terrible, I will still try it."

As Shimada Sho was busy preparing ingredients, the young lady's voice rang in his mind.

Shimada Sho's brow twitched. "At least have some faith in me."

Chapter 54 The Food-Obsessed Young Lady

"call out--"

The whistle blew to start the game.

Shimada Sho skillfully lit the fire, heated the pan, and poured in the oil.

When the oil is hot, crack two eggs into the pan; the egg mixture will expand rapidly in the hot oil.

Then, he poured the clumps of cold rice into the pot and deftly broke them up with a spatula, while Shimada Sho tossed the food in one hand and stirred it with the other.

This is the best dish he has ever made.

The experience comes from a previous life when I was penniless and had to force myself to make dinner just to fill my stomach.

From initially only being able to stir eggs and rice together to make a paste, to later being able to toss the pan, control the heat, and finally fry rice grains separately.

Now, when it comes to making fried rice, he is confident that few people can beat him.

Chinese fried rice is completely different from Japanese fried rice. Japanese fried rice is seasoned with tomato sauce and has a moist and soft texture, more like risotto.

He used the most traditional Chinese method—stir-frying over high heat.

Season with salt and pepper, fry the eggs until crispy and fragrant, allowing every grain of rice to absorb the flavor.

"This young lady's technique is very professional!"