Tokyo Three Generations

"Okay, then I'll leave it to you."

==========================

The plane landed at Akita Airport very quickly.

Upon disembarking from the plane, Toyokawa Shoko learned the hotel's address from Wakaba Mutsu, and then she took Nagasaki Motoyo in a private car to the hot spring hotel.

"Mu, I've arrived! I'll come to your room right away!" She left a message for Mu on the chat app as soon as she arrived at the hotel.

Her response was a thumbs-up emoji.

"I just got back, I'm waiting for you here."

So, Toyokawa Shoko left her maid to check her in, and then she and Nagasaki Motoyo, led by a staff member, went straight to Wakaba Mutsumi's room.

She knocked gently on the door, and soon it opened. Then, Ruo Yemu's slender and indifferent figure appeared before the two of them.

"Mutsu!" Toyokawa Shoko let out a small cheer upon seeing her friend whom she hadn't seen for many days. "I missed you so much!"

After she finished speaking, she reached out to Wakaba Mutsu and gave her a gentle hug.

Although she had other reasons for coming, she was still a good friend, and it was impossible for me not to want to.

"I miss you too." Ruoye Mu gave a calm but warm response, also giving her friend a gentle hug.

After the two greeted each other, Toyokawa Shoko curiously looked around the room.

"Where is your mother?" she asked. "Now that I'm here, I should at least say hello to your aunt."

“Mom is in the next room,” Wakaba Mutsu replied.

Although so much had happened, she kept it all a secret from her friends.

"Oh, I see. I'll say hello later then." Toyokawa Shoko didn't seem to mind.

Then, the three of them went into the room together.

Feeling a bit tired from the journey, Toyokawa Shoko sat down on the sofa as soon as she entered the room and stretched.

Then, she asked Wakaba Mutsumi with great interest, "Mutsumi, you've been here for a while now, have you had fun?"

"It was quite fun." Wakaba Mutsu nodded. "Everyone was very nice to me."

“Yes, I saw those event photos. You looked like you were having a lot of fun…” Toyokawa Shoko smiled, but then her smile suddenly stopped because she remembered that photo again.

However, she quickly composed herself and continued casually, "I brought Su Shi along because this place looks fun. I wanted to join in the activities, is that okay?"

"It should be fine, I just need to tell my mom," Wakaba Mutsu replied.

"Then it's settled!" Toyokawa Shoko visibly breathed a sigh of relief. "By the way, what other activities are planned? I need to prepare in advance."

"I'm not entirely sure, but there should be a large cherry blossom festival coming up..."

"That's great!" Toyokawa Shoko immediately perked up. "I just made it in time..."

Cherry blossoms, yukatas, various snacks, folk performances, and most importantly, taking photos... she immediately became very excited.

At this point, she finally asked, almost casually, the question she had been wanting to ask, "By the way, is Junya participating too? Why is he in the event as well?"

"He's kind of a volunteer for the event, but I don't know the specifics. You can just ask him." Wakaba Mutsu remained calm. "Anyway, he lives in the room next door, which is very convenient."

She spoke casually, but the other two were stunned. They looked at each other in disbelief before Toyokawa Shoko asked incredulously.

Is his room right next to yours?

Ruo Yemu nodded slightly to indicate his confirmation.

Rather, it's more accurate to say that this room was originally booked by him... Wakaba Mutsu thought to herself.

To avoid further upsetting Xiangzi, she remained silent.

Shoko Toyokawa could no longer maintain her nonchalant demeanor. She hesitated for a moment, then finally managed to ask with difficulty, "When did you two start getting so close?"

This question also made Wakaba Mutsuya ponder.

After a moment, she spoke softly, as if to herself.

"While I was falling, I was looking up at the stars."

Such an eccentric response left the two of them looking at each other in bewilderment, completely missing the point—even though Wakaba Mutsu had actually spoken her truest thoughts.

However, Toyokawa Shoko had been friends with Wakaba Mutsu for over a decade and had become somewhat accustomed to Wakaba Mutsu's occasional radio waves.

So she didn't press the pointless question any further, but instead asked another question, "Did you know that you and Chun were photographed together? And it was posted online. That's not a good thing. I saw quite a few people commenting, and some of them said some really nasty things."

"Although it's a bit of a hassle, isn't it nice to have a keepsake?" Wakaba Mutsu said nonchalantly.

Then, she added in a low voice.

"I...I think the rice cakes and pickles there are delicious, and they really try their best to make me happy."

If Ye Mu means that since they make me happy, then I won't hold it against them.

But for Toyokawa Shoko, this was yet another jarring reply, leaving her utterly powerless.

She wanted to ask more questions, but then felt there was no point in doing so.

Ultimately, what's wrong with people taking a group photo? What right do we have to interfere?

Actually, she wasn't really angry. After all, they had lived together harmoniously for so many years, and she wouldn't make a big fuss over such a small matter. She was just a little unconvinced.

It's like a child in kindergarten who cries loudly because the teacher only gives candy to others.

How can you only let Mu eat candy? There's me too, there's me too.

Although Nagasaki Motoyo didn't say much during their conversation, she was quietly observing Wakaba Mutsu's current state.

She noticed that Mu looked much better than she had ever seen before.

This not only refers to improved physical health, but also gives people the feeling that the "gloom" that had been hanging over them was gradually dissipating.

Was it not unexpected?

It's amazing he was able to do it... She couldn't help but smile bitterly to herself.

I knew he had this skill, but it's a pity that this skill wasn't reserved just for himself.

A faint bittersweet feeling welled up from the bottom of my heart, but at the same time, even more so, a sense of relief emerged.

Although she had only known Ruoye Mutsu for a short time and their relationship was not deep, they were still considered friends. Seeing her friend recover both physically and mentally, she was genuinely happy for her.

So, seeing that the atmosphere was a bit dull, she spoke up to smooth things over.

"Well, the photos don't really matter. Let people say what they want. Anyway, everyone will forget about things online in a few days. We just need to be happy. If only Mu would smile more like she did that time..."

At this point, she smiled with a mixture of relief and helplessness, "It was indeed quite pleasant being with him, so I understand you."

But after she said it, she immediately realized she had misspoke and glanced at Toyokawa Shoko with embarrassment.

"Why is everyone staring at me..." Toyokawa Shoko puffed out her cheeks, seemingly a little annoyed. "Is it wrong for me to care about my friends?"

Then, she couldn't help but laugh.

"Alright, Mu, I'm so glad to see you're in such good spirits. Let's enjoy the rest of the activities together... Don't leave me behind!"

52, A Moment of Eternity

Back in his hotel room, Jun Takasaki had just finished his daily routine on his phone when he heard a knock at the door.

"Who is it?" he asked.

"Chun, it's me."

A soft laugh came from the doorway.

Jun Takasaki knew who it was as soon as he heard the voice, so he put down his phone and went to the door to open it.

Sure enough, Miss Toyokawa was standing right in front of him.

Although it's springtime, the temperature here is still a bit chilly, so she, who had just come from Tokyo, put on a light trench coat, making her look older than her actual age.

"Long time no see!" She waved gently as soon as they met.

"Long time no see." Jun Takasaki nodded in greeting as he stepped aside.

Toyokawa Shoko walked in, and then asked seemingly casually, "Jun, what are you doing here at this event? I heard from Mutsu that you were a volunteer... That's so strange, do you really need to support yourself through this work-study program?"

"No, that's not it. It was just a cover-up. In essence, it was a reward my father gave me." Jun Takasaki recounted the whole story to Shoko Toyokawa.

"So, in the end, the whole event was actually organized by your family?" Toyokawa Shoko finally understood.

“Our family isn’t that busy. We just managed to get this project and then gave it to the fan club’s company to handle. To avoid any suspicion, we won’t ask too many questions about the specifics. I’m just here to freeload off the event and have some fun, like a vacation to relax.”

“I see, I understand now…” Toyokawa Shoko nodded. “Then, can you temporarily include me and Su Shi? I heard from Mutsu that there’s a cherry blossom festival coming up, and I want to go check it out!”

“No problem.” For Jun Takasaki, this was just a matter of making a phone call, so he immediately agreed. “You can do whatever you want.”

Seeing that Jun Takasaki agreed so readily, Shoko Toyokawa was relieved.

However, she immediately thought of another problem—since the entire event could be arranged arbitrarily by the Takasaki family, then the fact that his room was so close to that of the room was probably intentional.

It was done on purpose... The thought of this made her unable to laugh again.

"You two are not only staying in the same hotel, but your rooms are even next to each other? Is this some kind of special arrangement?" Although Toyokawa Shoko tried to remain calm on the surface, she couldn't help but ask.

"Are you saying I don't deserve to stay in a VIP room?" Jun Takasaki retorted.

Toyokawa Shoko was speechless.

She quickly defended herself, "That's not what I meant..."

Jun Takasaki knew, of course, that wasn't what she meant, but the problem was that he couldn't answer the question in the way she originally intended.

He couldn't very well tell her that it was his subordinates who saw his good relationship with Wakaba Mutsu and offered to help arrange it.

So it's better to just make a fuss, steer the conversation away, and then give some vague answer to brush it off.

“The hotel has very few VIP rooms to begin with, and this area is considered the best, so our team booked it all, and that's how it ended up like this. Speaking of which, Ms. Mori is also in the room right next to hers on the other side, isn't that a pretty normal arrangement?”

Jun Takasaki's explanation sounded reasonable, and Shoko Toyokawa was speechless.

Fortunately, she hadn't come here to confront anyone, so she didn't dwell on the issue too much.

"So you were following this event the whole time, right? Did you see...?" Toyokawa Shoko hesitated for a moment, but still asked, "Did you see Mutsumi and her mother have any conflict?"

Toyokawa Shoko, after all, was Mutsu's best friend of many years, and she was well aware of how bad the relationship between the mother and daughter was. Therefore, she never gave Mori Minami a kind look, and only maintained the most basic politeness.

However, this was ultimately someone else's family matter, and she couldn't interfere; she could only watch anxiously.

Faced with Toyokawa Shoko's concerned gaze, Takasaki Jun was at a loss.

Because Ruoye Mu had specifically instructed him not to tell Xiangzi about the argument between the mother and daughter that led to the accidental fall from the building, he had to keep this a secret.

However, saying nothing would seem too distant.

So he could only give a vague reply, "Yes, their relationship is not good, they don't communicate much. However, since they were attending an event, they haven't had a public falling out, it's just a superficial relationship—"

Upon hearing this, Toyokawa Shoko couldn't help but sigh.

Both had lost their mothers at a young age, while Mu's mother was still alive but in this state; it was hard to say which of the two was more unfortunate.

"Thank you for your trouble." She then bowed slightly, as if to express her gratitude to Jun Takasaki.

"Huh? Why are you suddenly thanking me?" Jun Takasaki looked completely bewildered.

“I’ve seen that photo of you two. I’ve known Mutsu for many years, and I’ve rarely seen her smile so naturally and happily before…” Toyokawa Shoko replied solemnly. “So, I suppose you’ve taken good care of her during this time. Although I don’t know what you’ve done during this time, to be able to protect her in front of such a mother and let her have so much fun is already remarkable enough. You’ve done better than me at least. So I’m very grateful to you…”

This was also Toyokawa Shoko's true feeling.

If you were to describe it as sour, it would definitely be a bit bittersweet, but after all, she and Mu had been friends since childhood, and seeing Mu so happy for once made her happy for Mu herself.

In response to the other party's gratitude, Junya Takasaki smiled and waved his hand, "There's no need to be so formal. I'm just doing my duty as a host."

Then, he explained to Toyokawa Shoko, "At first, I just wanted to treat it as an outdoor trip, but I didn't expect Ms. Mori to bring Mutsuya along. After all, she's your friend. Now that she's here, I won't allow anyone to bully her on my turf, not even her mother."

"So you're defending her because she's my friend?" Toyokawa Shoko looked at him with surprise. "Then you're a really good friend."

Not just because she's your friend, but also because she's very pretty and cute... Jun Takasaki didn't say those words aloud. He just smiled and nodded.

After the two chatted for a while, Toyokawa Shoko's mood improved considerably.

As if she had thought of something, she looked at Takasaki Jun again and made a serious request, "Since I've come all this way, I... may I visit your home? After all, as a friend, it would be a bit impolite of me to come to your hometown and not pay a visit."

“Of course, we’re ready anytime,” Jun Takasaki immediately agreed.

Shoko Toyokawa tried to remain calm, concealing her inner delight, and then continued, "I heard that only your grandfather lives at your house. What kind of gift does he like?"