As they drew closer to Tsukiyuki Fumiko’s home, Gao Sijin felt increasingly like he was sitting on pins and needles.
Could the person who wanted him dead really be the beautiful woman he’d seen at the Tsukiyuki family banquet not long ago?
“Gao-kun, don’t be nervous. No matter what, I will protect you. Auntie Fumiko may be a terrifying figure in the family, but as your fiancée, I am far more terrifying than her.”
Gao Sijin stared blankly at Tsukiyuki Rio, with her long hime-cut hair. With a graceful bearing like an ancient princess, she was indeed far more terrifying.
At least in Gao Sijin’s writing philosophy, a yandere who kills their beloved with a knife out of love is far less terrifying than a confinement-type yandere. Death is a release, while confinement is endless, hopeless despair.
A cold, slender hand gently stroked Gao Sijin’s forehead with tender movements.
To appear compliant, Gao Sijin did not refuse her comfort and simply looked out the car window.
In all of Tokyo, Setagaya Ward was the most populous of the twenty-three wards.
Tsukiyuki Fumiko, the Branch Family Head, lived in the Seijo district of Setagaya, where housing prices hovered around 800,000 yen per square meter.
Through the window, Gao Sijin noticed that the asphalt roads here were so clean they seemed to have not a speck of dust, and in the distance, plants were neatly trimmed. However, due to winter, there was no chance of seeing lush greenery.
The scattered pedestrians looked ordinary, but almost everyone living in this area was bound to be no ordinary person. After returning from studying abroad, his cousin often told Gao Sijin that in J-Country, it’s nearly impossible to tell the rich from the poor because most wealthy people are very low-key.
“Young Miss, we’ve arrived.”
The Mercedes-Benz stopped in front of a house.
Gao Sijin glanced at the house. It was a small villa with a dated feel, its architectural details a bit old-fashioned, but the pure white walls and sea-blue roof gave it a dignified, elegant, and romantic air. It felt as if the couple who originally built this house had longed for a happy life with sunny days and breezy nights.
Looking into the courtyard, however, it was a scene of withered trees and weeds. The desolate yard looked as if no one had lived there for a long time; spiderwebs had already formed on the oak lounge chair, covered in thick dust.
“Auntie Fumiko’s home is Mediterranean-style. Does Gao-kun like this style?”
“So-so. It’s not really about whether I like it or not.”
“Gao-kun’s taste has become quite picky.”
Tsukiyuki Rio covered her mouth and chuckled lightly.
They rang the doorbell, and before long, a beautiful woman in plain clothing appeared at the door.
It was the Branch Family Head, the godmother who controlled various yakuza groups in Tokyo—Tsukiyuki Fumiko.
Gao Sijin casually sized up Tsukiyuki Fumiko. She had a strikingly beautiful and alluring face, and it was clear that in her youth, she had been a devastatingly beautiful woman.
However, with the passage of time, a few fine wrinkles had crept onto her face.
Beneath her curved dark brows was a pair of eyes that spoiled the whole picture. Just like the last time they met, those eyes were bloodshot in a shocking way, with dark, deeply sunken sockets, as if she were haunted by a vengeful ghost.
Her dry, cracked lips curved slightly upward, making one fear they might split open.
What was surprising was that those monstrous lips produced an unusually soft and gentle voice:
“Lady Tsukiyuki Rio, good morning. Welcome to my humble home. I apologize for any inadequate hospitality, and I ask for your kind understanding.”
“Not at all. I am truly sorry for disturbing Auntie Fumiko’s work, and I hope you can forgive me.”
Their exchange was polite in wording, but Gao Sijin felt an uncomfortable chill run down his spine.
Moreover, Tsukiyuki Rio’s expression was as cold as ice. Normally warm and smiling when around him, she now exuded a chilling aura that bordered on inhuman.
Tsukiyuki Rio took Gao Sijin by the hand and walked straight into Tsukiyuki Fumiko’s house.
As Gao Sijin passed by Fumiko, she bowed and greeted him:
“To the husband of Lady Tsukiyuki Rio, I also extend my greetings. Please treat this place as your own home and relax.”
Because Fumiko was bowing, Gao Sijin couldn’t see her face, but he felt that she was insincere and seemed to rather dislike him.
His cousin often said that J-Country people’s politeness always carried a hint of hypocrisy, and now Gao Sijin deeply understood that.
Yu Qingxue, Morgana, and several maids holding guns also entered the house. In the distance, Emilia had already set up a sniper rifle, its crosshairs trained on Fumiko’s head.
At the slightest unexpected move, it would be a bloodbath.
Faced with this situation, Fumiko maintained a mechanical smile, coldly watching the maids with a gaze identical to that of African hyenas.
“Auntie Fumiko, your home still carries that smell of decay as always.”
“Perhaps that is the meaning of home. My husband abandoned the family and ran off abroad, yet his presence still lingers. This is where he once lived, and no matter what, his traces can never be completely erased.”
“I see. That explains it.”
Tsukiyuki Rio glanced at Fumiko. The white kitchen tiles Rio was now standing on looked spotlessly clean, but the grout between them had once soaked up the blood of Fumiko’s husband.
Back then, Fumiko had taken great pains to completely conceal the crime of killing her husband. But no matter how clean she scrubbed, she could never make the air fresh again.
The living room also carried the resentment of more than one person. Over twenty people had been dragged into this house and chopped into pieces. Even after all these years, a faint chill could still be felt, as if the dead were whispering in your ear.
Tsukiyuki Rio did not sit on the sofa but remained standing, as if afraid that her expensive kimono would be dirtied.
“To get straight to the point, Auntie Fumiko: were you the one who sent assassins after Gao-kun?”
“Lady Tsukiyuki Rio, I would never assassinate the person you admire. Moreover, soon this young man will marry into the Tsukiyuki family and become one of us. How could I possibly harm a family member?” Fumiko shook her head repeatedly, then added, “When I learned that Mr. Gao Sijin had nearly been killed, I was the first to investigate the clues and the first to uncover the assassin’s background.”
“Auntie Fumiko, the Shokaku Society is a yakuza group under your command, correct?”
“Yes, but I have nothing to do with this matter.” Fumiko knelt on both knees, assuming an upright and honorable posture. “In fact, in order to quickly find out who wanted to harm Mr. Gao Sijin, I have deployed many resources and put in great effort. Please, you must believe in my loyalty to you and to the Tsukiyuki Main Family. If I am even slightly disloyal, may I die the most miserable and painful death in the world.”
Her bloodshot eyes looked as if they would pop out of their sockets.
