Three days had passed since Gao Sijin was shot, and each one of those days had been agonizing for Uzuki.
If a god were to suddenly appear before her and offer to restore Gao Sijin to full health and a lifetime of happiness, at the cost of Uzuki returning to her old life—one where her mother abused her and her classmates shunned her—she would have agreed without a moment’s hesitation.
Uzuki lingered near the main family’s hospital.
During these past days, Tsukiyuki Rio had taken a hard-line stance, forbidding anyone from visiting Gao Sijin. Even his own parents were turned away at the door. The maids stood guard in shifts around the clock, armed with loaded guns, and the closest Uzuki had gotten to him was standing outside the iron fence of the family’s private hospital.
“Doctor, how is Sijin, really?”
The moment the doctor emerged from the hospital—a lean, efficient man in his fifties—Uzuki immediately intercepted him.
These physicians retained by the Tsukiyuki Main Family represented the absolute pinnacle of medical skill in the world.
“The surgery was a success. The bullet has been removed,” he said.
“That’s a relief…”
Uzuki breathed an enormous sigh of relief.
Truthfully, she knew she shouldn’t have been so worried. On the very first day, she had learned the bullet had missed all his vital organs. All he needed now was rest.
“Little miss, if you want to see him, why not just go inside? He’s already awake. Aside from being unable to do any strenuous activity, he’s no different from anyone else.”
“I can’t go inside right now… due to certain reasons.”
“It seems even the young ladies of zaibatsu families have it pretty rough.”
The last time Uzuki had tried to enter the hospital to see Gao Sijin, Tsukiyuki Rio had drawn her tachi and swung it at Uzuki without a shred of hesitation. The pure, bone-chilling killing intent had been unmistakable, the fierce slash utterly merciless. Without the protection of supernatural power, Uzuki would have died that day at the hands of a completely unhinged Tsukiyuki Rio.
The maids, too, no longer greeted Uzuki when they saw her. She had been completely shut out. Most likely, she could never return to the Bunkyo Ward apartment, either.
“All in all, you can rest assured,” the doctor said, seeming to see Uzuki’s inherently good nature. He gave her a kind smile. “Not just an injury of this caliber—even a far more serious wound would be no trouble at all.”
“Thank you, Doctor.”
Uzuki bowed deeply, a full ninety degrees, then cast a long, deep glance at the third-floor window.
In the end, she made her decision.
From this point forward, even if it meant incurring the terrifying fury of Cousin Rio, she absolutely had to secure Sijin’s freedom and help him grasp his original memories…
She turned and left, brushing past Yu Qingxue on a path through the woods.
The two didn’t exchange a word. Yu Qingxue treated Uzuki as if she were made of air. Uzuki couldn’t blame her for being cold. After all, Yu Qingxue’s other role was Head Maid to Cousin Rio.
Still, judging from Yu Qingxue’s expression, Uzuki could tell she was deeply distressed about Gao Sijin. That stunningly beautiful, lovely face had lost all of its usual cheer.
A glance at her watch told her it was already 30.
A family meeting was about to start. Lately, Patriarch Kyoichi had been dedicating every spare moment to cultivating Uzuki’s strategic vision. On the world stage, the Tsukiyuki Zaibatsu wielded profound influence. Once Uzuki became the clan’s patriarch, her job would be to elevate the zaibatsu to even greater heights.
She entered the main family’s castle, passing the courtyard where Gao Sijin had collapsed after being shot days earlier. Her heartbeat inexplicably quickened.
Giving Sijin his freedom meant she wouldn’t be able to be with him at all times. What would he do on his own?
Gao Sijin, with his frail strength, seeking freedom in this world… he would undoubtedly face dangers impossible to guard against.
The past several days of study had given Uzuki a much deeper understanding of the world’s cruel nature.
If you want to protect the one you love, keeping them forever at your side is, without a doubt, the simplest and most direct way…
“Haah…”
Uzuki sighed softly.
Suddenly, she felt a strange kinship with Cousin Rio’s actions. Yet, she would never do such a thing. Such an extreme approach was, in its own way, a profound form of harm, too.
“Uzuki, come inside.”
Tsukiyuki Kyoichi stood in the sunlight.
“Grandfather Kyoichi, I’ve returned.”
“You went to the private hospital again just now?” Tsukiyuki Kyoichi asked, padding slowly forward to lead Uzuki toward the family meeting room.
“I’m worried about him,” Uzuki murmured, lips pressed together.
“What happens to him is of little consequence,” Tsukiyuki Kyoichi said, his voice aged and indifferent. “The issue here is you, Uzuki. Once you decided to become Family Head, it meant you had completely torn off all pretense of civility with Tsukiyuki Rio. What do you plan to do next?”
“I want to use my authority as Family Head to make Cousin Rio return Sijin’s freedom…”
“She will absolutely not obey your orders. Worse, she will constantly interfere in your work, obstruct you at every turn, and lay traps to send you plummeting into the abyss.”
Tsukiyuki Kyoichi’s cloudy eyes narrowed slightly. His weathered face, etched by the elements, carried an innate, imposing dignity, bringing to mind a gnarled, ancient locust tree.
“If that happens, what will you do?”
“I…”
“Uzuki, if you are too soft-hearted, you will die a miserable death,” Tsukiyuki Kyoichi said, stroking his beard. “You developed a fondness for China’s history and culture because of Gao Sijin, so you must certainly know of the 《Jingnan Campaign》, correct?”
Uzuki understood immediately.
Had the emperor of that time been able to cast aside familial bonds and allow his soldiers to kill the Prince of Yan, perhaps he wouldn’t have been overthrown.
“You are the Patriarch of the Tsukiyuki family. You possess a kind nature, and this old man finds that truly gratifying. But kindness is relative. I hope that from now on, you can learn to be cold, ruthless, and driven by ambition. A good moral character doesn’t prove your wisdom. When the time is right, you must be decisive and merciless.”
“If Cousin Rio disobeys me, I’ll warn her…”
“Not enough.”
“I’ll temporarily freeze her assets within the Tsukiyuki family.”
“Still not enough.”
“Then I will expel her from the Tsukiyuki family.”
Unless it was the absolute last resort, Uzuki truly did not want to treat Tsukiyuki Rio like that.
She was also her benefactor, the one who had given her a home and a new life after her mother died.
“If Rio refuses to fall in line, you must find a way… to make her disappear.”
Tsukiyuki Kyoichi turned his head back, his expression solemn, to look at Uzuki.
Though it was still summer, Uzuki felt a bone-chilling cold envelop her entire body.
Make Cousin Rio disappear?
What in the world was Patriarch Kyoichi saying?
Cousin Rio was Patriarch Kyoichi’s own granddaughter! Yet, the old patriarch hadn’t even batted an eye… It was absolutely terrifying.
“Without that level of resolve, you cannot defeat Rio. When Rio faces an insubordinate, she never lets blood ties stop her from pulling the trigger.”
“I can’t do that.”
“If you could control her through your own strength, that would naturally be best. However, it seems you simply don’t have the ability to control her…”
