Chapter 2
Haicheng Manor is surrounded by a beautiful natural landscape.
This building is magnificent and has two distinct styles: one is traditional Japanese architecture, and the other is modern Western architecture.
Natsume Kanon mentioned it once in a letter, but she didn't pay much attention to it at the time, until she witnessed it with her own eyes now.
It must be admitted that Kawashima is indeed very rich.
Moreover, he is now passionate about politics, has become a member of the House of Peers, and possesses considerable power and a position that should not be underestimated.
Because of her prominent family background and power, Natsume Kanon left a will instructing her not to pursue the matter.
How is that possible?
After arranging her sister's funeral, Natsume Rina went to the Sea City Manor the next day.
Then I happened to catch a huge charity sale.
It is said that this charity sale was personally organized by Makoto Kawashima, and there was also a stage play performance in the evening. However, Rina spent the whole morning tidying up the props needed for the auditorium, and only had a chance to rest in the garden in the afternoon.
After all that trouble, she couldn't see Kawashima Makoto at all, or even get close to the manor.
A butler named Takase followed behind her the whole time. "Madam, you've been on vacation these past few days, and you look much better than before."
Rina Natsume dyed her hair back to its original color, and her pink dress paired with a white shirt did indeed give her a gentle aura.
However, she remained silent, her expression calm and composed, which somehow annoyed Takase.
"Madam, are you just traveling with your sister?"
"Could there be anyone else?" Rina tried to be as polite as possible, but she really hated this tagalong. No matter where she went, she could always see him within five meters.
This greatly affected her investigation.
Although only a corner of the photo her sister left behind was visible, she still noticed the reflection on the wine glass, which was the unique symbol of the Kawashima family.
A white crane soars high in the air amidst a circle of Bauhinia flowers.
Takase's eyes gleamed with cunning as he pushed up his glasses. "It seems Madam is still angry, but you were indeed wrong about that matter."
In his memory, Xiangyin was well-mannered, reserved, rarely argued with others, and never raised her voice.
It must be because he was scolded by Kawashima and has been in a low mood ever since.
"Is that so?" Rina replied briefly as she walked down the corridor, then suddenly stopped. "Are you going to follow me?"
Takase looked embarrassed and turned away.
Just then, a pretty young woman with delicate features came out of the restroom; it was Aoki Taeko.
Her eyes were red-rimmed, and there were water stains on her eyelashes, so she must have been crying.
“Mr. Takase…Mrs.”
If this is the order, it can only mean that she and Takase are closer.
Rina smiled gently, went into the bathroom, took off her wool shawl and hung it on the clothes rack, and turned on the tap.
Takase, who was outside, glanced at Aoki Taeko and warned her, "Get out of here right now."
"I'm sorry, but... but I'm really not feeling well." Aoki Taeko couldn't stop her tears from flowing. She hesitated several times before running away when she heard footsteps behind her.
After Rina came out, she seemed not to have heard anything and looked at Takase with confusion, "What's wrong with her?"
Takase replied, "Myoko was punished by Makoto-san when she was cleaning her room this morning."
Rina nodded and didn't ask any further questions. Takase breathed a sigh of relief and then slowly said, "Madam, Miss Maki requests your presence."
The investigation revealed that Tada Maki was Kawashima's personal secretary, and the two had a close relationship.
My sister also mentioned in her letters a few times that Kawashima would always have Maki select some items to bring back to her whenever he went on a business trip.
Rina followed Takase to the garden.
Maki stood up, opened a bottle of sherry, poured half a glass, and watched Rina approach with a radiant smile.
Takase bowed and turned to leave.
"I didn't expect you to have the nerve to come back." Maki chuckled a few times and whispered in her ear, "Aren't you afraid that Kawashima will find out that you're a seemingly loyal and virtuous wife who actually seduces men everywhere?"
Rina turned to her, her gaze slowly moving down from her eyes to her chest. In a rare serious tone, she said, "Ms. Maki, instead of worrying about me, you should worry about yourself. Fat has a certain absorption rate. If it's asymmetrical on both sides, it may have already become organized. I suggest you go to the hospital to get it checked out, so you don't end up with a lifelong disability."
"You!" Maki was immediately exasperated, clutching her chest. "Natsume, don't threaten me. The student council president will find out sooner or later about you and Hoshino having an affair at the annex!"
Rina smiled, feeling that this woman was inexplicably annoying. "The fact that he doesn't know now only means that you haven't tried hard enough."
"Natsume!" Maki stared at her, utterly astonished. "Don't forget your place. You're just a canary kept by the council!"
Rina got tired of standing, so she simply sat down on the bench.
Maki felt a surge of heat rise to his chest. He took a few deep breaths, took a stack of documents out of his briefcase, and threw them on the tea table. "Don't get cocky. The chairman sent me here this time so you can read these documents. By the way, he hopes you can learn something when he comes back from his business trip."
Rina: "......"
After she finished her afternoon tea, she was taken to the annex, accompanied by Takase and Aoki Taeko.
Every move they made was controlled, they had no personal freedom at all, and there were also some indescribable species around them.
My sister actually endured it for five years?
When the car arrived at the villa, the servants stopped what they were doing and unloaded the luggage from the car.
As dusk fell, a faint afterglow lingered in the sky, and the scenery before me resembled a hazy, flowing twilight.
Rina glanced down at her watch.
“The president is away on a business trip and won’t be back for two months,” Taeko said, carefully observing Rina’s expression as she carried her handbag. “Everything at the villa has been prepared, and Madam will be staying here from now on.”
Rina gave a barely perceptible smile. "This place is nice. I like it very much."
The annex is a building from over thirty years ago, and the furniture and furnishings inside are very old. Even though the chairman had it renovated, the storerooms and gardens are still in a sorry state.
Compared to Haicheng Manor, this was like heaven and earth. Miao Zi suddenly felt a pang of sympathy for her plight. "Madam, next time the Chairman returns, please apologize. We can all see that the Chairman truly likes and trusts you. Otherwise, he wouldn't have..."
Takase glanced at Taeko, a sharp glint in his small eyes.
Rina said, "Continue."
“Actually, the student council president already knew about those rumors,” Miao Zi said, her head lowered, her voice growing softer, “but the president didn’t believe her, and Hoshino didn’t receive any punishment…”
Is the woman rumored to be dating Hoshino?
Lina was lost in thought when she suddenly felt a sharp gaze on her back, making her very uncomfortable.
But when she turned around, she only saw a boy walking out from under the shade of a tree in the distance, bowing to her as if in a devout manner.
He resembled a Japanese boy from a movie, with smooth and natural facial features, without overly sharp angles. His shirt collar was slightly open, revealing his delicate collarbone, and his slightly curly hair covered his eyes and forehead, giving him a relaxed and casual air.
The only thing that doesn't fit is his height; he's nearly 1.9 meters tall, which contrasts sharply with his baby face.
Miaozi knew that Rina was looking at Hoshino, and couldn't help but defend him, "Hoshino... he has always stayed in the annex. The president knows about this, and he believes that you two are innocent."
That's even stranger. Human nature is the most vulnerable to temptation. Knowing that there might be something fishy going on between the two, they still arranged for them to be together.
Rina withdrew her gaze and returned to her room. Miaozi put down her luggage, followed the maid, and left, closing the door behind her.
But she couldn't stand the smell of damp dust, so she opened the window and hung the shawl on a screen-like clothes rack.
The interior space can be flexibly divided; when the sliding doors are open, the living room, bedroom, and study are all connected.
Rina carefully observed her surroundings and noticed several books about exotic flowers and plants on the desk.
Here's a note: Hope you like it, Kawashima.
Rina leaned back in her chair and listlessly picked up a book to flip through.
However, the contents were nothing special, but they were probably books that my older sister liked to read.
Kawashima's first wife had passed away long ago without leaving any children. His second wife had been married for three years but had not given birth and died five years ago.
My older sister was my third wife.
Rina gazed at the wedding photo on the table. Her sister's smile was sweet and happy, and her beauty was unparalleled. She was completely different from the image of her lying on the hospital bed with her cheeks sunken.
Something must have happened that night.
What exactly was written in the letter, or what was the content of that picture?
Rina's eyes held a mixture of hesitation and confusion. She thought about the matter carefully but still couldn't figure it out. Finally, she closed her eyes and fell asleep.
She didn't know how much time had passed when the wind outside picked up, making the windows creak and groan, which woke her up.
The room was pitch black and empty, making it seem particularly desolate.
Rina stood up listlessly, turned on the desk lamp, and glanced down at her watch.
11:40 is the perfect time to explore the wonders of the world.
The dim lighting added to the eerie atmosphere. Rina glanced around the window, picked up the paper cutter from the plate, and left the room.
She passed through a narrow porch with a small staircase next to it leading to an unknown destination. At the end of the porch, there were two doors on the left and right sides. She chose the left one, opened it, and came to a path.
"Takase, will we be discovered if we do this?" Miaozi sat on the table, her arms wrapped around the man's body.
Her cheeks and chest were slightly flushed. She smelled the faint musty smell in the air and glanced at the door panel covered with cobwebs.
The entire room was filled with an inescapable gloom.
Thinking of this, she hugged him even tighter.
“No,” Takase kissed her hair and asked softly, “Did you get the key from Makoto?”
Miao Zi felt a mix of emotions. Her fingers, hanging at her sides, tightened, but she didn't respond.
"Myoko, I love you so much, I really love you," Takase said with deep emotion, his eyes reddening. "You have to believe me."
The two embraced and whispered to each other for a long time.
Miaozi leaned closer, but her face was full of worry. "Miss Makoto discovered my behavior and hit me. Why are you looking for a warehouse key?"
"Something is trapped there, and I don't know what it is. Myoko, you have to help me. You are my... hope for survival." Takase's tone was filled with exhaustion and despair.
Rina inadvertently witnessed this scene and became extremely interested in the warehouse that Takase had mentioned.
However, just as she was thinking, she suddenly turned around and bumped into someone.
Before they could react, someone covered their mouth and dragged them to another room.
"Takase? Takase?" Myoko frantically straightened her clothes and hid under the table. "Kouta..."
Takase strode out, carefully checking his surroundings. In the dim light, he saw no footprints in the dust at the doorway.
Did he mishear?
Rina was led to a pitch-black room, but fortunately, she quickly guessed the other person's identity by their figure.
The boy I saw at dusk was Hoshino.
"Does Mrs. Kawashima have a penchant for eavesdropping?" A look of confusion appeared on her seemingly harmless face.
Up close, his skin was delicate and smooth, so clean that it was without a single blemish, but his bangs were too long, covering half of his face, making him look unusually sinister.
Rina felt a strange emotion rising in her chest and tapped Hoshino's forearm with her fingertip.
Hoshino smiled, removed his hand, and then the two of them seemed to vaguely hear the slight sound of the door latch. They both looked towards the door until the footsteps disappeared.
"What are you doing here?" This person was quite pretentious, and Rina's eyebrows curved slightly, her interest growing even more.
However, it wasn't about him as a person, but about the manor.
“I want to see you,” Hoshino tilted his head and looked down at her, “and give you something, Mrs. Kawashima.”
The tone was drawn out, as if she were being coquettish.
Rina took the box from his hand, opened it, glanced at it, and a look of surprise appeared on her face. "A key?"
"To avoid any unnecessary misunderstandings, I can only meet you tonight." After saying that, Hoshino winked at her.
Rina put the key in her pocket and casually adjusted the buttons on her collar. "Don't be weird, we're not familiar with each other."
Seeing her calmly put away the key, Hoshino smiled with pleasure, as if relieved. "So it really is you, Madam. You scared me. I thought you were too scared to come back. If you hadn't come back, I would never have been able to repay the kindness of the milk."
He said those words with a meaningful tone, but it was completely useless to her.
Before Rina arrived, she had already inquired about the situation from the servants. Hoshino was found by Kanon while camping in the wild. At that time, he was covered in injuries and was diagnosed by the doctor as malnourished and suffering from amnesia. Out of sympathy, Kanon arranged for the housekeeper to keep him. The two met only a handful of times.
He was inconspicuous in the manor, only appearing at noon. He carried a basket full of feed and fed the chickens in the chicken coop. Occasionally, a few naive young girls would come up to him and strike up a conversation.
They said Hoshino was just an ordinary boy who was not good at speaking and was easily embarrassed. In addition, his thin figure and loose clothes made him look pitiful.
For some reason, Rina found him increasingly displeasing. "What's so scary about this place?"
“Because we’re moving into the annex. Someone died here, so it’s normal to have ghost stories and be afraid to live alone,” Hoshino said. “You asked me to find the main gate key so we could sneak out of here, right?”
Rina rolled her eyes inwardly, took the key out of her pocket, and placed it on the table.
Just then, a piercing scream came from outside the room.
Rina had a bad feeling and ran out quickly.
The moment the flashlight went out, Miao Zi collapsed to the ground covered in blood, and then a figure leaped over the three-meter-high wall.
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