Chapter 122: Until the sea turns blue, it will always be a beautiful blue...
Shimizu Masato wiped the sweat off his face again.
Saved three people? Which three?
No matter how you count Shimizu Masato, there is only one Kuroiwa Tatsuji.
But he had just recovered from the girl's direct and life-threatening threat and did not dare to ask.
He lowered his head even lower.
He had initially harbored a tinge of smug joy and a sense of superiority, believing that after learning of Asai Narimi's revenge plan, he hadn't hindered or interfered with him, nor had he reported him, believing he had done the most for his old friend's son. But upon hearing the girl casually lay out his true inner thoughts before him, he felt a wave of shame.
Did I actually have such dark thoughts?
"That's all, Mr. Shimizu."
Lin Xi moved a little further away from Qingshui Zhengren, and put on a smile that would have made anyone feel warm and gentle, as if nothing had happened. "Congratulations in advance on becoming the head of Qingshui Village."
"Also, perhaps you need caring young people with relevant professional knowledge to help you with pollution control?" Lin Xi recalled the conversation she had overheard when she went to the Little Dolphin stall to look for Xiaolan. "You might consider the students from the Little Dolphin Association this time."
She glanced at the stall not far away and happened to meet the eyes of the boy who was looking over here hesitantly.
She then smiled friendly, and the boy was stunned for a moment, then smiled back.
She also saw Conan with his arms crossed and Ai in the same posture.
Next to them was Ran Maori, who was communicating with the girls from the Little Dolphin Association.
The sun was shining brightly today. They stood in the shade of the trees. The mottled light passed through the branches and hit them, casting a warm halo on them.
Lin Xi knew that they were all waiting for her to come over.
She leisurely put aside the mess on Moon Shadow Island, patted Shimizu Masato on the shoulder - this time not as a threat, but as encouragement - and walked towards them.
Well, let’s borrow the hotel’s kitchen tonight and make some fish soup for everyone to drink!
.
The other side.
An unnoticed corner under the shade of trees and mountains.
"...This is the situation. I hope you can seriously consider my suggestion."
Amuro Toru said with a smile, his eyes looking very innocent under the black brim of his hat.
Asai Narimi pondered for a moment. "So, you're asking me to cooperate with you, pretending to be arrested and imprisoned, to lure the snake out of its hole, right?"
Amuro Toru nodded.
This was an idea he came up with after careful consideration and communication with his superiors in the public security department.
They knew that the leader of the Minetoko-gumi was in prison, and after checking the stationery of the letters he had sent, they locked his prison in the Yokohama area.
But they still couldn't confirm his specific identity and location.
After the incident on Yueying Island, the Fengtan Group's black industry was further weakened - drug trafficking was one of their most important industries, and now it should be the only remaining major industry.
Therefore, whether for the purpose of stabilizing people's hearts or revenge, the leader of the Minetoma Group will take action against the "culprit" who caused this incident on the surface - Asai Narimi, who "murdered" Kawashima Hideo and Nishimoto Ken.
And when they attack the doctors, they will definitely be exposed.
At this time, the police following the doctor can follow their clues to find their boss.
But this matter still requires the cooperation of the doctor himself.
Not everyone is willing to become a criminal, even if his innocence will be restored afterwards - what Amuro Toru promised him was that the public security would help him change his identity and develop in another place to avoid retaliation from the Mineta clan.
However, to Toru Amuro's surprise, the doctor agreed decisively.
"No problem," he said, "I can help you."
After saying that, he seemed to remember something interesting and laughed: "It's exactly the same as she said."
"What?" Amuro Toru didn't hear clearly.
"It's nothing," the doctor said easily. "I'll help you."
Is this what she wanted too?
She had long thought that the golden-haired public security officer in front of her would come to invite him to cooperate?
That's why I left that kind of advice at that time.
If you have the opportunity to go to prison, don't refuse it. It's a good experience to go in.
[Is it going to be fun?]
Oh, what a bad-humored guy...
However, as long as everything goes well, he can continue to live with his new identity.
Is this an opportunity for him to be "reborn"?
This is what she wanted to tell herself.
If you have the chance, please live well, doctor~
He seemed to hear her voice with a smile.
So warm...
Opposite him, Toru Amuro saw that the doctor in black was about to be arrested and imprisoned as a criminal, but he looked happier than before. A question mark slowly emerged in his head.
Is it his illusion?
Why does it feel like everyone on Moon Shadow Island is crazy?
...There is a kind of beauty that has been touched by Lin Xi.
Amuro Toru felt a toothache for a moment because of his own thoughts.
Could it be that this is how I am seen by others?
No, I must stay away from that guy from now on.
Unless necessary, never have any contact with this guy!
The blond young man thought so.
…
Time always passes quickly.
Do you think the author is going to fast-forward time?
No, time just changed from afternoon to evening.
It is not yet time for the author to display his mysterious power.
After eating and drinking his fill, Conan rubbed his stomach and came out of the back door of the hotel.
The fish soup made by Sister Lin is so delicious.
He couldn't help it and ate too much again.
Ah, every time this happens I just want to turn back into an adult.
This way the stomach can hold more!
The child's stomach still limits his performance.
He looked at the moon hanging in the sky and yawned.
As expected, a child’s body is a child’s body…they feel sleepy after eating.
Of course, it could also be because he slept too late last night...
Buzz.
Suddenly, the phone in my pocket rang.
Conan was startled and turned around to look around. Seeing that there was no one around, he ran to a big tree nearby and answered the phone.
The only person who would use this phone to contact him is Xiaolan.
He took off his bow tie and voice changer: "Xiaolan, it's you."
"Shinichi, when can you come back?" A voice came from the phone.
Conan knew that the owner of the voice might be calling him from a window in the hotel room.
They are so close, yet they still rely on cell phones to communicate...
Conan was silent for a while, until Xiaolan called his name again anxiously, then he spoke:
"I'm sorry, Xiaolan, I have a very difficult case here and can't leave..."
"Okay..." Mao Lilan leaned against the door of the hotel with her eyes downcast, "I came to Tsukikage Island for a trip with my father, Conan, Ai, and Miss Lin. The scenery here is beautiful, and Miss Lin made delicious fish soup for us..."
"Well, actually, I, I have something I want to give you."
Conan, who was standing under the tree, raised his head involuntarily, trying to use his eyes to picture the figure of his childhood sweetheart.
He saw a lighted room.
His face turned red again.
"Ah. What is it?"
"I wanted to wait for you to come back and give it to you personally! But didn't you say you were busy with a case..." Mao Lilan's face also turned red, and her voice became smaller and smaller: "It's a little dolphin doll."
"I joined a society and they gave me a doll."
"I got one for participating in an event, and another for joining the club... so I thought I'd give one to you."
"Anyway, before you come back, I'll put our little dolphin together first! Come get it from me when you're done with your busy work!"
The voice of this last sentence suddenly became louder, as if the owner of the voice was trying to cover up his embarrassment by speaking loudly.
Mao Lilan didn't know that there were people who were more embarrassed than her——
Look at the little detective under the tree, his face is so red that it's starting to smoke.
"...Okay." He said hesitantly.
"That's it then! I'm hanging up now. Um, I have to take Conan for a walk later!"
The girl hung up the phone.
Mao Lilan looked at her phone and patted her cheeks: "Oh, really, when will you be able to come back..."
Conan put his phone back into his pocket under the tree and touched his face.
"What a fool! I've already given you one. If we put our dolls together, wouldn't that mean we'll have two pairs?"
Besides, saying these words made his face so red, how could he go out for a walk later?
Is it because the moonlight is too bright today and it made his face red?
.
On the other side, after helping Lin Xi take the dishes to the kitchen, Huihara Ai was driven out of the kitchen by Lin Xi.
Lin Xi's attitude was the same as when she was at home and every time she had to help wash the dishes.
Lin Xi asked her to go outside and rest first, and after she finished washing the dishes, she would take her for a walk.
"This moonlight bath has to be enjoyed."
The girl said, shaking her head as she placed the bowl next to the sink.
When Haibara Ai thought of her appearance, the corners of her mouth couldn't help but rise.
Sister Lin is so cute.
But... a sharp light flashed in Haibara Ai's eyes.
That blonde amateur detective...
Why do you always appear next to Sister Lin?
Tonight, she came to the hotel with Lin Xi and saw with her own eyes how Sister Lin skillfully greeted the proprietress.
The proprietress was a plump, middle-aged woman with a smiling face.
"Oh, you're back. Where's the boy you were with?"
Lin Xi said with a smile: "Auntie, he went back to work first!"
The proprietress waved her hands and said, "Oh, come on, you actually left your girlfriend and went away alone!"
Sister Lin did not refute at that time.
There was no rebuttal!
Does it turn out that I really want to have another brother-in-law?
Like all adopted children, the image of Lin Xi falling in love with a man, getting married, and starting a new family flashed through Haibara Ai's mind.
And I can't fit in with them at all...
Haibara Ai's face completely fell at this thought.
However, Lin Xi, who was beside her, could always feel her uneasiness and know what she was thinking, just like every time before.
After greeting the proprietress, Lin Xi took her hand, squatted down, and explained seriously:
"Ai, Mr. Amuro and I don't have that kind of relationship."
"For me, building too close a relationship with someone would actually become a burden."
"Except you~ The cute Xiao Ai is an exception~" Lin Xi smiled.
What she was thinking was that it was already difficult enough to hide the identities of herself, Punch, Linxi, and Shibahara Hirojin from Ai, so how could she hide it from others?
It’s troublesome just thinking about it.
However, when Huiyuan heard these words, besides feeling relieved, they also aroused new doubts:
Why does Sister Lin regard building intimate relationships with others as a burden?
She didn't ask this question until she finished eating the delicious fish soup and was taken for a walk in the moonlight by Lin Xi.
Lin Xi jumped onto the white stone bricks and took her to walk among the white ruins.
They climbed up the ruined stone wall and stood together facing the sea.
"It's beautiful here, isn't it?" Lin Xi asked softly.
Huibara Ai nodded.
Sister Lin has a pair of eyes that are good at discovering beauty.
"You know, Xiao Ai... When I was little, my family lived inland and I had never seen the ocean." Lin Xi gazed at the sea in a trance. "I thought the ocean was blue and boundless... Until I saw it for the first time, I realized it wasn't blue at all."
"I was very disappointed. I felt like the fairy tale had deceived me. The sea was clearly black, and even up close it was so damp and smelled so bad. It was completely different from what was described in the storybook."
"But then I discovered I wasn't the only one who thought this way."
Lin Xi smiled and said, "A writer I like very much once said a very romantic sentence——"
"'When I was little, the sea looked yellow, but the textbooks said it was blue. We often swam here when we were little, and one day I just wanted to keep swimming until the water turned blue...'" (Note 1)
"Ah, sometimes I also have such nonsensical, crazy and romantic thoughts."
"I also want to keep swimming in the sea until the water turns blue."
Huihara Ai turned her head to look at Lin Xi.
She suddenly felt a strong curiosity about Lin Xi's past.
She knew she was from China, a romantic country, although Haibara Ai had never been there.
Where did she grow up? What were her parents like?
Haibara Ai was surprised that she was only curious about these things today - she had lived with Lin Xi for so long, but had never thought about knowing her past.
What kind of family could raise such a cheerful, confident and attractive Lin Xi?
That must require countless unconditional love.
"Sister Lin." She took off her dolphin hat and held it in front of her, as if the dolphin on it was swimming in the sea. "You're not the only one who thinks so."
"We all, more or less, have had that romantic idea, haven't we? And some of us are even working hard to realize it."
"For example, those who work hard to protect the environment, such as the Little Dolphin Association who come to Moon Shadow Island, such as those who pick up trash they see on the road, and such as the villagers who work hard on sewage treatment." (Note 2)
"They are using their own efforts, even if those efforts are so insignificant in the face of the entire ocean - they still do it."
"That's why humans can build their own habitat on this blue planet..."
After receiving this answer, Lin Xi smiled and rubbed Huihara Ai's brown hair, gently took off his hat, and held it together with the hat in her hand.
Now it is the two little dolphins playing in the sea water under the moonlight.
Even though they were doing such a childish thing, the two of them didn't think there was anything wrong with it.
Sketching the daily life into an ideal image, dyeing the dark sea into azure blue in imagination——
Isn’t this a unique talent of human beings?
Even if reality is extremely cruel, humans will never stop fantasizing.
Even if the sea is never blue, when it appears in human poems, paintings, and stories——
It is always a beautiful blue.
————
(Note 1: From an interview with Yu Hua. Jia Zhangke later directed a documentary titled Swimming Out Until the Sea Turns Blue, which was released in China in 2021.)
(Note 2: The author is certainly not just referring to the sewage on Moon Shadow Island.)
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