·44｜Exclusive to Jinjiang·44
Hot spring trip.
After Lai Chuan Huang Quan returned to his apartment from the hotel, the group sat down around a table to discuss their next course of action.
Rei Furuya's opinion is to keep things as they are, and to continue living Yomi Rikawa's life the way she always did.
“Mr. Lai Chuan is very experienced. Our best approach is to remain unchanged in the face of all changes.”
Later in life, Lai Chuan Huang Quan, alerted by the administrator, discovered the police officers from the National Police Agency following him. However, the administrator's advice was to pretend nothing had happened.
"You could certainly choose to beat him up or kick him out, but doing so would immediately trigger a mental alarm in that man. So I advise you not to do it."
Lai Chuan Huang Quan, carrying comic books bought from the bookstore in one hand and milk tea in the other, asked, "What should I do?"
—"My opinion is the same as Furuya Rei's: keep it as it is."
Fortunately, Mr. Raikawa only required his subordinates to report Raikawa Yomi's general movements, without needing to provide detailed information. The other party wasn't following him closely, and apart from no longer being able to indulge in lavish meals outside as before, Raikawa Yomi wasn't bothered by anything.
Mr. Raikawa's men followed him for about half a month before stopping. During this time, the Ministry of Public Security had also dealt with Jun Tani's matter, and the streets of Tokyo gradually returned to their original vitality.
It was at this time that the two aces of the mobile unit finally got a long-awaited vacation.
Kenji Hagiwara, carrying large and small bags, stuffed them into the trunk, his face beaming with excitement: "Softie, let's go! We promised to catch the last bit of winter together. Hot spring trip, let's go~"
It's almost spring now.
Lai Chuan Huang Quan opened the door and sat in the back seat while complaining. The back seat near the driver's seat was piled with snacks, which Hagiwara Kenji had bought in advance. There were so many that they took up an entire seat.
While other people's girlfriends always have their designated seat in the front passenger seat, Lai Chuan Huang Quan's designated seat was gradually moved from the front passenger seat to the back seat—because his second year of graduate school would put a whole bag of snacks in the back seat.
"Seriously, soft bread, you should sit in the passenger seat once in a while and talk to me."
Kenji Hagiwara had protested loudly before. Actually, if he simply emptied the car of its snacks, Yomi Lai would voluntarily move back to the front seat, but Kenji Hagiwara still stuffed the new snacks he had just bought into the back seat.
For this early spring hot spring trip, Yomi Raikawa didn't hesitate to open the back door. As she got in, she glanced at the passenger seat and exclaimed in surprise, "Huh, Officer Matsuda is here too."
Matsuda Jinpei got into the car at the police dormitory. He had a cigarette in his mouth as he followed Hagiwara Kenji to the apartment to pick up the person. While Hagiwara Kenji went upstairs to help Raikawa Yomi with her bag, Matsuda Jinpei, who was waiting in the car, stubbed out his cigarette and opened the window to ventilate Raikawa Yomi's room.
"You idiot, second-year graduate student!"
"I'm the ace of the mobile unit. I'm called stupid because soft bread calls me an idiot."
The sound of their laughter reached Matsuda Jinpei's ears first, and then two figures, one tall and one short, appeared from the corner of the stairs.
Matsuda Jinpei spotted Yomi Raikawa from a distance. She was half a step behind Hagiwara Kenji, her eyes crinkling into crescent moons with laughter. This woman was still as silly as before, her carefree demeanor as bright as the early summer sun.
But in Matsuda Jinpei's dream, she was even more repressed and in pain, like a string stretched to its limit, with even her bone marrow trembling and creaking, as if it would fall apart at any moment.
Last night, the beautiful figure of Yomi Laichuan appeared uninvited, once again intruding into Matsuda Jinpei's dream after a long absence, stirring up ripples on the once calm lake and raising towering waves.
That was a terrible dream. Yes, terrible.
Recalling the contents of his dream, Matsuda Jinpei subconsciously swallowed, his Adam's apple bobbing. He raised his hand and scratched his neck twice, feeling an inexplicable itch. It felt like tiny insects crawling on it, or perhaps... like in his dream, she tilted her head back and kissed his throat.
As Yomi Yomi approached step by step, Matsuda Jinpei clicked his tongue and turned his gaze away with annoyance.
The woman who was bothering him was surprised when she got into the car, saying that he was also there.
"What?" Matsuda said fiercely, his face sour, "Not welcome?"
Just as they were getting ready to get off the bus, Yomi Lai Chuan suddenly cheered, "Great! Officer Matsuda can treat us to barbecue today!"
Matsuda Jinpei: ...?
Kenji Hagiwara, already buckled in the driver's seat, glanced at the rearview mirror, and started the car with a smile: "I want thick-cut pork belly."
Yomi Laichuan: "I want super delicious Wagyu beef!"
Kenji Hagiwara: "There's a yakiniku (grilled meat) restaurant near the hot spring inn we're going to this time. Their tempura platter and cheese-baked shrimp are absolutely amazing."
Lai Chuan Huang Quan's eyes lit up with excitement. She clenched her fist, raised her hand, and waved it high, just like a child on a school field trip with their teacher: "I want to eat! I want to eat!"
As she said this, the car was stopped at a red light at the intersection. The two people inside simultaneously opened their eyes wide and looked at Matsuda Jinpei expectantly with bright, sparkling eyes.
Matsuda Jinpei: …………
He was a little angry, but also a little amused. What kind of idiots had he been associating with?
With a cold snort, Matsuda Jinpei rested his chin on his hand and looked out the window, ignoring the two people beside him.
"Eh, he actually got rejected," Kenji Hagiwara deliberately dragged out the last syllable, "Jinpei, you stingy guy."
Matsuda Jinpei abruptly turned his head back: "Hey, hey, don't talk bad about me in front of me."
Kenji Hagiwara chuckled and said, "Okay, I'll tell Soft Bread in private later."
Matsuda Jinpei: ?
If Hagiwara hadn't been driving, he probably would have already pinned him down in the driver's seat and given him a good beating.
To everyone's surprise, Yomi Laichuan in the back seat excitedly grabbed the back of the front seat and leaned over, saying, "I want to know about Officer Matsuda's embarrassing childhood stories!"
"Huh?" Kenji Hagiwara glanced at Yomi Raikawa, who was peeking out from behind him, then turned his attention back to the road ahead. "Why would you want to know that?"
Lai Chuan Huang Quan pouted, glancing at Matsuda Jinpei with a deep look in his eyes: "Officer Matsuda is super fierce, and he always steals my meat. I'm not happy."
Matsuda Jinpei turned to look at Yomi Raikawa, who was very close to him. Her awkward little expression was hard to tell whether she was sulking or being coquettish. Her Adam's apple bobbed, and her lips parted and closed repeatedly. Matsuda Jinpei stared at her for a long time before finally uttering only a soft, "Idiot."
"Um?"
Yomi Yorikawa blinked at Jinpei Matsuda, looking completely bewildered.
“I’m telling you, you’re stupid,” Matsuda Jinpei said, turning his gaze back to the window. “I really don’t know what Hagi likes about you.”
Lai Chuan Huang Quan glared at her with his eyes wide open, saying angrily, "Officer Gorilla, do you want to fight?!"
Matsuda Jinpei scoffed, raising an eyebrow as he looked at Raikawa Yomi: "Huh? You? I'll give you a handicap."
Kenji Hagiwara frowned and smiled, then quickly spoke up to stop them: "Hey you two, we're driving, behave yourselves."
He glanced at Raikawa Yomi, who was now bloated like a pufferfish, through the rearview mirror and chuckled, "Seriously, you two equally stupid idiots, can't you be a little more mature?"
Lai Chuan Huang Quan clutched the gummy candy wrapper and snorted, "What, you're disgusted with me now!"
"How could that be? I treasure soft bread the most."
After saying that, Kenji Hagiwara glanced at the rearview mirror with a smile. As he expected, the next second, Yomi Rikawa's ears turned slightly red while she was still in an angry pose. This idiot is so easily teased; when she gets a stolen kiss, she blushes, stomps her feet in tiny steps, and then pounces on him to hit him.
Matsuda Jinpei, in the passenger seat, looked sour, hissing and glancing out the window.
Kenji Hagiwara squinted and flashed a bright smile, humming along to the climax of a pop song through the car stereo. Yomi Laichuan, meanwhile, had already settled back into the back seat, clutching a bag full of snacks and searching for her favorite flavors.
After several songs had changed, Kenji Hagiwara turned his head slightly and glanced thoughtfully at Jinpei Matsuda, who was staring blankly out the window in the passenger seat, before looking away.
...
The hot spring inn, nestled in the mountains, features a Japanese-style decor, and its regularly maintained all-wood structure gives it a modern feel.
Matsuda Jinpei, dressed in a gray yukata, crossed his arms and followed behind Yomi Yorikawa along with Hagiwara Kenji, who was wearing a dark blue yukata. "Honestly, going to the hot springs at this hour? Yorikawa, what were you thinking?"
Lai Chuan Huang Quan knew she was in the wrong, and she awkwardly explained in a low voice, "But...but we arrived late, and the barbecue was so delicious that we got carried away and..."
“Oh, what does it matter?” Kenji Hagiwara immediately jumped in with a smile to speak up for Yomi Raikawa: “Anyway, this vacation is super long, so we can play here for a few more days. Let’s just relax today, and we can always come back earlier tomorrow.”
Matsuda Jinpei: "Hmph, you keep spoiling her. We booked a private hot spring bath for one person today."
This hot spring inn, besides its separate public baths for men and women, also has several private outdoor baths for individual use. These private baths are not only secluded and beautiful, but also perfect for enjoying drinks under the moonlight, making them always very popular. However, the corresponding price is also quite high.
Yomi Lai stopped at the entrance of the hot spring. She touched her nose and looked away before turning to Jinpei Matsuda guiltily: "I'm sorry, it was really my fault this time."
She looked at Matsuda Jinpei with pleading, puppy-dog-like eyes: "I'll treat you to a private hot spring bath tomorrow."
"Tsk," Matsuda Jinpei gritted his teeth and leaned back, subconsciously widening the distance between himself and Raikawa Yomi: "Okay, I'm not angry, don't look at me like that!"
He gritted his teeth, his tone fierce, but his Adam's apple bobbed quietly a few times.
"Honestly," Yomi Lai Chuan pouted, her face full of disdain, "You're not even angry but you're still so fierce. Officer Matsuda, you'll never have a girlfriend if you keep acting like this."
Matsuda Jinpei immediately bared his teeth: "Mind your own business!"
Yomi Laichuan crossed her arms and snorted coldly. She turned and lifted the curtain at the entrance of small hot spring pool number 4, then went inside alone. Kenji Hagiwara had booked two hot spring pools today; Yomi Laichuan had one to herself, while he shared one with Jinpei Matsuda.
Smooth pebbles were neatly laid around a small hot spring pool, and several plants that Lai Chuan Huang Quan did not recognize were planted on the side.
The bright moonlight hung high in the sky. Lai Chuan Huang Quan lightly touched the spring pool with her toes. The water was a little hot, but still tolerable. She stepped onto the steps by the pool and slowly sat down, one step at a time.
In the secluded open-air private room, white smoke lingered, and the hot spring water, seven or eight degrees warmer than body temperature, soothed her skin. A warm feeling flowed through her body, and Yomi Laichuan lay comfortably on the edge of the hot spring pool, her eyes half-closed, a happy little flower blooming on her head.
Soaking in a hot spring in winter feels just like eating hot pot on a cold day—it's amazing!
"Awesome, I could stay here forever!"
You could indeed soak in Yorikawa Yomi for a lifetime. The management staff don't suffer from hypothermia due to prolonged exposure to the low temperatures, nor do they experience heatstroke. Other negative effects of prolonged hot spring soaking are negligible in Yorikawa Yomi.
But Kenji Hagiwara and the others were unaware of this.
Two men, who had already climbed out of the hot spring, were waiting in the room in their bathrobes, but Yorikawa Yomi never came.
Kenji Hagiwara paced around the room in frustration, rubbing his chin, before turning to Jinpei Matsuda: "Do you think Softie might have been soaking in the hot spring for too long and fainted?"
Matsuda Jinpei sat cross-legged on the floor, fiddling with his phone. Hearing this, he frowned and looked at Hagiwara Kenji: "She's that stupid, it's quite possible."
"Damn it!" Kenji Hagiwara cursed under his breath, opened the door and walked out. "I forgot to tell that little idiot that you can't soak in the hot spring for too long."
Matsuda Jinpei stood up and followed.
Kenji Hagiwara first called out a few times at the entrance of the hot spring, but no one answered. He then found a female waitress and asked her to go in and check on the person inside. A few seconds later, she ran out looking flustered and said that the person inside might have lost consciousness.
"What!?"
Kenji Hagiwara's expression changed, and he threw back the curtain and rushed in: "Yomi!"
Startled awake, the woman let out a soft moan and groggily opened her eyes. She heard hurried footsteps beside her. Lai Chuan Huang Quan looked up and met a pair of panicked, violet eyes.
Caught off guard, Kenji Hagiwara made eye contact with the woman who should have been unconscious, and he froze.
But upon seeing the scene before him, he stopped running. Kenji Hagiwara remained in a running position with one leg raised, as if he were playing with a wooden puppet, and his handsome face quickly turned red.
The next second.
"Hey! You damn officer, get out of here!!"
The wooden ladle used to scoop water and pour it on him flew straight out and hit Kenji Hagiwara right in the nose.
"Ouch! That hurts!"
Kenji Hagiwara staggered back two steps after being hit, covering his nose and fleeing in panic. He lifted the curtain and rushed out of the hot spring, slowly squatting down under Jinpei Matsuda's questioning gaze, a drop of blood dripping from between his fingers.
Matsuda Jinpei: "What's wrong with you...?"
Kenji Hagiwara looked aggrieved, his eyebrows drooping, but his ears were bright red. His Adam's apple bobbed, and it took him a while to find his voice: "It's nothing."
[Author's Note]
Are you ready? The truth is about to be revealed step by step.
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