Upon entering the room, Ning Zhiheng looked around. The room was large, but it appeared very cluttered, with design drafts and drawings scattered all over the sofa and table.
Seeing this, Fukunaga Jiro felt a little embarrassed. He quickly tidied up the drawings on the sofa and said with a smile, "I'm so sorry, it's too messy here. Please have a seat!"
Ning Zhiheng sat on the sofa and said with a smile, "Mr. Fukunaga, I am Fujiwara Tomohito, a native of Kyoto. I have come here specifically to ask you to design a building for me."
Fukunaga Jiro tidied up the sketch in his hand, frowned and said, "Mr. Fujiwara, I'm very sorry, I've been too busy with work lately and have a lot of work to do, so I'm afraid I won't be able to help you."
This wasn't Fukunaga Jiro deliberately making excuses. The entire city of Shanghai is currently undergoing reconstruction, and many large facilities were destroyed in the war. Fukunaga Jiro is quite famous, and many people have come to him. He is indeed too busy to handle everything right now, so he could only explain the situation to Ning Zhiheng.
Ning Zhiheng looked disappointed and said, "That's such a pity. The Nanwu Library was destroyed in the war, and I was hoping to rebuild it."
Before Ning Zhiheng could finish speaking, Fukunaga Jiro suddenly asked, "Nan'ya Library? You mean Mr. Kuroki's Nan'ya Library?"
Ning Zhiheng was taken aback, then quickly nodded and said, "Yes, it is Mr. Kuroki's Nanwu Library, as you know."
Fukunaga Jiro laughed heartily. He put down the blueprints in his hand, sat down in front of Ning Zhiheng, and said with a smile, "What a coincidence! I was in charge of designing the Nanwu Bookstore when I first came to Shanghai. At that time, I was not well-known. It was Mr. Kuroki who gave me this opportunity and entrusted me with the design work. I have always been very grateful to Mr. Kuroki and often visit his bookstore."
Ning Zhiheng looked at Fukunaga Jiro with surprise, and then said, "I also worked at Nanya Bookstore for a while before, but it was a very short time, and I missed meeting Mr. Fukunaga."
The two men's relationship was immediately brought closer. Fukunaga Jiro turned around and served Ning Zhiheng tea, saying with a smile, "The Nanya Library has been destroyed. Mr. Fujiwara's sincerity is commendable. Why not restore it to its original state? Mr. Kuroki will feel a sense of familiarity and warmth. Wouldn't that be more meaningful?"
Ning Zhiheng nodded repeatedly, but then said with some difficulty, "But I don't have the original architectural blueprints."
“I have the blueprints!” Fukunaga Jiro waved his hand, stood up and said with a smile, “Every time I finish designing a project, I make a copy of the blueprints and keep a copy. Many of my excellent design inspirations are kept on them as references for future designs.”
Ning Zhiheng was overjoyed to hear this. If that was the case, then Fukunaga Jiro might have kept the blueprints for the various large-scale facilities he designed and built, including the design blueprints for the Fukuoka warehouse.
Ning Zhiheng's face lit up with joy, and he quickly said, "That's wonderful! May I take this drawing with me, make a copy, and then return the original to you?"
Fukunaga Jiro readily agreed, smiling as he said, "Fujiwara-kun, please wait for me."
After saying that, he turned around, pushed open the door of a workshop next door, and went inside. Ning Zhiheng quickly got up and followed him quietly. Through the half-open door, he saw Fukunaga Jiro come to a large cabinet, take out the key from his waist, open the cabinet door, search carefully for a while, and finally take out a roll of blueprints.
Ning Zhiheng turned around and quickly sat back on the sofa. Soon, Fukunaga Jiro returned to the room with the drawings and spread them out. There were four drawings in total. Ning Zhiheng went up and looked at them carefully. Sure enough, one of them was the design drawing of the underground drainage pipes. The entire drainage system was clearly marked.
After Fukunaga Jiro checked that everything was correct, he rolled up the drawings and handed them to Ning Zhiheng, saying with a smile, "Fujiwara-kun, these are all yours. Remember to return them to me after you've copied them; they're all my treasures!"
Ning Zhiheng quickly took the blueprints, his mind racing as he pondered how to steal them from Fukunaga Jiro without leaving a trace.
"Thank you so much, this visit has been incredibly fruitful." Ning Zhiheng put away the blueprints, praising them repeatedly, and then took out a stack of US dollars and placed them on the table. "Mr. Fukunaga, this is just a small token of my appreciation, please don't be shy."
But Fukunaga Jiro's expression changed, and he said in a somewhat annoyed tone, "Fujiwara-kun, this is a gift from me. I won't charge you twice for the same blueprint. Mr. Kuroki has already paid for it!"
It must be said that Fukunaga Jiro is indeed a simple-minded tech geek. He was very unhappy with Ning Zhiheng's actions. He picked up the stack of banknotes and stuffed them back into Ning Zhiheng's pocket.
Ning Zhiheng was taken aback, then laughed and said, "Alright then! I won't force you, but Mr. Fukunaga, you wouldn't refuse my offer to buy you a drink, would you?"
Upon hearing this, Fukunaga Jiro's eyes lit up, and he laughed heartily, "You'll regret this! I can live without women, but I can never live without alcohol!"
Men can communicate about many things as long as they are willing to drink together. So, Fukunaga Jiro quickly tidied up and went out with Ning Zhiheng. They locked the door, got into Ning Zhiheng's car, and headed to a nearby bar that Fukunaga Jiro frequented.
Meanwhile, on a deserted street in the occupied Jiangbei area, two Japanese soldiers kicked open the door of a room and rushed inside.
But the room was empty, there was no one there, the furniture was messy, and there was dust everywhere. The two soldiers looked at each other and began to search the room. Soon they were disappointed and cursed, and left the room to search the next house.
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