About half an hour later, Aoyama Xiu Xin met Hashimoto Manami in a private room of a cafe in Sapporo.

"Minister Aoyama!"

Upon seeing Aoyama Xiu Xin entering through the door, Hashimoto Manami hurriedly rose to her feet and respectfully bowed.

She clutched the bag in front of her as if it contained important documents.

Aoyama Xiu Xin casually closed the door, walked over, and sat down before saying, "Alright, don't stand, sit."

"Hi!" Hashimoto Manami then dared to sit down, sitting up straight like a primary school student in class.

"Speak," said Aoyama Xiu Xin lightly.

"Hi!" Hashimoto Manami answered, the other's aura made her afraid to breathe too heavily. She pursed her lips and said, "Minister Aoyama, Hashimoto Yangzi just drunkenly told me that she and Director Zhongshan plan to set you up, find evidence of your wrongdoing to bring you down and reclaim the power that should belong to the director. I thought this was very important so I contacted you immediately."

"Is that all?" Aoyama Xiu Xin was unfazed.

After all, he had been prepared for this.

He hadn't been fooled by Zhongshan Runmei's constant show of weakness.

Seeing this, Hashimoto Manami quickly added, "Hashimoto Yangzi also plans to seduce you, to get close to you and deceive your trust."

"Oh?" Aoyama Xiu Xin raised an eyebrow, Hashimoto Yangzi wanted to seduce him, but she hadn't shown any signs of it—instead, she seemed to despise him…

Wait!

He suddenly realized, this was a clever seduction tactic. If she openly threw herself at him, he would definitely suspect her motives.

Conversely, it was Hashimoto Yangzi's current behavior that truly attracted his attention and desire.

In that case, he could completely alter his original plan and take her down.

Eat the sugar coating and throw the bomb back.

Zhongshan Runmei, this old woman, was really daring to set such a trap using her daughter-in-law, wondering what her face would be like once her daughter-in-law is actually taken by him.

Thinking this, Aoyama Xiu Xin's lips curled into a mocking smile, "Very well, Mana, I indeed did not misjudge you. Continue to deepen your relationship with Hashimoto Yangzi, keep an eye on her every move, frequently invite her for drinks, extract some useful information for me from her, and once I achieve my desire, it will be time for your promotion and fortune. The application for your promotion to Deputy Chief is already written, it's in the drawer. I hope you won't make me have written it in vain."

"Hi!" Hashimoto Manami immediately rose excitedly and bowed deeply, her voice resolute, "Don't worry, Minister Aoyama, I will not let you down!"

"Alright, sit down, sit down, no need to be so surprised," Aoyama Xiu Xin gestured downward with his hand, then continued to ask, "What's this 'gift' you spoke of?"

"It's this. I hope you like it." Hashimoto Manami took out a digital camera somewhat nervously and handed it over.

Digital cameras had been invented over a decade ago, and the world's first true DSLR with 1.3 million pixels had appeared two years ago, very clear.

As an artist who staged his own scenes, Aoyama Xiu Xin was adept with the latest cameras and video recorders on the market. He took the camera from Hashimoto Manami and scrolled through the photos it contained.

His eyes widened instantly.

The camera was filled with images of Hashimoto Yangzi looking intoxicated and disheveled, in a private room of some izakaya, posed in various indecent ways, with each subsequent photo becoming more explicit, even to the point of being nearly nude, well, except for stockings.

Her figure was impeccable: any more flesh would appear fat, any less would seem thin, and her drunken, hazy expressions made one's mouth water.

Aoyama Xiu Xin raised his head to look at Hashimoto Manami.

It was clear from these photos that she had taken them while Hashimoto Yangzi was drunk and not fully conscious.

"Min... Minister." Hashimoto Manami swallowed nervously, her fingers tightly intertwined.

She had also done this to further ingratiate herself with Aoyama Xiu Xin.

Afraid that he would blame her for acting on her initiative.

Aoyama Xiu Xin held back his surging excitement and feigned calmness, "Not again, make sure not to take such photos anymore, in case she notices. If this ruins my plans, you will be held accountable! Understand?"

One must not let small gains overshadow greater pursuits.

This woman was truly wicked, but such a person should be used by him, to be handled with ease.

"Hi!" Hashimoto Manami breathed a sigh of relief.

It seemed that in the future she should no longer be too smart for her own good, fortunate that this time Aoyama Xiu Xin had not blamed her.

Aoyama Xiu Xin waved his hand, dismissing her to leave, then sat quietly in the room savoring those photos.

If he wished, he could directly use these photos to coerce Hashimoto Yangzi into initiating a traditional movie plot.

However, his conscience, character, sense of morality, and scrutiny prevented him from doing so, so it was just to satisfy his craving before getting to the actual feast, to indulge his eyes for the time being.

"Beautiful, love to watch."

He repeatedly relished Hashimoto Yangzi's photographic images.

His desire to possess her grew even stronger.

Unabashedly, he was a man of lust.

A few minutes later, he took the camera and went home.

Tonight Aoyama Haruko suffered again, and the unborn Aoyama Tianze would surely be a filial son.

.........…

The next day, Aoyama Xiu Xin had breakfast as usual and went to the police headquarters for work on time.

In the morning, Zhongshan Runmei organized a meeting, as the gun ban initiative she had initiated had achieved significant results. In the meeting, she highly praised the Criminal Department and Aoyama Xiu Xin, encouraging further expansion of their achievements.

Watching her talk confidently,

Aoyama Xiu Xin found it amusing inside.

Soon, the people of Hokkaido would discover that Zhongshan Runmei had been loudly calling for a crackdown on gun dealing, and today she was in the news for taking down a certain gun dealing gang, only to appear in the newspaper tomorrow having cracked another gun smuggling case.

But rather than being controlled, the proliferation of guns intensifies, and gun-related incidents had not decreased at all. This would cause people to question Runmei's effectiveness. Therefore, the more publicly she pushed for crackdowns and the more frequently she appeared in the media, the more severe the backlash would be when it came.

The meeting was both boring and time-consuming.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we must..."

"Knock, knock, knock!" Aoyama Xiu Xin rapped his fingers on the table, interrupting Zhongshan Runmei's speech. Instantly, all eyes in the meeting room were on him.

Runmei's voice came to an abrupt halt, and after a pause, she asked, "Does Minister Aoyama have something to say?"

"Minister here thinks that's enough; everyone is quite busy," said Aoyama Xiu Xin lightly.

In private or public appearances, he didn't mind showing basic respect to the elderly, but within the public settings of Hokkaido Police, he needed to continuously assert his dominance, undermining her authority.

Runmei's lieutenant, Habamoto Youko, was immediately furious, her face turning ashen, "Minister Aoyama..."

"Youko," Runmei raised her hand to stop her, barely managing a smile, "Minister Aoyama is right. I was too engrossed. Let's adjourn for today."

To carry through the strategy of feigned weakness.

Aoyama Xiu Xin nodded, stood up, and left.

Others quickly followed, leaving Zhongshan Runmei and Habamoto Youko behind in the conference room.

"Bang!" Runmei finally threw down the pen she was holding, infuriated. She had repeatedly shown weakness, yet Aoyama Xiu Xin continued to escalate his offensiveness.

Challenging her patience time and again.

She leaned on the conference table, breathing heavily, and gritted her teeth, cursing, "Idiot!"

"Aunt, calm down. That bastard has always been like this. Sooner or later, he will bow before you," Youko said while gently rubbing her back.

Runmei took a deep breath, calming herself, "You need to accelerate your plan."

"But Aunt, although he blatantly shows his desire to possess me, he has yet to make a move. It seems he has no intention of pursuing me," Youko said helplessly.

She didn't understand what Aoyama Xiu Xin was thinking.

Could it be that he was guided by emotion but stopped by decorum? Such awareness seemed unlikely for that vile man.

"Knock, knock, knock!"

Shortly, a knock on the door sounded.

They turned to see Aoyama Xiu Xin returning, with a sly grin, he invited, "Miss Youko, would you like to join me for dinner tonight?"

Since he was aware of Zhongshan Runmei's scheme and decided to play along, he immediately took action.

Youko and Runmei exchanged glances quickly, Youko maintained her facade and coldly declined, "I'm not..."

"Youko," Runmei continued to maintain her facade of weakness, persuading, "Minister Aoyama is an important leader here, and you will have many dealings with him at work. It would be good for fostering relations, and you shouldn't decline his invitation."

That selfish fool, daring to ask out his own daughter-in-law in her presence, thought she was too weak thus becoming more presumptuous and arbitrary.

While angry, she was pleased because this was the outcome she wanted, continuously indulging Aoyama Xiu Xin's ego so that he would expose more flaws.

"But Aunt..." Youko still looked disgusted, attempting to convince Runmei.

Runmei raised her voice, "Listen, this is for work, do not mix personal feelings."

"Okay!" Youko finally agreed reluctantly, looking disdainfully at Aoyama Xiu Xin and said, "Where and what time tonight?"

"Tonight at nine..." Aoyama Xiu Xin mentioned the time and a restaurant's name, and with a final "Don't stand me up," he turned and left.

After he left, Youko quickly ran to the door to check then turned and shook her head at Runmei, signaling that he had really gone.

"He's finally making his move; Youko, you must seize this opportunity and handle it well to gain his trust," Runmei stated solemnly.

Youko's face turned serious as she nodded.

Aoyama Xiu Xin, your end is near, and this time you will pay dearly for your lechery!

Aoyama Xiu Xin was prepared to pay the price for her, perhaps a few billion yen.

...

Simultaneously.

Tokyo, Tobacco Industry Corporation.

The president and several top executives were discussing a phone call; just now, the corporation had received an anonymous tip-off, alleging that Miyashita Naoyuki, the illegitimate son of the Sapporo City mayor, was heavily involved in smuggling tobacco in Hokkaido.

Nakamura Shinichi had no connections in the Tobacco Industry Corporation, so he could only resort to this method.

"What do you think of the credibility of this call?" the president asked while smoking.

"At least 70 percent, as it involves the mayor of Sapporo City; the caller wouldn't likely make false claims."

"No matter the credibility, since there's a tip-off, we should send someone to Hokkaido to find out if it's true."

"Do you think Miyashita Hidekatsu knows?"

"He probably doesn't. Being such a prominent mayor, he wouldn't do something so unwise. It's more likely his illegitimate son is using his status to collude with local authorities to make money. However, if it turns out to be true, we should directly confront Miyashita Hidekatsu."

Everyone voiced their opinions one after another.

"Then, arrange someone suitable to take a trip to Sapporo," the president tapped off his cigarette ash, setting the tone for the discussion.

They all bowed respectfully in agreement, "Yes!"

They had a monopoly on the national tobacco market.

Whoever dared to reach for it would be cut off.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.