October 16th, Monday.

Aoyama Xiu Xin and Nozaki Cangjian met on the rooftop.

"Just closed another case. Got any thoughts about your future?" Aoyama Xiu Xin asked with a cigarette in his mouth, breathing out a ring of smoke that slowly dispersed.

Nozaki Cangjian clearly had ideas already. He snuffed out his cigarette, turned to face Aoyama Xiu Xin, took a deep breath, and saluted, "Nozaki Cangjian requests to rejoin the force!"

Aoyama Xiu Xin nodded in agreement, as Nozaki Cangjian's undercover resume was already too rich; having conned domestically, he had even gone on to con foreigners. Now that foreigners too had been conned, there was nobody left to deceive.

It was time to restore his police identity.

"I will submit your undercover information to the Police Headquarters and apply for your promotion to Police Chief Asai,"

Aoyama Xiu Xin said somberly as he flicked ash from his cigarette.

"Thank you, Minister Aoyama!" Nozaki Cangjian was greatly moved. In just a short year, he had risen from Patrol Captain to Police Chief, almost keeping pace with Aoyama Xiu Xin himself—how could he not be excited?

Moreover, during his time undercover, he had made a fortune, which now allowed him to focus on his career.

Indeed, fortune favors the bold.

Aoyama Xiu Xin patted his shoulder and said with a slight smile, "This is the reward you deserve."

Nozaki Cangjian had walked on the edge of a knife for the past six months, risking his life to work, earning countless merits. Naturally, Aoyama Xiu Xin had to reciprocate.

"It is all thanks to Minister Aoyama for giving me this opportunity. For this great kindness, I, Nozaki, will never forget and will forever follow your lead," Nozaki Cangjian said with a deep bow and resolute words.

Aoyama Xiu Xin nodded in satisfaction, "After you return to the Police Headquarters, listen well to Police Chief Asai. I'll give her a heads-up to take good care of you."

Now that Hokkaido Police Headquarters was entirely under his control, there was no need to keep Nozaki Cangjian there. It would be better to assign Nozaki Cangjian as a capable assistant to Asai Ayumi.

"Yes, sir!" Nozaki Cangjian responded respectfully.

Moments later, Aoyama Xiu Xin left first, taking a car to the hospital. Today was the day Mayor Miyashita Hidekatsu was to be discharged from the hospital, and many people would be there to greet him.

Even without mentioning his own power as the mayor.

Now, he was known to the public as the "Iron Mayor." Before his discharge, the media had already started to hype it up, so it could be predicted that there would indeed be a crowd to "spontaneously" greet him on his release from the hospital. It was only proper for the heads of various departments to go as well.

Who attended today would not necessarily be remembered by Miyashita Hidekatsu, but who did not attend, he would certainly remember clearly.

After all, during his months in the hospital, he had been away from the center of power. His return today meant that those who came to receive him were affirming their continued support for him.

No one wanted to send him the wrong signal.

By the time Aoyama Xiu Xin arrived at the hospital, the place was already packed with people. Along with the public, there were also a plethora of reporters. Seeing this, he instructed Jin Yucheng to drive the car to the back entrance, to enter the hospital from the back.

Upon arriving at the rear gate, they saw the alley already full of cars; clearly, many others had the same idea.

Exiting the elevator, he could see from a distance that the corridor was already full of people, most of them in suits and looking presentable with a corpulent, greasy countenance.

Aoyama Xiu Xin stood out in the crowd.

"XX senior."

"XX director."

"Minister Aoyama has arrived."

Aoyama Xiu Xin humbly greeted those whose status was higher than his, while accepting bows from those lower in status.

Order and rank were clear; superiors and subordinates were distinct.

Everyone chatted and waited outside, and even though they intentionally kept their voices low, with so many people, it still sounded noisy, like a marketplace.

Suddenly, the door opened, and the hubbub came to an abrupt halt. Everyone looked up and stood straight, puffing out their chests.

A spirited Miyashita Hidekatsu walked out.

Followed by his family.

"Congratulations Mayor Miyashita on your full recovery and discharge from the hospital!"

Everyone immediately bowed in unison and shouted their greetings.

"Thank you, thank you all for taking time out of your busy schedules to come," said Miyashita Hidekatsu, who seemed to have made a full recovery, wearing a smile and sounding strong.

The deputy mayor stepped forward with a slight bow and extended a hand, saying, "On behalf of the entire city hall staff, I welcome Mayor Miyashita back to your post."

"Hmm, you've had a tough time of it lately, all the pressure on you alone," Miyashita Hidekatsu said calmly, smiling as he shook the deputy mayor's hand.

"It indeed was tough, especially since without you as the linchpin, I really couldn't make up my mind on some issues!" The deputy mayor forced a wry smile, wiping nonexistent sweat from his forehead and exclaimed, "During your absence, I realized just how important your presence is to the city hall and to Sapporo City!"

"You are too modest. The fact that there were no issues during my absence shows that you've done well," Miyashita Hidekatsu clearly enjoyed the deputy mayor's compliment, then looked around and added, "Of course, the credit also goes to all of you for your cooperation and efforts in keeping the city running smoothly, allowing me to rest easy in the hospital."

Everyone bowed again modestly.

"Especially Minister Aoyama." Miyashita Hidekatsu let go of the deputy mayor's hand, walked over, and patted Aoyama Xiu Xin on the shoulder with a smile, "The proliferation of firearms is what I was most concerned about during my time in the hospital. It's all thanks to you for resolving it. Otherwise, I would have been so worried that I wouldn't have been able to rest comfortably for even half a month more."

The crowd watched the scene unfold, and they couldn't help but sigh at how highly Aoyama Xiu Xin was regarded. When Miyashita Hidekatsu had first regained consciousness, he had met with him alone, and now at his discharge, he made a point of having a private conversation with him. How much did he value Aoyama Xiu Xin?

"Xiu Xin dare not take credit; it's all due to my subordinates' hard work," Aoyama Xiu Xin modestly said.

"That is also because you lead them well," Miyashita Hidekatsu laughed heartily, then began walking towards the elevator.

Immediately someone jogged over to press the elevator button.

"Ding~"

After the elevator doors opened, Mayor Miyashita Hidekatsu and his family naturally went in first, followed by the deputy mayor, Aoyama Xiu Xin, and others who believed they were entitled also stepped in.

The others took the stairs instead, because the floors of the hospital weren't very high, and it wouldn't take much time to walk.

A few minutes later, Miyashita Hidekatsu stepped out of the hospital with a beaming smile, followed by a host of bureaucrats.

"Click! Click! Click!"

The journalists waiting outside hurriedly snapped photos frenetically.

"Congratulations Mayor Miyashita on being discharged!" shouted excited citizens who had come to greet him. If it weren't for the human wall formed by the police, they would likely have rushed forward.

"Mayor Miyashita, congratulations on your discharge. How are you feeling now? Are you fully recovered?"

"I'm a journalist from Hokkaido News. Mayor Miyashita, is there anything you would like to say to everyone?"

"Please, say a few words to everyone, Mayor Miyashita..."

Standing on the highest step, Miyashita Hidekatsu raised his hand to quiet the crowd and then spoke resolutely and emphatically, "What I want to say is very simple. That bullet couldn't take my life, nor could it take away my determination to serve the citizens. The more people who want me dead, the more it proves that I'm doing a good job. I will continue to persevere!"

"Clap clap clap clap clap clap clap!"

Thunderous applause erupted throughout the venue.

Aoyama Xiu Xin and the other bureaucrats also clapped along.

"Ding ding ding! Ding ding ding!"

The sudden ringing of the phone wasn't jarring in the already noisy environment, only Aoyama Xiu Xin and a few people close to him could hear it.

He took his mobile phone out of the briefcase and stepped away from the crowd to a relatively quiet corner to answer the call.

"Moshi moshi, this is Aoyama Xiu Xin."

"It's Elena. Boss, the madam is at Hokkaido University Hospital, she's entered the delivery room, she's going to give birth soon," said Elena, her voice anxious.

"How could this be? There's almost a month left before the due date, isn't there?" Aoyama Xiu Xin was surprised. He'd planned for Aoyama Haruko to move into the hospital for the delivery half a month before her due date, but he hadn't expected it to be so early.

Was this a premature birth after only nine months?

"There was an accident, can't explain it well over the phone," Elena said in a low voice.

"I'll be right there." After hanging up, Aoyama Xiu Xin glanced at the crowd and saw Miyashita Hidekatsu still being interviewed. He didn't go up to interrupt and discreetly headed towards the back door, while calling Aoyama Sosuke, "Big brother, sister-in-law is about to give birth. Set aside your work for now and come to Sapporo immediately."

Aoyama Haruko's child had been publicly claimed to be Aoyama Sosuke's, and now that she was giving birth, even though the two were divorced, Aoyama Sosuke should be present.

Otherwise, people would inevitably speculate.

"Okay," Aoyama Sosuke agreed without hesitation.

Though they were divorced, and the child in Aoyama Haruko's belly wasn't his, it was still his brother's child, and he was willing to make the trip.

He immediately asked his secretary to cancel all of today's arrangements and to buy him the nearest available flight ticket.

....................

In the delivery room corridor, the golden-haired, blue-eyed Elena paced anxiously back and forth. If Aoyama Haruko's delivery didn't go smoothly, she surely wouldn't end up well.

Right now, she didn't have her usual glamour. Instead, she was disheveled, with messy hair, several scratch marks on her face, and partly torn clothes.

"Thud thud thud thud thud thud..."

Upon hearing a series of rapid footsteps, she instantly turned around and immediately went up to greet Aoyama Xiu Xin when she saw it was him.

"Boss."

"What's the situation?" Aoyama Xiu Xin could hear Aoyama Haruko's wailing and was full of worry.

"The doctors haven't come out to say anything, it's not clear," Elena said, pressing her moist red lips together and shaking her head.

Aoyama Xiu Xin exhaled, turned his gaze away from the delivery room, and looked at Elena, "What happened?"

Elena lowered her head, speaking with a face full of self-reproach, "Today, I was accompanying the lady to buy some baby supplies. On the way, we encountered a rally of the Imperial Pole Society. There were too many of them, shouting and bellowing. They approached the madam with flyers, and I intervened to prevent a collision."

"But I didn't expect my intervention and my Soviet nationality to provoke their verbal attacks and insults. They surrounded us, not letting us leave, and threw things at us. Although I tried my best to protect the madam, she was still pushed down in the chaos. Out of desperation, I fired a shot into the air to disperse the crowd and then called an ambulance..."

"Idiot!" Aoyama Xiu Xin couldn't suppress his fury and cursed angrily, his expression becoming terrifyingly grim, his chest heaving violently.

He hadn't felt such anger in a long time.

Elena thought he was cursing her and immediately turned pale, bowing deeply, "I'm sorry..."

"Your biggest mistake was not drawing your gun and killing those bastards on the spot!" said Aoyama Xiu Xin coldly. Then he picked up the phone and called Nakamura Shinichi, "Arrest all the members of the Imperial Pole Society who organized and participated in today's rally, immediately. Find any reason for all of them, I just want results."

If anything happened to Aoyama Haruko or the child, he would make the Imperial Pole Society pay with blood.

Even though he knew that the Imperial Pole Society was a piece of crap and crushing them would dirty the soles of his shoes, he would still do it.

A few months ago, this far-right group had clashed with him during a rally, but at that time, the leader of the Imperial Pole Society apologized with a good attitude, and since Aoyama Xiu Xin didn't want to offend these lunatics, it was left at that.

But this time, it endangered his family, which was absolutely unacceptable.

As a person with flexible stances, he could lean left or right; he had previously been merely disgusted with far-right groups, keeping his distance, neither publicly opposing nor supporting them.

But from now on, in his sphere of influence, there definitely wouldn't be a breeding ground for these guys!

Prison was the only place for these maggots.

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