Early the next morning, Aoyama Xiu Xin went to report at the Police Headquarters and convened a brief meeting in the Criminal Department, mainly to announce that he had started work.

At the meeting, Deputy Director Miyagi Youcai gave a warm welcome to Aoyama Xiu Xin's arrival, without causing any fuss.

After the meeting, he returned to his office and began studying the materials that Yanchuan Shiro had given him yesterday.

To prevent Hatanaka Zizi and Yamahana Shigeru from joining forces, a conflict or irreconcilable dispute must arise between them. As Aoyama Xiu Xin examined one dossier after another, a plan began to form in his mind.

He set aside a few separate files from the stack.

He then called for Nakamura Shinichi to come over.

Nakamura Shinichi is currently the section chief of Investigation Section Three.

Investigation Section Three is mainly responsible for cases like theft and robbery. In theory, this is the case, but as long as Aoyama Xiu Xin wishes, he can assign them any case.

"Knock, knock, knock!" Shortly after, there was a knock on the door.

Aoyama Xiu Xin casually called out, "Come in."

"Minister, you wanted to see me." Nakamura Shinichi pushed open the door, then quickly stepped forward and bowed, saying.

Aoyama Xiu Xin nodded and handed over the three selected files, "Check out these three individuals."

Nakamura Shinichi took a quick look and felt a shiver. They were intimidating, Chief of Tokyo District Attorney Kiyohiro Tobita, Hatanaka Zizi's eldest son Hatanaka Ichiro, and Yamahana Shigeru's eldest son Yoshifu Yamanaka.

The dossiers here were already detailed enough, from blood types to hobbies. He certainly understood that Aoyama Xiu Xin wanted him to investigate things not listed on the dossiers.

"Yes, sir!" Nakamura Shinichi responded solemnly.

"Do it quickly. Consider this as a top priority for your work." Aoyama Xiu Xin instructed seriously.

Nakamura Shinichi nodded heavily again.

"I understand, rest assured, Minister."

Aoyama Xiu Xin waved him off, signaling him to leave.

According to the dossier, Hatanaka Zizi's eldest son Hatanaka Ichiro is an avid worshipper of the divine toilet, returning to pay respects every year. This indicates that he's inherently a restless person, definitely not as docile as he appears, making him a good entry point.

In contrast, Yamahana Shigeru's son Yoshifu Yamanaka, who is of the same age as Hatanaka Ichiro, became a lecturer after graduating from university, teaching constitutional law to aspiring civil servants. He seems relatively harmless, and harmlessness usually means susceptibility to harm, which Aoyama Xiu Xin plans to inflict.

As for the Chief of Tokyo District Attorney, also known as Chief Prosecutor Kiyohiro Tobita, he is Hatanaka Zizi's man. The dossier indicates that he only got the position after Hatanaka Zizi became Deputy Prime Minister, meaning his foundation is unstable. Aoyama Xiu Xin intends to use him while also toppling him, so that perhaps Deputy Chief Prosecutor Suzuki Daohiro can advance.

In light of Deputy Chief Prosecutor father of Suzuki Junko, Aoyama Xiu Xin considers it necessary to call her out someday to connect... uh, to strengthen relations.

"Knock, knock, knock!"

A knock interrupted his train of thought.

Aoyama Xiu Xin sat up straight, "Come in."

"I hope I'm not interrupting your work, Minister?" Miyagi Youcai entered with a thick file folder.

"So it's Mr. Miyagi." Aoyama Xiu Xin nodded slightly, discreetly covering several files on the desk with a file folder, smiling, "Receiving subordinates is part of the job, isn't it? So how could it be an interruption? What can I do for you, Mr. Miyagi?"

"I am here to seek assistance from the Minister." Miyagi Youcai sighed in resignation and said, "There was a murder in Tokyo a few days ago. A young newlywed couple was murdered on their wedding night; both the groom and bride were raped and then killed, the house was…"

"Wait a moment!" Aoyama Xiu Xin suddenly interrupted him, asking, "The groom was raped as well?"

"Yes." Miyagi Youcai nodded heavily.

Aoyama Xiu Xin's lip twitched slightly, then he said, "Diabolical, Mr. Miyagi, please continue."

The culprit really doesn't discriminate.

"The house was looted, the case is extremely heinous. I've personally taken charge of it, but the culprit seems experienced, very cautious, leaving no clear clues at the scene, so the investigation has stalled and the police are under great pressure." Miyagi Youcai paused here, took a deep breath, his eyes fixed steadily on Aoyama Xiu Xin with a hint of challenge in his voice, slowly saying, "But fortunately, Minister Aoyama, you are here. Being Heisei's No.1 Detective, I'm sure this case is a piece of cake for you, so please take over this case and catch the culprit."

As his words ended, he bowed deeply and raised the file folders high in offering.

Yet, even when his arms began to feel sore, Aoyama Xiu Xin remained silent and did not reach for the folders, making Miyagi Youcai raise his head in surprise.

"Minister Aoyama?"

"Mr. Miyagi." Aoyama Xiu Xin finally spoke slowly, "I've just returned and am not yet ready to dive into it. Please continue to handle this case; I believe in your abilities. Any temporary difficulties won't hold you back!"

Miyagi Youcai clearly wanted to toss this hot potato to him, hoping to see him fail; he'd be a fool to take it up. He doesn't need to use this case to prove his capability, nor does he need to embarrass Miyagi Youcai — just watch Miyagi Youcai's failure instead.

As he listened to Aoyama Xiu Xin's straightforward refusal.

Miyagi Youcai was momentarily stunned, somewhat bewildered.

No, why aren't you following the script?

He couldn't believe Aoyama Xiu Xin hadn't heard the skepticism and provocation in his words about his abilities. Shouldn't he have jumped at the chance to take on the case and prove me wrong? Why did he reject it so directly?

Damn it! Where's your dignity as Heisei's No.1 Detective!

"If there's nothing else, Mr. Miyagi, hurry up and investigate the case. It's been dragging on for so long, we need to give the victims' families an explanation quickly!" Aoyama Xiu Xin said earnestly. "To ensure you can focus entirely on this case, I'll inform all departments not to disturb you during this period. Have all documents sent to me, and I'll handle everything."

"Minister Aoyama..." Miyagi Youcai's expression changed instantly upon hearing this, and he wanted to say something immediately.

Aoyama Xiu Xin waved his hand to interrupt, "Enough, it's settled. Mr. Miyagi, quickly go investigate the case."

Miyagi Youcai's face was indecisive, but finally, he squeezed out a "Yes" through his teeth and turned to leave.

Walking out of Aoyama's office, his face was frighteningly dark. Not only did he fail to provoke Aoyama Xiu Xin into taking on this case, but he also gave Aoyama an excuse to consolidate power, leaving him extremely frustrated.

This case was assigned to him by Asai Youki before his promotion. When it first happened, he hadn't realized the seriousness of the situation. After taking on the case, he passionately promised at a press conference to quickly catch the culprit, only to be slapped by reality.

Now he wanted to dump it on Aoyama Xiu Xin, both to free himself from trouble and to add to Aoyama's troubles—an ideal two birds with one stone. He didn't expect Aoyama Xiu Xin to ignore it.

Soon he composed himself again, sneering coldly; do you think you can avoid it like this?

He went to Renping Kuniaki's office.

"Knock knock knock!"

"Come in."

"Director General." Miyagi Youcai pushed the door open and entered.

"What do you want this time?" Seeing that it was Miyagi Youcai, Renping Kuniaki's expression turned nasty, his tone unfriendly: "Didn't I tell you to come to my office less often now that Aoyama Xiu Xin is back?"

"Director General, you're too sensitive. As your subordinate, it's normal for me to come to see you, and coming to your office openly is even more normal. The more obvious it is, the less people will suspect anything." Miyagi Youcai replied nonchalantly.

Renping Kuniaki asked, "So what's the matter?"

"I want to ask you to let Aoyama Xiu Xin take over the case of the newlywed couple being burgled and killed at home. This case is very tricky. It might even tarnish Aoyama Xiu Xin's flawless reputation, and Prime Minister Yutian would certainly reward you handsomely." Miyagi Youcai bowed as he spoke.

Indeed, Renping Kuniaki had defected. He wanted to remain loyal to Yanchuan Shilang but found it hard to resist Hatanaka Zizi's offer.

It was true that Yanchuan Shilang had personally promoted him to the position of Police Director General, and he was grateful.

However, Asai Youki's rapid promotion looked like a sign of overtaking, and since the Asakai family and the Yanchuan family were family friends, with Aoyama Xiu Xin as a link, his role within the Yanchuan family would certainly be replaced by Asai Youki in the future.

So he needed a way out, and at this time, Hatanaka Zizi approached him with generous promises, pledging to appoint him to the position of Director of the Criminal Bureau at the Ministry of Justice once the Cabinet was formed.

He would enter politics directly, outside the police system, and having the merit of support, he would naturally flourish in the Hatanaka Cabinet, with a bright future, so he defected.

The reason for defection is well demonstrated here where the gains from defection were not substantial enough.

Hearing these words, Renping Kuniaki kept silent, assessing Miyagi Youcai and asked, "You've already approached Aoyama Xiu Xin?"

"Yes! Director General has sharp eyes." Miyagi Youcai bowed, gritting his teeth as he said, "I originally tried to provoke him into taking on the case, but I never expected him to simply refuse, not even maintaining his dignity as Heisei's No.1 Detective."

"Idiot!" Renping Kuniaki couldn't help but curse loudly after hearing this, "Do you think youth always brings impulsiveness? That he'd fall for your provocation? You've already approached him, and if I assign this case to him now, wouldn't he suspect something?"

"I didn't say it has to be now. You could assign it to him after a few days, citing my incompetence and the high pressure at the Police Headquarters to persuade him to take the lead. He surely won't refuse your order, right?" Miyagi Youcai whispered.

Renping Kuniaki waved his hand, "Get out!"

Miyagi Youcai hesitated to say more but ultimately left with a bow, face downcast.

Renping Kuniaki's face twisted with indecision; he contemplated actually giving the case to Aoyama Xiu Xin. If the case is solved, then the pressure on the Police Headquarters would be relieved, as the head of the Police Headquarters, all external pressures were actually borne by him alone.

If the case remains unsolved, Aoyama Xiu Xin's flawless reputation would be shattered, or if Aoyama Xiu Xin dared to play the game of having someone scapegoated again, then having evidence against him to give to Hatanaka Zizi would be a major contribution.

No matter the outcome, it would benefit him.

Renping Kuniaki exhaled slowly, feeling a complex mix of emotions regarding Aoyama Xiu Xin. Initially, there was hostility for a period, but later the conflict was resolved.

Now he had to confront Aoyama Xiu Xin once again—only this time, he operated from the shadows while Aoyama Xiu Xin was exposed, and he had the Vice Prime Minister Hatanaka Zizi backing him, giving him a great advantage and a high chance of winning.

As a father, he had not been competent before, and now it was time to seek justice for his two sons who had gone abroad.

"Mr. Aoyama, if you must blame someone, blame the power struggles."

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