Chapter 6 Chapter Six

I also had a very peculiar experience with women with leg problems.I was twenty-eight then.But because things are so strange, I still have trouble figuring out what that means. I met a woman with the same limp as Shimamoto on the noisy and crowded streets of Shibuya at the end of the year.She was wearing a long red coat, a black patent leather handbag under her armpit, and a bracelet-like silver watch on her left wrist.The things on her body look very high-end.I was walking on the other side of the road, and as soon as I happened to see her, I crossed the road.There were a lot of people on the road, so many people came out of nowhere, but it didn't take long to chase her, because her legs were not flexible and she couldn't walk so fast.The way the leg was lifted was very similar to the Shimamoto I remembered—she also dragged her left leg in a slightly rounded position like Shimamoto.I followed behind her, fascinated by the beautiful curves of the well-proportioned legs wrapped in stockings.It is a beauty that can only be produced by complex techniques that have been trained for years and years.

I moved a little away and followed her for a while.Keeping her pace (that is, walking at the opposite speed of the flow of the crowd) was not easy.From time to time, I looked at the window or stopped to pretend to search the pockets of my windbreaker to adjust my speed.She wore a pair of black leather gloves, and in the other hand she carried a red paper bag from the shop.Despite the gloomy winter day, she still wears big sunglasses.All I could see from behind her was her neatly combed hair (rolled out elegantly at her shoulders), and the back of a red coat that gave people a soft and warm feeling.Needless to say, I'd love to see if she's Shimamoto.It's not difficult to confirm, just go around and take a good look.The question is, if it was Shimamoto, what should I say then?How should we behave?Besides, does she remember me?I need time to judge.I had to adjust my breathing, clear my mind, and straighten my posture.

I followed closely while being careful not to overtake her.During this time, she didn't look back once, didn't stop once, she didn't even squint, she just walked straight towards a certain destination.If you don't look at the movement of her left leg but only look at her upper body, no one will be able to tell that there is something wrong with her leg, it's just that her walking speed is a few beats slower than ordinary people.The more I see her walking, the more I think of Shimamoto. The way she walks can really be said to be two scoops from a gourd. The woman walked through the crowded Shibuya Station, walking non-stop along the sloping road towards Aoyama.On the slopes, the pace is even slower.She had already walked quite a long distance, and it was not too close to take a taxi. It would be strenuous enough for a person with a healthy leg to walk, but she dragged one leg and continued to walk.I opened a proper distance to follow behind.She still didn't look back once, didn't stop once, and didn't even glance at the window.The hand holding the handbag changed several times with the hand carrying the paper bag.But other than that, she's always going at the same pace, in the same pose.

After a while, she avoided the crowd on the street and walked into the side passage.It seems that she is quite familiar with this area.One step further from the bustling street, you will find a quiet residential area.Since there are fewer people, I pay more attention to keeping a good distance to keep up. Walked with her for about forty minutes in all.Walk for a while on the road with few pedestrians, turn a few intersections, and walk on the lively Qingshan Street again.But this time she hardly walked among the crowd, and walked straight into a café without hesitation, as if she had made up her mind.It was a small cafe run by a Western-style pastry shop.Out of caution, I wandered around for ten minutes before entering.

Go in and find her right away.It was hot and steamy inside, but she was still wearing a coat and sitting with her back to the door.That rather expensive-looking red coat really stood out.I sat at the table at the end, ordered a cup of coffee, then picked up a newspaper in my hand, pretending to be reading a newspaper, and observed her movements as if nothing had happened.There was a coffee mug on her desk, but as far as I could see, she didn't touch it once.Except for once taking out a cigarette from the handbag and lighting it with a lighter, there was no other action, just sitting there quietly and looking at the scenery outside the window.It looks like a pure rest, but also like thinking about something important.I drank my coffee and read the same story in the newspaper over and over again.

After a long time, she suddenly left her seat as if she had made up her mind, and walked towards my table.My heart nearly stopped beating because of the sudden movement.But not to me.She walked past my desk, went straight to the phone by the door, put in change and dialed the number. The phone wasn't too far from my seat, but I couldn't hear her clearly due to the noise of people around me and the loud Christmas carols on the stereo.After talking on the phone for a long time, the coffee on her desk was cold without touching it.As I passed by, I saw her face from the front, but I still couldn't tell that she was Shimamoto.The make-up was quite heavy, and nearly half of the face was covered by big sunglasses, the eyebrows were clearly drawn with eyebrow pencil, and the red and narrow lips were bitten tightly.After all, the last time I saw Shimamoto was when we were both twelve years old, fifteen years ago.The shape of the face somewhat reminds me of Shimamoto's Girls' Generation face, but it seems okay to say that it is irrelevant to others.All I could see was that she was a dignified-faced woman in her twenties and thirties, wearing expensive clothes, and with a bad leg.

I sat on the seat and was sweating until my tights were soaked.I took off my windbreaker and asked the waitress for another cup of coffee.I asked myself "what the hell are you doing?" I came to Shibuya to buy new gloves because I lost my gloves, and when I found this woman, I followed her all the way like a madman.According to normal thinking, it should be straightforward to ask "Excuse me, are you Shimamoto?"But I don't want to do that, I just followed behind silently, and now it has reached the point where I can't return. After making the phone call, she directly returned to her seat, then sat down with her back to me, staring at the scenery outside the window without moving.The waitress came up to her and asked if the cold coffee could be removed.I didn't hear the voice, so I guess it was the question.She nodded back, as if to order another glass.But she still didn't touch the new coffee.I raised my eyes from time to time to check her movements, while continuing to pretend to be reading a newspaper.Several times she raised her wrist to her face and glanced at the graphic silver watch.Guess who she is waiting for.

I thought this might be my last chance.When that one comes, I may lose the chance to talk to her forever.However, I couldn't get up from the chair anyway.It doesn't matter, I convince myself, it doesn't matter, there's no rush. Fifteen to twenty minutes passed without incident.She had been looking at the street outside, and then suddenly stood up quietly, holding the handbag in her hand, and the paper bag from the store with the other hand.It seems that she has given up hope of waiting for someone, or she is not waiting for someone in the first place.Seeing her pay in front of the cash register and go out the door, I also hurriedly stood up, paid and chased after her.Seeing the red coat passing through the crowd, I pushed through the crowd and rushed in her direction.

She raised her hand to hail a taxi.Moments later, a taxi came up to the side of the road with blinking lights.Must say hello!Get in a taxi and you're done.Unexpectedly, as soon as I took a step towards that direction, someone immediately grabbed my elbow with astonishing strength.The pain didn't hurt, but the force was so strong that I couldn't breathe.Looking back, a middle-aged man was looking at my face. The other party is about five centimeters shorter than me, but has a very strong build. He is about forty-five or sixteen years old. He is wearing a gray coat and a cashmere scarf around his neck.Her hair is neatly parted, and she wears a pair of tortoiseshell glasses.It seems that he exercises regularly and his face is properly tanned. He must be skiing, or maybe playing tennis.I thought of Izumi's father, who likes to play tennis, with the same tan.It is estimated that it is a person in a high position in a regular company, or a senior official. This can be seen by looking at his eyes-the eyes that are used to giving orders to many people.

"Not a cup of coffee?" he said quietly. My eyes are still chasing the woman in the red coat.She glanced this way through her sunglasses as she stooped into the taxi.I think she at least saw the scene here.The taxi door then closed and her figure disappeared from my view.After she disappeared, I was left with that wonderful man. "It doesn't take up too much time." The man said, with almost no ups and downs in his tone.It seemed that he was neither angry nor agitated, and he held my elbow firmly as if he was holding the door for someone, with no expression on his face. "Let's talk over coffee!"

Of course, I can just walk away and say that I don't want to drink any coffee, and I have nothing to say to you. First of all, I don't even know who you are. Sorry, I have something urgent.However, I stared at his face without saying a word, then nodded, and walked into the cafe again just as he said.It may be that I am afraid of what is contained in his grip, and I feel something like a strange consistency in it.The grip neither relaxes nor strengthens, and holds me tightly like a machine.I can't tell how this person will react to me if I refuse. But besides the fear, there is also curiosity to some extent. I want to know what he will say to me next, and I am quite interested in it.That might give me some kind of information about the woman.Now that the woman has disappeared, this man may become the only channel connecting the woman and me.What's more, after all, in a coffee shop, it is impossible to use force against me. I sat across the table from the man.Neither of them said a word until the waitress came.We stared at each other across the table.Afterwards, the man ordered two cups of coffee. "Why have you been following her?" The man asked me in a polite enough tone. I kept silent. He stared at me with expressionless eyes. "You have been following closely since Shibuya," the man said. "After following for such a long time, no one will notice." I voted for nothing.It is expected that the woman realized that I was following her, went into the cafe and called the man. "I don't want to say it, it doesn't matter if I don't say it. Even if you don't say it, I fully understand what's going on." The man was probably a little excited, but his tone was completely polite and calm. "I can do several things." The man said, "I won't lie to you, I can do what I want." Then he just stared at my face, as if he should understand without explaining.I remained silent. "But this time, I don't want to escalate the situation, and I don't want to stir up unnecessary disturbances. Understand? Only this time." He said, putting his right hand on the table into the pocket of his coat.He took out a white envelope from it, and kept his left hand on the table.It was a work envelope, featureless, snow white. "So just accept it silently. Presumably you are just entrusted by others, and I also want to try my best to calm things down. I hope you don't say a word if you need to. You didn't see any special situation today, and you didn't meet me. Do you understand? If I know that you have said unnecessary things, I will find you to settle accounts. So please stop here for the matter of stalking. Both parties don't want to make extra troubles, right? Isn't it?" Having said that, the other party handed me the envelope, stood up, grabbed the bill, and strode away.I was dumbfounded, and still sat there for a long time without moving, then picked up the envelope on the table and peeked inside: ten ten thousand yuan bills, a brand new ten thousand yuan bill that hadn't even been folded.Salad salad was dry in my mouth.I put the envelope in my windbreaker pocket and walked out of the cafe.I went out and looked around, and after confirming that the man was nowhere to be found, I hailed a taxi and returned to Shibuya. It is such a thing. I still keep the envelope containing 100,000 yuan, just like that hidden in the drawer.In sleepless nights, I often think of his face, as if whenever something happens, ominous prophecies come to my mind.Who is that man?Also, is that woman Shimamoto? Afterwards, I imagined several answers to this incident, which were like riddles without answers.After the idea was over, it was overthrown again, and so many times.The man was her lover, and he thought of me as some kind of private detective hired by her husband—this was the most convincing scenario.And the man tried to bribe me to keep my mouth shut, or thought that I had witnessed two people having a tryst in a hotel before following me.This possibility is sufficient and, secondly, logical.However, I still can't agree with this assumption in my heart.There are a few questions: What kind of things did he say he could do if he wanted to?Why was he grabbing my arm in such a strange way?Why didn't that woman take a taxi knowing that I was following her?A taxi would have dropped me on the spot.Why did that man hand over 100,000 yen nonchalantly without knowing who I am? No matter how you think about it, it's a mystery.Sometimes I even suspect that the event is all the product of my own hallucinations, fabricated in my own mind, or I had a long and vivid dream, and the dream put on the cloak of reality and stuck tightly to my mind.However, there is a fact.Because there is actually a white envelope in the drawer, and there are ten ten thousand yuan bills in the envelope.This is undoubtedly the physical evidence that everything is what has happened - that it really happened.From time to time I put the envelope on the table and stared at it.Totally true.