Chapter 8 Section VII

"Let's talk while walking." I said, and got off the bicycle. Shimazaki and I rode our bicycles to Rinkai Park.We sometimes come here to watch the sea, but today is a bit special. "I'm afraid that if I speak at my house or yours, others will hear me." As I said that, I put my hands in my pockets and walked.Today is July 16th, we haven't had summer vacation yet, but it seems that high school and college have already started vacation, so even on weekdays, there are many people, and there are many young couples. "I see." Shimazaki said with a wrinkled face from the strong sea wind, and nodded. "Have you talked to your mother?"

"We talked about it." "What did she say?" I smiled: "Tell me to trust her." "Really?" Shimazaki said with emotion. "Have you confirmed the blood type?" "Well, I'm sure that's right. My dad and Mr. Sawamura are both type A, so we can't tell by blood type alone. If we really go to court for a paternity test, the results will be very accurate, but it will take a lot of time." These are what lawyer Maekawa told me.When I called him to ask him, he seemed to know my purpose right away and explained it to me very carefully.Finally, he said in a very sorry tone: "Yesterday your dad also called to ask the same question."

This series of conversations made me look at lawyer Maekawa differently, because he did not use the words "you are still a child, you don't care about these things" to perfuse me.Such adults are actually rare, to the extent that there are only a few green chocolates in a bag of M&Ms. We didn't speak, and walked for a short distance, looking at the sea that was so blue that it was hard to believe that it was Tokyo Bay.Shimazaki asked me, "Then what are your plans for the future?" I pointed to the aquarium on the right dome and said, "Let's go there first. Let's go in and have a look once in a while."

We just walked together in silence until we found the entrance that was too big and inconspicuous and bought tickets to go in.A group of men and women who looked like high school students passed us laughing. "Wow, it's so big!" As soon as you enter the hall, you can see the selling point of this aquarium - you can directly see the large circular tank where the tuna swims back and forth.Lines of tuna swam from right to left like silver bullets, appearing and disappearing.After watching for a while, I spoke slowly. "Hey, are you willing to help me?" "What help?"

"I want to find out the truth of the matter and calm myself down. If I don't do anything, I will just think wildly and find someone to vent my anger on. That would be a waste of energy." Too many shocking things have happened.What Dad said—the Director Miyake, whom I respect as a model man, not only doubted Mom’s innocence, but also provoked Dad... However, I can't get bogged down by these. About ten tuna swam by, and Shimazaki remained silent.He took off his spectacles, took his handkerchief from his pocket, and wiped his lenses carefully; then put the handkerchief away, and turned to me with his suddenly boyish face without the spectacles.

"You mean to investigate whether what your mother said is true?" "Ok." "In order to dispel your father's suspicion?" "There are also...but, it should be for myself." This matter is most closely related to me, because it concerns my life experience.I never dreamed that the word "life experience" would be used in this life, but the sparks have splashed on me, and I can't do without shooting them off. "Don't you trust your mother? Since it's for yourself, you should trust her even more. She is your mother." Shimazaki said.

"I believe it, I really want to believe it." "That……" "However, since you have been innocently wronged, you should prove your innocence. Afterwards, maybe a paternity test lawsuit will really be filed. If that is the case, there is nothing I can do, but I don't want to be treated like a thing. Not peas for genetic experiments." I want to find out before anyone else.Even if it is impossible, at least try your best. "I can't just sit there and cry, 'please don't hurt me' because I'm a kid. I can't just be passive all the time. Don't you think?"

Shimazaki continued to stare at the tuna silently, while I stared at his profile, waiting for him to speak. Finally, he slowly puts on his glasses and faces me again. "My friend." He smiled shrewdly. "Thank you for making up your mind." I also laughed together: "Will you help me?" In order to investigate, we must first clarify some basic doubts.Taking random actions without direction is just a waste of time. "First of all, from an objective point of view, what do you think? Why did Mr. Sawamura leave the property to my mother?" I stopped in front of the colorful tropical fish tank to strike up a conversation.On this floor with indirect lighting, this sink is the least visited.Tropical fish are very beautiful, but tropical fish like this can be seen in slightly larger coffee shops recently.

"Should I just say Luo?" "no problem." Shimazaki pushed the edge of the mirror frame, faced the sink, and spoke with a serious expression. "As soon as I heard about the bequest, I doubted 'that possibility'." "so……" "Well. Just like your dad said with people in his company, your mom may have a deeper relationship with Mr. Sawamura, and you are his child." "Deeper relationship," I murmured, "that's an understatement." "Yes, very deep—these fish live in the deep sea, don't they?" Shimazaki suddenly changed the subject, and I turned to look at him, and suddenly realized.Next to him was a fierce looking old man in a cardigan staring at us.It seems to have heard our conversation just now.

"Yes, it must be living in the deep sea." I go along with Shimazaki.The uncle left with a surprised face, and looked back at us from time to time. "It would be great if there were sea otters here too!" Shimazaki finished speaking loudly, pretending to be cute, and immediately looked at me with a serious expression: "I hope you don't feel uncomfortable, in fact, my parents have also talked about this matter." "Have you talked about Kaise?" "Idiot, no. It's a very deep matter." "I know." I smiled. "But, of course..."

"I wouldn't say of course. But at least that statement is more acceptable and more reasonable than your mother's." "I agree. It's hard for ordinary people to believe what my mother said." But Shimazaki shook his head hastily. "Don't get me wrong, I'm not completely denying the possibility of those words. What your mother said did happen, and Mr. Sawamura left an inheritance to her in gratitude. Such a thing is not unreasonable at all." "yes?" "Yeah. Like him—how should I say it? A lone wolf? Probably no one talks like that anymore. It's true that a guy like him, anyway, will always remember the girl who saved her life without asking for anything in return." , which is not surprising at all.” "Then, what's unreasonable?" Shimazaki's white forehead was wrinkled, showing a pensive expression. "If Mr. Sawamura—tsk, it's so troublesome. I'll just call him 'Sawamura'. If Sawamura really appreciates your mother and wants to leave the money to her, he shouldn't be so direct and so insane Just think about it, he is a man who is several times smarter than others, and he has been in society; not only that, he is a person who steals money from society's pocket. He should know Bequeathing money to someone can get into serious trouble for whoever gets it. And, according to your mother, they only dated for a fortnight twenty years ago. To put it harshly, Your mother, ahh—this is troublesome too. Can I just say 'Satoko'?" "Well, yes." "Okay. Satoko has probably forgotten him long ago. If so, what is he going to do?" As we moved from tank to tank, I pondered what Shimazaki had said.Before me was a bright yellow fish in a flowing coat, with its mouth opening and closing. "You understand? If he really left the money to Satoko out of gratitude, in order to abide by the verbal agreement twenty years ago, the method should be more careful and less conspicuous. No matter how outrageous it is, He will never cause unnecessary trouble for her. He is not a fool, and he should be very clear that the world is not so simple and beautiful, and not everyone will believe that the past of the two of them is really just like that. Compared with the fact that rarely happens, people It would be easier to live by believing common lies." "Well... I understand this." "Therefore, he should be able to take various precautions in advance. Since he is so caring, instead of spending time making a will, it is better to find Congzi and her family, and let him explain the whole story and express his gratitude. Ask her if she is willing to accept the money? This will at least avoid unnecessary misunderstandings between Congzi's husband and children, and cause her so much pain. Isn't it?" "You're right," I said.The yellow fish's mouth was still opening and closing, and it seemed to be saying, "Little brother, your friend is right." "However, he made such a big fuss. It's not enough to just say 'Are you scared? Hahaha'. It doesn't matter if he dies, but the living will suffer." "Maybe I have to do a paternity test." "That's right, it made you become the illegitimate child of Sawamura - this kind of fish will secretly give birth to children. In order to fear that the enemy will eat eggs, this kind of fish will lay eggs in the crevices of rocks. I saw it in the illustration book of." The topic changed suddenly again, and I turned my head. This time it was a family that gave people the feeling of a "model family".The young father holding a two-year-old girl and the young mother with a swollen belly looked at us with wide eyes. "Hide the eggs? It's fun, how do you know so many things!" I said this with admiration and smiled at the family. "Aren't you right?" The family looked at each other and walked away.Shimazaki happily shouted behind them: "Let's go find the panda dolphin!" I whispered, "There are no panda dolphins here." "Ah, I'm exhausted." Shimazaki sighed. "It's really the wrong place to talk about things." "However, our two children can't go to the coffee shop. McDonald's is so noisy that we can't talk properly." "It's really inconvenient to be a minor. Anyway—uh, where did I just say that?" "I'm Sawamura's illegitimate child..." "That's right, it even makes people suspect that you are Sawamura's illegitimate child. This is not something you can just apologize for." We approached the next tank, but there was nothing in it except seaweed shaking. "Strange, there's nothing in it." Shimazaki, who was looking at the instruction board seriously from a few steps away, said, "Yes." "what?" "Electric eel." However, I took a closer look, and there was still nothing in the sink.I went to the glass and put my hands and face on it. "Where?" "It's on your left." I'm not exaggerating at all, I literally jumped a meter backwards.Between the clefts in front of me lay a long, slippery thing.I was too close just now, but I didn't see it. "Don't be afraid, there is still glass in the middle, so the electricity won't reach you." "I hate long things like eels, snakes, earthworms." "Not many people like it," Shimazaki said, moving on to the next sink. "I see what you mean," I said, wiping my pants with my hand, trying to wipe away the indirect contact with the eel. "In other words, Sawamura is neither stupid nor insane, but he must have some purpose for doing such a mindless thing, right?" "bingo." "Then what purpose does he have?" We left this floor and went up, and when the stairs were finished, Shimazaki said: "This statement may be more explicit, but I think that Sawamura may hope that he can be listed again before his death." "It's not really selling people in the market. The so-called listing means selling shares to the public to raise funds from the public. You should check your dictionary more." "I know this kind of thing!" "Then you should also know the meaning of my metaphor?" Because I couldn't answer at once, I could only keep my mouth shut.Shimazaki smiled. "Sawamura may want to try to see how much money Satoko and her son are willing to invest in buying his stock." "……What's the meaning?" Shimazaki said slowly, "Can I be more direct?" "Okay." I was mentally prepared and stood firm.Coincidentally, we happened to be close to the tank of the tough turtle. "This is just my personal opinion, just listen to it—I think Satoko is lying." "My mother lied?" "Hmm. I think her relationship with Sawamura is not limited to that past incident." After our discussions along the way, it is natural to come to this conclusion.But being so clearly pointed out, my heart still tugged. "Just look at Satoko's reaction when he met lawyer Maekawa and heard him mention Sawamura. She remembered a person she had only had some contact with twenty years ago." (Did he die?) "I guess they'll be dating privately for a while. From this point of view, your father's suspicions are justified." "Although I don't know how long the so-called period of time is, at least it's long enough for Sawamura to think that I might be his child, right?" "That's right, that's it." Shimazaki tilted his head slightly thinking. "The two of them met twenty years ago, when Congzi was nineteen years old. And Congzi gave birth to you at the age of twenty-six, seven years later." "Have they been in touch for seven years?" "No, that's not necessarily the case. It may also be where they reunited during these seven years." "Anyway, anyway, my mother will date two men at the same time for a period of time." The stench from the turtle tank made me wrinkle my nose.Maybe it was something else that made me frown, but I wanted to blame the tortoise. "It's a common thing," Shimazaki said quietly. "Human beings are unpredictable. Besides, in terms of the result, Satoko still chose your father, didn't he?" "I have to go back and ask my dad." "what?" "Ask him if he felt that he had a rival in love when he was in love with his mother." "It's easy to ask, but I don't think he will answer you, especially at this time." I stared at the sink without moving.Shimazaki's tone became lighter for the first time: "But don't forget, this is completely my guess." "Don't worry." I raised my head and smiled. "It's only now that I think about it, I was a time-misfit baby." "What's the meaning?" "My grandfather told me. I was born eight months after my mother and father were married, but I was not a premature baby. See, the timing is wrong?" Shimazaki opened his mouth a little, but made no sound.After a while, he pulled the corners of his mouth to the sides and smiled.But his eyes are serious. "Satoko used to be with Sawamura, but broke up with him in the end, married your father Yukio Ogata, and then you were born. In this way, thirteen years have passed..." At that time, suddenly, as if the blindfold had been removed, I could see clearly what Shimazaki was thinking, and I could understand it. What emerged in my mind was a man who had never been bound by anything in his life, had no wife, no children, no family, and no heirs, and left no evidence of ever being in the world. Face of a dying man. Yes, he was only fifty-five years old.The herald of death must have come suddenly.Maybe he never thought that he would die at that age, maybe he still has a lot of things he wants to do but hasn't done; maybe he has been thinking again and again, what is his life?What exactly do you live for?Who will remember that they will live through it? Then, on the sickbed, he suddenly thought of the woman who broke up with him fourteen years ago, and the baby she gave birth to, who might be his own flesh and blood... "He has no evidence," Shimazaki said in a steady tone, "and he didn't have time to do an appraisal. So, he made a big bet. Don't forget, Naoki Sawamura is a speculator. When he died, he gambled with everything he had, and the one who bet against him was none other than Congzi." Is it a win or a loss? "This is very cruel and selfish. But from this point of view, he probably has no other choice. He doesn't care about other people at all, because Satoko must understand why he did it. There is no need to explain things in detail for a third party Afterwards, as long as she keeps the money, Congzi will understand. Under this premise, he wants to see if she will accept the money; if she accepts, in what way will she accept it. Will he win? Will Congzi win in these fourteen years? He stood up to face this gamble, and the bet was on himself. The 500 million yuan is just his means." I remembered the look on my mother's face when she said "Mom and Mr. Sawamura are innocent, you have to trust Mom". (You are your father's child.) So, mom doesn't plan to bet on Luo?However, Ma said she would accept the money, and Pa ran away from home. The gamble is just about to start now. "How could this happen!" I couldn't help shouting out, but I heard Shimazaki say very artificially: "You're dumb, that's just an ordinary turtle, okay?" I was startled, and when I came back to my senses, I realized that we had been standing in front of the turtle tank for a long time, and there was a woman standing beside us.The perfume on her body was so fragrant that it almost overwhelmed the fishy smell of the water. "Yes, little brother. That turtle with a very special shape is actually a soft-shelled turtle." After speaking, she smiled at Shimazaki. "You know so much." Shimazaki tried hard to force a smirk on his face.Not sure what part of our conversation this lady started hearing. "I saw it in the illustration book." "That's right. Turtles are edible. Did you know that?" "I know. But, it's cruel." "According to what you said, you can't eat anything... But, you are right, human beings are very cruel." How old is she...?Probably forty-five.She is really beautiful, with a slender and graceful figure, which is further enhanced by wearing a simple black suit, only a hint of red on the lips that smile at us. In front of her stand-up collar was a drop-shaped brooch inlaid with a large pearl.Seeing me staring at the brooch dreamily, she raised her hand and touched the brooch. "Do you like this?" "I like it..." I nodded as if dreaming, "It's so beautiful." "Thank you." She looked at me and Shimazaki respectively, and asked. "Do you come here often?" "Occasionally." Shimazaki replied. "It's my first time here, it's so beautiful here." "Because it's still new." "It's unbelievable, every time I go to the zoo, I get bored...because I hate locking up living things. It doesn't work like that in an aquarium, which seems a little unfair." "Because creatures living in water are expressionless." Shimazaki said slowly. "They don't make sad faces like zoo animals do." The woman suddenly laughed. "Is that so? Maybe they're crying, though. We just can't see their tears." We both looked at each other, desperately trying to find something to say, and she patted our heads one by one and said, "Well, little brother, goodbye. We will definitely meet here again." Even after she disappeared for a long time, the scent of the perfume still lingered. Shimazaki exclaimed, "Mrs. Aquarium." (We'll meet again here.) This agreement really came true.However, that was a long time later.