Chapter 17 Chapter Seventeen

I had only met the president once before, but since then I have spent a lot of time fantasizing about him.He was like a song that, though I only heard it off and on, I sang it in my head a lot after that.Of course, the note has changed over time—that is, I would have expected his forehead to be higher and his gray hair to be less thick.When I met him in the exhibit hall, I wasn't quite sure for a moment that he was really the president, but the peace I experienced convinced me that I had undoubtedly found him. "President Iwamura...President Nobu," Mameha said, "This is my new little sister, Sayuri."

I believe you must have heard of Ken Iwamura, the founder of the famous Iwamura Electric Company.Maybe you have also heard of Yeon Joon Hwa.Their cooperation is second to none in the Japanese business world.Their relationship is like a big tree and its roots, a temple and its gate, they are interdependent and never leave each other.Even a fourteen-year-old girl like me has heard their stories.But I never thought that the man I ran into on the bank of Shirakawa River was Ken Iwamura. Before I could catch my breath, I heard the hinges rattle and the door was pushed shut by two strong men.Nobu's eyes averted, and I couldn't resist taking a peek at the horrific burn scars on his side and neck, and his disfigured ear.Then I discovered that one sleeve of his jacket was empty.My attention was all focused on other places before, and I didn't see it.The empty sleeve was folded in two and fastened to the shoulder with a long silver brooch.

I've heard that Young Yeon was a navy captain during the Japanese occupation of Korea and was badly injured in an explosion outside Seoul in 1910.When I met him, I didn't know about his heroism - but in fact, the story is well known all over Japan.If Nobu had not cooperated with the president and eventually became the president of Iwamura Denki, his war hero would probably have been forgotten long ago.Today, his success is made all the more remarkable by his horrific scars, so the two things are often said together. After the first sumo wrestler entered the ring, I thought the match would start immediately.But for the next five minutes or so, they just sprinkled salt on the high platform, squatted down, leaned their bodies to one side, raised one leg high, and then put it down heavily.From time to time they would bend down and glare at each other, but just when I thought they were going to attack, one of them would stand up and walk over to grab a handful of salt and sprinkle it on the countertop.Finally, when I was not prepared, the game started.They grabbed each other's loincloths and shoved each other hard.In an instant, one side is pushed off balance and the game is over.The audience applauded, but Ke Yan shook his head and said, "The technology is too bad."

In the next few rounds of the competition, I often felt that one ear was connected to the head and the other was connected to the heart, because while listening to Nobupo's interesting explanations, I was always confused by the president and the junior. Attracted by Tao's conversation. A little over an hour later, I noticed something brightly colored moving.It turned out to be a dangling orange silk flower, and the woman with this flower in her hair was kneeling down on the seat.Then I found out that it was Hatsumomo! I didn't expect to see her here at all... I felt a shudder, like stepping on a wire.Of course, she would always find a way to humiliate me, it was only a matter of time for her, and even in a hall like this filled with hundreds of people, she would show no mercy to me.If she insists on teasing me, I don't really mind her doing it in public, but I can't bear to make a fool of myself in front of the president.I looked at Mameha, and saw that she took a quick glance at Hatsumomo, and said to the president, "President, please forgive me, I have to leave for a while, I think Sayuri probably wants to go out too."

She waited for Nobu to finish talking to me, and I followed her out of the hall.Mameha led me into a covered passage in the distance.When there was no one there, she whispered to me: "Mr. Nobu and the chairman have been my benefactors for many years. God knows how fierce Nobu is to people he doesn't like, but he is extremely loyal to his friends. Do you think Hatsumomo would understand these qualities in Nobu? For a while, she saw only one...'Mr. Lizard', that's how Hatsumomo called him. But if Hatsumomo thinks you like Nobu very much, she will probably let you go."

I had no choice but to say yes. When we got back to the box, Nobu was again talking to a man nearby.I couldn't interject, so I pretended to be absorbed in watching the sumo wrestlers on the stage preparing for the bout.I really wanted to turn to the president and ask him if he remembered the day a few years ago when he kindly helped a little girl... But, Hatsumomo was looking at me, if I focused on the president, then The consequences will be catastrophic. Soon, Nobu turned his head and said to me: "These rounds are a bit tedious. When Miyagi-san comes out, we can see some real kung fu."

In my opinion, this is my chance to please him. "However, the few contests I have seen are impressive enough!" I said, "and the stories that President Yan kindly told me are so interesting, I can't imagine that there will be better ones in the future." .” "Don't be silly," Nobu said. "None of these sumo wrestlers are qualified to compete with Miyagi-san." Over Nobu's shoulder, I could see Hatsumomo sitting in a faraway box.She was chatting with Awaji Kai, but she didn't seem to be looking at me. "I know it's stupid to ask," I said, "but how can someone as small as Miyagi-san be the greatest sumo wrestler?" turn to me.

"It's inevitable that Miyagi-san looks smaller because everyone else is far fatter than him," Nobu said, "but when it comes to his figure, he's a bit vain. A newspaper published his actual height and weight accurately a few years ago. It came out and it made him so angry that he had a friend throw a plank at the top of his head so badly, he wolfed down potatoes and drank water, and went to the paper to prove the data was wrong." I laughed out loud to show Hatsumomo, and soon Nobuya started laughing with me.I saw Hatsumomo clapping her hands. Soon, I suddenly had the idea of ​​pretending to regard Nobu as the chairman.Every time he speaks, I try to ignore his rough appearance and try to imagine the president's elegance.Gradually, I found that I could look at Nobu's lips without thinking about the color difference and scars on it, and regard it as the president's lips, imagining that the slight changes in his voice represented the president's various feelings towards me.At one point, I even convinced myself that I was not in the exhibition hall, but in a quiet room, kneeling beside the president.I have never felt so happy since I can remember.I felt like I was stuck in a state of peace that forgot time and space, like a ball that is thrown and seems to hang in the air for a moment before falling.But then I didn't know what to say, and I heard Yeon replied:

"What are you talking about? Only a fool would think such ignorant things!" Before I could restrain myself, my smile disappeared, as if the string that controlled the smile had been severed at once.Nobuo looked straight into my eyes.Of course, Hatsumomo was sitting far away from us, but I was sure she was watching us.Then, it occurred to me that if an apprentice geisha shed tears in front of a man, wouldn't most people think she was madly in love with that man?I could have responded to Nobu's stern comment with an apology; but instead I tried to imagine the president speaking to me rather bluntly, and my lips trembled immediately.I bowed my head and sobbed very childishly.

To my surprise, Nobu even said, "I hurt you, didn't I?" Exaggerated sniffing is not at all difficult for me.Nobu looked at me again for a long time, and then said, "You're a charming girl." I'm sure he wanted to say something more, but then Miyagi-san entered, and the crowd erupted in overwhelming cheers. For a while, Miyagi-san and another sumo wrestler named Saho just pretended to circle around the stage, grabbing a handful of salt from time to time and sprinkled it on the table, or chopping their feet hard according to the habit of sumo wrestlers.Zuo Bao is not only taller than Miyagi-san, but also much heavier than him.I thought that poor Miyagi-san must have been pushed out as they shove each other violently, because I can't imagine anyone being able to push Zuo Bao out of the rope.Eight or nine times they posed for battle, but neither made an attack.Seeing the way Miyagi-san leaned forward, you would think he was about to pounce on Zuobao.Unexpectedly, he followed Zuo Bao's attack and pushed back a step.In an instant, he turned around like a revolving door, and wrapped one hand around the back of Zuo Bao's neck.At this moment, Zuo Bao's center of gravity was too forward, like a person who fell down the stairs.Miyagi-san pushed him with all his strength, and Zuo Bao's foot came out of the rope loop.Then, to my shock, this man who looked like a mountain flew out of the stage and rushed towards the first row of the auditorium with his arms and legs open.The crowd fled in all directions in a hurry, but in the end a man was crushed by Zuo Bao's shoulder, and he stood there gasping for breath.

"That action," Nobu told me, "is called pushing out." "It's so interesting." Mameha said in a daze.She hasn't even come to her senses yet. Later, on our way back to Gion, Mameha turned to me excitedly in the rickshaw. "That sumo wrestler gave me the most wonderful inspiration." She said, "Hatsumomo doesn't know it yet, she has actually messed up herself. By the time she finds this out, it must be too late." "Do you have a plan? Oh, Mameha-san, please tell me!" "Do you think I'll tell?" she said, "I won't even reveal it to my own maid. You just have to make sure that Mr. Yeon is always interested in you. It's all up to him, and there's another man .” "Who is the other man?" "You haven't seen that man yet. Well, stop talking about it! I've probably said too much. It's a big deal that you met Mr. Yan today. He may be your savior." I have to admit, when I heard this, I felt sick inside.If I'm going to have a savior, I want that person to be the president, not anyone else.