Chapter 38 Chapter Thirty-Seven

The headquarters of Sanxia Machinery Co Ltd is located on the other side of the water in Thonburi.Kanya carefully holds the tiller as the boat pulls into a side channel.This is no longer Bangkok, but leaflets accusing General Pracha and the Clockwork Man killers have also begun to appear. "Do you think it's okay to go to that place alone?" Jaidy asked. "Isn't there still you? For anyone, this kind of company should be enough." "In my current state, I'm afraid I won't be able to display any superb Muay Thai skills." "Really sorry."

The company's gate and surrounding dikes slowly emerge from the water in the distance.The blazing sun slanted on the building.A water merchant paddled closer, and although Kanya was hungry and thirsty, she didn't dare waste a moment.The sun looked as if it was about to dip below the horizon.She parked the boat in front of the pier at the entrance of the company compound, and tied the cable to the pillars of the pier. "I don't think they'll let you in," Jaidy said.Kanya didn't even bother to answer.After sailing this far, he has been following her.This thing is kind of weird.His ghost has always only been interested in her for a short time, as long as he encounters other people or things, he will disappear immediately, maybe to visit his children, maybe to visit Chaya's mother.But this time, he followed her all the time.

"They will not respect your white uniform. They have a lot of influence with the Ministry of Trade and the police," Jaidi said. Kanya didn't answer, but she saw police officers patrolling the door, wearing Thonburi Regional Police badges.Around this courtyard, the sea and canal water splashes.The Japanese were very prescient and put the whole yard on the water.Below these buildings are fifty-foot-high bamboo cages, and the flood and tide of the Chao Phraya River have basically no effect on the compound. "I want to speak to Mr. Gibbon." "He's not available."

"There are certain compensation documents that require his signature regarding the property that was damaged in the mishap at the landing pad." The guard smiled uncertainly, then turned and walked into the courtyard. Zaidi snickered beside him, "It's so clever." Kanya grimaces at him, "At least you're still useful." "Even though I'm dead." Not long after, one person and one ghost walked into the compound under the leadership of Sanxia company staff.The soaring walls block all activity within the courtyard, making it virtually invisible from the outside.The Mammoth Guild claims that no work can be done without a good power source, and it is true.But the Japanese neither shipped in their clockwork men nor hired mammoth unions.You don't need to think about it to know that illegal technology must be used here.Even so, the Japanese provided a great deal of technological assistance to the kingdom.In return for providing the seed bank to Thailand, the Japanese provided their most high-end navigational technology achievements.Nobody wants to risk breaking up this mutually beneficial deal by asking too many questions about how the place was built, whether the production process inside the factory was completely legal, etc.

A door opened, and a pretty girl smiled and bowed to her, causing Kanya to almost draw the pistol from his waist: the creature in front of him was a clockwork man.The girl didn't seem to notice Kanya's uneasiness, though, and just signaled in her clockwork way that she could come in.The room is beautifully decorated with tatami mats on the floor and traditional Japanese ink paintings on the walls.A man—Kanya thinks it's Mr. Gibbon—is on his knees, painting with a brush.The Clockwork Man guides Kanya into a chair. Zaidi admired the paintings on the wall, "You know, these are all painted by himself."

"How do you know?" "I've been here to see if they really have clockwork men with ten arms in their factories." "Is there really such a thing?" Zaidi shrugged, "Go and see for yourself." Mr. Gibbon dipped his brush in ink and completed his work with smooth and elegant movements.He stood up and bowed to Kanya.He spoke in Japanese, and a second later, the voice of the wind-up girl sounded, translating from Japanese to Thai. "You come here, and the succulent grows brilliantly." He paused, and so did the Clockwork Girl.She was beautiful and had a very delicate feel to it, like a piece of china.She was wearing a cropped top with a low neckline and a short white skirt with alluring ruffles around the hips.She was a beauty, if not against the laws of nature.

"You know the real purpose of my coming here, right?" He nodded quickly. "We have heard of a very unfortunate accident and have seen the discussion of our country in your papers and leaflets." He looked at her meaningfully. "There are many voices against us, most of which are neither fair nor precise." Kanya nodded, "We have some questions..." "I would like to assure you that we are friends of Thailand. Our two countries have worked closely together from that great war until today. We have always been friends of Thailand." "I would like to know……"

Mr. Gibbon interrupted her again: "Tea?" he suggested. Kanya forced herself to be polite. "Thanks." Gibbon gestured to the Clockwork Girl, who got up and left the room.Kanya subconsciously breathed a sigh of relief.The creature... is disturbing.Still, without the Clockwork Girl to act as an interpreter, she and Gibbon could not talk but remained silent.Kanya could feel the minutes ticking by.Time, time, time was passing, the storm clouds were gathering, and here she sat, waiting for her tea. The Clockwork Girl returned, kneeling at the low table between them.Kanya had a hard time forcing herself not to speak, not to interrupt the girl's meticulous stirring and impregnation.The Clockwork Girl poured tea for them both.Watching the clockwork creature's odd movements, Kanya felt as if he had a little idea of ​​what the Japanese wanted from their designed servant.Not only is this girl perfectly shaped, her movements are clockwork precise, she is also clearly proficient in the tea ceremony, and her every move has a ceremonial grace...

The Clockwork Man doesn’t observe Kanya the way Kanya inspects her, nor does he say a word about her being a white shirt, let alone the fact that Kanya would happily bury her alive in another setting.Kanya's Ministry of Environment uniform was completely ignored. Gibbon took a sip of his tea and placed the cup gracefully on the table. “Our two countries have always enjoyed friendly relations,” he said, “since our emperor sent tilapia as a gift to His Majesty King Bhumibol, the great scientist of your country. Our friendship has never wavered.” Looking at her meaningfully, "I hope we can help you investigate this incident, but first of all I want to emphasize that we are friends of your country."

"Tell me about the Clockwork Man," Kanya said. Gibbon nodded. "What do you want to know?" He smiled and gestured to the girl kneeling beside them, "This one is, you can see for yourself." The look on Kanya's face remains the same, which is hard to do.The creature next to her was beautiful, with smooth, shiny skin and graceful movements.But at the same time, she gave Kanya goosebumps. "Tell me why you made them." Gibbon shrugged. "Our country is very aging and there are very few young people. Girls like Hiroko just fill the gap. We are not the same as Thailand. We have a lot of calories but a lack of essential labor. We need private secretaries, and workers."

Kanya carefully hid his disgust, "Yes, you Japanese are very different from us. We have not allowed this ecology to any other country except yours..." "Criminal right." Zaidi reminded. "Immunity." She finally found a suitable expression, "People from other countries are absolutely not allowed to bring this creature into the country." She reluctantly nodded to their translator, trying to hide the disgust in her voice, "Also Factories in other countries are not allowed to use them." "We took note of the privilege." "But you've abused that right by making a military-style clockwork man..." Hiroko cut her off, though Kanya tried to continue.Hiroko perfectly conveyed her master's violent reaction. "No! It's impossible. We have nothing to do with that technology. Nothing!" Gibbon's face was flushed, but Kanya didn't know why he was so angry all of a sudden.Did she inadvertently insult their culture?What kind of insult?Clockwork Girl continued translating, without the slightest change of expression on her face, though she was speaking her master's words in her voice: "We work with new Japanese people like Hiroko. She is loyal, considerate, skilled, and is Our indispensable tool. She is to us what the hoe is to the farmer and the sword to the samurai." "It's a coincidence that you would mention a weapon like the Taidao." "Hiroko is not a clockwork creature for military use. We have nothing to do with this type of technology." Kanya took out the photo of the clockwork killer from his pocket and put it on the table, "Even so, she is still your clockwork creature, a clockwork creature brought into our country by people from your country, and once Registered with your company. And now, she killed His Royal Highness Somdej Chao Phraya and eight others, and then disappeared like a ghost without a trace. You sit in front of me and tell me that there cannot be Military-style Clockwork Man!" Her voice grew louder, until she was almost shouting; the Clockwork Girl conveyed her message with equal intensity. Gibbon's expression froze.He took the photo and examined it carefully, "We have to check the records." He nodded to Hiroko.The Clockwork Girl picked up the photo and disappeared through the door.Kanya watched Gibbon's expression, looking for signs of anxiety, tension, but she found none.She could see that he was troubled, but not afraid.Much to her regret, she was unable to speak directly to the man.Perhaps, in the process of translating her words into Japanese, the clockwork girl did some filtering, which made the words that could have surprised Gibbon useless. They waited quietly.Gibbon gestured to pour her another cup of tea.She refused.He himself did not drink any more tea.The atmosphere in the room was so tense that Kanya thought the man would jump up and chop her down with the samurai sword that hung as an ornament on the wall behind. A few minutes later, Hiroko came back.She bowed, returned the photo to Kanya with both hands, and said something to Gibbon.Neither of them showed any unusual expressions.Hiroko knelt down beside them again.Gibbon nodded towards the photo, "Are you sure it was the clockwork man who did it?" Kanya nodded, "There's no doubt about that." “The assassination, then, explains the growing anger in the city. There was a crowd outside the factory. The police drove them away, but they came back, this time with torches.” This development made Kanya tense, but she did her best to keep it under control.But the development of the situation is too fast.Once a riot broke out, Akarat and Pracha couldn't stop, and it was all over. "People were very angry," she said. "This kind of anger has the wrong target. She is not a military-style clockwork man." Kanya was about to retort, but he stopped her with his eyes. The control of clockwork creatures is extremely strict, and only the Ministry of National Defense of our country can use them. It is absolutely impossible for me to own such a clockwork creature." His eyes looked directly at hers, "It is absolutely impossible." "But……" "I know the clockwork man you're describing. She's done her job..." He continued, but the wind-up girl's voice stopped abruptly.She straightened up and glanced at Gibbon.Seeing that she did not maintain a dignified and decent image, he frowned and said something to the clockwork man.She lowered her head, "Hayi." Another pause. Gibbon nodded to indicate that she could continue.She calmed down and finished the translation: "According to the request, she was not sent back to the country, but destroyed on the spot." The clockwork man's dark eyes met Kanya's eyes, without the slightest trembling or even blinking, and he couldn't see at all. The surprise before it came out. Kanya looked at the girl and the older man.Two people she couldn't understand at all. "But she's obviously alive." It took her a long time to say that. "I wasn't the manager here at the time," Gibbon said. "I can only speak to you based on our records." "This time, the record is clearly not reliable." "You're right, there's no excuse for that. I'm ashamed of what other people have done, but I don't know anything about it." Kanya leaned forward, "If you can't tell me how she survived, then please at least tell me how this girl who can kill so many people in ten seconds got into our country. With all due respect, I find it hard to believe that you say she is not of the military type. This is a gross violation of the agreement between your two countries." Unexpectedly, the man's eyes narrowed.He is smiling.Gibbon picked up the teacup, took a sip, and seemed to be thinking about this question, but the smile in his eyes never disappeared until he finished the tea in the cup, "I can answer this question." Yoshimoto suddenly threw the teacup in Hiroko's face.Kanya nearly screamed.The clockwork girl's hand stopped, moving at a fast speed, leaving an afterimage in the air.The teacup fell into her palm.The girl stared dumbfounded at the teacup in her hand, seemingly as surprised as Kanya. Yoshimoto smoothed out the wrinkles on the kimono slowly, "All the new Japanese are extremely fast. The question you asked is fundamentally wrong. The real problem is that the training they receive requires them to learn in what way." Playing to their innate abilities, not what their bodies are capable of. Hiroko, for example, has been trained since birth to allow her to control the speed of her movements." He nods at her skin. "Her design gives her smooth skin like porcelain with extremely small pores. But that means she overheats a lot. A military-style wind-up man never overheats, it's designed to release a considerable amount of energy quickly energy, without causing any damage to herself. If Hiroko expends energy like a military type of clockwork man, it won't take long for her to die. But then again, all clockwork men have quick movements potential, which is deep in their genes." His tone became serious, "It's surprising that the Clockwork Man has completely escaped her training. This is not good news. New humans should serve us. This should not happen." "That is to say, your Hiroko can do the same thing? Kill eight people? Are they all armed?" Hiroko shuddered, turned her head to look at Gibbon, her dark eyes widened.He nodded and said something.His tone was very soft. "Hayi." She seemed to have forgotten to translate, but quickly recovered, "Yes, there is such a possibility. Of course, it is not very likely, but it is still possible." She continued, "Do it This requires a lot of repeated stimulation for a long time. The new humans attach great importance to discipline, order and obedience. In Japan we have a saying, 'the new humans are more like the Japanese than the Japanese'." Yoshimoto put a hand on Hiroko's shoulder. "If Hiroko becomes a killer, it must be because the environment has had a huge impact on her." He smiled confidently, "The clockwork man you are looking for fell into an environment far from where she should be." It's too far away. You should destroy her before she does more damage, and we can provide some assistance." He paused, "Hiroko can help you." Kanya tries hard not to flinch, but the look on her face gives her away. "Captain Kanya, I believe you're smiling." Jaidi's ghost is still with her.He sat on the prow of the boat and crossed the wide mouth of the Chao Phraya River with her.There was a breeze on the water, and the spray passed through him without hindrance.Every time the waves hit, Kanya expected him to get wet.She smiled at him, allowing her good mood to show in front of him. "I did something nice today." Jaidi grinned, "I have listened to the conversations on both sides. Akarat and Nalong spoke highly of you." Kanya paused, "Are you with them too?" He shrugged. "It seems that I can go anywhere at any time." "Just can't reincarnate." He shrugged again and said with a smile, "I still have a job here." "You mean to harass me?" But there was no bitterness in her words.The setting sun gave off a warm radiance as they steered the skiff across the open water, with the city unfolding in front of them and the waves lapping on the hull of the skiff.Negotiations with the Japanese went very smoothly, and Kanya is very grateful for this.After reporting the negotiation process to Nalong, they immediately issued an order for their people to withdraw, and the repeated broadcast of Akarat's statement on the radio also stopped.They will meet with the King Qin faction in the December 12 coup, which will represent the beginning of a truce.Things would have been very different if the Japanese hadn't been happy to take responsibility for not keeping watch over their clockworkers.Now, the Japanese have proposed a compensation plan and issued corresponding documents, thereby exempting Pracha from responsibility.The whole situation turned around for the better. Kanya can't help but feel a certain amount of pride.Yes, she wore two harnesses, but the hard work paid off.Maybe it was her karma, she thought, that made her a bridge across the gap between General Pracha and Minister Akarat.It's all for the good of the City of Angels.Both men and their respective camps have to defend their face and their pride, building impregnable fortresses to it.There is no doubt that no one can penetrate this kind of fortress except her. Jaidy was still grinning at her. "Think about where our country would be if we stopped fighting each other?" A sudden burst of optimism led Kanya to say, "Maybe anything is possible." Jaidy laughed. "You still have to catch the wind-up man." Kanya's gaze drifted subconsciously to the Clockwork Girl beside her.Hiroko sat kneeling in the cabin dignifiedly, looking out at the rapidly approaching city.She watched curiously at the various vessels as they passed among them: clippers, dinghies, and patrol boats propelled by kink springs.Kanya's eyes rolled and they looked at each other.Kanya refuses to look away. "Why do you hate the New Men?" asked the Clockwork Man. Jaidi laughed. "Are you going to give her a lesson in ecology and nature?" Kanya turned her gaze away, and glanced at the floating factory and Thonburi submerged in the distance behind her.The pagoda of Wat Arun still stands, its silhouette set against the blood-red sky. The clockworker asked again: "Why do you hate my kind?" Kanya looked at the woman, "Will you be buried alive when your master Mr. Yoshimoto returns to Japan?" Hiroko lowered his head.Kanya felt slightly embarrassed that she seemed to have hurt the Clockwork Man's feelings.But she shook off the feeling right away.It's a clockwork man, it mimics human emotional responses, but it's a dangerous experiment that's allowed to go too far.The restless movement indicated that it was a genetically modified beast.It's smart, and from what we know so far, it can be very dangerous if provoked.Kanya steers the skiff, keeping her eyes on the water, but at the same time, out of the corner of her eye, she watches the Clockwork Man, who she knows has equally insane speed.All these clockwork men have the potential to kill. Hiroko spoke up again: "We're not all like the one you're hunting." Kanya turned her head and stared at the clockwork man. "You are all unnatural, you were all bred in laboratory test tubes. You all violated the rules of ecology, all of you have no soul, no cause and effect. And now, one of you..." The clockwork man committed The heinous crime she committed made her stop involuntarily, and there was almost no way to continue, "Killed our Royal Highness the Regent. To me, there is no difference between you." Hiroko's eyes became hard, "Then, send me back to the company." Kanya shook her head, "No, you have your uses. You are at least good proof that all Clockwork Men are extremely dangerous. Also, you can prove that the one we hunted down is not a military type. At this point, you are still useful." "We're not all that dangerous," she insisted. Kanya shrugged, "Mr. Gibbon said, you can help us find the killer. If it's true, then you can come in handy. If not, I'm going to throw you into the organic waste dump as soon as possible. Your The master insists that you are useful, but I myself cannot think of any use for you." Hiroko turned his eyes away and looked at the wide water surface in the distance.There is her factory. "I think you hurt her feelings," Jaidi murmured. "Will their feelings be more real than their souls?" Kanya turned the steering wheel and steered the boat towards the dock.There is still a lot to do. Suddenly, Hiroko said, "She will find a new master." Kanya turned around in surprise, "What do you mean?" "She lost her Japanese owner and now the man who ran the bar where she was." "She killed him." Hiroko shrugged. "It's all the same. She lost her master. She has to find a new master." "how do you know?" Hiroko looked at her coldly, "This is the rule engraved in our genes. We must obey the orders of humans and let other people guide us. For us, this is indispensable, just like fish cannot live without Like water. Mr. Gibbon is absolutely right, we are more Japanese than real Japanese. We have to provide services in a hierarchy. She has to find a master.” "And what if the Clockwork Man is different? What if she doesn't need any of that?" "She will need it, she has no choice." "Just like you." Hiroko's dark eyes turned back again, and she looked at her, "That's right." Did she see the glint of despair and anger in those eyes?Maybe it was Kanya's own imagination?Maybe there was something lurking deep in those eyes, very close to being human, but not human, never going to be human?What a mystery.Kanya turned her attention back to the water, the pier was approaching, and she needed to squeeze a gap between so many other boats to anchor.She frowned. "Where do these barges come from? Never seen them before." Hiroko looked up, "Are you familiar with boats and things on the river?" Kanya shook her head. "When I first started, I worked at the docks, inspecting warehouses and imported goods. The pay was good." She watched the barges. Never seen..." Her voice was getting lower and lower.She watched the machines lumbering forward, huge machines, black machines, like a herd of irresistible behemoths.Her heart beat violently. "What's that?" Hiroko asked. "They're not spring driven." "So what?" Kanya quickly pulled up the sails, letting the gentle wind from the river's estuary blow the small boat, making way for the giant ship coming in this direction. "It's a military ship. All military."