Chapter 26 fourth quarter

A young waitress in a light blue kimono pushed back the screen and came in with a tray of beer and sake. She asked Kenji's father if he would pour the wine into the glass, and Changji's father nodded politely and thanked her. Kenji drank some cold beer.Another older waitress came in quietly, carrying a plate with shells, fish and sauce. "Cheers!" Kenji said, raising his glass to clink his father's sake glass. "Thank you, Dad. It's an honor to have dinner with you here." This restaurant is the most famous in the Missi area, and probably the most famous in all of Japan.It's staggeringly expensive, with all the traditional service, private rooms, dishes made with only the best quality ingredients, and every dish is pleasing to the eye and delicious.When Mr. Watanabe told his son that they would have a meal together alone, Kenji never imagined that his father would take him here.

They talked about an expedition to Mars. "How many more Japanese?" Mr. Watanabe asked. "A lot," Kenji replied, "about three hundred. Most of the applicants in Japan are of good quality. Only the United States has a larger group." "Do you know any other Japanese?" "Only two or three. One was my junior high school classmate, very bright, with canine teeth and thick glasses. You may remember her." Mr. Watanabe smiled: "I think I remember her. She came the day Kei played the piano, didn't she?" "I think so." Kenji replied with a smile, "but apart from Keiko that night, I really had a hard time remembering anyone else."

After Watanabe finished his sake, the young waitress who had been sitting on her knees in the corner of the tatami room immediately went to the table to refill him. "Kenji, I'm worried about those criminals," Mr. Watanabe said when the waitress exited. "What are you talking about, Dad?" Kenji said. "I read a long article in a magazine saying that the International Space Agency has taken hundreds of prisoners to join you on this expedition to Mars. The article says that these prisoners have behaved well while in detention or serving their sentences, And has outstanding specialties. But why recruit prisoners to join?"

Kenji swallowed a mouthful of beer and replied: "Father, in fact, we have encountered some troubles in our recruitment work. First, we have estimated the number of applicants unrealistically, and our review system is too harsh. Second, the five-year The time limit was a mistake. It is too difficult for young people to make a long-term commitment. And most troubling is that the public opinion circle has seriously undermined our plan. When we called for applicants, many magazine articles and TV columns Promoting the failure of experiments on Mars a hundred years ago. People are afraid of history repeating itself, afraid that they will be abandoned on Mars forever."

Kenji paused for a while, and Mr. Watanabe said nothing. "In addition, as you know, the project has encountered a funding crisis. When we formulated the budget last year, we thought of absorbing some prisoners with special skills and good performance. This is a way to solve our shortage of personnel and shortage of funds. Although They are paid very little money, but it is very attractive to them. Being selected means that they will be free people when they return to Earth after five years," Kenji continued. The waitress brought them food again, and Kenji stopped himself.Mr. Watanabe picked up a fish with his chopsticks, took a small bite, and said, "Excellent," without even looking at his son.

Kenji also caught a fish.Apparently, that was the end of the conversation about the prisoners.Kenji looked at the garden behind his father, the beautiful garden that made the restaurant look so elegant and luxurious. Next, they talked about some applicants.Since they walked into the restaurant, all their conversations have been about Kenji and his activities, which makes Kenji feel a little embarrassed.He changed the subject and asked some questions about his father.His father is now the company's top executive, and Watanabe always speaks of "his" company with pride.This is the world's largest manufacturer of factories and office robots. The company's annual sales rank among the top 50 manufacturing companies in the world.

"I'll be 62 next year," Mr. Watanabe said, his words growing noticeably after a few drinks. "I thought about retiring, but Nakamura said it was a wrong decision. He said the company still needs me." The young waiter served them two glasses of brandy. "Your wife is indeed a beautiful stunner." Mr. Watanabe said with a sip of wine, "I have always thought that Thai women are the most beautiful in the world." "She's kind-hearted," Kenji added quickly, missing his bride suddenly, "and quite smart." “She speaks excellent English,” Watanabe said, “but your mother is terrible at her Japanese.”

Kenji was a little angry: "Nai wants to speak Japanese, but she has never learned it. Mom purposely doesn't speak English with her, it's just to embarrass Nai..." Kenji stopped himself, and it was obviously not appropriate to defend Nai in this situation. Watanabe took a sip of brandy and said, "Well, Kenji, at least this is the last time we'll talk for the next five years. I'm glad we ate and talked together." After a pause, he added, "But I There is one more thing to discuss with you." Kenji changed his sitting position, straightened his back, and tried to keep his mind clear.He could tell from his father's tone that "one more thing" was a very serious topic.

"I didn't become interested in prisoners participating in the Mars expedition because I was bored." Mr. Watanabe said, pausing to organize his thoughts, "Last week before get off work, Mr. Nakamura came to my office and told me about his son's first birthday. The second application was returned. He asked if I could talk to you about it." Kenji did not expect this news. No one had ever mentioned to him that his childhood rival had also applied to join the Mars expedition.But now, it was his father... "I've never been involved in selecting prisoner applicants," Kenji replied slowly. "It's a whole different department in the program."

Mr. Watanabe was silent for a while.Finally, he finished his brandy and said: "Through the relationship, we learned that the objection came from a New Zealand psychiatrist named Rui Jinmo. Her opinion was that although Junfu performed well during his sentence, he still has no repentance for his crimes. I believe you are responsible for recruiting Dr. Reginmore to the expedition." Kenji is completely confused, this is not something his father asked for fun.Evidently he made extensive research. "Why does father care so much about this matter?" Xianzhi was very suspicious.

"Nakamura-kun is an outstanding engineer," said Watanabe. "The products he was in charge of established us as a dominant player in the field. There has been little innovation in his lab lately, and in fact our output came after his son was arrested and imprisoned." Then it started going downhill.” Watanabe leaned towards Kenji, resting his elbows on the table. "Nakamura-kun has lost confidence. He and his wife visit the prison every month, which is ruining his family's reputation. If his son can go to Mars, then maybe..." Kenji understood what his father meant.Emotions, once suppressed for too long, will explode completely.Kenji was very angry, and was about to tell his father that such a request was "inappropriate", when his father spoke first: "It's too difficult for Keiko and their children. Aiko is almost seven years old, and every two weeks, their mother and daughter dutifully take the train to visit the prison... Kenji can no longer control his tears. Heartbroken Keiko took her daughter with her heart to visit their husband and father in that heavily guarded place once every two weeks. This scene made Kenji unbearable. "I talked to Keiko last week," his father added. "She was desperate. I told her I would intercede with you for her husband, and she immediately picked herself up." Kenji took a deep breath, stared at his father's expressionless face, and understood what he was going to do.While still "inappropriate", it's not a mistake, it's just "inappropriate", it's an inevitable consequence. Kenji finished his brandy and said, "Tell Nakamura-kun that I will call Dr. Rui Jinmo." "What if my instincts are wrong? The biggest loss is wasting an hour or an hour and a half." Kenji skipped a family gathering with his sister and two nieces, and rushed into the street after begging his family's forgiveness.He quickly rushed towards the direction of the slope.It was an hour before sunset, and he said to himself, "She'll be there. This will be my last chance to say goodbye to her." Kenji first went to the small temple they used to go to, but Keiko was not there.He thought maybe he was wrong, Keiko would not come here, she felt too ashamed. His last hope is that Keiko is waiting for him at the cemetery where he told her he was leaving Japan 17 years ago.Kenji's heart was beating fast as he walked the last path leading to the temple.In the distance and to the right, a woman in a plain black dress is standing next to Junichiro Tanizaki's tombstone. Although the woman turned her back to him, Kenji was sure that she standing in the twilight was Keiko.He ran to the cemetery and stopped five meters away from the woman in black. "Keiko," he cried, "I'm so happy..." "Watanabe-kun." The figure said very slowly, looking down at her feet, she bowed deeply, as if she was a servant. "Hello." She repeated it twice, and finally raised her body, but still did not look up at Kenji. "Keiko," he called softly, "it's me, it's Kenji. I'm alone, please look at me." "I can't," she replied, her voice almost inaudible, "but I appreciate everything you've done for me and Aiko." She leaned down and said "thank you" again. Kenji put his hand on Keiko's chin, raised her head slightly, and looked at her face.Keiko is still as beautiful as before, but Kenji is surprised to see that sadness is deeply engraved on this slender face. "Keiko." He called her name in a low voice.Her tears pierced his heart like countless sharp swords. "I have to go," she said, "I wish you happiness." She broke away from Kenji's touch, bowed to him again, raised herself without looking at him, and walked slowly up the path in the twilight . Kenji watched her disappear into the distance, only to find himself limply leaning against Junichiro Tanizaki's tombstone when he came back to his senses.He looked indifferently at the gray words engraved on the tombstone, one was "emptiness" and the other was "loneliness".