Chapter 4 Chapter Four

Karino Onsen is located on the west side of the "North Country Hot Spring Township" in R County, at the end of the fan-shaped platform, and there is still a distance from the mountain. To the southeast are the hot spring resorts among the valleys such as Barijin, Lushan, and Nakashan, which are distributed near the Nakagawa stream. Karino Onsen is located in the middle of the Naka River. It is a wide flat land without the feeling of a stream at all.There are several apple orchards on the high part of the terrace facing the mountains.Onsen Town is connected to the shopping street and residential area in front of the Japanese National Railway Station.

The taxi carrying Mioka and the others headed for the Nakagawa hot spring hotel district.The banks of the river are full of willow trees, and there are several small bridges with scarlet railings on the river.Luxurious specialty stores line up, along with bars, restaurants, small theatres, strip clubs and pachinko shops, just like any other hot spring resort. The taxi drove into the "Fengzhuang" hotel, and the tires rustled on the white sand.Fengzhuang looks like the most luxurious hotel in the area.The taxi turned a corner at the door and stopped sideways at the door.At 4:30 in the afternoon, the June sun was still burning in the west.

Hirayama and Xiaoyuan in the last taxi rushed out immediately, and greeted the shopkeeper and waiter who came out to greet them.After Mioka and Oishi got off the car, the shopkeeper wearing a bow tie bowed deeply. The waiter took Mioka to the innermost room on the third floor.Twelve-fold living room, six-fold dressing room, and eight-fold bedroom.Hirayama has already stepped up to confirm the situation of the room. In order to give the executives personal space, Oishi, Hirayama and Ohara lived in a room on the second floor. "What time is the best time to serve the food?" Hirayama Design Section Chief asked Mioka before returning to the room.

"Hmm... how about 6:30?" It was still light, and Mioka had no appetite. "I see...then I'll tell the others." Hirayama turned around and winked at the waiter kneeling behind him. Mioka already knew what Hirayama would say and how the waiter would nod his head.He recalled the back of Ping Shan who was on the phone in the restaurant by Jinling Lake. "Ah, and, let's have dinner in my room. After all, my room is bigger." Mioka said to Hirayama. "Okay. Then we'll bother you at half past six. If you need me before, please call me anytime."

After Hirayama reported the phone number of his room to Mioka, he left the room. "Would you like to take a bath in the jacuzzi on the first floor, or in the bathroom in your room?" asked the forty-year-old waiter with a pair of slender eyes and a slender neck. "Just in the room." The big bathhouse made him feel uncomfortable, after all, he didn't want others to see him.This was the first time he was so resistant to publicity. The waiter took out a bamboo basket and put the folded bathrobes in it. "Could you give me a copy of the evening paper as soon as it comes?" Wei Gang asked.

"The evening paper here comes very late, at least until half past six..." "That's it..." "I'll bring it to you as soon as I come." Wei Gang is very concerned about the follow-up reports of the murder in the Shenbang Building. But he changed his mind, maybe the newspapers in this area would not publish the killings in Tokyo.If the prisoner is found out, or if the prisoner is arrested, it is possible to report it.However, the progress of the police investigation may hardly appear in the local newspapers. At around 5:30, Ajika finished his bath and came out of the bathroom.

There is still an hour until dinner.Sitting on a chair in the corridor, staring at the garden in a daze is a bit boring.Ajika knew that he would sweat a lot when he went out, but he took the elevator downstairs to pass the time.Besides, he couldn't feel at ease until he saw the evening paper.He had a foreboding—perhaps something bad would turn up in the evening papers. Ajika walked out wearing the cedar clogs that were placed at the entrance of the hotel.The sun was finally behind the mountains, but the sky was still blue. He walked along the willow avenue by the river.There were many people in hotel bathrobes walking along the road, and there were quite a few men walking in groups.Maybe it's a trip with colleagues from the company.It was still early, but the strip club had already started attracting audiences, and people flocked into the small theater one after another.There was constant laughter inside, and many people switched western accents.

Seeing these tourists from Kansai, Ajika finally realized why the "Northern Hot Spring Township" of Karino, Hijin, Lushan, and Nakashan, together with J County, built a sightseeing road on the mountainside by Jinling Lake. the way.In this way, guests from Nagoya can come directly to the hot spring town, and the number of guests from Tokyo will increase a lot. According to the first plan of Sunstar Construction, the whole project needs at least 25 billion yen.It seems that the hotel owners in the hot spring town believe that the profits brought by the completion of the sightseeing road will far exceed these costs.

Ajika walked into an art store next door to the specialty store.Although the door of this "Ono Antique Art Store" is small, it is deep inside, but the antiques inside are not very good.The shopkeeper lay in a dark corner.He looked to be in his fifties, with a crew-shaven head, and he glanced at the shoppers here and there. There are not many good things in the store. There are large pots with red patterns, blue and white porcelain pots and other porcelains, quiveres, sword guards, Hinamatsuri dolls, ancient clocks, Buddha statues, poles, badminton boards, Echizen and Shigaraki pots and so on. porcelain.The most unusual thing is the three sets of wine glasses.A set of wine glasses consisted of two large and two large glasses. The crossed army flags and navy flags were printed on the cups, as well as four golden words - "Triumph Memorial", which had faded a bit. "Triumph" is printed with the words "Siberia sends troops".

There is also a dilapidated golf shop on the corner of the road.Tomorrow he will go to Kyoto to participate in the Nanyuan Club Golf Club which will be held on the shore of Lake Biwa the day after tomorrow. Ajika is not interested in antiques at all, he just goes to pass the time.After shopping around, he quietly walked out of the shop.The owner has been lying down and did not get up.After leaving the store, Ajika remembered that Yanagihara Kosuke, who died on the roof of the Shenbang Building, was also an "antique art dealer".He suddenly felt a cold wind blowing into his heart. He continued to walk under the willows and crossed a small vermilion bridge.The surrounding area was getting darker, and hotels and specialty stores were lit up with dazzling lights.In the light, more and more people are wearing hotel bathrobes.

Mioka returned to "Fengzhuang" at 6:15.On the right side of the elevator entrance is the waiter's lounge, and a curtain is hung on the narrow entrance.The corners of the kimono are exposed under the noren, with gorgeous patterns printed on it.The man in the clothes seems to be sitting on a chair... When he returned to his room, he saw twelve stacks of delicacies on the black lacquered table in the living room.Seat cushions and armrests have also been placed neatly. Hirayama sat alone in the corner of the room, seeing that it was Mioka, he straightened his sitting posture immediately. "Have you gone for a walk?" "Ah, I went out for a stroll." "It must be hot outside, right? You're sweating..." "It's good to sweat a little." Hirayama pulled up the sleeves of his yukata and looked at his watch: "Executive, then I'll go downstairs and ask Minister Oishi and Ohara to come over. The geisha are also here." Ajika remembered the costumed corner he saw just now.While eating at the lakeside restaurant, Hirayama called the hotel and arranged for the geisha. "Pingshan, if the evening paper comes, ask the waiter to bring me one." "it is good." While Mioka was taking a bath in the bathroom, he heard Oishi walking into the living room and talking. After taking a shower, he walked out of the bathroom and saw that three subordinates were already sitting around the table. Mioka had just sat down in front of the alcove pillar when the geishas entered the room.There were five geisha in total. They kneeled neatly at the door, bowed and said, "Good evening." There was a newspaper next to Mioka's seat.But the geisha immediately sat on both sides of Mioka, and a geisha even poured wine for Mioka with a flagon, so that Mika had no time to read the evening paper. "Cheers! Thank you for your hard work." Mioka raised his glass. "You have worked hard too." The three looked at the executive and said in unison. Afterwards, the geisha also started to talk aloud, and the banquet gradually became lively.Among the five geisha, one is a middle-aged woman in her forties, and the remaining four are in her early twenties.It seems that Hirayama must have put in a lot of effort. It is not an easy task to gather four "young" geisha in a hot spring resort.Could it be that there are so many young geisha in Karino Onsen?The long-necked waitress and another waiter were busy serving tea and water. The geisha sitting to the left of Dashi is wearing a familiar dress.That must be the dress that Mioka saw at the door of the small room after getting off the elevator. The geisha was handsome, with a slender face, a high nose bridge, and the corners of her mouth were tightly drawn.The upper part of the eyes is slightly sunken, with some shadows, and two small dimples will appear when smiling. "Let's introduce ourselves," Hirayama said. The geisha replied, "My name is Zhao Ye." After she finished speaking, she took out a small bag with black letters on a red background from her belt, with her name printed on it. Chunruo, Huajiang, and Umemaru all reported their names one by one.But they are not as beautiful as Zhaoye.Wei Gang decided that Teru Ye would spend the night with him tonight.Four geisha were called to pass the long night.Fat Mioka especially likes slender women. While chatting, Ajika took the opportunity to pick up the evening paper beside the table.He had long wanted to open the newspaper and take a look.He didn't look at other pages, and turned directly to the social page. On the day the body was discovered, a suspicious man appeared—the murder incident on the roof of the Tokyo building. Mi Gunton felt the laughter of the geishas away from him. At around 5 pm on the 10th, a dead body was found in the mechanical room on the roof of the Shenbang Building in Marunouchi, Tokyo.The police identified the deceased as Kosuke Yanagihara (59 years old), an antique art dealer in Gifu City.The prisoner in the incident and where the body was transported are still unknown, but at around 4:15 that afternoon, Ms. Kasai Sugiko (26 years old) who worked at the East Asia Electric Industry Office on the seventh floor of the Shenbang Building ) once took the same elevator to the seventh floor with a middle-aged man.Ms. Kasai said that the man went to the east side of the corridor, which was exactly the opposite direction from her office.After that, Ms. Kasai entered the office, not knowing where the man was going after that.The police attached great importance to Ms. Kasai's eyewitness testimony because there were stairs leading to the roof on the east side of the corridor.The police investigated the various offices on the seventh floor of the building and found that there were no similar visitors around five o'clock that day.It has not been confirmed whether the man was involved in the incident. Police are investigating the owner of the van that transported the body to the building on the 9th, as well as three young men posing as construction company employees. The ominous premonition came true.Wei Gang suddenly felt powerless and almost fell to the ground. Sitting in the car from Nagoya to Fuchucho yesterday, he guessed that the evening paper would say so. You may have such a mysterious experience: when you see someone somewhere, you will feel "Huh? I seem to have dreamed of this scene before, and even the place where we meet is exactly the same".Could it be that is a prophetic dream given by the gods?There are also descriptions of similar experiences in the old high school textbooks and in "The Grass of Vain". Thinking of this in the car yesterday, he was still depressed for a long time.Seeing his frowning, Dashi next to him asked worriedly, "Are you feeling well?" A woman's voice came from next to his ear, as if a needle had been stabbed in Mioka's fragile heart. "Oh, did I scare you?...I'm so sorry, it's all my fault for speaking suddenly..." Unknowingly, Teruha sat next to Mioka, smiling.The evening paper slipped from Ajika's fingertips... After a glass of wine, the men also became lively.The three subordinates and the geisha would always talk to Mioka, who had his back to the bedroom, forcing Mioka to pretend to be happy. Considering Mioka's figure, the waiter stacked two cushions together and folded the top cushion in half to use as a cushion.This made Mioka's seat appear taller. Sitting next to Mioka was Teruha, Harunaka was between him and Oishi, and Hanae and Umemaru were next to Hirayama and Ohara on the opposite side.But they often change places.Only the middle-aged geisha named "Kinmi" holding a shamisen sat next to Ohara in the next seat. "How many times are the guests coming to our hot spring?" "Oh, the first time." The conversation unfolded from here, talking about topics that are often talked about between hot spring tourists and geisha.Ajika's mind was preoccupied with the report in the evening paper. The police attached great importance to Ms. Kasai's eyewitness testimony. He originally wanted to tie this text to a hydrogen balloon and let it fly into the air, but he didn't expect it to get heavier and heavier, sinking to the ground like a lead block. The female employee was Sugiko Kasai, twenty-six years old.Mioka kept his head down when he took the elevator, and didn't look at her directly, but he caught a glimpse of her face from the corner of his eyes.Curly hair, pale eyebrows, swollen eyelids, slender eyes with small eyeballs.The bridge of the nose is low and the lips are somewhat thick.All in all it's not pretty at all. Mioka was able to see so carefully from the corner of his eye, and the female employee must have seen Mioka clearly. But the report only wrote the words "middle-aged man". Wei Gang suspects that the police deliberately did not release all the information in order to relax the other party's guard and create a chance for Sugiko Kasai to see this person again.In other words, it was entirely a police strategy. If so, then Ajika couldn't just go out casually.In the future, he will not be able to step into the Shenbang Building, after all, the possibility of him seeing Sugiko Kasai again is more than 90%. How can this be good.Wouldn't he be unable to go to the Nanyuan Club of Jushi Tangming?Even if he doesn't have to take the initiative to go to the office, if Jushi asks him to go there... If he refuses, he will definitely offend Jushi and never receive any engineering projects again.He, Naruse from Daito-gumi Construction, Zhongyuan from Kyoei Construction, and executives from other companies often go to the coffee shop under the iron bridge to gather, and then go to the office together, it is impossible to act alone. Then you can only grow a beard and change your face.A bushy beard and sunglasses may hide from the sight of female employees. However, Ajika suddenly came up with a new idea - could Sugiko Kasai be highly myopic?Aren't the swollen eyelids and small eyes the characteristics of myopia? If you think about it carefully, it is impossible for the police to adopt a strategy of deliberately concealing information.Once the appearance characteristics of suspicious persons are known, they will be made public in the media to attract the attention of witnesses, which will be more beneficial to the search work. "That's right! That's all the police know. That woman must be nearsighted. Such slender eyes must be caused by squinting! It can only be nearsighted..." "Ah? What are you talking about?" Hua Jiang beside him brought his snow-white round face closer.Teruha moved between Hirayama and Ohara, her black eyes were also staring at Mioka. "Oh, nothing. Did I say anything?" "Did I hear it wrong? It seems to be calling Jin Mi's name..." Maybe he said the word "myopia". "Sister Jin Mi is there." Hua Jiang smiled and pointed to the middle-aged geisha. "We're making them guess what we do," Hirayama said to Ajika.When Mioka was lost in thought, they had already changed the subject. "Really...what do you think we are doing?" Mioka looked around at the geisha.His mood relaxed a lot, and the thing as heavy as lead seemed to float up from the bottom of the swamp... All the geishas said they were employees of the company, but Umemaru, who was shorter, opened her round eyes and said, "Aren't you an official?" "Officials," Dashi said, "there are many types of officials, so which department do you think we belong to?" The Autonomous Province, the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, and the Ministry of Construction... Everyone has different opinions.Those who will go on business trips are mostly these departments. "Ministry of Construction... The Ministry of Construction is a good direction. Will the officials of the Ministry of Construction come here?" Hirayama asked with great interest. "I'm here, but I don't come so often, I come here once in a while." Chun Ruo, the youngest of the four young geishas, ​​had a slightly sunken chin.As expected of an experienced geisha, she has a good eye for people. "Which department of the Ministry of Construction?" "I don't know..." "Oh... Could it be that it's not from the headquarters of the construction province, but from the local district bureau?" The construction of the provincial capital divides several neighboring counties into a large area, and establishes local administrative district bureaus.The Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Industry, the Ministry of International Trade and Industry, and the National Police Agency also have this system. "This...it's hard to say..." Chunruo looked confused.Zhao Ye looked down at the table.There is a small colorful bowl on the table. "However, you have read countless people. Even if the guest doesn't tell you, you can roughly guess the occupation of the guest, right?" "How can our eyes be so magical..." the elderly Jin Mi said with a smile from a distance. "This sister, come here." Ping Shan passed Xiao Yuan beside him, and handed the wine glass to Jin Mi. "Thank you." The experienced Jin Mi pretended to be coquettish and took the wine glass, the fine wrinkles on his face trembled slightly.Young Umemaru poured her some wine. "Don't be modest, even if you can't recognize the officials, you can always recognize the teachers with badges" (members) right? " Hirayama pointed to the collar of his jacket. "How can you tell? Mr. Senator won't come wearing a badge." Jin Mi drank the wine in his glass in one gulp, took out a piece of paper from his chest, and wiped the corners of his mouth. "Ah, that's right... After all, they can't come here in a grand manner. In addition to members of the Diet, there must be members of the county assembly, city assembly, and town and village assembly? These members will surely show off their badges everywhere? Don't come to hot spring hotels to have sex , you can also come here for a secret meeting." Jin Mi walked towards Ping Shan, sat down beside him, and said with a smile, "Thank you for the cup." She returned the wine glass to Ping Shan, supported Ping Shan's shoulder with one hand, and poured wine for him with the other hand.She owes her body and is skillful.Although she is very thin, she still has a charming charm, exuding the charm of a stage actress.She leaned on the other's shoulder, preventing him from asking further questions.As expected of an experienced middle-aged geisha, in this regard, young girls are far behind. Mioka, who had been staring at Jinya, said loudly: "We are not officials, but employees of a department store." "Ah? A clerk in a department store?" Mioka's unexpected answer attracted everyone's attention.Zhao Ye who was diagonally opposite also raised his head.Under the illumination of the electric light, the upright facial features formed a shallow layer of shadow, as shy and beautiful as slightly opened petals. "Which department store is it?" Hua Jiang beside him asked.Everyone is also dubious. "This can't be said, it must be kept secret." "I know," Umemaru clapped her hands and shouted, "Isn't there going to be a branch of a big department store in downtown N? So all the distinguished guests must be from a large department store in Tokyo or Osaka! They came to inspect us, right? ?” N City is the largest city in the county, located on the north side of the hot spring, about 20 kilometers away. "Oh? How do you know this?" "In three years, won't there be a sightseeing road built in Fuchu Town, County J and here? The kind that passes through the Jinling Lake mountain area. In this way, many guests from Tokyo will come to our hot springs and City N, so Tokyo and Osaka The department store is going to open a branch." "Oh, I saw through you." Ajika slapped his knee suddenly, and then looked at Teruha's face, "...But the sightseeing road here is really highly anticipated..." "Of course..." the geisha said, "The owners of the hot spring hotels have already spent their capital. Once they are finished, they will get rich." Just after ten o'clock, the end of the song was drunk, and four men led the geisha to the ballroom on the fourth floor. The ballroom is very large, and there are colorful lights on the ceiling, just like the bar.Lights of all colors shone on men and women.The men are the main guests of the hotel, while the women include geishas and female publicists of other bars.There was a band playing on the stage, some people danced quickly to the rhythm of the music, and some men and women sat on the opposite bench, leaning on their shoulders, as if they were watching others dance.Suddenly a man and a woman stood up and tiptoed out of the ballroom. A huge decorative painting of a nude hangs on the wall.Ajika and Hanae also sat side by side among the other guests and women.Beside Dashi is Chunruo.Next to Ohara is Umemaru.Only Ping Shan was fidgeting, and Jin Mi, who was over middle-aged, stood beside him. Ajika finally understood—this is where the "love" between the male guests and the geisha was established.This ballroom is wonderfully arranged.It is inconvenient to negotiate with women during dinner, so the hotel has prepared this ballroom.The ballroom was very dark, covered by music, and there were people dancing wildly in front of them... It was most suitable for a man and a woman to sit on a chair and discuss these things. Ajika was full of anticipation for Teruha to enter the ballroom.While at the restaurant by the Jinling Lake, Hirayama had already called the hotel.Ajika decided that the most beautiful geisha was just for him. Judging from the report in the Evening News, the female staff probably didn't see her face clearly, and Mioka felt relieved a lot.He kept telling himself that the woman must be nearsighted.Although there was still a tinge of unease in his heart, he didn't want to dwell on these nasty memories tonight.Enjoy the tenderness of a geisha.Mioka was drunk.The atmosphere of the ballroom made him feel a little ecstatic... After whispering to the middle-aged Jin Mi for a while, Hirayama walked to the side of Wei Gang dejectedly, branched Huajiang, and sat down by himself. "Executive... That Zhao Ye... doesn't seem to work..." He said softly. "..." "Jin Mi said, only Zhao Ye can't do it..." "Could it be that she is very tough in the background?" "It seems... Really, why didn't you say it earlier... and came out to pick up guests rashly..." Oishi walked out of the ballroom with Chunruo and Xiaoyuan holding the shorter Umemaru in their arms. "I told Kim Mi to find a young geisha...do you not like that Hanae?" If Mioka fell in love with Hanae, Hirayama was ready to part with him, and he would be served by the geisha Jin Mi found again. "It's okay, I want Jin Mi." Mioka suddenly figured it out. "Ah? Jin Mi?" Hirayama's eyes widened. "I'm not young anymore. It's just right to find Jin Mi's age. It's troublesome to please young and wayward girls. It's not as good as Jin Mi's age." The sound of water coming from the bathroom in the room.Although the sound was not very loud, the entire hotel was quiet after eleven o'clock, and Ajika, who was lying on the futon smoking a cigarette, heard it too. The eight-fold large bedroom is located deep in the room and is connected to the living room.On the floor are two light blue quilts for summer, with light red spotted morning glory printed on them.A square table lamp by the pillow casts dim light.There was the faint hum of an air conditioner in the distance. The bathroom is on the right side of the corridor.The sound of water from the bathtub stopped and was replaced by the sound of water from the faucet and the use of the washbasin.Soon, all sounds stopped.The woman starts to wipe her body. There is a frosted glass door between the dressing room and the bedroom.The steam-soaked lamps on the bathroom ceiling cast hazy orange figures on the frosted glass.The woman dried herself and twisted up the towel.The silhouette shrouded in mist changed accordingly - Mioka watched this scene, dreaming. Although Jin Mi was thin, he was not skinny.During the banquet, Jin Mi stretched out his wrist from the costume, which also confirmed Ajika's guess.The waist is quite thick.At the age of forty-two, she hasn't started to put on weight yet.Mioka himself is fat, so he likes slim women. The paper door opened and closed.Jin Mi walked along the corridor barefoot.A burst of fragrance came from the blue and white porcelain incense burner. Jin Mi opened a paper door again, and then there was the sound of metal colliding, probably she was putting on makeup.As time passed by, Ajika moved his crawling body. "I've kept you waiting, I'll be right here." Jin Mi's voice came from the other side of the paper door. Soon, the sound of Jin Mi's footsteps was heard on the tatami, and the paper door was half opened.After entering the room, Jin Mi pulled it up, walked around the quilt, and sat down at a place some distance away from Mioka's pillow.Then he straightened the front of the hotel yukata. "Ah, it smells so good." Wei Gang exclaimed. The weak light from the desk lamp made Jin Mi's slender face look even fairer.She is not ugly. "It's beautiful. Let me take a good look." Mioka reached out his hand intentionally, wanting to turn on the light. "Please, don't...you can see all the wrinkles on your face..." "Nothing!" Even so, he withdrew his hand. "I still think the light is too bright." "If you turn off the lights, it will be pitch black." "Really, darkness is the best..." "Don't be so humble. I like you more than young people." "Do you like older women?" "That's right." "Oh, if only I were younger..." "Don't worry, you have your charm." "Thank you...your mouth is so sweet." "I'm not talking nonsense. Didn't the other guests say that about you?" "Well...sometimes..." "Look, I didn't lie to you... Men's beauty standards are the same." This sentence is from Mioka's experience. "I always discount it when I listen to it." "Forget it. Get into the bed." Ajika pointed to the futon next to him with his fat chin.There is also a pink pillow on top. "Well," she agreed absent-mindedly, then moved her face closer to Mioka and said, "...shall I rub your shoulders for you?" "Well," Mioka said without rushing, "then rub it for me." He changed his mind.When he was young, he was always eager to get to the point, but now he has learned to put the "good things" behind. He was about to sit up, but Jin Mi said: "Ah, you can just lie down." "No, I feel more comfortable sitting up." He said lightly. "Really?" Kim Ya moved closer behind Mioka.The aroma of hot spring water and cosmetics hits me in bursts.Her slender hands began to massage Ajika's shoulders.Unexpectedly, she still had some strength. "You are such a big man, it must not be comfortable for me to press?" "No, no, it's pretty good, your craft is good, it seems that you are very experienced." "Where, there is an old man in our family, I often rub it for him." Ajika didn't ask who the old man was.If she had a husband, she probably wouldn't be working at a hot spring hotel.Perhaps her husband was paralyzed in bed.However, if this were the case, it would be impossible for her to spend the night with the guests.Could it be that she is just an ordinary hot spring geisha? ... She plays the shamisen very well, and she can play all kinds of tunes decently.Ajika heard that geisha who are good at playing usually leave quickly after the banquet, and let young geisha who are not good at playing play sleep.Could it be that Jin Mi is a widow who has to come out to earn money to support the family?Although she is over middle-aged, she does not look old, and her charm still exists.Didn't one or two men take the initiative to take care of her? ... "So you fell in love with Zhao Ye, right? What a pity..." Jin Mi massaged from his right shoulder all the way to his arm.Her words interrupted Mioka's imagination. "No, I'm not that disappointed. It's just why can't she?" "She just can't." Jin Mi said firmly. "What I'm asking is why?" "Some special reasons..." "I also know that there is a special reason. When I was in the dance hall upstairs, the person who came with me told me that you said that Zhao Ye has an incredible backstage..." "That's because he asked that question, and I answered it casually." "Really? That's Pingshan's random guess?" "That's what most people think." "Oh? That's interesting. What's going on?" "You want to talk to me, that's not okay. Geisha also has the privacy of geisha, and they can't tell others. This is the rule of our business." "Then I won't ask." "Sorry……" "You don't need to apologize, in fact, I'm not interested in comparing Ye." "Hehe... You are really brave. I know you like Zhao Ye. No wonder, she is the most beautiful among the seventy geisha we have here." "Seventy? There are so many geisha here? There are fewer and fewer geisha in other places. Why is it so lively here? And there are many young geisha. Tonight alone, I saw four." Three of them are sleeping in the rooms of the subordinates on the second floor. "Haruka and Hanae are twenty-seven and Umemaru is twenty-six years old. There are more than twenty geisha as old as Umemaru." "Are there so many young geisha? Are they trying to become professional performing geisha? No one in other places is going to be a geisha, and they can't accept apprentices. They are worrying." "Actually, our side is the same, but many geisha come from other places." "Because Karino Onsen's business is good?" "I can't say well..." "Then won't the geisha from other places leave Karino? Don't they wash their hands?" "Yeah... always here, not going anywhere else." "It seems that the working environment here is quite comfortable." "Is it comfortable or not... I can't say..." "Isn't it? If you're not comfortable, why would you stay here? Well, it can be because you earn more money, or you can be more free..." "Actually, I don't make a lot of money." "What's so good about Karino Onsen?" Jin Mi's laughter came from the back of Mioka's neck: "Hehe, this is a mystery just like Teruha's inability to serve you until dawn." Waiting until dawn - this was the first time Mioka had heard such a statement.Of course, in the world of geishas, ​​it might be a common word. But Jin Mi's words still seemed to reveal a sense of irony - Zhao Ye couldn't do it, so the task fell to her. "Don't rub your shoulders, just rub your waist." After finishing speaking, Mioka swallowed. "Then please lie down." Mioka let out a "hey" and let his heavy body fall on the futon, turning his back to Jinya. Jin Mi's knees were gently pressed against his back, and he reached out to rub his left shoulder, and the cuff of his bathrobe rubbed against his left neck. Mioka suddenly turned around, making it impossible for Kim Mi to continue massaging.He grabbed her arm. "Please wait..." Jin Mi slowly let go of Wei Gang's hand, stood up, and untied the thin belt with his back to him, making a rustling sound. Mioka opened his eyes a little, and saw the belt slowly slipping down on the tatami.Jin Mi squatted down and folded the belt.Through the neckline of the white yukata, her underwear can still be seen. Jin Mi bent over, pressed the bathrobe tied with only one rope with one hand, said "Excuse me", and then lay down next to Mioka. Ajika put his arm around her shoulders.The desk lamp illuminated her face—her eyes were closed, her lips were tightly locked, and her breathing was even but rapid, as if she was about to usher in her first night.This made Mioka very excited. He opened Jin Mi's bathrobe and found that she had a pair of plump breasts.He was overjoyed, and immediately stretched out his hand to rub it.Jin Mi shook his body and said, "I'm so ashamed, can you please turn off the light?" "What does it matter?" "No... Turn off the desk lamp, isn't there still light there?" Mioka looked up and saw the light from the next room coming in through the lintel window.After turning off the table lamp, the light in the next room created a hazy atmosphere in the room... The advantage of a hot spring hotel is that you can take a hot bath at one or two o'clock in the middle of the night. After the love affair, Kim Mi and Mioka take a bath together. "I'm so tired." Jin Mi covered his chest with a towel, leaned his head against the edge of the bathtub, leaned his knees together, and stretched out one foot at a slant.Her eyes were slightly closed, and she looked plumper and tighter than she was clothed, far beyond what Mioka had observed through the clothes during the banquet. "Your body is still very young." Jin Mi opened his tired eyes, looked at Mioka and said. "I'm not that old, and I'm still many years away from retirement." "Just being young, like someone in their forties." "I'm really happy to hear that, but it's also because I'm more in tune with you." "No, I'm not as good as you at all." As she acted, her eyes sometimes widened, and her brows furrowed in pain.The nostrils fluttered slightly, the cherry lips parted and panted heavily, and the mouth was crooked and kept screaming in a low voice.The yukata and underwear are long gone.Mioka's attack made her excited and intoxicated, and her feet also wrapped around Mioka... Mioka shook her shoulders and called her to take a bath together, but she didn't get up for a long time, lying on the futon all the time.She seemed to be riding a cloud and floating in mid-air.After a long time, she shook her head and said in a daze, "I finally understand what it's like to be a young geisha..." After finally getting into the bath, Jin Mi was still in a daze, and his speech was somewhat sloppy. "What happened to the young geisha?" “None of them can do without the young men on the road.” "On the road? Could it be..." Ajika made a slanted gesture on his cheek with his fingertips. "That's right," Jin Mi nodded slowly, "Don't they often go to the villa?" " "The villa? Ah, the prison." "When they entered the villa, they had nothing to do, so they started to play tricks on their own words." "..." "They used the blade of a safety razor they got from nowhere to sharpen the handle of the toothbrush, and whittled it into several small beads. Once they entered the villa, it took a year or two, and there was plenty of time to sharpen it slowly. Then, ah, they put the small beads in Go into that story..." "Huh? Wouldn't it hurt? Will it still bleed?" "Just treat it as a tattoo, just bear with it and it will pass." Mioka felt a chill in his heart, and immediately scooped up some hot water and splashed it on his face. "Besides, that's the capital of their business. This little pain can always be tolerated." "capital?" "It's the lover of a young geisha." "Ah, that's it, no wonder the geisha here won't change jobs, and won't go to another house." "The men took all the money they earned, and they had to endure their punches and kicks, but they just couldn't do without them. Because they couldn't forget the man's body..." "..." “年轻的艺妓为了赚钱，也会接客，可是客人的床上功夫再好，也比不上情夫的分毫。所以她们总会心甘情愿地把自己辛辛苦苦赚来的血汗钱，双手献给那些男人。”金弥刚才还说艺妓的隐私不能外泄，可现在却像是喝醉了酒一样说个不停。是味冈的身体让她放松了戒备吗？还是说其他年轻艺妓的事情无需保密，只有照叶的是“特殊情况”？ “年轻的情夫拿到的钱，是不是会被黑道老大拿去？” “嗯……就给他们留些零花钱。老大也要把钱交给上头的组织。” “这边的黑道，究竟是哪个大黑帮的分部？” “这话我可不敢乱说……泡太久了，泡得我头都晕了，麻烦您让一下啦。”金弥站起身，跨出了浴池。 出浴后的金弥，从房间的冰箱里取出两瓶啤酒，递给味冈一瓶，自己也打开一瓶，大口大口地喝了起来。 “啊，真好喝，真好喝。”她闭上双眼，仰着头长吁一口气。 味冈将啤酒倒进杯中，也一口喝完了。两人面对面坐在走廊的藤椅上。纸门的另一侧，则是乱七八糟的两床被褥。 两床被子被翻了过来，交缠在一起。皱巴巴的床单斜向一边，金弥脱下的衣服，则被揉作一团，丢在房间的角落里。房间的灯光，照亮了这片狼藉。 味冈才喝完一瓶，金弥却已喝空了两瓶，藤桌上放着三支啤酒空瓶。 “别喝太多了。” “没事的，这点还是能喝的，我的酒量可不小哦。” “明天早上会起不来的。” “那就干脆睡到中午。” “那怎么行，我吩咐旅馆八点吃早餐了，再说了我还要坐上午的火车走呢。” “您可真是不讲情分……” “是工作啊，没办法。” 金弥盯着味冈问道：“另外三个是你的部下吧？从他们的态度看……您莫非是东京百货商店的高层领导？” “经常有那种人来你们这儿吗？” “我听说东京的大型百货商店要来N市开分店嘛。” “这边也要发展起来了啊……” “不是说三年后，名古屋就会开通一条直接到温泉的观光道路吗？肯定会发展起来的啦……”看来人们对新的观光道路充满期待，消息都传开了。这也是理所当然，毕竟那本来就是刈野、稗津、鹿山、那珂山这四个温泉胜地发起的项目。 “其实你们是地产公司的吧？” “啊？我们吗？”金弥的答案已经八九不离十了。 “最近你们这儿一定来过不少地产公司的人吧？” “前一阵子的确来过不少，还有很多来过我们温泉呢。我们一般都会在六点去宴席助兴，可待不了一个小时，他们就把我们打发走了，好像是要和客人单独谈事情。” “哦？客人？莫非他们在招待老师"吗？ " “老师？哪个学校的老师呀？” “不是学校的老师，戴徽章的，戴徽章的……”味冈用手指敲了敲浴衣的左前襟。 “啊，那些老师"呀。”金弥站起身来，走去冰箱，准备拿第四瓶啤酒。她只系了一根浅红色的腰带，身上的浴衣凌乱不堪，皱巴巴的。味冈望着她弯腰打开冰箱门的背影……那仿佛透着一股颓废的性感。 金弥坐回椅子上，打开瓶盖，举着溢出泡沫的酒瓶，望向味冈问道：“您要吗？” “我就不喝了。” “哦……”金弥将黄色的液体与白色的泡沫注入杯中，手一抖，竟将啤酒泼在了桌子上。 “哎呀，我是不是喝醉了啊……”她赶忙拿起杯子，喝了一半，脸色终于红润了起来。 金弥用毛巾擦了擦嘴，细长的眼睛与味冈四目相对。 “喝这么多，当然会醉啊。”答案显而易见。 “县议会、市议会、町议会、村议会的议员们都会来……” “哦？这么多人都来啊？” “当然不是一起来啦，一会儿来这个，一会儿来那个……” “哦，原来如此……” “你还想知道都有些什么公司的人来过吧？” “能告诉我的话就透露一下吧。” “银行的人也会来。” “哦？银行家倒是有可能的……是大型银行的当地支行吗？” "I don't know..." “也会招待互惠银行的人吧？”味冈忽然想起了静冈的中南互惠银行，所以才问了这么个问题。 “也许有吧，具体的我也不清楚呀。”金弥一半是装傻，一半是真的不知情。 “你真的是地产公司的吗？”金弥再次问道。 “不，不是的。其实我们是机械销售公司的。这次就是来向当地工厂推销机器的。楼下房间的三个是我们公司的工程师，都是搞技术的。”味冈说道。 “哦，他们看上去的确像是搞技术的。”金弥不愧是经验丰富的艺妓，看人的眼光还是很准的。她终于露出了放心的表情。 “既然有银行的人来，那也会有官员来吧？”味冈见金弥放松了警惕，终于问出了酝酿已久的问题。 “东京的官员有时会来。” “是哪个部门的官员啊？” “建设省的吧？当然他们在席上也不会说这些，具体怎么样我也不清楚。” “你虽然不认识东京的官员，但总认识县厅的官员吧？” “那当然认识，他们都是老顾客了。” “是不是建设和农林方面的人来得比较多？” “这我可不能乱说。不外泄客人的隐私是我们这行的规矩。” “有什么关系嘛，我的工作和政府部门又没什么关系，只想了解了解罢了，说不定以后能用得上。而且我喜欢你，这也算是种缘分啊。就告诉我一个人吧，没关系的。” “您可真会说话。”金弥摆了摆手。 “我说的都是真的。” “一开始您喜欢的还不是照叶……” “我都说了啊，你比她更好。再说了，照叶也许长得漂亮，可她的容貌也让她过于自负，而且她还有个强大的靠山，那就会更目中无人了。” “呵呵，吃不到的葡萄酸……” “没有啦，你配我这个年纪的人正好，太年轻的反而不般配。” “哪有啦，您的身体还很年轻呢。”金弥眯起眼睛，露出微笑。 “是吗？那我可真是太高兴了，我越来越喜欢你啦。” “光说有什么用呀，拿出点实际行动来吧。” “实际行动？那我该怎么办啊？” “那就再买我一次嘛。” “东京来这儿不方便啊，不过我以后肯定会来的。” “以后？以后是多久以后啊？我要您马上再来一趟嘛。” “那我想想办法啊……” “真的吗？您脸上写着骗人"两个字呢。 " “毕竟我住在东京啊，一个礼拜之内是不能来了。” “那……半个月之内呢？” “两个礼拜吗？” “哎呀，前一阵子还有个其他地方来的人在我们温泉住了整整三个礼拜呢。” “这男人还真够闲的。” “好像也不是什么闲人啊，我看他总是到处跑，忙得要命。据说还是某个政治家的最高顾问呢。” “日本政治家还有最高顾问"吗？怎么跟外国总统一样……” “那个人挺喜欢说大话的，不过用钱的时候倒是特别爽快，现在好像到东京去了。” 味冈感觉胸中一紧：“那人叫什么名字？” “好像姓山下吧，名字就不知道了……” “山下？”味冈心想，那极有可能是假名。山下、田中、渡边……都是些大姓。 “那位山下先生多大年纪啊？” “六十岁左右吧。” "Oh……" “您认识他吗？” “不，不认识，”味冈摇了摇头，“……只是有点羡慕他罢了。话说他平时都住哪儿啊？” “听说是在大阪。”大阪吗？和东京一样，一点特征都没有。 “你见过那个山下吗？” “见过啊，在晚宴上见过好多次了。” “他怎么样？” “嗯……身材不高，但很会说话。” “那他伺候的那位政治家有没有跟他一块儿来过？” “没有……” “那个政治家叫什么名字啊？” “他没说过……他只说你们听到他的名字肯定会大吃一惊的"。 " “这么有名吗？” “当然啦，那人本来就喜欢说大话，天知道那是不是真的……” 爱说大话——这也与味冈心中所想之人的形象吻合。 “山下先生都是和什么人一起吃饭的啊？” “什么人啊……”金弥忽然不说话了。 “要是不方便说名字的话，就告诉我他们是做什么工作的吧？” “这……我还是不能说……”金弥又倒了一杯啤酒。 “还是不能说吗？” “是啊……您就饶了我吧。” “好吧，那我就不问了。不过山下之所以会在温泉住那么久，是不是因为有个相好的艺妓啊？” “没有啊，他每次都找不同的姑娘，喜欢到处偷腥。” “那他来这儿不是为了女人，而是为了办事吧？” “人家来偷腥都住了这么久，您要是有了喜欢的女人，肯定会立刻飞奔过来吧？” “他是他我是我。你这么说可不占理啊。” 桌上摆着四支空啤酒瓶，其中三瓶都是金弥喝的。她已经醉了。 “怎么不占理啦，就是一回事……我好像也喜欢上您了。”金弥晃晃悠悠地站起身。 “喂，你要去哪儿啊？” “出汗了，我再去泡个澡。” “谁让你喝这么多啤酒，喝醉了泡澡对身体不好。” “我会不会摔死在浴池里呀……” “我可说不好啊。” “那您抱着我进浴池吧，像给小宝宝洗澡一样……” 味冈一行原计划第二天早上八点在味冈的客厅里一起吃早餐。而味冈却迟到了三十分钟。 “早上好。”大石带头打了招呼。平山与小原也朝背对卧室的味冈低头问候。三个人都显得有些难为情。 服务员考虑到味冈还没起床，就把早报送到了客厅里。味冈立刻取出眼镜，翻开社会版。没有任何关于神邦大楼杀人案的报道。 看来这边的报纸只刊登了杀人案发生的消息，并没有登出被害人的照片。要是登了，想必金弥也会注意到那就是“山下”。 报纸的沉默，令味冈担忧不已。警方是否正在进行秘密调查？还是说他们并没有任何进展？也许只是因为地方的报纸不太关注东京的新闻？ 味冈一声不吭地吃着早餐，这引起了其他三人的猜测。专务的眼睛是肿的，一脸疲惫。今天早上又迟到了…… 三人也纷纷摆出一副阴郁的表情来，自然也不敢提起昨晚的女人。喝味噌汤的声音，将饭碗放在桌子上的声音，服务员端着菜肴在榻榻米上走动的声音……除此之外，房间里没有任何响声。 味冈准备在琵琶湖畔打完高尔夫之后，再来温泉一趟。他思索着该如何向大石解释他要更改日程的原因。