Chapter 24 sunny chair

Maybe gold and silver threads flew up his back... Shibusawa lit a cigarette, still thinking about it. His seat is facing the sun, it is so warm, it is by no means comparable to the temperature of the radiator.The sun shone all over the body, causing waves of tiredness. It seemed that as soon as you squinted your eyes, you would immediately fall asleep. In fact, there is no harm in lying on the desk and sleeping on it for half an hour.The final account has been done, and there is nothing difficult.Everything went smoothly. It has been three years since Shibusawa took the position of manager and section chief.Among them, there has never been any accident.The staff members are all very reliable people, and the Minister of General Affairs and the executive director all think highly of themselves, at least he is proud of that.Even if he dozed off, it would not damage the achievements he had made... Shibusawa put the cigarette on the ashtray and closed his eyes.

He dared to think this way, which shows how presumptuous he is, and presumptuousness comes from conceit. He feels that he is now an indispensable figure in the company. Shibusawa originally wanted to sleep, but unfortunately this irresponsible plan failed. The phone on the desk rang.There are two telephones on his desk, one is an outside line that directly communicates with the outside world, and the other is an internal line through the company switchboard.It was the outside phone that was ringing. "it's me." Shibusawa replied coldly.He has always had such an accent when answering external calls, and it is not out of any special considerations, but he just thinks that he does not need to be as cautious as internal calls.If it was an internal call, it might be from the director's office.

"Hello, hello." It was a woman's voice, whispering timidly.Probably she was using a public phone on the street, and even the screeching sound of the motorcycle cylinder was transmitted into the microphone. "what……" Shibusawa immediately changed his voice, the other party was Sumiko Hirakawa, no matter how low his voice was, her voice of "Hello, hello" was still very familiar. "Excuse me, can I say a few words?" "Well, to be brief, what's the matter?" "Do you remember Shigezo Araki?" Cheng Zi didn't call the company except for urgent matters. Although Shibusawa didn't prohibit her from calling, in fact he was not happy when she called.

"Araki?" Shibusawa couldn't remember. "He said he was your friend in middle school..." "Ah, yes. What happened to Araki?" Chengzi called the company, there must be something urgent, what does it have to do with Araki?How did she know Araki's name? "So he's not pretending." Chengzi didn't answer Shibusawa's question immediately, she muttered to herself, as if she was guessing, but also seemed relieved. "What about Araki?" "I came home today and asked you a lot." "Home? Is it your apartment?"

"Yes... At first, I thought it was annoying and didn't want to receive him, but he was very warm..." "he……" Shibusawa didn't ask any further questions, and looked at his watch, it was less than two hours before he got off work.Instead of chatting so quietly in the office, it's better to go to her and ask directly. "Okay," Shibusawa said affirmatively, "It's convenient for you, I'll go today." "Okay! I'll wait for you." She put down the phone. A long piece of ash finally fell heavily into the ashtray. At this time, the sun began to set.Although Shibusawa didn't feel the coolness immediately, he felt that the sunlight on his back was fading away little by little, and the warm and comfortable feeling that made people forget everything just now disappeared along with it.

This was nothing more than a purely natural phenomenon. The passing of the sunlight made Shibusawa's heart heavy, as if a piece of lead had been pressed on him. No, there is no reason for this lead-like heaviness. Shibusawa was very anxious to meet Sumiko and listen to her story.What can she say?It's not clear yet.Maybe there is no major event, and a stone in my heart will fall to the ground.But until he heard her explain it clearly, his heart was tense, which made him restless and his nerves ached. "Finally..." he murmured. From the beginning, he had a hunch that the relationship with Chengzi would eventually be known by a third party.The day "finally" arrived.

This third party turned out to be Shigezo Araki... Where does he live?what occupation?Shibusawa didn't know anything about it, which made him especially anxious. If you know the opponent's situation, you can take corresponding measures, and it is not impossible to turn defense into offense. It's a pity that I don't know anything about Araki, and I can't even imagine what kind of person he is.The Araki that popped up in Shibusawa's mind was him on the podium of the debate meeting, he was a acne-faced teenager, and he was half-speaking in blunt classical Chinese. It's been 30 years, have you seen it once?Just being anxious like this won't help.

Shibusawa dialed the dial and hung up on his home. "Go back later today, don't prepare dinner for me." "Yes. Also, a guest came just now and mentioned about Qianchun." Shibusawa's wife, Doko, reported as a matter of routine.Whenever her secret planning was disrupted, she always responded with this attitude. "About Qianchun? Proposing marriage?" "How easy is it to say on the phone, if you come back not too late..." "Okay." Shibusawa said stiffly.He felt that everything irritated her. Chengzi prepared beer and cold tofu. She knew that even in winter, Shibusawa would like to eat this, but not tofu soup.

In the past, he always sat and drank with Chengzi.Today, I don't even want to drink up the first glass I poured. "What? Do you have something on your mind? When Mr. Araki came, he didn't even want to eat food, as if something serious happened." After a few gossips, Chengzi lowered his head and asked.Her face seemed to be twitching and, perhaps because of the light, was unusually slender.Shibusawa could see that she was embarrassed and didn't want to defend herself. "No, there's nothing to worry about. As the saying goes: no malice..." Shibusawa was trying to comfort Chengzi, but in fact he was really confident.According to Chengzi's introduction, this matter does not need to be dealt with seriously.

This morning, as soon as the salesman in the laundry and dyeing shop went out, someone knocked on the door before closing the door.Looking back, a man flashed through the crack of the door. He asked, "Does Ms. Hirakawa Sumiko live here?" The man was in his late twenties, and his carefully styled hairstyle deftly concealed the thinning crown of his head.She was about the same stature as Cheng Zi, and was wearing a strong brown suit made of high-end materials. "what……" "Great, I'm right, it's your home." He nodded casually. "Which one are you?"

"Sorry, this is..." He took out his business card. The office address printed in the lower left corner of the manager of Araki Shining Company is Koenji. "A few days ago, due to the company's business, I went to Songdo." Araki stood at the door and started talking. Hearing "Songshima", Chengzi immediately felt disgusted. This place name is directly related to her and Shibusawa, which means that this secret has been discovered. It was half a year ago when Shibusawa purchased land for the company's Sapporo office and went on a business trip to Hokkaido.That time, Shibusawa only had one day to spare.Chengzi went to Sendai to join him, and the two went to Matsushima together.For Shibusawa, it was a carefree day that he hadn't enjoyed in a long time, where he didn't have to worry about bumping into company staff or other acquaintances. "Didn't we take a picture that day?" Chengzi reminded. "what!" Shibusawa looked at the top of the dresser.Usually, that photo is always there, but today, the familiar frame is gone.what does this mean?Shibusawa suddenly became uneasy. "He said that the photo was sampled in Matsushima." "In Songdo?" "Yes, it was used as a sample by the guy on the beach taking pictures of the beach scenery." "What? Why didn't you stop..." Shibusawa said angrily. That time, at the beach in Songdo, the two of them were entangled by people taking pictures.Shibusawa said no, but Chengzi wanted to. She said, "We don't even have a photo. Let him send it to my house." At nearly 50 years old, it is strange to stand in front of the camera with a young woman in her twenties.But I can't bear to reject Chengzi.If it's not this place, can you take a photo with Chengzi?When Shibusawa thought of this, he compromised. The photos were sent to Chengzi's house soon, and placed on the cupboard.The lighting is quite good, the background light is very good, and Shibusawa likes it very much. Similarly, the person who took the photo was also very satisfied with this work, and put it in the sample in order to attract customers. Araki said to Chengzi: "I just looked at the samples casually. I was attracted by accident. Ah, what a beautiful lady! Who is she? I seem to have seen the person standing next to her, very similar to my middle school Shibusawa-kun who was in the same class at the time. Ah! To be honest, he is still the same, but his age is different. Yes, it is him. So I begged the person who took the photo to tell me the address. At first he kept silent, but later I sincerely Said, I miss my friends in middle school. It's embarrassing to say it, I also gave him a handsome tip, and after more than half an hour, I finally told this address. Hi, I'm just being cheeky Came to the door." Then Araki asked, the person who took the photo together is called Meiji Shibusawa.And ask Chengzi to tell him Shibusawa's address and office location. "At first, I wanted to deny it, but Mr. Araki stood at the door and looked into the room, and he had already seen the photo on the cupboard." "That's right. Why did Araki come to me? Is life difficult?" "No, the watch he wears is also very high-end. He said that it is a business relationship, and he wants to make as many friends as possible, and it is best to be an old friend from the past..." Chengzi answered with her head down, her voice was so low that it was hard to hear clearly.Sometimes she couldn't answer Shibusawa's inquiries. "So you told him all about it." "Well, I really have to... If I say I don't know, what kind of woman am I? People will say that I went on a trip with a man I don't know..." Shibusawa nodded silently.This is indeed the case, he understands Chengzi's dilemma when he is interrogated by Araki. "You can also not tell him at all. Throw him away, and he may go away, but that will irritate him, and I'm afraid the consequences will be worse..." "Worse consequences?" "Yes. If you kick him out, Mr. Araki will hold a grudge. As long as he is determined to investigate, he will find out the matter. Your home address is also in the phone book. He doesn't go to the company, but to your home, isn't it more Is it bad..." "Well, yes." Shibusawa looked at Chengzi in amazement, admiring her for thinking so carefully.Since his relationship with Chengzi, he has been cautious and careful, trying not to reveal this relationship.Unless it was absolutely necessary, he would not walk side by side with Chengzi in the city, always worrying about meeting someone he knew somewhere. He also thought about it, of course Chengzi hoped that the two of them would walk side by side openly, since he would hurt Chengzi's heart by dodging like this.Unexpectedly, Chengzi is actually the same as herself, always worrying about the relationship between the two being discovered or being known by Shibusawa's family.If she didn't pay attention every day, she wouldn't think of others to check the phone book now. "Forgive me, there is really no way." In the end, Chengzi apologized repeatedly. "Hey, forget it. First of all, it's not worth worrying about. Araki is by no means a bad guy..." Shibusawa did not take this matter too seriously.The feeling of being like lead when I was in the company just now seems to have disappeared.No, not completely gone, just not as heavy as it was then. "Well, shall I boil the bath water for you?" Chengzi asked suddenly, trying to escape from the suffocating atmosphere. If he said burn it, she cleared the dishes and went to make the bed. "No, not today." "What? Are you angry?" Cheng Zi asked back with dim eyes. Two days later, Araki called. "My surname is Araki, Araki Shigeno. You probably forgot, when I was in middle school..." "Where is it, how could I forget it, how can I be a first-class rhetorician in middle school..." At this point, Shibusawa hated himself a little. He found himself complimenting Araki, why be so low-key, especially since there's no need to please Araki. "Oh, I'm really ashamed. How are you, are you busy?" "It's okay, it's okay. What's the matter?" Shibusawa didn't want to ask Araki what's the matter, just deal with it.The "Araki Emerging Company" printed on Araki's business card does not seem to be of any scale, nor does it seem to be engaged in any business.Shibusawa concluded that it was not established under company law.By law, proper corporations are always titled "joint stock companies" or "limited companies," even if they are started by individuals, which is also conducive to conducting business. Araki's "company" is only vaguely named "Araki Emerging Company", which may not actually exist, but a fake company with no one.Therefore, this kind of person's affairs must not be interrogated.Shibusawa knows this, both in experience and in knowledge. "How about it, do you have time? I want to pay a visit and pay a little respect..." "Oh, unfortunately, there happened to be an important matter, and I really couldn't get away..." Shibusawa didn't think he could finally push away.He replied in this way just to gain a little time. "Do things take so much time? Then, let me talk to Mr. Tana Tsuna." "Who is Tana Tsuna?" "Oh, your General Affairs Section Chief Tana Tsuna Shinkichi!" "Hey? Do you know Tsuna Tana?" "Yeah, my friend from college, we often play together, he is fun, and he does his homework well. Later, we often meet each other. Why, your brother and Tian Minggang are in the same company, and you haven't met yet? It's too much to get along with each other. Bad." "yes……" Shibusawa swallowed, thinking sharply in his mind.Intuitively he knew it was bad. He thought, Araki decided to meet Tana Tsuna. The two were friends in college. They often played together, joked with each other casually, had no scruples, and even talked about secrets from the bottom of their hearts.It is conceivable that after seeing Tana Tsuna, Araki would of course speak ill of Shibusawa. "This guy was my classmate in middle school. I didn't expect him to be in the same company as you." "How did you know he was here after all this time?" "Well, speaking of it, there is an interesting story here..." This must have been the way they talked.It is not difficult to imagine that they will also mention Hirakawa Sumiko. "Huh? Hirakawa?" Tian Minggang must have become interested in this name.It's okay for him to listen casually unintentionally. What if he becomes suspicious and wants to find out the truth?Hirakawa Sumiko is the widow left by Hirakawa Yasushi, and it will be clear if you ask.In this way, Tian Minggang will continue to make bad ideas. Tian Minggang belongs to the sideline faction in the company. In order to weaken the mainstream faction to which Shibusawa belongs, he had the bad idea of ​​cultivating his power. Soon, he will try his best to germinate this bad idea.Whether it can sprout or not is unknown, but once it sprouts, it will be impossible to pinch it, at least it is impossible to rely on Shibusawa alone.The position of manager and section chief is Shibusawa's lifeblood and cannot be compromised in the slightest. "Hey, hello!" When Shibusawa thought of this, he immediately changed his tone.At this moment, he couldn't care less about whether such a dangerous relationship would arouse the other party's suspicion? "Ah? What?" "Let's see. I miscalculated the date just now. Where are you now?" "From your company, walk 200 meters to the north, there is a Cafe Marina. I'm in the public phone booth in front of the cafe." "So..." Shibusawa said, looking at his watch. "I'll be at Marina in 10 minutes." Shibusawa is the section chief, and he often goes out, leaving the office for an hour without arousing suspicion from others. He packed up the books and documents on the table, locked the drawer, and prepared to go out. "Section Chief, are you going out?" Chief Chief Officer Yamauchi looked at Shibusawa and asked.Just out of sheer politeness or routine, without the slightest suspicion. "Yes, go out and be right back... Please try to take care of it." As always, Shibusawa spoke in a bureaucratic tone. Before leaving the office, he looked around again, and saw that the staff were working quietly, and no one noticed his sudden going out this time.He straightened his face and walked out of the office without losing the dignity of a courageous section chief. Shibusawa was vaguely imagining Araki Shigezo.This liar with the title of company manager must have had a long history of accidents like other black market financial traders and real estate transaction middlemen. He has deceived many people and has an unscrupulous style.However, the impression Araki gave him was quite different from this imagination. What caught Shibusawa's attention the most was his clean white shirt. Perhaps because Shibusawa has worked in the company for a long time, he has developed a habit of always measuring people by their shirts.Especially for subordinates, see if his shirt collar is dirty?Are the cuffs black?The shirt was not dirty, but the collar was not starched or ironed, which disgusted him too.Doubtless it was home laundered, by a miser who would not spend money on laundry.Shibusawa's belief is that he would rather not smoke cigarettes than send his shirts to the laundry room. Araki's first impression of Shibusawa was extremely good.At this time, Araki was sitting on the innermost seat of the cafe, and he hurriedly extended his hand to Shibusawa. He was wearing a snow-white suit shirt instead of a simple sports shirt.The white sleeves are well-proportioned left and right, exposed outside the cuffs of the suit.It can be said that this first impression eliminated half of Shibusawa's defensiveness. It can be seen that Araki also spent a lot of effort on Shibusawa. He repeatedly emphasized that there was no other purpose in this meeting, and he only hoped to hear some useful advice. "If you talk about Yamato Suisan, it's the best of the best. If you talk about the manager and section chief, it's the top spot among the section chiefs. Shibusawa-kun really has a prominent position..." These words are to his liking, euphemistic and sweet, and Shibusawa's words are more conceited, and his heart is sweet. Shibusawa listened to Araki's flattery and echoed him, but he kept thinking about one thing in his heart. This is about Chengzi, how to stop Araki's mouth.It would be too stupid to abruptly ask you to keep it a secret, and in this way, I bowed down in front of Araki. It's best if Araki mentioned Chengzi first, then he can answer "about her, please don't tell others".But for some reason, Araki didn't talk about Chengzi at all. This may be normal, because the relationship between the two is in the stage of mutual exploration, they can only go around in circles, and they cannot go straight.If Araki had this consideration, that would be fine, but Araki didn't promise not to tell Tsuna Tana.While Shibusawa was worried, he replied insincerely. "Then, it's not easy to run your own business. If I can do it, I can help you..." Araki doesn't talk much about his business. "Well, I'm in all kinds of business. As long as it doesn't involve the law, I can do it generally." In this way, Shibusawa's questioning was cleverly avoided. Saying "if only I could" to this was not so much out of politeness as a way of buying him into keeping the secret.Shibusawa felt that it would not take much risk for things like opening a letter of introduction, and he could exchange for Araki's keeping Sumiko's secret by offering a small favor. Araki seemed very surprised, waved vigorously in front of Shibusawa, and replied: "No, I'm not talking big, I don't mean to ask for help at all this time, you and I are old friends from middle school, I just want to continue dating." Araki didn't fall for the trap.What Sumiko said about "commercial relationships, I want to make as many friends as possible, and preferably old friends from the past" was not revealed in front of Shibusawa today... Finally, Shibusawa finally formed a This kind of impression, I feel that Araki may really come here to warm up the past, at least it can be said that he has nothing to ask for. "When you come to us in the future, please stop by and listen to the advice of some famous business people. It will always be very beneficial...well, that's what I'm asking for help now." Araki hinted at the purpose of the visit seems to be only these. "Please don't be polite. Sometimes, because you are involved in business, you may be rude. Speaking of which, we errands are always involuntary!" "Yeah, it doesn't matter. Let's talk about that time, you can still see Tana Tsuna-kun..." Araki proposed Tana Tsuna again.It would be a little strange if he never mentioned Tian Minggang again during the conversation. "Ah, yes, I heard that you guys knew each other very well in the past, so why don't you go and see it today?" "Huh? Why?" Araki felt that Shibusawa's tone was a bit strange, and he stared into Shibusawa's eyes in surprise. "No, no why..." Shibusawa avoided Araki's sight, and a sense of humiliation immediately rushed to his heart. "Ah," Araki said calmly, "Go and see Tian Nazuna, and I won't talk too much. I've never been interested in market rumors, especially personal matters..." "thanks……" Shibusawa himself felt that his answer was too stupid. However, after what Araki said today, the heavy feeling of the past three days really disappeared to nowhere. It can be said that Shibusawa was able to take the position of manager and section chief because of the sudden death of Chengzi's husband.No, even if Hirakawa survives, Shibusawa will get this position one day.Hirakawa's sudden death only accelerated Shibusawa's appointment. Hirakawa is not the former manager and section chief, he is just a section member. Hirakawa joined the company and was soon assigned to the manager section.He died three years ago at the age of 29.It was said that it was acute nephritis, uremia caused death, and the death was so sudden that colleagues would not have time to visit the doctor in the future. One month after Hirakawa's death, the company announced a temporary personnel change. Shibusawa was originally the chief of the planning section, but this time he was appointed as the chief of the managerial section. Even he himself never expected it.He had just assumed the post of planning section chief eight months ago, and for some reason this time he was given the top spot among the section chiefs.The former manager and section chief gave up the name of "section chief's treatment" and went to the idle position of "deliberation room committee member", which was actually a demotion.This sudden personnel change seems to be mainly due to the demotion of the previous manager and section chief.At first, people were puzzled. Some people speculated that the balance of power among the heads of the company had changed. Only later did they know the real reason. After Hirakawa's death, his successor found suspicious points in the account books, which were extremely obvious fake expenditures. Hirakawa is in charge of the company's hospitality expenses, which are used by the staff of the sales department.Among the expenditure items on the account books, some have no payment notices, and some have placed two accounts for the same amount.About these fake accounts.A survey was conducted among the staff of the sales department, and they replied that they did not remember applying for these sums of money at all (whether the sales staff were in collusion or not, this cannot be ascertained, because Hirakawa is dead). The amount of these false accounts totaled 2.83 million yen. After investigation, it was concluded that Hirakawa may have been corrupted. Even if he did not do it alone, he must have participated.False accounts are clumsy to remember.Based on the analysis of Ping Chuan's talent, this is a bit abnormal, and he can take appropriate measures to prevent being found out.But he died of illness suddenly, probably because he didn't have time to revise the account books. The reason why the former manager and section chief was demoted was due to poor inspection of the subordinates.He was accused by his superiors of flouting the principle of payment by receipts and bills that the manager had pointed out.Even the discrepancy between the book figures and the cash was not found, which shows how irresponsible his work is. As soon as Shibusawa took office, he re-studied the work system, adjusted the working relationship among the staff, and formulated new methods.These approaches are not his first, and many companies have already taken them.It is strange that the previous section chief did not do this in the past, and it is suspected that he may have been involved in corruption as well. When the handling of these matters came to an end, the widow of the Hirakawa family came to visit. Shibusawa receives her in the company living room.Sumiko Hirakawa was wearing a black dress, which might be considered mourning.The snow-white complexion matches the dress very well.No, it should be said to be dazzling.This black color makes people feel strongly that she has lost her desire to live, and seems desperate to end her life.Shibusawa felt that the concept of the word "widow" appeared vividly in front of him at this moment. "Is my husband really corrupt?" Sumiko lowered her head slightly, her eyes fixed on Shibusawa. "Ah, unfortunately, from the circumstances of the investigation, we can only draw this conclusion." "But, so much money, where did it go?" "So, Madam has no doubts about Mr. Hirakawa's behavior?" "No." Cheng Zi said firmly. "Even in retrospect, there's nothing suspicious about it. Was it used on clothing? No. Was it used on women? Neither." "Well, for example, he went out alone on Sunday. When he came back, was there anything suspicious, such as dust hanging on his body?" Shibusawa thinks about horse racing, and corporate people tend to be fascinated by gambling or women. "No, he's almost home on Sundays." "Then, for example, lipstick on the handkerchief, or socks on the wrong side... Is there nothing wrong with such daily trivial matters? Wives generally understand it." "What if..." Chengzi secretly smiled. "What if?" "If my husband had been involved with other women, I don't think he would have given away in such trivial matters." "Yeah, I heard he has a lot of brains..." Shibusawa replied with a wry smile.Originally, he did not personally experience the problems such as "wearing socks backwards" that he raised, but just learned knowledge from novels or chatting with friends.After being dismissed by Chengzi, he also felt that only very sloppy people could make such mistakes. "So, I don't think my husband was corrupt." "Well, what's Madam's opinion?" "Well... I think someone set the blame..." "This...the wives of course have to think about it. The results of our investigation, no matter how you say it..." Shibusawa also had deep sympathy for the woman with white skin like a patient in front of him, but he still asserted so. "So, Mr. Section Chief, where did the millions of dollars go?" "No...even though you said that, I also..." Shibusawa couldn't hold on, he couldn't help avoiding Chengzi's pressing gaze. This is Shibusawa and Sumiko's first meeting. The second time he went to Chengzi's apartment. Whether to ask Pingchuan's widow, Chengzi, to return the two million yuan that Pingchuan squandered has not yet been finalized, and it is estimated that they may not be pursued. He thought Chengzi must be worried about this, so he went to tell her. "Thank you, it's too much trouble for you... I am afraid that I will return it." Chengzi now works in a tailor shop, which was opened by a friend from her school days.Chengzi looked very weak today, perhaps because of her poor health, which was in stark contrast to her fierce demeanor and speech at the last meeting. After the matter was finished, Shibusawa was about to go back, Chengzi stood up, she lowered her head, bent over, and never raised her body. "What?" Shibusawa stared at Sumiko's face. "Section Chief, um..." She breathed nervously, barely showing a smile, the half-opened red lips were right in front of Shibusawa's eyes, he immediately understood. "Hmm!" Chengzi only let out a soft sound, without any strong resistance. So, starting from the third time, there is no need to find other reasons for the two to meet. Since Araki went back last time, he visited Shibusawa's company twice a month on average. Although it can't be said that he really has this kind of leisure, in fact, he usually goes back after chatting for a while. One time Shibusawa invited him to the bar, and the next time he invited him back, Araki wanted to keep dating like this on an equal footing. In this way, three months have passed. During this period, Shibusawa's life remained the same, meeting with Sumiko once or twice a week, and their secrets remained safe.Although Chiharu, the only eldest daughter, has a marriage proposal, she herself does not want to get married within two or three years, and Shibusawa does not need to be distracted from this matter for the time being. One day in mid-August, Araki came to see Shibusawa again. This time Araki was quite different from half a month ago, as if there was something hard to tell. There was a fan in the cafe, and the room was cool, and Shibusawa could even wear his coat.But Araki, who was wearing an open-collared shirt, kept wiping his neck with a handkerchief.He was wiping his sweat subconsciously, thinking hard about how to speak. "What's the matter, what's the matter?" Shibusawa asked. "Well, I want to ask you for help, but it's really hard to ask..." "What? As long as I can..." As soon as the words came out, Shibusawa regretted it, and he had an ominous premonition. "Then, thank you for your kindness." Araki put a sherbet cube in his mouth and chewed it up. "The thing is that I'm now being bitten by a powerful person, who you may know, is Shinji Tatenohara..." "Ah, I've heard of that name." Tachinohara is a well-known Jinge family in the city, and several publications such as weekly magazines have introduced him several times.He also published a famous saying in the weekly magazine: "Trust people cautiously, once you believe in them, trust to the end." "You know him, so it's easy to talk. I've only met him twice, and I must gain his confidence anyway. The best way is to give him the impression that I have dealings with first-class companies. If I do business with your company If Yamato Fisheries has contacts, he will completely trust me. I have no choice but to borrow a promissory note from your company with the cheek..." "A promissory note? That won't work, no matter how you use it." Shibusawa refused, and suddenly doubted the character of Araki who made such a request. "No, I just showed him this promissory note, and took it out for a while to prove that I have a deal with your company. That is to say, when I was negotiating with him, I pretended to calculate the date and took out the promissory note to have a look. The manager and section chief has the power to issue promissory notes." "Yes, yes...but this is a kind of fraud." "Where is it? The so-called fraud is to use improper means to defraud property. I can't get any specific property. Secondly, I ask you to issue a promissory note, not for the purpose of cashing. If you are worried, you can write a few words. Sentence." "Write what?" "The promissory note written on a certain day to Araki Shigezo is just a certificate, and there is no willingness to pay. Araki Shigezo also agrees. How about writing it like this?" "Well, let me think about it, but this also involves the company's accounting procedures, or..." "Think about it, and you'll see what I mean. There's nothing wrong with it. Oh, if you don't feel comfortable, here's this note of mine with you. It's not a mortgage. This note Although it cannot be compared with your company, this company is also a well-known musical instrument company." Araki took out a promissory note from his black briefcase. The amount is 5 million yen, the payment date is one week later, and there are four people who backed it. "Then, wouldn't it be the same to show this promissory note to Tachinohara?" "No, this promissory note has no power. Before it came to me, it had been circulated in the hands of several people, which means that this promissory note does not mean that I have a direct transaction with a big company... If Daiwa Fisheries Company issues a promissory note to me , even if the amount is half lower than this one, if it is 2 million yuan, then the credit strength will be quite different." "This matter..." Shibusawa still wanted to refuse, he felt that he didn't have the sympathy to do such a thing for Araki. "The words are not very pleasant. It is said that a member of the managerial department of your company committed suicide." Araki thought for a moment, then suddenly changed the subject. "Suicide? No, no one commits suicide." "Really? I heard it from a person. This clerk embezzled public funds and committed suicide when the matter was revealed, but the company said that he died of illness... It hurts the reputation of a big company. People regard it as important news. Spread, if you don’t know, let me tell you, his surname is Pingchuan.” "I don't listen, no one commits suicide anyway." Although Shibusawa categorically denies it, doubts suddenly arise in his heart. Did Chengzi's late husband Hirakawa Bao really commit suicide?He couldn't help thinking about Araki's topic. "Really...ah, it's not Hirakawa! I'm sorry, where did I go? How could it be Hirakawa? He is your 'that' past husband..." As Araki spoke, he deliberately let out a shrill laugh, and scratched his head vigorously.Shibusawa had never seen such behavior from him. The waitresses standing by the counter all looked in this direction. Shibusawa sensed that he had already lost, and it seemed that Araki had everything under control. "Well, what happened just now..." Shibusawa looked at his watch, and it was 40 minutes before the end of get off work. When he was about to leave work, the staff members were absent-minded. Even if their hands trembled when they opened the promissory note, people would not pay attention... Actually, this is Shibusawa's Don't worry too much, issuing promissory notes is a matter within his purview, how could the subordinates doubt it. "About the promissory notes?" "Just do as you said just now, the amount is 2 million yuan, and put your 5 million yuan piece of paper with me as collateral. Please write a few more words, although I believe you, or..." "Really?" Araki gave Shibusawa a big gift suddenly and solemnly. Shibusawa begins to consider breaking up with Sumiko. From the beginning of the acquaintance, Shibusawa had a vague premonition that one day he would have to break up with her, but the specific consideration of breaking up still started from the day when he lent Araki the promissory note. On that day, Shibusawa knew Araki's character.It turned out that Araki's previous casual contacts were preparing conditions so that Shibusawa could be effectively used in the end.He figured out that Hirakawa Sumiko was the widow left by Hirakawa Bao, and attacked Shibusawa with this powerful weapon.Although Shibusawa tried his best to resist several times, he was finally defeated.In this way, he will be devastated, and it will be impossible to counterattack again, and he will be controlled by Araki forever.The only way is to destroy the weapons with which the enemy attacks, and there is no other way. The weapon of the enemy's attack is the current relationship between Hirakawa Sumiko and Shibusawa.Hirakawa died of illness after embezzlement, and the whereabouts of the stolen money is unknown.An affair with his widow, once revealed, would naturally be the object of suspicion.This fear of Shibusawa was just used by Araki. Breaking up with Chengzi will destroy Araki's offensive weapons, at least it will weaken his edge. Thinking of this, Shibusawa has decided to cut off contact with Chengzi. There was no obstacle to breaking up, and Chengzi's financial situation was not in distress, so Shibusawa never gave her money, so there was no need to worry that Chengzi's life would be difficult the day after the breakup.据说她去工作的那家西装裁缝店生意兴隆，给澄子的工资足够她一个女人的生活费用。 向澄子提出分手，她大概不会要求赡养费、赔偿费。 经济方面是没有问题了。但是，怎样向澄子提出呢？她能痛快地答应吗？这两个问题使涩泽苦恼。 不用说他自己也是恋恋不舍，马上分手他是受不了的，但是保全自己的想法还是占了上风。当天晚上涩泽回到家里，一边看着电视里转播的的拳击节目一边在想着，最后决定再经十天左右的冷静考虑，想法如无变化，就彻底断绝来往。 忽然，一个疑问掠过脑际。澄子和荒木之间有没有联系？是否是他们二人合谋？转而又往深里想了一下，感到这种怀疑未免太荒唐了。 对付荒木，他已经被弄得精疲力尽了。 第二天清晨，早早地来了电话，涩泽被叫醒了。 “一位姓荒木的人。电话里的声音慌慌张张的。” 妻子不安地站在电话机旁。 “我是涩泽。” “啊，我是荒木呀。出事啦，上班前务必见见您。” “出事啦？” 涩泽机械地重复了一句，见妻子站在身旁，便把话咽了下去。 “嗯，事情是……” “见面后再说吧，9点左右，还是那家咖啡馆。” “好，麻烦您啦。” 荒木说了这么几句话就把电话撂下了。 “怎么了？出了什么事？” 妻子听了涩泽那只言片语便担心地问。 “不，没什么大不了的。只是今天早些出去。” 涩泽未吃早饭就离了家，他准备去咖啡馆吃烤面包。 坐在电车里，去公司的一路上他一直在想：“出了什么事？”他作着种种推测。 同荒木通电话时，他总要想到澄子。Why is this?被叫醒前梦见澄子了吗？澄子和荒木当然没有任何关系。即或澄子出了什么事，也不会是由荒木来通知呀。然而，整个一早上，总感到好像是澄子出了事。 荒木在玛丽娜咖啡馆等着他。 “嗨，实在对不起，这回又……” 一看见涩泽，他立即站起来寒暄。荒木今天穿着件花里胡哨的夏威夷衫，同往日判若两人。 “怎么了？电话里那么慌张……” “是啊，做了件十分对不起您的事。怎么向您赔罪呢？您骂我好啦，让我去当和尚，我马上就出家……” 荒木用咖啡馆的毛巾，不停地擦脖颈。 “怎么了？你光谢罪我也不明白呀，像招了邪魔似的……说吧，什么事，我是不会惊慌失措的。” “昨天晚上，我从您那出来，就去找了立野原。我和另一个人一起作联系，从立野原那里借过二百多万元钱。这件事昨天我未对您说。” 听了荒木的这句话，涩泽心里一块石头落了地，虽然不知荒木还要说出些什么，只要澄子未出事，涩泽就放心了。他平静地问道：“是你借的钱吗？” “是给朋友借的，我只是担保……” “啊，还有什么？” “还有，您给我的那张期票，当时我一晃，立野原说要看看，我糊里糊涂地递给他，他就说做抵押了。” “什么？你把期票给了立野原？” 涩泽顿感事情严重。 “实在对不起。他拿过去了，我也不能说那张期票是假的，就说是假的，他也不会相信……实在没办法，只得让他拿去了。立野原这人什么都干得出来，到期他会毫不客气地转账……” 荒木用他那大手掌不停地抚摩着脸颊。 “那张期票的支付日期是两个星期以后吧。” 涩泽慢吞吞地问。 “是的。要知有这桩事，开到两个月后就好了，反正是凭证期票……” “两个星期以后，对我来说也没什么问题。昨天你押给我的500万元期票归我就行了。用其中的200万元从立野原那里买回我那张期票。你去和立野原联系，那张期票请他不要再转。” 开出的是凭证期票，荒木也写了字据。可是这个字据只对荒木有效，如果期票转到第三者手里，那就限制不了第三者兑现。一到日期，立野原把它转入银行，大和水产就必须支付200万元。涩泽担心，这样自己私开期票的行为就会败露，即使没有造成实质上的损失，仅就私开期票一事，就会被撵下经理科长的宝座。所以在立野原到银行转账之前，必须筹措现金，买回那张期票。 “这件事啊……”荒木挠着脑袋说。 “怎么？有什么不方便？” “昨天我给您的是一张无效的期票。” “无效？是在指定的银行里没有户头吗？” “不，不是银行付款问题，那张期票根本就无效。” “岂有此理。我已经检查过了。” 涩泽记得，他按一般惯例检查了那张期票，所谓按一般惯例，就是检查了主要的地方，他当时未做非常的检查，是因为不愿歧视对方。 “不，您没有注意到背签的连续性问题。” “我仔细看过的。” 荒木的那张期票，就在涩泽的皮包里，他怕放在公司金库里万一出事多有不便，就随身携带着。这时涩泽自信不是外行，背签连续性有毛病不会看不出来，便伸手取出期票说：“期票就在这。很清楚，背签有连续性。” “嗯？您再往背签人名字那里看……” 荒木发出了奸谲的笑声。 "What did you say?" “第一背签人的签字日期呀，是6月22日，可是期票开出的日期却是6月23日！” "what?" 涩泽大吃一惊，他慌忙去看期票。确如荒木所说，开出期票的日期在第一背签人签字日期之后。本来这种现象是不会有的。 “可是，这张期票也还是有效的。” “不，最高法院有这种条例，我可以说给您听吗？第一背签之日期记载若无效，等于全部无记载，背签若无年月日之记载，该背签视为无效。还有一条呢，背签日期被认定为有效记载，然该背签若先于开出期票日期，则系开出期票前之背签，亦作无效。还有呢，不符格式之背签，视为空白，故其后之背签亦属缺乏连续性。您拿它到银行去转账，当然要遭到拒绝的……” “是这样，那么这就是你对我不负责任，也就是诈骗。” "yes?" 荒木依然不动声色。 “您说是诈骗，那么被害者也不是您，您盖了公司和常务董事的图章，受到损害的是公司。如果用公司名义控告我，您可以出一口气。但是公司也绝不会放过您，虽说您有开期票的权力，可是公司并没有让您开具这种骗人的期票。事情公开的话，您会被撤职，追究下去，您也许成了诈骗犯的同谋。” 荒木完全改变了态度，他抓住涩泽这个工薪收入者要保住科长交椅的弱点，步步紧逼。 确实如荒木所说，控告荒木行诈是轻而易举的，但是涩泽也有私开期票的过失，如果控告，就会暴露自己这一过失，导致撤职查办，因此控告就绝非是上策。像现在这样继续工作下去，今后还能晋升，把荒木送进监狱，同时也断送了自己的前程，这又有什么意义呢？落个撤职查办的名声，不用说今后找职业困难，就是女儿的婚事也要受到影响……“您生气也是有道理的。” 荒木几乎用与己无关的语调继续说。 “事已至此，只有在到期之前，筹措200万元，买回期票，这才是明智的。恕我直说，仅您的退职金就超过200万元了。如果声张出去，弄个撤职，退职金也没有了。所以……” “我没有必要接受你的指示。” 涩泽站了起来，他的腿脚已经不听使唤。 “危险，请当心。现在倒下去了，您的家属可就无依无靠啦。” 荒木在涩泽身后乘胜追击似地又加上了这么一句。 九涩泽到了澄子的门前，伸手去敲门，这时他才开始意识到这是澄子的家。 从玛丽娜咖啡馆出来，他下意识地喊住了眼前的一辆出租汽车。 “到中目里。” 他并未决定要到澄子家去，不知为什么脱口对司机说出了澄子公寓的地点。 澄子应声开了房门。其实他可以不敲门自己进去的。 "oops……" 她穿着无袖罩衫和短裤衩。 “怎么了？这么晚，脸色也……” “不知道。我算完了。先给我点水。” 鞋也懒得脱。他一爬进房间便躺下了。 澄子对着他开了电扇。凉风吹来，涩泽感到的不是凉爽，而是烦恼。 “到底怎么了？简直像个磨人的孩子，我还是头一次见你这样。” “啊，我自己也是头一次这样地自甘暴弃。” 涩泽并不是在这里撒娇，他感到在这间房子里有权如此放肆。 "Really annoying." 澄子站在那里俯视着涩泽。她双眉紧锁，从心底涌上来的厌恶感似乎都集中在眉间。 “讨厌？你说什么？” 一股无名的怒火烧遍全身，涩泽蓦地挺起上身，两手抓住了澄子的脚，用力地拖。 "what are you doing?" 澄子叉开腿想站起来。她拼命挣扎，想从涩泽手中挣脱。 她慌乱中后脚跟重重地蹬在涩泽的额头上。 “哎呀！你！” 澄子也许是出于对涩泽的厌恶，蹬得他叫了起来。涩泽真得动怒了，他忽然扑向涩子。 他用力揪住澄子的罩衫，纽扣脱落了，粉红色的乳罩露了出来，澄子本能地慌忙捂住前胸，其实这在涩泽面前早已是不必要的。 涩泽疯了一样，推倒澄子，骑在她身上，居高临下，就势一只手卡住了澄子的脖子。 “啊，掐死我啦，你疯啦？”澄子的眼睛里闪射出恐怖的光芒。 “200万元！没有200万元我就……” 在涩泽的意识中出现了一种幻觉，好像筹集200万元和掐住澄子的脖子是一回事。他感到那白皙的脖子就在自己的手里，只要稍稍用点劲儿，自己的一切烦恼就都烟消云散了。 “啊，等等……我拿，我拿出来……你松开来。” 澄子嘶哑地说，几乎听不清楚她说些什么。 “你说什么？拿出来？” 涩泽的手松弛下来，一种万一的希望出现了。 “真的，真得拿出来……放开我……” “拿出来？真得拿出来？” 涩泽反问着，放开了手。附体的邪魔退隐了，方才发生了什么事情？自己干了些什么？他都不记得了。涩泽望着自己的手，是它不受意志的支配，自由行动的吗？他不敢正眼看一看澄子。 “你，还是知道了。” 澄子坐起来，出了一口长气，合上罩衫的前襟说。她侧身坐着，像要避开涩泽的眼睛。 "understood?" “丈夫贪污的钱，是我收起来的。”澄子自嘲地说。 “什么？究竟是怎么回事……” “那次，你抱住吻我的时候，我想这人是要做交易……所以就没说出来。” “二百几十万元是你……” 涩泽完全弄糊涂了，好像掉进了另一个世界。然而，在他那混乱的头脑中，还想着一件事，那就是澄子的话如果是真的，那么自己就得救了……“那是表面上的。我丈夫巧妙地弄到的钱，绝不止那么个数儿，退给公司200万元，我也无所谓。你最初来我这里，再过一会儿，我就要说了。可是你，怀着什么鬼胎，没等我说出来，就吻了我。算啦，你现在玩够了我，又来要200万元。也好，我无所谓，给你200万元，其余的算你付给我的赔偿费……” 澄子嘴里能说出这种粗野的话吗？往日她对涩泽总是百依百顺，今天那种淑女温情在她身上已经消失得一干二净。 澄子站起来，走过去拉开了日本式衣柜的抽屉，找出一件东西，抛在涩泽面前。 是一本存折，上面写的户头是涩泽所未见过的。 “一共830万元，如果200万元可以的话，我马上给你取出来。条件是你把我房门的钥匙还给我。” 澄子向颓坐在那里的涩泽伸出了手。 此后，涩泽明治依然坐在那把向阳的交椅上，仍被人们誉为有能力的科长。