A gentle breeze blew, and the leaves fell, casting a shadow on Sakato Kuwako. After saying these words, she turned around and left, closing her eyes in silence.
At this time, Pei Zi Yun appeared from behind a tombstone. The moonlight shone on him as he panted, "Finally made it, looks like I'm not late."
He then nodded to Sakato Kuwako, "Sorry to have kept you waiting."
"It's you!" Sakato Kuwako, who was standing in front of the tombstone, was not surprised. She lowered her head again and gently arranged the white flowers. She then took out a small bottle, opened it, and whispered to the tombstone, "Jingji, when you left home, you said you wanted to drink sake tonight."
"Now, I've brought it, please drink to your heart's content!"
Keiji of Nishibe Prefecture didn't have many hobbies when he was alive. He liked to play chess, and he was a sixth-dan amateur. However, in the Banto family, those who could play chess with Keiji of Nishibe Prefecture were either highly skilled or pressed for time. Therefore, most of the time, Keiji of Nishibe Prefecture just silently played chess by himself.
As for Keiji of Nishibuka, he had another hobby, which was drinking. He was tightly controlled by Sakako. She rarely allowed Keiji of Nishibuka to drink because Sakako didn't like drunk men.
Thinking of this, Sakato Kuwako took the small bottle and slowly poured it. This bottle of sake was called "White Snow", which was also Jingji's favorite kind of sake.
The wine was slowly sprinkled in front of the tombstone, and slowly soaked into the ground. Soon, the small bottle of sake was emptied.
Sakato Sakato retracted her hand and a smile appeared on her face. At this moment, Pei Zi Yun, who had been watching silently all this while, finally made his move. He bowed slightly once more, and a white arc of light flashed past, followed by the flash of a blade.
Sakato Kuwako's head flew off, and her body fell on the tombstone. Blood splattered everywhere, and the picture of Jingji, which had been cleaned up, was stained red with blood.
In the picture, Jingji had an honest smile on his face, and when paired with the blood, it was a strange sight.
Pei Zi Yun kept his blade, and did not look at the scene in front of him. He turned around and left, chasing after Sakato Kuwako. Beside him, several men in black bowed slightly, and walked towards the tombstone.
There was no one else in the Harajuku Tree graveyard at this time. The empty graveyard was cold and desolate.
Pei Zi Yun and Ban Dong Kuwako walked side by side, stepping on the pebbles beneath their feet. The path leading to the main gate seemed to be a little long. Not far away, there were a few white flowers dotting the path, making it seem unusually peaceful. The lights from afar shone into the path, making it look like a rosy sunset.
"Even if it's an ordinary scenery, as long as you can observe it, it's as beautiful as a dream. Don't you think so, Yamada-kun?"
Pei Zi Yun broke the silence and didn't answer directly. Instead, he asked, "Then to the Sakato family, how would they announce the matter regarding Sakato Sakato?"
"We, the Sakato Family, have reached an agreement to deal with this matter. Later, we will say that Sakato Sakato had a car accident." Kuwako Sakato said softly, "And there will be a grand funeral."
Kuwako gently turned around and looked at his expression. She then asked, "Yamada-kun, you seem to be a little unhappy?"
"Yes, a little." Pei Zi Yun nodded slowly. The shadows of many people flashed before his eyes. He smiled slightly and said, "Maybe I'm a selfish person. Seeing the scene of Sakato Sakato and Keiji Nishibo made me feel a little emotional."
"I look forward to my family and lover. They will love their family more than any other organization, and not the other way around. So I don't want to face this situation, even as an outsider."
Pei Zi Yun's voice was a little low.
"Love yourself, love your family, love your neighbor, love your hometown, love your country, love the world!" As Kuwako said this, she thought of something and suddenly smiled. "Ha, Yamada-kun, this seems to be the morality of the opposite continent!"
"Yes, it's true!" Pei Zi Yun didn't deny it and nodded gently. "The opposite continent belongs to one's family and lover. This is very much in line with my opinion."
"That's why I said that maybe I'm a selfish person. But I always feel that sacrifice is inevitable. But those who talk about sacrifice must be at a disadvantage."
"Ah, Yamada-kun, what do you mean?" Kuwako opened her eyes wide, her pupils flashing like stars.
"When the granary is full, one knows etiquette. When one has enough food and clothing, one knows honor and disgrace. These words came from the opposite continent, Guan Zhong, who assisted Duke Huan of Qi to become the number one overlord during the Spring and Autumn Period."
"I deeply agree with that."
"And it's not just people, it's the same for organizations. A powerful and prosperous organization and country will not just talk about sacrifice because they have spare strength."
"When sacrifice is the main method, it's either at the end of the road or fighting to the death. That's not a normal organization or country."
"Sacrifice is the norm. In history, there has never been a person who lived for a hundred years."
"Let's not talk about others. Take Sakato Sakato and Keiji Nishibo as an example. If she was on the shogunate's side, she wouldn't need to be so extreme. The shogunate would have the time to use more moderate means to deal with it. But in the face of the anti-shogunate, she had no choice but to survive."
When Kuwako heard this, she couldn't help but reveal a surprised expression. She pondered for a moment and looked at him with admiration. "Indeed, the anti-shogunate army often shouted, 'The rise or fall of the empire depends on this battle. It's time for everyone to show their loyalty."
"But the shogunate rarely said that. Even if they did, they would say, 'Everyone, be careful. Capture all these wandering ghosts in one fell swoop. If you encounter any resistance, please call for support."
"This is the difference between the strong and the weak. Yamada-kun has seen through the essence."
"Ah! Ah! Ah! " Pei Zi Yun stretched and yawned. He said to Kuwako, "You praise me too much!"
"What I want to do most now is to go home!"
"Whether it's Mom's food or Naomi's food, they can comfort my heart."
"So, I won't continue to waste your time. I'll go back first." Pei Zi Yun said, bowed his head and turned to leave.
Looking at Pei Zi Yun's receding figure, Kuwako's smile faded. She murmured, "Sacrificing one's loved ones is the unwillingness of the weak to resist. Is that what you think? Yamada-kun! "
Kuwako was deep in thought. Not far away, a dark black car was parked. Seeing Kuwako approaching, someone immediately opened the door. She got in and immediately said, "Go, go to the Antler Hall immediately!"
"Yes!" The driver responded respectfully, and the car slowly started.
Antler Hall
This was a quiet and peaceful mountainous area with green trees. Crossing the highway at night, the office workers were still working overtime. Passing through a certain district, the number of single-family houses increased significantly. Parks, art galleries, and libraries could be seen from time to time.
The car moved at a fast speed, and gradually, the terrain became higher. The winding mountain road became brighter, and at the end of the lights, a mansion appeared. From a bird's eye view, one could see that the mansion was very large. In fact, it was an important gathering place for the Kuwako clan. Now, it was the place where the previous head of the clan, Kuwako Sakato, lived in seclusion.
When they arrived, the double iron gate slowly opened, and the car slowly drove in.
It was late at night, and several windows were still lit. Kuwako got out of the car. A middle-aged maid stood at the door, wearing a black and white dress. She bowed and greeted, "You're back."
Kuwako nodded, "Kawaguchi."
After entering, the front hall, smooth marble floor, luxurious crystal chandeliers, and other things were needless to say. The maid, Kawaguchi, silently led them to the end of the corridor on the second floor. The room inside didn't have too many decorations, and Kuwako Sakato was sitting cross-legged.
Kuwako pushed the door open, bowed, and said, "Grandpa, I'm back!"
"Yo, Kuwako." An old voice responded. Although Kuwako Sakato's hair was white six months ago, he was full of vigor and strong. But now, he looked old with drooping eyelids and more age spots.
Kuwako Sakato's heart was slightly sour, but she couldn't do anything about it. People all over the world had the illness of retirement, but the more power they held, the more serious the illness would be after retirement. Kuwako Sakato could be considered to have adjusted it well.
At this time, Kuwako Sakato opened his eyes and slowly asked, "Sakato, did you go?"
"Yes, yes!" Kuwako Sakato replied.
"Alas!" Hearing this, Kuwako Sakato couldn't help but sigh. The glimmer of hope in his eyes was suddenly extinguished, and his expression turned gloomy. He seemed to want to say something, but before he could say anything, he suddenly gasped for breath.
Kuwako Sakato was already prepared and immediately shouted, "Doctor! Doctor!"
Two doctors rushed in. One of them observed Kuwako Sakato's pupils while the other checked his pulse. They secretly heaved a sigh of relief and gave him an injection. They wiped the sweat on his forehead and said, "Don't worry, His Excellency is fine. He's just a bit out of breath due to mood swings, but it's nothing serious."
"Now that I've given him an injection, he'll feel better in a while."
Sure enough, Kuwako Sakato recovered after a while. Kuwako Sakato worriedly said, "Grandpa, are you alright?"
Kuwako Sakato forced a smile and said, "Don't worry, Kuwako. I've been through a lot of storms. Alas, Sakato, it's good that he's gone."
After saying these two sentences, Kuwako Sakato also sighed, "She's my daughter after all. Although I've made up my mind, it's impossible not to feel pain."
"Alas …" As expected, Kuwako Sakato gently sighed and asked, "Kuwako, how will you deal with Kohei?"
"Kohei of Nishibe Prefecture is my aunt's son. My aunt died in a car accident and his father also passed away. He lost both parents." Kuwako Sakato suddenly recalled Yamada Shinichi's words and slowly said, "But Kohei is still a member of our Sakato family. Although he's still young, he should inherit the family property. Grandpa, why don't you personally supervise him?"
"Kohei will be an adult in ten years. I believe Grandpa can take good care of him. In this case, whether it's Sakato or Nishibe Prefecture, they will be relieved!"
"Very good, Kuwako. You're right." Kuwako Sakato's face showed a bit of relief. He was originally worried that Kohei of Nishibe Prefecture would be ruthlessly killed by Kuwako Sakato. Hearing this made him happy.
When he was young, Kuwako Sakato was decisive and merciless. But now that he was old, he was especially nostalgic. He didn't have many real family members left.
Sakato Sakato had passed away and her son-in-law, Keiji of Nishibe Prefecture had also passed away. His grandson, Kohei of Nishibe Prefecture, was his real family member. Naturally, he couldn't bear to see Kohei of Nishibe Prefecture end up in such a miserable state.
More importantly, the Sakato Family was now a consortium, and they needed a tough and humane leader to unite the family. Originally, Sakato Kuishi wanted to teach Kuwako Sakato a lesson, but he didn't expect that Kuwako Sakato could handle the situation so perfectly. Such tolerance was really rare.
"Fortunately, the worst situation didn't happen." Kuwako Sakato thought. He wanted to ask Yamada Shinichi why he was too close to his granddaughter. But at this moment, he was satisfied and didn't want to care about it. He gently said, "You've grown up, Kuwako. I'm very relieved to entrust the Sakato family to you. I'm tired!"
"Hey!" Kuwako Sakato got up. "Grandpa, I won't disturb your rest!"
Having said that, Kuwako Sakato slowly retreated from the room and closed the door.
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