Chapter 957: Chapter 998: eting Aoki Reiko Again
"Mr. Mu Fei, thank you for gracing us with your presence at this reception. Your arrival truly adds luster to our gathering."
The president of Suzuki Company, Suzuki Jiro, because Li Yifei was Taiwanese, spiced his speech with a touch of Huaxia flavor. He had specifically learned this manner of speaking, but it resulted in a sowhat awkward delivery. Li Yifei didn’t mind and naturally could not use his real na. Currently, he went by the na Mu Fei.
Li Yifei smiled and said, "Mr. Suzuki, you are too kind. The honor is mine to be able to attend your reception."
"If Mr. Mu Fei says so, then I have no worries. Co, let
introduce you to a few people. This is my eldest son, Suzuki Yama, this is my second son, Suzuki Naru, this is my daughter, Suzuki Kawako, and this is my daughter’s good friend, Aoki Reiko. She is the daughter of the chairman of the most famous Aoki Group in all of Japan."
As Suzuki Jiro introduced each person, Li Yifei shook hands with them, and they were all very polite. However, when it ca to Aoki Reiko, Li Yifei was genuinely surprised. He had seen this girl before; during his last trip to Japan to gather so information, he had encountered Aoki Reiko in a warehouse, where she had been kidnapped. At the ti, Li Yifei had saved her. He never expected that on his second trip to Japan for business, he would et her again. What a peculiar fate.
Today, Aoki Reiko was dressed in a classic Japanese kimono, her hair pinned up, her face slightly made up. Her attire was the epito of what could represent the won of Japan.
Li Yifei shook hands with Aoki Reiko briefly. She rely grazed Li Yifei’s hand before withdrawing it politely. Although her manners were impeccable, her warmth was not as apparent as that of the others. Given her status, which was much higher than Li Yifei’s Taiwanese identity, her treatnt of him was already quite generous.
After the introductions, Suzuki Jiro invited Li Yifei and the others into the yard for an outdoor reception held in a villa garden laid with grass and lined with two rows of tables where food was being prepared.
There were also other people there, mostly employees of the Suzuki Company, and several of Suzuki Jiro’s friends, largely young people. Li Yifei was clearly the main focus as everyone knew that the possibility of cooperating with his company could bring a great opportunity. Naturally, as employees, they all took this very seriously.
Now, Li Yifei wore glasses, and with a bit of makeup, he was unrecognizable as the Golden Eagle. He appeared to be a successful businessman, engaging in lively conversation with Suzuki Jiro and his sons, creating an especially congenial atmosphere.
Suzuki Kawako and Aoki Reiko, however, were sitting by the pool chatting.
Suzuki Kawako said helplessly, "Reiko, don’t be so downcast. The atmosphere is so pleasant today. Chat with everyone a little."
Aoki Reiko shook her head and replied, "Not interested."
Suzuki Kawako sighed, "It’s been so long since that incident. Why haven’t you gotten over it yet? You weren’t hard, were you?"
Aoki Reiko gave a wry smile and said, "I may not have been hard, but I can’t help but be wary of everyone. I don’t feel safe interacting with others. It’s only when I’m with you that I can relax a bit. Otherwise, I’m tense around everyone, as if they pose a threat."
Although Aoki Reiko was never a particularly lively girl, she used to be quite happy and her social interactions were normal. However, since the kidnapping, she was left with a ntal scar and dared not socialize anymore. At ho, aside from her parents, her interactions with anyone else were filled with caution, including the household staff and employees at the company.
Suzuki Kawako was her classmate from university, and the two shared a deep bond. Now, aside from her parents, she was the only person with whom Reiko could interact normally. Although Aoki Reiko’s parents were worried about her safety, they had to consent to let her spend ti with Suzuki Kawako. At the very least, this could help Reiko beco a bit more cheerful.
"Any news about the man who saved you?" Suzuki Kawako changed the subject.
"No, he hasn’t been found. Not a trace of information. It’s as if he vanished into thin air. Whether it’s our family resources, the police force, or even the private detective I hired, there’s been no news of him."
As soon as the rescuer was ntioned, Aoki Reiko’s spirits were visibly lifted, and she began to speak more.
"Do you think you’ll recognize him?"
"I don’t know," she replied. "I only rember his eyes and a hint of a tobacco scent I’d never encountered before. If I were to sll it again, I’m sure I’d recognize it."
Knowing that ntioning this person would greatly improve Aoki Reiko’s mood, Suzuki Kawako chuckled lightly and asked, "And if you find him, what then?"
Aoki Reiko’s eyes revealed a srized look as she said, "I don’t know what I can do, but I want to be his girlfriend."
"What if he’s already married?"
Aoki Reiko imdiately glanced with determination, saying, "Married? No, that can’t be. I can feel that he’s very young. How could he possibly be married so early? Absolutely not."
Suzuki Kawako was sowhat surprised by Aoki Reiko’s reaction. Seeing Aoki Reiko like this, it indeed seed like love at first sight. If the man wasn’t who she imagined, it might just hurt her even more. So she hesitated for a mont before saying, "Reiko, have you ever considered that he might not be a good person, and could possibly be a bad one?"
"He couldn’t possibly be a bad person. If he was, why would he have saved ? After saving , he didn’t make any demands of . Could a bad person do that? At the very least, he should have sought so advantage from
or... he had every opportunity and plenty of ti to... violate , but he didn’t."
"Okay, okay, I’ll admit he’s a good person, your own Batman. But what if he’s a rather ugly man?"
"That... His eyes were very expressive and also extrely confident. A very ugly person wouldn’t have such confident eyes. So I dare say he won’t be ugly, at most not exceptionally handso. But for a man, what’s the use of being handso? Only a man with real capability is a good man."
"Alright!" Suzuki Kawako rubbed her forehead, feeling sowhat helpless, and said, "I don’t know whether I should hope that you find him or hope that you don’t."
"Why? Wouldn’t you be happy for
if I found him?"
"I’m afraid that the gap between your ideal and reality is too large, and that you won’t be able to handle the blow."
Aoki Reiko asserted strongly, "No, my intuition can’t be wrong. I must find him. Only he can give
a real sense of security. With him, I won’t be afraid and can return to normal."
At this ti, Li Yifei didn’t know whether to feel relieved or lant missing out on a great opportunity. He was always careful in his actions, concealing any possible leak of his identity. Like smoking, these past few days he hadn’t smoked the usual Little Panda cigarettes Su ngxin gave him but instead smoked cigarettes with a stronger scent, so his clothes now carried this new tobacco sll, not the distinct fragrance of Little Panda.
Aoki Reiko wasn’t just boasting; her sense of sll was extrely keen, several tis more sensitive than the average person’s. If Li Yifei had the original tobacco scent on him, Aoki Reiko would have definitely noticed it.
When Li Yifei t Aoki Reiko just now, the scent wasn’t right. Plus, Li Yifei had worn glasses, which had obscured her view and prevented Aoki Reiko from recognizing him.
"Mr. Mu Fei, I’ve heard you’re not married yet?" Suzuki Jiro asked with a smile at this ti.
Li Yifei smiled and said, "Yes, these years I’ve been busy with my career and not in a rush."
"Mr. Mu Fei, that won’t do. A man busy with his career needs a perfect wife at ho to take care of him. In this regard, our won from Great Japan are second to none, and absolutely no won from other countries could claim to be first."
Li Yifei laughed and said, "Yes, Japanese won are indeed very good in this aspect. However, with modern developnts, won in your country are probably not all staying at ho to be good wives and mothers, right?"
"Indeed, so won have begun to be independent, but many still adhere to our nation’s fine traditions. Take my daughter Kawako, for instance; she excels in this area. I’ve always taught her how to take care of her husband."
Li Yifei instantly caught the underlying aning in Suzuki Jiro’s words – it seed he wanted to introduce his daughter to him. Suzuki Kawako, by ordinary standards, was a fine girl. Although not a ravishing beauty, she was still considered attractive. To an average man, she would definitely be a rare find. Unfortunately, each of Li Yifei’s wives was stunning, and Li Yifei really didn’t want any complications in his emotional life right now. So he rely smiled and said, "Suzuki Kawako is indeed a good girl, it’s just that I have no plans to settle down in the coming years, otherwise, I could truly consider pursuing her."
Suzuki Jiro couldn’t help but feel a bit disappointed but still said, "That’s a sha. I was hoping that besides being business partners, we could add another layer to our relationship. Now it seems there is no hope."
Li Yifei laughed heartily and said, "That doesn’t affect our cooperation. In Taiwan, we have a saying – my fate has not yet arrived."
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