Arima stared blankly at Qingteng. He was so surprised that he forgot to speak for a moment.

At this time, a childish voice came from a distance:

"Father, who are you talking to?"

Arima and Aoto both glanced at each other.

"Mr. Arima."

Qingdeng put his bamboo hat back on and said seriously.

"I'm waiting for you in your study. I have something very important to talk to you about."

After saying that, Qingdeng's waist dwarfed and his entire body disappeared into the darkness.

As soon as Aoshito walked away, Arima's second son, Torojumaru, who was only 9 years old this year, walked up to the corridor of the yard and came to Arima's side, holding a cuju.

In ancient Japan, all boys from samurai families would basically have a nickname.

Qingneng is no exception. Qingneng's nickname is "Kuro". It's a pity that after Tachibana's death, the people who are qualified to call Qingnong by his nickname no longer exist.

And Toshoumaru is the nickname of Arimajiko.

Some families even have hereditary nicknames. For example, the eldest son of the Tokugawa family all has the nickname "Takechiyo".

After you enter the Yuan Dynasty, your baby name can be changed to a formal name.

"Father, I seemed to hear you talking to someone just now?"

Torosumaru stretched his neck and looked into the yard.

Arima had already recovered from his shock.

He smiled at his son:

"Did you hear that correctly? I've just been cleaning my knife quietly here. Where did I talk to anyone? What's more, look, apart from you and me, where are the outsiders here?"

"But, but..."

Torojumaru still wanted to argue a point or two.

But Arima blocked the conversation one step ahead:

"Okay, Torojumaru, my father has important things to do now, so you can go and play by yourself first."

After dismissing Zouhushouwan with a few words, Arima couldn't stand it for a moment. He hurriedly gathered the knife powder, knife oil, powder stick and other care tools, and then ran in the direction of the study in three steps at a time.

…

Arima's mansion, study room——

Youma's study room seems to have the word "serious" posted on it.

The books in the bookshelf are all neatly arranged according to categories.

The four treasures of the study on the table seem to have been carefully adjusted with a ruler. They are neatly arranged and visually pleasing to the viewer.

At a glance, you can tell that this is the study room that someone like Arima with "severe obsessive-compulsive disorder" would have.

Arima pushed open the paper sliding door of the study room.

As the light leaked into the room through the crack in the door, he saw Qingden, who had taken off his bamboo hat and sword, kneeling on the tatami in the study in an orderly manner, waiting for his arrival.

"Sorry, Tachibana-kun, for keeping you waiting."

Qingden shook his head gently.

"No, Mr. Arima, I am the one who should apologize. I'm sorry for breaking into your home without saying hello."

Arima sat directly opposite Aisho, his sword casually placed on his right side.

"Mr. Ju, where have you been for so many days? Do you know how hard it was for us to find you?"

"Feel sorry."

Qingdeng apologized softly again.

"I've made you worry. Because of some complicated reasons that are a long story, I had to deliberately conceal my whereabouts."

"When I have the opportunity and time in the future, I will come back to you... no, I will explain to you in detail where I have been and what I have done these days."

Qingdeng paused for a moment, then changed the subject.

"Mr. Arima, as I just said in the courtyard, the reason why I took the liberty of visiting you tonight is because I have something very important to ask you."

Time is running out.

Maybe at some point, Arima's wife and heirs would suddenly come over and disturb them, just like what happened to Torojumaru just now.

Therefore, Qingdeng decided to "quick victory" and get straight to the point without making all the twists and turns.

If you want to chat and reminisce about old times, there will be plenty of opportunities in the future.

"Something quite important? Please tell me?"

Arima looked confused.

Looking at Aishoto's eyes that contained some kind of strong determination, Arima immediately understood: What Aoto wanted to discuss with him was no small matter!

"……Um."

Arima nodded vigorously several times.

"Just ask."

As soon as Arima finished speaking, Qingden couldn't help but asked quickly:

"Mr. Arima, please tell me everything you know about my father."

"Your father?"

Although it was almost invisible, Qingdeng still noticed it keenly: for a moment, Arima's penis shrank to the size of a pinhole.

"...Tachibana-kun, why do you suddenly ask about this?"

"Mr. Arima, I can't explain the specifics. In short...I am now eager to know what my father did during his lifetime. Why did he suddenly become addicted to gambling? Did he really die of illness?"

Speaking of this, Qingden paid close attention to the changes in Arima's facial expressions.

I saw a horse looking at his nose and heart, wondering what he was thinking about now. His waist, which was extremely straight at all times, was actually slightly bent at this moment.

Seeing this, Qingdeng pursed his lips thoughtfully, and then said softly:

"Before his death, my father...had been secretly investigating something serious. Am I right?"

Youma's hands on his knees trembled momentarily.

The study was surrounded by silence.

The surrounding air seemed to have weight at this moment, and it felt like the sounds were gradually moving away from the surroundings.

Although the two did not draw swords at each other, there is no doubt that Aoto and Arima are "confronting" - anyone would think so, right? When seeing this scene of two people facing each other, feeling this

When there is a tense atmosphere.

In this silent "confrontation", the person who produced the first words was Arima.

"Alas...this day has finally arrived..."

The faint sigh mixed with a bit of self-mockery made Arima's figure suddenly feel a bit more erratic.

"Tachibana-kun, although I don't know how you discovered Takazhi's secret, I respect your opinion and won't ask any more questions."

"Okay...then I'll tell you everything I know about Longzhi..."

Having said this, he took a deep breath to adjust his breath and emotions.

"However, Mr. Tachibana, I'm the one who said something ugly before. Even I, Inoya and Ushiyama, know very little about Takayuki."

"If my answer later does not satisfy you, please forgive me. I have tried my best."

As Arima spoke, he slowly raised his head and stared at the ceiling above his head, as if reminiscing.

"The beginning of everything... must start with a report three years ago."

"I remember... it was March of the fifth year of the Ansei period (1858). A teacher who was teaching in a private school came to the Beiban Institute to report that his wife had been killed by an adulterer and asked us to provide him with justice.

"

"Tachibana-san, you used to be a member of the Beifan Institute, so you should know that if it is an ordinary case, it will be fine, but if it is a murder, the Institute cannot ignore it."

"Therefore, we quickly accepted the teacher's request and quickly dispatched manpower to investigate the case."

"And the person responsible for handling this case...is none other than Takashi!"

"Looking back now, it really echoes the old saying: All big events often begin with small events that can be seen everywhere in daily life."

"At that time, no one thought that the situation would turn out like that..."

"After taking over the murder case, Takahi started to act a little weird."

"I live in seclusion every day, keep silent, and have fewer interactions with people."

"When I asked him what he was busy with, he didn't answer."
To be continued...