Chapter 66: He Was Already a Qualified Grand Lord

“Is that so?” Aoyama Hidenobu smiled.

He first turned around and locked the door to the hospital room, then walked unhurriedly toward Yamamoto Sho, who was lying on the bed.

“What are you doing!” Mrs. Yamamoto quickly got up and stood in his way.

With a swift motion, Aoyama Hidenobu raised his hand and slapped her.

“Ah!” Mrs. Yamamoto cried out in pain, falling directly onto the bed. Clutching her face, she glared at Aoyama Hidenobu with venom and disbelief, her voice sharp as she demanded, “You even hit an old woman?”

“How novel. When have we, the devils, ever hesitated to harm the old and the young?” Aoyama Hidenobu sneered, grabbing her hair and lifting her up. “You old bat, you knew about your son assaulting my sister-in-law, didn’t you? You stayed out of the flower shop to give him the opportunity, and you were keeping watch outside for him, weren’t you?”

He was now a proper officer.

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Yamamoto’s face flashed with panic, quickly masked. “What nonsense are you spouting? I… I wouldn’t…”

“Baka! So it’s true!” Aoyama Hidenobu’s face twisted with anger, his words ground out between clenched teeth.

When he heard Seiko Aoyama describe what happened, he felt something was off, so he suspected and decided to try bluffing Mrs. Yamamoto. The old woman, though wicked, had no depth. His aggressive bluff had forced out the truth.

“Let go of my mother!” Yamamoto Sho shouted.

Aoyama Hidenobu glanced at him and released his grip.

Mrs. Yamamoto, dropped from his grasp, fell heavily to the floor and howled in pain. “My leg!”

“Baka yarou!” Yamamoto Sho cursed at Aoyama Hidenobu, then hurried to check on his mother. “Mom, are you alright? Are you hurt?”

“You were the one who asked me to let go,” Aoyama Hidenobu said with a smirk. Then he stepped forward, seized Yamamoto Sho’s hair, and with his other hand produced his badge, slapping it against Sho’s face. “Before you toad dream of eating swan meat, you should know who owns the swan. I am a detective inspector with the Metropolitan Police Department, and my elder brother is a Saitama prefectural councilman. You must be sick of living!”

Though a prefectural councilman was insignificant in official circles, it was enough to intimidate ordinary people.

As expected, the Yamamoto mother and son were panicked. Seiko Aoyama had never mentioned her family situation; they only knew she was married, not that her relatives held office.

“So what if you’re an inspector? The law still applies! She stabbed me, not the other way around—what proof do you have that I assaulted her?” Yamamoto Sho forced himself to stay calm, meeting Aoyama Hidenobu’s gaze, his neck stiff with defiance.

Mrs. Yamamoto, too, deployed the universal skill of elders everywhere, beginning to rant and wail, “Officials can’t bully people! There’s no justice left! We’re the victims here, and you’re framing us as perpetrators without evidence. If you dare, I’ll go to the palace gates and appeal for the emperor’s judgment!”

“Go ahead, do it.” Aoyama Hidenobu released Yamamoto Sho, then pressed the sole of his shoe against Mrs. Yamamoto’s face, his voice icy. “Old hag, at worst my sister-in-law spends two years inside, but let’s see if your promiscuous son doesn’t end up hacked to pieces by the yakuza, if your flower shop isn’t smashed every few days, if your house doesn’t get set on fire at night. Want to try it?”

“Fight me? Baka yarou! You don’t even know your place—two troublesome peasants, I can crush you with a flick of my finger! Truly senseless!”

Mrs. Yamamoto and her son were stunned into silence, sweat pouring from their faces as they stared at Aoyama Hidenobu’s cruel, twisted expression.

“I’ll handle the police. You two keep quiet, pretend nothing happened. Any objections?” Seeing their terror, Aoyama Hidenobu withdrew his foot and spoke icily.

Pretend it never happened?

Of course not!

He simply wanted to keep them calm for now, so they wouldn’t make trouble. Once his sister-in-law was home, he would make them pay for their stupidity.

“No… no objections.” Yamamoto Sho was first to recover, trembling as he said, “I accidentally stabbed myself—Mrs. Aoyama had nothing to do with it. Yes, nothing to do with her. Mom, say something! Let’s just settle it here.”

People shouldn’t challenge authority, a rule ironclad everywhere.

“It’s settled, it’s settled.” Mrs. Yamamoto quickly echoed, trembling as she climbed up from the floor. “Inspector, we were too foolish. We don’t want compensation and won’t pursue it further. Please don’t hold it against us.”

She wasn’t afraid of the police, but she was terrified of the yakuza. Every month she paid protection fees, and she’d seen what happened to those who didn’t. She knew well their ruthlessness.

She was genuinely afraid her son would be murdered one day.

Having achieved his purpose, Aoyama Hidenobu wasted no more time in the hospital room. Without a backward glance, he slammed the door and left.

Bang!

As the door closed heavily, the mother and son shivered, finally able to breathe again.

“Mom, are you alright? Are you hurt anywhere?” Yamamoto Sho asked with concern.

“You should talk! This is all your fault!” Mrs. Yamamoto began to scold her son, grumbling, “Just like your damned father, always lustful. Seeing that little tramp drives you mad—otherwise, would I have suffered this?”

“I didn’t know she had officials in her family!” Yamamoto Sho felt aggrieved too, and blamed his mother, “Next time you hire part-timers, make sure you check their background, so we don’t end up in this mess. I’ll have nightmares because of this!”

Clearly, neither of them were first-timers. Mrs. Yamamoto recruited students and housewives as part-timers, essentially providing her son with prey to satisfy his animal desires. Those women were usually too afraid to report to the police, so nothing ever happened.

They never imagined they’d run into steel this time.

……………………………

Leaving the hospital, Aoyama Hidenobu drove toward Akasaka Police Station while calling Yamakawa Kazuki.

“This is Aoyama Hidenobu.”

“Yes, Mr. Aoyama. Please give your orders.”

“There’s a patient named Yamamoto Sho in Room 1506 at Okinawa First Hospital. Disable him from the waist down—his entire lower body. Also, I want his family’s flower shop.” Aoyama Hidenobu spoke with cold indifference.

He didn’t kill Yamamoto Sho because, after all, he hadn’t succeeded in his crime, so it wasn’t necessary to kill him yet. Besides, if he were to kill Sho, Mrs. Yamamoto would have to die as well. Too risky for such a matter.

Crippling him for life was enough to vent his anger.

And leaving Sho alive would give Mrs. Yamamoto something to worry about; she wouldn’t dare make trouble if she had to care for her crippled son.

As for seizing the flower shop, it was compensation for his sister-in-law’s suffering.

Yamakawa Kazuki immediately agreed. “Understood!”

Violence was their business.

Maiming, extortion—such things were as easy as eating or drinking.

The Yamakawa family’s negotiations with the Noguchi group had ended yesterday, and they now had recognized territory in Tokyo, all thanks to Mr. Aoyama.

He’d do anything for him, even murder.

Otherwise, he couldn’t hope to keep what he had.

Aoyama Hidenobu hung up and focused on driving.

After all, talking on the phone while driving could endanger others’ lives and property—hadn’t he just made a call, and now Yamamoto Sho’s life and property were threatened?

Ten minutes later, he arrived at Akasaka Police Station.

“Aoyama-kun, how did it go? Was it smooth?” Watanabe Osamu asked with concern.

Aoyama Hidenobu laughed heartily. “Thanks to you, Watanabe-kun, very smooth. The Yamamoto mother and son were reasonable people, moved by my sincerity.”

“That’s good, that’s good.” Watanabe Osamu knew the Yamamotos were bound for trouble, but it was no concern of his. “Go fetch Mrs. Aoyama home, calm her down.”

Frankly, he couldn’t blame Yamamoto Sho for his desires—Seiko Aoyama was truly alluring! Petite yet sensuous, with an air of a respectable married woman.

“Alright, I’ll leave the rest to you, Watanabe-kun. Let’s have a drink tonight—I hope you won’t refuse.” Aoyama Hidenobu bowed solemnly.

Watanabe Osamu knew Aoyama Hidenobu was bringing him money tonight, so he smiled and agreed. “Since you’ve invited me so warmly, we won’t stop until we’re drunk.”

“Agreed, until we’re drunk. Farewell.” Aoyama returned his smile and left the office.

After several hours, Seiko Aoyama finally saw Aoyama Hidenobu again and breathed a sigh of relief.

“Hidenobu.” Her eyes were red; only she knew how tormenting the silent wait had been.

Though the police here had been polite, offering her coffee, pastries, and fruit.

“It’s over, sister-in-law. Let’s go home.” Aoyama Hidenobu smiled gently, extending a hand to her.

“Yes, yes, yes.” Seiko Aoyama was so moved, tears of joy streamed down her face. She nodded like a pecking chick, placing her small hand in Aoyama Hidenobu’s.

Then, realizing something, she quickly withdrew her hand, blushing as she lowered her head.

Aoyama Hidenobu chuckled, then turned and left the interrogation room. Seiko Aoyama followed him like a little shadow, head low, trailing in his footsteps.

“Sister-in-law, take off your clothes.”

Once home, Aoyama Hidenobu told her.

“What?” Seiko Aoyama’s beautiful eyes widened, both embarrassed and angry as she glared at him. “Hidenobu, you…”

“I don’t mean right now.” Aoyama Hidenobu felt his sister-in-law had been scared silly, even her gaze seemed clear and naïve. He explained, “Of course, take a shower and change clothes. There are blood stains—I'll burn them in the yard.”

“Oh, oh.” Seiko Aoyama realized her mistake, blushing even more. She muttered something about showering upstairs, then turned and ran.

She dashed up the stairs so fast that her skirt flew up, revealing her peach-shaped hips wrapped in flesh-toned stockings—a sight that Aoyama Hidenobu savored.

Soon, she came downstairs after her bath, wearing a cherry-blossom pink kimono and carrying the clothes she had just changed out of. She handed them to Aoyama Hidenobu, bowing deeply, “Sorry to trouble you again, Hidenobu.”

“Of course.” Aoyama Hidenobu took the bundle, finding not only the skirt but also a pair of warm stockings, blood-stained as well.

He grabbed a basin, poured gasoline, and burned all the evidence in the yard.

“Hidenobu, you have a phone call.”

Seiko Aoyama called from the doorway.

“Alright.” Aoyama Hidenobu took a last look at the roaring flames, then went inside, picked up the ringing phone, and answered. “Hello?”

“Aoyama-kun, this is Watanabe Osamu. I'm sorry, but there has been some development regarding your sister-in-law's case.”