When Naoto Ohshima returned home, his first action was to take a shower since his pants still reeked of urine that even he found it hard to bear. After he finished his shower, he came to the window and subconsciously opened it. When he looked at the opposite street, he suddenly felt a chill traveling down his spine. There’s a black van keeping him under surveillance.
“Those bastards!” Naoto Ohshima softly roared. He didn’t dare to curse loudly since he feared that he might provoke them, and it wouldn’t do him any good.
He considered his life to be more valuable than them, not to mention that there weren’t any death sentences in the country. So if he was murdered, wouldn’t his death be worthless?
Naoto Ohshima went to search his dirty clothes and found a folder before he went down and knocked on his father’s door.
His father, Yuji Ohshima, was already asleep. When he was startled awake by the noise, he sat up and solemnly asked, “What’s wrong?”
“I have something that I would like to discuss with you.” Naoto Ohshima replied.
Yuji Ohshima unhappily snorted before he casually draped something on and opened the door. After sweeping a glance at his son, he faintly said, “Let’s talk in the living room!”
After following his father to the living room, Naoto Ohshima handed a folder over. “Please take a look at this.”
When Yuji Ohshima casually swept a glance at it, his brows immediately locked together and exclaimed, “How did you get such classified data?”
Naturally, Naoto Ohshima couldn’t speak the truth, so he brushed it over, “A friend of mine found it. It belongs to the Chinese medicine research facility, and it turns out that the facility actually earns so much money. Oida Yoshikawa has been embezzling money, and he has several villas abroad. Furthermore, his trusted aide, Yu Omuri, has been acting overbearingly in the research facility, relying on the backing of Oida Yoshikawa to bully others. Many people have secretly filed a complaint against him, but they were all suppressed by Oida Yoshikawa.”
Yuji Ohshima slapped on his thigh and laughed out, “You’ve done well this time. Oida Yoshikawa, that old fogey, rejected my requests several times in the meeting, making me embarrassed. This time, I can make use of this and turn the tables around!”
Seeing that his father had approved of this plan, Naoto Ohshima felt more relieved in his heart. He knew that his father did not have a good relationship with Oida Yoshikawa, and he could make use of this as a breakthrough.
“What about Yu Omuri?” He asked.
“Yu Omuri is just a disposable chess piece. If we want to remove all of Oida Yoshikawa’s influences on the Chinese medicine research facility, we will have to remove everyone related to him.” Yuji Ohshima said before he curiously looked at Naoto Ohshima. “Why does it seem that you have a grudge with Yu Omuri? Just what exactly happened between the two of you?”
Naoto Ohshima naturally knew that he couldn’t hide it from his father, so he locked his brows together. “According to what I know, he has an improper relationship with a pornographic film actress. I hate people like him the most. As doctors, he should have the basic moral standard, and someone like him who has an unconventional lifestyle is a disgrace to our hospital.”
Nodding his head, Yuji Ohshima solemnly said, “I see… As doctors, we should be mindful of our words and actions. If this matter got out to the public, it would damage the image of our hospital, and it might even cause the public to doubt our hospital. Regardless of whether it's official or personal, Yu Omuri does not have any qualifications to remain in the hospital any longer.”
After Naoto Ohshima left the living room, Yuji Ohshima gave a call to a few colleagues that he was friendly with. As the Vice-President of the hospital who’s responsible for the disciplinary department, Yuji Ohshima naturally had the authority to investigate Oida Yoshikawa. However, he had to prepare his men if he wanted to catch Oida Yoshikawa by surprise without any means of retaliation.
The next morning, everyone in the hospital heard an astonishing piece of news. Oida Yoshikawa, who had toiled in the hospital for decades, was currently being investigated.
Oida Yoshikawa had a decent reputation, so everyone felt unbelievable when they heard that he’s currently suspected of embezzlement.
But the facts speak louder than words. Oida Yoshikawa did not do a clean job and was caught by Yuji Ohshima. He then confessed to his deeds under interrogation. It was an incident that sent out a massive shock wave in Kyoto’s medical field.
In the end, Oida Yoshikawa was suspended from his duties as Vice-President and was handed over for investigation.
Japan did not have organisations such as the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, Anti-Corruption Bureau, or Independent Commission Against Corruption. However, they have always managed anti-corruption well. They had an investigation department that targeted corruption cases in Japan. Since Oida Yoshikawa was a civil servant, he was handed over to them for investigation.
Oida Yoshikawa’s arrest caused a huge wave. He actually embezzled USD$50,000,000 from the Chinese medicine research facility. No one expected that a neglected industry could contain such an astonishing business opportunity.
Due to Chinese medicine being spread out in public and its usage being acknowledged by many patients, Oida Yoshikawa relied on his connections with several large pharmacies in other countries to sell them at a low price while obtaining a commission in the process. Even the executives of the hospital did not expect that the worth of Chinese medicine would be much higher than western medicines in the international market. Thus, they had no idea that Oida Yoshikawa had embezzled so much money and became a multi-millionaire.
Along with Oida Yoshikawa’s arrest, the Chinese medicine research facility affiliated to the hospital was also affected. The first person to be involved would be Yu Omuri, who’s the trusted aide of Oida Yoshikawa. He did not even receive a call and was only informed that the hospital had fired him.
Compared to his unemployment, Yu Omuri felt more pain when he got to know Oida Yoshikawa’s true face. He never expected that the person who scouted him would turn out to be a sanctimonious hypocrite.
Yu Omuri had also suspected that Oida Yoshikawa was framed, to which he even visited the prison. However, Oida Yoshikawa had calmly revealed the truth to him, destroying his world.
When he came out of prison, Yu Omuri felt drifted.
He walked on the streets, gardens, shopping malls, and districts. Before he came to realise, it was already late at night.
His ideals, ambitions, career, and prospects all made Yu Omuri feel bitter pain, and only by strolling around would that pain ease a bit.
When he arrived at his rented apartment, there’s a restaurant called Late Night Dining. He often fills his stomach there when he comes back late at night. The owner had a knife scar beneath his eye, a person with stories.
Pushing the door open, the interior was warm and old, lit with dusky lights. The restaurant wasn’t big, and there were only a few tables and chairs at the center of it, with wooden chopsticks and condiments on the table. The menu only had Pork Miso Soup Set Meal, but the owner could make dishes based on the customer’s request.
“Doctor Omuri, you’re here!” The owner was a middle-aged man, donned in a loose blue shirt with a white towel around his neck. His hair and mustache were somewhat messy and he had a half-circle scar near his left eye. He looked extremely amicable when he smiled, and his food was great as well.
“Boss, what’s on the menu today?” Yu Omuri squeezed out a smile.
“I’ll make you a Roasted Mackerel.” The owner made a check on the ingredients and started to get busy. At this moment, the door was opened. When the owner took a glance at the newcomer, he was somewhat surprised since it was an unfamiliar young man. His restaurant relied on word of mouth for customers, and most new customers were usually brought by his long-time customers.
Yu Omuri felt a figure before him so he subconsciously looked up. But when he did, he was shocked before he exclaimed, “Mr. Su!”
“What’s wrong? Surprised?” Su Tao smiled.
Nodding his head, Yu Omuri sighed, “It’s truly a surprise for me to see you here.”
Glancing at Yu Omuri, Su Tao smiled. “I already know about your situation, so I wanted to come and take a look at you.”
“I’ve now become a laughingstock in the eyes of many people.” Yu Omuri gave a complicated glance at Su Tao.
“Nope, you’re not!” Su Tao seriously said before he continued, “I think you should look at it in another way. Oh, aren’t you curious why I know so much about you?”
“Uh…” Yu Omuri only reacted after Su Tao’s reminder. He wasn’t someone who’s proficient in guessing the thoughts of others, so he subconsciously asked, “Why?”
“Because I have been paying attention to you. I know that you’re extremely capable in your research in Chinese medicine. I intend to set up a medicine factory, and I need someone as talented as you.” Su Tao smiled before he continued, “Based on your current state, I have to admit that I’m somewhat pleased because it allowed me to invite you as my partner.”
“You want to hire me?” Yu Omuri looked at Su Tao in shock.
“Not hire, but set up a business together. Our relationship will not be that of an employer and employee, but partners.” Su Tao smiled as he continued, “Then again, it might not be an easy choice for you since you’re required to leave your hometown to start anew.”
Yu Omuri instantly fell into hesitation. He might be filled with feelings for China, but it’s a difficult choice to ask him to leave his hometown.
When Yu Omuri heard Su Tao’s words, he did not reply for a long time and hesitated. When Su Tao took out a few notes, he smiled as he looked at the owner. “The food you make is delicious and warm.”
However, the owner couldn’t understand Mandarin so he looked at Su Tao in a loss.
Letting out a sigh, Yu Omuri could only squeeze out a smile and translate for the owner.
Hearing those words, the owner grinned with his pearly teeth revealed. It felt satisfying for him that he could garner the praise from a foreigner.
When Su Tao left the restaurant, he flagged a cab. After entering the vehicle, he gave a call to Ni Jingqiu and sighed, “As you’ve said, we still need Natsuki Sakamoto to persuade him. Otherwise, it won’t be possible to convince him.”
Ni Jingqiu was lying on her bed and rubbed her eyes and as she yawned, “The power of love is the greatest. It can destroy the heavens and earth, and it’s also a poison that can cause someone to lose their rationale!”
