Conan: I'm a zaibatsu in Tokyo

“Brother,” Vodka said, “I’ve met Gil’s attending physician.”

"explain."

"The doctor said Kiel's injuries are much less serious than expected." Vodka stared at the words on the report, his tone tinged with disbelief.

"Although the full-body bandages looked serious, it was actually just a mild concussion and a few soft tissue contusions. The doctors even suspected she had a mental disorder."

Vodka continued, "I secretly took Subaru Okiya to check the wreckage of her car, and there wasn't a single sign of tampering. Brother, she definitely crashed it on purpose. She deliberately veered off the road and crashed into a roadside utility pole at full speed."

"Why?" Gin's voice lowered, carrying a hint of danger.

Vodka took a deep breath: "She probably doesn't want to do the task you gave her, brother."

Gin fell silent.

“Brother,” Vodka’s voice was even lower, “Kil is scared. She’d rather crash and end up in the hospital than face Zheng Yi.”

Gin slowly exhaled a puff of smoke.

He leaned back in the driver's seat of the Porsche 356A, a fleeting, unfathomable emotion flashing in his eyes for the first time.

Kiel never flinched when facing the FBI's gun.

And now, out of fear of Zheng Yi, she has chosen to harm herself.

"Shoichi," Gin murmured the name.

He then thought of Chianti and Cohen.

These two people are in a similar situation to Kiel.

Although these two did not harm themselves, after being injured by Zheng Yi, they delayed their healing time in order to avoid facing Zheng Yi.

Gin realized that Shoichi was more troublesome than he had imagined.

Even if he does nothing, it is enough to instill fear in the organization's codenamed members, making them dare not oppose him.

Come to think of it, even he couldn't do these things.

Perhaps those codenamed members are afraid of him, but definitely not to the extent that Zheng Yi is.

Gin closed his eyes, and the image of Shoichi's ambiguous smile appeared in his mind.

That man didn't even need to lift a finger; a single glance or a single word was enough to make a well-trained assassin from an organization willing to break his own bones rather than get close.

“Brother,” Vodka asked tentatively, “What about Kiel…”

"Let her stay here." Gin's voice suddenly turned cold: "Tell her that since she's so scared, she should stay in the ICU and not come out."

Gin doesn't know what use this cowardly piece of trash is anymore.

Sending her to deal with Zheng Yi would be a joke.

Even if she were forced to go, it wouldn't harm Zheng Yi at all; it would only make Ji Er feel resistant towards him.

Gin paused, a hint of mockery in his voice: "At least she's pretending to be half-dead, so Shoichi won't hold it against her."

Vodka nodded quickly: "Yes, brother!"

The black Porsche 356A has been turned off.

Gin leaned back in the driver's seat, a cigarette between his fingers.

He was thinking about something.

Since Gil is so afraid of Zheng Yi that she would rather crash into the ICU than face that man, what about the undercover team under her command?
Those rats who were directly led by Kiel and had been lurking in Zheng Yi Company for a long time were probably already permeated with Kiel's fear.

Gin's lips curled into a cold smile.

Are you expecting this bunch of terrified cowards to deal with Zhengyi?

That's utterly delusional.

Even if they still remember their loyalty to the organization, they would be so terrified that their legs would tremble when they walk if they received orders to target Zheng Yi.

They would likely be just like Gil, preferring to hurt themselves and end up in the hospital rather than risk offending Zheng Yi.

Vodka.

Vodka shuddered and immediately straightened his back: "Big brother, I'm here."

Gin stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray: "Withdraw the entire undercover team under Kiel from Zheng Yi's company. Leave no one alive."

Vodka paused for a moment, "Brother, those people had a hard time getting in."

As the Justice Group grows larger, it becomes increasingly difficult to become a member.

Moreover, because the company is developing rapidly, those who have been with the company for a while have already reached good positions.

Gin said, "So what if you manage to get a decent position? If you don't dare to cause trouble for Shoichi, aren't you just working for him?"

The organization trains so many members, not to have them work for Zhengyi.

Vodka asked cautiously, "Brother, where will they be placed after they withdraw?"

“You can throw him anywhere,” Gin said impatiently. “Osaka, Okinawa, or even going to the countryside to farm is better than staying by Shoichi’s side as a good-for-nothing.”

Tell those idiots that if they dare to leak even a whisper of their retreat, I'll personally send them to hell without Zheng Yi even lifting a finger.

To be honest, Gin didn't think Shoichi would take action against these people.

They are all loyal servants of Zhengyi, so why would Zhengyi attack them?
Gin's concern is that Shoichi might try to take back the oxen and horses that have escaped.

"Yes, brother!" Vodka quickly bent down and started typing rapidly on his encrypted phone.

Gin leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.

Meanwhile, when Rena Mizunashi learned that Gin had actually withdrawn the entire undercover team, she was puzzled.

Gin was the one who wanted to plant spies, so why did he suddenly remove them all?

Has Gin completely given up on the idea of ​​planting spies within Zheng Yi Company?

If that's the case, she won't have to be caught in the middle of the two of them anymore, living in constant fear.

……

Zheng Yi had just finished preparing a cake when his phone screen lit up.

He glanced at it and saw it was a message from Rena Mizunashi.

The undercover team has completely withdrawn; Gin personally gave the order, and they have been sent to the Osaka base.

Zheng Yi looked at the message and tapped his fingers lightly on the table.

What undercover team?
It took Zheng Yi a while to remember that Gin had indeed planted an undercover team in the company, led by Rena Mizunashi.

But nothing was done, and Zheng Yi almost forgot about it.

But when I heard the news again, it wasn't that it had caused any damage to the company; it was that Gin had actually removed his people.

He picked up his phone and dialed Rena Mizunashi's number.

"Speak," Zheng Yi asked, "Why did Gin suddenly withdraw his men?"

On the other end of the phone, Rena Mizunashi's voice sounded weak: "Gin believes that the loyalty of my men is questionable."

"Loyalty questionable?" Zheng Yi raised an eyebrow.

“It’s not just that,” Rena Mizunashi said, still feigning weakness. “Gin thinks they’ve been following me for too long and have been infected by my fear. He believes that even if those people still remember their loyalty to the organization, they wouldn’t dare to lay a hand on you.”

Zheng Yi remained silent for two seconds.

Am I that scary?

Gin actually withdrew his men because he was afraid of me.

He always thought he was quite kind and approachable, always smiling at people, so why would he be afraid of me?
Is it all because of those baseless rumors? Oh, those rumors certainly have been enough.

"Contagious?" Zheng Yi repeated the word. "That's what Gin said?"

“Yes.” Rena Mizunashi’s tone carried a hint of helplessness: “He said that relying on a bunch of cowardly people dominated by fear to deal with you is like hoping that pigs can fly.”

Of course, Gin wouldn't say that.

This was all done by Rena Mizunashi to embellish Gin's image.

Shoichi also didn't understand Gin's behavior.

“Kir.” Zheng Yi suddenly spoke, his tone becoming more serious, “There’s another reason why Gin withdrew his undercover agents.”

Rena Mizunashi was taken aback: "What?"

“He felt that there was no need for us to test each other,” Zheng Yi said. “Or perhaps he finally realized that I and the organization were truly of one mind.”

There was silence for a few seconds on the other end of the phone.

“Shoichi.” Rena Mizunashi’s voice was strange: “Do you really think so?”

She felt that Zheng Yi was talking nonsense.

How could Gin possibly believe that you and the organization are of one mind? Or that you and Gin are of one mind?
No one in the organization would think that way.

But Rena Mizunashi wouldn't refute Shoichi.

Let him think whatever he wants, as long as he's happy.

Zheng Yi believed his guess was reasonable.

Besides the fact that Gin knew he was truly of one mind with the organization, and therefore completely trusted him and felt there was no need to go to the trouble of infiltrating him, were there any other reasons?
As for things like the fear of infection, you absolutely cannot believe them.

Rena Mizunashi and those undercover agents never met in person, so how could she have contracted the virus?

Furthermore, Gin hasn't met with those undercover agents, so he doesn't know the specifics and won't easily remove the members who have been undercover for a long time.

Therefore, Gin must know that he is a loyalist of the organization.

If that's the case, then Gin is being sensible.

But the more Zheng Yi thought about it, the more uneasy he felt, and a strong sense of dissatisfaction welled up inside him.

Since Gin trusts him so much and believes he is absolutely loyal, why not just keep those undercover agents and use them as normal laborers?
You should know that Zheng Yi Company is known as a "conscientious capitalist".

Now that those undercover agents have infiltrated, how can we live up to their glorious identity as undercover agents if we don't squeeze every last drop of value out of them?

Think of Bourbon.

Those who infiltrate the organization work like crazy, so why can't these undercover agents in my company do the same?

Gin, however, simply dismissed everyone with a single sentence!

Zheng Yi leaned back in his chair, tapping his fingers impatiently on the table.

However, what made Zheng Yi quite happy was...

"These guys, they actually left without even collecting their wages for this month?"

When has He Zhengyi ever mistreated his employees?

Even if you're an undercover agent, as long as you clock in on time, don't slack off, and work hard, you'll still get your full salary.

As a result, these people did just that. With a single order from Gin, they abandoned their wages and ran away.
This made Zheng Yi feel that his personality had been insulted.

He's a respectable official, how could he not even afford to pay this little bit of salary?
"Gin is really going too far, making it impossible for me to even pay salaries."

Zheng Yi muttered a complaint under his breath, his tone full of heartache.

He picked up his phone and sent a message to the legal department:
"We sued those employees who suddenly resigned. They left without saying goodbye, causing business problems and serious losses to the company. We must demand compensation from them."

Shoichi rubbed his temples, feeling that Gin was too despicable.

His move to withdraw his troops resulted in a huge loss for Zheng Yi.

Well, since he's already gone, there's nothing he can do about it.

However, he remembered this debt.

Gin owes me several outstanding employees, and if he doesn't pay them back, I'll have to settle the debt myself.

Ai was nestled on the sofa, holding a freshly brewed cup of hot coffee in her hand, with a plate of freshly baked cookies next to her.

She exuded a lazy and comfortable aura.

It's obvious at a glance that she didn't go to the lab to work again today; it was another day of complete laziness for her.

Zheng Yi sat on the single sofa opposite her and recounted in detail what Gin had done today by withdrawing the undercover team, as well as his own speculations.

"Therefore, I suspect that Gin felt that I was truly of one mind with the organization and that he completely trusted me, so he felt there was no need to plant any more spies around me."

Masayuki looked at Ai and said, "What do you think, Ai?"

Ai raised her eyelids and stared at Masakazu for a full three seconds, as if he were an idiot.

Then, she let out an undisguised sneer.

"Oh."

"I think you're an idiot."

Shoichi's eyes turned dangerous, and Ai's disdain disappeared.

Before Zheng Yi's large hand pressed down on her head, Ai said:

"Gin withdrew those people not because he trusted you, but because he disliked you."

“He thinks those undercover agents are too useless. They’re no match for someone like you who is ‘skilled,’ ‘shrewd,’ and ‘remarkably perceptive,’ so it’s better to just withdraw them all.”

Ai used a lot of nice words, which made Shoichi quickly forget the "idiot" comment.

Zheng Yi nodded.

Ai Haibara truly lives up to her reputation as a genius scientist; she has excellent judgment and is very good at recognizing my strengths.

Zheng Yi slowly said, "In your eyes, whether Gin withdraws his undercover agents or not has absolutely nothing to do with whether I trust him or not?"

"Of course, it has nothing to do with each other." Ai picked up her coffee cup and gently blew on the steam.

"He planted an undercover agent in the company because you are too shrewd; he wanted to use the undercover agent against you."

"He withdrew the undercover agents because you're too shrewd; those agents were useless to you."

She took a sip of coffee and added, "Shoichi, Gin is really afraid of you."

Zheng Yi leaned back on the sofa, staring at the ceiling, and couldn't help but laugh out loud.

“Alright,” he said to Ai. “I think your analysis makes sense, and my guess was wrong.”

Ai nodded, gave him another look as if he were an idiot, and then lowered her head to continue eating her cookies.

People have to bow their heads under the roof.

Zheng Yi, that bastard, has no respect for elders or care for the young, and loves to bully me, this 'little kid'.

Zhengyi glanced at Xiao Ai with a regretful expression.

How did Ai become like this? How can she be so obsequious to me? I can't even find a reason to bully her anymore.

Zheng Yi suddenly said, "Ai, did you just call me an idiot?"

"what?"

Before Ai could even retort, Masakazu pulled her into his arms. (End of Chapter)