People in Tokyo, the world is clear

Lin Sen didn't have time to think further.

Because, there was a gentle tap on the shoulder. Turning around, it was Coach Watanabe who looked at me with some respect.

"Xiao Lin, you know a lot about football."

He concludes.

Smart people get it right away, especially professionals like Toshiaki Watanabe who have spent most of their lives playing table tennis.

After coming back to his senses, he immediately realized the value of the fighting style that Xiao Niwa had just created:

"Could Niwa's fighting style be related to you?"

"Don't overestimate me."

Lin Sen immediately raised his hand in a French military salute, then patted the high school student on the back. "Strictly speaking, I'm just an agent helping arrange training matches. I only have a cursory theoretical understanding of table tennis. When Niwa hit that shot, I was much more shocked than you, Coach Watanabe."

The topic was cleverly brought back to the main subject.

"Incredible."

Coach Watanabe concluded his evaluation with this adjective.

Then he stood up and extended his hand to Lin Sen, who also realized something and stood up with the child beside him.

A silent handshake greeted him. Then, Coach Watanabe turned to Niwa Yuzuru, chest puffed out, expression serious, as if he were addressing a fellow table tennis player.

"I need to apologize, Niwa-san. I doubted your creativity and underestimated your desire to win. Although this match was not completed, you have earned my respect."

Applause erupted nearby. Leading the charge was a certain Ms. Aoyama, a cheerful, no-nonsense woman. Then came Assistant Coach Sato, the team doctor, and the rest of the team members.

Even Xiao Chiyo, whose eyes still had red marks from crying, opened her eyes with a complicated expression and raised her hands to applaud.

It seems that a high school student has gained recognition by relying on himself.

For some reason, it was a rather moving scene. So much so that Ms. Aoyama couldn't help but come closer, put her arms around Niwa Yuzuru's shoulders, and half-hug the child.

Listen to Toshiaki Watanabe's final, decisive statement:

"Now, as the coach and club director, I formally invite you to join my youth training team, player Yuzuru Niwa."

Chapter 86: A Gift from Heaven (End of Volume)

"Look, Xiaolin, there's a beautiful woman!"

This was probably the third time Lin Sen heard someone make such a sound today.

At night in Tokyo, at the crossroads of the zebra crossing in Banqiao District, which is covered with graffiti, the glare from the shopping mall windows even blocks out the brightness of the street lights.

The light pollution that can make people dizzy does not stop there.

The roadside was jammed with taxis, their starting fares prohibitive. The chaotic businesspeople, shoulder to shoulder, were helping their most intoxicated companions, practically throwing them into the back seat.

Fortunately, a stylish woman crossed the nearby zebra crossing. Her cool white lace cape and matching vest were perfectly fitted. Her thin black skirt, paired with small leather boots, made her look slender and graceful. Though a woman, she still retained a touch of youthful spirit.

Just as they were marveling at the sight, a taxi that had just been loaded with the drunk corpse started up with two clicks, forming a wall with the other cars waiting to go, blocking the shadow. They started their horns and honked in a complacent manner to express their arrogance in their spoiling of the scene.

So the men and women walking together slapped their thighs almost at the same time.

"Eh!"

"unlucky!"

It’s a pity that cursing only vents anger but doesn’t solve the problem.

After passing the intersection of the business district and the subway station, the beautiful scenery on the other side of the water has long disappeared.

Qingshan Xiazhi looks the more unhappy one.

He put his hand on Lin Sen's shoulder and sighed.

"Forget it, forget it. What a bummer, these taxi drivers. This is probably why I hate and never take taxis."

"You say it like you're willing to give it up."

"Can you not be so blunt, you bastard?"

Miss Qingshan's defenses were instantly broken, and she began to laugh and punch Lin Sen's shoulder with her fist. "Really... people always have to find some excuse other than financial constraints. Can't you just obey me?"

"From what you're saying, you're dragging me to Citywalk for the atmosphere of urban life."

"That's not."

As if to support her statement, the girl with a ponytail put her hands behind her back and thrust out her chest, "Enjoying life in a fast-paced city, you know how to do it, but you don't know how to do it."

"I almost believed it."

But Ms. Aoyama is right on some level. Urban strolling is indeed a cultural symbol of Tokyo.

In this prosperous metropolis, the cost of living is so high it seems to have its own independent exchange rate. Even if you exclude those who come to Beijing to save money and only count the local Beijingers, it's still a bit too much to bear.

Taking a taxi to a nightclub is like slapping yourself in the face. While we enjoy the triumph of consumerism for a short period of time in January, there are also times when we need to surrender to life.

Thus, the custom of walking down the street in elaborate attire gradually emerged, emphasizing the importance of saving money and saving it for more tangible and valuable resources.

For example, the midnight snacks sold in the bakery shops on the street that are still busy baking in the evening.

The emphasis is on a Tokyo characteristic, with prices that would make the country bumpkins from other places frown, and even reach out to grab their companions' hands who are still trying to grab bread from the tray.

"Stop adding, stop adding... That's enough."

"Mood! Enjoyment! Far from enough!"

"Stop it!"

Ms. Aoyama is the kind of person who has never lost her thriftiness even in the Tokyo world of fame and fortune.

She randomly found a snack bar with good quality and low prices and sat down. She snatched Lin Sen's menu and ordered two of the cheapest sweet soups. She then snatched the paper bag that had just contained the bread, opened it skillfully, flipped it with her fingers, and soon folded out a simple folding paper fan and handed it over.

"I'm making the best use of it for you and compensating you for your losses!"

"I told you I treated you. Does Qingshan really care about my money so much?"

"Even other people's money doesn't just come from the wind without any effort."

"You're really good at living."

"But, speaking of which, it seems Kobayashi has become more affluent lately."

Miss Qingshan propped up her chin, glanced at the fragrant bread in the plastic bag that was pushed in front of her, and then stared at the young man who had opened the package and started to eat it.

"It's like this. One day, I was walking down the street when I suddenly met two old men with strange behavior. They invited me to their home, mysteriously gave me a large check, and then disappeared. After that, I had a sum of money."

Lin Sen answered calmly. Then, his arm was twisted.

"Then you went out eating and drinking, buying clothes and changing your wardrobe, and every time you had to pay, you took out that check. As a result, the restaurant owner and the tailor shop owner were so overawed by the domineering aura of your check that they bowed down to you. Not only did they not mind you for eating and wearing clothes that you didn't pay them back, they even respectfully invited you out."

"How did you know?"

"Because I also have the novel 'A Million Pound Bank Note' at home."

"You are so knowledgeable that I can't even challenge you. I surrender!"

Miss Qingshan rolled her eyes as a final response to the prank.

However, holding the expensive bread in her hand, she finally smiled.

There was genuine happiness on his face.

"so good."

This was the tenth time Ms. Aoyama had made such a sound today.

"Everyone around me seems to be getting better. Uncle Tiger is planning to sell his hugely profitable stocks and open a branch. Xiaolin no longer needs to work, and it seems that Xiao Niwa, whom I just met, can also earn his first youth training salary on his own."

"Everyone has a bright future, right?"

"Yes!"

"Qingshan, what about you? Work harder."

"Could you please stop bringing up such depressing topics in this kind of atmosphere?"

Miss Qingshan reached out and gave a gentle push.

Pout, then puff out your cheeks, then relax and scratch your face.

"Actually, if I said I wasn't envious, I'd be lying. But more than that, I'm definitely happy. Seeing everyone who works hard get good results... I can also comfort myself by saying, 'It's just bad luck!'"

The girl even patted her chest proudly and went on to say:

"Or, to be frank, admitting your lack of ability isn't that hard!"

After gradually becoming close friends, she became more and more open with Lin Sen about anything.

She was always so relaxed and optimistic. To the point that if it weren't for the dream she had one night when she was slightly drunk, one would have truly believed that this girl was so indestructible.

But no matter what, she always behaves bravely in the face of life.

"Actually, Tokyo at night is always very interesting. Has Kobayashi ever seen it?"

"Take me to broaden my horizons?"

Free skirt 0

"give it to me!"

I thought I would be taken to a bird's-eye view point with floor-to-ceiling windows in a high-rise building, or some blessed place where I could see beautiful lights and architectural patterns.

But unexpectedly, I was standing in an old street that was even ordinary and a bit boring.

If we have to say what is special about it, it probably comes from the people who gather together.

There are quite a lot of them, and they are quite diverse.

They gathered in front of a few retail stores that were still open, buying drinks and snacks that were a few cents cheaper than the city average. They leaned against the iron railings beside the sidewalk in groups of three or more, each forming their own group.

“When I first arrived in Tokyo, I loved coming here.”

Like a magician, the Qingshan girl took out a neatly folded old newspaper from her bag, unfolded it, and pulled Lin Sen to find a quiet place under the shade of a tree to sit down.

"A lot of young migrant workers, some elderly people with limited financial resources, and all sorts of people you'd never see in normal times all liked to gather here. This is a less developed area in Banqiao, with little commercial interest, so the Yakuza rarely came here to fight. As for me, I was feeling suffocated in my rented apartment at the time, ignorant and under immense pressure, so I kind of saw this as a place to relax and have some fun."

Halfway through her speech, Miss Qingshan lowered her voice and began to guide and help identify the people.

"Those guys drinking beer are from Kansai. The three over there are originally from Okinawa. The two laughing and joking with the beer shop owner are from Hokkaido, constantly bragging about how amazing Nakajima is from Sapporo. Those guys gathered over there playing chess are from the Chao clan who live nearby. This area is so safe at night, and there aren't any yakuza, so it's probably because of them."

This was a great opportunity for Lin Sen to gain some knowledge:

“There are so many tricks.”

But Ms. Aoyama’s sharing does not stop there.

She said that it was only after she came to Tokyo that she gradually understood the other side of this city.

This place is actually not like the TV news hanging in the hardware store next to my hometown in the countryside, which always has a hazy and dreamy feeling.

She also didn't live in the danchi house that was rumored to be available to everyone who came to Tokyo.

Even when I first arrived in this strange city, I often couldn't eat a cold dinner until seven or eight o'clock, and I had to hide in the corner of the second floor of a 24-hour self-service coffee shop to make do for the whole night.

She never told these to her family.

In the letters Qingshan wrote back, she always said that she was fine and there was no need to worry.

But time is always ruthless, like the rising and falling tides at the seaside, smoothing away all confidence, excitement, and enthusiasm.

Sometimes, even she herself might begin to doubt whether it was worth staying here.

"I would go into the 24-hour shopping malls, where the electricity never turned off, and look at the mannequins wearing clothes so thin they couldn't even buy them with a month's salary. Then I would stand in front of Tokyo Tower, where I couldn't see the end of it even if I looked up, and look at the strings of lights that stretched to the sky, feeling overwhelmed."

Probably, night is the most sensitive and sharp time.

Lin Sen quietly noticed that Miss Qingshan's voice seemed a little choked.

But she tried her best to hide it and did a good job.

He took a deep breath and exhaled a trembling smile:

"Xiao Lin! Do you have similar feelings? Yeah, at that time, I always felt that I and this broken guitar on my back were as insignificant and humorous as wild cicadas caught from the countryside and raised in the city. Buzzing and chirping to themselves, they were waved away by people."

"To be honest, absolutely. At the time, I felt that this city had nothing to do with me."

Lin Sen answered calmly.

He turned his head and met the gaze of the ponytailed girl who was blinking at him.