Tokyo: From Lawless Madpolice to Minister
Chapter 296 - 278: National Day Celebration, Unity is Strength! (Vote for Monthly Ticket!)

Chapter 296: Chapter 278: National Day Celebration, Unity is Strength! (Vote for Monthly Ticket!)

Time was not just like the sand slipping through one’s fingers.

It felt more like the heavy conscience of my dear sister-in-law.

Impossible to grasp.

In a blink of an eye, it became October first.

"Rivers and mountains linger in my dreams; I haven’t been close to my homeland for many years, yet nothing can change my Chinese heart, even though I wear Western clothes..."

Early in the morning, with a gentle breeze, Xiu Xin Aoyama stood in front of a full-length mirror in his bedroom, meticulously tying a bright red tie to the sound of the melodious tune coming from the speakers.

On such a national holiday, it was hard for him, with a true Chinese heart, not to miss his hometown. Unable to return to the country, he chose to wear a red tie like his fellow compatriots across the sea to alleviate his homesickness.

It wasn’t easy fighting behind enemy lines during the war against Japan.

Today was Thursday, a workday by any standard.

But Xiu Xin Aoyama had given himself the day off.

It was, after all, the National Holiday.

After breakfast, Jin Yucheng drove him to a high-end tea room in Adachi District, which had been purchased by Xiu Xin Aoyama to serve as the headquarters of the Xiongcheng Association.

Renamed "Wind Lotus Elegant Garden".

He was the last to arrive, and when he walked into the hall, people had already filled the seats on both sides. There were several new faces since the establishment of the Xiongcheng Association.

Hashimoto Miho had recommended two judges from the Tokyo District Court; Yamada Yuuji had recommended a prosecutor from the Tokyo District Court’s Prosecution Service Department and one from the Criminal Department; Yagyu Tomon had recommended a Second-class Sea Captain who served as the vice captain of a certain vessel in the Maritime Self-Defense Force and the head of the Rescue and Security Department of the Maritime Security Bureau; Kimura Yakuo and four other bank employees also recommended some juniors.

The inclusion of these people’s profiles was first sent to Xiu Xin Aoyama for review. He used police forces to carry out the verification and then agreed to absorb them. He had personally recommended Yehua Yiren and Panasonic Jiezi to join the Association.

Neither Yamakawa Ichiro nor Zhao Qinghong had recommended anyone to join, knowing full well that it was already quite an achievement for two members of Violent Gangs to sit in on a meeting.

"Chairman, sir!"

Everyone rose and bowed in unison.

Xiu Xin Aoyama walked to the main seat and sat down, then raised his hand and pressed down, "Gentlemen, please be seated."

"Yes!" And with that, everyone orderly took their seats again.

Xiu Xin Aoyama, with a smile on his face, slowly scanned the crowd and said, "This is only the second internal meeting of the Xiongcheng Association, and we already have several new faces. This is a very good trend. Please, the new members, rise one by one and introduce yourselves."

The fledgling Xiongcheng Association was brimming with vitality!

"Yes!" A young man in his thirties, tall and dark-skinned, stood next to Yagyu Tomon and saluted military-style, "My name is Nakamori Hidekazu, a Second-class Sea Captain of the Maritime Self-Defense Force."

"My name is Yehua Yiren..."

As each member took turns to introduce themselves, it was finally Panasonic Jiezi’s turn, whom Xiu Xin Aoyama had personally recommended. He felt somewhat inferior.

After all, the people before him were only a few years apart in age, but each was either a judge, a military officer, or a prosecutor—only he was still unemployed.

Nevertheless, he bravely stood up, face flushed with embarrassment, and said, "My name is Panasonic Jiezi. I’m currently running a small company. I look forward to everyone’s support."

After speaking, he could feel all eyes on him, his face burning with heat.

Never before had he been so eager to improve.

Previously, his companions were all second-generation wealthy who relied on family connections and information asymmetries to make a quick buck and coast through life. He hadn’t felt anything was amiss, but now, among these true talents, he even felt that his joining had diluted the prestige of the Xiongcheng Association.

He also had a deeper and more direct understanding of Xiu Xin Aoyama’s strength. Even without the support of the Yanchuan Family, as the chairman of this political group, he was already quite a significant figure.

"Alright, Panasonic, take your seat. How long do you plan to stand?" Xiu Xin Aoyama gently reminded him.

Panasonic Jiezi then came back to his senses, bowed, and frantically took his seat, sitting up straight like a schoolchild, not even daring to breathe heavily.

Xiu Xin Aoyama had the organization’s badges distributed to the new members, and then continued, "At the first founding meeting, I mentioned that today we would vote for the heads of the various departments. As it is the establishment phase, some positions that are not immediately necessary will not be set."

"Today we will only select the chairman, vice-chairman, chief of affairs, deputy chief of affairs, the spokesperson representative, and the highest advisor—six positions in total. Each position is for a term of four years, with the possibility of re-election. I now nominate myself for the first chairman. Who approves, who objects?"

As soon as Xiu Xin Aoyama finished speaking, he raised his right hand.

Of course, no one objected. After all, they were all gathered because of him. As soon as he finished speaking, they all showed their support by raising their right hands.

"Excellent, I thank you all for your approval. I will not disappoint you." Xiu Xin Aoyama bowed slightly while supporting himself on his thighs and looked around, "Please feel free to campaign for the remaining vacancies. Take turns coming to the stage to express your ideas and earn support for your election."

Even though the Xiongcheng Association wasn’t large, and the elections were internal, the competition was still fierce. It went on from morning until the afternoon before all the positions were filled.

The vice-chairman was Hashimoto Miho, who had a husband that was the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and herself might take up the post of the Deputy Chief Justice of the Tokyo District Court.

The chief of affairs was Kimura Yakuo, acting like the housekeeper of the Xiongcheng Association, managing everything. This position was very important, requiring not only outstanding organizational and leadership skills but also wide-ranging connections.

The deputy chief of affairs was taken on by Yamada Yuuji, while the newly joined Nakamori Hidekazu and Chief Editor Saihara Ichiro from Asahi News Political Department became advisors. The role of spokesperson representative was granted to Yagyu Tomon, whose father was a Major General.

The Xiongcheng Association didn’t have a single member of parliament and didn’t compete for political seats. Currently, it was a non-public secret society and didn’t need to make public statements in the name of the organization, so the spokesperson representative position was essentially just a title at the moment.

It was specifically set up to appease Yagyu Tomon.

With Aoyama Xiu Xin’s support, Yehua Yiren also received a position: asset manager, specifically responsible for managing the businesses invested in by the Xiongcheng Association.

After all, the organization needed money to run, and Aoyama Xiu Xin couldn’t always pay out of his own pocket to sustain it.

Therefore, each member had to pay a considerable membership fee as the initial capital, and Yehua Yiren would use this money to do business. The profit earned would leave a portion for maintaining the operation of the Xiongcheng Association, and the remaining surplus would be used as an annual bonus for members as part of their welfare.

After the key leadership positions had been decided internally, additional nuanced positions could be added as the number of members increased. The next step was to discuss the official business.

"Gentlemen, the purpose of establishing the Xiongcheng Association is to gather a group of young comrades who see the revitalization of the nation as their own duty. We aim to help each other, unite wholeheartedly, and progress together. Hence, if a member faces difficulties, we will support them from all sides!"

"Now, we have an opportunity that tests our fledgling organization right in front of us. Mr. Panasonic’s grandfather was once a Cabinet Minister. As his grandson, he should have inherited the old man’s resources, but unfortunately..."

Aoyama Xiu Xin briefly recounted the disagreement within the Panasonic family, then concluded, "We should help him preserve what belongs to him, shouldn’t we?"

"Right, President! Your point is valid! Since Mr. Panasonic is a member of the Xiongcheng Association, he is as close to us as a brother. There is absolutely no reason for us to stand by idly."

"Indeed, no matter if he’s a Supreme Court Justice, anyone who dares to bully a member of our Xiongcheng Association must pay a price!"

"We should rightfully defend everything..."

Everyone voiced their agreement, as they all hoped that other members would extend a helping hand when they themselves encountered trouble. Moreover, aiding Panasonic Jiezi in the struggle for inheritance rights was also a defense of the organization’s interests.

As part of the organization, each person’s individual strength could be seen as the strength of the organization, so if Panasonic Jiezi were to inherit the family business, he could reciprocate and benefit the Xiongcheng Association.

"So, I leave everything in your hands!"

Panasonic Jiezi, overwhelmed with emotion, stood up and bowed deeply at ninety degrees, profoundly moved by the warmth of the organization.

"Since there are no objections, as the saying goes, ’two heads are better than one,’ so please, everyone, put our heads together and come up with a plan. With elites from every department here, we can flawlessly execute any plan."

"But we must be careful about one thing—Panasonic Jun has the capability to fight to the death, so when we take action against him, it must be lethal, leaving him no chance to resist!"

Aoyama Xiu Xin’s words fell, and he picked up the teacup to pour and drink for himself, watching the wise men below discussing strategies.

Some furrowed their brows, lost in thought, while others gathered in small groups to discuss among themselves. The atmosphere was fervent, and everyone was highly motivated.

"Gentlemen, I do have an idea."

Kikumura Yakuo raised his voice and said.

In that instant, the noise gradually dissipated, and all eyes turned toward him, waiting for his next words.

"Gentlemen, as our president said, we have gathered elites from various departments here, and we’ve penetrated the entire judicial chain. If we truly want to take down someone, it doesn’t have to be too complicated; the simplest method is often the most effective."

With a slight smile and a look of supreme confidence, Kikumura Yakuo spoke loudly, "Just plant a box of money in his car, our president will take care of the arrest, our honorable prosecutors will stamp it, Judge Hashimoto will handle the trial, and Chief Editor Cangji will stir up public opinion. The entire case could be processed in less than three days. Prevent him from seeing anyone before the trial so he won’t have a chance to struggle."

"At the same time, threaten him with his only son, so he won’t dare to speak out of turn in court. We shouldn’t set the crime too serious; we should give him hope of being released within his lifetime to reunite with his son—sentence him to a year or half a year. By the time he gets out, it will all be over."

As he finished speaking, the room fell silent. Everyone was stunned by this straightforward and brutal method, but upon further consideration, it seemed feasible. After all, they could control everything from Police Headquarters to the local prosecution to the courts.

Judicial independence of the three branches exists to prevent wrongful cases, but what if they colluded?

They had the power to shape public opinion and had Violent Gangs do the dirty work, able to set up Panasonic Jun clearly and cleanly. As long as they acted quickly to establish a fait accompli, it would be too late for anyone to save him.

Moreover, the previous competition for the position of Chief Justice had already made Panasonic Jun offend many people and expended a lot of his social capital. As long as they could control Panasonic Qingyun to ensure that Panasonic Jun did not speak out, those who had dealings with him would likely remain detached if they didn’t feel threatened.

Through Kikumura Yakuo’s explanation, everyone realized the power of the organization was immense. It would be difficult for any one of them alone to take down Panasonic Jun, but if everyone worked together, it would be easy.

Today they could use this method against Panasonic Jun; tomorrow, they could use it against their own rivals.

All supported each other as their status rose steadily, and the higher the personal position, the stronger the organization’s power.

"Gentlemen, unity is strength!"

Aoyama Xiu Xin spoke earnestly.

At this moment, his red tie appeared even more dazzling.

Everyone nodded deeply, moved by the sentiment.

Being an official still meant that facing the future was all about sticking together as a group.

"Dingling ling! Dingling ling!"

A sudden ring of the phone broke the silence, and immediately everyone held their breath, not making a sound.

"Moshi moshi, this is Aoyama Xiu Xin."

Aoyama Xiu Xin casually picked up the phone.

"Police Headquarters, this is Nozaki Cangjian."

Hearing this name, Aoyama Xiu Xin was momentarily confused before he remembered who it was. To be frank, he had almost forgotten about this undercover operative he had let loose to fend for himself.

That’s why it’s crucial to keep in touch with leaders; after all, with their myriad of responsibilities, it’s impossible for them to remember every subordinate.