Chapter 22 The girl's heart is lonely

Buzz-buzz-

Fujii Itsuki put down the book and reached for the mobile phone on the bedside table. He glanced at the screen and saw that it was a call from the agent, so he answered the call.

"Hey."

[Hello!]
The person on the other end of the phone was very enthusiastic.

[Mr. Fujii! We have found the caregiver you are looking for. She is 46 years old, female, and a native of Otaru Shukutsu. It takes less than half an hour to walk to and from the welfare home you mentioned.]
Really fast.

Apart from anything else, this guy Nonaka is quite efficient.

"learn."

[that is]
Fujii Itsuki heard the hidden meaning in this guy's words, "Tell me, what's the problem?"

[This caregiver does not have a caregiver certificate and is not a real caregiver, so when signing the contract, some flexibility must be applied.]
In Japan, to work as a nursing assistant you usually need to meet certain regulations and qualification requirements, which is a certificate, which is equivalent to a nursing license and is very difficult to pass.

[Mr. Fujii, do you mind? It's not that I don't want to find better conditions for you, but the population of Otaru is so low right now. I'm sure you know the current situation.]
Indeed, there are not many people in Otaru now, so it is good enough to find someone willing to work in the welfare home.

understand.

“What are your salary requirements?”

[Her salary requirement is exactly what you said, 180,000, but insurance is not included.]
Fujii Itsuki nodded, "So what is her character like? Are there any additional requirements?"

[No, please rest assured, her character can be guaranteed, and she only asks to eat at the welfare home.]
This condition is acceptable.

"Okay, then. What time should I go there tomorrow? I'm not free during the day. You know what I've been doing lately. It's usually around 7 or 8 o'clock when I get back to Otaru at night."

[It's OK in the evening. I will work overtime and pick you up at your home in person. You bring the agency fee and sign the labor contract, and everything will be OK.]
"Row."

[Okay, fine then. I won’t disturb you, Mr. Fujii, and we’ll see you tomorrow.]
"Ah."

After hanging up the phone, Fujii Itsuki put down his phone, leaned on it, and calculated how many months his current money could help the welfare home.

The nurse earns 18 yuan a month. If social insurance is included, the monthly expenses are roughly 18 yuan.

With the 50 given by the Matsumae family and the more than 280 million that the dean saved for him, his current savings are more than 330 million.

This money can probably sustain the caregiver's work for 18 months.

This is the case when all savings are used to support caregivers, excluding living expenses.

Yesterday during the day when I was tutoring Miss Matsumae, Aunt Keiko called from the welfare home and said that the director only slept less than five hours a day for the children, doing the laundry and cooking, and it was too much work. She was already old, and if this continued, the director's body might not be able to hold on.

Therefore, it is necessary to help the welfare home hire caregivers.

But this is not a long-term solution.

This is because if Zhujin's economy had not improved in the past year or so, and the city government's funding remained so small, let alone funding for hiring new contract workers, the welfare home would most likely have to close down.

He couldn't bear to think that the orphanage where he had grown up and the director's decades of hard work had ended up like this.

After much thought, it still comes down to one word - money.

He currently has no good way to make money. With his identity and the knowledge he has, becoming a teacher again is indeed the best choice.

Taisho Tachibana Kita is a private college with a long history. If he could become a full-time employee there, his salary would definitely be high enough to cover his monthly expenses.

But for some reason, although he clearly didn't care whether he was a teacher again, when it came to going back to his old life, he felt a sense of resistance in his heart.

My new ideal was to open a cafe in Hokkaido, but due to money issues, there was no follow-up.

Fujii Itsuki looked up at the extravagantly carved ceiling in the house and was again troubled by the same question: Did he really return to Otaru just to open a cafe in Hokkaido in the future?
The next morning, Fujii Itsuki got up on time as usual, put on his suit, got in the Maybach that Nagayama Sakura drove to pick him up, and headed to the Matsumae Garden.

At the end of the year, it snows in Otaru even for a single day, and today it is all white.

"Has Mr. Fujii always lived alone in that house?"

"Why do you ask this, Mr. Yongshan?"

"Nothing, I'm just a little curious. I only saw Mr. Fujii in this big house when I came here a few days ago. Did Mr. Fujii ask someone to rent it?"

Fujii Itsuki heard the question from the driver's seat, stared at the wipers sliding on the window, and said softly:
"It's not like I live alone. There's also the landlord's daughter. But she's not at home these days."

".I see. Does Mr. Fujii have any relationship with the owner of the house?"

When Nagayama Sakura asked this, Fujii Itsuki suddenly realized that in history, the Matsumae family and the Kuka family had a close relationship.

The Matsumae family serves as the backing of the Kuka family, and the Kuka family serves as the Matsumae family's exclusive merchants, helping the Matsumae family communicate with local residents and conduct trade with foreign forces.

At that time, the two families often intermarried and had a very good relationship.

"No, Mr. Yongshan, you're overthinking it. I just met the landlord by chance. Through the relationship with the dean, I'm just staying here for a few days."

"I understand. Thank you Mr. Fujii for your patient answer."

After that, there was silence all the way.

Fujii Itsuki knew that Nagayama Sakura was trying to find out his background through chatting.

After all, Matsumae Shinharu is the eldest daughter of the Matsumae family and has a very high status.

The master of the Matsumae family seems to love his daughter very much, so this level of concern is understandable.

Fujii Itsuki had already prepared the papers that Matsumae Shinchun needed for her tutoring, so today's homework was still to do the exercises, and he would explain the parts she didn't understand.

This girl is truly a genius.

He hardly needed to repeat himself for her to understand the point.

"sharp."

"The teacher is so complimentary."

"Ms. Matsumae has basically never been ranked first in school, right?"

Matsumae Shinchun lowered her tear-stained brows and said, "I'm embarrassed to admit it, but it's true."

Fujii Itsuki was marking the homework, and he would basically circle the questions answered by Matsumae Shinharu with just a quick glance.

"All right. You are such a genius. Miss Matsumae, your aptitude for studying is just like your mother's." He couldn't help but sigh.

Matsumae Shinchun was stunned for a long time when he heard this, "Is mother very powerful?"

Fujii Itsuki smiled, "Ms. Matsumae, you are joking. Professor Fujinomiya's talent is recognized in the school. It's not just her literature. Her learning ability in other fields is also first-class. Professor Fujinomiya's works are deeply loved by the people in the Swedish Academy. Although they are not very famous in the public field, there was a popular saying in our Kyoto University that in a few decades, Professor Fujinomiya will probably have a place in the Nobel Prize for Literature."

"My mother is so amazing"

Fujii Itsuki felt strange.

Professor Matsumae passed away on a snowy day six years ago. Miss Matsumae was probably nine or almost ten years old at that time. She should have had a deep impression of her mother.

Matsumae Shinchun seemed to sense something, lowered his eyes, and spoke in a low voice:
"I know nothing about my mother."

"how come."

"As far as I can remember, my mother seldom came home, and when she did, she would only stay for a few days before leaving."

Matsumae Shinchun said, looking at the bookshelf, "My understanding of my mother comes mostly from her works. Those novels she wrote."

"."

Come to think of it, Professor Fujinomiya didn't talk much about her family.

Fujii Itsuki visited the professor's home before. The professor's home was just a small room of more than ten square meters, with a bookshelf and a workbench, but no family members.

Asked the professor if he was not married?

She just smiled and shook her head without much response.

Combining what Matsumae Shinharu said, Fujii Itsuki roughly understood that Professor Fujinomiya rarely returned to this home.

"What kind of person is my mother?" This sentence sounds a bit heartbreaking. She is so old, but she doesn't even know what kind of person her mother is.

Fujii Itsuki did not want to deceive Matsumae Shinharu, so he simply described the professor's image based on his own experiences.

"The professor is a very thoughtful person. She has a beautiful smile, is very kind to students' questions, and always gives patient guidance."

"Thoughtful?"

"I remember when I visited the professor's home, she prepared Gyokuro for me - a special green tea that is unique to Kyoto and I particularly like it. And Ms. Matsumae, you know, I had just entered university at that time, and I had just taken a class with her yesterday. I had known her for one day, and that day was also the first time I visited the professor.

"I later learned that she saw through the drinks I brought to class. There were dozens of people attending her class, but she still remembered me."

Of course, there is also the reason that the professor himself likes Gyokuro tea.

"anything else?"

"There's more"

Fujii Itsuki thought for a moment, "The professor is very frugal. She likes to buy eggs at half price in the supermarket. If she misses the sale time due to class, she will ask us to buy them for her. Of course, we students are happy to serve the professor because the knowledge and insights that the professor can impart to us are real."

"So mother is like this."

After hearing this, Matsumae Shinchun clutched the hem of her skirt with her little hands, lowered her head and laughed, her voice as thin as a mosquito's.

Fujii Itsuki knew that her voice, which was so low that it was almost inaudible, was not spoken to him, but was the voice of her own heart.

"Thank you very much, Mr. Fujii, for telling me this." Matsumae Shinchun stood up and was about to salute him formally.

Fujii Itsuki quickly stopped her, motioned her to sit down first, and replied with a smile:

"Not at all. It's my honor to tutor the professor's daughter. Ms. Matsumae, you don't have to be so polite to me all the time. It would be hard for me to get used to it."

"I see. Then you can just call me Matsumae. No need to use any other names."

"of course."

"If it's not too much trouble for Mr. Fujii, could you tell me more about my mother? I know this request is very unreasonable, but I am really grateful to Mr. Fujii for bringing me news about my mother. If you don't mind, I will also give Mr. Fujii some extra compensation."

Seeing that Matsumae Shinchun was about to stand up and salute again, Fujii Itsuki quickly stopped her and said:
"It's just a small favor. I don't need any extra compensation. I won't accept it even if you give it to me. After all, the professor has done me a favor. It means a lot to me to have the honor of teaching her daughter."

In the evening, I quickly went to the agency to interview the nurse and signed a one-year contract.

Then he called the director and told her that he had found a caregiver for the welfare home. Of course, the salary had to be lowered, otherwise the director would not accept it. He also reminded the caregiver of this.

There was nothing extra to do in the next few days, and Fujii Itsuki traveled back and forth between the Kuka family and the Matsumae family.

Chitose was still helping out at the hot spring shop, chatting with me on SNS from time to time, often asking me if I was tired from work and whether the students I tutored were boys or girls.

When Fujii Itsuki said that it was a girl of the same age as her and very pretty, the girl inexplicably stopped talking.

Jiu Huayue hasn't gone home for the past two days. He doesn't know what she has been doing, but she answered the phone. Although she said a few words in a very cold manner, it at least proved that she had no thoughts of suicide during this period.

He has a good relationship with Matsumae Shinharu.

She would always ask about her mother in her spare time after studying, and Fujii Itsuki would treat it as a chat, searching for the image in his past memories and talking to her.

Yesterday at lunch, she cooked a meal for herself.

Most of the dishes she cooked were based on the details he had revealed during their conversations over the past two days, and Ms. Matsumae cooked the dishes he liked.

The craftsmanship is really good.

Matsumae Shinchun said that this was to repay him for telling her about the trivial things about her mother every day.

This is not a favor, it's really just a small matter.

Every night when she saw me off, she would always smile and say, "I look forward to seeing Mr. Fujii again tomorrow."
Fujii Itsuki really couldn't bear her such caring care.

This child is polite and can cook. Not only is he good at studying, but he also respects his teachers. As a teacher, it is impossible for him to dislike such a student.

At around eight o'clock in the evening, Fujii Itsuki returned to Otaru on Nagayama Sakura's private car.

"Mr. Fujii? Can we just go to the front? It's still quite a distance from where you live."

"Well, please, just go to the front. I want to go to the supermarket to buy some things."

"understood."

Sakura Nagayama parked her car on the street and got out to open the door for Fujii Itsuki.

Snowflakes were everywhere and the sky was gloomy.

Fujii Itsuki stretched out his hand, covered his forehead, squinted his eyes, and could only vaguely see his own shadow in the reflection of the glass of the street shops with the help of the street lights.

"Today, when the young lady was on her way to the shrine, she mentioned Mr. Fujii to me during the conversation."

"Hmm?" Fujii Itsuki turned around and saw Nagayama Sakura's white gloves folded in front of her with a faint smile on her face.

"Ms. Matsumae praised Mr. Fujii's knowledge."

"No, it's nothing, nothing to mention."

Nagayama Ying shook her head. "The fact that the young lady praised him is enough to show how good Mr. Fujii is. In fact, the master often does not come home. The courtyard is so big, and there are only a few servants who are responsible for cleaning the courtyard and the young lady living there. The young lady can hardly find anyone to talk to. In the past few days when Mr. Fujii came, the young lady has obviously become much more cheerful. Thank you so much!"

After the butler finished speaking, he gave Fujii Itsuki a nearly 90-degree bow and quickly pulled him up.

"It's not necessary. They are just small matters."

Butler Yongshan sighed, "Mr. Fujii has only been in contact with Miss for a short time, so he is not very clear about Miss's condition. The car accident of her mother six years ago and the car accident between her and her teacher and classmates half a year ago have left Miss with a great psychological shadow. She has been living with heavy emotions. She has not been to school for half a year. On the one hand, she is recuperating, and on the other hand, she is afraid to face school."

It turns out to be like this.
But from the outside, you can't tell that Matsumae Shinharu is feeling heavy-hearted. She only becomes happy yet a little depressed when she talks about her mother.

"The master has been looking for a psychologist to counsel the young lady for the past six months, but it was useless until a few days ago, when you, Mr. Fujii, came."

Fujii Itsuki: "It shouldn't be so exaggerated in just a few days—"

"No, the fact that the lady was willing to prepare a sumptuous lunch for Mr. Fujii yesterday is the best proof."

"."

Fujii Itsuki recalled the image of Matsumae Shinchun coming to see him off every day, standing in the snow, and watching him leave by car.
It is a kind of loneliness that cannot be described.

"So Mr. Fujii has been taking care of Miss these past few days. It's really been a great help. Thank you, Mr. Fujii!"

Fujii Itsuki quickly stopped him from thanking him, "I've already told you, it's just a small matter."

"Excuse me, but I have another question for Mr. Fujii."

"Please say."

"Mr. Fujii, why did you choose to resign in Tokyo and return to Otaru?"

Dim snowflakes floated across the smiling face of Yongshan, the housekeeper. The luxury car behind him turned on the low beam, illuminating the wind and snow while making the wet road surface a little brighter.

Fujii Itsuki doesn't remember saying this to Nagayama Sakura.

He was silent for a while, then answered truthfully: "Ideals and reality don't match up. I prefer to teach quietly."

"I see. I understand." Nagayama Sakura smiled again and bowed her head. "Then tomorrow, at the same time as today, I will pick up Mr. Fujii and take him to Teine District. See you tomorrow, Mr. Fujii."

"Ah."

Watching the Maybach disappear at the end of the street, Fujii Itsuki withdrew his gaze, looked up, felt the ice and snow at night, and was quiet for a while.

One second he was very grateful for taking care of Matsumae Shinharu, and the next second he was worried that he was too close to Matsumae Shinharu and asked about his past.

Sure enough, big families are troublesome.

Fujii Itsuki put aside his inner sigh and walked towards the supermarket in the snow.

(End of this chapter)