"Wait here!"
A Mercedes sedan stopped in the parking lot of the Koto Ward Government Building.
Fumino sat in the back seat and instructed the female driver.
"Yes, ma'am."
The driver responded, gripping the steering wheel with both hands, her face serious as she nodded.
Fumino opened the car door. She carried a bag in her hand, wore a mature and elegant kimono, and stepped out of the car in wooden clogs.
Since inheriting the Yukinoshita family, Fumino rarely wore ordinary clothes, mostly wearing kimonos.
In Japan, wearing such traditional clothing appeared more formal, and Fumino would also display her authority in these subtle ways.
Fumino took a deep breath, holding the bag with both hands in front of her abdomen, and walked into the building's office hall.
This was an old building, and there were not many people coming and going in the hall.
After all, this was the District Mayor's office, not a public service institution, and it usually did not receive many visitors.
Fumino walked into the office building and directly asked the front desk, "Hello, I would like to make an appointment to see District Mayor Fujiwara."
The young lady at the front desk smiled gently and stood up. "May I have your last name, and do you have an appointment?"
"My last name is Yukinoshita. As for an appointment, I apologize, but I have a verbal appointment with District Mayor Fujiwara. He should have informed you in advance."
Fumino bowed slightly, speaking with grace and politeness.
The lady at the front desk quickly opened the notebook in her hand but did not find the name Yukinoshita on it.
She subconsciously wanted to refuse the meeting. How could anyone just meet the District Mayor?
As for talk of a verbal appointment, she had seen plenty of that during her time working here. It was all just bluffing.
Many people used this excuse to try and meet District Mayor Fujiwara, and as for what they wanted to do, naturally, they had something to ask for.
However, seeing Fumino's mature elegance and the obviously expensive kimono she was wearing, the lady hesitated for a moment before saying, "Then please wait a moment. I will go and ask the District Mayor."
"Thank you for your trouble."
Fumino said this with a smile, but she felt a little annoyed in her heart.
She and Toru had indeed made a verbal appointment to meet. Fumino had thought Toru would inform his subordinates of this appointment and have it recorded.
Unexpectedly, his subordinate did not know, which made the other party suspect that she was there to fool them.
This made Fumino feel that Toru was not meticulous in his work, and even that he looked down on her internally, which was why he had forgotten even such a matter.
Given Fumino's strong personality, normally, she would have turned around and left.
But remembering that she was here to ask for help this time, she controlled her temper and waited silently.
What she feared most now was that if the lady returned and said Toru would not see her, it would be a complete slap in the face.
Moreover, this was actually possible. After all, her sister was now Toru's stepmother, and who knew whether that woman would speak ill of her to Toru in private.
As Fumino felt uneasy, that did not happen. After the young lady returned, her smile became much warmer. "Ma'am, you may go in to see Fujiwara-san."
"Thank you!"
Fumino thanked her with reserved politeness, then followed the staff's instructions to the District Mayor's office.
Most of the time, this place was actually empty. As the District Mayor of Koto Ward, Toru's work could not consist of just sitting in the office.
He had many matters that required visits to various places, such as conducting inspections, accepting invitations to visit certain companies, and other activities, which were continuous.
Arriving at the office door, Fumino gently knocked.
"Please come in!"
"Excuse me, Fujiwara-san!"
Fumino pushed open the door and bowed slightly.
Regardless of whether Toru was the same age as her daughter, he was now the District Mayor of Koto Ward. Even if he did not govern Chiba Prefecture, she still needed to maintain sufficient etiquette.
Behind Toru was the Fujiwara family!
"Yukinoshita-san, please sit."
Toru rose from behind the desk. With a smile, he invited Fumino to sit on the nearby sofa and personally poured two cups of tea.
"Fujiwara-san is busy with official affairs, yet still took the time to see me. I have truly disturbed you."
Fumino bowed slightly, her smile appropriate and her tone respectful.
"You are Haruno and Yukino's mother, and your sister is my stepmother. No matter how you look at it, we are relatives. What is there to be disturbed about..."
Toru spoke politely, but inwardly, he was grumbling.
Since you know you're disturbing me, why don't you get straight to the point instead of saying all these useless pleasantries?
Regarding Fumino, Toru had some respect for her when he did not understand her, but after gaining a deep understanding, that respect for an elder immediately vanished.
Fumino could not be called bad, but she certainly had the most typical mindset of a family head, or rather, a capitalist, where everything revolved around profit.
Toru learned from Haruno and Yukino that their mother was a good provider, always generous in investing in them and giving them the greatest support for their material needs and education.
On the other hand, she was definitely not a qualified mother. Fumino's desire for control was extremely strong. She even wanted to control the lives of Haruno and Yukino, not allowing them to have any independent opinions.
And from his stepmother's mouth, Toru learned even more inside information. It could be said that Toru did not like her. Her personality was overly self-serving.
Even though Toru considered himself a self-interested person, in some aspects, he would still choose to sacrifice and choose to understand, rather than being the kind of person who only considered their own repulsive thoughts.
Hearing Toru mention her two daughters, Fumino immediately seized the opportunity, using her two daughters as a starting point for the conversation and chatting extensively with Toru.
Toru also patiently conversed with her, but his inner annoyance grew stronger.
It was not until half an hour later that Fumino felt the atmosphere was right and finally brought up the main topic.
Little did she know, her usual conversational tactics, which were normally effective, had completely failed with Toru, even causing him to feel disgusted.
This was entirely due to Fumino's own arrogance and preconceived notions, believing that her set of values and theories applied to everyone.
Or perhaps, she did not understand young people, just as she did not understand her two daughters.
"Fujiwara-san, I came to see you this time with a reluctant request."
Fumino lowered her head, showing her respectful attitude.
She was here to ask for help. She could not be arrogant. She understood the need to lower her posture and remain respectful.
(To be continued.)
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◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)