A fortune teller? Advised against drinking? Drinking will bring bad luck?
This reason stunned everyone, including Koleda and Ben.
Yoshida Jirou was also dumbfounded, he subconsciously looked at Koleda, who motioned for him to continue with her eyes.
Yoshida Jirou had no choice but to brace himself and persuade him.
"Oh, Mitsui-kun, my old friend! Why do you still believe those fortune tellers' nonsense! They're all liars! What bad luck could possibly come from having a few drinks? It's my treat! I have good news to tell you! About that matter…" he hinted.
There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the phone, as if a fierce ideological struggle was taking place.
"Sigh… Alright, alright…"
Mitsui Ichiro sighed,
"I can't do anything with you. Where are you? The usual place?"
"Yes! That pub with the red lantern at the entrance! Hurry up!" Yoshida Jirou quickly said.
"I know, I know, honestly, I just hope that fortune teller's prediction isn't accurate…" Mitsui Ichiro mumbled as he hung up the phone.
The black sedan drove back near the pub again.
Inside the car, Yoshida Jirou held his phone, his palms sweating, occasionally glancing nervously at Ben, who was like a small mountain beside him, and the red-haired female CEO in the passenger seat, who possessed inhuman strength.
Not long after, Mitsui Ichiro arrived nearby by car.
He was wearing an ordinary suit, his hair was a bit sparse, and he looked no different from a typical middle-aged office worker.
He looked left and right, rubbing his hands and complaining about the cold weather, muttering, "Seriously, why does it have to be today? That master's fortune-telling is supposedly quite accurate…"Just then, the window of the black sedan parked nearby rolled down, and Yoshida Jirou sat by the window, waving at him.
Although Mitsui Ichiro felt a bit strange, he still walked over, complaining, "Jirou-kun! What's the big idea? When you arrive, you should get out of the car quickly."
His words stopped abruptly.
Because when he got close to the car window and saw that besides Yoshida Jirou, there was also the young CEO of Belobog Heavy Industries, who should have been dead, his face instantly turned pale, and he immediately understood that Yoshida Jirou had sold him out.
"Yoshida Jirou! You damn bastard!!"
Mitsui Ichiro screamed in terror, turning to run, while simultaneously cursing,
"You betrayed me?! May you die a terrible death! And I considered you a friend!!"
But his escape was destined to be futile.The same script played out again.
Ben got out of the car, covered the other person's mouth, clamped his arm around them, and stuffed them into the car, his movements smooth and practiced, enough to make one's heart ache.
Mitsui Ichiro's weak struggles were like a baby's play in front of Ben.
The car once again drove deep into that familiar alley.
Conan and Mouri Kogoro had been waiting for a long time.
"Are you going to confess or not?"
Ben directly followed the procedure, giving Mitsui Ichiro the full windmill treatment.
After being spun dizzy, Mitsui Ichiro was thrown to the ground by Ben.
"Why don't you ask?! I never said I wouldn't confess!"
Mitsui Ichiro was on the verge of tears, shouting tremblingly.
"I'll confess! I'll confess everything! Don't spin me anymore!"
He didn't even wait for others to start asking, and murmured with a crying voice.
"It's effective, too effective, that fortune teller's prediction was really accurate… I said I couldn't drink, and drinking would bring great misfortune, and sure enough, great misfortune has come…"
Mouri Kogoro coughed, striking a detective pose. "Ahem! Mitsui Ichiro-san! Why did you hire Yoshida Jirou-san to assassinate Koleda-san?"
"Why? For money, of course!"
Mitsui Ichiro was quite straightforward, confessing readily with a mournful face,
"I owed a huge debt from gambling, and that loan shark boss, Nojiri Masakawa, found me and said that if I helped him kill the CEO of Belobog Heavy Industries, not only would my debt be cleared, but he would also give me an additional 50 million Yen in cash… I… I'm just an ordinary office worker, I've never seen so much money in my life… I was possessed by greed and agreed…"
"50 million?!"
"How much?!"
This time, it was the Yoshida brothers who exclaimed.
Yoshida Jirou's eyes turned red, and he suddenly grabbed Mitsui Ichiro's collar. "You took 50 million?! And only gave me 10 million?! Mitsui Ichiro! Are you even human?! After all these years as drinking buddies!!"
Yoshida Taro also trembled with anger. "So you all made a fortune! And I'm the one who got the least?! And almost lost my life?! 2 million?! Am I only worth 2 million?!"
He felt like he had been greatly short-changed.
"Good heavens, from 50 million to 10 million, then to 4 million, and finally to 2 million, this profit margin is being exploited way too harshly…"
Conan showed a half-moon eye, complaining somewhat helplessly.
Just as it was about to turn into a bargaining scene at a wet market, Koleda spoke up to stop them. "Quiet."
Instantly, all sounds ceased.
Conan suggested. "Koleda-neechan, since that's the case, why don't we also have Uncle Mitsui invite that bad guy named Nojiri Masakawa out? Just like before!"
Koleda nodded, looking at Mitsui Ichiro.
Mitsui Ichiro was extremely cooperative at this moment, nodding repeatedly.
"Good, good, good! I'll invite him! I'll invite him right away! That Nojiri fellow has no other hobbies, he just especially loves Hebei donkey meat panini[1]!
Especially fresh out of the oven, with a crispy crust! I know there's a new, authentic Hebei donkey meat panini shop nearby, so I'll use that as an excuse to invite him out!"
He immediately took out his phone, found Nojiri Masakawa's number, dialed it, and wisely put it on speakerphone.
After a few rings, the call connected, and a rough voice came through "Moshimoshi? Mitsui? What's up?"
Mitsui Ichiro tried to make his voice sound natural.
"Boss Nojiri! Good news! I found a newly opened donkey meat panini shop, and the taste is incredibly authentic!The boss said he directly invited a master chef from Baoding, Hebei! The paninis are baked to be crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, with a satisfying crunch! The donkey meat is also freshly slaughtered, very fragrant!
Remembering you like this, I quickly told you! Interested in coming over for a couple of bites? My treat!"
Nojiri Masakawa on the other end, upon hearing this, indeed became interested. "Oh? Yoshi! Donkey meat panini? From Baoding? Very good! Where, where? I'll be right there! I didn't eat enough tonight!"
Mitsui Ichiro reported the nearby location, and Nojiri Masakawa, without suspicion, repeatedly said "Yoshi Yoshi," indicating he would drive over immediately.
After hanging up the phone, about twenty minutes later.
A slightly dilapidated white van stopped at the alley entrance.
Nojiri Masakawa, stout and with a fierce face, got out of the car, sniffing, seemingly searching for the aroma of donkey meat, while loudly shouting.
"Mitsui! Mitsui! Where are you, kid? Where's the shop? I don't see it?"
Mitsui Ichiro, who had been waiting in the shadows of the alley, braced himself and went to meet him, a smile plastered on his face. "Boss Nojiri, this way, this way, the shop is inside, a bit hard to find…"
Nojiri Masakawa followed Mitsui Ichiro deep into the alley. He felt increasingly uneasy until he saw the black Mercedes in the alley and Koleda standing next to the car, at which point his face drastically changed.
"Baka!! Mitsui, you set me up!!"
[1] I want to use Lurou Huoshao, that is the original chinese name. In fact this food is a popular street food in Hebei Province, the name is kinda unique but it's just a donkey burger. Wait.... Should i just use Hebei donkey burger then?