[Net King] Winter Snow

Yuriko Uemura sometimes wonders if her life would be much better than it is now if what happened that day hadn't happened.

It's a pity that there are no ifs in this world.

******

For her father, Yuriko Uemura has always had feelings of closeness and love.Although the outside world doesn't seem to have a good reputation for Uemurata Ichiro, the young Uemura Yuriko knows that her father is definitely not the kind of person who abused power as others said.

Sitting on the seat of a member of parliament when she was less than forty years old, the girl could see all the hardships and sufferings involved. The lights in the study room every night and the tired face of her father made Yuriko Uemura firmly believe that her father was A good MP.

That's why when officers from the Metropolitan Police Department surrounded the door of Shangcun's house, the girl in the fifth grade of elementary school was unwilling to believe that the father who would pat her on the head with a gentle smile would acquiesce in the other party's words without saying a word. The accusation, the crime of corruption and bribery is just silent, and there is no rebuttal.

"Wait, wait..." When the other party cut her father's hand behind her and took it out of the villa hall under pressure, the girl firmly grabbed the policeman's coat corner, "Dad wouldn't do that kind of thing, There must be something wrong!"

The wide open door at the entrance let all the cold winter wind blow in. The indoor heating and the howling cold wind outside overlapped each other, blowing on Uemura Yuriko's small palm, which looked a bit icy cold.

No one in the entire hall paid any attention to her rebuttal, and the fabric of the police uniform that the girl was holding in her hand seemed a bit rough.

"Dad, talk!" Biting her lower lip, Yuriko Uemura yelled at her father, "Tell them you didn't do those things, tell them quickly!"

Looking at her father with anxious and expectant eyes, she couldn't accept that her closest relatives were accused of such a false crime.

Yuriko Uemura saw her father look back at her, then lowered his brows and eyes, and gave her a sad arc.

"I'm sorry, Yuriko," he said.

"Bang——" the door of the entrance was slammed shut by the people from the Metropolitan Police Department, Yuriko Uemura felt that something in her heart seemed to be smashed together with the sound of the door closing.

The young girl always believed that her father would never engage in corruption and bribery. Although the outside world has always had a bad evaluation of Kamurata Ichiro, most of the things are just groundless, without any facts.

Uemura Yuriko remembered that her father smiled and ordered a new kimono for her a few days ago, and held her hand and said that they would go to enjoy the cherry blossoms together when spring came.But now, in just a few days, everything has changed.

Tears fell down her eyes little by little, and the girl couldn't help crying with her hands covering her face.The mother who had been silent at the back walked slowly to her side, opened her arms and hugged Uemura Yuriko tightly in her arms.

This winter is a turning point for Yuriko Uemura.

Ever since Ichiro Murata was taken away by the people from the Metropolitan Police Department that day, many things in the villa have been seized one after another.Being dubbed "stolen goods" and "stolen money", every day something was handed over by his mother to the police officers who came to take stock.

This kind of life has been going on for more than half a month, until there is nothing in the house that can be taken away.

Uemura Yuriko could hear a few words from her mother's phone one after another, such as "court" and "need to serve sentence", the young girl still didn't really understand what it meant.

Until one morning, my mother packed several boxes of clothes, and then called the moving company to remove the luggage.

"Yuriko, are you awake?" When the woman turned her head and saw Uemura Yuriko standing on the stairs, she just showed the same smile as usual, without any other words.

"Mom, what are you doing?" Looking at the empty hall, Yuriko Uemura frowned.

"Mom found a suitable apartment in a nearby town, and we will move there tomorrow," Uemura Ami said.

"Move there, what about here?"

Uemura Yuriko's question caused the woman's smile to dim suddenly. The morning sun shone through the door of the entrance, casting a shadow on Uemura Ami's eyes, "This...is not ours anymore."

"Why?" Eyes wide open in disbelief, Yuriko Uemura ran down the stairs, "This is the home that Dad saved enough money to buy on your wedding anniversary! He also said at the time that it was finally Ami and Yuriko can live in a big house! Mom, have you forgotten?"

"Okay Yuriko, don't ask any more questions." Holding the girl's shoulders with both hands, Uemura Ami's voice was accompanied by some hoarse crying, "Your father did something wrong, you have to forgive him."

"What is a wrong thing!" Swaying her mother's hands on her shoulders, Yuriko Uemura yelled at her mother, "Even mom, do you trust the people in the Metropolitan Police Department! Why don't you trust Dad! Dad No corruption! Why don’t you believe it!!!”

"Yuriko... don't say anything..." Stepped forward and hugged the girl into her arms, Uemura Ami put her hand on the back of Yuriko's head, pressing against herself tightly, "Don't say anything... Be good..."

Uemura Yuriko could feel her mother's crying sound, and some hot liquid dripped on her forehead.All the words that I wanted to say were suppressed, leaving only the uncomfortably stuffed chest churning.

In just one week, Yuriko Uemura's world was turned upside down.

Living in a simple apartment, the overflowing musty smell made the girl want to cover her nose.People around are pointing at her and her mother, and all people will show a subtle look when they hear their surnames.

Uemura Ami began to circle various job advertisements for part-time jobs in the newspaper, and the dilapidated chandelier made a hissing noise.Uemura Yuriko always felt that everything was not very real, as if it was a dream, and when she woke up, she was still the pampered little princess living in the big villa.

"Mom, where are we going?" Seeing her mother leading her towards a street she had never walked before, Uemura Yuriko held Uemura Ami's hand a little at a loss.

Instead of answering her child's question, the woman just held Yuriko Uemura's little hand and led her to continue walking forward.

The girl saw her mother say hello to the policeman, who then opened the big iron gate like a cage.All this was so unfamiliar to Yuriko Uemura that the girl's body began to tremble with nervousness and fear.

The surrounding lights were dim, and only the sound of their footsteps echoed in the narrow corridor.Yuriko Uemura felt like she had walked for a long time before finally reaching the door of a room.

"Go in." The police officer walking in front of them said to the mother and daughter.

As her mother unscrewed the doorknob, Yuriko Uemura saw her father's face appear in front of her little by little.The man who used to smile dotingly and tenderly at her now looked haggard.

The originally gray sideburns became even paler, and a messy stubble grew on the always clean chin.Yuriko Uemura remembered that her father's eyes should be bright brown with a proud look, but at this moment the man in front of her only had muddy and dull eyes.

"Dad...Dad?" Cautiously speaking, Yuriko Uemura couldn't believe that when she saw her father again, the other party was separated from her by a transparent glass wall.

Being led by her mother to sit on the chair, Yuriko Uemura put her palms on the cold glass, but she couldn't touch Ichiro Uemura even the slightest bit.

"Yuriko..." The voice of the man on the other side of the glass was painful and suppressed, "Yuriko, I'm sorry."

"..." Looking blankly at the man in front of her, Uemura Yuriko didn't know what to say.Her father is obviously such a gentle person, why was he convicted of corruption and taking bribes and sitting in this cell?

"I'm sorry to disappoint you, Yuriko." The man's voice was very low, as if he was confessing and mourning something, "Father is not a good person, not a good member of parliament."

"What the people in the police department said is true. Dad has indeed been corrupted and accepted bribes from others. These are all true."

"Dad did something wrong, so now we need to correct it." Uemurata Ichiro forced an encouraging smile at the girl, "Yuriko, promise Dad, you will be obedient in the future, and don't let mom worry, okay?"

Before the girl agreed, the man turned his head and said to his wife, "Ami, I'm sorry." He said, "For the past ten years... Yuriko will be counting on you."

"Snapped--"

The clearer voice than anything else broke the quiet space, Yuriko Uemura stood up from the chair, and the crumbling chair finally fell to the ground.

The girl opened the door and ran out without saying anything, as if she was resisting something, unwilling to stay in that narrow and airtight space anymore.

Why did the people from the Metropolitan Police Department come to arrest his father.

Why are all the things in the house taken away, even without a place to live.

Why is everyone looking at her with strange eyes.

Why does no one believe that their father is innocent.

Because——Uemurata Ichiro, he was indeed embezzled and bribed.

This cognition made Yuriko Uemura unacceptable anyway, and her mind was in chaos as if it had exploded.

The girl who can't sort out her thoughts can only face all this by escaping, leaving this depressing place, as if nothing happened, and continue to live her original life.

"Sorry, you can't walk around here!" The man who looked like a police officer stopped Uemura Yuriko in the corridor, her hands were tightly held by the opponent, and the girl who couldn't break free bit down on the opponent's arm in a hurry.

"Hiss—" she heard the other party let out a cold convulsion, but the strength of grabbing her hands still did not weaken at all.

"Yuriko...!" Uemura Ami's voice came from behind, followed by the sound of jogging footsteps and words of apology from her mother and the police officer.

It was only now that Uemura Yuriko finally realized that her world had indeed been turned upside down.