After becoming a chaotic daughter

On Saturday, February 2, the weather was overcast.

It's Valentine's Day. Although the weather in Yokohama is still very cold, there are still scattered couples going out on the street. The shop entrances in the shopping street are also hung with "Valentine's Day love~" and "Share a sweet day with your lover ", "Couples traveling together, one person free of charge" and other promotional banners.

But the excitement belongs to couples in love and businessmen who make a lot of money. For single people, this day is not so special.

In the afternoon, Sakunosuke Oda was sitting at his desk, accumulating materials for his next novel.

He has been writing for two or three years. In addition to his work in the detective agency, he has also published some essays and novels intermittently. Last year, with his first novel published by himself, he thought he was very lucky to get this year's " Best Newcomer Award", the pen name of [Spicy Curry Jun] is now considered a little famous.

In his next novel, he plans to use a teenager in his youth as the main character.A sensitive young man with strong self-esteem who grew up dependent on others and has no clear goals. Like most people, when he makes actions, he always follows his own momentary emotional actions.There are no magnificent adventures, or weird and strange stories, but only a description of the protagonist's trivial and ordinary youth that is suffocating.

Oda Sakunosuke did not go to middle school, so to describe the youth of such a young man, it takes a lot of thought for him to study carefully, to observe meticulously, to inquire without missing details, and to penetrating three points Only in this way can the words flow out from the tip of his pencil like spring water.

He was asking Nanako about the school, some regulations, or the schedule of classes.Nanako also told him everything she knew, and Oda Sakunosuke carefully wrote it down.

And not far from them, sitting in his comfortable luxurious office chair, Ranbu was angry because he didn't have any chocolate to eat, and his bulging cheeks reminded people of a swollen puffer fish.

In fact, Nanako can answer very few questions for Oda. She doesn't socialize with others in school, and she doesn't participate in club activities. She doesn't know many things very clearly, so Oda soon ended her "" Ask for a talk."

Stopping the pencil for recording, Oda turned his eyes from his notebook to the chaotic desk, but only the black back of the office chair was left for him and Nanako.

"Why don't you give Mr. Ranpo chocolate?" Oda looked away, and asked Nanako who was sitting next to him, his tone was calm without any emotional ups and downs.

Nanako sat on the vacant office chair, raised her head to look at him, and replied in an unwavering voice, "Daddy suffers from toothache."

Last week, Luanbu went to the dentist because of a toothache. The president has already issued a ban, and he will strictly limit his intake of sweets in the future.

Oda also knew about this, but he thought of another reason for Luanbu's anger: "Why did you give Gogol chocolate?"

"Because Guoguoli said she wanted it." Nanako also answered his second question honestly, without any adulteration.

"But Ranpo-san said he wanted chocolate too," Oda said, pointing out another fact, "and he's already been to the dentist."

After seeing the dentist, the tooth is filled, and the toothache will no longer be.

"Eating chocolate will damage your teeth." Nana replied flatly, "You have to have good teeth and become a grandfather before you can continue to eat snacks."

Hearing Nanako's answer, Oda Sakunosuke felt that she was a very considerate child.

Oda Sakunosuke always thought Nanako was a good boy.The "good child" here does not mean that she is an obedient child, although in fact, Nanako is indeed very obedient compared to the children raised by his own family, but Oda thinks she is a good child because she always Will help adults quietly.

For example, silently handing the note with Dazai's phone number to those young ladies who are crying because of Dazai.

For example, he silently handed the three-edged knife that had been "lost" for some reason to Yosano who was standing at the door of the operating room worrying about how to treat Tanizaki.

For example, when Sakunosuke Oda first came to the detective agency to apply for a job, he silently placed a scribbled resume template on the desktop in front of him.

Nanako is short and very quiet, so she seems very invisible, but she always silently pops her head out of a corner, and then hands things to people in need.

As a good child, for the sake of her father's health and long-term consideration, it seems completely understandable that Nanako would not give Ranpo chocolate. At least Oda Sakunosuke felt that he could understand her.

"But Mr. Ranpo doesn't seem very happy." Oda reminded her kindly, and asked again: "What are you going to do?"

Sitting on the office chair, Nanako thought about it, stood up, and went out by herself without saying a word.

She didn't even say hello, but Oda Sakunosuke didn't feel anything. Nanako was originally a child who seldom talked. It was different from Shinji, who was shy and introverted among his adopted children. Nanako was pure and innocent. It's just that they don't like talking, just like Ranpo simply doesn't like walking, Dazai simply doesn't like to go to work honestly, Kunikida simply doesn't like "Dazai who simply doesn't like to go to work honestly".

Seeing the door of the detective agency being opened and closed by Nanako, Oda Sakunosuke took another look at the luxurious office chair with its back facing the door, and then lowered his head and continued to concentrate on thinking about his novel.

*******

Edogawa Ranpo is very unhappy now.

Today is Valentine's Day. For him, this is a good day for chocolate sales. Snack shops in the shopping street have launched promotional activities, such as "75% off", "buy one get one free", "Valentine's Day gift box", each This kind of discount is enough for him to stock up on the chocolates in the first half of the year.

Some time ago, the president had a toothache because he ate too much candy, so the president restricted his sweets. In the past few days, the president went to a remote mountain village for a business trip. He could have seized this good opportunity to buy a lot of chocolates, but in the morning When he went to the shopping street, Nanako didn't let him throw chocolates into the shopping cart, because eating chocolates would make his teeth hurt.

Although he felt very reluctant, Edogawa Ranpo still benefited a little from the care of his stupid daughter, so he reluctantly bought two bags of bread and came back, empty-handed, and didn't buy any sweets.

As a result, he just had lunch when he saw Gogol passing by the office area with a box of chocolates.

Because of tooth decay before, all the sweets in the club were put away, and Yu and Xie Ye locked them in the cabinet.Seeing the chocolate in Gogol's hand, Ranbu narrowed his eyes and found that things were not simple.A detective thinks he knows the truth, but he refuses to admit it, so he asks Gogol:

"Gogol, where did the chocolate in your hand come from?"

"Huh? It was given by Nanako." Gogol's tone was the same as usual, as brisk as a student about to go on summer vacation.

Ranbu: "..."

——He can’t even eat chocolate, so why can Gogol eat it! !

Even Gogol has chocolate, but Ranpo Edogawa, who has no chocolate, feels that his status as a father is already precarious.He seemed to have turned into a pawn, picked up by Nanako, and then placed on the lower cabinet, as if he had slipped down an important position in Nanako's heart.

The sharp eyes of the detective cast their eyes on the box of chocolates in Gogol’s hand. It’s just a small box of ordinary chocolates, the most common type in stores, 500 yen a box, and it’s also a regular stock in Ranpo’s snack cabinets. But of course not now.

As the saying goes, what is not there is always the best, even if it is just the 500 yen nut chocolate that he is tired of eating.

"Nanako, Daddy wants chocolate!"

Edogawa Ranpo said to Nanako who was answering Oda's questions about the school, her tone was arrogant and willful, and then she was mercilessly rejected by the idiot daughter in the next second.

"No, it will hurt your teeth."

Nanako said with an unwavering expression.

If he was facing someone else, at this time, Ranpo would definitely not say "ah, forget it" - if he gave up so easily, he would definitely let the other party buy him chocolates.

But Nanako is not "someone else", but his stupid daughter. Dad can't lie in front of his daughter and roll around—of course, he won't roll around with other people, he basically talks to himself, and finally the other party Because I can't bear it... no, I was wrong, because I bowed down to the heroic figure of the famous detective, so I willingly went to buy chocolates for him.

Edogawa Ranpo didn't say "ah, forget it" at the end, nor continued to make noise, but just sat in the office chair angrily, turned the chair around, and sulked with his back to Nanako.

He heard what Nanako and Oda said, Nanako said "the teeth are good, you can continue to eat snacks after you become a grandfather", which made him feel a little better, but he was still very unhappy.

The point is not "he has no chocolate", but "Gogol has chocolate but he doesn't".

It is said in the book that when children grow up, they will no longer be as close to their parents as they were when they were young, but will have little secrets and play better with their peers.

Edogawa Ranpo himself is not like this. He was still very clingy to his parents when he was 12 years old, and he is still the same as when he was 15 years old. As long as the president speaks, he will quickly calm down, but will Nanako be like this?After growing up, is his status as "father" going to drop straight down?

The detective's extremely clever brain turned around, and finally came to a conclusion that made Ranpo even more frustrated.

He remembered that Nanako didn't seem to be very clingy to him when she was a child.

Not even a hug.

There was the sound of footsteps walking away, followed by the sound of the door of the detective agency opening and closing, it was Nanako who had gone out.Luanbu supported his head and sat in his office chair. The office chair was very soft, but his mood was not soft at all.

He stared at the newly replaced potted cactus on the window sill, with his eyelids half-drooped, and his emerald green narrow eyes squinted without energy, like a monk meditating, he maintained this position and sat motionless for two minutes. In 10 minutes, I heard the door of the detective agency being opened behind me.

There was the sound of light footsteps approaching slowly, and then stopped not far behind him, followed by the sound of something being placed on the table, and a small "boom", came together , is the smell of delicious food.

The sound of light footsteps went a little further.

Luanbu only held back for three seconds, then moved the chair under his buttocks and turned back.He turned around and came back, and there was a bowl of steaming chawanmushi on the desk, still steaming.

It’s just a very simple bowl of steamed tea. There are not many ingredients, only stewed eggs and scallions, poured with a little soy sauce, put in a small tea bowl, and there is a black spoon on the side. It is usually eaten with random steps. Compared with the "Shrimp and Mushroom Chawanmushi" and "Crab Fillet and Ham Chawanmushi" with rich ingredients, it seems a bit shabby, it is just a simple "stewed egg".

Ranbu raised her eyes and looked at Nanako, she was sitting at an empty desk, lying on the table, reading this month's "Wild Times" intently, her whole body was almost completely blocked by Oda next to her .

With his head down, he looked at the shabby bowl of chawanmushi on the table, reached out and picked up the spoon, took a spoonful, and stuffed it into his mouth.

[... a bit salty. 】

Luanbu swallowed the tender egg into his stomach, feeling that there seemed to be a little too much salt in the egg.

Spoon after spoon, he quickly ate up the small bowl of stewed chawanmushi. Ranbu felt a little salty in his mouth, but he didn't drink any water either.

"Nanako." Ranpo, who was in a better mood, called out to his stupid daughter.

Nanako raised her head and turned to look at him: "Huh?"

"Children are not allowed to touch the stove." Luanbu said.

Nanako said "oh" honestly, but didn't correct Ranpo "I'm not a child", and didn't tell Ranpo that she had touched the stove several times.

"Dad, remember to wash the dishes...and the pot," Nanako said.

Ranbu: "..."

Ranpo Edogawa, who doesn't like washing dishes, feels that his mood is not so good again.