March 26, 1791
In a small town somewhere in Owari——
"Azhu, listen carefully."
Inside the hotel, Ogata took advantage of the moment when A-Machi was sent away by him and said to A-Tsuku in a serious tone:
"Tomorrow afternoon, I will have you and A-Ming go together to buy various necessities for the trip."
"I have done my research in advance. There are two commercial districts in this town, east and west."
"Tomorrow afternoon, the two of you will go to the 'Eastern Commercial District' to buy things. Don't come to the 'Western Commercial District'."
"If Ah-Ming plans to go to the 'Western Business District', you must do everything you can to stop her."
Azhu blinked twice in confusion:
"Master Ittosai, I understand the first half of your words."
"But I couldn't quite understand the second half of what he said."
"Why can't Ms. Ating go to the commercial district in the west?"
"Because I don't want A-machi to see me in the 'Western Business District'." Ogata answered seriously.
"Tomorrow is Ah-ting's birthday, so I plan to buy some gifts for Ah-ting at the 'Western Commercial District' tomorrow to give her a surprise."
"So I can't let her see me buying her a gift."
When he heard the word "birthday", Azhu's eyes immediately lit up.
"Huh? Tomorrow is Ms. Atachi's birthday?"
"Yes." Ogata nodded, "Tomorrow, March 27th, is Atachi's 19th birthday."
"I see... I understand!" Azhu patted his chest and answered very straightforwardly, "Master Ittosai, leave it to me with confidence! Tomorrow afternoon I will do my best to stop Miss A-Machi from going to 'Western Commercial District'!"
"Just buy your gifts in the 'Western Commercial District' with peace of mind!"
"Yes." Ogata nodded with satisfaction, "Then I 'll leave it to you."
"Master Ittosai is really good to Miss A-machi." A-tsuku put his hands on his hips and praised sincerely, "If Miss A-machi knew that you treated her birthday so thoughtfully, she would definitely be very happy."
"Just don't dislike the gift I bought her," Ogata responded half-jokingly.
"Master Ittosai, I've actually always been curious." Azuki lowered his voice and asked Ogata in a tone that he was discussing important information that couldn't be disclosed, "Master Ittosai, how did you get to know Miss Atachi? And how did you fall in love with her? Can you tell me?"
Azhu's tone could not hide his excitement and anticipation.
Azhu is the kind of girl who rarely interacts with the opposite sex of the same age.
Looking back at Azhu's short life so far, there is almost no sign of the opposite sex of the same age.
Lacking contact with the opposite sex of the same age, and being at an age where she is very sensitive and curious about things between men and women, Azhu has long been curious about the love story between Ogata and Atachi.
"How did I meet and fall in love with Ating?"
Ogata was stunned when he heard the question raised by Azhu.
Then... Ogata forced out a dry laugh that was somewhat awkward.
"Well..."
"How did you get to know Ah-Ming? It's a long story. I'll tell you slowly when I have the chance."
"As for how I fell in love with her ... um... ahem..."
Ogata coughed unnaturally a few times and cleared his throat.
"This...actually there's nothing much to say."
"Just by getting along with A-Ting, I was gradually attracted by her strength and courage."
"Then one day, I realized that the person I cared about the most had unknowingly become her."
"Oh!" Azuki said excitedly, "That is to say - Lord Itosai, you are attracted by Miss Atachi's personality!"
"Yeah, that's right." Ogata nodded rapidly, "I was attracted by Atachi's inner qualities."
After saying this, Ogata waved his hand and put on a righteous look.
"Only vulgar men would fall in love with someone just because of their big breasts, pretty face, or other random reasons."
"Azhu, you should be more careful in the future."
"If you're looking for a man, you need to find someone like me who values ​​the inner qualities of others."
"Oh..." Azhu nodded seriously, "Do you value the inner qualities of others..."
"Yeah, that's right. Well, Atachi will be back soon, you should go back to your room."
Ogata, who didn't want to discuss this topic any further, quickly raised his hand to send Azhu away.
"Um, Master Ittosai , can I say one more thing?" Azhu raised his hand high, "What gift are you going to buy for Miss A-Machi tomorrow?"
"Huh?" Ogata was stunned.
The man who just proudly said he would buy a birthday present for his wife fell silent...
Seeing Ogata fall silent, Azuki twitched his lips and said, "Master Ittosai... you haven't decided what to buy yet, have you?"
"I started thinking about what to give to Ah-Ming a few days ago," Ogata said hurriedly, "but I can't think of anything to give Ah-Ming..."
"Why not just give Miss A-machi something she likes?" Azuki said as if it was a matter of course.
"A-Ting only likes firearms..."
"It's impossible that you don't like anything other than firearms, right? Lord Ittosai, didn't Miss A-machi tell you before that she likes something other than firearms?"
Ogata: “…”
The young husband fell silent again.
"I did say that...but the things she likes are simply not available for purchase."
"Huh? What is it? Why can't I buy it?"
"…It's better not to know about a child like you."
"Huh? Why?"
"I won't tell you. Okay, go back to your room. A-Ming will be back soon. I'll think about what gift to buy for A-Ming later."
After sending Azhu away, Ogata could not help but recall a conversation that happened on a certain night in the past...
…
(…Ayi.)
(what?)
(Compared to lying on your stomach... I really prefer sitting on you.)
(Let’s talk about this tomorrow night… I’m so tired and want to sleep…)