Uesugi sighed with a hint of regret.
"It really hasn’t been easy."
Starting a business is hard, maintaining it is even harder.
Jason thought again of the Master from many generations ago of Tongshou Temple.
"No, it’s a matter of my capabilities."
"I dare not innovate."
"I can only adhere to the traditions handed down, just like now, I still follow the rules set by my grandfather, entering here on foot—I got scolded by my father for riding a bicycle here when I was young, and since then, I’ve kept it deeply in mind."
As he spoke, Uesugi once again expressed his apologies to Jason and Hui Lijing for the further walking.
"Huh, there’s also a gate here?"
After turning a corner and walking up a slope, Hui Lijing was about to say something when she suddenly paused.
In front of the female detective, another door appeared.
This door, compared to the iron fence gate seen outside, was even taller; the exterior was wrapped in iron sheet, while the interior was solid wood, and most importantly, the wall embedding this door...
The female detective looked at the ’wall’ that could fit three people riding horses abreast and couldn’t help but think.
"Our ancestor had some renown during the Warring States period, so now, the ancestral home is what was once a ’castleof course, only the central keep and a few other structures remain, much has been destroyed."
"Including the original ’tenshu’, only one floor remains."
"The rest has been repaired by later generations."
"Otherwise, you would have been able to see that five-tiered ’tenshu’ on the way here."
"However, times are progressing."
"Some things, once they’re past, they are past."
"We can no longer chase after them."
"At most, we can only reminisce."
Clearly, this middle-aged man felt great regret that his ancestors’ glory had completely faded.
But, it was just regret.
There was no dissatisfaction.
Plus, with this middle-aged man’s gentle demeanor, the conversation among the three was still pleasant.
Of course, it was mainly the female detective who engaged in conversation with the middle-aged man.
Jason silently surveyed the surroundings.
And the female detective cooperated with him.
As an assistant, naturally, it was her role to attract attention.
Just leave it to Jason.
With this thought, Hui Lijing asked with even more vigor.
On the way to the ’ancestral home’, she had inquired about almost everything concerning the Uesugi Family.
However, there was still one thing she was very curious about.
"Mr. Uesugi, why have I seen so few servants along the way?"
The female detective asked.
In this vast complex of buildings, aside from the entrance where two strong young men stood guard, she had seldom seen any servants or attendants along the way.
Those seen were mostly elderly uncles and aunts.
This was very rare in wealthy families.
At least, the detective had never seen it.
Those slightly wealthier families would eagerly employ a whole team of servants and attendants to flaunt their status and position.
"They all are at work!"
"The Uesugi family is a bit special; these servants have been with our family for generations, thus, we’ve already partially merged with each other — from their birth, the family ’fund’ begins to allocate a portion of money until high school graduation, it’s all managed by the family; afterwards, if they are accepted into university, the family also rewards a significant sum of money for the future four years’ tuition fees, and after their graduation, they join the enterprises of the Uesugi family, most of them do this, and even if a few don’t want to, it doesn’t affect anything."
"And when they reach a certain age, naturally they retire, those people you saw earlier are those who have retired from family businesses."
"They will spend their remaining years here, just like their ancestors."
"And I will also be responsible for them to the end, just like my ancestors."
And upon hearing these words, the female detective was silently astounded.
Although she had not yet understood in detail, she already vaguely sensed what was referred to as the ’family’ aura.
Just as the female detective was about to say something—
A gentle greeting sound came.
Ahead at the corner, a young woman was standing there prettily.
The female detective looked at her in surprise.
Not only because the other party was standing there without making a sound before she noticed, but also because of her height.
The other party was only slightly shorter than her!
Though the detective had quite disliked her own height at some stage, she oddly also possessed considerable confidence in it.
Even when compared to taller men, she stood proudly.
The young woman in front of her, being only slightly shorter, one could imagine her height.
Moreover, even in blue and white sportswear, one could still directly see a hint of muscle lines on the shoulders, thighs, and other places.
Not only tall, but also quite muscular.
Unconsciously, the detective felt as if she was looking in a mirror.
If it weren’t for the other’s excessively gentle demeanor, and being a bit shorter.
The detective was surprised, and the girl across from her was also very surprised.
She stared at this girl taller than herself for three or four seconds before she regained her senses.
Suddenly, the girl blushed.
"Sorry, this is my daughter."
"She’s usually not so rude; it must be because she hasn’t had much rest these days."
"Hu Qiandai, hurry up and apologize to the guests."