Uncle Hikigaya is Forever Young [64]

“Heh, lawyers probably don’t have it that easy either!”

Following Kōzō's words, Ryōhei joked lightly.

“Bah! I dunno about other lawyers, but being Yukinoshita’s private lawyer must be easy as hell. That bastard Hayama Takashi is rich and has loads of free time. He can’t lose a single case in Chiba courts with Yukinoshita behind him. Even I could do it! Yukinoshita family’s real estate business has been booming these past years—they bought so much land. You really think all those deals were clean and fair? Oh right, you weren’t around Chiba all these years like I was.”

Miura Kōzō shook his head with an exaggerated sigh, obviously still regretting that Ryōhei hadn't married into the Yukinoshita family.

Truth be told, the Yukinoshita family was just a prominent local clan in Chiba, a remote corner of the Tokyo metropolitan area. Compared to those grand noble families in Tokyo, they probably wouldn’t even register on the radar of the big aristocratic houses or the imperial court.

Yet even so, the Yukinoshita family—with their deep roots, spanning over two hundred years in Chiba—still wielded immense power locally.

Even the prefectural governor, upon taking office, would immediately pay respects to the Yukinoshita family head.

Sometimes the Yukinoshita family directly ran the local government itself.

There had occasionally been outsiders, naive officials who disrespected them—either pushed out or quietly threatened by the Hiratsuka-gumi under Yukinoshita's control.

Although nationally, few knew the Yukinoshita name, to common people living in Chiba, the family was a towering giant.

Only in the past half-century, as laws improved and the nation modernized, had the Yukinoshita family learned to keep a lower profile.

Seventy or eighty years ago, the head of the Yukinoshita family could even decide life and death with a single word.

Even earlier—before the Meiji Restoration—commoners like Hikigaya Ryōhei and Miura Kōzō probably wouldn’t even have surnames, let alone attend school alongside a noble young lady like Yukinoshita Saori. They’d have been forbidden even from looking directly at her.

Society really had become more civilized and progressive.

Imagining this path that was never taken, Kōzō couldn’t help but daydream about what life might’ve been like. If his brother had married into the Yukinoshita family, surely he himself could have ridden Ryōhei’s coattails. Even if he had to become the Yukinoshita’s dog, he'd at least occupy the position Hayama Takashi held today.

He’d definitely be living comfortably.

Of course, he was just idly dreaming out of boredom.

Back then, upon hearing his friend had refused the offer, he’d even praised Ryōhei’s decision.

At that age, youths always believed that their destiny could—and should—be held in their own hands.

“Honestly, even now, marrying into someone’s family sounds bad. Your kids can’t even inherit your surname, right? Try saying it: Yukinoshita Hachiman? Yukinoshita Komachi? Doesn’t it sound weird?”

Ryōhei stood up to refill Miura’s tea.

“That’s true enough.”

Miura Kōzō blew softly on his tea before continuing leisurely, “There's never a perfect choice in life. Frankly, if you’d actually agreed back then, I’d have looked down on you… Speaking of, how exactly did she fall for someone like you? Let me think…”

“Enough already! By the way, what happened to this Yukinoshita Saori afterward?” Feeling curious, Ryōhei asked casually.

According to the original “Hikigaya Ryōhei”'s background, “he” had rarely returned to Chiba after high school graduation anyway, so it wasn’t odd to ask.

“Yukinoshita Saori? She must’ve hated your guts. A mere commoner daring to reject marrying into her family? Heh!” For Miura, sitting here drinking tea and reminiscing with Ryōhei was a rare moment of comfort amid recent exhaustion.

He'd heard that as people got older, they enjoyed reminiscing more and more.

“As for what happened after… I’m not too clear myself. She must’ve gotten someone else to marry into the family, right? Yukinoshita Saori was the only heir of that generation! Though her personality really sucked, you know—she basically had no friends. Honestly, I prefer a wife like Yumiko’s mom—Fusako’s definitely best!”

“Ugh, again! Then shouldn’t you hurry home to hug her a bit more? Aren’t you leaving at 2 AM?”

“All right then, I’ll head out first!”

Kōzō didn’t bother with politeness in front of his best friend. He stood up casually after taking a sip of tea, preparing to leave.

“You’re going just like that? Fine, hurry up and head home.”

“Leaving, leaving! Oh right, almost forgot one more thing.”

Quickly heading to the entrance, Miura turned around and pulled something resembling a voucher from his pocket.

“Company welfare for once… those bastards gave it out right before expiration! A hotpot coupon for three people, free within the voucher limit! Relax—it’s not for you. Take Fusako and Yumiko tomorrow evening; you're free anyway, so just squeeze out a little time. Contact Fusako yourself tomorrow. That’s it, bye-bye! And wear something decent!”

Miura shoved the voucher into Ryōhei’s hand, opened the door himself, got onto his bicycle, and disappeared.

“Oh...”

...

“Sonoko! Smile again, let me see! How many times must I remind you to maintain a gentle ladylike smile on blind dates? I’ve definitely taught you that!”

That same Friday evening, in the moderately priced, one-bedroom apartment rented by Editor Machida Sonoko, Mrs. Machida was nagging her daughter relentlessly.

“Smile? Mom, you’ve exhausted me to death already!”

Editor-san, having endured a whole evening of her mother’s training, went on strike and fell onto her bed, playing dead.

She turned her back to her mother, secretly pulling out her phone from beneath the blanket. She swiftly typed out a message before even more swiftly shoving it back again:

—[Shi-chan, how’s the revision I asked for coming along? According to market research, you’re really gonna flop if you stubbornly continue this way!]

“Do you even want to get married? Just treat tomorrow as practice, at least. Take this seriously!”

Mrs. Machida, noticing her daughter's actions, was so angry her neck veins bulged, poking fiercely at the back of her daughter’s worthless head.

She’d realized by now that while Sonoko had slightly repented, deep down she still believed her conditions were decent enough, and she was good-looking enough not to worry. She just wasn’t taking this seriously enough.

“You’re driving me insane! At your age, you’re practically thirty-two already! So what if you're pretty! Can you compete with those vixens seven or eight years younger?”

Editor-san was again dragged upright by her mother.

Indeed, Machida Sonoko had been well-dressed and styled by her mother today. Because it was her own mother’s handiwork, she genuinely looked lovely.

Her entire presence shifted from capable to elegantly gentle. Her short, neat hair had been freshly styled, exuding a refreshing scent. She wore a silky white blouse paired with a knee-length silk skirt, revealing her smooth, fair calves beneath. A pair of slender, pale pink high heels further highlighted her charming figure.

---

A/N: Why does everyone keep saying the Miura brothers are going to die?

This is a fan translation of 比企谷大叔永远年轻 by Stargazer All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!