The Power within Innocence

Chapter 9 - Family Time

Hitoshi san pov:

I gave a stiff nod to one of the townspeople as he bowed to me and hurried away. I kept a stoic face as I walked through the town. I made sure I didn't show even the least amount of interest to anyone who passed by me but I watched them keenly from my peripheral vision. They all did their best to give me a nervous bow and clear away from my path.

That's right. They knew who they submitted to. They knew that my word was the rule here and I truly loved the control I had over these people.

They knew the punishment for doing anything against me or badmouthing the Ichijou family. If I found anyone doing things against my instructions, I would have them stripped of their livelihood and thrown out of the town. Two families had suffered such a fate and were found on the brink of death just a little away from the town. Being a rather generous person, I had let them return.

Soon after that incident, everyone had clearly understood the rules and that they should never be broken. I was someone who was not lenient. It didn't matter what reason anyone had to go against the lines that I had drawn, they would be punished.

As for one of the families I had allowed for to return, Wataru san and his wife Namiko san were especially indebted to me. I had put them to good use in many ways, even in the matter of Yuki. I made sure that Yuki would be with someone who would treat her well along with knowing that I would be keeping a very keep eye on them to make sure they didn't do even the slightest mistake with her.

I gave a small smirk as I walked through the town. I was on the way to see Yuki just to make sure things were going just as planned. Namiko san had gone out to another town for some work so Yuki would be by herself at home. I had heard that her brothers too weren't with her at the moment, busy playing in one of the other toddler's houses. I could talk to Yuki without having any unnecessary distractions.

It had been just a few days after Hirui had brought her to our mansion to celebrate the birthdays of her brothers. I have to say, Hirui was slowly getting better at understanding people and making situations work to our advantage. I was impressed when he had told me that he had invited Yuki to spend the evening with us.

She was hesitant at first and I was satisfied to see that she wasn't as arrogant as most city people would be. After a bit of persuasion and consoling when she had remembered her passed on family, she had agreed to come to the mansion to join us for dinner.

I had instructed everything to be flawless for the evening. We had welcomed her warmly, celebrated with a feast and I had had Hirui drop her home after the meal. The plan had worked out perfectly and Yuki was very happy to have been given importance from us.

Besides, Hirui had begun to take a keen interest in Yuki, not just as a potential advantage to our status. He had begun to like her as a woman. She was most definitely beautiful and had all the qualities that the Ichijou family wanted. She had good etiquette, she was kind to everyone, cheerful, adjusting and would definitely be the best addition to the Icjijou family. If she were married to my son, our standard in front of the City Government would sky rocket!

Just a little longer.....just a little more time and she would become close to us, trust us completely. She had already accepted Hirui's embrace and he had already progressed to giving her an affectionate kiss on her forehead. As far as he had observed, she hadn't reacted negatively to it. Perhaps we had influenced her more than we had assumed.

Once she was completely attached to us, I would arrange a grand wedding with my son. She would be a perfect wife, a perfect daughter in law. As for the matter of her brothers, I could think of what to do about them later. Two kids would be quite easy to handle....after all, they were also one of the main trump cards to get Yuki on our side. a little bit of gentleness and Yuki would be in our hands.