"Beijing Municipal National Security Bureau, Supernatural Phenomena Investigation Section. Please cooperate with our routine inspection!"
The Slit-Mouthed Woman looked at Kano in bewilderment. "What's going on?"
Kano offered little explanation. "Just a little trouble. Nothing to worry about. Mom, put your mask on."
The Slit-Mouthed Woman did as he asked. Shoichi Kano called out a reply, then went over to open the door.
A man and a woman stood outside.
First, the woman: she had shoulder-length hair, and while none of her features particularly stood out, they came together with a certain balanced beauty. Overall, she could score above a six. She wore a black tank top and jeans, with large swaths of tattoos covering her exposed skin. A pair of chain-like bracelets encircled her wrists, and both ears sported oversized, extravagant earrings. Her whole look screamed alternative.
The other visitor was taller and more heavily built. He also looked a dozen years older than her, somewhere in his early forties. His hair was cropped short, though it was thinning slightly, with a receding hairline. His square face wore a stern expression, and his features were utterly unremarkable. Overall, though, he had the bearing of a military tough guy, moving like the wind and standing straight as a pine. Even his civilian clothes couldn't conceal the air of a trained fighter.
It was hard to imagine how these two people with such utterly different styles-an edgy young woman and a drill instructor-had ended up in the same department.
Yet the instant Kano opened the door, both flashed their credentials almost in unison.
"Cheng Shan, an investigator with the Beijing Municipal National Security Bureau's Supernatural Phenomena Investigation Section," the "edgy young woman" introduced herself.
The tough-looking middle-aged man with the drill-instructor vibe also showed his credentials. "Ma Liangdong, deputy chief of the Supernatural Phenomena Investigation Section."
"What can I do for you?" Shoichi Kano asked very politely.
And he asked in Chinese.
Deputy Chief Ma immediately smiled. "Your Chinese is pretty good. How long have you been studying?"
Ms. Cheng Shan, meanwhile, kept a stern face and looked quite serious. "Our detection system identified you two as a... jujutsu sorcerer and cursed spirit from Japan. To ensure that you haven't entered the country illegally and won't threaten our national security, we need to conduct some routine inquiries in accordance with the law. Please be advised."
"Check whatever you like." Shoichi Kano didn't mind at all. He wasn't planning to cause trouble here anyway. He would take what he needed and leave.
"Your passport, please." Cheng Shan held out her hand.
Shoichi Kano obediently took the little passport booklet he had casually stuffed into his pocket and handed it over.
After glancing through it, Cheng Shan passed it to Deputy Chief Ma beside her. Ma Liangdong took a few looks before returning it to Kano. "You're still a minor? Do you have a guardian?"
Kano pointed at the figure peeking out from inside the room.
The two officials then naturally entered the hotel room and examined Miss "Miyano Yuko's" identification.
Shoichi Kano had initially intended to interpret, but Deputy Chief Ma switched straight to fluent Japanese. His accent didn't sound native, though, and he stumbled over some of the more complicated words.
"He..." Cheng Shan stood off to the side and quietly explained to the dumbfounded Shoichi Kano, "passed the N2 exam."
The Slit-Mouthed Woman answered his questions smoothly, too. When Ma Liangdong asked how the two were related, for example, she said "mother and son" without hesitation and stated that she was Shoichi Kano's guardian. As for their reason for coming to Beijing, she said it was "sightseeing."
Despite all his questions, Ma Liangdong found nothing wrong with their answers, and naturally lowered his guard.
Cheng Shan then took out a document for them both to sign. Its contents were simple: during their stay in Beijing, they were prohibited from using any supernatural powers, including but not limited to powers from the jujutsu system and China's native systems.
As Shoichi Kano signed his name on the paper, he felt a very faint power travel along the fountain pen and enter his body, as though a monitoring device had been planted inside him.
"Will you be visiting anywhere else after leaving Beijing, or heading straight back to Japan?" Ma Liangdong asked one last question.
The Slit-Mouthed Woman glanced over at Shoichi Kano, then said, "We're not sure... We might go have a look around Inner Mongolia."
"In that case, please let us know when you leave." Deputy Chief Ma nodded. "We'll contact the relevant department in Inner Mongolia so they can coordinate with you."
"Enjoy your visit." Cheng Shan, who had kept a cold expression the whole time, finally offered something resembling a friendly wish.
With that, the two left.
"I don't like the aura around that man," the Slit-Mouthed Woman said, returning to her relaxed, at-home demeanor. "It's like reverse cursed technique. Getting even a little close to him feels like being burned."
"But that woman, Cheng something... her aura was a bit like our cursed energy."
Since the original Jujutsu Kaisen had offered very little detail about China's power systems, Kano had now completely lost the informational advantage of having "read the script." He could only speculate based on his own common sense. The Slit-Mouthed Woman's description had given him a clue, though. Perhaps Ma Liangdong's power was some kind of positive energy, while Cheng Shan's abilities were probably similar to jujutsu and relied on negative energy.
"Good thing you didn't attack them just now, Mom." Shoichi Kano let out a relieved breath and got up to pour himself some water.
The Slit-Mouthed Woman rolled her eyes. "Don't worry. There are only the two of us in this unfamiliar place. I'm not going to cause trouble for you."
Early the next morning, Ma Liangdong came to see them again. This time, however, he hadn't brought Cheng Shan. Instead, he brought a young man who introduced himself as "Xiao Zhou."
Xiao Zhou also had a positive-energy aura similar to Ma Liangdong's, but it was far weaker, so it didn't make the Slit-Mouthed Woman particularly uncomfortable.
"Hello, I'm a guide from XX Travel Agency." Xiao Zhou wore a professional smile. "Starting today, I'll be handling your Beijing sightseeing itinerary. If there's anywhere you'd like to visit, just let me know, and I'll arrange it for you."
Shoichi Kano asked half-jokingly, "Do we have to pay a guide fee?"
Xiao Zhou inadvertently glanced at Ma Liangdong beside him, then put on another beaming smile. "No need for that. Our mission is to help our international friends..."
Halfway through, he changed his tune. "Uh... actually, Mr. Ma here has already paid the relevant fees."
Ma Liangdong's face twisted into an agonized expression that said he couldn't bear to watch. He pressed a hand to his forehead and sighed repeatedly.
Even the Slit-Mouthed Woman raised her eyebrows and remarked in Japanese, "Looks like this young man... isn't very good at lying."
Xiao Zhou looked deeply embarrassed. If anything, his expression was starting to resemble that awkward-smile reaction image of Liu Xiaoyan.
"Just tell Xiao Zhou wherever you'd like to go," Ma Liangdong said, waving as he left. "He can arrange it all for you. If his service falls short in any way, tell me directly! My contact details are on the document we signed yesterday."
"Thank you... Chief Ma." Shoichi Kano cupped his hands in greeting.
In truth, Xiao Zhou had been a little nervous when he received this assignment. After all, despite having studied Taoist magic under Deputy Chief Ma for so long, this was his first encounter with Japan's unique jujutsu sorcerers and cursed spirits.
The unknown, after all, was what frightened people most.
But after seeing them in person, he realized that this jujutsu sorcerer wasn't all that different. He was even a high school boy several years younger than Xiao Zhou. Even the cursed spirit wasn't some hideous monster with three heads and six arms. She hardly looked different from an ordinary person, aside from having paler skin and slightly gray eyes.
"It's getting fairly late," Xiao Zhou suggested. "Why don't I take you both for a simple meal, and we can discuss our plans for this afternoon?"
"I know a place that serves really authentic fermented mung bean juice. I'm sure you'll both be interested."
"Fermented mung bean juice?" The Slit-Mouthed Woman paused. "What's that? Is it like soy milk?"
(PS: Soy milk is called "tonyu" in Japanese. Although it isn't part of Japan's traditional breakfast fare, it has become increasingly common under the influence of modern Japanese ideas about healthy eating.-Author's note.)
Shoichi Kano spoke up before the Slit-Mouthed Woman could agree. "Um... let's skip the fermented mung bean juice. We're not fortunate enough to appreciate such a delicacy."
But the Slit-Mouthed Woman didn't appreciate his intervention. Miss "Miyano Yuko" insisted on getting to the bottom of it. "So what exactly is fermented mung bean juice?"
At that moment, Kano distinctly saw a fleeting, wicked grin cross Xiao Zhou's face-the very same Just as planned smile Light Yagami wore.
But Xiao Zhou quickly concealed that smile behind his slightly uneasy, earnest expression. "Uh... if I had to explain it, the ingredients are a little different. What we usually call soy milk is made from soybeans, whereas this juice is made from mung beans."
Unfortunately, Xiao Zhou only told half the story, so the Slit-Mouthed Woman assumed this juice was simply a mung bean version of soy milk. Wasn't it just a drink made by soaking beans, grinding them up, filtering them, and boiling the result? What was the big deal?
Before you continue