Chapter 640: Chapter 423: Aren’t All Men the Same
"I wasn’t embarrassed..."
"Then it’s settled," Minamoto Tamako interrupted, "I’ll add a task to my to-do list. Once I’ve finished the things at hand, I’ll explain properly to the director, Chief Kikuchi, and your mom."
"Whatever you say." Fushimi Roku couldn’t argue with her.
Immediately, Fushimi Roku put down his pen, turned around, and asked, "How about adding another item?"
"What?" Minamoto Tamako was a bit stunned.
"It’s about your to-do list," Fushimi Roku said, "We’ve done all the things couples should do, haven’t we? Shouldn’t we meet the elders of the Kujo Family now?"
"Ah..."
Minamoto Tamako couldn’t think of an excuse, and there seemed no reason to find one, after all, meeting the parents didn’t mean marriage, it was just proving that Fujimura-kun was taking this relationship seriously.
"Then... let’s list it."
Minamoto Tamako took out a black leather notebook from her pocket and bit the pen cap, quickly adding two lines of small text:
"Help Fujimura-kun explain the reason for disobeying orders clearly"
"Take Fujimura-kun back to Hokkaido to meet Kujo Grandpa"
...
Fushimi Roku was quite satisfied and quickly finished filling out the forms, collecting Jun’s body.
Jun was sealed in a plastic box, looking small, very light to hold in the hand.
Fushimi Roku and Minamoto Tamako left the police station with it, heading to a nearby temple... indeed, temples in Japan undertake pet funeral services.
Actually, Fushimi Roku preferred to bury it under the lawn of the Sugamo Apartment, and if conditions permitted, erect a monument, so Jun wouldn’t be too far away, and he could go downstairs to pay respects now and then.
Unfortunately, the law does not allow it.
The Japanese "Waste Disposal Law" categorizes pet remains as "general waste," but regulations in some areas (such as Tokyo) classify pet remains as "special waste," strictly prohibiting unauthorized burials in parks, forests, vacant lots, and other public or private spaces.
In other words, Japanese temples have practically monopolized the pet remains handling business.
Arriving at the temple, a bald monk led them into a side room, introducing several service packages, with the most recommended being the cremation package and pet cemetery.
The former is cheaper, requiring only burning the remains and taking the ashes home, whether to set them up or scatter them in the mountains or the sea is irrelevant;
The latter is relatively expensive, land in Tokyo is precious, and so are pet cemeteries, but the service is very attentive, offering not only memorial plaques but also regular memorial services.
Minamoto Tamako sat cross-legged on a cushion, holding the menu and looking left and right, finding it hard to decide.
"Which one is better to choose?"
She asked Fushimi Roku, "I didn’t think holding a funeral would be so troublesome, isn’t bothering about money at funerals a bit inappropriate? Sigh... I don’t know how to choose."
"Just choose cremation," Fushimi Roku quickly made a decision.
"Eh, why?" Minamoto Tamako asked.
"You can pack the ashes and take them wherever you want. If it’s a burial, you can only place them on someone else’s land, and they might charge more fees later, you’d have no choice but to pay ignoring any grievance," Fushimi Roku’s perspective was entirely different from hers.
Upon hearing this, the monk (or staff member) chimed in: "Our charges are transparent, with uniform standards..."
"Then what’s this depreciation fee for?" Fushimi Roku asked.
"Well, the cemetery is only leased, if you don’t plan to renew the lease later, we will definitely need to renovate it and rent it out to the next customer, so we collect a depreciation fee in advance for future renovations..."
"What if I keep renting?" Fushimi Roku pursued.
"There’s a discount..."
"So it’s paying indefinitely unless the corpse is removed, meaning even after I’m dead, payments continue, right?" Fushimi Roku sneered.
The staff member didn’t want to explain further and began recommending the cremation package instead.
Minamoto Tamako was persuaded and eventually chose cremation; the staff pushed Jun into the cremation furnace, inviting the priest to conduct a ritual afterward.
The monk clasped his hands, chanting scriptures, it was unclear whether it was for the peace of the deceased or the tranquility of the living.
After it was done, Minamoto Tamako held the urn, secretly cried for a while, shedding tears all the way home. Fushimi Roku couldn’t console her; this time, he could only let Minamoto Tamako process it herself.
Sitting side by side on the train seats, Minamoto Tamako suddenly spoke, "If you die, I will definitely buy a plot in the cemetery."
Fushimi Roku didn’t take it seriously, casually responding, "Why? So that stinky monk can extort you?"
"When I die, I could be buried next to you," Minamoto Tamako said.
Listening to this, Fushimi Roku felt a bit embarrassed, he scratched his head, saying, "That’s so ominous, quickly spit it out."
"Why spit it out?" Minamoto Tamako didn’t quite understand.
"A custom in China," Fushimi Roku didn’t elaborate further.
Minamoto Tamako said ’oh’ and continued, "I don’t want to spit at Jun, besides, people are destined to die. I never thought of this before, but ever since I became a police officer, it seems like it happens more frequently."
She paused, wiping her tears, turning to look outside the train window:
"First was Dad, he passed away before he could make peace with Mom... I don’t know what Dad thought, but I know Mom always felt regretful, otherwise, I should be called Kujo Tamako now."
"Back then, I was young and didn’t quite understand the pain of parting."
"Then there was Kawai, she was different from Dad; she wasn’t sick, she was only twenty-two, nearly the same age as me. That night, she was chatting with me, complaining about the bad-tasting pork in the cafeteria, and told me not to be too picky, then she died the next day, I didn’t even get to see her one last time."