["We all call that place the 'Triangle Zone.' Aside from that, I couldn't figure out a better name for it..."]
["The 'Triangle Zone' where we live is long and narrow, shaped like a wedge."]
["To be more specific, please first imagine a normal-sized, round cheesecake, then use a kitchen knife to cut it evenly into twelve portions—much like a clock face with twelve divisions."]
["The result, naturally, is twelve pieces of cake with thirty-degree tips. Place one of these on a plate and observe it closely while sipping black tea or something similar. That sharp-tipped, long, and narrow slice of cake is the precise shape of our 'Triangle Zone.'"]
Yukinoshita Shizuku earnestly read the words Tsushima Kagami had written line by line. When the term "Triangle Zone" appeared, it was as if it possessed a magical power that deeply captivated her.
She didn't even need to think; the image of the house she was currently living in appeared in her mind.
Is he creating this using our current situation as material? Yukinoshita Shizuku thought to herself.
Tsushima Kagami's text continued, and Shizuku didn't dwell on her thoughts, immediately returning her gaze to the ever-increasing words.
["However, from the perspective of living comfort and functionality, the 'Triangle Zone' is truly a mess."]
["First off, the noise is terrible. It's no wonder, given that we are sandwiched between two railway tracks on the left and right; it's impossible for it not to be noisy."]
["Open the front door, and a train whistles past your eyes; open the rear window, and another train roars by."]
["Using the expression 'before your eyes' is by no means an exaggeration. In fact, the two trains are so close that passengers could look at each other and nod in greeting. Thinking back on it now, it feels truly breathtaking."]
["You might say that surely it must be quiet after the last train has passed."]
["People usually think that, and actually, I thought the same before moving in."]
["However, a 'last train' simply does not exist."]
["After all passenger trains finish running at 1:00 AM, the late-night freight trains come one after another; by dawn, when the freight trains generally take a break, the next day's passenger trains come charging to the door again."]
["It goes on like this, day after day, endlessly."]
["Alas!"]
Reading this, Yukinoshita Shizuku recalled the scene when her mother had first rented this place.
It was precisely because the house's layout was too bizarre and hellish, and the surrounding environment too terrible, that no one was willing to rent it. In the end, her mother had bargained and rented it at an extremely low price.
["Ultimately, we lived in that house for two years."]
["The house was built extremely carelessly, with gaps everywhere letting in the wind. Summer was naturally happy and pleasant, but winter became hell. We didn't even have money to buy a heater. As soon as it got dark, she, the cat, and I would crawl into the futon. That was what you would call, in the truest sense, sleeping in each other's arms..."]
["Winter left, and spring came. Spring was incomparably wonderful. Once spring arrived, I, she, and the cat all felt relieved of a heavy burden."]
["During April, the railway had a few days of strikes. whenever there was a strike, we were truly jubilant. Not a single train all day long. She and I held the cat and sunbathed on the tracks. It was as quiet as sitting at the bottom of a lake."]
["We were young, newlywed, and sunlight was free..."]
By the end, Yukinoshita Shizuku understood. The "I" in the text was recounting, in the form of a first-person memoir, how he and his newlywed wife had found this triangular house—described as a cheesecake cut into twelve equal parts—because they were simply too poor.
Although there was the noise of trains running day and night, 365 days a year, and the house even leaked wind—creating a harsh environment where the kitchen sink would freeze in winter—in the eyes of the "I" in the text, there was still much beauty in such impoverished days.
She was especially deeply touched when she saw the sentence: "We were young, newlywed, and sunlight was free."
This story was a short story by Haruki Murakami. Among the many works of Haruki Murakami that Tsushima Kagami had read, this short story was the one that remained freshest in his memory.
It was the cheesecake from just a moment ago, along with the passing trains and the kitten, that had suddenly reminded him of this short story.
Japan in this world was just like it was before his transmigration; it had only been a few years since the bubble burst. The public, who thought everything would get better and couldn't possibly get any worse, ended up not only failing to recover but also suffering a head-on blow from the Asian Financial Crisis. The confidence of the entire society could be said to have fallen to rock bottom.
From the perspective of social trends, this was exactly the time when some healing literature was urgently needed to boost morale.
In other words, it was time to force-feed them some "chicken soup for the soul."
And the state of the couple in the text—materially poor but spiritually rich—might just fit the current social mindset.
If, by any chance, it really caught someone's eye, there was a high probability it would be promoted by major print media or even government institutions. At that point, he could successfully debut as a writer.
The path of literary copying that followed would not only be much easier to walk, but the manuscript fees and royalties would also be much easier to negotiate.
As for why Tsushima Kagami wanted to write a novel, it was because he had discovered a few days ago that Yukinoshita Shizuku was preparing to write one.
She said she wanted to be like Higuchi Ichiyo and improve the family's financial situation by writing novels.
The result was that after struggling for a long time, she realized that although she was excellent in character and learning, she didn't have a shred of talent for writing literary works.
Tsushima Kagami had then discussed some modern Japanese literary authors and works with Yukinoshita Shizuku.
As a result, Tsushima Kagami discovered from the conversation that many great literary giants and works of this world's Japan had not appeared.
Tsushima Kagami couldn't help but sigh inwardly; indeed, the ultimate destination of transmigration is just plagiarism.
Just like that, Tsushima Kagami took Yukinoshita Shizuku's fountain pen and manuscript paper, saying that since he was idle while recuperating anyway, he might as well try to write something to submit and earn some manuscript fees to subsidize the household expenses.
Although this article was an early short story by Haruki Murakami, based on his understanding over the past few days, after the disappearance of many literary giants and works, the current literary world was filled with all sorts of "crooked melons and cracked dates." Placing this short story in there, at the very worst, would be enough for him to serve as a qualified gatekeeper of the literary world.
He wanted to drive out those hacks, every last one of them!
"They really are a free-spirited couple, aren't they?"
Seeing that Tsushima Kagami had completely stopped moving the fountain pen in his hand, Yukinoshita Shizuku finally spoke.
Tsushima Kagami also picked up the manuscript paper to examine and check it again. Feeling there were no issues, he handed it to Yukinoshita Shizuku.
"How does it feel? Can it be submitted?"
Yukinoshita Shizuku took the manuscript paper and read it carefully once more. Her finger gently rubbed repeatedly over the final line, "We were young, newlywed, and sunlight was free," as if she too wanted to grasp the open-mindedness and happiness of the couple in the text who found joy amidst suffering.
"It feels so warm, yet holds an indescribable, faint sorrow."
Then, Yukinoshita Shizuku looked at Tsushima Kagami with a face full of suspicion.
"Kagami, did you really lose your memory?"
"No, I should say... are you really still you?"
"Not only has your personality changed, but the old you didn't have this kind of talent either."
Tsushima Kagami continued to speak leisurely with a faint smile.
"How do you expect me to verify or falsify that kind of question?"
"Or perhaps I could say that the moment I was rescued, I actually awakened what the Buddhists call 'Su-hui'—wisdom from a past life?"
"Would you believe me if I said that?"
Unexpectedly, after hearing this, Yukinoshita Shizuku actually nodded thoughtfully.
"Alright, find some time to submit it as soon as possible and see."
Tsushima Kagami said this while stroking the black-and-white, which was resting on its stomach in front of the window after eating the cheesecake.
"Then I'll ask for leave tomorrow and make a trip to Tokyo."
Yukinoshita Shizuku seemed to be full of confidence in this article as well.
Just as she was preparing to leave the room to start handling today's housework and the ingredients for dinner, the handle of the room's door turned once more.
When the door opened, there stood a beautiful woman with long hair pinned up, her expression serious but with a hint of tenderness flowing from the corners of her eyes, her graceful figure wrapped in a pure black, plain kimono.
Yukinoshita Shizuku exclaimed in surprise, "Mother, why are you back?"
____
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