There he found the old lady, Tadeshina, whom he knew to be Satoko’s maid. Satoko herself had already been to the Matsugae house to exchange New Year’s greetings, and today, finding occasion to bring some traditional Kyoto bran mash as her own New Year’s present, Tadeshina had made her way inconspicuously to Kiyoaki’s room. Though Iinuma was aware who Tadeshina was, this was the first time he had ever been brought together with her intentionally, and the reason for it was not yet clear to him. The New Year was always lavishly celebrated in the Matsugae household. Some twenty or more people came from Kagoshima, and after going to the residence of the traditional head of the clan to pay their respects, they were entertained at the Matsugaes’. The New Year’s dinners, cooked in the Hoshigaoka style and served in the black-beamed main hall, were famous, largely because of such desserts as ice cream and melon, which were delicacies almost never tasted by country people. This year, however, because the period of mourning for the Meiji Emperor was not yet over, no more than three guests came up from Kagoshima; among them, the principal of Iinuma’s middle school, a gentleman who had the honor of having known Kiyoaki’s grandfather.
