Shozo is a mentally weak man whose life has been dominated by his overbearing mother, Mrs. Oyama, the two who run their own store about which Shozo knows little beyond his task of going to the wholesalers. While she arranged for Shozo's marriage to traditional Shinako who she thought would make him more responsible, Mrs. Oyama and her overbearing ways were also the primary reasons why Shinako left after four years. What Shinako didn't know is that both mother and to a lesser extent son orchestrated what happened in Shozo casually seeing Fukoku behind Shinako's back, frivolous Fukoku who Mrs. Oyama felt would be a better match at this stage of their lives if solely for Fukoku's sizable dowry. While Shozo neither really loved/loves either Shinako or Fukoku beyond the love of having a woman in his life in the form of a wife, he does have a true love, namely Lily, his pet cat who ends up being a pawn in the proceedings.—Huggo