sinovels Chapters 1544 and 1553: You will gain my friendship!
Chapters 1544 and 1553: You will gain my friendship!
Chapters 1544 and 1553: You will gain my friendship!
In a private room on the top floor of Sanmai-ki in Ginza, Naoki Nagayama met Kenjiro Yasuda of the Yasuda family.
I had asked Otomo-san to help arrange a meeting before, and to my surprise, Kenjiro Yasuda immediately agreed, letting Itsuki-yu choose the location. So, Sanmai-ki in Ginza came in handy again.
"Samadhi Residence"
Kenjiro Yasuda looked at the decorations and ornaments in the private room with some curiosity. These might not be treasures, but they were all genuine antiques.
"I'd heard about the unique teahouses in Ginza before, but I never imagined they were actually part of Naoki-san's family business!"
"Haha, it was just a spur-of-the-moment thing. I just wanted a place to have tea in Ginza."
Naoki Nagayama also said with a smile,
"I never expected that my fame would grow so much later on."
Upon hearing this, Kenjiro Yasuda smiled slightly, neither agreeing nor disagreeing. He had spent a fortune to buy land in the most prime location beforehand, and then opened a teahouse. Just for drinking tea?!
Seven or eight years ago, before land prices skyrocketed, this place was already worth 5 million yen, which was a considerable sum for a zaibatsu. Even though he was the heir to the Yasuda zaibatsu, he wouldn't dare to waste that money.
Naoki Nagayama claimed it was for tea, but he was probably really investing in the land! The price of that area has probably quadrupled or quintupled by now!
That's a very strong strategic vision!
"Naoki-san truly has a leisurely and refined taste."
"Ha ha."
Just then, Sakakibara Chinatsu brought over some sweets from the tea room, and Naoki Nagayama took the opportunity to invite them over:
"This is seasonal Shimizu tea from my tea plantation in Shimizu. Kenjiro, please try it."
"Clear Water Tea"
Kenjiro Yasuda gazed at the golden, clear tea in his teacup, took a small sip, and savored the sweet and slightly bitter flavor—refreshing and invigorating, instantly making him feel refreshed after experiencing the cold wind outside.
"Nice tea!"
He secretly thought to himself, "Private tea garden, bustling teahouse... Naoki Nagayama is even better at putting on airs than the chaebol families!"
At the height of the Yasuda zaibatsu's power, such scenes were naturally commonplace, and perhaps even more extravagant. This was because at that time, Yasuda was comparable to Mitsui, Mitsubishi, and Sumitomo.
However, after the assassination of its founder, Zenjiro Yasuda, the family's influence rapidly declined. Following the postwar collapse of the Japanese zaibatsu under American leadership, they lost control of their core business, Yasuda Bank. They were subsequently completely manipulated by figures like Yoshisuke Ayukawa.
Although Kenjiro Yasuda remains wealthy and respectable, he no longer enjoys the unbridled extravagance of aristocratic families.
At least Kenjiro Yasuda wouldn't do something like opening a teahouse in Ginza!
"I'm glad Kenshiro-san likes it."
Naoki Nagayama also took a sip of tea.
"Speaking of which, I haven't yet thanked Kenjiro-san at my son's full-moon celebration."
"Not at all, it was just a coincidence!"
Kenjiro Yasuda joked with a smile.
"Now, Nagayama Ren, Ren-chan, right? How are you doing now?"
"Lianjiang has started learning to walk and eating complementary foods!"
"Haha, kids grow up so fast!"
"."
Kenjiro Yasuda is already over thirty and naturally has children. The two of them got along very well when they talked about parenting, and the atmosphere in the private room was very harmonious.
I had a different cup of tea and ate two pieces of tea snacks.
The sunlight streaming through the window was slightly suffocating, and for a moment, it felt like two old friends, both over fifty, were having a long-awaited reunion and chatting.
"Kenjiro-san."
However, in this atmosphere, Naoki Nagayama suddenly spoke up.
"I'm a little curious, why did Yasuda Bank later change its name to Fuji Bank?!"
"Oh, this."
The Yasuda family naturally has its official explanation, such as a major corporate restructuring to adapt to the new era and create better cohesion, and so on.
These are all texts crafted by seasoned copywriters specializing in journalism and communication studies. Every explanation is objective, positive, and very presentable!
However, when faced with Naoki Nagayama's young and sharp eyes, Kenjiro couldn't say anything.
No amount of hypocritical language can conceal the fact that the Yasuda family has lost control of its vast business empire, including its conglomerates and banks, and has been manipulated by others!
"Naoki-san."
Kenjiro Yasuda silently put down his teacup.
Are you mocking the Yasuda family?!
"Of course not!"
Naoki Nagayama immediately explained,
"I'm just a little resentful!"
"The one who steals the throne and changes the kingdom's name is like shouting to everyone, 'I am the king—look, I've donned the crown!'"
This is a line from Rudyard Kipling's famous short story "The Man Who Wanted to Be King," a classic of Western literature. As a legitimate heir to a zaibatsu (financial conglomerate), Kenjiro Yasuda had naturally read it. It was an arrogant attitude and a self-deceiving act.
He naturally knew that Naoki Nagayama was alluding to the Ayukawa family's usurpation and control of the Fuji Group.
"Naoki-san, what exactly are you trying to say?!"
Kenjiro Yasuda asked, somewhat angrily.
"The Yasuda family was once glorious, but their current state is not due to any fault of war!"
The Yasuda family is a conglomerate primarily focused on financial capital. After the war, the United States dissolved the Japanese zaibatsu, specifically freezing the Yasuda family's assets and forcing them to withdraw from all their investments. Wholly-owned subsidiaries were also required to change management. In effect, this effectively stripped the Yasuda family from their carefully cultivated network of connections.
Thus, the Yasuda zaibatsu gradually declined.
"I know, I know."
Naoki Nagayama nodded, reassuring Kenjiro Yasuda in front of him.
"But looking at the Ayukawa family now, Kenjiro Nagato, who's backed by the Fuji Group, must be feeling resentful, right?!"
"."
Faced with such a low-level provocation, Kenjiro Yasuda naturally realized what was going on. He immediately took a big gulp of tea to calm himself down.
"The victor is king, the loser is villain; it's that simple!"
"."
Seeing Yasuda Kenjiro quickly regain his composure, Naoki Nagayama was somewhat impressed. As expected, the composure of a zaibatsu heir is well-trained!
But this is not what Naoki Nagayama wants:
"Doesn't Kenjiro-san want to see the Ayukawa family fail?"
"?!"
Faced with Kenjiro Yasuda's questioning gaze, Naoki Nagayama did not hide anything:
"The Ayukawa family acquired 1% of the shares in Shuyu, which is the only time to date that the Shuyu Group has broken free of its control."
"An investigation revealed that the Ayukawa family has mobilized many allies around Tree Friends, seemingly planning a coordinated attack on them."
"."
While Tree Friends may not have a monopoly in the entertainment industry, it is now a very powerful large-scale entertainment conglomerate, and it is not backed by any other deeply entrenched conglomerates.
With "cultural development" now a national policy and the cultural industry booming, Shuyou has unlimited potential, not to mention its numerous film IP rights.
What a perfect prey! If they can acquire Tree Friends, the Ayukawa family can easily control a pivotal company in the industry, allowing the Fuji Group to firmly establish itself in the cultural industry, and incidentally acquire a cash cow, further enhancing their influence!
"Hunting tree friends?"
Kenjiro Yasuda could hardly believe it. Even he knew that Shuyou was currently performing well, had a stable cash flow, and a bright future. Not to mention that Shuyou Capital was providing substantial funding behind it.
"How is that even possible? Naoki-san, you're not short of money, and you don't have any debt!"
This isn't wartime anymore. Are you suggesting we kidnap Naoki Nagayama, hold a knife to his neck, and force him to transfer his love interest?!
Or is it using power to oppress? How is that any different from robbery?!
Are you kidding me? Conglomerates rely on order to maintain their wealth. If they disrupt the order, they will face a backlash from the entire system. Do you think other conglomerates are just sitting idly by?!
Not to mention that if it turns into a full-blown brawl in the end, Naoki Nagayama has a yakuza background, as depicted in "Hayato no Den"!
"I certainly don't have any debt problems."
Naoki Nagayama nodded. As long as his company doesn't run into problems, forced takeovers are generally not a problem in Japan.
Such notorious and malicious annexations are generally political acts between countries, such as a certain country in Panama directly declaring it a violation of the constitution, or a certain Dutch company directly seizing assets in the name of national security, and so on.
"But I also have many weaknesses when it comes to my fellow tree enthusiasts."
After such a long investigation, Naoki Nagayama roughly knew the Ayukawa family's plan.
They targeted Nagayama Kumahara in Shimizu as a starting point, hoping he would mortgage his assets to secure loans for real estate projects. They then used various pretexts to demand additional funding, threatening to abandon the project or result in losses on their initial investments if he refused.
Naturally, Nagayama Kaede's KTV was subsequently implicated, but KTVs are a capital-intensive industry with high fixed costs, and the only way to obtain funding was through industrial loans secured by collateral.
Then, through connections with banks, they chose to withdraw loans early, cut off cash flow, and so on, forcing the other side into a debt spiral.
Of course, at this time, one could also seek help from Naoki Nagayama. Unfortunately, at this time, Shuyou Capital's money was emptied by government bonds and it couldn't come up with any more. Perhaps the only option was to borrow money from the Shuyou Group, because under normal circumstances, Shuyou would definitely be able to repay it.
Ultimately, if the bubble bursts and the economy collapses suddenly, leading to insolvency and other problems, it could even prevent Shuyou Capital from repatriating its overseas funds for a while, for example, through lawsuits.
Then the Ayukawa family, who had been waiting, could take over.
Yes, the Ayukawa family, with its top financial analysts, must have known about the risk of the bubble bursting. However, as an industrial enterprise, they would certainly be less affected than the financial and real estate industries!
They probably even know that the Bank of Japan is already drafting policies!
That's roughly the process!
Of course, there will be various measures in the actual process, and it will last for a long time. But in the end, the Ayukawa family will control Kiyuu, and they might even be able to get Naoki Nagayama to work for them!
"In short, they've already started planning and taking action! Those known to be carrying out these actions include Fujita Sasuke of the Fujita family, Naito Shusuke of Naito Securities, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Hibiya Bank (agricultural cooperative), and others."
Naoki Nagayama looked at Kenjiro Yasuda.
"I don't want to sit here and wait to die."
".?"
Kenjiro Yasuda's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Damn it!! You already know who their allies are before they even start?! You even know their specific names?!!"
Knowing who is in charge is like knowing the enemy's attack plan before the battle even begins!
Did you turn on full map mode?!
Naoki Nagayama paused for a moment, then explained:
"I found some excellent investigators."
"So outstanding?!"
Kenjiro Yasuda spoke directly.
"Could you introduce me to someone?!"
With talent like that, wouldn't it be great to just send him to investigate the competitors?!
This will definitely double the Yasuda family's assets again!
"I'll talk about it later, I'll talk about it later."
Naoki Nagayama was sweating a little.
"Kenshiro-san, let's go back to our previous conversation!"
"I want to form an alliance with you and take this opportunity to counterattack the Ayukawa family."
When it came to specific alliances, Kenjiro Yasuda calmed down again:
"What benefit would this bring to the Yasuda family?"
Although they disliked the Ayukawa family, the Yasuda family might not fare well if they really went against them. Right now, all the Yasuda family had left were their textile companies.
"Of course there are benefits!"
Naoki Nagayama said,
"The Yasuda family was previously close to the Liberal Democratic Party, but now that they are with the Social Democratic Party, they have an additional avenue to explore new frontiers by embracing the 'culture-based nation' strategy."
"The Shuyu and Yasuda families will become allies, and Shuyu Capital is currently executing a major plan that will include the Yasuda family."
Finally, you will gain my friendship~~
When he got to the last point, Naoki Nagayama couldn't help but laugh and shake his head.
"Just kidding. But Kenjiro-san, you don't want to see the Ayukawa family get what they want, do you?!"
"."
Although Naoki Nagayama said it was a joke, Kenjiro Yasuda looked at the young man in front of him with a serious expression in his eyes!
This young founder of a powerful financial family reminded him of his great-grandfather, Zenjiro Yasuda, the founder of the Yasuda family.
At the age of thirty, Yasuda Zenjiro became the shogunate's official gold and silver recycler, and at a young age, he laid the foundation for the Yasuda Zaibatsu. Naoki Nagayama was even more outstanding than Yasuda Zenjiro!
Gaining Naoki Nagayama's friendship might just lead to the revival of the Yasuda zaibatsu in the future!
"I cannot reply to Naoki-san's matter immediately!"
Kenjiro Yasuda said earnestly,
I will discuss it with my father.
He's not yet the head of the Yasuda zaibatsu!
"no problem!"
Naoki Nagayama smiled and raised his teacup again.
"I'm here today just to have some tea with Kenshiro!"
"it is good"
As a key director of the Tree Friends group, Kijima Kyō already owns a very nice villa in Bunkyo Ward.
However, he lives alone and is a bit lonely, so he usually goes out to have fun until late at night before going home. Because of his gold Rolex, the ladies at the club will notice him!
When I got home in the evening, I got out of the taxi and was about to go inside when a car blocked my way!
"Who parked their car in front of my house?!"
Kijima remained silent, then turned and shouted.
"This is not a public parking space!!!"
"."
After a while, no one appeared, and Kijima looked at the car with some anger.
Illuminated by the louvered lights, this bright yellow luxury sedan was exceptionally refined, possessing the sleek lines and stylish design of a Porsche.
However, the 330mm brake discs, Denloc high-performance tires, and the barely visible roll cage all indicate the car's ferocious horsepower. This is a high-speed beast!
"This car looks so much like the one in Naoki's movie."
Kijima looked at it more and more, and when he turned to the front, he saw a letter tucked under the windshield wiper, and the recipient's name was clearly his!
"I?"
After opening the envelope, the first thing that fell out was the key. Then there was a simple letter!
"This Yellow Bird is a gift to Kijima Kyō! Thank you for his invaluable contributions to the Tree Friends community!!"
"!!!"
Kijima was relieved!
"This is a gift from the company?!"
"It's not Naoki-san or Otomo-san!!!"
"!!"
He excitedly opened the car door and, sure enough, found the complete set of documents and a brand-new diamond-encrusted Rolex inside!
"."
As night deepened, Kijima Kyō's excitement blended with the darkness.
After a long silence, a resolute voice seemed to say:
"I, Kijima Kyō, will live as a tree friend and die as a tree friend!"
"!"