Reborn in Tokyo: From Heiress to Global Tycoon

Chapter 106 The Coward's Game

July 7, 1988, 9:00 AM.

Tokyo, Ginza 7-chome.

The renovation of "SA Crystal Palace" is in its most bustling phase.

A huge blue dust net completely enclosed the main building. Inside, the sounds of pneumatic drills hitting concrete, the friction of crane winches, and the shouts of workers mingled together, rising and falling.

At that moment, a gray van with the words "Construction Province" printed on it rudely blocked the entrance to the construction site, preventing the dump truck from entering.

The car door opened.

Seven or eight officials in dark blue uniforms came down. They wore white gloves, carried black folders under their arms, and had a businesslike indifference on their faces.

The guards at the gate tried to stop them, but the middle-aged man in the lead just flashed his badge, and the guards' expressions changed instantly. They quickly grabbed their walkie-talkies and started yelling in a low voice.

A few minutes later, a foreman wearing a white hat ran out of the fence, sweating profusely.

He exchanged a few words with those officials.

Immediately afterward, the foreman's face turned deathly pale. With trembling hands, he pressed the emergency communicator hanging around his neck and said something into the microphone.

Change has begun.

It's not an instantaneous silence like when the power is cut off, but rather a "paralysis" that spreads like a plague.

First, the dump truck at the entrance stalled.

Then the roar of the mixer in the lobby on the first floor came to an abrupt end.

Then, this silence crept up the floors. The pneumatic drill on the third floor stopped, and the chainsaw on the fifth floor fell silent.

Within just two minutes, the construction site, which had been beating like a heart, became like a giant beast injected with anesthesia, its functions ceasing one by one.

Finally, only one crane on the top floor remained, oblivious to the danger, its boom still spinning. Only when the signalman below frantically waved a red flag did the massive steel arm freeze in mid-air, emitting a piercing screech of brakes.

All the roaring sounds disappeared.

Only the monotonous hum of the generator running idle remained, sounding particularly jarring in the deathly silence.

"Who is in charge?"

The leading official pushed up his silver-rimmed glasses, his gaze passing over the bewildered workers still clutching their tools, and fixed on the unfinished building.

"I am."

The site supervisor jogged over, took off his safety helmet, and before he could offer him a cigarette, the other party raised his hand to stop him.

"We received a report that the fire-resistant materials used in the building were substandard. In addition, there are discrepancies between the seismic structural data and the submitted drawings."

The official's voice was flat and devoid of any emotion.

"Effective immediately, all work is suspended. We will cooperate with the rectification and review process."

"Stop work?" The supervisor was stunned. "But all our materials are of the highest standard..."

"Whether there's a problem or not isn't up to you to decide, it's up to the data."

The official waved his hand.

The subordinate behind him immediately stepped forward and took out a roll of yellow and black tape from his bag.

"Sizzle—"

With a screeching tearing sound, the seal was affixed to the construction site gate.

When Endo rushed over, this was the scene he saw.

He squeezed through the crowd of onlookers, sweat still beading on his forehead.

Even though he had been informed by an inside source, he was still a step too late.

"Sir, isn't there some misunderstanding? Our approval procedures are complete; the fire department just came to inspect us last month..."

"Procedures are procedures, and the scene is the scene."

The official adjusted his glasses, his gaze passing over Endo's shoulder to the unfinished building.

"Mr. Endo, earthquakes have been frequent lately. For the safety of the people, the government must be cautious. The review process will take time, possibly a month or even six months. It depends on your cooperation."

He turned his head, looked at Endo, and a meaningful smile appeared on his lips.

"Sometimes, the problem with a building isn't in the steel and concrete, but elsewhere. If there are no problems elsewhere, the data will naturally be up to standard."

After saying that, he turned and got into the car.

The car door slammed shut. The gray van sputtered away, belching out a puff of exhaust fumes.

Only the yellow seal remained, fluttering in the wind.

……

3 PM.

Marunouchi, headquarters of Saionji Industrial.

The air conditioning in the president's office was on full blast, but Endo's forehead was still beaded with sweat.

Lately, he's been getting more and more trouble, and this old man is really suffering.

On the desk in front of him were three recently faxed notices of work stoppage.

It's not just Ginza.

The second phase of the "Pink Building" expansion project in Akasaka has been halted because of "noise pollution, requiring a reassessment of soundproofing facilities."

The local government office has temporarily suspended the issuance of construction permits for three plots of land recently acquired in Shimokitazawa for the construction of a "Karaoke Box" because "there are flaws in the land use change procedures."

Several construction projects contracted by Saionji Construction were forced to halt due to various "substandard" issues. Clients were inundated with calls.

The entire line is under lockdown.

"President."

Endo's fingers flew across the calculator, the clicking sound of which was quite irritating.

"Every day our construction site is shut down, we not only have to pay for the workers' lost wages, but also for equipment rental fees. The worst part is the bank interest."

He pushed the calculator in front of Xiu Yi.

The numbers on the screen were alarming.

"If production stops for a month, the direct economic loss will be 300 million yen. If production stops for six months..."

Endo swallowed hard.

"Although we have ample cash flow, we can't afford to only spend without earning. Moreover, if the construction is delayed, the pre-leased tenants will demand compensation. That would be a chain reaction."

Shuichi sat in a swivel chair with his back to Endo.

He looked out the window at the bustling Marunouchi area. This was the heart of Japan's economy, where every building was growing rapidly, creating wealth every second.

Amidst this frenzy, the Saionji family's businesses were forced to come to a standstill.

The powerful, visible force of change directly and forcefully halted the development of the Saionji family.

"Ministry of Construction... Nobuo Kanemaru..."

Shuichi murmured the two names.

He could feel the invisible noose slowly tightening. The other party didn't need evidence, didn't need a trial; they only needed to exploit even a single decimal point in administrative rules to suffocate a company.

This is what is meant by "officials don't fight with the people."

Endo.

Xiu turned around, his expression was somewhat unpleasant, but his eyes remained calm.

"Notify the managers of all construction sites not to cause trouble or try to tear off the seals. Tell the workers to stay put."

"But president, if this continues..."

"Do as I say."

Xiu stood up and picked up his suit jacket from the back of the chair.

"I'm going back to my ancestral home."

……

into the night.

Bunkyo District, Saionji Headquarters.

The main lights in the study were not on; only a table lamp on the desk emitted a dim, yellowish glow.

The air was filled with a faint scent of ink.

Satsuki knelt before the table, holding a wolf-hair brush in her hand. She wore a loose-fitting kimono, her long hair casually tied back, revealing a section of her fair neck.

The brushstrokes danced across the rice paper, leaving trails of ink.

When Shuichi pushed the door open and came in, she had just finished writing the last stroke.

It was a large character for "endure".

But that stroke was written extremely long, like a drawn sword.

"Father."

Satsuki put down her pen without looking up, simply watching the ink on the paper slowly dry.

"It seems the other side has made their move."

Xiuyi walked to the sofa and sat down, rubbing his temples wearily.

"All construction has stopped. The Ministry of Construction, the Fire and Rescue Agency, and even local government offices all launched attacks simultaneously, as if they had planned it in advance."

He sighed.

"Endo did the math. If it's a war of attrition, we can certainly afford it, but the cost would be too high. Losing tens of millions of yen every day is like cutting off a piece of our own flesh."

Xiu looked up at his daughter's back.

"Satsuki, I'm thinking... should we back down a bit? Like suspending funding to Osawa? If we show weakness, Kanemaru Shin should relent. After all, their primary goal right now is to pass the consumption tax, and they don't want to really escalate things."

This is a rational judgment made by an adult.

Knowing when to bow your head is also a form of survival wisdom.

"Lower your head?"

Satsuki chuckled softly.

She stood up, walked to the copper basin beside her, and slowly washed her hands. The water gurgled.

"Father, have you ever encountered a bear in the forest of Akasaka?"

"What?"

"If you encounter a bear and it roars at you, what do you think it will do if you turn and run away, or kneel down and beg for mercy?"

Satsuki dried her hands and turned around.

The light shone on half of her face, while the other half was hidden in darkness.

"It will pounce on you and bite your throat out."

"Your show of weakness exposes your fear."

She walked up to the sheet of rice paper with the character "忍" (patience) written on it, crumpled it into a ball, and casually threw it into the wastepaper basket.

"This is a chicken game."

Satsuki's voice was calm.

"Two cars collide head-on on a highway at the edge of a cliff. Whoever turns the steering wheel first loses."

"The Takeshita faction is now not only dealing with the Special Investigation Department's investigation, but also pushing through the Consumption Tax Bill in the Diet. They are under much more pressure than we are. They need money, they need votes, and they need political stability even more."

"They're strangling us to force us to cut off Osawa's funding chain and turn us into obedient dogs."

"If we give in now, all our previous plans and investments will be for naught. The Saionji family will forever remain a wallet they can manipulate at will."

Xiu Yi was stunned.

He looked into his daughter's eyes, which gleamed coldly in the shadows.

"So... what should we do?"

"No begging for mercy. No resumption of work."

Satsuki walked to the globe and gently flicked the blue sphere with her slender fingers.

"Pass down the order."

"All workers at the closed construction sites are on paid leave and will continue to receive their wages."

"Then, we had people rush to make a batch of huge banners overnight and hang them in the most conspicuous places on the fences of each construction site."

Shuichi asked, "What are you writing? A protest?"

"No."

Satsuki's lips curled into a playful smile.

Write: "We firmly support the government's safety inspection. For the sake of the safety of the people, this project is suspended indefinitely for rectification."

"Make the letters bigger, and use the most eye-catching red background with white lettering. Ideally, every Tokyo resident passing by should be able to see them."

"Also, inform Ichiro Osawa."

Satsuki's finger stopped the spinning globe, bringing it to a stop right on that long, narrow island nation.

"Tell him we're bleeding. Now it's his turn to show his worth."

"Let him launch his attack on the Congressional Budget Committee tomorrow. Don't talk about political donations, talk about 'administrative efficiency' and 'bureaucratic corruption.'"

"Let him question the Minister of Construction: Why is a legal, compliant company with a perfect tax record facing such targeted administrative harassment? Is it because it didn't 'pay tribute' to certain people?"

Shuichi took a deep breath.

This is a complete breakdown in relations, a total overturning of the table.

"But... tens of millions of dollars in losses every day..." Shuichi still felt a pang of heartache.

"Father."

Satsuki walked to the bookshelf and pulled out a photo album.

That's a photo from the celebration banquet after SA Investment's battle on Wall Street last year.

"Isn't all that money we earned in America just meant to be burned at this time?"

"They're waiting for us to blink."

Satsuki closed the photo album with a crisp "snap".

"But we not only won't blink, we'll keep our eyes wide open and watch them bleed."

"As long as we can hold on, they are the ones who should be worried."

"Because in a few months, when public discontent over the consumption tax reaches its peak, even a small construction site halting work could become the last straw that breaks the camel's back."

Shuichi looked at his daughter.

The wind outside the window rustled the leaves of the trees in the courtyard.

He suddenly felt that the slender figure in front of him was more like a gambler than the man sitting in the Prime Minister's residence.

A madman who only holds a few billion dollars in his hands, yet dares to put it all on the table.

But she's different. Shuichi firmly believes that.

"it is good."

Xiu didn't say another word.

He simply stood up and straightened his collar.

"Then let's play along to the end."

"I want to see whether their seals are harder or our bones are harder."