National Tide 1980.

Zuo Haiyou Erlang drove his car along the bustling street straight to the hotel.

A warm body temperature emanated from Guizi, who was leaning on his shoulder, happily fiddling with the pearl jewelry that Zuo Haiyou had just given her.

This scene involuntarily evoked a feeling of severe disconnect between emotion and reality in Zuo Haiyou, reminding him of his wife.

There was a time when he and Miyoko shared a dream of living such a life.

They long to be able to share a ride in their own car on special occasions like this in the future, and enjoy a romantic meal at a luxury hotel.

I never imagined life could be so dreamlike.

Although this blissful love should have belonged to the wife, he was now accompanied by another woman, who was someone else's wife.

Thinking of this, Zuo Haiyou Erlang felt as if someone had suddenly wound up a spring, creating an indescribable awkwardness in his heart.

However, this feeling only lasted for a fleeting moment.

After all, a person's conscience is far too insignificant compared to their desires.

Soon, Zuo Haiyoujiro was again attracted by the sweet scent of the opposite sex's body and the pleasant flattery around him, and completely indulged in the physical desires aroused by the illicit love, enjoying the satisfaction from his vanity.

He forgot his wife, who had endured hardship and toil alongside him and was now at home pregnant with his child, busy with housework.

We finally arrived at the hotel we had booked. Almost all the high-end hotels in Tokyo were brightly lit that night, the restaurants were full, and there were guests everywhere.

Especially because guest rooms are in such high demand, there are even scalpers who resell rooms and take advantage of the shortage to overcharge customers.

This shows the extravagant lifestyle in Japan today; almost everyone who goes on a date with someone of the opposite sex today ends up staying at a five-star hotel that night.

Fortunately, Zuo Haiyou Erlang had made ample preparations for today.

They received the keys smoothly at the front desk and took the elevator together to their guest room.

It has to be said that the facilities are truly excellent, meeting five-star standards, especially the view from the balcony where you can see the streetlights of Tokyo at dusk.

"It's so quiet here, and it'll be convenient to get to the office tomorrow. But the best part is the night view. Wow, look, it's so beautiful! It's like an overturned jewelry box. Look, rubies, sapphires, emeralds..."

After entering the room, Gui Zi stretched out her fair arm and first pulled back the lace curtains.

Directly below the thirteenth floor, right on the waterfront in front of them, there seems to be a bustling night market.

Countless neon lights in red, blue, yellow, and green shimmered and twinkled in the night, vying for attention, looking like a large piece of stained glass.

Beyond a sea of ​​lights lies the pitch-black ocean, its surface shimmering with black ripples as it meanders.

In the distance, a brightly lit ship floats on the bay like a city that never sleeps.

"The reason I booked a room at this hotel is because I love the view. Looking down, I feel like I'm ruling the world; the view is invigorating."

Facing the expansive view, Zuo Haiyoujiro expressed his thoughts.

"I see. So, you chose this room because you wanted to feel like you were ruling the world. It seems Yujiro has always been an ambitious person. Heh. This must be the special preference of a great man."

With a smile on her face, Gui Zi said the words that would make Zuo Haiyoujiro happiest.

He found it hard to imagine that his wife, Miyoko, would say these things.

Besides, even if I did say it, he would take it as sarcasm.

This is perhaps the essential difference between a wife and a mistress.

"Don't keep teasing me with those 'big shot' phrases. No matter who it is, everyone feels good when they look out from a high place."

"No way, that's really what I think. Yujiro, whether you're wearing a suit or an overcoat, you're an incredibly charming man. And you're so capable, having entered the company's management at such a young age. I firmly believe that your future will reach heights that ordinary people can't achieve, and maybe you'll even sit on the president's seat someday..."

Gui Zi tilted her head and continued to whisper sweet nothings, as if she were truly captivated by Zuo Haiyou Erlang.

"I'm so lucky. Although I'm not destined to be your wife, at least I managed to catch you."

After saying that, her young body bounced into Zuo Haiyou's arms like a ball.

"Promise me you'll allow me to accompany you to the presidency, even if it's just quietly by your side. I won't cause you any trouble; I truly just want to witness your success..."

In the darkened room, Gui Zi's skin exuded a unique fragrance.

Zuo Haiyou Erlang kissed her roughly and wildly, holding her soft body tightly.

For a fleeting moment, he seemed to remember Miyoko, who was heavily pregnant and busy with housework at home.

But just a second later, he remembered the many times he had overheard his wife and sister-in-law complaining about him behind his back.

Thus, the burning desire of his body immediately dispelled his unease and guilt, allowing him to revel in it once more.

…………

December 25, 1989, Christmas Day, Monday.

Although it's a weekday, after a night of extravagant indulgence, it's easy to imagine that many Japanese people in Tokyo, caught up in their hedonistic lifestyle, couldn't get up early enough to get to work on time.

But it doesn't matter, since the Japanese job market is currently experiencing a supply shortage.

Most companies in Japan have lifetime employment, and companies can't really do anything to their employees. At most, the boss might scold them or deduct some money.

Which club president wouldn't understand the members' desire to celebrate at such a time?
For Japanese people, reading the atmosphere is very important; it's also a way of considering the bigger picture, otherwise they'll be looked down upon.

In fact, even Zuo Haiyou Erlang only woke up from his hangover around 10 o'clock.

After all, he and Gui Zi had played too wildly and were too tired last night.

They did it once as soon as they arrived, and then went to a Christmas party. After getting drunk, the two of them were entangled for almost half the night.

They tried all sorts of positions, and even explored unusual locations, leaving traces of their lovemaking in the restaurant's restroom.

It is easy to imagine how much of a test of a person's physical strength this would be.

Fortunately, Yujiro Sakae had anticipated this situation.

When he received his appointment letter from his boss last week, he also asked for leave from Department Head Ninomiya.

He's always been a bit of a clever guy; he lied and said he needed to discuss an insurance contract with a client that morning, and his boss approved it.

As for Keiko, the attendance system was entirely up to Zuo Haiyou Erlang, so there was naturally no need for him to have any concerns or worries.

In short, on this morning, Zuo Haiyoujiro felt no sense of urgency whatsoever.

After waking up, besides needing to use the restroom, I felt hungry and wanted to order room service to bring two breakfasts.

And then there's... the body of the woman still sleeping in bed, which still held a strong attraction for him.

Unfortunately, after the thorough discussion last night, he felt completely drained and powerless.

My energy has recovered considerably, but my reserves for a powerful burst of energy are still insufficient.

He could only get a slight satisfaction from the touch in his hands before getting up with a sense of unfulfilled regret, amidst the other person's groans of annoyance.

Then, as he would at home, he habitually turned on the television in the room before heading to the bathroom.

Along the way, all that could be seen on the carpet were clothes that they had carelessly torn off the night before, and an indescribable sense of excitement and nostalgia welled up in my heart.

When Zuo Haiyou Erlang actually stood in front of the mirror on the washstand.

What he saw at that moment was the face of a man who could be described as successful, very content after fully releasing his desires, yet somewhat tired.

He has now reached the highest position he has ever been in since arriving in Tokyo.

Everything seemed to be going well. The stock market was making his pockets bulge, and he was now able to cover his debts. And then came the good news of his promotion—whether it was earned through humiliation or not, he now had both power and money.

This seems to have changed his entire demeanor.

Just as Gui Zi said yesterday, he already had the air of a great man. However, just as he washed his face with water, lathered his cheeks with foam, and prepared to shave and restore his handsome appearance, he faintly heard some strange sounds coming from the television.

Zuo Haiyou Erlang's face in the mirror showed a hint of surprise, and he quickly rubbed his ears.

He wondered if he was still half asleep and had misheard.

But then, the keywords on the television further agitated him, causing him to freeze in place.

Then he turned around, somewhat incredulously.

Today's financial news is indeed unusual; it seems like something extraordinary is happening in the stock market.

And so, he stopped bothering to shave.

With a towel draped around his neck and wiping the foam off his chin, he hurriedly ran back to his guest room.

Standing in front of the TV screen, listening to the host's commentary and the scrolling text messages.

Gradually, panic and unease appeared in his eyes, and his pupils narrowed as if he had seen something terrifying.

For at least five minutes, he remained motionless, staring at the television screen without moving, letting the foam from the corner of his mouth drip onto the floor.

There's only one reason why he did this: the Japanese stock market is falling!

And it's plummeting!

It turns out that after the Nikkei 225 index continued its upward trend from yesterday, quickly breaking through 40101 points in twenty minutes and setting a new high, its momentum faded and it turned downward.

At first, nobody paid attention; almost everyone thought it was a normal callback.

However, ten minutes later, the stock index quickly returned to the opening price of 40014 points, and only stayed near that level for a brief five minutes. Without any decent rebound, it then chose to plunge again.

Moreover, this wave of decline was even more dramatic, a veritable plunge, with a drop of nearly 500 points in just thirty minutes.

When Zuo Haiyoujiro saw the stock market situation, the Nikkei 225 index had returned to around 39500 points, with the market down 1.4%, and a huge bearish candlestick almost swallowing up the gains of the past half month.

Almost all stocks suffered heavy losses, with the exception of a dozen or so small-cap stocks that remained in the green; the rest were almost entirely down.

In particular, real estate stocks and brokerage stocks, which are typically popular sectors, were among the biggest losers.

EIE International, a stock that also relies on real estate to boost its stock index, saw an even larger drop, falling from its opening price of 77,400 yen to 71,000 yen, a decline of nearly 10%.

Even so, the Japanese stock index at this time was still higher than the highest point in another time period.

As the saying goes, the higher you climb, the harder you collapse.

Another half hour later, the Nikkei 225 index lost another 100 points, and the trend not only showed no signs of easing, but was even going to continue to decline.

I don't know where all these sellers came from! It's like a stampede!
As for Zuo Haiyoujiro, who was still staring at the TV without moving, he was completely dumbfounded.

I have absolutely no idea what else is worth paying attention to besides stock price data.

The only feeling he still has is excruciating pain in his heart.

It felt as if something was slowly ripping out his heart, tearing out his soul.

His stock account was not only fully invested, but he also bought EIE International, and more importantly, he heavily leveraged it by 100%.

This stock accounts for almost 70% of his total holdings, simply because he believes in Harunori Takahashi's golf myth and EIE International's impressive financial reports.

Looking at EIE International's stock, which had fallen below the 70,000 yen mark, I suddenly realized that nearly 25% of the funds in my account had vanished in just one morning.

He finally couldn't hold back any longer. Ignoring the fact that he hadn't brushed his teeth and was a mess on his body, he ran to the bedside and started dialing the phone in the room to contact his stockbroker.

There was only a busy tone on the phone, and Zuo Haiyou Erlang's face turned even paler—yes, under these circumstances, the securities company's phone lines must have been ringing off the hook, right?

It would be a miracle if the call could even connect.

He no longer cared about anything else, not even about Gui Zi who was still fast asleep, and he didn't care about how to make himself look presentable.

He hurriedly dressed and left the room, taking his car keys directly to the underground parking garage via elevator.

He didn't even inform his mistress, who was still half asleep.

There was nothing he could do; his mind was completely in turmoil, and he couldn't think of anything else. All he could think about now was how to minimize the loss of his assets.

Ten minutes later, as he drove his newly purchased Volkswagen Golf away from the hotel, he was still listening to the stock market news on the car radio.

But the harsh reality made his hands stiffen as he gripped the steering wheel.

Not only him, but the cars on the road today seemed to be behaving rather unruly.

The fact that the frequency of honking has increased significantly suggests that many drivers are probably anxious for the same reason as him.

What will happen in the afternoon?

Will things get better?

Can this plunge be ended?

Zuo Haiyou Erlang didn't know.

All he knew was that if the market continued to fall like this, all his previous gains in stocks would be lost.

He couldn't help but think angrily, why is fate so cruel to me?

Everything was going well; I made money and became the branch manager.

But why does God have to destroy everything I've worked so hard to achieve?

Oh, stock market, you brought me from nothing to something, are you going to bring me back to nothing?

No, I can win, I definitely can win.

Isn't fate a gamble? What did I do wrong?

Where in life is there no gambling?

How can you win if you don't gamble!
Just then, the radio finally broadcast a voice that Zuo Haiyoujiro longed for and that could soothe his anxiety.

Two Japanese financial experts believe that today's decline was sudden, irrational, and an overreaction by the market.

As for the reasons for the decline, besides the need for many short-term profit-taking to be released, it is probably related to the fact that Westerners are going to celebrate Christmas and have withdrawn some funds in advance.

However, considering the Western holidays—only a week or so—and the fact that Westerners are on vacation, there's unlikely to be much selling pressure. Therefore, the Japanese market will most likely see buying support in the afternoon, stabilizing it, correcting its losses, and then moving upwards again…

Yes, that's it, that must be it.

Damn foreigners, damn Christmas.

Get out, all of you get out! Get out of Japan!

Looking at the road ahead, Zuo Haiyoujiro had no doubt about the expert's analysis. He couldn't help but smile, and his mood relaxed a lot.

At this moment, the city looked completely different from before.

The subtle atmosphere of unease seemed to dissipate, and the midday sun shone brightly once more.

Especially noteworthy is the sight of a roadside shop, seemingly running a promotion, where an outdoor clown suddenly blows out a long string of bubbles.

These bubbles were blown onto the road by the strong wind and then burst by passing vehicles.

It's incredibly shiny.

So beautiful... (End of chapter)