National Tide 1980.

Needless to say, Haruki Kagawa's feigned distress was a delaying tactic.

As long as Okamoto Akira nods, he will have time to maneuver.

They could try various financing channels to save themselves, or simply seek help from the Guo Group.

But while he was shrewd in his calculations, Akira Okamoto was no fool either.

I came here today with a mission. If I don't meet the KPI, Okamoto Akira won't be able to explain it to Ning Weimin when I get back.

How could he possibly give his opponent any breathing room?
“You have a point. After all, this isn’t a transaction of a few hundred million yen, but a major deal involving five billion yen. If you need time to think it over, I think there’s no problem…”

After saying this, Akira Okamoto lit a cigarette with a contented look, then smiled and looked over as he exhaled the smoke.

However, just as the other person's expression relaxed and before they could truly show their surprise, his next words immediately plunged them into an icy abyss.

"However, starting tomorrow, we will be exercising our rights as film investors and shareholders of the talent agency. Tomorrow, we will send management personnel to take over the film's post-production and distribution, as well as the operation of the talent agency. Please prepare for the handover, and also inform your existing employees; we need their cooperation."

Well, don't be fooled by his outward agreement and polite words; his true intentions have already been revealed without any attempt at concealment.

This seemed like a blatant provocation to Haruki Kagawa and Kinji Fukasaku.

Akira Okamoto made it clear to the other party—this was a robbery!
His subtext was—we are not easily fooled, and no matter what, you cannot protect what you want to protect!
And you'd better be sensible. If you insist on resisting or even obstructing, you probably won't get a single penny in the end.

So Haruki Kagawa looked as if he had been drenched in a downpour, his face pale as he bit his lip.

"Is there absolutely no room for compromise? I don't know if you understand the disastrous consequences of your demands?"

Before this, Haruki Kagawa addressed her as "you" (formal), but now he has changed to "you" (informal).

This change in word choice not only reveals his desperate attempt to control his anger, but also proves that he is nearing the point of losing control of his emotions.

Even so, Akira Okamoto was not afraid of adding fuel to the fire.

"What consequences could there be? At most, it's just a loss of money."

He made no attempt to hide his disdain, saying in a contemptuous tone, "Let me put it this way: even if we shelve your films, it won't make a big deal out of us. Fog Studios has quite a few films completed this year anyway. We can still make money without your films, maybe even more. Besides, your films can be released directly on videotape, which should recoup a significant portion of the production costs. As for your talent agency, it's been operating for less than a year, and you only have a few well-known artists? I think it would be better to just transfer your well-known artists to Matsumoto Agency. Keeping four or five people here to manage it would save on labor costs and be more cost-effective for us."

Before Haruki Kagawa could even explode, Kinji Fukasaku had already lost his temper.

“Okamoto! We will absolutely not allow this to happen.”

This is probably because when he was a famous director in the past, he was constantly being chased and served by Akira Okamoto.

Even though Akira Okamoto is now in charge of the Fog Studio, he still looks down on him and considers him nothing more than a lackey like Karami.

Therefore, Fukasaku Kinji could not accept the situation where Okamoto Akira, a former member of the Heavenly Gang, was now riding on his head and acting arrogantly.

His gaze burned like flames as he stared at Okamoto Akira's now "transformed" appearance, as if he wanted to tear him apart like a rice ball. He said in a hateful voice, "You shameless bastard! How dare you, how dare you say such things to my face? You actually dare to threaten us to our faces! You are utterly shameless!"

Being right doesn't require raising your voice.

"Director Fukasaku, please recognize this fact: your rights are only a small part. We are the ones with the most rights. I'm just stating the facts and demanding our legitimate rights. It's not only reasonable but also completely legal. What kind of threat is this? On the contrary, you've been speaking rudely to me all along. I'm not holding it against you only because I'm magnanimous. Don't push your luck. Otherwise, you'll definitely regret it."

These words, though seemingly gentle, were actually quite sharp, and almost made Shinji Fukasaku choke on them.

Clearly, Akira Okamoto appeared much more composed than Kinji Fukasaku, who was blinded by anger.

His reasoned arguments were impeccable, and this victorious demeanor further hurt the other party's self-esteem.

That wasn't all. Norio Higuchi, the head of Matsumoto's agency and Okamoto Akira's ally, also chimed in, supporting him. Another devastating combined attack.

"This is outrageous, Director. You always speak without thinking. Can't you see that President Okamoto has been incredibly tolerant of you, and is about to reach his breaking point? If you continue to be so callous and ungrateful, then our conversation ends here. However, as the president of Matsumoto Productions, I can tell you responsibly that you've sabotaged the negotiations, and in the end, you'll only be the ones who suffer. If you don't want your hard-earned work to be re-edited, if you don't want your film to be unreleased, or to be stripped of your directorial position and replaced with someone else's, then control your temper, watch your mouth, and take responsibility for what you must bear."

Needless to say, his words were tantamount to slapping a director in the face.

Further provoked, Shinji Fukasaku was panting heavily, his eyes reddening, clearly on the verge of anger.

Even so, Fukasaku Kinji did not dare to make any rash moves or lash out loudly like before.

After all, the other party is no nobody. As a former key member of the Burning Faction, Norio Higuchi is a notoriously difficult person in the industry. He truly knows how to use the rules to attack his peers.

In some ways, this person's threat was actually greater than Okamoto Akira's intimidation of Fukasaku Kinji. He wouldn't dare risk his work in such a way, only to have his hard work go to waste.

To put it bluntly, if the other party is a kidnapper, then they are now essentially holding their child's life in their own hands.

"Director, that's enough, let's give up..."

Haruki Kagawa, who had remained silent and observed from the sidelines, was wise enough to admit defeat.

"What? Jiaochuan...you..."

Filled with grief and indignation, Kinji Fukasaku looked at Haruki Kawakawa in disbelief, never expecting him to give up so easily.

"How can you give up? At least we... can still try to get help from the Guo Group..."

"I know you're unwilling to accept this, and so am I. But... let's not even talk about whether the Guo Group has enough funds to invest, or whether they're willing to provide further funding to help us through this crisis. Even if they were, so what? After all, the combined equity of the Guo Group and ourselves is less than fifty percent. The actual controller can only be the other party; that's an indisputable fact. Director, we've lost. There won't be any other outcome. Let's face reality. Making futile struggles will only bring us humiliation..."

At this point, Haruki Kōkawa looked as disgusted as if he had swallowed a fly, and shook his head with a bitter expression.

"Honestly, it's all our fault for trusting Takahashi Harunori too much. We shouldn't have put all our eggs in one basket. Looking back now, cooperating with him was our fatal mistake. If we had known from the beginning... Sigh, what's the use of saying all this now?"

Kinji Fukasaku's cheeks trembled slightly as he finally came to terms with reality.

"It's over just like that... How could this happen..." However, their resigned attitude of no longer resisting was very popular with Akira Okamoto and Norio Higuchi.

The two looked at each other and smiled.

Knowing that the mission had been accomplished and that great success would soon be achieved, they were relieved to find that the trip had been successful.

"President Jiaochuan is so understanding."

Seeing success within reach, Akira Okamoto softened his tone and reverted to his harmless demeanor. "Now that you've thought it through and reached a consensus, we can continue discussing the specifics. So, do you agree to our offer?"

"The price is what it is, there's nothing more to say. I can agree to your terms. But you also need to agree to a few things." Haruki Kawakawa still held onto one last bit of insistence.

"What are your requirements?" Akira Okamoto raised an eyebrow.

"First, we will transfer the film's rights to you, and we will no longer receive a share of the box office revenue. You will have to pay us directors our fees, 20 million yen each."

“Okay.” Akira Okamoto agreed readily; this was absolutely reasonable.

"Secondly, there's the issue of the creative rights to the two films we made this year. We demand complete directorial and editing rights. You cannot deprive us, the creators, of our freedom and honor. Furthermore, you must guarantee sufficient publicity funds for the films and ensure their timely theatrical release across Japan. Can you agree to that?"

Haruki Kagawa spoke very seriously, his eyes fixed on Akira Okamoto and Norio Higuchi, the bloodshot in the corners of his eyes as if he hadn't slept for days.

“I can agree to all of these. I fully understand the artist’s insistence. Are there any other conditions?”

"Finally, I would also like to have both films named after Jiaochuan Pictures. If they win any awards, the trophies should belong to us."

"I can understand your position."

Akira Okamoto nodded slightly at first, but then made his stance clear: he also had his own bottom line.

"However, I must also clarify that the name of Fog Studio must be added before the movie title, as it is a joint production between the two film companies."

Exhausted, Haruki Kōkawa knew he couldn't resist, so he sighed and silently nodded in agreement.

As for Kinji Fukasaku, although he moved his thin shoulders as if he wanted to say something, he ultimately remained silent.

"Since there are no other requests, let's settle this matter here. I hope we can complete the formalities today. I believe you also want to get the money as soon as possible so you can make a film that truly belongs to you."

As he spoke, Akira Okamoto casually pulled out a contract he had prepared long ago, demonstrating his thorough preparation.

"This is the contract we prepared. You two can take a look. If there are no problems, we can make the payment to you after the documents are signed."

At this moment, both Haruki Kōkawa and Kinji Fukasaku were as dejected as defeated soldiers.

Their eyes had lost their sparkle; they mechanically and listlessly took the documents and followed the other party's instructions.

Then it seemed like I looked at it seriously, but it also seemed like I didn't.

Three minutes later, they all picked up their pens and, just like on August 15, 1945, when Japan announced its unconditional surrender, decisively signed their names on their "surrender documents" and stamped them.

By this point, thanks to Ning Weimin's efforts, Matsumoto's studio had expanded to become the largest in the Japanese film industry.

With the acquisition of yet another talent agency, Keiko Matsumoto has practically secured her position as the "sixth largest" in the Japanese film industry and even the entire entertainment industry.

After that, no one in the entire Japanese entertainment industry could ignore her voice and influence, or question her status in the industry.

…………

On Tuesday, March 13, 1990, the Nikkei 225 index continued to fall.

However, for the first time, EIE International's stock did not fall with the broader market, remaining stable at 8,700 yen.

With no one dumping shares and no one rushing to buy, trading volume shrank to an extreme level, and the stock's trend was finally firmly under the control of the EIE board of directors.

At this point, apart from them, there was no other force capable of manipulating the stock's price movement.

The EIE board of directors finally felt a sense of relief, as the anxiety that had been weighing on them was finally lifted and the situation was under control.

On this day, Ning Weimin, along with his legal and financial team and Maria, who had recently returned to Japan, flew to Osaka.

For no other reason than that Yamato Kanko's headquarters are in Osaka, and the main purpose of his trip was to gain a deeper understanding of Yamato Kanko's financial situation.

If there are no major problems, he plans to acquire this company, which occupies an important position in his future career plans, in the near future.

Secondly, Ning Weimin brought Maria along to help him understand the tourism resources and channels in Japan and leverage their resources to expand the national market for the liquor company.

It must be said that the inspection went quite well. As Ning Weimin had imagined, Yamato Tourism has indeed established its own channel network in major cities in Japan as well as in Western Europe and America.

In China, Yamato Kanko's business has been growing year by year, and it has now become China Travel Service's number one Japanese partner.

Based on this alone, Ning Weimin can return to China as a Japanese business partner, standing on equal footing with major domestic travel agencies. He can even apply to the tourism bureau to upgrade the qualifications of his travel agency, allowing it to undertake foreign business.

Therefore, the EIE board offered him a transfer price of 56.5 billion yen, which was more than a billion yen more than when Takahashi Harunori acquired it, but it was not expensive at all.

After all, tourism in Yamato could bring Ning Weimin too many benefits.

Moreover, this company is not a listed company, which Ning Weimin is quite fortunate about.

Otherwise, it wouldn't be so easy for him to completely own this company and pocket all the profits incubated on its network. (End of Chapter)