America: My Time

Chapter 609 Neon's Neck
Chapter 599 Neon's Neck

John's 'goodwill' has already been demonstrated. With the sale of assets between the Mandarin Oriental Group and Bell Labs, now it's time for these Japanese guys to put on a show. Before coming to Japan, John knew he would face this situation; rapidly developing Japan would inevitably have a greater demand for various raw materials.

"You two have also been targeted for PR?" John asked Miho Nakayama and Momoko Kikuchi, who were taking a bath. Looking at the unnatural expressions on the two beauties' faces, it was obvious that they had also been targeted for PR. In just a few days, the women around him had all been targeted for PR by those guys!

John was surprised that these two beauties had gotten together. However, having two beautiful women around meant double the enjoyment, and as a young man full of vigor, he naturally wanted to indulge himself in the company of two stunning women.

Although they knew John was a womanizer, he still made top-notch arrangements for them. With John as their backer, they didn't have to face the evil forces in the industry or worry about being bullied one day. Some changes occurred among these women. Originally, Kikuchi Momoko was with Kuroki Hitomi, but due to their different statuses, she ultimately ended up with Nakayama Miho.

Everyone grows up, and these two beauties are no exception. Being favored naturally brings more resources and material wealth. Just look at Naoko, Hitomi Kuroki, and Akina Nakamori to see the differences between them, and these differences are significant. As the Japanese economy accelerates at an astounding pace, the hearts of the Japanese people have also become increasingly frenzied, placing even greater pressure on idols in the entertainment industry and subjecting them to more dangers.

At that time, the Japanese entertainment industry was shockingly insane. In an era where money reigned supreme, the deals behind the scenes became even more outrageous. Especially with the idol market experiencing a period of stagnation, idols were forced to accept various unspoken rules and become playthings of industry bigwigs. If you didn't want to sacrifice, you shouldn't be in this industry. Idols had to compromise to get the resources they wanted. Therefore, both of them had witnessed the darkness within the industry and understood that only by sticking together could they survive better and remain unaffected by the outside world's darkness!

Neither Miho Nakayama nor Momoko Kikuchi would be foolish enough to hide it, and such a thing couldn't be hidden anyway. Not only were they lobbied, but everyone else was too, and even the Japanese government intervened. The worst off was Akina Nakamori, whose greedy family betrayed her once again for money. It was as if as long as they gave her money, they wouldn't care about Akina's life or her future. Money had become incredibly important to them, and Akina was nothing more than a cash cow in their eyes.

"We have no choice. They keep coming to us, and it wouldn't be right to refuse. We can only accept their 'good intentions.' As for how to decide, that's not something we can control. We've already made it very clear to them before!" Kikuchi Momoko said, expressing the pressure she and Nakayama Miho were facing. They didn't have the same confidence as Kuroki Hitomi, Nakamori Akina, and Naoko!
"You don't need to worry about this. Everything will be resolved at the party the day after tomorrow. Have you received an invitation? If not, I'll have someone make arrangements. Learn more about the situation in this circle so you'll be more at ease next time you face a similar situation and won't have so many concerns."

"Yes, we've all received invitations, and some people in the agency have even been invited to be guest performers!"

John was taken aback when he heard these words. What were these Japanese guys up to? All the women around him had received invitations, even Yasuko Sawaguchi. This was not normal. Did these guys want to make a fool of me?
As night fell, the private estate on the outskirts of Tokyo was brightly lit. The party had just begun, and many people had already arrived, mostly from the heavy industry sector. They were currently facing difficulties because John's arrival had changed the situation in Japan, accelerating real estate development and shipbuilding orders, widening the steel shortage. Now, their problem wasn't production capacity, but raw materials. If it weren't for the steel being supplied by Australian shipping companies through Russian trade, Japan's heavy industry would likely have already been affected.

It's worth noting that before the yen appreciated, John had already placed substantial orders with Japan for heavy industry, Komatsu secured numerous orders from Quantum Mining, and there were also shipbuilding orders. Most importantly, thanks to the deliberate intervention of John and those old guys, Japan's trade with North America was not significantly affected, especially automobiles, which sold like hotcakes.

Japan never imagined that its steel industry, which it initially thought would recover quickly, would become increasingly difficult. Rising raw material costs have severely impacted their profits; costs keep increasing, and if this continues, Japan's heavy industries will be affected. In this situation, they have two choices: fight to the death, refusing the mining giants' demands, or bow down and submit. In a capitalist society, profit is paramount. How could those mining giants be merciful? Knowing full well the severity of Japan's situation, they naturally have to raise prices; otherwise, how will they make money?

Mining giants were unwilling to compromise, and the Japanese dared not accept the insane offer, so things stalled. Because of the global stock market crash, the economic recovery in other countries was very slow, but Japan was different. They had almost no transition period. As soon as the positive news came out from the United States, the Japanese stock market recovered wildly, and the Nikkei index continued to rise!
In this situation, which mining company would want to take a piece of the pie from Japan? When those mining giants reach a tacit agreement, the entire market is under their control. Japan's unwillingness to be controlled is useless; they will just drag you along. Even if Japan has already laid out its mining operations, it won't be of much use. At this point, no one would be foolish enough to stand up for Japan.

"John, let's sit over there!" When he saw John and Naoko appear, the old man Akio Morita took the initiative to greet them, while Riko, who was next to him, led Naoko and the others to a corner of the party.

“Mr. Morita, instead of focusing on your own business, why are you getting involved in this? This has nothing to do with Sony. And I think I even saw a few familiar government officials. Why can't they also get involved in this struggle for profits?” John said with a faint smile, but that smile made Akio Morita feel the pressure. Why did he have to take on this task?

"There's no way around it. As you know, Japan's economy is developing rapidly, and the demand for steel and various raw materials is huge. We've reached the point where we have to use our strategic reserves. So even if I don't want to participate, I have no choice but to. After all, it's not up to me. However, some people are already trying to compromise with the American steel giants. They think that cooperating with the American steel giants is a good deal, at least it can get us out of our current predicament."

Upon hearing this, John instantly understood the intentions of these Japanese guys: they wanted to use the American steel giant to suppress their mining alliance and force everyone to accept their offer.

John smiled calmly and said, "This is also a good idea. Quantum Mining has no objections. After all, cooperation is a two-way choice, and they have the right to choose. Quantum Mining doesn't lack orders from Japan. Our orders are all for South Korea and Taiwan, and we can even handle the rest ourselves."

Seeing John's reaction, Akio Morita couldn't help but sigh inwardly. His probing had been completely ineffective; even threatening John with the US steel giant hadn't made this sly fox back down. However, he knew John was telling the truth: Quantum Mining genuinely didn't care about the deal with Japan, and the share Japan allocated to Quantum Mining was far too small, much less than that allocated to South Korea and Taiwan. Not to mention, John also had several steel companies in China and a presence in Southeast Asia.

"Actually, my purpose in coming to Tokyo this time is to resolve this matter. The negotiations have dragged on for too long, and everyone has reached their limit. It's time for a resolution. However, the price offered by Japan is unacceptable to everyone. The appreciation of the yen has a significant impact on everyone, so if Japan doesn't compromise, the major mining companies will also abandon Japan!"

Akio Morita was stunned. He hadn't expected that John would reveal such earth-shattering news before he could even speak. These mining giants no longer wanted to drag things out with Japan. They wanted to cut their losses and settle things once and for all. If things were pushed to this point, it would be a lose-lose situation. Japan couldn't afford such losses, but the mining giants could hold out.

“John, things haven’t gotten to that point yet. They’ve only been here a few months, and they’re already losing their temper!” Akio Morita looked at John with a troubled expression. This news had a significant impact on him. If the steel companies found out, the consequences would be severe. A lose-lose situation would result in immeasurable losses for Japan. After all, Japan’s economy was developing rapidly. Without raw materials, Japan’s development would be forcibly halted. At that point, it wouldn’t just be the steel industry that would suffer, but all industries in Japan. Akio Morita knew how powerful those mining giants were. If these major mining giants reached an agreement, they could completely strangle Japan!
(End of this chapter)