America: My Time

Chapter 884 The Problem of Attitude

Chapter 854 The Problem of Attitude

Although Japan suffered a severe blow to the development of semiconductor chips, it maintained an absolute advantage in the research and mastery of semiconductor materials. After the bursting of the real estate bubble, in the late 90s, Japan began to focus on developing the new materials industry. Subsequently, Japan dominated the production of most of the world's most important electronic components and other key materials in the electronics and semiconductor industries. Of the 19 materials used in semiconductor chip production, Japan possessed 14, accounting for more than half of the world's supply, demonstrating the immense strength of Japan's research and development capabilities.

John attaches great importance to the electronics and semiconductor industries, so he naturally needs to make early arrangements and leverage Japanese talent for new research and development. However, before doing all this, he needs to have a perfect persona. Providing timely assistance is the best choice, as it can secure a sufficient market share and also gain access to Japanese talent.

Of course, this is only one part. Anime is also John's focus. Although Phoenix Group is very powerful, it has not yet reached its limit. With the bursting of the real estate bubble, Japan's economy stagnated, which accelerated the development of the anime industry, making Japan the world's largest producer of animated works and occupying more than 60% of the animation publishing market, allowing Japanese anime to enter a period of rapid development.

Anime doesn't just make money from the anime industry itself, but from its derivative industries, much like the Hollywood film industry, which relies on merchandise to generate revenue. In the future, Japan's anime industry will drive the development of its entire tourism industry. According to data, 15% of tourists visiting Japan each year come specifically for Japanese anime. The anime industry in Japan has a production value of 230 trillion yen, making it Japan's second largest pillar industry.

Expanding the animation industry is one of Phoenix Media Group's most important tasks. With the bursting of the bubble economy, this is one of Phoenix Media Group's key expansion directions in Japan. To seize the market, one must act early; previous advantages cannot be allowed to crumble.

John is waiting for the Japanese economy to be severely damaged, for a wave of business failures to occur, for a surge in unemployment to emerge, and for a banking crisis to erupt. Once all of this happens, it will be the perfect time for him to make a major move. At that time, he will make an astonishing investment in Japan. Now everything is ready except for the final push.

The expansion of 7-Eleven convenience stores, especially through such means, has brought a sigh of relief to many. At least it wasn't done with malice, and there was no need to vent anger. It was a completely normal business investment, unlike those damned Americans who tried to force their way in.

Are there any obstacles? Not at all. No one would choose to step in and stop 7-Eleven's expansion at this time, even though it has now been split up. No one will stop it, after all, Japan is in a difficult situation right now, and such investment is beneficial to their own development, and at least to Japan's employment problem.

What? They're all just franchises and leased stores, not real estate acquisitions? This completely stunned those who were hoping for a real estate recovery. They thought they could drive a revival, but now it seems impossible. Anyone entering Japan's real estate industry at this point is a fool, practically committing suicide.

While many were waiting for John to make another move, they found that he didn't. He continued with the expansion of 7-Eleven convenience stores and Dollar Tree, and he didn't even show up himself. It was as if he was on vacation in Japan, which made people uneasy and anxious.

“Sit down. If you haven’t figured it out yet, then keep thinking about it. Avoiding the problem isn’t the solution. You can help them once, twice, or three times, but you can’t help them forever. And even if you don’t think about yourself, you have to think about Ken-on. You can’t let Ken-on be affected because of you. Although they haven’t said anything, you have to give them an attitude. There’s still plenty of time. You can think about it slowly. You won’t be bothered by them here. At least they don’t have the guts.”

When Akina Nakamori returned to Tokyo, John still decided to try to persuade her, but ultimately, the choice was hers to make. Interfering in such matters would only cause more trouble, and no amount of explanation would help if she couldn't figure it out herself. Although she wasn't the only one affected by the real estate bubble crisis—even Hitomi Kuroki and her family were impacted—their situation wasn't as dire, and they weren't particularly greedy. Most importantly, their families weren't as greedy as Akina's.

In fact, the Nakamori family's greed isn't limited to money; they're also prone to taking advantage of others. For example, they often insist on accompanying each other on vacations, making Ken-on pay the bills—this happens quite frequently. The current situation is perfectly normal; perhaps time has made them forget the previous incident. John is right; that greedy guy doesn't dare show his face in front of John. If they really wanted to do this, they would be stopped immediately. Not only would Sumitomo not allow such a thing to happen, but those who made promises wouldn't allow it either. If it really reached John, someone would have to take responsibility, and things wouldn't be like this now.

Now John can pretend he doesn't know, can ignore it, and won't put any pressure on Kenon. He can leave everything to Akina to handle, let her make her own choice, see how far this family relationship will go, see what her status is in the family, whether her mother treats each child fairly, or ultimately chooses to sacrifice Akina alone so that the family can easily get through the difficulties. All of this depends on Akina's decision.

Even the kindest person would feel heartbroken if they were exploited like this, especially after Akio Nakamori called her an "unfilial daughter." Akina was even more heartbroken. She didn't want to believe it at first, but as the evidence appeared, she had no choice but to believe it. Most importantly, her mother, Chieko, never stood up for her, which made her gradually believe Ken-on's words: one person is not as important as the whole family, and her mother chose to sacrifice herself for the sake of the whole family.

Such things happen a lot in Japan because it's an opportunity for many families to change their fate. However, very few people can do what Akio Nakamori did. As long as Akina doesn't express her opinion, things will drag on day by day, which is not good for anyone. In the end, Akina's family will have to bear the brunt of Ken-on's anger.

No one spoke to persuade Nakamori Akina, not even Sachiko Kamachi, who was always very close to her. The room quickly fell silent. No one disturbed Akina's contemplation. Many understood that Akina had to make a decision now; continuing to indulge her would only lead to mutual destruction. Because that guy was a bottomless pit, constantly making demands, with only money in his eyes. If they were willing to live a more honest life, things would be much better; after all, they had taken a lot of money from Akina over the years.

The best description of her family is that they lack self-awareness. They have no skills whatsoever, yet they dream of instant success and want to achieve something in business. So it's only natural that they keep falling down. John doesn't even want to comment on them now. Such a family is not worth helping; doing so would only make them sink deeper into trouble.

Did Ken-on not warn them? Yes, she did, but this family has forgotten what respect is. They always feel that Ken-on can't live without Nakamori Akina, and they also feel that everything Nakamori Akina does for them is her duty. Human greed has reached an incurable level. Cutting everything off is the best option, but it's up to Akina to decide.

The moment Akina returned to Tokyo, Ken-On knew about it. They were now waiting for Akina's attitude. Things had dragged on for too long, and continuing like this was not good for anyone. They also wanted to cut the Gordian knot and end it all directly, but John's presence made them hesitant. After all, Akina Nakamori had powerful backers, and Ken-On needed Akina Nakamori's connections to be on good terms with TV Tokyo, Phoenix Media, and even Legendary Entertainment to obtain more resources. Any agency needs vast resources, and that requires personal connections.

“Wait a little longer. We can’t rush things now. I believe Mr. John will handle everything properly. If we rush things and take any actions, it might have a negative impact. It’s better to stay still than to act rashly. We’ve already waited this long, what else can’t we wait for? Besides, do you think this is just about Akina Nakamori? If you think that, you’re sorely mistaken. There are many people watching this. We need Akina Nakamori’s attitude, and many people need Mr. John’s attitude. So we can’t rush this matter no matter what!”

“But if this continues, that guy will become even more arrogant. Right now, they completely ignore our warnings, or even take them seriously. This is not a good thing. It could easily cause more trouble for the agency and make other artists have something to say. After all, the agency has more than just Nakamori Akina.”

“I know that if we let them continue to be arrogant, they will be punished when the time comes. What we want is Mr. John’s attitude, not their family’s thoughts, let alone Nakamori Akina’s thoughts. Do you understand?”

(End of this chapter)