Reborn in Tokyo: From Heiress to Global Tycoon

Saturday, April 20, 1991, 9:30 a.m.

Marunouchi, headquarters of the Saionji Group.

When Takahashi entered the small conference room, the first thing he saw was the white nameplate in front of the head seat at the long table.

His name was written on it.

The other seats in the conference room were already full.

Saionji Maki sat in the first seat on the left, with two stacks of documents covered in red and blue labels on the table in front of her. She was wearing a dark gray suit today, and her gaze behind her black-rimmed glasses was fixed on a data sheet, her red and blue pencils having just traced a few lines of numbers.

Sitting next to her was Managing Director Gondo.

Next in order are Sasaki from the Group's Legal Department, the head of the Financial Settlement Department, the counselor of the Metropolitan Government and Public Affairs Office, and Masato Saionji from SIS.

Any one of these names, in an ordinary company, would be enough to chair a project meeting involving billions of yen.

Now, they are already sitting at the table waiting for him.

Satsuki sat on the right side of the long table, near the window.

A cup of black tea sat in front of her, and several documents related to cooperation with the Soviet Union were pressed beside her.

She looked up and gave him a natural smile.

Good morning, Takahashi-senpai.

"Good morning."

Takahashi subconsciously leaned forward, but his gaze returned to the nameplate in front of the main seat.

He had originally thought that he was only there to receive a report evaluation.

On April 17, he submitted his first assessment of Naotoku Isomura as scheduled. After the report was sent to the head of the household's office, Chizuru only informed him to attend a meeting at headquarters on Saturday morning, without mentioning the format of the meeting or how many people would be attending.

Takahashi prepared for this all night.

He meticulously reviewed the report, carefully examining which inferences lacked sufficient evidence and which conclusions might be questioned by Satsuki. He even silently practiced how to explain himself if errors were pointed out, on the train.

This scene, however, was something he had never anticipated.

Chizuru stood by the door and handed him a meeting agenda.

"Mr. Takahashi, the materials have been prepared in the order of your report."

Takahashi took the agenda and turned to the first page.

His name was also listed in the host's section.

"This is……"

"You will be hosting today."

Takahashi looked up at Satsuki.

Satsuki picked up the teacup and gently blew away the steam on its surface.

"You cited the information they provided in your report and also commented on their judgment."

"Everyone is here now."

She took a sip of black tea, her eyes crinkling slightly.

"Takahashi-senpai can't just keep writing without doing anything, can he?"

This sentence sounds very easy.

Takahashi felt the agenda in his hands suddenly become much heavier.

The six people on the paper were under his command, an authority granted to him personally ten days prior. However, having authority written in a document and actually having these people sitting in front of him waiting for his instructions are two completely different things.

He was only twenty years old.

He hasn't even actually started working for any company yet.

The youngest person at the long table, Saionji Maki, was also several years older than him. Gondo had already been managing a large construction company when he was in elementary school, and Sasaki had probably handled more lawsuits and acquisition documents than he had read in his three years of university.

The chair in the main seat was only two steps away from him.

Takahashi, however, felt that those two steps were farther than walking from Gakushuin University to Marunouchi.

He glanced at Satsuki, forcing himself to calm down.

Just act like you normally do at school... It's just a report... Calm down, calm down...

Whether the report was good or bad was already clear when it was sent to the master's room on the 17th.

What we're going to test today is whether the person writing the report can take their judgments off the desk.

Takahashi took a deep breath, walked to the head of the table, put down the file bag, pulled out a chair, and sat down.

The leather chair dipped slightly downwards.

He raised his hand to adjust his tie, and only when his fingertips touched the bow tie did he realize that his hand was a little cold.

Thank you all for taking the time today.

After he started speaking, Takahashi realized that his tone was more formal than it had been at the university research conference.

"Today's main purpose is to verify the report I submitted on the 17th. Much of the content in the report comes from information provided by everyone, and there may be areas where my understanding is insufficient or my judgment is inaccurate."

"Therefore... I would like everyone to add their comments in the order of the agenda."

After he finished speaking, he opened the notebook in front of him.

The meeting room fell silent for a moment.

Maki looked up and glanced at the agenda.

"Following your chosen order, shall we first discuss the abilities that Mr. Isomura has already demonstrated?"

"Yes, thank you for your help."

"What about the scope?"

Takahashi paused for a moment.

"Policy understanding, personnel coordination, external communication, and any other aspects you deem valuable during the campaign are all acceptable."

Maki's pencil stopped on the paper.

Takahashi immediately realized that "other valuable parts" was almost an unlimited scope.

But the words have already been spoken, and taking them back now will only make things seem more chaotic.

Maki opened the first document.

"Between March 28 and April 7, Isomura participated in sixteen major policy meetings."

"According to the meeting minutes, he was able to understand the relationship between the 30-day settlement, accounts receivable financing, and the restart of suspended projects, and he was also able to reinterpret the three policies in a way that ordinary voters could understand in public speeches."

"The campaign team initially prepared a 43-page speech. The final version used was only 11 pages, and the section on small and medium-sized construction companies was revised three times by Isomura himself."

Maki pulled out several photocopies and pushed them along the table toward Takahashi.

"He removed a lot of financial jargon and changed 'accounts receivable securitization' to 'after the work is completed, you don't have to wait ninety days to get paid.' This shows that he at least knew what he was promising."

Takahashi nodded as he took notes.

"What about coordination skills?"

"It depends on which type of coordination you're referring to."

Maki raised her hand to adjust her glasses.

"The fact that he included Saionji, Seibu, banks, and the construction industry association on the same list during the campaign shows that he can accept a complex support structure and is willing to leave room for different camps."

"But the one who was really responsible for bringing these people together was Saionji."

"It's not enough evidence to attribute this incident solely to Isomura's administrative coordination capabilities."

"Understood, thank you very much."

Takahashi lowered his head and wrote this sentence, then looked at Gondo according to the agenda.

"Manager Gondo, regarding the settlement by the 30th, what's the situation with the construction department..."

"First, let's confirm which day to start the calculation."

Gondo placed a project payment schedule on the table.

"After the contracting company submits the completion report, Tokyo needs to send someone to inspect it. If the inspection is successful, the engineering department will prepare a confirmation letter, which will then be submitted to the finance department for payment."

"If Isomura's promise is that the money will be in the contractor's account within 30 days of the project's completion, then many projects cannot meet that requirement."

Takahashi put down his pen.

"Because of the acceptance time?"

"The acceptance inspection is only one part of the process."

Gondo reached out and tapped on several boxes in the middle of the flowchart.

"Design changes, additional works, on-site approvals, and budget item adjustments—if any of these are not confirmed, the amount of the debt cannot be determined."

Takahashi looked at the several locations that Gondo had clicked on in the flowchart.

"In your opinion letter submitted on April 14, there was a drainage project in Jiangdong District."

Gondo's finger hovered over the "Budget Adjustment" section.

"The construction company submitted the completion report on March 2nd, and only received final confirmation on April 18th, a total of 47 days. The approval of additional works took 12 days, the audit review took 7 days, the on-site inspection took 9 days, and the remaining 19 days were spent on adjusting the budget items and submitting supplementary documents."

Several people around the conference table looked up one after another.

Gondo lowered his head and flipped through the twenty-six-page opinion report in front of him. When he reached page nineteen, his movements slowed down.

The last line of the appendix contains the very set of figures that Takahashi had just reported.

"Have you been involved in this project before?"

"I've only read this opinion letter."

Seeing that Gondo was still staring at the appendix, Takahashi added:

"I have a good memory for numbers. I can usually remember information after reading it once in its entirety."

Maki lifted the red and blue pencils off the paper.

"generally?"

Takahashi hesitated for a moment.

"I haven't forgotten it yet."

After a brief silence, Gondo folded out page nineteen and pushed it back to the center of the table.

"Since you remember it so clearly, let's use this project."

His finger pressed on the record of forty-seven days.

"It's closer to the troubles that Isomura will encounter after taking office than the normal process I just drew."

"The amount is uncertain, and the bank will not accept financing for that receivable."

Upon hearing this, the head of the finance and settlement department casually flipped through his own documents.

"The bank can provide financing based on a provisional amount."

"The prerequisite is that the Tokyo Metropolitan Government is willing to confirm the minimum payment amount, or that a designated institution assumes the risk of the difference."

Gondo turned his head to the side.

"On what basis does the Metropolitan Government determine the minimum payment amount for a project that has not yet been inspected and accepted?"

That's why policy design is needed.

The finance manager looked at Takahashi, his tone becoming more serious.

"Mr. Takahashi, the report states that accounts receivable financing can provide cash to contractors in advance without increasing Tokyo Metropolitan Government's immediate expenses. This is financially sound."

"But the risks won't disappear."

"When banks bear the risk of delayed project acceptance and adjustments to the final amount, they raise interest rates; when the Tokyo Metropolitan Government bears the risk, it becomes a de facto credit guarantee."

Sasaki turned to the next page of the legal opinion in his hand.

"When the municipal government provides credit facilities to specific banks or specific contractors, it will immediately encounter the problem of administrative fairness."

"If only Saionji Cooperative Bank is allowed to participate, it will be difficult to pass the regulations and procurement procedures."

"If the market is fully opened up, the standards for bank entry, the methods for confirming claims, and the rules for handling disputed projects all need to be written into the public disclosure system."

The councilor of the Metropolitan Administration and Public Affairs Office also took over the conversation.

"And the Metropolitan Council."

"Within the existing budget, payments can be expedited. The governor can request that the various bureaus improve their processes. If it involves adding new guarantees, establishing special funds, or changing the settlement rules for public works, the council will definitely intervene."

"The remaining members of the Suzuki faction will not easily allow Isomura to turn all his campaign promises into his own achievements."

He reached out and took the flowchart from Gondo.

"Even if the ordinance is passed, the Metropolitan Government may use the review process to delay it. The Construction Bureau says it has to wait for the Finance Bureau, the Finance Bureau says the amount of the debt needs to be confirmed by the Construction Bureau, and then the audit department will request a supplementary explanation of fairness."

"Every department can say that it's working on it."

"Then thirty days passed."

The meeting gradually became lively.

Everyone has a point.

And precisely because both sides have their reasons, problems are starting to emerge.

Gondo discusses the realistic timeframe between project completion and acceptance. The finance department is concerned with whether the debt can be included on the bank's balance sheet. Sasaki considers the potential legal liabilities that may arise after the system becomes public. The Metropolitan Government Office, on the other hand, includes the Metropolitan Assembly, the bureaucratic system, and post-election political obstacles in the same diagram.

Masato Saionji then spoke about SIS's observations of Isomura's campaign team.

He believes that Isomura is good at judging public sentiment and can quickly absorb the opinions provided by professionals, but the campaign team's command chain is very short, and many decisions can be made directly by the candidate himself.

The capital city would not operate like this.

"The campaign office only has a few dozen core members. When there is a disagreement, Isomura can call people into his room for a talk."

Masato pushed up his glasses and looked at Satsuki at the other end of the conference room.

"But the Metropolitan Government has over 100,000 employees, as well as the Metropolitan Council, district governments, outlying groups, and long-term cooperating industry organizations. It's not clear whether he can bring the judgment methods he used during the election campaign to that."

Takahashi immediately wrote down these words.

"This is very important, could you please add something else...?"

Masato continued speaking.

Takahashi initially pressed for more information.

After a dozen minutes, all he could do was keep turning the pages.

The first item on the agenda, originally scheduled for thirty minutes, had already exceeded forty-five minutes. The second item had not yet begun, but six new definitions of "thirty-day settlement" had appeared on the table.

What's more troublesome is that, in the end, everyone's gaze naturally turns to Satsuki.

They obeyed today's arrangements.

But this obedience came from Satsuki's orders.

Takahashi sat in the main seat, but Satsuki remained the true center of the meeting room.

As soon as she speaks, all arguments immediately cease. As long as she provides direction, the six people can quickly converge their opinions into an implementation plan.

Satsuki has the ability to immediately point out problems, and she also has the ability to make everyone absolutely obedient.

But she simply sat by the window drinking tea.

Occasionally, he would turn a page of a Soviet document, or glance at the conference table for a moment.

She is waiting.

Since the start of the meeting, Satsuki has only spoken a few words when necessary. She sits by the window, occasionally flipping through the documents beside her, but mostly just quietly watching the people at the long table.

She handed over the chair to Takahashi, along with the power to decide how the meeting should proceed.

But he never actually caught it.

What exactly am I being so polite about?

He worried that interrupting Gondo would make the managing director, who had worked in the construction industry for decades, think he didn't know the rules; he worried that limiting Maki's reporting scope would expose that he didn't know how to chair a group meeting; every time Sasaki mentioned legal provisions, he subconsciously wanted the other person to finish speaking, as if if he didn't listen to a single sentence, his subsequent judgment would seem unprofessional.

He was even concerned about whether his wording was humble enough.

"Please add the following information": "If it's convenient," "What do you think is necessary?"

Every sentence was very thoughtful.

It was precisely these thoughtful gestures that allowed the six people at the table to return to their familiar seats. They laid out the most complete information, the most professional opinions, and the most prudent risk assessments on the table in turn, and then waited for Satsuki to make her choice.

But if Satsuki has to do everything, then what's the point of doing anything herself?

Takahashi looked down at his notebook.

Seven arrows have been drawn below "30-day settlement". These include: acceptance, design changes, additional works, budget items, debt confirmation, bank discounts, and parliamentary deliberations. Each item is followed by new conditions.

He memorized every word of the campaign records provided by Maki, the personnel relationships compiled by Masato, and the legal restrictions cited by Sasaki.

All of this is important.

If he continued listening in the original order, he would certainly be able to compile a more complete set of meeting minutes than the report from the 17th.

Every department's opinion will be properly preserved, and every risk will be written in the appendix, so that no one can find any obvious omissions.

This is the safest approach.

but.

and then?

Is Isomura really capable of doing it?

Where should Saionji stop?

These questions will remain buried in dozens of pages of documents, waiting for Satsuki to find them herself.

This is not much different from his first sixty-page report. The more data he gathers, the further his conclusions stray from the truth.

Takahashi's fingers tightened around the pen.

The pen nib lingered in the same spot for too long, causing ink to seep into the paper and leave a small, dark stain.

He suddenly realized that Satsuki had asked him to sit here not because she lacked someone to record her opinions.

The people at the table didn't need him to prove that he was more professional than them.

What he really needs to do is get different departments to stop at the same problem, and then select the one that can be put into action from all the valid opinions.

Even if this choice means that some opinions will be temporarily set aside.

Even if some people feel that he hasn't considered things thoroughly enough.

Takahashi loosened his fingers and removed the pen from the ink stain.

When he looked up, the finance manager was explaining the bank's discounting method for unconfirmed claims, Gondo had already turned to the next flowchart, and Sasaki had a supplementary legal opinion lying next to him.

If this continues, half an hour later, there will only be another stack of correct documents on the table.

Takahashi took a breath.

"Everyone, please stop for a moment."